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Word To Life
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Sunday Scripture Readings, Nov. 15, 2009
By Sharon K. Perkins
Catholic News Service
November 15, Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time.
Cycle B Readings:
1) Daniel 12:1-3
Psalm 16:5, 8-11
2) Hebrews 10:11-14, 18
Gospel: Mark 13:24-32
On a Saturday afternoon in February 2008, my close family members and I gathered at my parents' home to attend to my father who was dying of pancreatic cancer. Knowing in our hearts that the end was near, we engaged in a surreal sort of vigil that alternated between raucous, laughter-filled games of dominoes at the kitchen table and gentle, lingering visits to my dad's hospital bed in the living room. We all felt resistance to saying our goodbyes, but knowing that the time for doing so was passing quickly, we clearly needed someone to guide us through that process in a prayerful way.
My parents' parish priest was that someone. Having just celebrated the parish Saturday evening Mass, he immediately came to the house and led us through a ritual prayer for the dying that was at once one of the most heartbreaking and profoundly joyful experiences of my life. Because of the compassionate ministry of a priest (who also had visited Dad frequently in the hospital), our family was able to release my father to eternal life in a way that drew us closer to God and to each other. For that selfless gift, I will always be grateful.
I have been blessed many times in my life by the ministry of priests -- from the family friend who helped me through a crisis of faith in my teen years, to the college chaplain who so beautifully preached our wedding homily, to the parish pastors who warmly welcomed our three children through baptism and anointed our ailing parents before surgery, to the spiritual director who guided me through a powerful midlife retreat.
The Letter to the Hebrews describes Jesus as the high priest par excellence who offered himself on our behalf as a sacrifice for sin and, in turn, gifted his church with priestly ministers. In this Year for Priests proclaimed by Pope Benedict XVI, let us not only give thanks for their service but also let us support and pray for them so that they might live out their priestly vocations in holiness and joy.
QUESTIONS:
Can you recall an experience in which you were helped by a priest? What can you do this week to show your appreciation and support for a priest?
SCRIPTURE TO BE ILLUSTRATED:
"Every priest stands daily at his ministry" (Hebrews 10:11).
END
Copyright © 2009 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The CNS Word To Life column may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed, including but not limited to such means as framing or any other digital copying or distribution method, in whole or in part without the prior written authority of Catholic News Service.
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