“O Beauty Ever Ancient, O Beauty Ever New!” These words of St. Augustine when speaking to God reveal an important truth, that God is Beauty. Everything that is truly beautiful is, for us, a reflection of God: mountains, canyons, and all of creation along with art, architecture, and sacred music, among other things. The most beautiful of all, however, is the “Word made Flesh”, Jesus Christ, God-made-man. In Him, Beauty has a Face. The celebration of the Liturgy (Holy Mass) is beautiful precisely for this reason, as it is there that the Beautiful One speaks to us, and most beautifully, offers Himself for us in His love poured out on the Cross. This is why we have beautiful things in the Church: windows, furniture, smell, and sounds in the Church, and why we wear our “Sunday best”: to point us to that Mystery. Our own stained glass window at St. John’s proclaims it well: “Lord, I love the beauty of thy house!”
To add to this beauty, beginning the first weekend of October, we will have fresh flowers at the foot of the Altar! The weekly flowers (besides the penitential seasons of Advent and Lent) will be donated by a parishioner for $75 and may be made in memory or in honor of a special person or persons (and mentioned in the bulletin). The donations will be on a first-come, first-serve basis and placed on the calendar as they are turned in. You may stop by the office to fill out a donation form or do so online at saintjohntx.org/altar flowers. May our offering be joined to that of the Lord for the Glory of the Father!
Bring the completed form to the Parish Office: