Our Ministries
17 Oct

Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

To Lead is to Serve

True leadership is in serving others. That’s what Jesus tells his disciples when they wrangle for rank! As disciples of Jesus, we too are called to both lead and serve.

During the past few weeks, I have spent quite a bit of time going to funerals both in the parish and in my Sisters of Divine Providence community. Today we are burying the sixth Sister in the last month. Two more are on hospice care! In the parish, just this week we have had two large funerals.

As our parish community and my Sister community bury the dead, that very meaningful corporal work of mercy, we remember and we celebrate the ways in which our friends, our companions have led and served. We celebrate their discipleship. We name the ways that they have witnessed to living the faith, to modeling the capacity to “drink of the cup” that Jesus describes. In many ways, they urge us and lure us to greater service, to greater leadership.

One of the things I am most grateful for at St. Francis is the examples of servant leadership I see all around me, every day. I’ll share some examples: the coach who encourages the CYO player who only wants to quit, the liturgical ministers who make sure everything is ready for our Masses each weekend, the St. Vincent de Paul volunteers who give attention, love and assistance to our brothers and sisters in need, the Mobile Loaves & Fishes teams who joyfully prepare and serve meals, the ministers who regularly bring Communion and messages of love and care to our homebound parishioners, the festival volunteers who brought joy to all, the Habitat volunteers who weather the weather and will persist until the house is built, the catechists and Bible Study leaders  who form parishioners of every age in the faith, the choir members and musicians, our priests and deacons, our marriage sponsor couples, our teen and adult retreat teams, the women and a few men who wash and iron altar linens and dust the statues,  the parishioner who sees someone coming out of the Blessed Sacrament Chapel and stops to talk and be present to someone needing comfort, the man who hands the young altar server a small gift in recognition of their service.  I am sure you have countless examples as well.

And so we pray this weekend: Loving and merciful God, help us to follow your example of sacrificial love, by being servants who lead and leaders who serve! Help us to grow in our capacity to serve! Give us generous hearts.

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