Faith of St. Thomas Confessions

12/18/2017

Happy Gaudete Sunday... okay, I confess that this 3rd Sunday in Advent 2017 I have struggled to rejoice in the Lord always.

Gaudette means 'rejoice' and those who sing in choirs know 'gaudete in Domino semper' or 'rejoice in the Lord always.' Yet, how can that be done when tragedy strikes or things just don't go right? I struggle with this, especially so close to Christmas. I have lost two close friends around this holiday, and the days leading up to the most giving day of the year seem to lose something when people we love pass on.

This year has been especially difficult for our community, as we lost very young people in deaths that should not happen to those so young. Less than two days ago, we lost a kid in car crash. The tragic thing is that his dad is battling cancer, and just the day prior his sister was diagnosed with cancer, too. All of this--Devastating. Heart breaking. How can we reconcile this sadness and emotional pain with Gaudette--Rejoice?

The prayers of our community lift up this heart-broken family. And yet, we are called to rejoice?

Dissonance. Discord. Chiaroscuro. The battle between dark and light. Rebel fighters against the dark side. How can this be reconciled with the call to rejoice?

11/08/2017

10/20/2017

Well, since I cannot delete the page, I changed it to a Confessions page. This page was a duplicate page of the original Fair of St. Thomas and we surely don't need two of those floating around FB land! Since I had professed my apologies for that error on this page (see comment under Delete this page post), today I felt that maybe this page does need to exist, just in a different way. So, now this is a place for your confessions. Like a Facebook confessional. I encourage you to release the bonds of sin and live free. And if needed, post your sins for absolution and reconciliation. In a fun way, of course, as I not an official priest or anything. Maybe I, too, will release some sins here. Lord knows they don't help my cause any being bound in my soul.

07/23/2013

Delete this page