Double Amputee West Climbs Kilimanjaro for a Cause

Rock Springs native Spencer West to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in wheelchair and on hands

Spencer West, who lost his legs as a toddler when he was diagnosed with Sacral Agenesis, poses for a photo on Friday, May 18, 2012 in Casper, Wyo. The condition made the muscles in his legs useless, and his legs were removed to essentially eliminate "dead weight," as West puts it. West endured bullying in school and stares from strangers, but went on to become a state champion cheerleader at Rock Springs High School and earn his communications degree from Westminster College in Salt Lake City. West is now a motivational speaker, and plans to climb Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money for relief aid for the people of Kenya, who are suffering from the worst drought the country has seen in 60 years. West made a trip to the country years ago, and has been moved to help the area since. (AP Photo/Casper Star-Tribune, Kyle Grantham)

John the Baptist - June 24 - Several Homilies -3

John the Baptist  - June 24

 Homily from Father Joseph Pellegrino

http://www.st.ignatius.net/pastor.html

John the Baptist

 Nativity of John the Baptist: The Exigency to Prophesy

John the Baptist June 24 - Homily-2

Solemnity of the birth of St. John the Baptist
(June 24) L/12
Is 49: 1-6; Acts 13: 22-26; Lk 1: 57-66, 80

Anecdote: Be the finger of John the Baptist: Karl Barth the great 20th century Calvinist theologian  would  wake  up early  in the morning, read  the newspaper,  and  stare  at a painting  by Grunewald  called  Crucifixion.  Jesus  is hanging  from  the cross,  apparently dead,  while Mary and others morn. John the Baptist, holding the Scriptures and leaning away from Christ, is pointing to Jesus on the Cross. Before he would teach  theology or write in his famous work Church Dogmatics, Karl Barth would meditate on this painting, particularly  on  John the  Baptist.  He said  that,  as  a  Christian  (whether  a  theologian, pastor, teacher, mother, doctor, storekeeper, etc.), our job is to be the finger (and only the finger), of John the Baptist. The only thing we should do – indeed, the only thing we can  do – is simply point to Jesus on the cross. This scene painted by Grunewald is the sum of all history, from Creation in the past to eternity. And we are that finger, and within that finger rests the weight of salvation.

John the Baptist - June 24

Our God-Given Names

Isaiah 49:1-6

Acts 13:22-26

Luke 1:57-66, 80

“Among those born of women no one is greater than John” (Luke 7:28). These words which our Lord said about John the Baptist are probably behind the solemn feast of the birthday of John the Baptist which we celebrate today. As a rule, the church celebrates the feast of a saint once a year, on the anniversary of the saint’s death. In the case of John the Baptist we celebrate his death as well as his birth. John is the only saint after Christ whose birth we celebrate with a solemn feast. This is the church’s way of saying with Jesus that “among those born of women no one is greater than John.” The gospel story of the birth of John focuses on the naming ceremony. Why does the gospel show such an interest in the naming of the child? We tend to ask Juliet’s famous question to Romeo in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, “What’s in a name? that which we call a rose/ By any other name would smell as sweet.” But not everybody would agree with this view. In biblical times, and still today in many African cultures, personal names function the way business names do, that is, they aim to convey what the bearer of the name stands for. When Simon shows that he could be relied on as a leader of the apostles, he gets the name “Rock.” When the sons of Zebedee, James and John, petition Jesus to call down lightning from heaven to burn up the inhabitants of a Samaritan village who do not welcome Jesus, they get a new name “Sons of Thunder.” Names reveal an essential character or destiny of the bearer.

12 Sunday-B June 24 - Sermon -1

12 Sunday

June 24, 2012

Mark 4:35-41 - "Calming of the Tempest" Mark 4:35-41 - "Stand by Me" by Leonard Sweet _________________________________________ Victor Hugo, who is famous for his novel the Hunchback of Notre Dame, also wrote a story called "Ninety-Three." It tells of a ship caught in a dangerous storm on the high seas. At the height of the storm, the frightened sailors heard a terrible crashing noise below the deck. They knew at once that this new noise came from a cannon, part of the ship's cargo, that had broken loose. It was moving back and forth with the swaying of the ship, crashing into the side of the ship with terrible impact. Knowing that it could cause the ship to sink, two brave sailors volunteered to make the dangerous attempt to retie the loose cannon. They knew the danger of a shipwreck from the cannon was greater than the fury of the storm.

Mary Magdalene - New Perspectives

Scholars seek to correct Christian tradition on Mary Magdalene

The sinful woman - Lk. 7 The fanciful fictions about Mary Magdalene in Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code are not the only errors about the biblical saint that modern scholars are seeking to correct. They are also trying to set straight centuries of erroneous Christian tradition regarding her that developed, especially in the West. In A.D. 591 Pope St. Gregory the Great preached a sermon in which he identified as one person the New Testament figures of Mary Magdalene, the sinful woman who anointed Jesus’ feet and washed them with her tears, and the Mary who was the sister of Lazarus and Martha of Bethany. Although he was only reflecting a tradition that had gained some ground in the West (and was resisted by many of the church’s early theologians), the sermon became a reference point for later scholarship, teaching and preaching in the West, Father Raymond F. Collins, a New Testament scholar at The Catholic University of America, said in an interview.

Father's Day

Hear – Paul Anka’s song dedicated to fathers:
1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&v=CpQIfuxmgT4&NR=1
2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZ6LwbmlZ-E&feature=email

Potato Story

The Stinking Potatoes

A kindergarten teacher has decided to let her class play a game.
The teacher told each child in the class to bring along a plastic bag containing a few potatoes.

Prayer Life

The Ten Steps To A Good Prayer Life

Prayer is communication With God. It is not a one sided communication, it is a commitment to be in touch with the Creator of this universe. It is an opportunity to open up to God and let Him perform his interaction with you. The preparations we make will have an effect on the power of prayer in your life.

Seed and growth - Prayer - June 17

Prayer Reflection


Lord we thank you for the times that a bible passage touched us deeply.
When we first read it we knew it was a beautiful word;
so we just received it like a seed sown on the land.
Then we carried on with our daily lives
knowing that somehow the words of the passage were there within us
weaving in and out of our experience.
Gradually we began to catch glimpses of its meaning.
Then, quite unexpectedly, it all came together
and we knew that the passage was ours
and all we had to do was enjoy it and give you thanks.