The definition of awareness is this: knowledge or perception of a situation or fact; concern about and well-informed interest in a particular situation or development.
That’s the dictionary’s definition of awareness. Or putting it plainly, it can be as simple as asking if we remembered which foot it was that stepped into the church as we entered. Is it left foot? Or right foot?
While we are still thinking and trying to remember which foot it was, here comes another question. Is there anything different or is there anything new that we see today in church?
Well, we may have noticed two statues at the side altars. And if we looked closer, we will see that the statue of Mary has a new coat of paint [a makeover? : P : )]
And if we are trying to make out who the other statue represents, a good guess would be St. Joseph, and so indeed it is.
The statue of Mary was brought down from the loft about three months ago and had to be cleaned and it took two months for it to be restored to what it is.The statue of Joseph, however, was nowhere to be found and so presumably it was damaged and thrown away.
Until we were alerted that it could be at another church and so indeed it was.
So we had it taken back on Thursday, had it cleaned and we tried to remove as much of the peeling paint as possible. It looks ragged and worn out but nonetheless it is intact and sturdy and hardy.
Then on Friday, the 1st May, the feast of St. Joseph the Worker, we had the statue blessed. It was so timely.Putting the statues on the side altars seems like a mismatch. One looks so new and clean, while the other looks like it’s covered with mud and rather dirty.
But for those of us who are with the parish long enough, we will know that the two statues are at their rightful place.
They were there since the church was built in 1910 but for whatever reason they were removed some time back.
But now that they are back in place, it does seem that everything is connected again. At least for those of us who are in the parish long enough, it does seem that all is at last connected again.
And if statues can talk, they would be saying “It’s nice to be back.” And if the statue of St. Joseph can talk, he would say “I want to be restored!” (He will be …)
The fact is that when things are in place, then they can be connected.
Similarly, when we are in place, then we will also be connected.
And the place that we need to be in is none other than in the heart of Jesus.
That is our home and that is where we get connected with Jesus and with each other.
Jesus used the imagery of the vine and branches to express this connection with Him. He even said that cut off from Him we can do nothing at all.
As we heard in the 1st reading, it was so with Saul, who would later take the name of Paul. At first he tried to join the disciples, but they viewed him with suspicion and he could do nothing at all.
It was only when Barnabas took charge of him and introduced him to the apostles that he began to preach fearlessly and bear fruit in his ministry.
So it was only when Saul was connected with the rest of the disciples and found his home with them that he was able to bear fruit.
As for us, we need to come to an awareness of the spiritual realities as we enter into the house of God. Because without awareness, nothing can change.
Awareness is not about which foot steps into the church first.
Awareness is that we have stepped into the house of God, the home of Jesus.
And coming to the home of Jesus, the connection begins as Jesus makes His home in each of us and connects us together.
And as we look at the statues of Mary and Joseph at where they belong, we can also see they have come home to Jesus.
Their being now at their proper places is certainly not just the work of man but more so the work of God.
Because it is Jesus who has brought them back to their places in church.
And through Mary and Joseph, Jesus is also telling us that He wants us to come and make our home in His heart.
And connected to Him and connected with each other, we will bear fruit. We must bear fruit.
So there is this Service Offering form that was distributed last week.
There is something that we can offer to Jesus in service of His church and for this parish.
The strongest principle of growth lies in the human choice.
It is for us to decide whether we want to offer our service and bear fruit for Jesus.
Mother Mary and St. Joseph are here to make us aware of that. They will be praying for us. May their prayers bear fruit in us for Jesus.
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| Church of the Sacred Heart |