Prayer Again!

Not more about prayer! That must be what some of you say when you read the headline to this column. Father always seems to be pushing prayer, you think to yourself. So, when the bulletin headline references prayer, you skip it, zone it out, and move on to the next item. That is because we tend to envision prayer as the words from our youth that we spout off without giving them much meaning or feeling. Or, we believe prayer is some intricate and hidden process that can only be fruitful after years of training and who has time for that.

Yes, I often write about the value of prayer and different prayer methods in this column. That is because, as Catholics, we ground our faith in the belief we have a lived experience of God. Our God not only came into our world in history but comes to us in the present and wants to communicate with us. We need to pray if we want a relationship with the living God.

In a recent article, Jesuit Fr. Jim McDermott wrote prayer is putting ourselves in a relationship with anything bigger than ourselves. To live life well, we need to do that whether we consider ourselves religious people or not. In his article, McDermott recommends three ways to pray to improve our lives but don’t take much effort.

First, sit down and look at the sky, the stars, or something easy for us, out at the ocean. These actions aren’t particularly pious but contemplating something so vast while realizing we are so small puts us and our problems into perspective. We understand we aren’t in control, and we need to surrender our issues and concerns to the larger picture.

Next, McDermott suggests we savor the present as the present. Sit down somewhere, take a breath, close your eyes and, just listen. You’ll hear sounds that are all around you, but you never hear. McDermott says, drink them in. After a few minutes of that, open your eyes to see new things you have failed to notice. Do that for several cycles. You’ll come to appreciate your surroundings more.

So much of our Catholic prayers involve talking. We offer intercessions for our loved ones and make requests to God, and we don’t take the time to listen. The third prayer form we can follow is to sit quietly with our eyes open and calmly breathe. Slowly thoughts, memories, and experiences will come to mind that we would classify as distractions we need to drive away. Rather than that, think of them as the things God wants us to pay attention to right now. Listen and respond.

Most of us probably pray much more often than we give ourselves credit for. If we pay more attention to what is going on around us, it will become prayer, and we will recognize God trying to enter into our lives to help improve them so we can live the fulness of life.

Fr. Sullivan On Vacation This Week

Fr. Sullivan will be on vacation this week. Fr. Hugh “Mick” McCullough, a retired diocese priest, will be filling in for him. Please welcome Fr. McCullough next weekend.

Diocesan Pro-Life Apostolate Offers Presentation

The Pro-Life Office of the Diocese of Fall River is offering a presentation at St. Francis Xavier in Hyannis on Saturday, February 12. It will occur after Morning Mass and Rosary, from approximately 9:45-11:15. Speakers from the Pro-Life Office will be talking about several programs, including Walking with Moms in Need, Project Rachel, and the Pro-Life Boot Camp. Refreshments will be served.

Bottle for the Baby Bottle Boomerang Progresses

Throughout January, Holy Redeemer is conducting a Baby Bottle Boomerang to support A Woman’s Concern - Your Options Medical. An organization providing no-cost life-affirming pregnancy confirmation services to women and couples facing unplanned pregnancies. Please fill your bottle with your loose change, cash, or a check and return them to church the weekend of February 8/9. Please make checks payable to “Your Options Medical” if you decide to donate by check.

SYNOD NEWS – The Listening Sessions Have Begun

Thank you to everyone who participated in Saturday’s initial in-person Synod listening session, which was conducted as part of the preparations for the upcoming synod called by Pope Francis   The discussion was excellent. The themes that were discussed will be included in the summary report prepared for Bishop de Cuna.  We plan further sessions beginning at 1:00 pm in the parish hall on February 5 and 26, March 19, April 2, and April 23. Sign-up information is available at the back of the church.

We prefer you participate in the listening sessions in person since that will allow for a more informal discussion regarding your individual needs and your vision of the Church in the future. However, synod survey questionnaires for those unable to attend are available in the back of the church. Take one and answer at your convenience and return at a later date.

The synod called by Pope Francis is intended to inspire people to dream about the Church we are called to be, to make people’s hopes flourish, to stimulate trust, to bind up wounds, to weave new and deeper relationships, to learn from one another, to build bridges, to enlighten minds, warm hearts, and restore strength to our hands for our common mission. We hope you will take this opportunity to participate in the synod and to share your vision for the church.

Thank You from The Family Pantry of Cape Cod

Last week the parish received a thank you letter for the Family Pantry of Cape Cod for the two truckloads of supplies gathered from parishioners as part of the Reverse Advent Calendar. Thank you to Linda Hurley and Bob Delvecchio for the idea. We’ll plan to do it again next year.