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Mark 6:30-34 |
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| Background: The apostles, excited and probably exhausted, eagerly reported back to Jesus on their successes at preaching and teaching. Jesus, recognizing their need for some time to re- energize, takes them to a private place. When the people follow them, Jesus himself teaches, perhaps giving his apostles both time to rest and new insights into the meaning of the message they are to convey. |
read the padre |
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Story: Once upon a time, not so very long ago, a woman went to the parish priest and offered to help in whatever way she could. The associate pastor was leaving and not going to be replaced. Her children were grown and she felt that she had the time to give to the parish community. As is usually the case, there were many things for her to do and as the parishioners became more familiar with her, they often turned to her for help. She was a deeply spiritual person and people sought her advice. Since she was the type of woman who tried to do everything well, before long she was working the equivalent of time and a half. She loved her work but as time went on, and there was more and more work, she found she had less and less time for her own spiritual reflection. She also began to feel like she was not doing her best work in the parish. Her husband suggested that she needed a break, a time to connect again with the spiritual vision that motivated her in her work. She went on a retreat where the director suggested to her that she would do well to set aside an hour a day and a day a month and a week a year as a special prayer time, a time to get in touch with the God in whose name she was working. She followed the director’s advice and now finds she reaches more people while still having time for her family and her prayer life.
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