On June 12, I turned 77. I thank all of you who have sent me cards or remembered me in your prayers. I told Mike Wieser that I should RETIRE. Mike answered, “No, just put on a new TIRE… I will…
I want to share a few reflections about the “Monstrance” in our new Chapel. Some of you may not be familiar with the word “Monstrance.” The “Monstrance” is the receptacle in which the Host (Jesus) is held. The traditional one is in the form of a sun. The one in the chapel is a modern version. I asked Fr. Andres if he had seen that model elsewhere. He said he had not. But he shared some ideas with the architect and the latter came up with this model.
A few parishioners have shared with me the images that this piece of glass with the Host in the middle brought up in their mind. One parishioner said that he saw the glass as an image of the Church and Jesus at the center of the Church. The Eucharist is definitely at the center of who we are as Catholics.
Another parishioner saw, in the wires that keep the glass in mid-air, an image of the 20 Mysteries of the Rosary. As you know, the Mysteries call our attention to 20 sacred moments in the life of Jesus and Mary. The Joyful Mysteries recall 5 sacred moments in the early life of Mary and Jesus. The Mysteries of Light recall 5 sacred moments in the public life of Jesus. The Sorrowful Mysteries recall 5 sacred moments in the last moments of the life of Jesus and the Glorious Mysteries recall 5 sacred moments in the life of Jesus and Mary after the Resurrection.
Personally, I saw in these wires that hold the glass in mid-air, an image of the Cross and Jesus being at the center of the Cross.
Another parishioner saw the gifts of the Holy Spirit in the various colors of the glass.