Dearest Parishioners of Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish,

Along with Father Fullum, Deacon Peter, and the Sisters of the Convent, may I extend to each one of you a Happy, Joyful, and Blessed Easter!… May you be blessed with the ever-greater awareness of the Presence and Power of the Risen Jesus in our lives and in our world!

Beginning today, and for the next few weeks, we will again hear at Mass, the beautiful Resurrection accounts that the Apostles and first disciples witnessed. In the Gospel according to St. Luke, we are told, “…He stood in their midst and said to them, ‘Peace be with you’…” The first gift of the Risen Jesus is PEACE! Not just the absence of turmoil or conflict…but rather, the tranquility and serenity of mind, heart and spirit that comes with faith and trust in Him when there is turmoil or conflict…not APART from it. The Risen Jesus stands “in the midst” of suffering and death like He stood “in the midst” of the Apostles, who were so full of fear and discouragement after His crucifixion, before He proved He was alive! He stands “in the midst” of our own individual and communal suffering which has caused so much unimaginable sorrow, confusion and disruption to our lives in so many ways. However, we do not let it overwhelm us, because our faith, no matter how weak or insincere or inadequate we may feel it is, is rooted in the Risen Lord! It may be as “small as mustard seed,” but it can blossom into the “largest of bushes” when we turn to Him with loving confidence. It is always so challenging to wonder why our Lord does not remove the causes of suffering in our lives and in the lives of those we love. He only asks us to be His Presence to one another “in the midst” of it. That is how the Risen Jesus rises again in us and how His risen presence is felt by others, when we love one another as He loves us. Saint Teresa of Avila wrote this prayer in the 16th century, “(The Risen) Christ has no body now but YOURS. No hands, no feet on earth but YOURS…YOURS are the eyes through which He looks with compassion. YOURS are the hands through which He blesses all the world…YOURS are the feet with which HE is to go about doing good. Amen.”

Through the intercession of our Blessed Mother Mary, may we rejoice with her at the sight of her Risen Son and be grateful for the gift of His presence in us reaching out to our brothers and sisters! Regina Caeli, Laetare! ALLELUIA! Queen of Heaven, rejoice! ALLELUIA!

With love and blessings,

Father Fred

P.S. Next Sunday is the Feast of the Divine Mercy. Usually, Sacred Heart Parish would sponsor a Holy Hour at 3:00 p.m. (The Hour of Divine Mercy) in the Church, with solemn chanting of the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy and Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament with Benediction. I am happy to announce that the Holy Hour and chanting of the Chaplet will still take place online from our Church at 3:00 p.m. on next Sunday, April 19th. If you are able, please join Deacon Peter and myself, as we pray on behalf of the parish to humbly ask for God’s Mercy upon us and the whole world. The Church will NOT be opened, but you can participate online by viewing it on the Sacred Heart Glendale Facebook Page.