Joke: "Whatever God wants, God takes!" There is an old story of the three traveling evangelists who were talking about how they dealt with the offerings that were collected during their evangelistic meetings. The first one said, “I draw a big circle on the ground, and then I throw the money in the air. Whatever lands inside the circle belongs to God, and whatever lands outside the circle belongs to me.” “Oh, I can do better than that,” said the second evangelist. “I put a coffee can in the middle of the floor. Then I throw the money in the air. Any money that lands inside the coffee can, belongs to God, and I get to keep anything that lands outside.” Then the third evangelist grinned and said, “I’ve got you both beat. I just throw the money in the air, and whatever God wants, God takes!”

Prophet Isaiah reminds us of the words of the Lord reported in today’s first reading saying, “Share your bread with the hungry, shelter the oppressed and the homeless; clothe the naked when you see them and do not turn your back on your own.” Today, we are asked to draw our attention to the Bishop’s Stewardship Appeal and its funding of the present needs of the Church in the Diocese of Corpus Christi for the year 2023. The ministries funded by this Appeal are made possible only by the generosity of individuals like you. The Annual BSA provides the needed financial support for ongoing Diocesan-wide activities: The Diocesan sponsored programs, ministries, and services that play a vital role in our Church’s mission.

The prophet Isaiah reminds us the words of the Lord are condensed into the words of the theme for this year’s Appeal “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” How can we love our neighbor when we neglect to share just as the words of the Lord spoken from the mouth of the prophet Isaiah? Our Shepherd, Bishop Mulvey expressed, “As Jesus gathered his first disciples, it was clear that he was forming them to be a community of faithful men and women who shared in his mission. They would assist him in proclaiming the good news, not as individuals, but together.” For this reason, Jesus gave them a mission to love their neighbor as themselves. Giving is a thoughtful, prayerful, and personal expression of love. We, each individual, give in different ways at different times of our lives. We give time, talents, and treasures from our hard work for a living. All gifts that we share are wonderful and express our love for our neighbors.

Bishop Mulvey expressed, “The Bishop’s Stewardship Appeal is an essential source of funding that has been supporting the works of Christ by serving others and ministering to those in need for decades. The success of this effort is only accomplished as a result of the combined efforts of all church parishes and missions. The strength of our unity and working together collectively enables our Diocese to reach across boundaries that define our parishes and missions that make up the Diocese of Corpus Christi. It is together that we are able to make available vital programs, ministries, and services through the generosity of parishioners and donors.”

“You shall love your neighbor as yourself” compels us to support many good works of the Diocese of Corpus Christi that make programs that build the promise of our future possible through strong Catholic marriages and families as well as faith-filled vocations to the priesthood, diaconate, and religious life.

“You shall love your neighbor as yourself” compels us to support the many good works of the Diocese of Corpus Christi which make possible programs that make Christ come alive and the Kingdom of God present through the Sacraments and faithful worship, through education and formation of our youth in our Catholic schools and by spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ through the South Texas Catholic and our television ministry.

“You shall love your neighbor as yourself” also compels us to support the many good works of the Diocese of Corpus Christi which make possible programs that become the hands and feet of Christ to those from many diverse cultures and to those with special needs, those who are most in need, and those who are the strangers among us.

Your generosity to the Bishop’s Stewardship Appeal 2023 bears witness to the works of the Church through the Diocesan-wide ministries and services that benefit from our generosity.

I invite you to join me next weekend in supporting the 2023 Bishop’s Stewardship Appeal. As Bishop has decided to increase his commitment to the appeal this year, I also increase my commitment. If you are in the position to do the same, I ask you to join me in an increase. Nevertheless, I remind you that no amount is too small. Each of us can do what we can, but together we can reaffirm to Bishop that we are supporting him as our good shepherd.

Henri Nouwen said, “What we have received is so beautiful and so rich that we cannot hold it for ourselves but feel compelled to bring it to every human being on earth.” I ask of you today, along with me, to consider a financial contribution to support the Bishop’s Stewardship Appeal and carry out Christ’s mission of loving our neighbors as ourselves. I know that we can count on each other to make our appeal successful.