November 14, 2021
Dear Ladies and Friends of TASTE,
- There are several saints who have the word 'GREAT' within their title. Isn't it interesting that on the heels of All Saints Day earlier this month, we have three of the Great Saints' Feast Days within one week -- St. Leo the Great on Nov 10th, Saint Gertrude the Great on Nov 14th, and St. Albert the Great on Nov 15th. Let us continue to celebrate all Souls and ALL SAINTS this months and in particular our GREAT Saints this week!
- This past week, our Spiritual Director Fr. Larry Swink, gave a talk entitled "Spe_Salve: On Christian Hope (Revisited)." Following on last week's talk on the wiles of Satan and how we can defend against him, Fr. Swink reintroduced us to Hope, a virtue of which Satan would very much like to deprive us. In this talk, Fr. Swink clarified the difference between wishful thinking and Christian Hope which is the grace that keeps us moving towards Heaven. He said that two sins against hope are despair and presumption. In contrast, if we have Hope, we can trust that even when things don't turn out the way we want, God has a plan and it is far better than anything we can imagine. Fr. Swink concluded by reminding us that we are not in it for pleasure, but for glory. To that end, he offered practical advice to increase our hope of achieving glory: 1) pray personally and liturgically, 2) go to confession at least monthly, 3) read and reflect on scripture, 4) study the saints, 5) attend mass and take part in the sacraments, and 6) offer little sacrifices.
THIS WEEK AT TASTE:
- NEW TALK — A few days ago, our speaker scheduled for this week (Theresa Bonapartis) threw her back out and cannot drive the 2 hours to speak to us. In spite of this setback, God is so good and has provided for us a backup plan. Just days earlier, and on two separate instances, we were presented with must-see videos for our women. Interestingly, one talk fits our theme of "Light in the Darkness" and is a natural follow-up to the last few talks. The other is a good way to commemorate the nearing of the end of "The Year of St. Joseph'" and is a good lead-in to both advent and the next couple talks. Although this will not be a live talk, one of these videos will be played during TASTE.
TASTE SMALL GROUPS:
- THIS WEEK'S DISCUSSION — We will reflect on Fr. Larry Swink's talk entitled "Spe Salve: On Christian Hope (Revisited)." The audio and video of this talk and Reflection Questions are included HERE.
SPECIAL REMINDERS
- PRAYER REQUESTS — Several of our TASTE sisters need our prayers. Please pray for:
- All our TASTE sisters, Kate Christianson, Patty Aghdam, Kay Robinson (Jennifer's D's mom).
- Our spiritual director, Fr. Larry Swink as well as all of the priests in the Baltimore and Washington Archdioceses, especially those of whom you may have spiritually adopted.
- Our speakers — especially: 1) Theresa Bonapartis for healing of her back, 2) Susan Conroy for her health, 3) Sr. Mary Michael Fox as she is working to complete her new book, and 4) Colleen Duggan and her baby, who the doctors are saying has a 90% chance of having Downs syndrome.
- New prayer requests can be sent to Joy Parker at joyparker73@gmail.com.
- PRAY FOR DOBBS — People of faith are uniting in prayer this Thursday, November 18 at 8:00 pm for a historical online prayer event for the upcoming Supreme Court case Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization. This is the case that could overturn Roe v. Wade — the Supreme Court decision that made abortion legal in all 50 states. For details, see LINK.
CONTINUED REMINDERS
- USCCB & SUPREME COURT — For a reminder of prayer intentions for the USCCB and Supreme Court, please view this LINK.
- LOGISTICS — For a reminder of any information associated with zoom small group, parking, masks, public health, babysitting, or registration, please view this LINK.
- DONATIONS — For a reminder of how to donate to TASTE or the Sisters of the Servants of the Lord, please view this LINK.
Blessings,
Joy, Michele, Carolyn, and Karen
Jesus, I trust in You!
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