Those who are “history buffs” of Early Christianity, as I am, may know that the first Christians in Rome and Greece were infamous among their pagan neighbors for rescuing abandoned babies. Infamous because those first Christians would go out at night and listen for abandoned babies crying. Then they brought the little ones into their homes, protected them, and raised them with love.

We just celebrated the great day on which Mary was assumed body and soul into heaven. Although the Church has always and everywhere believed that Mary “having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory” it was not formally defined as dogma until 1950. Venerable Pope Pius XII wrote in Munificentissimus Deus (say that a couple times fast…) that Mary “by an entirely unique privilege, completely overcame sin by her Immaculate Conception, and as a result she was not subject to the law of remaining in the corruption of the grave, and she did not have to wait until the end of time for the redemption of her body.”

To impress your friends you might share with them that the Catholic Church reads through the synoptic gospels on a 3-year cycle at our Sunday Masses. For example last year's weekly gospels were from Matthew and next year will be Luke. That of course means this year we are mostly reading Mark. Mostly, because Mark is the shortest gospel and to "cover" three weeks in the middle of Ordinary Time we have been reading from John 6.

Happy St. John Vianney Day to all in our parish! Today is a very special day indeed, in fact a “solemnity” in our parish, granted by our Bishop and the Church to us in honor of our holy patron, the parish priest of Ars, France, Saint Jean-Baptiste-Marie Vianney (which, being quite a mouthful - and in a French accent - we shortened to John Vianney in English…)