Getting Ready for a Homeless Christmas

Thanks be to God for "Christmas Ranch Tree Farms!" The owners, Marilyn and Don donated a 10 foot tree yesterday for the homeless supplies warehouse of the Servants of the Father of Mercy. Mike Abare took a long lunch and his truck from the Navy Base and we cut down a fresh one. The farm is open weekdays 2p to 7p and weekends 9a to 7p - tell them you are from Servants of the Father of Mercy. Here is the address: 1586 Pederson Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91360 Directions: 101 to State Hwy. 23, go north toward Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks, exit - Avenida de Los Arboles, go right 1/4 mile to Erbes Road, go left to Pederson Road, left on Pederson Rd. back under Hwy. 23 overpass. Parking lot on the left. Here are some pictures of the day and getting the tree strung with lights, ready for decorating this Friday at 6p "Youth & Family Night."

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Servants of the Father of Mercy

Donate: http://servantsofthefather.org/donate_2_homeless

Visit our web site: http://servantsofthefather.org

Subscribe to the blog:  www.HomelessinAmerica.blogspot.com  

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Perfection

To go to heaven we don't have to be perfect, we just have to be merciful.  "Blessed are the merciful, they will receive mercy."  Matthew 5:7

Para ir al cielo no tenemos que ser perfecto, sólo tenemos que ser misericordiosos. "Bienaventurados los misericordiosos, recibirán misericordia." Mateo 5:7

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Servants of the Father of Mercy

Donate: http://servantsofthefather.org/donate_2_homeless

Visit our web site: http://servantsofthefather.org

Subscribe to the blog:  www.HomelessinAmerica.blogspot.com  

Follow us on Twitter: GaryJoseph@Help_4Homeless      

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Let them have Showers!

Pope Francis announced today shower stalls for the homeless will be added to the public restrooms in the Vatican's St. Peter’s Square so that the homeless in the area have a place to wash up, Catholic News Service reports.

Due to begin on November 17, the construction project will be tacked on to remodeling initiative for the restrooms that the Vatican already has in the works.

When asked if tourists would be offended by the presence of showers so close to the Vatican’s famous colonnades, “The Basilica exists in order to keep the Body of Christ, and we serve Jesus’ suffering body by serving the poor. Always, in the history of Rome, the poor congregated around the Basilicas.”

Pope Francis has paid special attention to the plight of the poor during his young papacy. Last year, a source in Rome told The Huffington Post that the pontiff has left the Vatican at night dressed like an ordinary priest to join Krajewski on his nightly rounds to meet with the homeless. According to the AP, it's a practice he began when he was archbishop of Argentina.

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Servants of the Father of Mercy

Donate: http://servantsofthefather.org/donate_2_homeless  

Visit our web site: http://servantsofthefather.org

Subscribe to the blog:  www.HomelessinAmerica.blogspot.com  

Follow us on Twitter: GaryJoseph@Help_4Homeless      

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Many People, Many Gifts

We thank God today for the many people and their gifts that have been donated at the "Servants of the Father of Mercy" to bring joy to the homeless this Holiday Season:

* Oranges, lemons and tangerines from Linda Scaramella, Ventura, CA

* Pinecones from Penny at St. Mary Magdalene Church, Camarillo, CA
* Pinecones from Nancy Pena and Miguel Dorado Rubio, Santa Paula, CA
* Miniature bottles of grotto water from Our Lady's Gift Shop, Lourdes, France
* Handmade Thanksgiving Cards for the homeless - 6, 7, 8 grade kids at St. Mary Magdalene, Camarillo, CA
* Hand decorated pinecones from high school students, Santa Clara High School, Oxnard, CA
* Ventura Carpet Cleaning, cleaning the chapel carpets, Ventura, CA
* Christmas Ranch Tree Farm, fresh cut tree for the chapel, Thousand Oaks, CA
* Virginia and Peter Aguirre, St. Thomas Aquinas, blanket drive, Ojai, CA
* Mark Burke and Michael Valencia blanket drive, Anaheim, CA

There is an urgent need for sponsors of $7 Thanksgiving Day - Subway Sandwich gift cards that will be hand delivered to the homeless in So Cal Thanksgiving Morning with handmade holiday cards from the grade school children at St. Mary Magdalene.  Message on Facebook if you would like to help or go to servantsofthefather.org and easily donate there as well .

May God greatly bless each and every one, one and all!

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Servants of the Father of Mercy

Donate: http://servantsofthefather.org/donate_2_homeless  

Visit our web site: http://servantsofthefather.org

Subscribe to the blog:  www.HomelessinAmerica.blogspot.com  

Follow us on Twitter: GaryJoseph@Help_4Homeless      

Join us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/BrotherGaryJoseph

According to Jesus the Real Issue Isn't the Lack of Morals -- It's the Abundance of Hypocrisy in the Church

The Woes of the Priests and Pharisees is a list of criticisms by Jesus of hypocrisy "don't do as I do, but do as I say". Seven are listed in Matthew 23 and hence Matthew's version is known as the seven woes.  In Matthew they occur shortly before Jesus returns to Jerusalem for his last few days before being crucified. Some scholars believe that when Jesus criticized the leaders for their self-righteous attitude and not the publicans, tax collectors, prostitutes and sinners he had set himself up to be killed a few days later by the ones with all the power and money -the very ones he criticized a few days earlier. (Note - We see here in Matthew 23 that Jesus was not railroaded to the cross by a rowdy bunch of poor, broken, marginalized and sinful prostitutes, gays, drunks, addicts and divorcees.)

1. First Woe - Neglect of love/mercy:  "You give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God."

2. Second Woe - Pride/ego:  "Why do you seek the most important seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces?"

3.  Third Woe - Private unseen dirty heart/soul:  "You are like unmarked graves, which men walk over without knowing it."

4.  Fourth Woe - Hypocrites telling people to do what they would not do:  "You load people down with burdens they can hardly carry, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers"

5.  Fifth Woe - Murderers: "You build the tombs for the prophets, and it was your forefathers who killed them."

6.  Sixth Woe - Self-importance creates a wall:  "You are not the key but a wall preventing the people to enter the kingdom of God."

7.  Seventh Woe - Power and control:  "You lie and wait hoping to trap me, but the hunter will trap and shoot himself."

Jesus said:  "Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and the first who will be last. So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many are be called, but few are chosen." Matthew 8:11 - 12

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Servants of the Father of Mercy

Donate: http://servantsofthefather.org/donate_2_homeless  

Visit our web site: http://servantsofthefather.org

Subscribe to the blog:  www.HomelessinAmerica.blogspot.com  

Follow us on Twitter: GaryJoseph@Help_4Homeless