24th July, 2011 Seventeenth Sunday of the Year - A
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150th anniversary of St Mary’s Parish. (Saturday Night Mass: Homily by FR Paul Kelly)
On this very day, (the 23rd day of July, 1861), the newly arrived Bishop of Brisbane, James Quinn, and two French Priests, Fr Paul Tissot and Fr Renehan, boarded the steamer named the Clarence en route to Maryborough, and arrived two days later, and stayed several days.
In fact, this weekend celebrates that Fr Paul Tissot remained here from that time on and became on the 25th July the first permanent Parish Priest of Maryborough. Here we are 150 years later and what a joyous occasion we celebrate this weekend and in particular tomorrow when Archbishop John will preside at a Mass of thanksgiving.
We thank God for the enormous blessingsn and graces he has poured upon generations of people in this town and the surrounding regions, through God’s action in the church and in the people who form the body of Christ in this place. We humbly continue on this good work started so long ago.
In masses this weekend we give thanks for the countless blessings bestowed on this community and the many people: parishioners, community members, fellow church denominations and their pastors, civic leaders, priests, religious and friends who have cooperated with what God has been doing in this place.
We ask for continued blessings upon our town and the people who live and work here. Lord, grant success to the work of our hands.
The readings are perfect for this celebration and ironically they are the ones set for this ordinary season of the year. But they could not be better chosen.
In the first reading, God offers Solomon anything he desires. We could think of many things we could ask of God if given complete freedom. Yet, al he asks for is an understanding heart: wisdom. And God readily grants it. In the end, money, long-life, prestige, does not mean a thing if we live our lives in ignorance and without an understanding and lovingheart. Striving to do God’s will in this time and place, as our forebears did before us, with God’s grace.
Today, we continue to ask for this gift. Lord, above all, grant us wisdom of heart, so that we may serve you in faithfulness all our days, to your greater glory.
I love the gospel… the parable of the treasure buried in the field… This parish, this church is a treasure planted in a field… and of course as beautiful as it is, its much more than the beauty of the building… it’s the presence of God that it represents and it’s the symbol od Christian dedication and grace that it proclaims… James Cleary and his fellow Christians believes so much in the gospel, and in Christian education and in the need for the physical presence of the Church community in the life of the city that they put their time, energy and money into working for God’s glory in establishing this catholic community which we are part of today…
It was worth selling everything to obtain.. and the gospel continues to be priceless and precious and worth all our efforts to this day and beyond…
May God, who has so graciously accompanied and given success to our work so often in the past, continue this good work in us and bring it to perfection.
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REFERENCES:
· FR. PAUL W. KELLY
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