JUNE 2017
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Good Stewards Hug Jesus’s Oxymorons
Have you ever paid close attention to Jesus’s beatitudes? I hope you
have. They are extraordinarily important. They are a big piece of Jesus’s
mission to “fulfill” the Old Covenant. To “complete” the Old Covenant. The
beatitudes are extraordinarily important, but they are somewhat puzzling.
They seem to turn the world upside down. In fact, it can be honestly said the
beatitudes are all oxymorons.
Know what an oxymoron is? Well, it is an apparent contradiction. For
example, deafening silence is an oxymoron. So is “bittersweet.”
It seems to me that Jesus was constantly turning the world upside down. You
know, “Love your enemy.” “The first shall be last.” “Serve and not be
served.” None of those qualify as common sense. However, all of them
qualify as “Jesus sense”.
Okay, back to the beatitudes. One of those
that I struggle with is: “Blessed are the
persecuted.” We all want to be blessed, but I
doubt any of us want to be persecuted. We
do not wake up in the morning and say,
“Wow, what a gorgeous day. I just can’t wait
to get out there and be persecuted.” But, that
is exactly what Jesus says we should be
saying. Let’s explore why. If we want
heaven, we must grow. We must grow in
holiness. And, Jesus says that just doesn’t
happen when every day is a “Golly gee whiz
perfect day.” If every day is perfect, we’ll stagnate. We’ll stay on our plateau
of perfection. It is only when we encounter problems, like persecution, that
Continued on page 8
Page 1
Inside
-2-
The Inversion Conversion
-3-
BBQ Cookoff
RCIA
-4-
Summer Seminarian
Damian Zablocki
-5-
Altar Servers and
Children’s Choir Enjoy
Waterpark Fun
-6-
Texting the Truth About
Tithing
-7-
Men’s Club Raffle