Lord, how good it is for us to be here -- Matthew 17

Browsing Fr. Rob's Weekly Message

June 16, 2024

Dear Friends,

This weekend we celebrate the individuals in our lives that we call our father, grandfather, godfather and others who have reflected one of these roles in our lives. Hopefully, these special people have blessed us in many ways. Hopefully, they have prayerfully modeled to us and shaped our lives to be good people living in the footsteps of our Lord. May we remember them and those who have been called home to God with our prayers and thanksgiving.

On Wednesday, June 19th, we have a holiday that may still seem quite new to some of us.  Juneteenth, known as Freedom Day or Jubilee Day, is our newest federal holiday. It commemorates the end of slavery in the United States.

In 1863, during the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared more than three million enslaved people living in the Confederate states to be free. More than two years would pass, however, before the news reached African Americans living in Texas. It was not until Union soldiers arrived in Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865, that the state’s residents finally learned that slavery had been abolished. The formerly enslaved immediately began to celebrate with prayer, feasting song, and dance.

The following year, on June 19, the first official Juneteenth celebrations took place in Texas. The original observances included prayer meetings, and the singing of spirituals, and celebrants wore new clothes as a way of representing their newfound freedom.

Juneteenth became a state holiday in Texas in 1980, and a number of other states subsequently followed suit. In 2021, Juneteenth was made a federal holiday, in part because of the actions of activist Opal Lee to raise awareness. The holiday is also celebrated outside the United States, being used by organizations in a number of countries to recognize the end of slavery and to honor the culture and achievements of African Americans.

This day is cause for all of us to reflect on our lives, our blessings, and the God given dignity that is due to every human being. May we continue to learn from our past and work to make today and the future of our country, and world, a place where justice is a reality for all God’s children!

With prayer for peace, justice and blessings for all,

Father Rob      

 

 

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