St. Augustine said: “Believe what you see, see what you believe and become what you are: the Body of Christ.” When we say “Amen” we are saying “Yes, I believe this is the Body and Blood of Christ and that I will be the Body of Christ to others.” Every week and, for many, every day we gather to celebrate the Eucharist. This is what nourishes us; this is what strengthens us to be Christ in our world today. In the same way that we cannot survive without physical nourishment, we cannot fulfill our vocation without the nourishment and strength we receive from the Eucharist. It binds us together as brothers and sisters with Christ as the “heart” of our faith community. Let us be grateful to God for this great gift.

This Thursday, June 27 at the 5:30 PM Mass, several Friars will be celebrating their 25th and 50th Anniversaries of first profession of vows. Fr. Brian Smail from our community celebrate 25 years, and Fr. Vincent Laviano, who used to be here at St. Francis, will celebrate 50 years. We congratulate them and pray for them on this great occasion! Ad multos annos!

Tickets are on sale for the 175th Anniversary Raffle at the Front Desk. The prizes are $1000, $500 and $250 and you don’t have to be present to win. The drawing is September 20th. Tickets are $5 each or 5 for $20.

-Fr. Andrew Reitz, O.F.M.