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June 5, 2020
To Our Dear Parish Family,
“I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one (Jn. 17:21).” These are the Lord’s words of prayer directed to the Father, as he is about to take leave of his beloved disciples before his supreme act of sacrificial love on the cross: “may [they] all be one”.Christ comes to reconcile the divided human family. He comes to restore communion where there is division, for division is one of sin’s terrible consequences.The events of these recent days have revealed our nation to be divided to a degree not seen in perhaps a half-century. There are many reasons for America’s current fractured state, but undeniably one of the most significant contributing factors to this is the long, ugly, and tragic history of racial discrimination in this land. Racism is a sin, and a wound left unhealed in our body politic.As is the case with any sin, any wound, healing can only take place when its existence is acknowledged, and when steps are taken to address it. Ignoring matters does not solve anything: wounds left untended too do not heal, but simply become scars waiting to be opened up again.But true healing is always a compassionate act, animated by love. It strives for restoration not destruction. It is never fueled by hatred.As the Church, with Christ our Lord as our head, we are entrusted with a special responsibility to manifest the unity that is so sorely lacking in our country: a unity always to be rooted in truth, justice, mercy, and love. As disciples of him who calls us all to be one, we must in this crucial moment not fail to heed his summons to this mission.Our fervent hope and prayer is that in this time fraught with discord, fear, and suspicion, we the members of this Holy Redeemer parish family may in word and deed, always exemplify Christ’s unity, the unity by his grace we strive to realize in the world.Yours in Christ,
Fr. Mark, Fr. Andrew and our Parish Ministry Staff
