Rev. Matt Murphy
Assoc. Pastor
Call 310.456.2361
Rev. Msgr. Liam Kidney,
Pastor
Call 310.456.2361
My Dear Parishioners,
As we journey through the Season of Easter and we continue through the Year of Mercy, I thought this would be a good time to give some thought to our attendance at Sunday Mass and why we gather together as a Catholic Community.
At a workshop I once attended, Fr. Kevin Irwin suggested
three reasons why we gather:
1. We gather to remember,
2. We gather to listen,
3. We gather to respond.
In remembering we cause something to live and to continue to live. We remember that God is acting among us, and we let that God who is acting among us transform us, change us, make us new. When we listen and really hear the Word of God it forms
us or transforms us. It creates us, or it recreates us. If we hear the Word, it brings order out of the chaos of our lives and we become converted to the God we worship.
We gather to respond and our response is a common prayer – we pray with each other and for each other. Sometimes our prayer is so united that we reach out and hold hands to add to our oneness and unity. My friends, do we realize what we are remembering and
that in remembering we give life? Do we realize how much we need to listen, and not just listen, but to really hear the Word of God? To allow the Word to change us will now cause us to respond; and, in responding we share a common prayer and we become a Sacrament ofthe presence of God.
In other words, we leave the gathering to go and livewhat we celebrate. Listen to the words of the Dismissal –“Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.”
Siempre Adelente!