Announcements: 4th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Dear Holy Rosary Mission Parishioners, here are a few announcements:

Gospel: (See Below) The Gospel is about overcoming the fear of telling the truth. Telling the truth, according to scripture, is a way to love.

Thank you: Thank you Josh for altar serving at the funeral last week. Thank you Brian for playing “Morning has Broken” on the piano during Mass. Thank you Bernie for chopping the ice around the water spigot. Thank you JD for helping to fix the electrical problem on our truck. Thank you to Spruce for offering the books after Mass.

Pat Durbin Update: Pat is in his last week of therapy. He is staying with friends in Houston, AK. He actually purchased a cell phone and needs practice answering it and figuring it out. So give him a call. Also, keep him in your prayers. Besides recovering from his stroke he is trying to quit smoking. Pat’s Cell 907-843-1162.

Confirmation: Those to be confirmed need to write a letter to the Archbishop by the end of the month. Good Luck. If you need some help, get with your sponsor or give me a call.

The homily for this coming weekend is below. Have a wonderful week and see you Sunday…Fr. Scott

Everyone has told a lie. When I was in grade school I would start a fight with my brother and I would tell my mom that I didn’t do it. But the problem was, we would usually both end up getting into trouble. It was like my mom knew I was lying, but she would never actually accuse me of lying.

As I grew up it seemed like the more I would lie, the more trouble I would get into. And to top that off, usually after I told a lie, I would feel really bad inside. I wanted to stop but did not have the courage to do so.

When I was about 12, I overheard my dad and mom talking about my grandfather. They said that he was the most honest man they knew. They said he always told the truth no matter what. I wanted to be like him. From that day on I tried extra hard to be honest and not tell lies.

When we tell lies, other people get into trouble and we don’t. But I am here to tell you, people know when we are lying. When we lie, we feel bad inside, we feel guilty, and it shows. God does not want us to hurt inside. He wants us to feel good about ourselves. When we tell the truth, God gets this big smile on his face. It may hurt to tell the truth, but lying ALWAYS hurts more.

Now days, I hardly ever lie. If I do, I try to go back to the person and tell them I lied and that I am sorry. Tell the truth, the more you do it, the easier it is to do, and the happier you will be.

The readings are about speaking the truth. Jeremiah, in the first reading has to tell people the truth: they are faced with disaster. In the gospel, when we hear about Elisha being sent to the widows, and Naaman to the lepers, Jesus’ listeners don’t like it. Here is why. Jesus’ hometown crowd does not believe that God loves the widows and lepers. But that is the truth.

What Jesus is telling his hometown crowd is that no one is excluded from the love of God.

It is a prophet’s role to speak the truth. To speak the truth to another takes courage and strength. It can even be a gamble. To speak the truth is to LOVE someone.

To speak the truth is to admit that I broke the window or I stole the money. Speaking truth may come in the form of telling someone to clean up their act. Speaking the truth takes courage.

To speak the truth is not to be angry and to lecture others into doing what you think is right.

The truth, as Saint Paul reminds us today, must be spoken with love. Truth is impossible to speak without love.

To be able to tell the truth we have to face down our fear. We have to publically show our courage. We have to take responsibility for our actions.

If you are having trouble telling the truth because you may be afraid, remember the martyrs who died for telling the truth. Remember all the support we as Catholics have for telling the truth, the saints, our guardian angel, the Holy Spirit, and our savior Jesus Christ.

Telling the truth gets easier the more we do it. Telling the truth is the way of Jesus. Truth frees our soul.

Let us pray for the grace of courage to stop lying; for strength to always tell the truth out of love; for vision to see the value of taking responsibility for our actions (621 Words).

First Reading: Jeremiah 1:4-5, 17-19 - 4 The word of the LORD came to me thus: 5 Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I dedicated you, a prophet to the nations I appointed you. 17 But do you gird your loins; stand up and tell them all that I command you. Be not crushed on their account, as though I would leave you crushed before them; 18 For it is I this day who have made you a fortified city, A pillar of iron, a wall of brass, against the whole land: Against Judah's kings and princes, against its priests and people. 19 They will fight against you, but not prevail over you, for I am with you to deliver you, says the LORD.

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:13 - 12:31 Strive eagerly for the greatest spiritual gifts. But I shall show you a still more excellent way. 13:1 If I speak in human and angelic tongues but do not have love, I am a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal. 2 And if I have the gift of prophecy and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge; if I have all faith so as to move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away everything I own, and if I hand my body over so that I may boast but do not have love, I gain nothing. 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, (love) is not pompous, it is not inflated, 5 it is not rude, it does not seek its own interests, it is not quick-tempered, it does not brood over injury, 6 it does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. 7 It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never fails. If there are prophecies, they will be brought to nothing; if tongues, they will cease; if knowledge, it will be brought to nothing. 9 For we know partially and we prophesy partially, 10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. 11 When I was a child, I used to talk as a child, think as a child, reason as a child; when I became a man, I put aside childish things. 12 At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror, but then face to face. At present I know partially; then I shall know fully, as I am fully known. 13 So faith, hope, love remain, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Gospel Reading: Luke 4:21-30 - 21 He said to them, "Today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing." 22 And all spoke highly of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth. They also asked, "Isn't this the son of Joseph?" 23 He said to them, "Surely you will quote me this proverb, 'Physician, cure yourself,' and say, 'Do here in your native place the things that we heard were done in Capernaum.' " 24 And he said, "Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own native place. 25 Indeed, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah when the sky was closed for three and a half years and a severe famine spread over the entire land. 26 It was to none of these that Elijah was sent, but only to a widow in Zarephath in the land of Sidon. 27 Again, there were many lepers in Israel during the time of Elisha the prophet; yet not one of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian." 28 When the people in the synagogue heard this, they were all filled with fury. 29 They rose up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town had been built, to hurl him down headlong. 30 But he passed through the midst of them and went away.