In preparing for this week’s pastor’s post, I learned about a neat Christian holiday: Lammas Day or ‘Loaf Mass Day’. Traditionally celebrated on August 1, it marks the blessing of the first fruits of harvest with the bringing of a loaf of bread to church. Though much of the details of this day have been lost to history, the character of the day is indisputably tied to the Eucharist. Catholic Culture has a neat write-up on the day and traditions around it.

Closer to home, the middle of summer means looking down the calendar towards the fall. This last week our central region OCIA team met to plan out the coming year’s program. Our Confirmation and First Holy Communion teams are also working to create – or re-create, as the case may be – sacramental prep programs for our youth. One of our staff came up with a neat idea that we’re also pursuing – an Altar Server Summit to train servers new and experienced. And thanks to the enthusiasm & research of another staff member, we’re planning a parish family pilgrimage to one of our archdiocesan Jubilee year sites (Saint Peter mission in Suquamish). We’re also working on forming our Parish Family Advisory Council and working towards the next steps of Partners in the Gospel.

If I dwell on all these things for too long at a given moment, it is easy to become overwhelmed. Thankfully, the Christ and His Church have an answer for that: taking time to pull away from planning & work for prayer, worship, and reflection. Though Lammas Day might be a thing of the past, the offering of bread & wine happens every day. And all of it helps remind us that it is the fruit, not the labor, that matters. As we enter the final half of summertime, may we make sure that we both labor and break bread together!

July 27 – I am often reminded of how big a tent the Church actually is – that there is room for every vocation under the sun! Today’s saint, Saint Simeon the Stylite, is a great example of that. Born in the 4th century, he was deeply inspired by the beatitudes at the age of thirteen He attempted to enter the local monastery, but of course they refused him due to his youth. When he was finally old enough to enter the monastery, he faced an usual problem: he was so extreme in his self-mortification that he was dismissed over & over again. He eventually took up the life of a hermit, abstaining from food & drink for many weeks at a time. His reputation became such that his hermitage was overrun with visitors – so Simeon created a new hermitage atop a pillar….which he eventually built to a height of 67 feet. He spent a total of thirty-seven years atop pillars – and even then, people visited to seek his wisdom and request his prayers! Read more about him at the Loyola Press website.

July 29 – Today the Church celebrates Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. These three siblings were close friends of Christ, welcoming Him into their home ad calling on Him at Lazarus’ death. I’ve always imagined that they must have been especially fervent in their proclamation of the Gospel, each from their own unique perspective….. though I daresay Lazarus had the wildest testimony of the three! Read more about them at the website of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

July 31 – Today we celebrate the memorial of Saint Ignatius of Loyola. Though he hoped to be a famous military man, his aspirations were cut short when a cannon ball shattered his leg. During his convalescence, he realized that reading stories of Christ brought him more peace & joy than anything else. He eventually dedicated his life to the Lord, founded what would become the Jesuit order, and wrote what I would assert is one of the greatest spiritual books in the history of the Church (The Spiritual Exercises). Read more about him at Gonzaga University’s website.

August 1 – Hot on the heels of the founder of the Jesuits, we celebrate today Saint Alphonsus Liguori, founder of the Redemptorists. Extraordinarily intelligent, he received a doctorate in both canon and civil law by the age of sixteen. Rather than pursue a life in the practice of law, he responded to the Lord’s call to priesthood and dedicated himself to pastoral care. At the age of 36, he founded the Redemptorist congregation, whose mission revolved around imitating Christ and working for the poor in the outskirts of society. He was eventually made a bishop at the age of 66 (he initially refused!) and worked hard to reform the diocese to which he was assigned. He died at the age of 71, having set the foundation upon which the Redemptorist congregation still thrives. Read more about him at the website of the Baltimore Province of the Redemptorists.