Dear Parishioners:

Ho Hum. As I sit here trying to think of what to write for this week’s bulletin letter, I find myself at a loss. Quite honestly, my life has been a bit boring lately. Don’t get me wrong! Its not that I don’t have plenty to do! It’s just that there is nothing particularly spectacular that has happened these past few days that merits comment in this letter. I’ve only been doing the same old things like shuffling papers on my desk, returning phone calls, making visits to the sick in hospitals, celebrating Masses, officiating at a wedding, and comforting mourners at a funeral. I’ve been responding to e-mails, shopping for groceries, and even (OMG!) doing laundry!

Some of you might think this is all pretty exciting stuff, but since this is normal for my line of work, it seems to me to be rather routine. Even the 4th of July holiday was nothing spectacular. There was no BBQ with the family and no trip to the bay front to watch the fireworks. It was pretty uneventful.

So, as unspectacular as things have been, what do I write about? I’m sure you don’t want to hear about what bills I paid. I’m pretty certain you don’t want to know the details about the wedding I celebrated or what groceries I put in my basket at the store.

Sometimes . . . life is just boring. Like the Gospel this weekend, a Christian whose heart is like good soil, handles the mundane aspects of life differently than someone with little faith. A person of shallow faith, or whose heart is like thorny or rocky ground might not be able to stand moments of dullness. Such a one always seems to have a need to live on the edge; to want to resolve boredom by seeking thrills or some type of ecstatic experience. In other words, that person always seems to need the extreme; something to stimulate the senses or to create pleasure. One, whose spirituality and faith has taken root, however, can live and persevere in routine moments and find fulfillment in them. A faith-filled person can allow God to transform the mundane without needing to go out to look for the next best thing.

In the gospel this weekend, Jesus speaks of the sower and the seed. Like the farmer that plants seed, God sows the seed of faith in the soil of our hearts. It takes a while to germinate and grow. If the soil is good, it will indeed grow and bear fruit. There is nothing spectacular in this. It takes time. Yet the end result is tremendous. It only takes patience, perseverance and a constant churning of the soil through prayer! God bless!

Fr. Paul