On this day in 1945, as World War II raged on, the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. Historians and professors of ethics still debate the morality and the necessity of that decision and the bombing of Nagasaki three days later. Perhaps, though not clearly understood at the time, this action marked the transition from a war involving troops to a war involving whole populations.

The brutality of the past month in the Middle East again gives us reason to pause. After the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier and the killing of a Jewish settler, the Israeli Defense Force destroyed three bridges and a power substation in Gaza which left 750,000 people - already crippled by the international community’s withdrawal of aid - without electricity or water. On July 7, thirteen patriarchs and heads of local churches in Jerusalem declared “the violence and aggression of this present moment without proportion or justification.” They call on the international community to intervene and insist that Israel and the Palestinians “stop all the violence [and] pursue a just peace.” And the government of the United States, as we are aware, is not just another bystander; the government of Israel has been for years the chief beneficiary of our foreign aid dollars. Because of this financial connection and other ties between our two countries, what the government of Israel does, it does with the tacit permission, if not the consent, of our government leaders.

As if that weren’t enough, we have also witnessed thousands of innocent civilians killed in the endless bombing of Lebanon in response to the kidnapping of two Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah. Scores of innocent Israeli citizens have also been killed and the ordinary people on both sides are living in constant fear. In a statement on July 14, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the Vatican secretary of state, declared that “the Holy See condemns both the terrorist attacks on the one side and the military reprisals on the other. Indeed, a state’s right to self-defense does not exempt it from respecting the norms of international law, especially as regards the protection of civilian populations.” Unfortunately, the European Union and the United States are allowing this violence to continue until a ”sustainable peace” can be reached which may take months, if not years to attain. On the contrary, the Holy Father has called for an immediate cease-fire to be followed by “reasonable and responsible negotiations so as to end the objective situations of injustice existing in that region.” Let us join him and all people of good will in praying that all those involved be open to the gift of peace which our God is always offering. Peace to you and those you love, S. Sheral

We continue to ask each week that parishioners pray for the chronically ill of our parish. If you have a friend or loved one in need of our parish prayers please call the Rectory at 589-2800.

FALL KICK-OFF BBQ

Saturday, August 26th
Following the 4:30 pm Mass in the middle yard

For young and all—$5 Adults/$3 Kids

Tickets sold after all the Masses August 12th & 13th, and 19th & 20th.
Tickets can also be purchased at the BBQ.

    
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Go to www.saintroberts.org and click on the e-contributions button. The first page explains the details. There is a button to take you to the e-paluch registration page. You can register online using either your checking account or credit card.

It is the Feast of the Transfiguration, that startling experience when Jesus’ closest friends got a glimpse of what he (and they) would be like after the resurrection. They see him robed in white like the newly baptized adults at Easter vigil and all the infants baptized here on Sunday afternoons. They hear the words spoken to Jesus at his baptism: “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.” Though we don’t often think of it, God probably said the same words to us, as beloved sons and daughters, at our own baptism and whenever we spoke up for justice or the dignity of another son or daughter. Might we not look at ourselves differently – and at everyone whose path crosses ours – if we prayed about and let sink into our being, the fact that we really are beloved sons and daughters?

As Peter relates his experience of this amazing event in today’s second reading, he exhorts us to be attentive to his words, “as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.” What a great reminder for these dark times! Reading the paper or listening to the news, how tempted we might be to cry out, “Where are you, God?”

Last month, I was among the hundreds of people who celebrated the life of Sister Diane Grassilli, the 56-year-old president of the Sisters of Mercy who had died of cancer. As Bishop John Wester greeted those assembled, he reminded us that our God is a God of love and a God of mystery. We often experience this God of love, but in that situation, we were experiencing the God of mystery. The Sisters of Mercy, their associates and many friends will miss Diane’s presence and her gentle leadership. Who knows why this wonderful, talented, loving woman was taken away in the prime of her life?

Whether we experience the personal pain of the death of a loved one or the wider sorrow of global tragedies, this is still God’s world and he has not abandoned us, no matter how awful the situation is. At the risk of sounding sanctimonious, all I can say from my own experience is that we need to lean on our faith, weak as it may seem at times. We can surely question, cry out in frustration and get angry with our God, just as the prophets did in the Hebrew scriptures. Then in the midst of the messiness of our emotional upheaval, we need to listen and let the response come in God’s good time. Peace, S. Sheral

ST. ROBERTS CENTERPLATE TEAM NEEDS YOUR HELP

Dress Code: Full length black slacks, (jeans or spandex are not permitted), white shirt with collar, closed toe comfortable shoes (preferably black or white).

We will car pool from the rectory. For those working in San Francisco, you can meet the group at the gate.

Volunteers between 16-21 years of age must provide a copy of a picture id which includes his/her birth date.

Dress Code for 49ers Training Camp: Tan or khaki shorts and a white shirt with a collar. There will be no other shirt used this year.