Message from Jeni Stepanek, PhD:
2022 1030 #PeaceMatters #MamaPeacePost
The 13th Annual White Mass — celebrating the diverse gifts of all people… the Mass was an absolutely beautiful celebration of music and spirituality, recognizing the diverse gifts and God-given purpose of all people. Cardinal Wilton Gregory’s homily was a wonderful reminder of this truth — that we each and we all matter, and that we each and we all have a unique gift that is a part of God’s plan for creation. It was wonderful to be celebrating back in person again, and wow, St. Mary’s parish in Landover Hills was so welcoming to their many (many) visitors!
Attending this annual Mass matters very much to me. It is an opportunity to celebrate the truth that we are all created in God’s image, and a reminder that every person is a part of God’s plan, and blessed with His abundant love. We each and all have challenges of some sort, but we each and all also have strengths and gifts, and a unique purpose created in us by God — a truth that
my son Mattie called our “Heartsong” or reason for being.
In addition to the Mass and reception, I very much enjoyed chatting with old and new friends over lunch, and enjoying the colorful gifts of autumn leaves during our drive.
#CreatedOfLove #CreatedWithPurpose #CreatedForCommunity
And wow… what a lovely article in the Catholic Standard about the Sunday, October 30, 2022 celebration of all-abilities! I am very proud to be “Mattie’s mom” and to realize that he is remembered in such a special and spiritual way.
And I am equally proud to know that the folks who serve on the Mattie Matters Guild continue to organize and offer the essence of Mattie’s life and legacy for new generations of people, and to spread the inspiration of his “Heartsongs” — those messages of hope and peace and purpose and faith that he said were placed in his heart by God for him to shape and share with his own words — for our world.
