At the time when Jesus walked the earth, tax collectors were not the most loved people in Israel. They were considered social oppressors, collaborators with the oppressive and dictatorial foreign Roman Government and so they were despised by the rest of the chosen people because they perfectly fit into the group categorized as “public Sinners.”’

The masons continue moving forward on the bell tower, the elevator, north restroom areas and the east arches.

The concrete sub was scheduled to do a major pour on Wednesday, October 26, but has rescheduled us to November 4. This delay is due to a surge of concrete demand from the Intel and the Taiwan semiconductor facility construction projects. The General Contractor is analyzing the schedule to see how we can make up for the lost time.

There are many who believe that other than Christ, St. Paul had the most significant influence on the Theology, Liturgy and life of the early Church. His description of his personal encounter with faith in Christ and his reaction to that encounter amidst great persecution and hardship shows why many believers hold him in such high regard.

The masons continue with their great progress. The northside elevator shaft and the restroom area should be completed mid next week. The bell tower should be completed by the end of the following week. The tower block work will top out at 72 feet. The arches on the eastside of the building are being completed.

The choir loft iron work is complete with the metal decking completed by mid next week. At the end of next week we anticipate a concrete pour for the completion of the flooring of the choir loft. After the choir loft pour, the first concrete pour of the Sanctuary and the Sacristy should begin.

Ora et Labora, pray and work; this is the famous motto of St. Benedict, Patron Saint of our parish. This motto is providentially the theme of the Readings at the liturgy this weekend.

The masons continue the work on the elevator area, the arches and the bell tower. Every four (4) feet up on the elevator shaft and the bell tower requires a City inspection. This causes the team to rotate between the 2 areas to keep the areas moving.

The choir loft steelwork should be completed by early next week, then the area will be decked and the rebar will be installed for the concrete to be poured. Once the steel work is completed and the large equipment is removed from inside the building, the work on pouring the slab for the west end of the building will begin. This will require multiple pours as we create the height required for the Sanctuary.

The First Reading and the Gospel passage this weekend can be placed side by side for our reflection, not only because both tell the story of the healing of lepers, but also because both focus on gratitude for God’s salvation and how it should be expressed.

The masons are on their third lift for the tower and elevator construction. The north arch entry is in the process of being completed.

The south side sewer is in. The north side sewer is ready for inspection. The plumber will start on installing the new major fire line feeder pipe next week.

At 6:00am on Monday the final steel for the mezzanine will be delivered. By the end of next week we should have a mezzanine steel structure.

This weekend, the Readings from Holy Scripture invite us to reflect upon the theme of faith. We are presented with Israel’s faith experience at the time of the Prophet Habakkuk in the old covenant, and the faith to which we are called in the new dispensation.