Did you go to Mass on Ascension Thursday?  Wait, was the Ascension even celebrated on Thursday?    What happened to Ascension Thursday?  Well, Catholics who live in the Northeast still celebrate it as a holy day of obligation on the 40 ^th day after Easter, i.e. this past Thursday.  But the rest of us celebrate the Ascension of Jesus into heaven today.  Starting out West in the 1990’s the Bishops thought it would be best to transfer this feast to the seventh Sunday after Easter, which is the 43 ^rd day after Easter.  Twenty years ago, the necessary two-thirds of the Bishops voted to do so.  Some of us were raised believing from the moment of Pentecost the rules were set in stone and would never change.  A lack of uniformity in Church matters upsets some.  But I’ve always liked what is attributed to St. Augustine.  “In Essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.”    
 
Do you believe that God is present in your everyday life?  This is a foundational question for anyone who wants to deepen their spiritual life.  Where is God in all of this?  Today for young mothers especially, it is good to be mindful that God is in the midst of every load of laundry, every sleepless night, and every crazy diaper change and temper tantrum day.  Why?  Well, God is Love and through your overflowing love He has brought new life into this world for you to SHAPE and MOLD and LOVE in His ways.  It is an awesome vocation.
 
On this Mother’s Day, as I shared last Sunday, I have a deep sense of gratitude for having been blessed by the love of Irene Mary Ragan.  My Mom lived her life immersed in love, a love for God and a love for others, exemplified by the love she showed her family and friends.  She was a woman of faith who was blessed in so many ways and blessed so many others with that faith.  As my Mother she blessed me with the gift of life twice.  She gave birth to me in the natural world and as she taught me to pray and brought me to the Sacraments and helped me to keep my heart open to a priestly vocation she gave birth to me in the supernatural world.
 
And we also pray this day for all the women who have loved us and who in loving us have given us new life.  God our Creator, we pray:
                                                                                                                                                           For new mothers, coming to terms with new responsibility;
For expectant mothers, wondering and waiting;
For those who are tired, stressed or depressed;
For those who struggle to balance the tasks of work and family;
 
 For those who are unable to feed their children due to poverty;
 For those whose children have physical, mental or emotional disabilities;
 For those who raise children on their own;
 For those who have lost a child;
 For those who care for the children of others;
 For those whose children have left home;
 And for those whose desire to be a mother has not been fulfilled.
 
Bless all mothers, that their love may be deep and tender, and that they may lead their children to know and do what is good, living not for themselves alone, but for God and for others.   Amen.
 
I was honored and blessed to have known Mary Chapin’s parents.  They had a great marriage and raised a wonderful family.  Mary’s Dad, Dr. William Real, passed onto glory last Sunday.  On behalf of our faith community, I offer our deepest sympathies and prayer support to Mary and her family. 

Fr. Jerry Ragan