We celebrate many feasts in our life such as birthdays, graduations, various anniversaries, and weddings and even funerals. For these celebrations, family and friends gather to eat and drink together, sharing memories and love. The church also takes an important part of the celebrations in baptism, first communion, confirmation, reconciliation, matrimony, ordination and anointing of the sick. Celebrating feasts is not only special events but also defining moments of who we are and why we live.
In fact, St. Anthony of Padua parish you and I belong to is preparing to celebrate its 50-year presence as the community of faith, hope and love in 2009. The 50th anniversary committee has been diligently working on the yearlong celebration in the theme of “Now thank we all our God.”
Above all, all celebration seems eventful as well as meaningful because the people invited to are reminded of the fact that they don’t want to miss the importance of this time, the time of remembrance and the time of festivity. Here I want to pause a moment to invite you to think about the time that can be either a physical time or an appointed time. Everyone at St. Anthony can say the parish has been 50 years since 1959 when it was established in the diocese of Cleveland. Some may say it is memorable because God’s blessing upon St. Anthony has reached a half-century. Furthermore, it could be a poignant time for St. Anthony to move forward with the renewed spirit in thanksgiving to God and service to His people because the parish is now facing dramatic changes in the process of clustering. So this celebration wouldn’t only be a happy festival but a time to reflect on what we have done and how we make a difference for the local community in the future. This is the appointed time and God’s time moving beyond the physical time.
In order to be prepared to take part in the time set apart, we need to look at our disposition, our readiness for the celebration. The gospel tells us that it comes with a wedding garment. You can’t go to the White House with your working attire! It shows not only your appearance but also your inner and spiritual readiness. The celebrating time seems always just around the corner like all your upcoming events. What is your garment? How do you prepare it?