JULY 10: CONFESSION – 08:30 AM, DIVINE LITURGY – 09:00 AM (LIVE-STREAMED), PARISH MEETING – 10:15 AM; DIVINE LITURGY – 11:00 AM.
PARISH MEETING: IMPORTANT MEETING TO DISCUSS OUR FUTURE BUILDING PLANS AND POSSIBLE PROPERTY ACQUISITION. PLEASE PLAN TO ATTEND!
PROPERS: 07-10-22_Sunday_DL
Parishes live-streaming in the Diocese can be found here: https://www.eparchyofpassaic.com/livestream
The Gospel Reading for this Sunday is from Matthew 8:28 – 9:1 in which Jesus Restores Two Demon-Possessed Men & cast the demons into the Pigs. In this reading Jesus is now in His public ministry and encountered humans who are “demon-possessed”, because the demons took control of their faculties and tormented and twisted their lives out of control. But when Jesus came to their area, He brought deliverance for them from the powers of darkness. During the confrontation, the demons begged Jesus to send them into a herd of pigs that was nearby. These powerful evil spirits are in a panic, afraid of Christ, worried their days are coming to an end, knowing that a judgment is appointed for them. The news quickly spread to the town about what happened, but the amazing thing is that when they saw Jesus they pleaded with Him to leave their region. Why would they not welcome Him? Perhaps they thought only of their loss of the pigs. Or, perhaps they were more afraid for themselves, for this was no ordinary prophet in their midst, but one who judges and casts out evil. We do not know, as we do not understand why some believe and accept Jesus and some do not. So this Gospel record is one in which though Christ leaves when asked, He is always willing to help those who receive and asks for them to spread “the Good News.”
