Visiting the Jesus Museum, oopps Church
Last week, Prep and Year One students from a local Catholic school visited the Parish Centre. They came for Mass and a Meet and Greet with local parishioners. They were so excited. For many, it was their first trip on a bus. When they arrived, the students were greeted by the parishioners, one of whom was told by an exuberant child that they were coming to visit the Jesus Museum. Well, they could have believed it was just a museum, that is if they had just stayed for the Mass. For an unknowing observer, we seemed like a group of older and elderly people gathered for Mass, unrelated to the vibrant township at the bottom of the hill.
But after Mass, they got a different perspective. While the Parish Priest, gave the Preppies a tour of the Church, we were interviewed by the Year One students. We told, in brief, what we did in the Church. Then the questions came, and there were no shortage of those. In our lives, prayer was right up there, of course, closely followed by the friendship we have with each other. One woman said, it was her second home. But what was an eye opener to me, was the breadth and depth of service these people were giving. I know these people have known some for decades and I knew they did good things but even I was surprised by just how much they were up to helping people whose lives were not going well. For example: helping the homeless, providing for those in need of food and services, visiting the sick and housebound and teaching catechetics. This was only the tip of what our parishioners do – as nearly all these people were retired. They were pretty vibrant for Museum pieces.
The parishoners were not people to blow their own trumpet – they quietly go about their prayer lives, and even more quietly offering service to those in need. Most importantly they try to be good friends to each other and to those they help. From the outside the Church might seem like a Museum, but in reality it is a living, breathing body – the Body of Christ Jesus, His Church.
Loving Jesus, let me realise that through the people of your Church you want to be present in our world. It is through me that you want the love and life of God to spread in our world. Give me your Sprit that I might be a channel of your wisdom and love. I ask this in your name, confident that the Father will hear me.
Sr Kym Harris osb
