And the moral is ...

 

Once upon a time there was a priest. After reading the Gospel at Sunday Mass he approached the lectern and said to the congregation, "You have heard today's Gospel. Now do you know what I am going to preach about?"

Expecting him to talk about the subject of the Gospel they replied "Yes!"

Then the priest said, "In that case there's no point in me preaching to you, is there?" And he continued with the Mass and gave no sermon. This annoyed some in the congregation who expected a sermon each Sunday to set them up for the week.

The following Sunday, again after reading the Gospel he approached the lectern and said, "You have heard today's Gospel. Now do you know what I am going to preach about?"

This time, without exception, they all said "No!"

The priest replied, "Neither do I", and continued with the Mass and no sermon.

The congregation were irritated and complained. Some wrote to the bishop.   

The following Sunday, again the priest asked, "You have heard today's Gospel. Now do you know what I am going to preach about?"

Some members of the congregation said "Yes!" and others said "No!" 

The priest responded, "Let those who know what I'll speak about tell those who do not know!" and he continued with Mass and no sermon.

This time, because of many complaints to the bishop, the bishop had no option but to call the priest in for a talk. 

Somewhat pensively the old priest explained that he could no longer remember what to say in his sermons, and even though he prepared sermons in writing, he often forgot to bring his written sermons to church, which meant he had no sermon to deliver.

The Bishop sympathized with the elderly colleague and said: “Here's something you could try. Next time you have to give a sermon say in a loud voice ‘I have an announcement to make!’

“This will ensure you have everyone’s attention. They will hang on to your every word.

“Then say just as loudly ‘I have fallen in love with a woman’.

“Now this will certainly have them all listening very carefully and remembering your every word.

“And then calmly tell them about the Virgin Mary, and all the good she did for us. It will be easy. Just speak from the heart of your love for Our Lady”.

The old priest was overjoyed and the following Sunday he stood proudly at the lectern and said loudly:

“I HAVE AN ANNOUNCEMENT TO MAKE!”

And sure enough everyone sat up in their pews to listen very carefully. The old priest then continued just as loudly:

“THE BISHOP HAS FALLEN IN LOVE WITH A WOMAN …”

As the congregation stirred in their seats the old priest went on:

“I can’t for the life of me remember her name …”

 

AND THE MORAL OF THE STORY IS: No ... I'll let you decide on the moral. But first ...

 

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