Saint Philip Neri

Well, the start of the weekend wasn't quite what I was hoping it would be. Friday was fun, but in a different way than normal. I was ill on Saturday and was unable to go out with my friends, and I wasn't quite sure if I'd make it out this week to church. And while I wasn't 100%, I was able to go. We saw an increase in participants this week, and it was great for me since then the group included my closest friends here in Omaha. It reminded me of my high school days when I'd go to church and hope that my best friend was there so we could sit together or just exchange signs of peace. It's always exciting to see your friends at church, especially right now for me when I feel like fellowship is a part I've been lacking with for a while now.

Church number two on our tour is Saint Philip Neri (8200 N. 30th St.) I feel like a broken record, but the outside seemed a bit plain, but the details inside the church were pretty cool.
What caught my eye the most were the flowers though.
I don't have an uber fancy camera, so it's hard to capture how beautiful it looked, but at least you get the idea.
Our choosing this week to go Saint Philip Neri was due to the food that was served afterwards. I never knew what czech style pork was. I still really don't know what exactly made it czech style, but I did take a picture of Eric eating it:
You are welcome, Eric. :) Actually, I think it may have been because it was served with dumplings and sauerkraut, but I am no expert.
Things got a little silly by the time we finally got around to my camera. Oh well.

The gospel was from John chapter 21, where Peter is asked to lead the church. The homily concerning this was really well put together. God knows how he feels about us. It is our own shortfalls that keep us from Him. Peter denied Jesus three times before his death, and Jesus asking him three times if he loved him after rising was an admonishment to that, but even more important a chance for Peter to let go of his past transgressions and accept the leadership role that Jesus was to give him.

I still feel unworthy in a lot of ways, but it is passages like these that remind me that I don't have to be perfect. I make mistakes, I do what I can to fix them, and then I see what's next.

-Frank