May 10, 2015 - Sixth Sunday of Easter Baptisms Seminars are held every other month - register by calling the office. Attend- ance is suggested during pregnancy. 406 East Pinhook Road Lafayette, LA 70501-8727 Phone: (337) 237-0988 Rev. M. Keith LaBove, Pastor Parish Website: www.stpat.org — [email protected]Weddings Arrangements must be made at least six months in advance to allow time for preparation Office Hours Monday – Thursday: 8:30 am – 3:00 pm; Friday 8:30 am – 12 noon Celebration of the Eucharist Saturday: 4:00 pm – Sunday: 8:30 & 10:00 am Monday through Friday: 7:30 am Sacrament of Reconciliation
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May 10, 2015 - Sixth Sunday of Easter
Baptisms
Seminars are held every other month - register by calling the office. Attend-ance is suggested during pregnancy.
406 East Pinhook Road Lafayette, LA 70501-8727
Phone: (337) 237-0988 Rev. M. Keith LaBove, Pastor
This week at daily Mass, we reached the part in the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 15, that recounts the sto-ry of the Council of Jerusalem. That council marks the beginning of a tradition in the Church that continues to this day. Called ‘ecumenical councils’, they are gatherings of church leaders representing and overseeing the entire church. Normally, they are called because some major conflict or issue has arisen, and the purpose is to discern the path that the Church should take going forward.
That first Council, in those early decades of the Church was attended by the apostles, as well as people like Paul and Barnabas who were active in proclaiming the newly received Gospel message. The central question was whether one needed to become Jewish (be circumcised, follow the Mosaic law, etc.) in order to be a disciple of Jesus. As we know, the decision was made that God was calling Gentiles as well, and so began the gradual split of Christianity from Judaism.
Since then there have been a total of 21 Ecumenical Councils, the most recent of which was of course Vati-can Council II, just 50 years ago. Normally named after the place where they are held, the early church councils have names such as Chalcedon, Constantinople, Nicaea, etc. They dealt with core issues of the faith such as un-derstanding the Trinity, the true nature of Jesus as human and divine as well as with the place of Mary in the sto-ry of salvation. Our Nicene Creed, which we pray every Sunday, takes its name from that Council of Nicaea.
While there were eight councils held in the first 1000 years of the Church, there were nine held in the 400 years between 1123 and 1500. They are not held at particular intervals, but rather in response to issues that arise in the life of the Church. So for example, the Council of Trent was called in 1545 in response to the Protestant Reformation, as well as the need to enact reforms in the Church. So in our day, the Second Vatican Council was called to help the Church to minister more effectively in a rapidly changing world, even as the Church was becoming more and more a world-wide Church. It is not unusual for reforms of the Church to be a major re-sult of these councils. They have often been sources of controversy as well.
All of this history is to recognize that there have been challenges all along the way, from the very begin-ning. No matter what the issue, faith has always taught that it is the Holy Spirit guiding the Church through these times of conflict and confusion. And therein lies our hope. Much has changed in the Church over the centuries, even as we continue to proclaim One Lord, one Faith, one Baptism.