This weekend we end the Easter Season with the Feast of Pentecost. The gift of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples marks the final aspect of the Paschal Mystery – the Suffering, Death, Resurrection and Ascension of our Lord and the Descent of the Holy Spirit upon his followers. With the close of the Easter Season we are back into Ordinary Time on the liturgical calendar. But, the next two Sundays we will celebrate two great
feasts of the church year; Trinity Sunday followed by the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ.
These feasts teach us about the nature of God as Trinity and the mystery of how God has called us to live in that divine Triune community of love. Through the Paschal Mystery Jesus opened for us the pathway to eternal life with God. Through the gift of the Holy Spirit, Jesus has enabled us to be new creations in His love, and through the Holy Spirit he continues to teach us and guide us. Also, through the power of the
Holy Spirit, he has left us the gift of His Body and Blood to infuse us with his presence, that we as Church, as the living Body of Christ in the world, may grow in holiness and be drawn into the oneness of God. We may never experience that oneness completely until we rest in the divine presence of God in heaven, but as we journey together at church may we strive to be one with the mind and heart of Christ in service to one another, and all our brothers and sisters throughout the world. 
While the Easter season has come to a close with the Feast of Pentecost, our life in the Spirit continues throughout the year and our need for the help of the Holy Spirit never ends. When we received Confirmation we were prayed over by the bishop that we would receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit. May we remember to seek and pray for these gifts in our daily life.
God’s blessings and peace, Father Bill

This weekend we celebrate the Seventh Sunday of Easter, the Sunday that falls between the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord and the Feast of Pentecost. The nine days between the Ascension and Pentecost have been traditionally been days to pray a Novena to the Holy Spirit. In speaking to His disciples, before His Ascension to the right hand of the Father, Jesus “enjoined them not to depart Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father about which you have heard me speak; for John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the holy Spirit.” (Acts 1:4-5) The disciples waited in prayer for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit; I encourage you to use these days leading to Pentecost to pray as well for a fresh outpouring of the Spirit in your life. The daily prayers of the Novena to the Holy Spirit are available as an app for your phone at https://catholicnovenaapp.com/novenas/holy-spirit-novena/#
God bless you, Father Bill

Memorial Day Monday we will be celebrating Memorial Day. As we remember all those who have died in the service of our country,
we pray that those who are now serving in the armed forces may be protected as they serve to protect our nation and freedoms. We pray also for all veterans who have served; for their physical, spiritual and mental well being. We also pray that future generations will live in peace and will not have to send their young people off to war.
Memorial Day has become not just a day to honor those who died in service to our country, but also a day on which we remember all of our departed loved ones.
Recently, two former parishioners died: James Raftis from St. Patrick Church in Owego, and Doris Baylor, from St. John
Church in Newark Valley. Jim was a pillar of the community in Tioga County. It was fitting that his funeral was held on Memorial Day weekend. Jim was the Chairman and Master of Ceremonies for the Memorial Day ceremony at the Tioga County Courthouse for 50 years. He also made sure that flags were placed on Veteran’s graves at all the cemeteries in the county. Also, for thirty years Jim did a radio broadcast of the 9:00am Sunday Mass at St. Patrick Church in Owego. A broadcast that was greatly appreciated by parishioners who were shut-ins. Jim will be greatly missed by his family and the community that he served in countless ways. Jim was 93 at his passing. Doris Baylor lived to be 101! Last year, I attended her 100th Birthday party in an Ithaca nursing home. Doris was a school teacher in Newark Valley for many years. Doris and her Husband Jim, who predeceased her, were very involved in St.
John the Evangelist Church in Newark Valley. They were daily Mass attendees who were a blessing to the parish.
This Memorial Day, Jim Raftis and Doris Baylor will be added to those I fondly remember and keep in my prayers. May
all of our loved one who have died, rest in peace, and may the Lord give strength to all who mourn their dead, especially those
who have lost loved ones recently. God’s blessings and peace, Father Bill

Today we celebrate the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Good Shepherd Sunday, and Mother’s Day! We remember today
our mothers who gave us birth, and the women who helped to teach us and nurture us physically and spiritually in our childhood and beyond. Happy Mother’s Day to all Mothers, Grandmothers, Great-Grandmothers, Godmothers and Mothers-to-be. 
My own Mother, Grandmothers and Godmother have all passed away; I thank God for the ways that each of them showed me
their love. I pray that they, and all of our mothers who have died, are at peace with Jesus and His Mother, Mary, in heaven.
Since 1964, Good Shepherd Sunday, has been designated as a World Day of Prayer for Vocations. Praying for
and promoting vocations in the church is the work of all of us as followers of Christ. At this moment in time, as I write this article , the Conclave to choose the next pope will soon be beginning. As we pray for our new Shepherd to lead the church, may
we ask Jesus, the Good Shepherd, to strengthen him in the Spirit, to carry out the task of leading the church in our times.
And may we pray that many young people hear the call to vocations in the priesthood and religious life in the church,
Mother’s Day and my vocation to the priesthood came together for me the year I was ordained to the priesthood.
The Sunday after my ordination happened to be Mother’s Day. It also happened to be my parents,40th Wedding Anniversary!
On that day I celebrated my first Mass in the church where I had received my First Communion: St. Mary Church, in Oneonta,
NY. At the Mass my parents also renewed their wedding vows. Present were my Mom’s Mom, my Grandmother Clarke and
my Godmother Mary Cook, It was truly a celebration of Motherhood, and the vocations of Marriage and Priesthood.
Once again I wish all mothers a blessed and happy Mother’s Day.
God’s blessings and peace to all, Father Bill

Today as we celebrate Palm Sunday we enter the most solemn week of the Church Year – the final, intense days of Lent and the
great days of the Triduum. This week, called holy by our ancestors, calls us to focus our attention and energy on the observance of
the Paschal Mystery.
The Triduum: The first thing to recognize about the Triduum is that it means ―The Three Day. The Triduum is a unified observance
that extends over three days, and forms its own unique and central part of the liturgical year. Lent ends on Holy Thursday afternoon.
The Triduum begins with the Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper and concludes on Easter Sunday evening.
The Church is called to enter into a period of prayer, fasting and vigilance, which reaches its climax at the Easter Vigil. The principal liturgies even suggest the unity of the Triduum by the way they end and begin. On Thursday, there is no dismissal or conclusion;
on Friday we gather and leave with no introductory or concluding rites; and at the Vigil we gather around a fire and begin without the
usual introductory rites. We begin on Thursday and don’t conclude until after the Vigil, with Easter Sunday as a kind of extension of
the celebration of the Vigil.
These days are the central movement around which all else revolves. The Triduum gives meaning to Lent, which precedes
it, and to the Fifty Days of Easter that follow. As the Lent-Easter cycle is the core of the year, so the Triduum is the core of Lent-Easter. These days are central because they draw us into the heart of our identity as a church. The paschal mystery of Jesus’ death and resurrection is the core of our faith, and our participation in the mystery through the celebration of baptism defines what it means to be Christian and what it means for the community to be church. This year, Holy Thursday and Good Friday services will be celebrated at Our Lady of the Lake, King Ferry and the Easter Vigil will be celebrated at St. Patrick Church, Aurora,
May you have a blessed Holy Week—God’s peace and blessings.
Father Bill

Recently a parishioner came up to me and asked to be anointed because of some medical concerns. I said I would be glad to and I went and got the Oil of the Sick and anointed her with the holy oil as I administered the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick. I was grateful that she gave me the opportunity to pray with her.
The Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick is a sacrament that is based on the healing ministry of Jesus and the teaching of the church found in the Letter of James. James 5:14 teaches,” Is anyone among you sick? He should summons the presbyters of the church, and they should pray over him and anoint with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up. If
he has committed any sins, he will be forgiven.”
In the past people looked at this Sacrament as one that you received as you prepared for death; it was called Extreme Unction, or Last Rites. The Sacrament today is called the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick, and while it is still received by those who are close to death, people are also encouraged to receive this sacrament who are dealing with serious illness, surgery, and those who are dealing with various chronic
illnesses, especially the elderly.
If you are in need of receiving the Sacrament of the Sick I encourage you to do so. You can call the church office (364-7197) to schedule a time to meet with me either at church, or if you are homebound, at your house. If you are able to attend Mass you can ask me to anoint you after Mass. I encourage this approach especially when you are going in for surgery or some other serious medical procedure or course of
treatment.
Also, if you or a member of your family is homebound and cannot attend Mass, please let us know if you or they would like to receive Holy Communion at home and arrangements will be made.

The annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity begins, Saturday, January 18 and ends, Saturday January 25. The theme
chosen for 2025 is, “Do you Believe”( John 11:26) Our world has seen so much warfare in recent times as nations fight against their neighbors, and our country has seen so much political division that causes unrest in our nation. The violence on New Year’s Day in New Orleans reminds us that our streets, neighborhoods, and schools continue to be plagued with senseless gun violence that calls out for justice for all people. These continued tensions in the human family call out for healing, unity, justice and peace. As we reflect on the theme for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, “Do you Believe?”, may we pray for unity not only in our faith communities, but also for our families, our country, and our world.
The churches of Union Springs have gathered in daily prayer and reflection sessions in observance of the Week of Prayer for
Christian Unity, for over forty years. Covid stopped the gatherings for prayer for a couple of years, but last year we began meeting again for prayer and reflection during the Week of Prayer but with an abbreviated schedule. This year we will do likewise.
On Saturday, January 18,at 2:00 p.m., there will be a session at the Healing Grounds, 155 Main Street, Union Springs. The
Scripture readings for that gathering are Isaiah 63:15-1t; Psalm 139: 1-3, 13, 23, 24b; 1 Corinthians 8:5-6.
On Sunday, January 19, at the Trinity United Church of Christ, on Main Street, Union Springs, there will be a dish –to- pass
meal at 6:00 p.m., followed by a 7:00pm prayer service with a reflection offered by Fr. Bill Moorby.
On Tuesday, January 21, at 2:00 p.m.at the Trinity United Church of Christ, on Main Street, Union Springs. The Scripture
readings for that gathering are Exodus 3:7-8; Psalm 16:5, 7,10-11.
On Wednesday, January 22, 7:00 p.m. at St. Michael Church, on Main Street, Union Springs. The Scripture readings for that
gathering are Ezekiel 36:24-28; Psalm 104: 24-25, 27-29. 33-34; John 3:4-8.
On Thursday, January 23, 7:00 p.m. at the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Union Springs. The Scripture readings for that
gathering are Isaiah 2:2-4; Psalm 133; Ephesians 4:1-6.
On Friday, January 24, 2:00 p.m. at St. Michael Church, on Main Street, Union Springs. The Scripture readings for that gathering are Micah 7:18-19, Psalm 51:1, 7, 10, 12, Matthew 28: 16-20.
Please bring a Bible with you to the prayer and reflection sessions.
If you cannot make the gatherings, please pray for unity that we may all be one in God ‘s love. Also, a Daily Scripture and
Prayer Guide for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity will be available in our churches. You are encouraged to use them at
home for personal prayer during the week or to gather as a family or with friends at home to prayerfully reflect throughout the week.
On January 20th, we honor Martin Luther King, Jr., a man who devoted his life to bring about equality by peaceful means and to stop the injustices experienced by persons of color in our society. May we pray for the necessary changes needed in our minds and hearts, as well as in the laws and systems in our society that facilitate discrimination and injustice. May we see others as our neighbors and all people as children of God. God’s blessings and peace, Father Bill

I share with you today this teaching of the church of who we are as God’s pilgrim people as we await the fulfillment of our salvation ,
the Second coming of the Lord.
From “Lumen gentium”, the Second Vatican Council’s dogmatic constitution on the Church
The eschatological character of the pilgrim Church
“The Church, to which we are all called in Christ Jesus and in which we acquire holiness through the grace of God, will reach its
perfection only in the glory of heaven, when the time comes for the renewal of all things, and the whole world, which is intimately
bound up with man and reaches its perfection through him, will, along with the human race, be perfectly restored in Christ.
Lifted above the earth, Christ drew all things to himself. Rising from the dead, he sent his life-giving Spirit upon his disciples, and
through the Spirit established his Body, which is the Church, as the universal sacrament of salvation. Seated at the right hand of the
Father, he works unceasingly in the world, to draw men into the Church and through it to join them more closely to himself, nourishing them with his own body and blood, and so making them share in his life of glory.
The promised renewal that we look for has already begun in Christ. It is continued in the mission of the Holy Spirit. Through the
Spirit it goes on developing in the Church: there we are taught by faith about the meaning also of our life on earth as we bring to fulfilment – with hope in the blessings that are to come – the work that has been entrusted to us in the world by the Father, and so work out our salvation.
The end of the ages is already with us. The renewal of the world has been established, and cannot be revoked. In our era it is in a
true sense anticipated: the Church on earth is already sealed by genuine, if imperfect, holiness. Yet, until a new heaven and a new
earth are built as the dwelling place of justice, the pilgrim Church, in its sacraments and institutions belonging to this world of time,
bears the likeness of this passing world. It lives in the midst of a creation still groaning and in travail as it waits for the sons of God to be revealed in glory.