In the diocesan offices, we have an office dedicated to Social Concerns. Historically the office was also known as Social Justice, Community Service, Social Outreach, Social Ministry and the like. I offer a reminder about these titles to attain a nuance regarding the subject of this week’s reflection. Here is the main quotation from our dioceses office of Social Concerns:

Seeking to affirm and support parish commitment and creativity in social ministry while defending human life and dignity. Then, to be more specific, these are some of the main areas into which particular ministry is directed: Catholic Charities & Missions. Catholic Relief Services. Catholic Social Teaching. Faithful Citizenship. Parish Social Ministry. Hispanic Ministry. Human Trafficking. Respect Life. Rural Life.

In essence, our role as Catholics is to become aware of and involved in these and other areas of social ministry. Ultimately, we are looking out for the presence of God among the human beings with whom we interact and respond to the needs which support their human dignity. And, as the Office describes, these ministries arise from a sense of creativity. So, each of us must continue to ask ourselves how much social ministry we accomplish individually and collectively.

I hope we all spend some time reflecting upon the gift of fatherhood today. Whether or not we are a father, we all have one of our own. Its our Dad who has given us life in cooperation with our mothers. And, given the presumption that our father was "good," we have an easier time reflecting upon fatherhood. Conversely, given the presumption that our father was "bad," we can still reflect upon fatherhood because we come to realize what was lacking in our dad's imperfections and can arrive at a more clear understanding of what fathers ought to be.

There has been a whirlwind of activity, decisions, emotions, thoughts, etc. following the news of my new assignment, our recent church fire, life, etc. In the midst of it all, I seem to think some gratitude ought to be extended to some of the major players in these recent episodes of the game called life. These people/groups need a little recognition: The Fountain City and other area Fire Departments; Scott Curtis (local attorney) who provided some food and beverages for the firefighters and other responders on the day of the fire; The Buffalo County Sheriff's Department and other law enforcement agencies; local and other vendors who assisted with electrical, HVAC, LP and other responses to secure the church; Catholic Mutual Group Insurance; ServiceMaster Restore for quick action on cleaning; Steve Duellman who will be the general contractor for the restoration process.

By way of reminder, many of us know enough about Latin that Corpus Christi translates into the Body of Christ. Today, we celebratethe Solemnity of Corpus Christi. Further, for us as Catholics, we know that each of the seven Sacraments define and distinguish usfrom other Christian denominations. We also know that we make a big deal about Corpus Christi, and justifiably so. Our Catholic faithprovides us the privilege of receiving our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, His Body & Blood, Soul & Divinity into our very own bodieseach and every time we celebrate the Eucharist.

I hope each of us takes some moments this weekend to reflect upon the real reason for our Federal observance of Memorial Day. We remember more than all the faithful departed; we remember more specifically those who have lost their lives defending the liberties we so easily take for granted. There are countless resources lost to defend our nation and its principles. The lost human resources are the most valuable. We are pro-life, so any time any life is lost, we mourn in unique ways. Continue to pray for the repose of the souls of our nations heroes, many of them unspoken and unsung.

Through the Sacrament of Baptism, we are claimed by Christ…forever. No matter how close we grow in relationship with the Trinity, or how much we work to reject God's presence in our lives, baptized people are claimed by Christ. No matter if people choose to believe that fact or not, it does not become less true. Perhaps that reality alone can continue to inspire us to make prayerful concessions for our loved ones. Our prayers for them can invite the Holy Spirit to reignite the gift of faith within them and guide them back to a living relationship with the Trinity.

May 13th is the annual feast of Our Lady of Fatima. You will recall that last year we joined Catholics around the globe in honoring Our Lady of Fatima. Despite the fact that universal attention on Our Lady of Fatima has diminished, we continue to recognize the value of our Blessed Mother's intercession and compassion for each one of us, her children. We also couple the Blessed Mother's care as we join in honoring Mother's Day 2018. So, reflecting upon mothers is a worthwhile exercise today.

Sometimes we, as Catholics, face questions from disgruntled Catholics and non-Catholics alike about the Church's resources and wealth. Usually, somewhere in the conversation, we hear remarks about the Vatican's bank, property and art. Often people quote some value of those resources to be in the millions, or even billions, and how the Church would be so much better off if those resources were sold and the money used for the poor. Then the conversation moves toward the hypocrisy of the Church who says we should care for the poor but have all of these riches stored up. Well…

As Catholics, we know that the Holy Eucharist is the source and summit of our faith: it is the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Pope Francis has called it the "Sacrament of Love":

"The Eucharist is at the heart of 'Christian initiation', together with Baptism and Confirmation, and it constitutes the source of the Church's life itself. From this Sacrament of love, in fact, flows every authentic journey of faith, of communion, and of witness."

The Daily Mass Outward actions often reflect internal beliefs. Some of that comes into play in regard to how we live out our lives as Catholics. Hopefully our external words and actions reflect the depth of our faith. It's important to remember the distinction between subjective and objective proof. Subjective things are more internal matters of our minds and hearts. These are things which are difficult to prove; we need a lot of trust to believe them. Consider a subjective example: the proof of how much we love our mother. Contrary to subjective evidence is objective evidence. These are things which are black or white, true or false, right or wrong, good or bad. Consider an objective example: the receipt that you purchased flowers for your mom on Mother's Day.

First of all, Happy Easter once again! Those who were able to attend any of the services on Holy Week and Easter weekendwere once again filled with grace. A word of gratitude once again to those who assisted with the liturgies and church environmentto make these days of grace more enriching. An additional word of gratitude is given to the members of the Church of SaintBoniface who so graciously hosted us during the days of the Holy Triduum. May God bless us one and all!

Often we find ourselves in conversation making remarks about favorite things. You know -- sports, food, relatives, vacations, holidays, etc. Sometimes our Catholic holidays make the list among popular favorites, namely Christmas and Easter. Perhaps a secular holiday like Thanksgiving can be thrown into the mix of favorite holidays, too. Whatever the case may be for you, there is ample support for Easter ranking as the favorite holiday of our Roman Catholic Church.