Update/reflection from Fr. Gratton (1 April, 2020):

N.B. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass was offered today for All of our Parishioners and for Dorothy Lynch (by her son, William Lynch)

A LOT of Important Updates:
1) In accordance with the President’s COVID-19 taskforce and Governor Scott’s “Stay Home and Shelter” order, Bishop Coyne and all of the priests of the Diocese of Burlington have agreed to not distribute blessed palms this Sunday. This is due to the fact that numbers of deaths have risen significantly over the last few days, and it seems like the next 2 weeks will be crucial in slowing the spread of the virus. I will bless all of the palms when I celebrate my private Mass on Sunday. I will store them in a safe place, and we will distribute them when all of this is over and we can pray together as a family again. I am so sorry for any sadness this may cause you, but it hurts me as well. We must, however, unite together in fighting against this disease, and that means, unfortunately, physically staying away from each other for now.
2) In conjunction with the first update: St. Anthony church is unlocked for now, but please do not overuse this privilege of it being open. Please only go to the church if it is a real emergency, and if you need to find peace with the Living God (i.e. do not do your normal, daily routine of prayer inside the church. In fact, I have rarely been in the church over the last two weeks, myself, in order to keep others safe. I simply do my prayers in the rectory most of the time). Again, this is not to be cruel. It is for your safety and the safety of others. Let us offer this lack of freedom as an oblation to our God, and ask Him to do good things with our sacrifices.
3) An update on my National Guard duties: I have still not heard anything official about being called up to State Active Duty. I have, however, been asked if I would be willing to volunteer. Naturally, I said yes. Especially right now, when priests are not even being allowed into hospitals to anoint the sick and dying, I would like to be on the front lines where I can potentially take care of these people, sacramentally. I have my drill weekend this weekend (April 3-5). We are doing a “virtual drill”, which means everything will be done at home via the phone or internet. I have a feeling I might hear more about my involvement in State Active Duty after this drill weekend is finished, and if, God forbid, the situation becomes worse in the state of Vermont.
4) Priest coverage: if I do happen to be called up for State Active Duty with the National Guard, I have officially found a replacement for me! I was feeling bad about potentially leaving all of you without a priestly presence if I were to go work around the state, so I wanted to be proactive in finding someone to help cover if I am called up. I have talked with the priests in Rutland, and they have agreed to send Fr. Matthew Rensch (one of my dear friends) to live in the rectory in Bethel. He will minister to all of you (and take care of feeding Bustopher Jones!) if I do get called by the National Guard. Thus, there is a plan in place if it comes to that. I will keep you posted if I hear anything.
5) Finally, for all of the Our Lady of the Valley Parishioners: on a completely different note, when I arrived at the rectory in Bethel in September there was a mold infestation in the basement that awaited me. In talking with the finance council and the parish council of Our Lady of the Valley Parish, we have decided to go ahead with necessary projects to fix this mold problem. The first step in the process is: excavation around the rectory and St. Anthony church to fix all drainage issues. This project is going to hopefully begin soon, as Dylan McCullough from North Road Properties has decided to take on this task. There is already some heavy equipment in the parking lot of St. Anthony church, and I just wanted you all to be aware of what is in store if you start seeing activity on the property. Anyway, the project needs to happen, and this is actually a good time to begin it (when we will not be using our parking lot very much, etc.). I just wanted you all to be aware.

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Reflection on the daily Mass readings http://usccb.org/bible/readings/040120.cfm

Today we have something unique in the readings. Usually the responsorial psalm is taken from the Book of Psalms in the bible. The Book of Psalms, however, is not the only book in scripture that has a psalm or song that is lifted in prayer to the Lord. No, we find psalms/canticles/songs peppered through scripture (we find them in Exodus, Song of Songs, Daniel, the Gospels, and Revelation, to name a few).

Today is unique because the responsorial psalm comes from the Book of Daniel, and it is the very song that the three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego sing during their tribulations in the first reading (which is also from the Book of Daniel). The first reading focuses on chapter 3 in the Book of Daniel, but it skips over verses 21-90, in order to give us the basic building blocks of what is happening. The song that these men sing come in verses 50-88 (part of which we pray in the responsorial psalm today). A little confusing, but still exciting. In short, we hear parts of the same story from the Book of Daniel in both the first reading and the responsorial psalm.

In a way, the Church gives us a double dose of what’s really going on in this story.

In the first reading we find out that these three men are Jewish and that they refuse to bow down and adore the statue of Nebuchadnezzar (the Babylonian king who has overtaken the Israelite people at the time). The king has, essentially, made himself into a “god.” Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are not falling for it, however, and they are called out by some for not bowing down before the statue of the king. The king is enraged and decides to send them into a hot, fiery furnace—this is to punish them for their crimes, as well as to deter any other person from questioning the king’s authority in these matters. The king tells the three men what he intends to do, and this is where they give, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful responses in scripture:

“There is no need for us to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If our God, whom we serve, can save us from the white-hot furnace and from your hands, O king, may he save us! But even if he will not, know, O king, that we will not serve your god or worship the golden statue that you set up” (Daniel 3: 16-18).

They are so sure of who they are and the God they serve, that they are not afraid of the consequences. They are not even afraid of losing their lives, as long as they love God through it all. I also find it very moving that they don’t put any conditions on God in this speech. They do not say, “he will surely save us from your wicked hands, O king!” No, all they say is, “if our God can save us…may he save us. But if he will not…we [still] will not serve your god.” I love that they know that their God is big enough to save them, but they also know that God’s plans are bigger than their own. They trust God through and through, and they are willing to follow His will to the end!

They are, ultimately, thrown into the hot, fiery furnace, and while they are in there, they sing a song glorifying God. This is the song that we find in the responsorial psalm, today. They are praising God left and right for all the things He has done in the past, and for all the things He is doing for them right now, and for all of the things He will do in the future. It is a song of jubilation, and it comes after they have been persecuted, mocked, and thrown into a furnace to die! Oh, what faith these men truly had! Would that we had but a portion of their faith!

It is a good reminder for all of us that we do not know the outcome for anything in this world, just as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego didn’t know the outcome of their story. We are not the authors of how everything will play out, and there is a freedom in that. We do not need to take on the stress, anxiety, and worry of what is to come, for God’s plan of love and peace will be the final chapter of the story. We need to be like those three men about to be thrown into the fiery furnace—we simply need to know deep in our hearts that no matter what comes our way, God is with us and has a plan for our eternal souls. No matter what, we will not waiver in our faith. No matter what, we will sing for joy because our God is bigger than all of this, and He will have His victory in the end!

Do not fret or be anxious, my sons and daughters in Christ. Simply channel the faith and strength of those three young men that we find in the first reading and the responsorial psalm, today. Entrust everything you have to the God of Gods despite all of the storms that may or may not come; feel His loving presence in your heart this day; and know that your God has a plan for you to be with Him forever, no matter what. With a God like that, how could we not sing songs of praise to Him?

“Glory and praise forever! Blessed are you, O Lord, the God of our fathers, praiseworthy and exalted above all forever….” (Daniel 3:52)

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Lots of love,

Fr. Gratton