July 23, 2025

Dear Parishioners,

Many of us have likely struggled with understanding the ways that God answers prayer. We have asked for something—healing for a loved one, freedom from a particular vice, or maybe clarity in discernment—and perhaps God’s answer seemed to be no...or even worse, nothing.

This is a common experience, and the good news today is that the Sacred Scriptures show us that this is a deeply human experience throughout all of time. From the outcries of the prophets, of kings, of Job, the psalmists, and other ancestors in faith, those who have put their trust in God down through the centuries have felt this longing or frustration or confusion again and again. We are not alone in this struggle.

Fortunately, that is only half of the good news. The Bible is not the story of those who reached out to God, felt frustrated with the lack of response, and then walked away to live in this longing.

No, all of Scripture witnesses another, much more fundamental truth: God is faithful, God is merciful, God hears our prayers.

In the Old Testament, we see repeatedly how God’s people fall short and even complain against God, yet still God is faithful; he responds to our cries when we turn back to him and seek him. Abraham intercedes again and again on behalf of the innocent and God replies with mercy every time. The God of Abraham was radically merciful, and this abundant mercy set him apart from the other deities whom the pagan nations worshipped during that time.

As Christ teaches us how to pray, he likewise exhorts us to be persistent as we ask for the Holy Spirit who guides us. The Father, he assures us, know how to give good gifts.

And so, we can continue to pray with deep trust. Scripture tells us that we may have to keep asking, but something powerful happens in that repetition. As we ask, as we return to the source of mercy and love, we are changed. We encounter God himself, and this is the best possible gift he could give us.

May receiving the Holy Eucharist help us to be persistent—trusting that Christ, who gives himself to us perfectly in the Blessed Sacrament, will give us all we need.

God Love Ya,
Fr. Reilly

A Few Odds and Ends

Saturday Morning Mass/Confessions

Beginning September 6, Saturday morning Mass will be permanently changed from 8:00 AM to 8:30 AM.

Confessions will be heard from 8:00 AM to 8:20 AM.