Recent News &
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Recent News &
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GOOD NEWS: Br. Silas Henderson, SDS, who provided adult faith formation opportunities before he moved to Tucson, has offer to give a two-hour “retreat for busy people” at Pius on Saturday morning, August 24, from 9 to 11 am. The retreat is titled The Magnificat: making Mary’s song your own. More information will follow, but please mark your calendar to take advantage of this opportunity. This will replace the reflection which had been scheduled for Tuesday evening, August 27th.
Wednesday I had my first visit with the doctor since the operation 6 weeks ago. He said he was please with the x-rays, that the plate and all the screws were aligned as he wanted. He put another cast on for the next four weeks, allowing very limited weight to be put on during that time. I will remain where I am and go back to the doctor on July 31. Thank you for your continued prayers and support. I recently received an e-mail from Fr. Fernando Zapeta, the pastor of our sister parish in Guatemala, with two pieces of information. First, with their celebration of the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ on June 20th, they began their parish “Missionary Week,” in which the Blessed Sacrament will visit the home of every parishioner. The celebration concluded on July 7th with the Mass of the Martyrs (We will remember the martyrs of our sister parish the weekend of July 27/28). Second, they are nearing the completion of badly needed renovations to the parish hall, being done with materials purchased with money from our collection. When they are finished, hopefully sometime this month, they will offer a special Mass for our intentions, in thanksgiving for our support. Pius Parishioners Always Come Through!!! Our readings pick up the theme from last week of the place of law in our lives. Our first reading says the law is not up in the sky or across the ocean, that is, far away, but rather is in our very hearts, as close to us as can be. I will return to this. In the Gospel, a lawyer is putting Jesus to the test, asking what he must do to gain eternal life. Jesus turns the question back on him and he gives the right answer: it all comes down to love of God and love of neighbor. Jesus’ responds: do this and you will live. In other words, it isn’t enough to KNOW but we must LIVE the law of love. We must DO it. The lawyer persists and, in response, Jesus shares one of the best known and loved parables, the parable of the Good Samaritan. We are not told the motives of the religious leaders who passed by the needy man, but we are told the Samaritan’s: he was moved with compassion. Notice that “compassion” is a “heart” word, literally “with passion.” Though, as a Samaritan, he was hated and shunned by Jews, including the victim, his heart moved him to action. That my friends, is the lesson for us. The law is not in the sky or across the water, it is in our hearts. We need to feel “with compassion” when someone is in need, even if they do not belong to our group or our religion or our country or or…or…… No doubt it is a challenge and our culture seems to be moving in the opposite direction. That makes it all the more important that, as followers of Jesus, we grow in our ability to be the Good Samaritan to others, especially those who do not have resources and others to help or protect them. We have to be witnesses to the love of neighbor that Jesus espoused and lived. Our hearts need to grow more and more to be like the heart of the Good Samaritan, like the heart of the Good Shepherd, like the heart of the Son of God who gave all for us. I invite us to reflect this week on the compassionate heart of Jesus, asking ourselves how compassionate we are. When do I tend to be compassionate? How can I grow in compassion? What is one concrete situation in which I can learn to be more compassionate and how can I do it? And let us support each other’s effort in prayer. Br. Silas Henderson SDS will return to Milwaukee from Tucson
to present a mini retreat on Saturday, August 24, from 9 to 11 am at Pius. He will explore Mary’s Magnificat and how this hymn of praise invites us to live as disciples. This replaces the evening of reflection which had been scheduled for Tuesday evening, August 27. Once again, Saturday morning, August 24, from 9 to 11. Please plan to attend. I hope you are having a good summer. Warm weather is finally here!
Our Living Waters Lenten campaign for 2019 raised $26,500, which will build 5 wells in Tanzania and repair some others. I thank you for your generosity. PACT: Pius Parishioners Always Come Through! For the next couple weeks, our readings will examine the role of “law” in our lives as followers of Jesus. A big issue for early Jewish Christians was whether or not to follow the Jewish Law, symbolized by circumcision. When Paul says, for neither does circumcision mean anything, nor does uncircumcision, he is not advocating anarchy or everyone can do anything they want, but rather stating that, at the end of it all, how we followed the law is not the central issue: the central issue is our relationship with Christ and others. To say it in another way, “righteousness” is a right relationship with God, shown through right relationships with others. Laws and rules and rituals are to help us to get there, to grow in this ability. But our tendency is to turn these guides or aides to loving relationships into an achievement test or grading system—which can lead us to be self-righteous and judgmental of others. Then the laws and guides have the opposite effect: instead of leading us to loving relationships with God and others, they divide us as we judge and dismiss others. It is tricky to balance observing rules and laws without making them the be-all and end-all. One way to discern is to ask whether we are growing in compassion and love for others, or if we are judgmental and self-righteous. When I find myself being judgmental, I ask if it is my responsibility to do so. As Director of Candidates for the Salvatorians, I need to be judging candidates. That is a responsibility. But often when I have judgmental thoughts, it is not my responsibility—or even my business! I invite us to reflect this week on how we relate to rules and laws. Do we use them to help us grow in our love of God shown through love of neighbor? In what ways do I feel self-righteous and judgmental of others? Is there one specific situation in which I can change for the good and HOW can I do that? And let us support each other in prayer. -- Paul James Portland, SDS The Pastoral Council held its last meeting before summer on June 19th. We thanked Stacey Stark and Kevin McGinty, who finished their service on the council. We welcomed Latonia Bird and Lisa Marie Idzikowski, who begin a three-year term on the council as of July 1st.
We thanked Joanna Clementi for her service this past year as council chairperson. The new chair is Chris Graham. Jane Koss continues as vice chair and Emily Wisniewski as secretary. Thank you for your past service and willingness to continue. Our parish needs to send two representatives to the North West Deanery meetings (a “deanery” is a division of the diocese). Our representatives will be Joanna Clementi and Emily Wisniewski. The following liaisons were chosen for various parish groups: Finance Council: Ron Skelton and Dennis Myers Stewardship Commission: Latonia Bird Community Life Committee: Formation and Evangelization Commission: Lisa Marie Idzikowski Health Committee: Justice and Peace Commission: Jane Koss Liturgy Commission: Kathy Wellenstein Parish Collaborative Committee: Jack Cluka The open spots will be filled by pastoral council members who could not attend the June meeting. The liaisons will have the special task this year to help their group work toward implementing the parish goal. The Finance Council met on June 24th and discerned its leadership for the next year. The former vice chairperson, Steve Scheuing, became chairperson, and the former chairperson, Colleen Pashke, became vice chairperson. Jim Jaworowicz is the secretary. I thank you for your past service and for your willingness to serve. I thank all Pastoral and Finance Council members for this crucial ministry. Please keep members of both councils in your prayers. -- Paul James Portland, SDS It's time once again to be a hero!
Dick's 21st Blood Drive Saturday, July 6th from 8 AM until 1 PM in the gym at Wauwatosa Catholic School All attempting donors will receive a free State Fair ticket and brats and hot dogs will be served to all donors and their guests. Please go to www.bit.ly/Dicks21 to make an appointment or call Mary at 414-915-4147 Thank you for all of your support! Thank you for your continuing prayers for my healing. I am being as patient as possible in this non weight bearing period of my recovery. I won’t have any new information until the bulletin on July 14. Meanwhile, a joke: There is a fine line distinction between a rambling, never-ending homily and a hostage situation! I look forward to returning as soon as I can and I promise: no rambling homilies! Welcome to Fr. Patric and thanks for stepping in.
I’ve often shared the importance of quiet time with the Lord. Put "come away to your secret place" in your browser to read an excellent article by Pat Marrin on this topic. As we reenter Ordinary time, our readings remind us, yet again, that we are called to follow Christ and bring His Good News to those around us. Our goal for 2019-2020 is to grow in our ability to do so, both as individuals and as a community. Our first reading presents the call of Elisha to be a prophet. He was not a likely candidate: while relatively well off (he had 12 oxen), he was a farmer. But he said goodbye to his family, killed the oxen, cooked them on a fire fed by the wood from his plow, and gave the food to the poor. By doing this, he made sure he could not go back to his former way of life: the animals and plow were gone. In the Gospel Jesus says “follow me” to a number of people, each of whom has what seems on the surface to be valid requests, but in actuality were delaying tactics, for example, “let me go first and bury my father.” If the father was dead, the man wouldn’t have been there: he would have been burying his father, because a burial had to take place almost immediately, certainly within 24 hours. Jesus’ followers would have understood that he was saying, “I’ll follow you after I’ve taken care of everything else that I want/need to take care of." We have said “yes” to follow Jesus, to bring His Good News to others. Do we turn back? What hesitations might we have? As people do when they enter a marriage, we need to leave behind some of our own desires and wants for the sake of the mission that we have accepted. I invite us to reflect this week: what are some personal challenges or attachments hindering me from answering Jesus’ call to follow Him? How can I grow? And let us support each other in prayer. -- Paul James Portland, SDS Beginning this fall, we will focus on The Affordable Housing Crisis and Eviction which so highly correlated homelessness and poverty. We’ll begin by reading the book EVICTED, by Matthew Desmond. We encourage you to read this book this summer and participate in the activities we will have this fall. Matthew Desmond has continued his work since writing the book and has prompted much more research in this area. An exhibition based on his book opened June 21st at the Mobile Design Box at 753 N. 27th St. The “Evicted” exhibit is free and open to the public until September 30th. This is a unique opportunity to heighten our awareness of an issue that impacts families throughout our Milwaukee community. If you don’t have time to read his book, you can listen to an interview of Desmond with Terry Gross of NPR’s Fresh Air. The interview aired in April 2018 and is available online or podcast. Also available is a podcast of NPR’s On The Media series entitled, ”The Scarlett E.” Both are keenly interesting and offer another option for learning more on the subject. Thank you for joining with us as we consider this compelling social issue. Congratulations to Deacon Patric on his ordination this Sunday, June 23rd, at Mother of Good
Council at noon. We will celebrate with him this coming Sunday, June 30th, with a light lunch reception in the rectory living room/dining room after the 10:30 Mass. Please join him for Mass and the celebration. We still lag far behind in our parish goal for the catholic Stewardship Appeal. These monies help those in need and fund programs that support our parish. We have donated $7, 752 of our goal of $20,000. If you have not yet donated, please do so. Thank you. This weekend we celebrate Corpus Christi or the Body and Blood of Christ, our last special feast before returning to Luke’s Gospel in “Ordinary” time. One would expect the Gospel to be an account of the institution of the Eucharist, but it is not; we are given Luke’s version of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes. It is easy to presume that this Gospel was chosen to emphasize that the multiplication foreshadowed the Eucharist. But I think it is chosen to make sure we catch the true meaning of the Eucharist and not be caught up in the externals. It is the same dynamic our readings used on Holy Thursday: the Gospel said nothing about the Eucharist or the institution of the priesthood; we were presented with the washing of feet. In other words, the true meaning of both the Eucharist and priesthood is found in SERVICE, in washing the feet of others. Our Gospel this weekend says nothing about the Body and Blood of Christ, but talks about breaking what we have been given so that it can be shared with others, be it our time, be it our skills and abilities, or be it food and material resources. THAT is what the Eucharist is all about: if we received communion day after day but are not growing in our ability to share with others, as did Jesus, it makes no sense. Do THIS in MEMORY of me! The THIS is not just celebrating the Eucharist: it is living a life of service, as did Jesus. In 1 Corinthians, Paul is railing against the community because they were celebrating the Eucharist, doing the rituals correctly, but being a loving, sharing, inclusive community; the rich has an abundance and the poor lacked what they needed, even in the meal they were supposed to be having together. This feast calls us to reflect on how we are celebrating the Eucharist: is it a ritual that we go through or is it food that strengthens us to be more loving and giving to others? Is it helping us grow in our ability to give of ourselves for others, as did Jesus? I invite us to reflect this week on the wonderful gift of the Body and Blood of Christ and ask ourselves how we are using it to grow in service to others. And let us support each other in prayer. -- Paul James Portland, SDS Congratulations to Deacon Patric, who will be ordained Sunday, June 23rd, at noon at Mother of Good Counsel. Please join him for the Mass, if possible.
I received a good doctor’s report and a new cast last week, as well as a “prescription” of four more weeks of putting no weight on the foot. I also found out I have a plate and screws in the foot, so I should have fun at airport screening! My next appointment is July 3rd. The sisters are taking good care of me. Thank you for your continued prayers. As always, we celebrate the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity the weekend after Pentecost. I “understand” or wrap my mind around the mystery of the Trinity in this way (this is NOT a theological treatise but a personal reflection): Each of us plays many roles in our lives, a number of them at the same time. For example, I am the pastor at Pius with various duties and responsibilities and as pastor I conduct myself in a certain way. I am also a member of the Salvatorian Family and my responsibility as a member of the Provincial Council of the religious men means I conduct myself in a different way when I am at a community gathering. I am the Director of Candidates for the Society, which brings different responsibilities and ways of acting in my local community. And I am a member of the large Portland family, used to joking and teasing with my many brothers. But I am one being, Paul Portland, despite all these different roles, responsibilities, and ways of acting. That is how I understand the Holy Trinity. There is one God, as there is one of any of us. But that God has different roles and ways of relating to us, different personae one might say. One of those personae is the creating God, the God who brought everything into being and sustains creation; another is the redeeming God, the God who reached out when we turned away; and another is the inspiring or mentoring God, the God who continues to walk with us as we travel through life. This makes perfect sense to me: we all have different personae, different roles, different responsibilities. So does God. It is revealing (about ourselves) to reflect on how we image and relate to God. For example, I relate to God as Father most when I am awed by the beauty of creation or the incredible complexity of life (I feel the most distant from this persona of God). When I am confused or troubled or trying to figure out how to move forward with an issue, I relate to God the Spirit. Most of the time, I relate to Jesus, who was human like me, and I try to build a personal relationship with Him, I look at His actions to see how I should act (in one sense, this could be the same as what I said about the Holy Spirit, but, then, it IS Jesus’ Spirit, isn’t it?) I invite us this week to reflect on the Trinity and our personal relationship with the various personae of our One, Triune God. How can I grow to bring the creative, redeeming, and inspiring God closer to my heart? The closer He is to my heart, the easier I can share His love with others! And let us support each other in prayer. -- Paul James Portland, SDS Deacon Patric Nikolas SDS, who has served our community for the past year, will be ordained to the priesthood at Mother of Good Counsel on June 23, 2019. Please accompany Patric in the Mass of Ordination that begins at noon. The following Sunday, June 30, St. Pius X will hold a luncheon reception in honor of Patric in the rectory/living room after the 10:30 Mass. Please join us. Patric will continue to assist at St. Pius X, while teaching theology full time at Divine Savior Holy Angels High School. Seems like everything went well in the operation, and I am comfortably settled into a community of the Salvatorian Sisters, where healing can take place. It is best for the community if visitors are limited, so, while I appreciate the desire to visit me, the best is to continue with prayers. I have my first post-operation doctor visit in a few days, and when I am able to move around more, I will try to come to Mass.
This weekend we celebrate Pentecost, the birthday of the Church. In our first reading from Acts of the Apostles, we see the disciples, who had been locked in a room out of fear, go forth fearlessly to proclaim the Risen Lord. That is the gift of the Holy Spirit, which we all received at Baptism and Confirmation. Reflecting on our second reading and the Gospel will help us to recognize the call that our parish goal for 2019-2020 makes to each and every one of us. In our reading from Corinthians, Paul tells us “to each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit.” There are “different spiritual gifts…different kinds of service…different workings,” but each person has gifts that are to be used for the community. In the Gospel from John, we hear Jesus say to his disciples (and us) “as the Father has sent me, so I send you” and then He breathed the Holy Spirit on them. Our parish goal for the coming year is the following: Energize and grow our membership by providing a welcoming environment with strong adult formation and activities for all ages to foster spiritual growth and a strong desire to make disciples of all people. My friends, each of us has gifts and talents, each of us has time, each of us can work to “make disciples of all people.” Together we can do so much, especially because we have the Holy Spirit as our ally. But we have to give the Holy Spirit a chance, which is why I urge all of us to make the resolution to worship regularly with the community, allowing the Holy Spirit to work through the scriptures and homilies, not to mention the Body and Blood of Christ, to strengthen us as disciples. That is basic. Then I invite each parishioner to be involved in at least one community ministry or activity. We each have gifts. We each have talents. We each have time. As we celebrate the birthday of our Community, the Body of Christ, the Church, I invite us to reflect on how we can be more connected and how we can use our gifts to “make disciples of all nations,” one person at a time. And let us support each other in prayer. -- Paul James Portland, SDS Saturday, June 15, 10 a.m. at St. Anne’s Salvatorian Campus 3800 N. 92nd Street, Milwaukee, WI 53222 If you find yourself asking troubling questions about a loved one, this FREE presentation is for you. The program will be held in the Gathering Room. 10:00 a.m. Presentation by neuropsychologist Pam McMurray Pam is an expert in the field of aging and memory issues. Learn the hallmarks and causes of age-related memory loss and dementia — and the benefits of early assessment. 11:00 a.m. Virtual Dementia Tour® This is a hands-on, eight minute sensory training exercise to simulate the world of a person living with dementia, with a ten-minute debriefing afterwards. Join us for the presentation or the tour — or both. Space is limited. Please RSVP for each segment separately by calling 414-463-7570 or email lrichardson@stannescampus.org. Because of Memorial Day, this letter needed to be ready by May 23rd, so I submitted it the day before my operation. I will have an update in the letter next week. Thank you for your continued prayers.
This weekend we celebrate the feast of the Ascension of the Lord. I have always smiled during the first reading when the two men in white garments say to the disciples, "Men of Galilee, why are you standing there looking at the sky?” It is like they are saying, “He’s gone, get over it, move on.” In other words, “He has done His part, now you must do yours.” That is why the Ascension is important. If Jesus had stayed around, all the focus would be on Him. But He had done His part, finishing by giving the great Commission as His last words before ascending: Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. The point is that our primary focus needs to be on proclaiming the Gospel, especially by how we live. That is what it means to be a Christian: we are evangelizers! For some the concept “to evangelize” is negative, thinking of Evangelicals who might have been pushy or invasive. That is more correctly called proselytizing and that is not what I mean by “evangelizing.” We are called to live in such a way that others say, “see how they love one another,” or ask us, “How come you are always so happy?” or “How can you have such a positive attitude when the world is so messed up?” etc. Then we have the opportunity to share a little bit what our Faith means to us, inviting the other person in. The words attributed to St. Francis say it well: Preach the Gospel at all times. When necessary, use words. That is what I mean by “evangelizing.” Our parish goal for 2019-2020 has been presented to you recently. I repeat it: Energize and grow our membership by providing a welcoming environment with strong adult formation and activities for all ages to foster spiritual growth and a strong desire to make disciples of all people. This goal is simply inviting us to make sure we are growing in our ability to live the Gospel in such a way that we are cooperating with the grace of God as He invites people to live a life of Gospel values. Ultimately, it isn’t our work, it is God’s. But He need and wants our cooperation. I invite us this week to reflect on our goal, asking ourselves what we can do to help the community move forward as a place where people encounter other people inflamed with joy, as they live the command to “love one another.” And let us support each other in prayer. -- Paul James Portland, SDS Please be aware that scammers are using priests’ e-mails asking for donations, gift cards, etc. Ignore anything like that that comes. My e-mail has been used so this is not theoretical.
We have contributed $7,717 toward our parish goal for the Catholic Stewardship appeal. This appeal is crucial for services we receive from the archdiocese and help given to those in need through Catholic Charities. If you have not yet contributed, please do so. Scandals and strong ideological divisions are not new to the Catholic Church, as evidenced by our first reading this weekend from the Acts of the Apostles. The first Christians were Jews near Jerusalem and they continued to follow many of the former laws and practices. Paul was far from Jerusalem and converting Gentiles, without requiring them to follow Jewish practices and laws. Some in Jerusalem were shouting “heresy” and sending delegations that were upsetting the churches that Paul had established. The early Church navigated through this difficulty with a process that is valuable for us to remember today, as a Church, as a country, as a community, as individuals. First, people came together to talk, to debate, to explain their viewpoints (this gathering is called the Council of Jerusalem, the first Council of the Catholic Church). Emphasis was placed on lived experience and on the scriptures. Then they prayed and discerned, coming to a conclusion that everyone could live with. Finally, they communicated the decision throughout the Church. It seems like everywhere in our culture there is division and disagreement. In itself that is not a problem: it is an invitation to growth. The problem lies in the negative approaches taken, such as name calling, attacking people instead of looking at the issues, not being willing to compromise, etc., etc. I invite us to reflect on the process presented to us in this reading, asking ourselves to what extent we use positive approaches to a disagreement, approaches that lead to a resolution. Perhaps identifying negative approaches we use, such as attacking an individual instead of staying on the issue, might give us greater clarity on how we can grow in helping to resolve differences. Blessed are the peacemakers…. And let us support each other in prayer. -- Paul James Portland, SDS
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