Dear Friends in Christ
With this weekend we resume the period known as Ordinary Time, although in the coming month there are still some lovely celebrations of the liturgical year. The Gospel at Mass this Sunday - the raising of the son of the widow of Nain - enables us to see the compassion of Jesus. St Luke explains that Jesus was moved. Perhaps He even showed visible signs of His sorrow. Jesus was never and is not now, insensitive to suffering. He knows He is surrounded by a crowd that would be in awe of a miracle but He does does act artificially or for effect. He quite simply is touched by the suffering of the poor woman who had lost her only son. So He goes up to her and comforts and reassures her. In this we can see a model for the way we should feel for others in their misfortunes. We learn from Our Lord to live with a heart like His Heart. The month of June is precisely the month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (we celebrated the feast last Friday). By going in and through the Heart of our Saviour we find all of the comfort and consolation we need for this life. Jesus has shown us by His Heart the grandeur of human love that we are called to live.
Last Sunday we honoured Jesus in His real sacramental presence in the celebration of Corpus Christi. Our Procession is an expression of our desire to make Jesus better known and loved in the Eucharist. It was an occasion of joy as a large number of us took Jesus out of the church so that he could be seen by the world. We are all grateful to those who helped dignify the occasion, especially the Tilbury Brass Band who accompanied us and the women of the CWL who provided a wonderful Tea afterwards.
One of the facets of the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is the reparation, or atoning love, that we can offer to Him for those who do not love Him as much as they could. We have so many opportunities to show our love for God and we can often miss them. We often disappoint Our Lord when we could make the effort to be with Him and choose not to. One of the great disappointments of Priests is seeing little human response for such great love on God’s part. May this month of the Sacred Heart help us respond more generously, even in public ways, to the love Jesus extends to us in His Heart. God bless you all!
Msgr Kevin Hale