Dear Family,
If Luke the evangelist was trying to find a good way of geffing our attention, he couldn’t have done better than today’s gospel. “Unless a man HATES his father and mother... he cannot be my disciple.”

Wow. Fortunately, Matthew 10:37 helps us understand. “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me...”

Our challenge is puffing God first. As I think about it, the more I can put Him first, the more likely I will be able to love others because I will be choosing them as He would, ...and does!

Dear Family,
I am starting this Twitch on primary day. Voting is a happy convenience for me; all I have to do is walk across the courtyard from the office to the parish hall to vote. St. Sebastian hosts not one, but three polling places.

Over the years my polling places haven’t been that convenient. I even remember voting absentee ballot from Rome. Nevertheless, I have rarely missed an election. Is this the moment when you start to hear patriotic music playing in the background? Corny, but you know what? Bring it on.

Meriam-Webster’s definition of democracy: government by the people especially : rule of the majority.

In my mind, voting is one way of trying to deal with fragmentation in our society. If that’s sounds strange, consider this.

At the last supper Jesus prayed for His disciples, “... that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me.” (John 17:21)

Dear Family,
As I looked over the scriptures for this weekend, these three thoughts emerged:

• I come for everyone.
• I will shape them up.
• Don’t presume anything about anyone – including yourself. It’s the Lord’s work and the Lord’s call.

A footnote on today’s gospel (Lk 13:22-30) from the New American Bible Revised Edition – NAMBRE to its friends, says the following:

Dear Family,
TOMORROW IS THE FEAST OF THE ASSUMPTION OF MARY BUT IT IS NOT A HOLY DAY OF OBLIGATION, because it falls on Monday. We’ll celebrate the feast in the main sanctuary at 8:30 a.m.

This week we will resume Friday Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in the chapel after 8:30 a.m. Mass and end at 5:00 p.m. We still have a few openings but I’m hoping more folk will get on board.

Someone coming forth from the community to pray for the community in this more public way is a blessing. We need each other’s prayers. Where better to offer those prayers than before Jesus Himself in the Blessed Sacrament?