Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament

August 31, 2026

The Force Is with Us.

We love heroes, especially those born at the right moment, unknowingly. Luke Skywalker of Star Wars fame became the hero he was meant to be, but we have an advantage. From the time that we can grasp and understand what our baptism means, a path has been laid out for us to begin the journey.

David Copperfield, the main character in Charles Dickens’ novel, asks himself, “Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show.” Such could apply to our own pages of life. What are we born to become? Now, here is Jesus looking like a student returning home to tell of everything he has learned. He teaches us; we are to be listening students. Scripture gives us a wonderful background in the Old Testament, where we see the hand of God participating in an unimaginable plan.

Reading from the prophet Isaiah: The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. A contradiction casts doubt on his heritage. How can he be the Messiah? We know he is the son of Joseph. And the scene gets ugly. Jesus is forced out of the synagogue, and the plan was to throw him off a cliff, to no avail.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. We know about anointings. There’s the chrism used at our baptism, the chrism used for confirmations, and ordination. The anointing empowers us. Let the Force of the Holy Spirit be with you, and great things will happen.

Prayer:

From every evil way I withhold my feet, that I may keep your words. From your ordinances I turn not away, for you have instructed me. (Psalm: 119:101-102)