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Background:
We now have returned after a long hiatus to our year long reading of St. Matthew's
Gospel. Today's Gospel continues a theme we have heard often in June -there is no reason
to be afraid. God loves us, Jesus loves us, we are of infinite worth because of that love.
Nothing, no threats, no evil tongues, no sickness, no failures, no disasters can separate
us from that love. It is one thing of course to profess this faith, which we can easily
do, trippingly on our lips and another thing to live that way. In today's Gospel Jesus
offers us the possibility of the joy and happiness which comes from taking his promises
seriously. |
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Locally, and Globally!

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Columns for the
Chicago SunTimes'
Daily Southtown.
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Story: Once upon a time back in the last century
there was a young woman from Ireland
who had lost her parents and all her family. Some kind people wrote to their relatives in America
and said we have this fourteen year old orphan here who is very bright and very pretty and
very hard working, We dont want her to go to the orphanage because she wont
have any opportunities there to develop her talents. Would you eve consider hiring her as
a servant girl. Youd have to pay her way over on the boat, but shell work for
nothing until she earns her fare. You wont go wrong with her. So the Americans who
could afford a serving girl, but never had one and werent altogether sure what they
would do with such a person talked about it and said, well, what have to lose. So they
sent the fare for the boat and the train. And waited for the young woman to come. She
sailed from Kinsale. The last she saw of Ireland
were the twin spires of the church as they faded into the background. Weeks later, sick
and thin and exhausted, she arrived in the city where her master and mistress lived. They
took one look at the poor child and said, Dear, we dont need a servant, but we have
room for another daughter. When they brought her home the other children hugged her and
said, hooray! We have another sister. With their help she grew up to go to college and
university and become very successful and was a great credit to those who took her into
their family. So has God invited all of us into His family.

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