The 29th Sunday of Ordinary Time

We need a detective to figure out today’s gospel! My memory goes back to the TV detective Columbo. Each week he would wander around with his little notepad chasing down questions until he figured out the case. In Colombo’s spirit let’s figure out this gospel.

Here’s the problem, Jesus tells a parable about the necessity for us to pray always without becoming weary. How are we supposed to do that? Jesus can’t be talking about us constantly running “Hail Marys” in our heads. Intuitively we know he is talking about something deeper than this. A clue is found in his parable.

Note that Jesus tells us to pay attention to what the judge says, not what the widow does which is where our attention normally goes. The judge says, “I shall deliver a just decision for her lest she finally come and strike me.” The judge acts in his own self-interest.

We need to focus therefore on God’s self-interest. Another name for this is “God’s will.”

So, what is God’s will when it comes to us? Classic catechism: we are created to know, love, and serve God in this life and to be happy eternally with him in heaven. God’s will that we be in relationship with him.

What does this have to do with praying always? Praying always means being attentive to God always. It is more than just a prayer we recite; it is an orientation or an awareness we are called to constantly foster and expand.

Jesus teaches that the Great Commandment is to love the Lord our God with all your mind, all your heart, and all your strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. In terms of attentiveness this translates into love the Lord your God with all your mind (be attentive to God through study), all your heart (be attentive to God through worship), and all your strength (be attentive to God through service), and love your neighbor as yourself (be attentive to God through your attentiveness to your neighbor for God chooses to get to us through us). Saying constant “Hail Marys” would probably be easier!

There is a scene from the movie, “The Passion of Christ,” that comes to my mind. It is the scene at the moment when Jesus surrenders his Spirit to the Father from the cross at Calvary. The earthquakes, lightning strikes, the temple tapestry is ripped in two, and there is a camera shot of Satan screaming from a pit where he is now chained.

Theologically this scene speaks to the reality that when Jesus sacrifices his life for us on the cross, death itself is destroyed… the dead-end result of our sin (death) becomes our new passageway to eternal life.

The scene also captures the reality that now Satan has only one way to keep us from God, only one way to thwart God’s will to be in relationship with us. All Satan can now do is distract us from our relationship with God – distract, preoccupy, despair, and deter our attention. These are now Satan’s tools.

Why does Satan do this? Because Satan knows that if we are constantly attentive to God in our life, we will discover that God is there for us in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health. We will discover that God is faithful, and our trust in God’s reliability will grow.

Remember what Pope Francis called trust in God’s reliability; he calls it “faith.” This explains the Gospel’s closing question, “Will the Son of Man find faith on earth?” If we foster a constant awareness of God in our lives, if we “pray always,” then faith will grow as our relationship with God deepens.

Mother Teresa once said, “Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at his disposition, and listening to his voice in the depths of our hearts.”

Stay attentive!

Don’t miss out on your chance to enter the Knights of Columbus Catholic Citizenship Contest! This year’s topic is “Out of the 267 popes that have lead the Catholic Church, who are your three favorites and why?“ The contest is open to grades 8-12; essays should be 500-750 words. A $50 Gift Card will be awarded to the 1st place winner in each grade level. Download the entry form below or pick up one in the gathering space of church. Essays must be received by 10/29/2025. Contact James Underwood for additional information, (502) 494-5988.

Parents! Encourage youth to become citizens grounded in their faith through creative writing!

St. Francis Xavier is now using a new system, called My Own Church, for registering and updating your family information! Visit louisville.parishsoftfamilysuite.com through the link below to create your account.

Once approved, you will receive an email indicating that your account is open and ready for you to review. You will have the ability to update all your family information, including names,
addresses, phone numbers, emails, and even a family photo. You can also choose to keep some information private and available only to church administrators.

Click on HERE to view the latest edition of the Honor Thy Children Newsletter.

Download previous editions through the links below.

To kick off this year’s Catholic Services Appeal, Archbishop Shelton has shared a video with his personal message.

If you are unable to play the video, a link is provided HERE.

St. Aloysius & Bendict are looking for a Stewardship/Business Manager.

Please join us for a 6-week bible study on finding Faith, Hope and Love in the Bible. Group will meet on Mondays @ 9:00 am in the Xavier Center double meeting room beginning September 22, 2025. Books may be purchased at www.litpress.org   A limited number of books will be available for $11 from the parish office. Please contact Sharon Mann to RSVP (sharonfaithhopelove@gmail.com).

The Parish Office will be closed on Wednesday, September 17th for a Staff Retreat. There will be no Walking/Fellowship in the Xavier Center that day.

Our St. Francis Xavier Church is in need of additional Eucharistic Ministers. If you have heard the calling to serve your church community in this capacity, please plan to attend one of the upcoming training opportunities presented by the Archdiocese of Louisville.

• Monday, September 15, St. Paul, 6:00-8:00 p.m.
•  Monday, October 13, St. Michael, Fairfield, 6:30-8:30 p.m.
•  Tuesday, October 21, St. Leonard, 12:30-2:30 p.m.
•  Wednesday, November 5, 2025, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, 6:00-8:00 p.m.
•  Wednesday, November 19, 2025, All Saints, Taylorsville 6:30-8:30 p.m.

You can register for a session on-line with the Archdiocese through the link below.

In observance of Labor Day, the SFX Parish Office will be closed on Monday, September 1st. There is no Walking/Fellowship in the Xavier Center.

Looking for the book? Check these links/locations:

Help Needed!  We are in immediate need of a teacher’s assistant for our 7^th grade CFF class.  No lesson planning required – just come to help supervise and positively interact with an amazing group of middle school kids!   Please contact Lauren Battcher at Lauren.Battcher@sfxmw.com if you are able to fill this need!

Click HERE to view the latest edition of The Crossroads Messenger.

Click on any of the following links to download the latest information about each ministry.

Since I was a kid (like Pope Leo; circa 1955), I was taught to express gratitude in the moment.  Delaying is not in my vocabulary, so I wish to take this opportunity to thank each one of you for all the words of encouragement, well wishes and generous gifts as I retire from my responsibilities as a priest-pastor.  It seems that I have been saying ‘adios’ for months but now are the moments that I must make transition in my ministry as priest.  Like most people, I have never retired before so I know that it will be a learning experience with new opportunities to ‘give back’ yet rest and enjoy whatever comes my way.  I hope to take some “picker” trips and eventually finish unboxing all my hobbies of vinyl, books and ephemeral.   

Please pray for me as I will you daily.  Father Jeff is a very blest priest to be pastor of such a wonderful community as SFX!

Much peace and joy!