Sunday, November 18, 2018

Reading the signs of the times! The tone and words of today’s reading appear dark and troubling, but they are intended to offer us hope and expectation. Our First Reading, from the prophet Daniel, looks forward to an afterlife where those faithful to God will rise to an eternal life. This passage is the earliest reference in the scriptures to hope in an individual resurrection.

Today’s Gospel passage comes from a chapter in Mark’s Gospel in which Jesus speaks, for the entire chapter, about his Second Coming at the end of time. Jesus uses images, pictures, and the imagination of the Jewish people to describe this event.  He is not giving a blueprint for exactly what is going to take place in the future. Instead, by means of the images, he conveys a simple truth that he will return at the end of time.  We proclaim this truth in the Apostles Creed: “I believe in the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come”.

Jesus’ words are not meant to be terrifying. The apocalyptic imagery at least partly reflects the suffering and evil that people were already experiencing. This evil will surely be vanquished when Christ returns, and this vanquishing of evil will surely entail some chaos before the dawn of peace.  As part of the Gospel, the Good News, Jesus’s words offer us hope that we are destined for eternal life. The Gospel calls on us to be watchful and to lead our lives in expectation of the master’s return. At Home With The Word.

In His love and mine, Fr. Ken

In the Spring of 1988, Bishop William D. Keeler formed a new parish to accommodate the rapid growth in Silver Spring Township and named Reverend James R. O’Brien as the founding pastor. That same year, Mother Katharine Drexel was beatified by Pope John Paul, II. At Bishop Keeler’s request, the Holy Father gave his permission to name the Parish in Silver Spring Township as the first parish in the world to be named in her honor. Eighteen years later, on October 1, 2000, Blessed Katharine Drexel was canonized and the church’s name changed to Saint Katharine Drexel.

The Saint Katharine Drexel Parish Family, guided by the Holy Spirit, commits itself to reaching out and sharing with all people the love and service modeled by our patroness, with the Eucharist as our source of strength. Through prayer and action, we will serve God, our Lord and Savior, and our community, exhibiting a special concern for the poor, oppressed and marginalized of our society, especially those among the African-American & Native-American peoples.