On the Good Shepherd, Gratitude and Restoration

Dear Sisters and Brothers –
Once again, a blessed and happy Easter Season to you!

In John’s gospel, Jesus describes himself as servant, friend, teacher, door, truth, shepherd, healer, pathway of life, and more. Naming things is a way we human beings have of understanding and communicating our experiences. This includes God. We creatures have always sought meaningful ways to describe and relate to that vast, divine mystery that is the Creator. Theologian Elizabeth Johnson addresses this in her book She Who Is: “No language about God will ever be fully adequate to the burning mystery which it signifies …. Great symbols of the divine always come into being not simply as a projection of the imagination, but as an awakening from the deep abyss of human existence in real encounter with divine being.” In the same vein, spiritual writer Joyce Rupp points out that the use of varying metaphors for the divine not only enhances our relationship with God; these names help us sense God touching the heart of what we are experiencing. When we are hurt or dealing with illness, comforting metaphors for the divine can ease our pain.

Perhaps one of the most tender and consoling metaphors for God/Jesus is that of the Good Shepherd, which we celebrate this Fourth Sunday of Easter: the one who searches when we are lost, who carries when we are weak, who comforts when we ache, who will lay down his life for his sheep. It’s an image that is particularly powerful in a world that today seems lost and weak and aching. In his poem I Will Shepherd, retired United Methodist pastor Steve Garnaas-Holmes writes about the Good Shepherd in a way that resonates with me about our world today:
 
On another note, though Holy Week and Easter seem long ago, I still want to express our collective gratitude to the scores of people who helped us to pray so beautifully and reflect so well throughout Holy Week and Easter. They planned and prepped and worked for months in order that the various events and liturgies of these holy days be beautiful. And they were! They touched our hearts and souls, and they were a means by which we encountered the Lord as the Lord seeks to come to us. Please join me in praying in thanksgiving for and for the intentions of all the women and men, girls and boys who contributed to the “production” of our celebrations, from the tying of the first palm branch to the pews for Palm Sunday to the putting away of the last table after the Easter egg hunt and hospitality on Easter Sunday. Parishioners, friends and staff alike – may God bless you 100-fold!
On a personal note, I wish to thank the scores of you who have held my father and mother in your thoughts and prayers since his stroke on Holy Thursday.

Fortunately, it was mild, and he has received excellent care in a skilled nursing facility for the past two weeks. The effects of the stroke are being mitigated, and he is getting strong enough to go home. Your kindness to me, my parents, and my family have touched us deeply, and we are grateful. My mother sent a text for me to relay to you: “Dear St. Ignatius Parishioners, you are all so wonderful to offer your prayers for Joseph and me during this time. We have felt your love and cannot thank you enough. Joseph is coming along very well, and we hope to come for Mass one of these Sundays.” Again, our deep and sincere gratitude.
Finally, a few updates on the restoration of the church. The repairs to the sheet metal on the spires, the bell tower, and the base of the dome are complete, and the scaffolding will be mostly down in the next few weeks. The bathrooms are being framed, and they are scheduled to be ready in June, at the same time as the completion of the new roof. The exterior lighting is also nearly complete, and adjustments to that will be taking place over the next weeks. The design will highlight the architecture of the church in ways that are subtle but striking. Regarding the “trenches” that have been carved into the central columns in the nave, they are for the conduit for part of the fire alarm system (the horns and lights). As much as we tried to avoid them, the San Francisco Fire Department would not let us out of this one. (Note: Because we chose to install both a fire alarm and fire suppression system in the church, we have not been required to do many of the upgrades that would otherwise have been required.) 

At last, as you can see, the stained-glass windows are coming back, and they are spectacular! The difference is really remarkable. One thing to note about the placement of the windows. Of the 14 tall clerestory windows, three are of women: Mary, Queen of Heaven; St. Mary Magdalene; and Queen Esther. (The rest are apostles and Moses.) Mary, Queen of Heaven has always enjoyed a place of prominence at the front of the church on the east side, across from her son, Christ the King. The latter two women have been at the very back of the church, across from one another. Thanks to the suggestion of a parishioner, we have reordered the windows and moved St. Mary Magdalene to the front of the church to reflect her role in the early Church. One of her titles is Apostle to the Apostles, which comes from the resurrection story in John’s gospel: Mary is the first to witness the resurrected Jesus, and she runs back to the others with the good news, “I have seen the Lord.” Given her central role in this all-important event in the life of the Church, St. Mary Magdalene will enjoy her new home next to St. Mary, Queen of Heaven!

May you continue to enjoy the blessings of this season.

Oremus pro invicem.

Fr. Greg