The first Mass was children’s Mass at 7am. After the Mass, we decided to take a group picture of Fr. Henry with the children who attended Mass.
The second Mass was at 9am. By the time the Mass started at exactly 9am, only one-quarter of the Church was occupied.
But before homily, the church was full. We will work on getting the people to be punctual.
It was a very wonderful celebration of the day of the Lord.
Our reflection from the readings of today based more on the gospel reading (Mark 10:17-30) and could be summarized with the prayer of John Cardinal Newman: “At the end of my life, if I gained God but lost everything else, I lost nothing. But if I lost God but gained everything else, I lost everything”.
Fr. Henry invited the faithful not to be like the young rich man who chose to hold tight to the passing things of the world rather than to be of Christ.
He invited them to check their lives and see if there is any attachment to the things of the world, attachment to persons and behaviors, which keep them away from following Christ because nothing can ever satisfy a soul whom God does not satisfy.
After the homily, was the Eucharistic celebration.
At the end of the Mass, Fr. Henry took time to chat with several people who came to greet him and welcome him to their parish.
In his usual manner, he immediately began asking for their names and memorizing them.
The people were very welcoming and eager to work with the new priest to spread the Good News of Christ, the Way and the Truth.
