My Favorite Prayer
Dear Editor: My favorite prayer is the Lord’s Prayer, aka the Our Father!
This is not just because Jesus taught this prayer, but also because of what it says.
The very first word tells us that my God is not mine alone but ours and therefore the next word sets up an order to who we are as we relate to other people.
Because God is our father, our ties to the people around us are as close and as binding as brothers and sisters can get, no matter which side of the asile they vote from or what color their state or skin might be.
Jesus wasn’t kidding when he taught the apostles His prayer.
There are whole books about the “Pater Noster,” and most of them are easy to access.
I will just comment a bit further on what I think is Jesus’ way of helping
us fulfill the command He gave when He commanded (strong word!) us to love one another.
Here it is; get ready!: “THY kingdom come, THY will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”
Presuming that things in heaven are the way God wants them, we have to realize that what we are asking God for is up to us to make happen because fulfilling God’s will is up to us to accomplish.
Right?
So, no war (not even the Crusades) is God’s will and no collateral damage is anything but fratricide.
With the elections looming large in the next few months, how we vote depends on how seriously we try to live life on earth as it is in heaven.
Father Michael Perry
Douglaston
WWI Memorial and Statue of Sherman Vandalized
Dear Editor: This letter refers to the World War I Memorial to the 107th Infantry Regiment and the statue of General William Tecumseh Sherman being vandalized.
Our own Mayor Adams has called this wrong and said that this attack is anti-American.
These vandals also burned Old Glory, our American flag, which I found appalling.
I am a U.S. Navy veteran of the Vietnam era, a member of the American Legion Post #103, and the Catholic War Veterans and Auxiliary Post #1979.
Also my grandfather James Bedell had served with General William Tecumseh Sherman in the Civil War in his March to the Sea.
This was told to me by my father. I did not know my grandfather who died in the late 1920’s.
But I do hope these vandals are brought to justice and punished for these nefarious and egregious acts to the full extent of the law.
Frederick Robert Bedell Jr.
Bellerose
Praise for Tablet Editor and Editorial
Dear Editor: God Bless The Tablet, the Editor Michael Gray, and all the editors and staff members for the editorial “As the Tablet Sees It” (March 16).
It was so greatly written because it stated how from the Catholic perspective, Biden, who professes to be a devout Catholic, separates himself from Church teachings like so many other Catholics from the beginning of life to the end of life. I hope and pray that all Catholics don’t fall for the platform of restoring Roe v. Wade as the law of the land.
As an active member of Helpers of God’s Precious Infants, we pray and witness outside an abortion facility in Queens, and we hope and pray that Catholics won’t follow Biden’s politics about all life issues regarding the pre-born infants and the end of life issues and let it remain with the states so the voters can decide.
As a volunteer at Bridge to Life, I respect their mission to provide life-affirming options to anyone experiencing an unplanned pregnancy, empowering them to choose life for their child and provide practical support.
Please let our Catholic-Christian values be a priority when we vote.
Madeleine Santangelo Palumbo
Sea Cliff
Charismatic Renewal Office
Dear Editor: I am writing to express my gratitude to The Tablet for the article (“Diocese’s Catholic Charismatic Renewal Program Being Revamped,” May 4) regarding the Charismatic Renewal Office in our diocese and my appointment as the new liaison for the English-speaking communities of Brooklyn and Queens.
I especially would like to acknowledge Josephine Cachia who was the liaison for 40 years. Through her decades of faithful and unwavering service to the Renewal, along with her various committee members, thousands of people from our diocese have encountered a new life in the Spirit.
Countless people owe a great debt of gratitude to Josephine for her dedication and example. Though Josephine has retired, I look forward to receiving her wise counsel as the Renewal continues to move forward.
I also look forward to working with Msgr. Joseph Malagreca as he continues to serve as liaison of the Renewal for the Spanish- and Creole-speaking faithful of the diocese.
Father John Maduri
Coney Island