Does God ignore or act a bit rough with you? Jesus crosses the border into the pagan region of Tyre and Sidon, the territory long outside the covenant. There, a Canaanite woman calls out, "Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David." At first, he is silent. Then he rebuffs her. "It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs." But the Church Fathers saw this not as an insult but as an initiation. Christ draws out of her heart a deeper faith.

Fellow parishioners of Blessed Sacrament and visitors,

Greetings from Bukoba, Tanzania! After a well-deserved vacation in my home country, I am glad to be back to continue our joint efforts in building the kingdom of God at this beautiful parish. I am particularly grateful to our beloved Associate Pastor, Rev. Fr. Samuel Aliba, the parish staff, volunteers, and each individual parishioner for keeping our parish thriving during my absence.

TODAY, the evangelist Matthew tells us that the crowds were eagerly seeking our Lord. They hungered for his preaching and miracles so greatly that, when they finally found Him, they listened to him happily until sunset. On one of those occasions, the apostles suggested to Jesus that He send the people away before nightfall so they could find somewhere to buy food for their journey home. But our Lord, moved by those hearts that were so eager for his word, didn't want to let them go without giving them one last gift.