In a few days, we will hear about a woman who comes close to Jesus and says to him, “Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breast at which you nursed.”  And Jesus replies, “Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”

The woman blesses Mary for the sheer privilege of being the mother of Jesus—for carrying him, for nursing him, for being physically closer to him than anyone else.  Proximity to Jesus seems like it should be the ultimate blessing.

And yet Jesus redirects her.  Not because she is wrong to admire Mary, but because he wants to open that blessing to all of us.  Blessed are those who hear the Word of God and keep it.

The real blessedness is not simply about physical closeness to Jesus.  It is not even about having a front-row seat to his miracles or hearing him teach in person.  The real blessing is to hear the Word of God and allow it to change the way we live.

None of us walked with Jesus in the flesh.  None of us sat at his feet on the roads of Galilee.  But that does not shut us out.  Jesus tells us exactly how to share in the blessing: hear the Word and keep it.

And that is where the challenge begins.

Hearing is easy.  We can read a chapter of Scripture, listen to a podcast on the drive home, or hear the homily at daily Mass—and still walk away unchanged.

But the Word is meant to move somewhere.  It has to move from our ears into our hearts, and from our hearts into our hands.  The blessing becomes real when the Word is lived out—when it changes how we treat our wives, how we raise our children, how we approach our work, how we speak to others, and how we guard our thoughts.

So I invite you to consider one simple question:

Where in your life have you been a hearer without being a doer?

Where have you heard the Word, but stopped there?  Where has it gone in one ear and stayed there, instead of moving into your hands, your habits, and your decisions?

Don’t just take in the Word.  Let it take root.

Because blessed are not simply the men who hear the Word of God.

Blessed are the men who hear it—and keep it.

Let’s be those men.

Fr. Alejandro Rodríguez, s.x.

SYNOPSIS OF MEETING HELD SEPTEMBER 16, 2026

·         ASSEMBLY 3210 MEMBERS NEED TO STEP UP FOR FUTURE OFFICER POSITIONS.  VETERAN OFFICERS WILL BE STEPPING DOWN FROM LONG TERM SERVICE.  BECOME AN ACTIVE MEMBER OF ASSEMBLY 3210.  BECOME AN OFFICER IN THE NEXT FRATERNAL YEAR.

·         Thanks to St Veronica Parish for sharing their meeting space with us during renovation of St Josaphat Parish House.

·         From Aug 31, 2026, email communication:  SK Jack V Wrbanich exhorts all Assemblies to participate in the Eastern District Exemplification will be held Saturday, September 19, at All Saints Catholic Parish in Berlin.

·         From Sep 14, 2026, email communication:  SK Jack V Wrbanich commends the Fourth Degree in action.  “Sir Knights from our Eastern District participated in the 25th anniversary remembrance of September 11 in Kenosha, welcomed veterans home from an Honor Flight at Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport, supported the ordination of 11 men to the Permanent Diaconate at St. Monica Parish, and helped welcome Cardinal Timothy Dolan to the closing Mass of St. Matthias Parish’s 175th anniversary.  Twenty-three Honor Guard members were present at St. Matthias alone.  Faith, clergy, veterans, community, and country—all represented in a single weekend.”  Thank you to all the Sir Knights who answered the call this weekend.  Their service gave us something worth sharing—and an example worth inviting other Catholic gentlemen to join.

·         Assembly 3210 will resume a Sir Knight of the Month award.  Area 2 has a Sir Knight Roland Ransom Memorial Award for Knight of the Year .  Assembly 3210 wants to honor the Assembly Knight of the Month with a memorial to SK Dan Borkowski.

·         MOTION:  To name the Assembly 3210 Sir Knight of the Month award as the “St Josaphat Assembly 3210 Sir Knight Daniel Borkowski Memorial Sir Knight of the Month Award” was approved by unanimous consent of those present.

·         Area 2 upcoming events:

·         Stars and Stripes Honor Flights at General Mitchell International Airport in 2026 are scheduled for Saturday October 10, and Saturday November 7.  Save the dates and participate when possible.

·         Honor Guard:  Eastern District Fourth Degree Exemplification at All Saints Catholic Parish in Berlin Sep 19;  Specific Guards have been chosen for Red Mass on Oct 06 at Cathedral of St John;  White Mass 9:00 a.m. on Oct 17 at St Dominic’s Church in Brookfield;  All Hallows' Eve Procession of the Saints, October 31, 2026, 5:00 - 9:00 p.m. beginning at St. Stanislaus with Solemn Vespers, then procession of relics to the Basilica, and concluding with a Solemn Benediction;  Hales Corners Veteran’s Day Memorial Nov 08;  Women of Christ Nov 21 at the Brookfield Conference Center.

·         VAVS:  Donald Schwartz will provide 100 copies of the US Constitution on Constitution Day (Sep 17).  VAVS will volunteer for 3 days in Oct and 1 day in Nov in the name of Assembly 3210 at a food clinic.  A Christmas party is planned on Dec 8 for homeless veterans at Zablocki Center funded by Assemblies 3210 and 1307.

·         Clergy Night is planned for Nov 19 at Council 1709, start 5:30 p.m.  Guest speaker is Fr Jerry Herda from St Matthias.  RSVP date for $28 cost is Nov 14.  Cost of dinner after the Nov 14  deadline will be $35.  Invite a priest and sponsor the cost of dinner.

·         Fr Mark reminds us of the Xaverian gala on Oct 10 to raise funds for the missions.  A memorial Mass for David Klamik is being planned for Saturday Oct 20 at 6:30 p.m. at the Council 1709 Clubhouse.

·         The last 2026 Sendik’s Food Kiosk fundraiser is scheduled for Sep 25.  Success will depend on ACTIVE PARTICIPATION by members:  3 volunteers are needed for each event from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.  PLEASE PLAN TO PARTICIPATE!   Contact SK Mark at mganhalt@wi.rr.com for details.  Program proceeds have been $567.30 in June, $574.40 in July, and $377.40 in August  – total $1519.10.  Proceeds for June and July, but not in August, are biased high because open leftover foods were purchased by working Knights at closeout.

·         Fall Turkey Raffle tickets are available for sale Oct 3 until Nov 8.  Ticket sales at parishes are scheduled for Oct 24-25 at the Basilica, for Oct 31 - Nov 1 at Divine Mercy, and St Matthew’s is being contacted.  Drawing will be at Xaverian Missionaries on Nov 15.  Raffle proceeds, in part, will be donated to the Safe Haven Baby Box program.  Goal is $1000 for donation.

·         Thanks to SK Mark Anhalt, an article explaining the Camp Hometown Heroes organization and Assembly 3210 meal support is being considered by KofC Columbian magazine.  If published, the exposure may increase participation by other Councils/Assemblies.

THE NEXT MEETING WILL BE AT ST VERONICA PARISH IN MILWAUKEE ON OCTOBER 21, 2026

BASILICA OF ST JOSAPHAT PARISH HOUSE IS UNDER RENOVATION FOR SEVERAL MONTHS

Here is your opportunity to read the by laws that govern the functions of our assembly.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact a member or our by laws committee: SK Joe D., SK Bill F. or SK Matthew B.