FOUR - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, August 11, 2021
Spiritually Speaking
Like Mary we are
called to assume into
Heaven
By Fr. Thankachan Joseph
This coming Sunday, the Church
celebrates the feast of Our Blessed
Mother who assumed into heaven. The
whole Church honors the humble maid
Fr. Thankachan
of Nazareth through whom the world Joseph
received its Savior. We rejoice that she
shares in the glory of her son in heaven.
She is our Mother from heaven. She wants us to be obe-
dient and loving children of the Father. She is waiting for
us all in heaven.
The image in Revelation (11:19; 12:1-6, 10), de-
scribes a woman clothed with the sun, standing on the
moon, with her head crowned with twelve stars, but cry-
ing aloud in the pangs of childbirth, reminding us of the
two poles of Our Lady’s life - peace and affliction. In our
churches, she is presented as being at peace, reflecting the
way she is now, in heaven body and soul with her Son.
We rejoice that she is finally and definitively at peace,
and we are comforted by our belief that where she is, one
day we also shall be, if we remain loyal to her Son. But
Our Lady’s life was a time of affliction for her, in various
episodes of her vocation she was sorely tried. The scene
from the Apocalypse looks back to Genesis 3:15-16 and
represents the woman of the Messianic Era who is both
physical mother of the Messiah and spiritual mother of
the faithful. It is the Messiah who is approved by the
voice from heaven, by His triumph as God’s elected one
over the ancient Adversary, the Devil. The implication
for us on earth is that we should not be surprised if we
are afflicted - if Our Lady suffered affliction despite her
exalted calling, who are we to be taken aback by our own
afflictions?
1 Corinthians (15: 20-26) gives a scriptural basis
for our belief that Mary has been assumed body and
soul into heaven by a special privilege. The time of her
liberation from death has been anticipated in advance of
the definitive end of time when Christ the Messiah will
hand over all things to His Father and all the elect will
be saved once and for all from death in soul and body. St.
Paul gives us a clear distinction between the old Eve and
the new Eve. If Jesus is the new Adam, who then is the
new Eve? Mary. Just as the full story of our fall cannot be
told without Eve, so also the full story of our redemption
cannot be told without Mary. Many parallels exist between
the old Adam and Eve and the new Adam and Eve, Jesus
and Mary. In the old order, the woman (Eve) came from
the body of the man (Adam), but in the new order, the
man (Jesus) comes from the body of the woman (Mary).
In the old order, the woman first disobeyed God and led
the man to do the same; in the new order, the woman first
said “Yes” to God (Luke 1:38) and raised her son, Jesus,
to do likewise. Adam and Eve had a good time together
disobeying God; Jesus and Mary suffered together doing
God’s will. The sword of sorrow pierced their hearts
equally (John 19:34; Luke 2:35b).
The Gospel of Luke (1: 39-56), with its account of
the Magnificat of our Blessed Mother, reminds us of the
enormous privileges of Our Lady. She has no illusions
about the source of these privileges: God’s covenant
loyalty to the promises made to Abraham. Behind this
covenant loyalty, of course, is God’s unmerited love. It is
to the initiative of this love that we owe our creation, that
we owe our redemption, that we owe Our Lady, whose
humility proved to be a fitting match for God’s designs.
This should give us pause for thought.
On the Feast of the Assumption, we all should rejoice
with Our Lady because of the great things that God has
seen fit to work in her. But our rejoicing should also be a
challenge for us and an indication of the road we should
follow if we are to end up beside our spiritual mother.
Only through humility and trust in God can we be success-
ful in our search for God’s will, a will that for us implies
what it implied for Our Lady: definitive existence in the
presence of her Son. May she intercede on our behalf and
take us all to her Son’s abode.
Chamber Chatter
Willow Creek Farmer’s
Market runs each Thursday
through September 2 from
4-7 p.m. at the Heppner
City Park. Cost for the
entire season for vendors
is $50 or by the week at
$10 per week. Check out
the Facebook page, email
willowcreekfm@gmail.
com or call 541-720-4399
or 757-285-5792 for addi-
tional information.
August 13, 1 to 4 p.m.
Wheatland Insurance will
hold an open house with re-
freshments and door prizes.
August 17-22 the Mor-
row County Fair and Ore-
gon Trail Pro Rodeo will
be held. The theme this
year is “Morrow County
Strong.” The parade will
take place on Saturday,
August 21 at 10 a.m. Those
who are interested in being
in the parade should contact
the Heppner Chamber at
heppnerchamber@gmail.
com or 541-676-5536. The
Oregon Trail Pro Rodeo,
NPRA sanctioned rodeo,
will be held August 19 and
20 at 7 p.m. and the MOCO
Morrow County will be
holding COVID-19 vacci-
nation events from Wednes-
day, August 11 through Sat-
urday, August 21 in Board-
man, Irrigon and Heppner.
The times and locations are:
-Wednesday, August 11
at Sam Boardman Elemen-
tary in Boardman, 5-6:30
p.m.
-Thursday, August 12
at the Shell Gas Station in
Irrigon, 4-7 p.m.
-Thursday, August 13
at the Farmers Market in
Heppner, 4-7 p.m.
-Wednesday, August 18
at the Morrow County Fair
in Heppner, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.
-Thursday, August 19
at the Morrow County Fair
in Heppner, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.
-Friday, August 20 at
the Morrow County Fair
in Heppner, 10 a.m.-8 p.m.
-Saturday, August 21
at the Morrow County Fair
in Heppner, 12 p.m.-8 p.m.
DEADLINE:
MONDAYS
AT 5PM
20% OFF
~
~
jackpot on August 22 at 1
p.m.
Sunday, September 12
from 5:30-7:30 p.m., Mu-
sic in the Park at Heppner
City Park featuring Chasing
Ebenezer, a Portland musi-
cal group. Hopeful Saints
will be offering food for
purchase by donation to
their Mission and Outreach
fund.
September 18 and 19,
Blue Mountain Century
Scenic Bikeway ride. Reg-
istration and waivers are
available at the chamber
office or on the chamber
website. Contact the cham-
ber at 541-676-5536 to
guarantee a spot as the ride
will be limited to 100 riders.
The Blue Mountain Centu-
ry Bikeway is a scenic loop
of approximately 108 miles
beginning and ending in
Heppner.
October 28, vaccine
clinic and communi-
ty health fair at the Ione
American Legion Hall.
Additional information will
be available at a later date
Over the Tee Cup
Virginia Grant took
low gross of the field at
the Willow Creek Coun-
try Club ladies play day
on August 3. Low net of
the field winner was a tie
between Karen Thompson
and Karen Haguewood. Pat
Edmundson had the least
putts.
For flight A, Corol
Mitchell had low gross and
Eva Kilkenny had low net.
Karen Thompson got the
long drive and KP.
Pat Dougherty won
low gross for flight B and
Shirley Martin took low
net. Dougherty also got the
Apparel~
long drive and KP.
Flight C winners were
Kathy Martin for low gross,
Kris Lindner, low net and
Jeanne Creswick, least
putts. Jeanne Creswick
got the long drive and Kris
Lindner had KP.
Virginia Grant got bird-
ies on #11 and #15.
The day was comfort-
able for play that day, host-
ing 11 ladies. The Eddi
Skow/WCCC ladies club
championship will be held
August 31 and September
1. Those wishing to play
are required to sign up on
the sheet at the clubhouse.
HES begins online
registration
Heppner Elementary
School’s online registra-
tion will run August 10-12.
Returning families will
need to log into their parent
portal account and update
the following information:
Morrow County schedules
COVID-19 vaccine events
Fair & Rodeo Specials
~All
A View from the Green
Contact information, emer-
gency contacts, technology
use forms, internet ques-
tionnaire, dental screening
and transportation form.
New students and those
who desire assistance may
call the Heppner Elemen-
tary School office at 541
676-9128.
Service
club sign
filled
The Masonic Lodge
No. 69 has taken the empty
spot on the service club
signs at the entries into
Heppner. The space became
vacant when the Heppner
and Ione American Legion
posts consolidated recently.
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Learn more about how
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Jewlry~
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Heppner - 242 W Linden Way - 541-676-9422
Hermiston Office
Boardman Office
750 W. Elm Ave.
Hermiston, OR 97838
(541) 567-6414
400 N.E. Eldrige Drive
Boardman, OR 97818
(541) 481-2220