“Behold, I Make All Things New.”
(Revelation 21:5a)
These are some of the most consoling and challenging words in the Bible.
We long for things to be made new. For some, being made “new” is a renewal and return to the ways of old – clearing away the overgrowth, putting back together what was broken, turning the clock back to an earlier, golden age. For others, “new” means clearing things away the old and beginning all over again – making something different from what used to be and running toward a future yet unknown.
But the “newness” of our life in Christ is different from either of these – and yet somehow fulfills them both. Our new life in Christ through baptism is indeed a restoration and renewal of that image of God in us which was present from the beginning, yet wounded by sin – original sin and our own personal sins. What God created is never undone. Yet this new life is not a complete cutting off of our past. It is a transformation of that past. God’s grace in us does not just sit on the surface of our hearts and lives. It penetrates to the core of our being, at once healing and restoring what is there, and giving a completely new sharing in God’s own life through the Holy Spirit.
In the weeks leading up to Pentecost, open your heart more and more to this healing, restoring and transforming power of the Holy Spirit. The newness of holiness, which we are called and empowered to live through the sacraments, is as close and concrete as our love for one another. God continually renews us in that love, and renews his love in us.
-Fr. Tom
Update: The Reason for Our Hope Campaign
Speaking of new things, a brief update on the progress of our Reason for Our Hope campaign. Thank you for your continuing support through the pledges you have made and the contributions you continue to give for this campaign. Work is underway on our new parish offices, which we hope to be up and running by July. Some vital infrastructure is being moved around to move the priest’s sacristy and make way for the Adoration Chapel. While we don’t yet have concrete plans for the Adoration Chapel, the way is being cleared step by step for this vital part of the campaign. Significant upgrades to our security system are also underway. While these may not be visible, they are making our entire parish campus more secure and safe, and more functional for the many services and activities we offer. We have a design for the Activities Center kitchen, but we do not yet have any bids for that project. Given that activities for the coming year are already being planned, the kitchen renovation may wait until next summer, when the season again slows down and the Campaign wraps up.
