Join us for Easter, March 27, 2016

Easter Sunday, March 27th, 2016

A very happy and blessed Easter to each one of you!  It is interesting to contrast and compare the various events in the Gospels.  For example, if we look at St. John's Gospel, he only has Mary Magadalene going to the tomb by herself after Our Lord had been laid to rest following His death on the Cross.  In St. Mark's Gospel account, though, we hear "WHEN the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the Mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint Him."    When I read this particular verse from St. Mark, I can't help but think of when people say something to the effect of "Don't bring me flowers when I'm dead, bring them to me while I'm alive."  Have you ever heard something along these lines or perhaps maybe you have made a similar statement yourself?  In all fairness, this is a valid point when you think about it.  If you had your choice, would you prefer for someone to show their love to you while you are alive or after you are dead?  I think it is safe to say we would all prefer to be shown the love now while we are still "here," so to speak.  In that same respect, we also should be paying attention to Our Blessed Saviour here and now, right now, while we still have the opportunity.  So often we only go to God when we need something from Him.  We only go to God when we need His assistance.  We only go to God when we are in trouble.  But other than that, we don't have time for God.  We need to make time for God on a daily basis.  We need to find time to pray on a daily basis.  We need to tell God on a daily basis that we love Him.  And, quite frankly, we need to act like Christians on a daily basis  . . . .  and not just when we are in church!  We should never miss an opportunity to show love to those whom we love while they are still with us.  I know in my own life I wish that I could say to my own mother, or my grandparents, for example, how much I love them and just enjoy being in their presence one last time.  But we can do this with God.  Spend time with God.  Go to Him on a daily basis.  Bring your cares to Him.  Bring your worries to Him.  Bring your joys to Him.  Just spend time in His presence.  

On Sunday, March 27th, 2016, St. Margaret and Holy Spirit Churches will celebrate Easter.  There will be one combined Mass on Easter Sunday.  Mass will be celebrated at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.  Please note that we celebrate Mass as we do each Easter up on the Fourth Floor in the "Upper Room."  Mass begins at 9:30 AM.  Come spend some quality time with God on Easter Sunday.  Thank Jesus for the wonderful gifts He has given you:  namely, forgiveness of your sins and also the gift of eternal life He freely offers to each one of us.  

Join us for Passion Sunday, March 13th, 2016

Fifth Sunday in Lent, Commonly Called Passion Sunday, 

March 13th, 2016

Similar to everyone else, I like to save money where I can.  I suppose one of the ways I "save" money is buying the cheap brands for products when possible.  In other words, why should I pay four or five dollars for a brand-name item when the cheap dollar-store variety works just as well?  I suppose it depends on the product, obviously.  Sometimes this strategy works great and saves you money to begin with.  Other times it may end up costing you money in the long run.  Case in point.  A clogged up sink.  I proposed saving money by buying the "cheap" generic versions of the drain cleaner.  I insisted on buying the "generic" drain cleaners because I could not fathom paying six or seven dollars for a brand-name when I could just spend a buck-fifty and be done with it.  The problem is that the generic version for a "buck-fifty" didn't work so well and I had to repeat the process another two times, still with no success and then ultimately ended up spending the six dollars for the "heavy-duty," "brand-name" drain cleaner and, voila!, drain is cleaned in a snap!  Just like that!  My efforts, though, at the beginning were in vain especially considering I spent money on products that really did not work to begin with, not to mention multiple trips to the store.  Now, my purpose in writing this is not to get people to only buy name-brand products as opposed to cheaper, less-known products.  No, I am just using this as an example of times where we have tried and tried and tried, without success, and then, boom!, we finally succeed with amazing results.  I just used the drain-cleaning example because it came to mind but I know each one of us can come up with our own example of doing something repeatedly without much success and then we end up with amazing results!

In the Ninth Chapter of the Letter to the Hebrews, we are reminded of the sacrifice of bulls and goats made by the high priest in the Temple.  We are reminded in this chapter that if the blood of goats, and bulls and heifers helps to sanctify the "unclean," "how much more shall the blood of Christ" (v. 14) sanctify the unclean?  You see, for countless generations, the high priests would make sacrifices behind the second veil, as we are reminded in this chapter, to atone for the sins of God's people.  As we are reminded, the high priest went in alone to offer up sins for God's people once a year.  But it is the Blood of Christ which turned out to be the ultimate sacrifice.  We can try and try and try to fix things ourselves, but it is only Our Blessed Saviour Who can save us from our sins.  Perhaps you have had the experience of being in a jam and you tried and tried and tried to get things right and it just seemed to get worse and worse and worse.  And then you placed the situation in God's hands and within a short time, you noticed everything got better.   If our efforts are good . . . . Christ's are better.  If the blood of sacrificed goats and bulls is good . . . Christ's Blood is better.  Never fail to put your life in God's hands.  Do your part, yes, but always look to Christ for inspiration.  Always look to God for how to live your life better.  Always look towards the Holy Ghost for inspiration.  Give your life to God and live your life as His servant.    Living life our way may be good but living life God's way is better.

St Margaret Church gathers every Sunday at 9:30 AM.  We worship at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

Holy Spirit Church gathers together every Sunday at 1:00 PM.  We worship at the beautiful, historic First Presbyterian Church, located at 116 W. South Street in Greenfield, Indiana.  

Join us for Mass as we gather to hear God's word.  Join us as we gather as God's family to worship Him.  Join with your brothers and sisters as we all take one hour out of our busy schedules and dedicate that hour to the worship of Our Blessed Saviour!  And then receive the Precious Body and Blood of Christ, the Good Shepherd Who laid down His life for His sheep!

March 12th, 2016 Birthday of St. Gemma Galgani

March 12th is the Birthday of St. Gemma Galgani

March 12th is the birthday of our dear St. Gemma. St. Gemma, so humble of heart, you never fail to lead souls to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Help us better appreciate the Passion of Our Blessed Saviour. Help us to gain better understanding through our suffering the suffering that Our Lord endured on our behalf. Help us to always offer up our suffering in remembrance of the Passion of Our Blessed Saviour and the suffering he endured out of His love for us! St. Gemma, I love you! Jesus, Mary, Joseph! Save souls!

Join us for Laetare Sunday, March 6th, 2016

Fourth Sunday in Lent, or Laetare Sunday, March 6th, 2016

In the Sixth Chapter of St. John's Gospel, we hear the story of the feeding of the Five-Thousand by Our Blessed Saviour.  But at the beginning of this chapter St. John tells us that there were many people that were following Our Saviour because they saw the miracles that He did.  And then St. John tells us that Our Lord went aside with His disciples away from the multitude:  " . . . . and there he sat with his disciples"  Have you ever had people "latch on" to you.  I'm talking about people that had never shown an interest in you previously and then all of the sudden, you become "popular."  And it suddenly dawns on you that your sudden "popularity" is nothing more than curiosity in something you had done or perhaps you had won something.  You hear this, for example, in people that have won the lottery and all of the sudden these same people become mysteriously "popular" all of the sudden.  Wow, imagine that, huh?  It doesn't necessarily have to be winning the lottery,  You see the same sort of thing when it comes to people in authority or in fame:  such as a boss; or a celebrity; a movie star: a sports star; etc.   When someone is famous or at the top of their game, so to speak, they have all kinds of people close to them, . . .  they have all kinds of "friends" at that point, . . .  they have all kinds of "admirers,"  . . . . . but wait around until something happens and knocks that person out of popularity and watch all of their "friends" suddenly disappear over time.  In essence, this is what St. John is pointing out in the sixth chapter of his Gospel.  He points out that the vast multitude were following Our Lord due to his fame, . . . they were following Him due to the miracles they heard He performed, . . . they were following Him to a large degree so that they could see what all of the fuss was about.  

Today, two-thousand years later, it really isn't that different, when you think about it.  For the most part, the world doesn't care much about Jesus . . . they don't think much about Him on a daily basis . . . they certainly don't make an effort to follow His teachings . . .  the world, in general, doesn't make a point to spend time with Jesus at all . . .  that is, until they need something.  Once someone gets into trouble, or they get into a jam, they run to Jesus and implore His help.  They go to Jesus and ask Him to help them out of their jam that they suddenly find themselves in.  Now, don't get me wrong, there's nothing wrong with going to Jesus when you are in need, when you have trouble, when you have difficulties.  There is no better person to run to at that point.  But my point is don't ONLY go to Our Blessed Saviour when you are in trouble like so many people.  They only go to Jesus when they need something, or need a miracle, or need help.  Spend time with Jesus every single day.  Spend time in the presence of Our Blessed Saviour on a daily basis.  Make Him the center of your life.  Be a disciple of Jesus and not just someone interested in "miracles." 

Two opportunities to join us for Mass on Sunday, March 6th, 2016:

St. Margaret Church worships every Sunday at 9:30 AM at the beautiful Chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

Holy Spirit Church worships every Sunday at 1:00 PM at the beautiful, historic First Presbyterian Church, located at 116 W. South Street (the Corner of South and Pennsylvania Streets) in Greenfield, Indiana.

Please join us for Mass.  Take time out of your busy schedules to worship God.  Listen to the Word of God through the King James Version of the Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  And receive the Precious Body and Blood of Our Blessed Saviour at Communion time.

Join us for Quinquagesima on Sunday, February 7, 2016

Quinquagesima, or the Sunday before Lent, February 7th, 2015

Personally, I have been in the "preaching business" going on a good while.  I have been doing this for going on thirty years now, if you go back to my seminary years.  I love to preach, quite frankly, which is amazing considering that I am a quiet, reserved person otherwise.  But I love to preach about Our Lord is the bottom line.  I love to tell people about God and the love that He has for all people.  I love to inspire people in my own way to have a personal relationship with Our Blessed Saviour.  I preach with the intent of leading others closer to God.  And like many preachers throughout the world . . . and throughout the ages, quite frankly,  . . .  I use Holy Scripture as the "foundation" of my sermons.  I preach using the Word of God, first and foremost.  Sadly, not all preachers I have heard preach use God's Word in their sermons.  Many I have heard were wonderful preachers.  Many I have heard gave marvelous presentations.  Many preachers I have heard over the years, they were indeed a joy to listen to.  But every once in a while, it's time for the preacher to quit "beating around the bush."  You see, I speak about God in every one of my sermons.  And with the help of God, I think I do a fairly decent job through His guidance and inspiration.  But now is the time to have a "Let me be clear" moment as some politicians like to use that term when they speak.  

Let me be clear:

Jesus Christ is indeed my Lord and my Saviour.  Jesus is indeed the "Light of the World."  There is no salvation outside of Jesus.  He is the One sent from the Father to save us from our sins.  God offers each one of us salvation and this was afforded to each one of us by Our Blessed Saviour dying on the Cross for our sins.  He took the burden of our sins upon His own shoulders because He knew we could not bear the weight.  And He took our place on that Cross.  He hung in our place on that hill at Calvary.  It was you and I that should have been hanging there.  But Our Blessed Saviour took our place and hung there and died there for us.  He was truly the Lamb of God, the innocent Lamb Who was slain for our sins.  I believe in the same Lord and Saviour who said:  "I am the Way, the Truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by Me."  (St. John 14:6)  I believe in the Holy Trinity:  the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.  I believe that Our Lord founded the Church to do His work here on earth.  And I believe as Our Lord promised that the Holy Ghost was sent to the Church and helps to inspire the Church.  I pray that I always stay close to the Sacred Heart of Jesus because it is there that the love of God can be found.  It is there that salvation is freely given and offered.  And it is there that the love of mankind God has for us is to be found.  

There, I hope I was clear.  As Christians, we are called to tell the world about God.  I firmly believe that we tell the world not only verbally but also we tell the world about God through our actions.  And although we are not perfect in conveying that truth:  whether that be through our words or through out actions.  We are still obligated to tells others about God.  Let each one of us be clear in our faith.  Let each one of us be firm and committed.  Let each one of stay close to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.  Let each one of us show no fear in letting the world know that Jesus Christ is indeed our Lord and Saviour.  Let each one of us know that Our Lord is indeed the Way . . .  the Truth  . .. . and the Life.  

Two opportunities to come worship God with us on Sunday, February 7th, 2016:

St Margaret Church meets every Sunday at 9:30 AM.  We worship at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, on the Northwest side of Indianapolis, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road.

Holy Spirit Church meets every Sunday at 1:00 PM.  We worship at the beautiful, historic First Presbyterian Church in Greenfield, Indiana, which is located at 116 W. South Street, at the corner of South and Pennsylvania Streets near downtown Greenfield.

Join us as we gather together as God's family to:  hear the Word of God; listen as God speaks to each one of us in our hearts; worship God in song and in word; listen to the King James Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer; and, finally, receive Our Blessed Lord in Holy Communion so that we can be nourished for the journey we call life.  Take one hour out of your busy schedule to worship God, to honour God, to acknowledge the need for God in your life.

Join us for Sexagesima Sunday, January 31, 2016

Sexagesima, or the Second Sunday before Lent, 

Sunday, January 31st, 2016

In the eighth chapter of St. Luke's Gospel, we hear Our Blessed Saviour tell the Parable of the Sower.  And in this parable, Our Lord tells the story of the sower who goes out to sow the seed:  some seed fell along the way; some seed fell on rocky soil; some seed fell on good soil; etc.  Our Lord, upon telling the parable, tells what the parable means to the disciples.  But in the parable, there are different types of people represented:  those that hear the Word; those that do not hear the Word; those who pay attention for a time and then fall away; etc.  It reminds me as well as the many types of people we encounter in our lifetime.  Some people we encounter are just that:  people we encounter.  Nothing more, nothing less.   While others become friends due to common interests or similarities.  Out of these, some friends become life-long friends, and others (through moving away; or getting another job; or going to another school; etc.) move on and we lose contact with.  

There are a variety of people in our life, and many of these people, I am convinced that God has placed them in our life to inspire us, to strengthen us, to encourage us, to be with us.  Obviously, many of these people placed in our life are related to us by blood:  our parents; our grandparents; aunts; uncles; cousins; etc.  Other people such as a spouse or  good friends, for example, God may have placed them in our lives to give us support along the way.  Each one of us can point out special people in our lives who have supported us or inspired us along the way.  I, for my part, can certainly point toward my parents; my grandparents; wonderful, inspiring priests who have blessed me with the Sacraments; I can point to wonderful friends who have been there for me.  Each one of these people, I am convinced that God has placed those special people in my life to encourage me along the way.  These people have touched my life.  They have played a part in forming the person I have become.  Certainly, as a priest, I can point towards many wonderful members of churches I have served who have been a wonderful inspiration to me.  God places special people in our life to assist us and to inspire us.  Let us always remember the fact that for others around us, we may be the one that inspires those around us.  You may be the special person that God has placed in that person's life to inspire him or her.  Let us always remember to inspire others to greatness.  Let us always remember that for the dedicated, committed Christian, we have the potential to be the "Face of Christ" in the world.  Let us never forget that God uses us as His instruments in this world to let others know about Him.

Two opportunities to join us for Mass on Sunday, January 31st, 2016:

St. Margaret of Scotland Anglican Church is a traditional Anglican parish, which uses the Anglican Missal and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer. We also use the King James Version of the Bible. We believe strongly in Our Lord's words . . . "this is My Body and this is My Blood" . . . and truly believe that Our Blessed Saviour is truly present in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar and we receive Him at Communion time. Come join us every Sunday morning at 9:30 AM as we gather together as God's family to worship Our Blessed Lord. We celebrate Mass in the Chapel at Marquette Manor, which is located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis.

The Anglican Church of the Holy Spirit is a traditional Anglican parish, which uses the Anglican Missal and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  We also use the King James Version of the Bible.  We believe strongly in Our Lord's words . . .  "this is My Body and this is My Blood" . . . and truly believe that Our Blessed Saviour is truly present in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar and we receive Him at Communion time.  Come join us every Sunday at 1:00 PM as we gather together as God's family to worship Our Blessed Lord.  We celebrate Mass in the beautiful, historic First Presbyterian Church, located at 116 W. South Street (at the corner of South and Pennsylvania Streets) in Greenfield, Indiana.

Join us for Septuagesima, January 24, 2016

Septuagesima, or the Third Sunday before Lent, 

Sunday, January 24th, 2016

"Anything worth doing is worth doing well."  That's an old saying that you will hear said every once in a while.  But, let's face it, if the value is greater to us personally . . . . whether that "value" be in money, or time, or prestige, etc. . . . . we will put more effort into doing that particular thing, whatever it is.  If you are a student, for example,  and you have a quiz worth five percent of your grade or if you have your semester final worth forty percent of your grade: which one are you going to put more effort into studying for?  Case in point.  Recently the Powerball Lottery went to over One Billion dollars for the jackpot.  Can you imagine winning ONE BILLION DOLLARS?!?!?  And if you are like me, you saw people standing in line to buy lottery tickets for the chance to win the billion dollar lottery of a lifetime.  But that's my point, people who never bought any lottery tickets; or people who rarely bought lottery tickets, suddenly found themselves standing in line  to buy a chance to win a billion dollars.  If the "reward" is greater to us, we will put more effort into something.  If the "reward" doesn't mean that much, we won't spend as much time on it.  That's just human nature, I'm afraid.  

In St. Paul's Ninth Chapter of the First Epistle to the Corinthians, St. Paul writes the following:  "Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible."  He is referring to athletes training for sporting events who train as hard as they can to win a crown to signify that they are the best athlete.  St. Paul, of course, compares an athlete's training to a Christian's "training."  St. Paul compares and contrasts how hard an athlete trains to win a "crown" that will eventually fade away, i..e, the corruptible crown.  But, for the firm, committed, dedicated Christian, we are training  to win a crown that will never corrupt.  We are training to obtain a crown that we will never lose.  In other words, we are training to win eternal life with Our Blessed Saviour.  In comparing/contrasting the two "crowns," St. Paul is asking the question to the Corinthians:  which "crown" is more valuable?  The crown won for winning the sporting event?  Or the crown won for being a good and faithful servant of God?  The answer is obvious for St. Paul.  But is it so obvious for the rest of us?   How much effort do we put into our jobs on a daily basis?  How much effort do we put into fixing up our homes?  How much effort do we put into our hobbies?  How much effort do we put into watching our favorite television programs or sporting events?  Now, again, don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with any of the things mentioned above.  But, again, we put effort into things that are important to us.  We put the most effort into things that have the most meaning to us.  And this is the point that St. Paul is making:  if God is important to us . . .  if God means something to us . ..  if God has real meaning and real value to each one of us . . . . then we should make a point to put effort into spending time with God on a daily basis:  through prayer and meditation; through daily reading of Scripture; and dedicating our lives to God through having a personal relationship with Our Blessed Saviour.  We run a race as well.  For us, our "race" is called life.  A "crown" awaits each one of us, if we choose it:  the "crown" of eternal life.  But we have to start training for it now.

Two opportunities to join us for Mass on Sunday, January 24th, 2016:

St. Margaret Church meets every Sunday morning at 9:30 AM. We meet at the beautiful chapel at Marquette Manor, located at 8140 N. Township Line Road on the Northwest side of Indianapolis

Holy Spirit Church worships every Sunday at 1:00 PM.  We worship at the beautiful, historic First Presbyterian Church, located at 116 W. South Street (Corner of South and Pennsylvania Streets) in Greenfield, Indiana.

Join us as we listen to the Word of God found in the King James Version of the Bible and the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.  Hear what God is speaking to you in Bible-based preaching.  Take one hour out of your busy schedule for the week and dedicate that hour solely to God.  Receive the Precious Body and Blood of Christ at Communion time.  Give of yourself to God and realize that God is giving of Himself to you when you come to church.