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Mass Times:
English Masses:
Saturday - 5:30 p.m.
Sunday - 7:45 a.m.
Sunday - 10:30 a.m.
Misas
en Español:
Domingo - 9:00 a.m.
Domingo - 12:00 p.m.
Daily Masses at 8:00
a.m. Monday through Saturday
more...
Map to Parish
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A Message
from Fr. Nick
“You Get What You Pay For”
One of the hardest lessons we
learn as adults is “you get what you pay for.” We often relish the
thought of a bargain price, getting something “off the truck” and saving
a lot of money. Sadly, the joy of the bargain more often becomes the
agony of an inferior product falling apart and our hard-earned money is
wasted away because we were greedy and foolish to think that we will
receive more while paying less. While no one wants to over pay for an
item; we all know that quality workmanship commands a better price. This
is true with foodstuffs, the products we use at home, automobiles, and
even the cost of an education. But is it true with faith?
Saint Paul says in 1 Corinthians
(9:18) that he offers the Gospel “free of charge.” Many people believe
this phrase means that they have no obligation to support the Church or
the parish, and that they can expect to receive the services of the
Church for free. Because the Gospel is preached “free of charge” and the
Church (especially St. Aloysius Parish) is committed to serving the
needs of the poor, some people also mistakenly believe that the Church
is fantastically wealthy. Any member of the parish who reads our
financial report knows that the opposite is true: our parishioners make
great sacrifices in order to provide these ministries and to keep our
parish open. There are others, of course, who see no value in the
Church’s teachings simply because something given away for free cannot
be worth very much. More often than not, these are the same people who
complain about the price of CCD or Baptismal classes.
Contrary to what Saint Paul tells
us in this particular passage, the Gospel is not “preached free of
charge.” The Gospel is preached at a tremendous cost which far too often
is unrecognized by those who benefit from its preaching. There is no
Gospel without Jesus Christ, the Son of God. It is His death and
resurrection that pays for the Gospel to exist and for humanity to hope
for a better world to come. The death and resurrection of Jesus itself
gives the Gospel message infinite value, yet it comes to us as a gift of
love. However, God the Father wants us to have a far more precious gift
than simply preaching the Gospel and telling the message of Jesus. To
this end, Jesus gives us the Church, the sacraments, and, most of all,
the Eucharist so that the Gospel is not merely preached, but it is also
Really Present to us in Communion.
In another way, the Gospel has
never been preached “free of charge.” In this same passage in
Corinthians, Saint Paul reminds us that he gave his life to preach the
Gospel. What he did not know when he wrote those words, is that he would
literally give his life for the preaching of the Gospel. Along with
Saint Paul, all of the Apostles, and after them, millions of bishops,
priests, deacons, and religious men and women have given their lives for
the preaching of the Gospel. For them, the Gospel of Jesus Christ is
worth far more than life itself. I know because I am one of them.
What is the Gospel worth to you?
Remember, you get what you pay for!
Growing and sharing in Jesus Christ,
Fr. Nick Desmond |
