Dear Parishioners of St. James:
Praised be Jesus Christ!
Our Lord gave us the Parable of the Weeds and the Wheat in the 13th chapter of St. Matthew’s Gospel so that we might not be scandalized by the presence of evil in the Church. The kingdom of heaven subsists in the Catholic Church. Jesus said that among the children of the kingdom grow children of the evil one (Mt. 13:37-39). He said that He permits the good and the bad to grow together until harvest when the good will be rewarded and the evil punished.
The devil’s powers are subject to God’s permission. God allows the devil to tempt us in order to prove our faithfulness by the exercise of our free will moved by grace. Since the devil’s activity is extremely elevated in our day we can only conclude that God is calling us to great fidelity in the face of such evil. God’s grace is sufficient for every assault of our enemy.
Although the Church as the perfect Bride of Jesus Christ is without stain or blemish (cf. Eph. 5:27) her beauty is marred by the presence of children of the evil one alongside her. Do not be scandalized by the evil in the Church. Our Lord spoke to us of its reality and His plan to draw out greater fidelity from those exposed to it. The day of harvest draws ever closer. The righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father but the wicked He will cast into the fiery furnace (Mt. 13:42-43). Remain in God’s grace. You have nothing to fear.
God bless you,
Fr. Geary
Saint James Catholic Church 