Reopening the Church

by Fr. Jess Ty  |  07/05/2020  |  Weekly Reflection

Dear Family of God,

The Gospel this weekend is very timely as we reopen our Church, after a three-week rest. Jesus gives us an invitation that He alone can truly provide for us who trust in Him: “Come to me all you who labor and are burdened and I will give you rest” (Mt. 11:28).

This invitation of Jesus is opposite to what the world teaches us, “Do-it-yourself” attitude, that we are entirely independent; create our own futures, do not depend on anyone else. In other words, that we should simply save ourselves. This is the lie of the enemy; this is the lie of pride. We all need God, and He is a providential Father, he won’t leave us orphans, we are always under his care. The wisdom of humility helps us to recognize that in God’s eyes we are included among the “little ones.” We do not reach the Father by being more learned and clever. We come to know the Father by following Jesus, who reveals the Father to us. Jesus Himself is the way to the Father. He teaches us to be, like him, meek and humble of heart.

He teaches us to depend on the Father as He is dependent on Him. The wisdom of humility enables us to recognize the truth, especially with our strengths and limitations, and our dependence on the Lord. When we are humble, we can easily call upon Him to come to our aid, or we can respond to His invitation: “Come to me all you who labor and are burdened and I will give you rest.”

Many of the burdens we carry are due to our own pride and trying to be self–sufficient. We load ourselves down with resentment, unforgiveness and selfishness. When we turn to Jesus who is meek and humble of heart, we discover that much of what we are dragging around was never his will in the first place. He invites us to leave it behind in order to take up a different burden, one that is, “light and easy” the yoke of His will. Jesus does not say that our life will be free from troubles, but if we accept his will, He carries our burdens with us. He will never abandon us; he suffers with us, and gives us strength in and with the Holy Spirit.

For the past three weeks, we, three priests in our rectory have experienced a flood of support from this Our Providential Father, through you, our Parishioners. We have an abundance of food and prayerful support, we are very grateful for these, as well as your love and concern. May God reward you all for your kindness and generosity.

In Christ through Mary Immaculate,

Fr. Jess Ty