Dear Parish Family,

The Gospel for this Fifth Sunday of Lent concerning the raising of Lazarus from the dead is the third "scrutiny" Gospel. The past two weeks, we heard the first and second scrutiny Gospels with the Samaritan woman at the well and the healing of the blind man. These three Gospels are geared not only to us who are already living the Catholic life, but also toward those in the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults who are seeking to be baptized this Easter. These Gospels awaken our desire to approach Christ as Savior (Woman at the Well), to proclaim His power to restore our spiritual vision (Healing of the Man Born Blind), and assert His authority over sin and death itself (Raising of Lazarus). We pray for all those entering the Church this Easter, and for all of us on this journey of faith as we draw closer to our Lord's Paschal Mystery in the days ahead.
 
One of the great mysteries of our faith expressed in today's Gospel with the raising of Lazarus is the resurrection of the body. Jesus doesn't simply tell Martha and Mary that Lazarus' soul is in heaven. Jesus foreshadows His own resurrection from the dead in raising the body of Lazarus. The Apostle's Creed which we profess in the Lenten season at Mass uses those precise words: resurrection of the body. In the resurrection of the dead, Jesus does not simply lift our souls up to heaven. He raises our entire personhood, body and soul, to share the glory of heaven with Him. The body matters, both in this life and in the next. That's why our Church teaches that in a very real sense we are our body. We aren't just souls inhabiting a body, but our body and soul form a unity that constitutes our very identity as a human person. What we do in the body matters. We will have our bodies in heaven. Just as Jesus' risen body bears the healed wounds of the nails and spear, so our risen bodies in heaven will tell the story of our salvation in Christ gloriously and triumphant, healed wounds and all.
 
RIM Mission Sharing of Graces
For those who were able to participate in or watch my Parish Mission on RIM (Relationship, Identity, Mission) last month, I want to invite you to a follow-up "Sharing of Graces" night this Tuesday, March 28 at 6:30 pm in the St. Mary Parish ABC Room. We will have the chance to be together to share and listen to how the Lord touched our hearts. It will be a prayerful time of deepening encounter, and I look forward to sharing this time with you.
 
Stations & FINAL Fish Fry
Come to the St. Mary's FINAL Fish Fry this Friday, March 31st from 4:30 - 7:00 pm. Who knows what kind of special treats we will have there :)
We will have our usual Stations of the Cross at St. Patrick's and at St. Mary's starting at 7:00 pm.
   
I am yours in Christ,
Fr. Scott Goodfellow