Grace and the Great Mission

Very Rev. Msgr. Todd Lajiness

"May Jesus Christ be praised!" I begin with those words and commend our work here to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Because without Jesus and his Sacred Heart, our work has no meaning, our work has no purpose, and our work will not reach its proper end. Only in and through Jesus do we see clearly and receive the grace necessary to accomplish the mission he gives us, his mission.

The most recent issue of the Mosaic provides a wonderful pathway to prayer and the life of grace. The various articles encourage us to be silent with the Lord, to listen attentively to his consoling word, and to let fear subside. Within the context of prayer, we enter more deeply into a genuine intimacy with the Lord. And as we move into the summer months and hopefully a time of renewal, we can also set this sacred space aside for a daily conversation with the Lord.

Prayer opens our minds and hearts to recognize the movement of grace in our lives. And it is grace that allows us to accomplish the great mission he gives us. As Pope John Paul II noted in his apostolic letter, Novo Millenio Ineunte:

"If in the planning that awaits us we commit ourselves more confidently to a pastoral activity that gives personal and communal prayer its proper place, we shall be observing an essential principle of the Christian view of life: the primacy of grace. There is a temptation which perennially besets every spiritual journey and pastoral work:  that of thinking that the results depend on our ability to act and to plan. God of course asks us really to cooperate with this grace, and therefore invites us to invest all our resources of intelligence and energy in serving the cause of the Kingdom. But it is fatal to forget that 'without Christ we can do nothing' (cf. Jn. 15:5)."

A blessed and prayerful summer to all.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Very Rev. Msgr. Todd Lajiness
Rector/President