Church of the Holy Spirit

06/15/2026

Question of the Week — Jesus commissioned his 12 Apostles to carry on his missionary work of healing the sick and exorcising unclean spirits. Do you have a sense of mission for your life? What is it?

06/14/2026

Laborers

“The harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few.”

This excerpt from Matthew’s Gospel has become a catchphrase in the modern Church. We give ourselves vertigo with the amount of head-shaking we do over the much-lamented “decline in numbers.”

Which numbers, you ask? Well, take your pick — numbers of baptized Catholic children who continue to profess their faith in adulthood, numbers of registered parishioners, numbers of priests ordained each year. All are a fraction of what they were generations ago.

That last one — the priests — that’s a particular worry for us, isn’t it? So we pray, “Send us laborers, Lord! Make them holy. Make them earnest.”

And then we add, in the silence of our hearts: “Make them perfect.”

It’s no secret that part of the reason the pews are empty is because we often find it hard to love the Church if we find it hard to love a particular priest, a particular bishop, or a particular human representative of the Church.

Because that’s the thing about priests and bishops and all the laborers in the field: they are human. They are sinners. Just like you and me.

We must consider this: today’s Gospel lists the Apostles whom Jesus sent out in ministry to heal, console, and evangelize, and right at the end — like a record scratch — comes the name of Judas Iscariot, the betrayer. If ever a laborer failed in his work, it was Judas.

And surely, when he did, his fellow laborers were so demoralized and so disenchanted that they considered laying down their tools and leaving the harvest to wither and die.

But they did not, and we must not.

Without cost we have received, and without cost we are called to give.

So we labor on, for the day is drawing to a close, and the threshing time is near.

06/13/2026

The Power of a Simple Action

I remember seeing a story on a morning news program about a little girl who wanted to give an elderly man in a grocery store a hug. She had no way of knowing that this man had just lost his wife of many years and now felt so very alone and depressed. Her reaching out to the man seemed odd to her mom at first, but the girl was so insistent about giving a hug she moved the shopping carts close together so the exchange could take place. No one knew that from that moment on the little girl would ask to visit her new friend at least once a week for the next four years until he passed away. In an interview soon after the initial encounter, the man said, “I haven’t been this happy in some time.” Imagine the joy that relationship brought to them both over the years!

It was just a moment. It was a simple gesture. Yet, it had a large impact that no one could have predicted. You never know what will result when we give just a little of ourselves. That uncertainty too often leads us to hold back or refrain from the simple actions of love or gestures of generosity that could come so easily for us if we wanted. We should never doubt the power of a simple random act of kindness. Generosity does not need to be grand to make a big difference. The time is now, and the opportunity presents itself often to plant a small seed that God can water and nourish so that something beautiful can grow.

06/12/2026

06/12/2026

Did you know that June is the Month of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and that today is the Feast of the Sacred Heart? This feast celebrates Jesus' divine love, mercy, and his humanity!

Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place all my trust in you!

06/11/2026

QUESTION OF THE WEEK — Jesus teaches the crowds that whoever eats his body and drinks his blood will live forever. Who could you invite this week to attend Sunday Mass and receive the Eucharist with you?

06/10/2026

We are without power here at Holy Spirit. If power is not restored by 10:30 am the office will close for the day. Thank you for your understanding!

06/10/2026

Virtues, EXPLAINED!

Gratitude pays a kind of “moral debt.” Children owe it to their parents; citizens owe it to their country. The Eucharist is the most perfect act of gratitude, wherein God is acknowledged as the source of all good.

06/09/2026

INSPIRATION FOR THE WEEK —The starving Israelites found their physical salvation in manna, “a food unknown to your fathers.” We find our spiritual salvation in the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, a food unknown to too many souls. Blessed are we to partake of the Bread of Life.

06/08/2026

Corpus Christi Prayer —

O Precious Jesus, The gift of your Body and Blood, shared with us, is unfathomable.

Like manna that satiated our hunger, fill us where we lack.

Like the bread given to Elijah in the desert, sustain us.

Grace us with a glimpse into your love for us,

now and forever, present in the Eucharist.
Amen.