To watch Fr. Joe’s homily from the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time: CLICK HERE!
Recently, FBI Agent Troy Sowers retired after 22 years of service. He expected nothing more than some doughnuts and coffee at his retirement party. But his colleagues arranged something much bigger.
Seems when Sowers a Rookie Agent working in Seattle, he and police were called when a baby was kidnapped from a Washington Hospital by a woman impersonating a nurse. The kidnapper was soon apprehended, and Sowers managed to convince her to lead him to the baby. She had left the infant in a box next to a restaurant dumpster. Sowers rushed to the restaurant hoping the baby was still alive when he found him. When Sowers picked up the infant, he was not crying, but just nuzzled right into his neck and he knew he was fine. The medical crew arrived shortly and took the baby away.
A senior agent told Rookie Sowers, “Troy, I’ve got to tell you, something like that… You’ll never do anything better than that.”
The case stuck with Sowers and over the years, he wondered what had happened to the child he rescued. At this retirement party, he found out. His fellow agents tracked down the baby – now 22 years old – and invited him to the retirement party. And so FBI Agent Troy Sowers was reunited with Stewart Rembert, now a corporal in the US Marine Corps.
“My parents wanted me to give you a big hug,” Rembert told the stunned FBI Agent. “Thank you for giving me an opportunity to have a life… It’s crazy to think that without his efforts, I would not even be here today. I would not be a Marine. My family would not be the same. I am just super excited and honored to meet this man today,” said Corporal Rembert.
Agent Sower said the reunion was “probably one of the best surprises I have ever had.”
“I am glad to see what you have done with your life,” he told Rembert. “Pass it on!”
Today’s Gospel and the Lord’s reminder that however small our faith (mustard seed faith) that much good is possible. Ordinary acts of kindness; simple acts of caring; every act of generosity done in faith can change lives and will one day bear fruit, abundant fruit.
In recent bulletins, and in a mailing going out to all the Parish this week, we will be sharing information about a Diocesan Campaign entitled: “Re-Igniting our Faith.”
In a nutshell, we are being asked to look to the future as a church locally and as a Diocese, not just today, or this week or this month…
Among Diocesan efforts in need of consideration are:
- Support for Vocations
- Increasing efforts for evangelization
- Increasing resources for Catholic Education
- Providing critical funding to assist our retired priests (my favorite)
And here in our Parish there is always a wish list for such areas as:
- Increasing outreach to the needy (locally and beyond)
- Meeting changing needs in ministry to the Parish and beyond
- Increasing efforts to share and live the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Obviously there is a financial ask here. And there is no doubt that St. Mary’s, Crescent has been and continues to be very generous to the Parish financially when it comes to weekly parish support and to the Annual Bishop’s Appeal, for which each of us here at St. Mary’s are very grateful. And it goes without saying this support must continue and I have faith that we, the people of St. Mary’s, Crescent, will do so.
When it comes to supporting the Re-Igniting our Faith Campaign, there may be reasons for doing so or not… However, I only ask that you:
- Read, reflect and pray about the information that will be coming to you in the coming days at your home….
- And when it comes to a financial gift – whether it be a one-time gift or a gift over the coming 5 years for Re-Igniting our Faith, think mustard seed faith, mustard seed generosity… that can go a long way and make a big difference.
- Remember today’s story about the actions of a Rookie FBI Agent that made such a difference over the years… Acts of kindness and generosity by others have bloomed over the years for which we have been and are beneficiaries.
Re-igniting our Faith is an effort, a campaign, for us to pass it on.