This week we celebrate Independence Day. In our Declaration of Independence, we read: “…that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.” Our lives are important from conception to natural death; our liberty to do what we want without infringement on another’s right; and our pursuit of happiness without discrimination. I thank God and experience these rights every time I go to Mass. Look around and see life: infants, children, young adults, and elderly. I see people pray and sing, not in competition to others but in beautiful harmony as a family of faith. I see the joy of individuals and families as they leave Church filled with Jesus, enriched in faith, and sharing the happiness of a community (family) gathered. Don’t make the Mass an obligation that we must attend. Make it a gathering and prayer that I would not want to miss.
