April 21, 2019
EASTER IS ALL ABOUT REDEMPTION
Recently the sports world witnessed two major redemptions. The University of Virginia Basketball team won the NCAA National Championship and last Sunday, Tiger Woods won the famous golf tournament known as The Masters, in Augusta, Ga. Both had little hope to win anything. Last year after Virginia lost to a 16th seed team, the question was would they ever come back? We saw however, that Virginia through hard work, team effort and a little faith, helped them to win the highest honor in all of college basketball.
Tiger Woods, was a person who lost a marriage, had drinking problems and physical problems where as the Wall Street Journal describes “he was driven to be a bedridden recluse.” The question was whatever happened to Tiger?” Now we see how again hard work, dedication, hope and cooperation brought him an enormous win in the world of golf. The word we use about both Virginia and Tiger is redemption.
Today, Easter Sunday, is a day of redemption for us! We are redeemed not by our own merits but by God, who became human like you and me and took on our sins and defeated them on the cross and by his Resurrection from the dead. The word we use for this event is redemption. The word redemption comes from the Latin redimere, meaning to buy back, or reacquire at a cost. Humankind has been bought back from the grip of sin and death by the love of a God who gave us his only Son, Jesus. When Jesus died on the cross that fateful day, Good Friday, our sins were forgiven and we were reunited with God and one another. When He rose from the dead on Easter, his act of sacrifice on the cross became complete. Jesus is victorious over death by the power of God the Father. We now are given a share in His victory and we are given the liberation to become sons and daughters of God.
Often we are tempted to become discouraged or give up when we face crisis after crisis in our lives. We may feel alone or think we know better than God and we end up in the dark closet obstructing God to restore us with new life. We may fall into despair that is far darker than death. Fr. James Martin in an article “Take Up Your Cross: The Risen Christ and Daily Life” writes that “this is the time to turn to the Resurrection.”
The disciples “failed to realize that they are dealing with the living God, the same one whose Message to Mary Magdalene “Nothing will be impossible with God.” It is because of the Resurrection “we are called not to live behind closed doors of darkness, doubt, fear and death, but to come out of our hiding and accompany Mary Magdalene, Peter and the Beloved disciple (John), weeping sometimes, searching al- ways and ultimately be moved to joy by the dawn of the Resurrection.”
The risen Christ teaches us that we are called to believe what the disciples have seen with their eyes, but we now see with faith. May we never give up because with God everything is POSSIBLE! If God can move a simple stone away, how much more can God do with our hearts and our lives if we trust and have faith in him.
The University of Virginia and Tiger Wood’s story is that in the end they did not win alone. Both had a community where they worked and believed together. Tiger Woods, was no longer the solo sullen fellow. He relied on help from others. This is what we do as an Easter Family in the Catholic Church. We win together because God saves us all together and his desire is that we are one, drawn into the presence of his Son, Jesus Christ. The Resurrection teaches us that as a family, for every Good Friday we experience in life, Easter Sunday always awaits. On behalf of our priests Frs. Andrés, Benjamin, Frank, and our Sisters of St. Dominic, Srs. Mary, Kathy, Karen; and the entire parish staff, I wish you and your family a very Happy and blessed Easter. May the risen Christ dwell in your hearts forever!
I close with a prayer song that the Church prays during these 50 Days of Easter. It is entitled the Regina Coeli (Latin: Queen of Heaven). You can say this prayer at any time; especially at 6am, 12 noon, 6pm or before retiring for the night.
Regina caeli laetare, alleluia:
Quia quem meruisti portare, alleluia: Resurrexit, sicut dixit, alleluia:
Ora pro nobis Deum, alleluia.
V. Gaude et ltare Virgo Maria, alleluia. R. Quia surrexit Dominus vere, alleluia
Queen of Heaven, rejoice. Alleluia.
For He, whom you did worthy to bear. Alleluia. Has risen as He said. Alleluia.
Pray for us to God. Alleluia.
V. Rejoice and be glad, O Virgin Mary. Alleluia. R. Because the Lord is truly risen, Alleluia.
Let us pray
O God, Who by the Resurrection of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, has been pleased to give joy to the whole world, grant we beseech Thee, that through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, His Mother, we may attain the joys of eternal life. Through Christ our Lord. Amen!
CAPITAL CAMPAIGN UPDATE-CONTINUING OUR MISSION
WE ARE ALOMOST THERE! (91% of Goal)
We are inching our way toward our paid pledges of $1.5 Million. As of April 2, 2019 we are at $1,368,628.95. That puts us at $131,371.05 below our stated goal. If you are visiting and would like to contribute, your gift will be greatly accepted. If you have not given yet to the Campaign, no gift is ever too small. This is all about equal sacrifice, not equal giving. Thank you to all who have so generously given and are giving to the campaign. We have used our funds well for the church, parking lot and convent. Our next project is the leaders and gutters on the rectory and a fire alarm for the church. Please contact our business office for more information at 931-0056 Ext. 118.
Fr.Jim, Pastor
Recently the sports world witnessed two major redemptions. The University of Virginia Basketball team won the NCAA National Championship and last Sunday, Tiger Woods won the famous golf tournament known as The Masters, in Augusta, Ga. Both had little hope to win anything. Last year after Virginia lost to a 16th seed team, the question was would they ever come back? We saw however, that Virginia through hard work, team effort and a little faith, helped them to win the highest honor in all of college basketball.
Tiger Woods, was a person who lost a marriage, had drinking problems and physical problems where as the Wall Street Journal describes “he was driven to be a bedridden recluse.” The question was whatever happened to Tiger?” Now we see how again hard work, dedication, hope and cooperation brought him an enormous win in the world of golf. The word we use about both Virginia and Tiger is redemption.
Today, Easter Sunday, is a day of redemption for us! We are redeemed not by our own merits but by God, who became human like you and me and took on our sins and defeated them on the cross and by his Resurrection from the dead. The word we use for this event is redemption. The word redemption comes from the Latin redimere, meaning to buy back, or reacquire at a cost. Humankind has been bought back from the grip of sin and death by the love of a God who gave us his only Son, Jesus. When Jesus died on the cross that fateful day, Good Friday, our sins were forgiven and we were reunited with God and one another. When He rose from the dead on Easter, his act of sacrifice on the cross became complete. Jesus is victorious over death by the power of God the Father. We now are given a share in His victory and we are given the liberation to become sons and daughters of God.
Often we are tempted to become discouraged or give up when we face crisis after crisis in our lives. We may feel alone or think we know better than God and we end up in the dark closet obstructing God to restore us with new life. We may fall into despair that is far darker than death. Fr. James Martin in an article “Take Up Your Cross: The Risen Christ and Daily Life” writes that “this is the time to turn to the Resurrection.”
The disciples “failed to realize that they are dealing with the living God, the same one whose Message to Mary Magdalene “Nothing will be impossible with God.” It is because of the Resurrection “we are called not to live behind closed doors of darkness, doubt, fear and death, but to come out of our hiding and accompany Mary Magdalene, Peter and the Beloved disciple (John), weeping sometimes, searching al- ways and ultimately be moved to joy by the dawn of the Resurrection.”
The risen Christ teaches us that we are called to believe what the disciples have seen with their eyes, but we now see with faith. May we never give up because with God everything is POSSIBLE! If God can move a simple stone away, how much more can God do with our hearts and our lives if we trust and have faith in him.
The University of Virginia and Tiger Wood’s story is that in the end they did not win alone. Both had a community where they worked and believed together. Tiger Woods, was no longer the solo sullen fellow. He relied on help from others. This is what we do as an Easter Family in the Catholic Church. We win together because God saves us all together and his desire is that we are one, drawn into the presence of his Son, Jesus Christ. The Resurrection teaches us that as a family, for every Good Friday we experience in life, Easter Sunday always awaits. On behalf of our priests Frs. Andrés, Benjamin, Frank, and our Sisters of St. Dominic, Srs. Mary, Kathy, Karen; and the entire parish staff, I wish you and your family a very Happy and blessed Easter. May the risen Christ dwell in your hearts forever!
I close with a prayer song that the Church prays during these 50 Days of Easter. It is entitled the Regina Coeli (Latin: Queen of Heaven). You can say this prayer at any time; especially at 6am, 12 noon, 6pm or before retiring for the night.
Regina caeli laetare, alleluia:
Quia quem meruisti portare, alleluia: Resurrexit, sicut dixit, alleluia:
Ora pro nobis Deum, alleluia.
V. Gaude et ltare Virgo Maria, alleluia. R. Quia surrexit Dominus vere, alleluia
Queen of Heaven, rejoice. Alleluia.
For He, whom you did worthy to bear. Alleluia. Has risen as He said. Alleluia.
Pray for us to God. Alleluia.
V. Rejoice and be glad, O Virgin Mary. Alleluia. R. Because the Lord is truly risen, Alleluia.
Let us pray
O God, Who by the Resurrection of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, has been pleased to give joy to the whole world, grant we beseech Thee, that through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, His Mother, we may attain the joys of eternal life. Through Christ our Lord. Amen!
CAPITAL CAMPAIGN UPDATE-CONTINUING OUR MISSION
WE ARE ALOMOST THERE! (91% of Goal)
We are inching our way toward our paid pledges of $1.5 Million. As of April 2, 2019 we are at $1,368,628.95. That puts us at $131,371.05 below our stated goal. If you are visiting and would like to contribute, your gift will be greatly accepted. If you have not given yet to the Campaign, no gift is ever too small. This is all about equal sacrifice, not equal giving. Thank you to all who have so generously given and are giving to the campaign. We have used our funds well for the church, parking lot and convent. Our next project is the leaders and gutters on the rectory and a fire alarm for the church. Please contact our business office for more information at 931-0056 Ext. 118.
Fr.Jim, Pastor
April 14, 2019
HOLY WEEK-PALM SUNDAY-LK. 14-23:56
While it’s hard to believe, we have entered into the most sacred time of the year, Holy Week. My hope is that this Lenten season has been fulfilling and grace-filled in helping you journey closer to God.
This period of Holy Week is not only a time for us to weep for our sinfulness, but also a time to be grateful because this is the week that changed and saved the world. Instead of just focusing on Jesus’ sufferings 2,000 years ago, we should focus on the love that underlies this suffering. Jesus died because of his great love for you and me so that we can experience a redemption that brings us an eternal life with God forever. Jesus has shown us how to be obedient to the Father by surrendering his life for the Mission of establishing his Kingdom on earth. He said at the Garden of Gethsemane “Father, not my will but yours be done.” We also need to focus on how Jesus is still suffering today in our brothers and sisters who are poor, sick, addicted, suffering and in need.
Jesus’ journey to Calvary is as much our journey as it is His. Any crosses that we carry in our lives, is helped by the fact that we do not carry them alone. He is right there alongside us. We can shift its weight to Him because we are intimately united with Him through the Paschal Mystery (Jesus’ suffering, death and resurrection). Since he overcame the cross, we realize that we too with our trust in Him, can face any obstacles that life places on our path.
There are two images of mercy, only found in Luke’s Gospel to reflect upon. Jesus forgives everyone in the midst of the most painful moment of his life from the cross. No matter if they are the soldiers, the mob spitting at him, Pilate or the Pharisees, he says “Father forgive them they know not what they do.” Then Jesus forgives the repentant thief who asks to be remembered in Jesus’ Kingdom. Jesus says, “today you will be with me in Paradise”. Right upon death, the thief becomes the first citizen of creation reconciled and restored. It also challenges us to welcome all others with the same unconditional unfailing mercy with which Jesus welcomes us. The Holy Week/Easter season is the right time to begin. Take advantage of it!
THE EASTER TRIDUUM
Lent ends on Holy Thursday Evening with the Mass of the Lord’s Supper. At this time, we begin the Easter Triduum (The 3 Days-Holy Thursday Evening, Good Friday, Holy Saturday, Easter Sunday).
These are the days where we can best express our thanksgiving to Jesus for his ultimate sacrifice of giving his life for us. We invite you to participate in the following:
Morning Prayer at 9am and a Bi-lingual Mass on Holy Thursday,
Morning Prayer at 9am and the Celebration of the Lord’s Passion on Good Friday,
Morning Prayer at 9am and the Bi-lingual Mass of the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday, and rise with Him on Easter Sunday at Mass during the day. Please join us and let the crucified and risen Christ speak to your heart!. Please consider taking time out from your regular schedule from work, play and other items on your list to join us and unite yourself with Jesus.
PLEASE BE GENEROUS
We welcome all our parishioners and visitors who have come to worship with us on this Palm Sunday Weekend. This year our collections have gone down. I ask that you be generous in this Sunday’s collection to help us to rebuild our financial foundation.
RECONCILATION MONDAY, APRIL 15, 2019
Please join your brothers and sisters across Long Island and New York City in celebrating the sacrament of Reconciliation. Here at St. Ignatius, we will offer the sacrament from 3pm to 9pm. What better way to prepare for Holy Week and Easter then by seeking the Lord whose love for us is greater than any sin we can ever commit. The Confession Schedule for our priests here at St. Ignatius Loyola is as follows:
Fr. Jim 3-6pm
Fr. Andrés 3-5pm& 6-9pm(Español)
Fr. Ben 3-5pm & 6-9pm
Fr. Frank 5-6pm & 7-9pm
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor
While it’s hard to believe, we have entered into the most sacred time of the year, Holy Week. My hope is that this Lenten season has been fulfilling and grace-filled in helping you journey closer to God.
This period of Holy Week is not only a time for us to weep for our sinfulness, but also a time to be grateful because this is the week that changed and saved the world. Instead of just focusing on Jesus’ sufferings 2,000 years ago, we should focus on the love that underlies this suffering. Jesus died because of his great love for you and me so that we can experience a redemption that brings us an eternal life with God forever. Jesus has shown us how to be obedient to the Father by surrendering his life for the Mission of establishing his Kingdom on earth. He said at the Garden of Gethsemane “Father, not my will but yours be done.” We also need to focus on how Jesus is still suffering today in our brothers and sisters who are poor, sick, addicted, suffering and in need.
Jesus’ journey to Calvary is as much our journey as it is His. Any crosses that we carry in our lives, is helped by the fact that we do not carry them alone. He is right there alongside us. We can shift its weight to Him because we are intimately united with Him through the Paschal Mystery (Jesus’ suffering, death and resurrection). Since he overcame the cross, we realize that we too with our trust in Him, can face any obstacles that life places on our path.
There are two images of mercy, only found in Luke’s Gospel to reflect upon. Jesus forgives everyone in the midst of the most painful moment of his life from the cross. No matter if they are the soldiers, the mob spitting at him, Pilate or the Pharisees, he says “Father forgive them they know not what they do.” Then Jesus forgives the repentant thief who asks to be remembered in Jesus’ Kingdom. Jesus says, “today you will be with me in Paradise”. Right upon death, the thief becomes the first citizen of creation reconciled and restored. It also challenges us to welcome all others with the same unconditional unfailing mercy with which Jesus welcomes us. The Holy Week/Easter season is the right time to begin. Take advantage of it!
THE EASTER TRIDUUM
Lent ends on Holy Thursday Evening with the Mass of the Lord’s Supper. At this time, we begin the Easter Triduum (The 3 Days-Holy Thursday Evening, Good Friday, Holy Saturday, Easter Sunday).
These are the days where we can best express our thanksgiving to Jesus for his ultimate sacrifice of giving his life for us. We invite you to participate in the following:
Morning Prayer at 9am and a Bi-lingual Mass on Holy Thursday,
Morning Prayer at 9am and the Celebration of the Lord’s Passion on Good Friday,
Morning Prayer at 9am and the Bi-lingual Mass of the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday, and rise with Him on Easter Sunday at Mass during the day. Please join us and let the crucified and risen Christ speak to your heart!. Please consider taking time out from your regular schedule from work, play and other items on your list to join us and unite yourself with Jesus.
PLEASE BE GENEROUS
We welcome all our parishioners and visitors who have come to worship with us on this Palm Sunday Weekend. This year our collections have gone down. I ask that you be generous in this Sunday’s collection to help us to rebuild our financial foundation.
RECONCILATION MONDAY, APRIL 15, 2019
Please join your brothers and sisters across Long Island and New York City in celebrating the sacrament of Reconciliation. Here at St. Ignatius, we will offer the sacrament from 3pm to 9pm. What better way to prepare for Holy Week and Easter then by seeking the Lord whose love for us is greater than any sin we can ever commit. The Confession Schedule for our priests here at St. Ignatius Loyola is as follows:
Fr. Jim 3-6pm
Fr. Andrés 3-5pm& 6-9pm(Español)
Fr. Ben 3-5pm & 6-9pm
Fr. Frank 5-6pm & 7-9pm
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor
April 7, 2019
TO GOD, THERE IS NO SIN THAT IS UNFORGIVEABLE
In today’s Gospel, we are invited into the drama of the adulterous woman who is about to be stoned to death. Yet, we see how Jesus responds to the men who want to stone her and the adulterous woman. He writes something in the ground that some say could have been the sins of the men who were going to stone her to death. Then he forgives the woman and says “go and sin no more”.
This tells us of the merciful way God responds to us when we sin. While God desires us not to sin, he is all loving and merciful toward us when we sin and challenges us like the adulterous person to change our hearts and our ways. In addition as Pope Francis says ,“God never tires of forgiving us of our sins”. What better place to experience God’s forgiveness than in the Sacrament of Reconciliation also known as Confession and Penance. In a daily homily in 2015, Pope Francis states that “confession is not a judgement nor is it like going to the dry cleaners who remove the stain of sins. It is the encounter with a Father who always forgives, forgives all, forgets the faults of the past and then even celebrates”. In confession not only are our sins forgiven, but it also helps us to be able to get to the root of the sin, where we need healing, so as to prevent more sins in the future. But, we should keep going until we see the Lord face to face in eternal life.
Please take every opportunity next Monday of Holy Week, April 15th when St. Ignatius and all of the parishes in Nassau, Suffolk, Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan and the downstate counties of New York offer Confessions from 3pm to 9pm. If you feel funny coming to the priests you know here at the parish, then go to the other parishes.
Remember, that anything said in confession is held under a seal that can never be revealed according to Church teaching.
THE BELLS OF ST. IGNATIUS LOYOLA
You may have heard of, or even watched the Bells of St. Mary’s (1945) staring Bing Crosby and Ingrid Berman. In the movie, they even sing a song called the Bells of St. Mary’s. This weekend I am writing about the Bells of St. Ignatius Loyola. Up in our tower, we have two bells, a small one that was brought from the original church and a larger one that was donated in the 1890’s. The larger bells weighs approximately 755 pounds that is next to the older one. The parishioners who donated that bell are William Braun, Henry C. Stolz, Valentine Lotterman, Sebastian Braun and August Schreiber. They convinced Fr. Lawrence Fuchs that a new bell was imperative and that it would give a strong voice to the community.
Since then, we have had a digital carillon for quite some time. Today, you may have noticed a different more fuller sound in our bells. Recently, we purchased a new carillon of bells called The Adagio II Carillon from the Verdin Company. This is a fully automatic digital carrion system providing the traditional sound of real cast bronze bless and bell music. The Adagio II provides a simple convenient way to instantly ring bells or play music. The Adagio II comes pre-packaged with a wide variety of carillon bells, music, hymns, liturgical bell functions, Westminster clock, chime melody, hour strikes as well as general religious music favorites. As we journey toward Holy Week and Easter, please tune your ears to the beautiful music that will come from our tower. I hope the bells will help to lift our hearts more in prayer, knowing that God is always close to us.
PALM SUNDAY AND HOLY WEEK
Please note the schedule for Palm Sunday and Holy Week and the Triduum (3 days). The 9:30am Mass will
begin at 9:15am in Msgr. Tarrant Hall. We will then process from the hall to the front of the church. All people are expected to meet in the Old School building unless you have difficulty walking.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor
In today’s Gospel, we are invited into the drama of the adulterous woman who is about to be stoned to death. Yet, we see how Jesus responds to the men who want to stone her and the adulterous woman. He writes something in the ground that some say could have been the sins of the men who were going to stone her to death. Then he forgives the woman and says “go and sin no more”.
This tells us of the merciful way God responds to us when we sin. While God desires us not to sin, he is all loving and merciful toward us when we sin and challenges us like the adulterous person to change our hearts and our ways. In addition as Pope Francis says ,“God never tires of forgiving us of our sins”. What better place to experience God’s forgiveness than in the Sacrament of Reconciliation also known as Confession and Penance. In a daily homily in 2015, Pope Francis states that “confession is not a judgement nor is it like going to the dry cleaners who remove the stain of sins. It is the encounter with a Father who always forgives, forgives all, forgets the faults of the past and then even celebrates”. In confession not only are our sins forgiven, but it also helps us to be able to get to the root of the sin, where we need healing, so as to prevent more sins in the future. But, we should keep going until we see the Lord face to face in eternal life.
Please take every opportunity next Monday of Holy Week, April 15th when St. Ignatius and all of the parishes in Nassau, Suffolk, Queens, Brooklyn, Manhattan and the downstate counties of New York offer Confessions from 3pm to 9pm. If you feel funny coming to the priests you know here at the parish, then go to the other parishes.
Remember, that anything said in confession is held under a seal that can never be revealed according to Church teaching.
THE BELLS OF ST. IGNATIUS LOYOLA
You may have heard of, or even watched the Bells of St. Mary’s (1945) staring Bing Crosby and Ingrid Berman. In the movie, they even sing a song called the Bells of St. Mary’s. This weekend I am writing about the Bells of St. Ignatius Loyola. Up in our tower, we have two bells, a small one that was brought from the original church and a larger one that was donated in the 1890’s. The larger bells weighs approximately 755 pounds that is next to the older one. The parishioners who donated that bell are William Braun, Henry C. Stolz, Valentine Lotterman, Sebastian Braun and August Schreiber. They convinced Fr. Lawrence Fuchs that a new bell was imperative and that it would give a strong voice to the community.
Since then, we have had a digital carillon for quite some time. Today, you may have noticed a different more fuller sound in our bells. Recently, we purchased a new carillon of bells called The Adagio II Carillon from the Verdin Company. This is a fully automatic digital carrion system providing the traditional sound of real cast bronze bless and bell music. The Adagio II provides a simple convenient way to instantly ring bells or play music. The Adagio II comes pre-packaged with a wide variety of carillon bells, music, hymns, liturgical bell functions, Westminster clock, chime melody, hour strikes as well as general religious music favorites. As we journey toward Holy Week and Easter, please tune your ears to the beautiful music that will come from our tower. I hope the bells will help to lift our hearts more in prayer, knowing that God is always close to us.
PALM SUNDAY AND HOLY WEEK
Please note the schedule for Palm Sunday and Holy Week and the Triduum (3 days). The 9:30am Mass will
begin at 9:15am in Msgr. Tarrant Hall. We will then process from the hall to the front of the church. All people are expected to meet in the Old School building unless you have difficulty walking.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor
March 31, 2019
Confirmation
What is it, who can receive it, when can it be received, and who administers it? So many questions. Where do we begin?
Confirmation is a sacrament; it is one of the Sacraments of Initiation of the Catholic Church (Baptism, Holy Eucharist, and Confirmation). The Catechism of the Catholic Church describes Confirmation as a deepening of baptismal gifts. Through the action of these sacraments, we become disciples of Jesus. Baptism and Confirmation can only be administered once. Through Baptism, we begin our journey as Catholic Christians; Confirmation is the deepening of our Christian identity – we assume the responsibility for living our faith as Catholics.
Every Baptized Christian can be Confirmed. Confirmation is usually administered by a successor of the Apostles – the Bishop of the Diocese. The rite is usually celebrated in the context of the Mass. The candidates are presented to the Bishop who first asks the candidates to renew their Baptismal promises. He then asks everyone to join him in silent prayer for the candidates as he extends his hands over them (a symbol of imposition of hands), asking God to grant them the Spirit as Helper and Guide and to fill them with the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Then one by one each candidate, with their sponsor, approaches the Bishop who calls them by their chosen name and traces a cross on their forehead with Chrism (blessed oil) saying “Be sealed with the Gift of the Holy Spirit.”
I said that the usual administrator of Confirmation is the Bishop. There is one special case each year when the Bishop delegates the pastor of each parish with special authority on Pentecost Sunday, when the Church recalls the first Confirmation of the Apostles. At a specific Mass, the Pastor can confirm adult (persons over 18 years of age) candidates using the same rite.
Deacon George A Mais, Jr
What is it, who can receive it, when can it be received, and who administers it? So many questions. Where do we begin?
Confirmation is a sacrament; it is one of the Sacraments of Initiation of the Catholic Church (Baptism, Holy Eucharist, and Confirmation). The Catechism of the Catholic Church describes Confirmation as a deepening of baptismal gifts. Through the action of these sacraments, we become disciples of Jesus. Baptism and Confirmation can only be administered once. Through Baptism, we begin our journey as Catholic Christians; Confirmation is the deepening of our Christian identity – we assume the responsibility for living our faith as Catholics.
Every Baptized Christian can be Confirmed. Confirmation is usually administered by a successor of the Apostles – the Bishop of the Diocese. The rite is usually celebrated in the context of the Mass. The candidates are presented to the Bishop who first asks the candidates to renew their Baptismal promises. He then asks everyone to join him in silent prayer for the candidates as he extends his hands over them (a symbol of imposition of hands), asking God to grant them the Spirit as Helper and Guide and to fill them with the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Then one by one each candidate, with their sponsor, approaches the Bishop who calls them by their chosen name and traces a cross on their forehead with Chrism (blessed oil) saying “Be sealed with the Gift of the Holy Spirit.”
I said that the usual administrator of Confirmation is the Bishop. There is one special case each year when the Bishop delegates the pastor of each parish with special authority on Pentecost Sunday, when the Church recalls the first Confirmation of the Apostles. At a specific Mass, the Pastor can confirm adult (persons over 18 years of age) candidates using the same rite.
Deacon George A Mais, Jr
March 24, 2019
ARE YOU READY?
These past three years for my family and me have not been easy with the death of my dad, uncle, aunts, parents of friends, with whom we grew up with and now my cousin last week. Upon further reflection, however, these events reminded me that this life is temporary. St. Paul tells us that we live in a tent and that while we live in the body, we are made for the Lord. Jesus says we don’t know the time or the hour of our own death but we must always be prepared. So the question this third week of Lent is, are you ready to meet Jesus today and every day? If not, there’s still time to change and repent. The season of Lent is here to help us change before it is too late. In the Gospel today, Jesus uses a parable of a barren fig tree to describe how God is waiting for us to change. According to Levitical law, you are required to wait four years before you consume any fruit of a new tree (Leviticus 19:23-25).
In the parable, the landowner has looked for evidence of fruit after three years and finds none. He says that since the tree is barren, it should be cut down and replaced by another fruitful tree. Its time is up, judgement must follow. The gardener however, in the parable, a biblical image of God (Isaiah 5:1-7) has a better idea. He suggests that more care, fertilization should take place and give the tree one more year to produce fruit. Then if the tree does not bear fruit (repent for us), then it can be cut down. Jesus uses the parable to connect the death of the Galileans at the hands of Pilate and the accident at Siloam to his story. The time was up for those who died. Those sill alive, however, have time to change and repent, to return to God and begin to produce fruit in their lives so they can live. This is a message of God’s mercy and patience with us, giving us time to change and grow. Even the giver of the law is merciful, providing every opportunity for the tree to produce fruit and remain in the orchard. Let us take every opportunity this Lent to seek forgiveness, to forgive and come back to God before it is too late.
Lent is a season of self-reflection. What would the gardener of your soul suggest to help you produce more fruit in your life? Begin to produce fruit so that they can live. A message of the parable is that even the giver of the law is merciful, providing every opportunity for the tree to produce fruit and remain in the orchard.
VANDALISM AT ST. IGNATIUS
Sadly, last Friday March 15, 2019, our statue of St. Joseph was damaged as well as a bench and some of the garden plants. Like you, I felt violated after hearing this news. We believe we know the man who perpetrated this event. I just ask that you pray for this person that the Lord may heal his mind and heart. Also, please keep your eyes alert while you are on the grounds of St. Ignatius Loyola. If you see anything suspicious, call 911 immediately and notify the Police. I am grateful to the Nassau Police Department for all they do for us. They usually park one of their cars here in the back parking lot during the evening.
THANK YOU FR. FRANK DE SIANO & SR. CHRISTINE SAMMONS
Thank you to Fr. Frank DeSiano for a wonderful Lenten Mission to help us begin the first week of Lent. His words were helpful and inspiring reminding us about the importance of prayer, embracing the Word of God in the Bible and living them out in service. Thank you also to Sr. Christine Sammons for a beautiful talk at our annual Lenten Soup Supper. We not only find Jesus in church but in the poor and marginalized who may be at our doorsteps. May God continue to bless both of them for their beautiful ministries of evangelization and hope.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
These past three years for my family and me have not been easy with the death of my dad, uncle, aunts, parents of friends, with whom we grew up with and now my cousin last week. Upon further reflection, however, these events reminded me that this life is temporary. St. Paul tells us that we live in a tent and that while we live in the body, we are made for the Lord. Jesus says we don’t know the time or the hour of our own death but we must always be prepared. So the question this third week of Lent is, are you ready to meet Jesus today and every day? If not, there’s still time to change and repent. The season of Lent is here to help us change before it is too late. In the Gospel today, Jesus uses a parable of a barren fig tree to describe how God is waiting for us to change. According to Levitical law, you are required to wait four years before you consume any fruit of a new tree (Leviticus 19:23-25).
In the parable, the landowner has looked for evidence of fruit after three years and finds none. He says that since the tree is barren, it should be cut down and replaced by another fruitful tree. Its time is up, judgement must follow. The gardener however, in the parable, a biblical image of God (Isaiah 5:1-7) has a better idea. He suggests that more care, fertilization should take place and give the tree one more year to produce fruit. Then if the tree does not bear fruit (repent for us), then it can be cut down. Jesus uses the parable to connect the death of the Galileans at the hands of Pilate and the accident at Siloam to his story. The time was up for those who died. Those sill alive, however, have time to change and repent, to return to God and begin to produce fruit in their lives so they can live. This is a message of God’s mercy and patience with us, giving us time to change and grow. Even the giver of the law is merciful, providing every opportunity for the tree to produce fruit and remain in the orchard. Let us take every opportunity this Lent to seek forgiveness, to forgive and come back to God before it is too late.
Lent is a season of self-reflection. What would the gardener of your soul suggest to help you produce more fruit in your life? Begin to produce fruit so that they can live. A message of the parable is that even the giver of the law is merciful, providing every opportunity for the tree to produce fruit and remain in the orchard.
VANDALISM AT ST. IGNATIUS
Sadly, last Friday March 15, 2019, our statue of St. Joseph was damaged as well as a bench and some of the garden plants. Like you, I felt violated after hearing this news. We believe we know the man who perpetrated this event. I just ask that you pray for this person that the Lord may heal his mind and heart. Also, please keep your eyes alert while you are on the grounds of St. Ignatius Loyola. If you see anything suspicious, call 911 immediately and notify the Police. I am grateful to the Nassau Police Department for all they do for us. They usually park one of their cars here in the back parking lot during the evening.
THANK YOU FR. FRANK DE SIANO & SR. CHRISTINE SAMMONS
Thank you to Fr. Frank DeSiano for a wonderful Lenten Mission to help us begin the first week of Lent. His words were helpful and inspiring reminding us about the importance of prayer, embracing the Word of God in the Bible and living them out in service. Thank you also to Sr. Christine Sammons for a beautiful talk at our annual Lenten Soup Supper. We not only find Jesus in church but in the poor and marginalized who may be at our doorsteps. May God continue to bless both of them for their beautiful ministries of evangelization and hope.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
March 17, 2019
TO EXPERIENCE A RESURRECTION, AN EXODUS IS NECESSARY
Every Second Sunday of Lent, we hear the Gospel story of the Transfiguration of Jesus on the mountain. Each of the Gospel writers Matthew, Mark and Luke have their own take on the events of that day. While the theme of darkness, resurrection and glory are the same, there are some points that the different authors like to stress. In Luke’s Gospel, we get the sense of the importance of the Exodus. The great Exodus that we all know from the Book of Exodus is the freedom of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. This was the most transformative event of their lives. They were in Egypt after hundreds of years in slavery. Now, by God, acting through Moses, they were saved by journeying through the Red Sea and the hardship of the desert only to have a whole new life in the Promised Land of Israel.
For us, Jesus’ death and resurrection is our Exodus from the slavery to sin and death to a whole new life of freedom. The Transfiguration of Jesus, serves as a foretaste of the resurrection of Jesus. This event happened to help the disciples not to be discouraged and to give them a boost to face the suffering of Jesus on the cross to come. We see however, that Peter wants to stay on the mountain. He, and probably the other disciples, want to remain in glory as symbolized by the building of three tents. However, for Jesus, we have to keep moving toward the cross. In order to experience the fullness of the Exodus of the Resurrection, they must journey on with Jesus to the cross just like the Israelites had to journey through the desert to the promised land. Jesus reveals to us that we too have to go through our Exodus of the Cross of our lives in order to ‘”enter into his glory.”
The question we need to ponder during this second week of Lent is, what Cross do we need to face and embrace in our lives? Are we running away from it or are we journeying toward it like Jesus and his disciples. Remember, that no matter the suffering we face in this world, we have Christ who can lead us through it and overcome it. Also, St. Paul tells us (Romans 8:18) that the suffering we experience in this world is nothing compared to the glory that Christ Jesus will reveal to us in Heaven. We just need to take time and listen to the words of Jesus and be open to the moments of glory his presence, like going to Mass.
MY PARISH APP
Last year, each parish in the Diocese was given a gift by being able to subscribe to a smart phone application called MY PARISH APP, for free. This year however beginning in March, the application has a fee. The parish has to pay $105 for its use on a monthly basis. The app is used to help us read the parish bulletins easily on our phones, read about different teachings of the church and to receive messages from the parish about current events. If you use the App, and would like to continue to use it, please consider a donation. I am not sure how long we can continue to have it if the parish has to pay this monthly bill without your help.
THE CREED FOR LENT AND EASTER
During Lent and Easter, after the homily, we will pray the Apostles Creed. This is the original statement of belief that the early Christians used at Baptism. Since this is the season of preparing and receiving Baptism for our catechumens, what better time to pray the Apostles Creed to remind us of the importance of our Baptism.
GUYS AND DOLLS PLAY-AT HICKSVILLE HS
Congratulations to all the young men and women who acted or worked at the play of Guys and Dolls at Hicksville High School last weekend. Your hard work was evident in the fruits of the play. It was nice to see some of our parishioners involved in this play. You brought the presence of Jesus, even if you were not conscious of it. It is also a great sign of hope to see such talent in all of our young people. May God bless you for your gifts and endeavors.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
Every Second Sunday of Lent, we hear the Gospel story of the Transfiguration of Jesus on the mountain. Each of the Gospel writers Matthew, Mark and Luke have their own take on the events of that day. While the theme of darkness, resurrection and glory are the same, there are some points that the different authors like to stress. In Luke’s Gospel, we get the sense of the importance of the Exodus. The great Exodus that we all know from the Book of Exodus is the freedom of the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. This was the most transformative event of their lives. They were in Egypt after hundreds of years in slavery. Now, by God, acting through Moses, they were saved by journeying through the Red Sea and the hardship of the desert only to have a whole new life in the Promised Land of Israel.
For us, Jesus’ death and resurrection is our Exodus from the slavery to sin and death to a whole new life of freedom. The Transfiguration of Jesus, serves as a foretaste of the resurrection of Jesus. This event happened to help the disciples not to be discouraged and to give them a boost to face the suffering of Jesus on the cross to come. We see however, that Peter wants to stay on the mountain. He, and probably the other disciples, want to remain in glory as symbolized by the building of three tents. However, for Jesus, we have to keep moving toward the cross. In order to experience the fullness of the Exodus of the Resurrection, they must journey on with Jesus to the cross just like the Israelites had to journey through the desert to the promised land. Jesus reveals to us that we too have to go through our Exodus of the Cross of our lives in order to ‘”enter into his glory.”
The question we need to ponder during this second week of Lent is, what Cross do we need to face and embrace in our lives? Are we running away from it or are we journeying toward it like Jesus and his disciples. Remember, that no matter the suffering we face in this world, we have Christ who can lead us through it and overcome it. Also, St. Paul tells us (Romans 8:18) that the suffering we experience in this world is nothing compared to the glory that Christ Jesus will reveal to us in Heaven. We just need to take time and listen to the words of Jesus and be open to the moments of glory his presence, like going to Mass.
MY PARISH APP
Last year, each parish in the Diocese was given a gift by being able to subscribe to a smart phone application called MY PARISH APP, for free. This year however beginning in March, the application has a fee. The parish has to pay $105 for its use on a monthly basis. The app is used to help us read the parish bulletins easily on our phones, read about different teachings of the church and to receive messages from the parish about current events. If you use the App, and would like to continue to use it, please consider a donation. I am not sure how long we can continue to have it if the parish has to pay this monthly bill without your help.
THE CREED FOR LENT AND EASTER
During Lent and Easter, after the homily, we will pray the Apostles Creed. This is the original statement of belief that the early Christians used at Baptism. Since this is the season of preparing and receiving Baptism for our catechumens, what better time to pray the Apostles Creed to remind us of the importance of our Baptism.
GUYS AND DOLLS PLAY-AT HICKSVILLE HS
Congratulations to all the young men and women who acted or worked at the play of Guys and Dolls at Hicksville High School last weekend. Your hard work was evident in the fruits of the play. It was nice to see some of our parishioners involved in this play. You brought the presence of Jesus, even if you were not conscious of it. It is also a great sign of hope to see such talent in all of our young people. May God bless you for your gifts and endeavors.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
March 10, 2019
We have begun our Lenten journey and this is our first week. The readings from this first Sunday set the tone of the road we are to take. We see in Luke that Jesus is in the desert that is vast, abandoned and a life- less place. The desert is an image of our inner lives known as a spiritual desert. Jesus shows us that we can turn the deserts of our lives into places where we encounter God.
While for 40 days in the desert, Jesus faces Satan who throws at him three temptations that Satan also throws at us. We can learn from Jesus how to say no to the temptations of life that lead us to sin. What is interesting to note is that Luke tells us that Jesus is already filled with the Holy Spirit from his Baptism in an earlier passion. The Holy Spirit leads Jesus into a confrontation with evil so that Jesus can resist and defeat evil in the power of the Spirit. This shows us that when we receive the Holy Spirit in Baptism and Confirmation, we too have the same power as Jesus to defeat evil.
Satan tempts Jesus in three ways. First Satan tests Jesus to be a divine showoff or a magician. Jesus rebuked Satan by saying that it is in God’s word that we live and not on our own. In the second temptation, Satan offers Jesus the world and to be a hero as the people expected. Jesus refuses Satan by saying that he chooses to live Israel’s greatest commandment to worship and serve God alone. In the third temptation, Satan tells Jesus to be a Messiah of popularity and success. Be a Messiah other than that willed by the Father. Jesus clings to the Father and obeys his mission all the way to the cross. In all three temptations, Jesus relies on God’s Word alone. May this Lent teach us to do the same. When we feel overwhelmed and abandoned, go to Jesus ask him to help you because he knows what temptations are all about. A question we may ask ourselves is, what tactics does Satan use with me to try to get me to sin? How will I overcome and resist him in the power and name of Jesus?
MISSION
I want to take this time to welcome Fr. Frank DeSiano, a Paulist Father, who will be leading us in our Lenten Mission this year. His theme is “Being A Disciple Today.” I met Fr. Frank back in 2003 and I am happy to see him again. Fr. Frank is a talented priest who will help stir our hearts in ways that will motivate us to follow Jesus and encourage others to do the same. Come and join us for our Lenten Mission this week, Monday to Wednesday 9:30am or 7:30 pm, you surely will not be disappointed.
SOUP SUPPER
Join us also for our annual Lenten Soup Supper on Thursday March 14th at 6pm in the lower level of the VEEB (New School Building). Reservations are required. Please see bulletin for further details.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor
While for 40 days in the desert, Jesus faces Satan who throws at him three temptations that Satan also throws at us. We can learn from Jesus how to say no to the temptations of life that lead us to sin. What is interesting to note is that Luke tells us that Jesus is already filled with the Holy Spirit from his Baptism in an earlier passion. The Holy Spirit leads Jesus into a confrontation with evil so that Jesus can resist and defeat evil in the power of the Spirit. This shows us that when we receive the Holy Spirit in Baptism and Confirmation, we too have the same power as Jesus to defeat evil.
Satan tempts Jesus in three ways. First Satan tests Jesus to be a divine showoff or a magician. Jesus rebuked Satan by saying that it is in God’s word that we live and not on our own. In the second temptation, Satan offers Jesus the world and to be a hero as the people expected. Jesus refuses Satan by saying that he chooses to live Israel’s greatest commandment to worship and serve God alone. In the third temptation, Satan tells Jesus to be a Messiah of popularity and success. Be a Messiah other than that willed by the Father. Jesus clings to the Father and obeys his mission all the way to the cross. In all three temptations, Jesus relies on God’s Word alone. May this Lent teach us to do the same. When we feel overwhelmed and abandoned, go to Jesus ask him to help you because he knows what temptations are all about. A question we may ask ourselves is, what tactics does Satan use with me to try to get me to sin? How will I overcome and resist him in the power and name of Jesus?
MISSION
I want to take this time to welcome Fr. Frank DeSiano, a Paulist Father, who will be leading us in our Lenten Mission this year. His theme is “Being A Disciple Today.” I met Fr. Frank back in 2003 and I am happy to see him again. Fr. Frank is a talented priest who will help stir our hearts in ways that will motivate us to follow Jesus and encourage others to do the same. Come and join us for our Lenten Mission this week, Monday to Wednesday 9:30am or 7:30 pm, you surely will not be disappointed.
SOUP SUPPER
Join us also for our annual Lenten Soup Supper on Thursday March 14th at 6pm in the lower level of the VEEB (New School Building). Reservations are required. Please see bulletin for further details.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor
March 3, 2019
PREPARING FOR LENT
Ash Wednesday is just a few short days away. Please take this time to think about how this season of Lent will be different than any other season. The word LENT means springtime. Usually at springtime we do a spring cleaning of our homes. While we are looking at our physical places, what about on the inside of our lives and our hearts. What steps will you take to open your heart to the Lord?
Don’t look at this as a time to be grim and for drudgery. This can be a time of joy where we see how God is revealed to us in ways we least anticipate. Lent prepares us for the greatest gift we can ever re- ceive and that is our salvation.
We have different opportunities here at St. Ignatius Loyola for you to take advantage to deepen your relationship with Jesus. One such time is to join Sr. Karen Lademann and me for sessions on the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The theme of the formation sessions is FORGIVEN. This will begin on Tuesday, March 19th at 7:30pm in the Science Room of the Old School building. It will run for approximately 5 consecutive Tuesdays through April 16th, 2019. This is all through the website entitled FORMED. If you have not yet signed up for FORMED, then go to www.stignatiushicksville.formed.org. There you will be asked to create a password. That password must include letters, numbers and characters. What better way to clear your heart and your life for Jesus and the fruits of his sacrifice, then to learn more about forgiving and being forgiven.
DEACON JOSÉ CONTREARAS
Deacon José Contreras has informed me that he would like to take a leave of absence from his Diaconal duties here at St. Ignatius Loyola. As you know, he has not been feeling well over this past year. So, I have granted a period of time (6 months) for him to recover and look at what the cause is to his ailment. You may see him at Mass, though not on the altar. Please continue to pray for Deacon José and his family for his healing and strength.
May this upcoming time of Lent be for us a time of prayer, fasting and renewal. Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
Ash Wednesday is just a few short days away. Please take this time to think about how this season of Lent will be different than any other season. The word LENT means springtime. Usually at springtime we do a spring cleaning of our homes. While we are looking at our physical places, what about on the inside of our lives and our hearts. What steps will you take to open your heart to the Lord?
Don’t look at this as a time to be grim and for drudgery. This can be a time of joy where we see how God is revealed to us in ways we least anticipate. Lent prepares us for the greatest gift we can ever re- ceive and that is our salvation.
We have different opportunities here at St. Ignatius Loyola for you to take advantage to deepen your relationship with Jesus. One such time is to join Sr. Karen Lademann and me for sessions on the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The theme of the formation sessions is FORGIVEN. This will begin on Tuesday, March 19th at 7:30pm in the Science Room of the Old School building. It will run for approximately 5 consecutive Tuesdays through April 16th, 2019. This is all through the website entitled FORMED. If you have not yet signed up for FORMED, then go to www.stignatiushicksville.formed.org. There you will be asked to create a password. That password must include letters, numbers and characters. What better way to clear your heart and your life for Jesus and the fruits of his sacrifice, then to learn more about forgiving and being forgiven.
DEACON JOSÉ CONTREARAS
Deacon José Contreras has informed me that he would like to take a leave of absence from his Diaconal duties here at St. Ignatius Loyola. As you know, he has not been feeling well over this past year. So, I have granted a period of time (6 months) for him to recover and look at what the cause is to his ailment. You may see him at Mass, though not on the altar. Please continue to pray for Deacon José and his family for his healing and strength.
May this upcoming time of Lent be for us a time of prayer, fasting and renewal. Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
February 24, 2019
RCIA
I want to take this opportunity to thank the entire community of St. Ignatius Loyola for your prayers and support. I would like to share a little about one of the ministries in which I am serving God and his church, and it is the ministry of RCIA. What is RCIA?
It means Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults. It is a process which unbaptized adults and other children are instructed in the teachings and practices of Catholicism and introduced into the Catholic Church. Sometimes baptized adults from other Christian denominations or baptized Catholics are also involved in the process in preparing to receive the sacraments of Confirmation and Eucharist.
Our Lord Jesus said “COME AND SEE” {JOHN 1:39}
Jesus invites people to see him and to see that he fulfills what he promises, “Come with Me and follow Me,” is perhaps the simplest definition of our faith. RCIA is a path where we discover our Catholic faith. It is difficult to see everything in the beginning, but it reveals itself as our brothers and sisters walk with the Lord and follow him. It is the Lord who guides us in this journey of faith.
This process that began in September of last year and culminates at the Easter Vigil has several stages, but is important to remember that understanding faith is as important as having faith.
Stage 1.- Inquiry: in which they want to know about Jesus, what is faith?
Stage 2.– Catechumens: during this period we study sacred scripture and discuss the main points of catholic doctrine. {Sacraments, Mass, Mary. History of Salvation etc.}
Stage 3.– Purification and Illumination: this stage takes place in the weeks leading up to Easter, and is a time dedicated to a deeper spiritual preparation to receive the sacraments during the Easter Vigil. Those who had completed their preparation, become members of the church by receiving the sacraments of Christian Initia- tion which are Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist.
Stage 4.- Mystagogia: {post bautismal catequesis} this is the last stage, and usually last several weeks from Easter to Pentecost. It is a time to reflect on the mysteries of the sacraments and to begin to live your new faith in a practical way.
This year we have a group of 18 people who are preparing to receive the Sacraments of Initiation. We meet every Tuesday from 7 to 9 PM which is in Spanish, Deacon George does the English preparation.
I want to thank Migdalia Vasquez who works along with me in this program. Without her help, it will be almost impossible to run this program. May God continue to bless her in this ministry among others that she performs in our parish.
Brothers and sisters in Christ let us pray for these catechumens that the Lord may accompany them and enlighten them on this path of preparation.
Remember our mission statement - We Believe, We Welcome, We Worship, We Serve
May the God of Love Bless you Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen
Deacon Mario
I want to take this opportunity to thank the entire community of St. Ignatius Loyola for your prayers and support. I would like to share a little about one of the ministries in which I am serving God and his church, and it is the ministry of RCIA. What is RCIA?
It means Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults. It is a process which unbaptized adults and other children are instructed in the teachings and practices of Catholicism and introduced into the Catholic Church. Sometimes baptized adults from other Christian denominations or baptized Catholics are also involved in the process in preparing to receive the sacraments of Confirmation and Eucharist.
Our Lord Jesus said “COME AND SEE” {JOHN 1:39}
Jesus invites people to see him and to see that he fulfills what he promises, “Come with Me and follow Me,” is perhaps the simplest definition of our faith. RCIA is a path where we discover our Catholic faith. It is difficult to see everything in the beginning, but it reveals itself as our brothers and sisters walk with the Lord and follow him. It is the Lord who guides us in this journey of faith.
This process that began in September of last year and culminates at the Easter Vigil has several stages, but is important to remember that understanding faith is as important as having faith.
Stage 1.- Inquiry: in which they want to know about Jesus, what is faith?
Stage 2.– Catechumens: during this period we study sacred scripture and discuss the main points of catholic doctrine. {Sacraments, Mass, Mary. History of Salvation etc.}
Stage 3.– Purification and Illumination: this stage takes place in the weeks leading up to Easter, and is a time dedicated to a deeper spiritual preparation to receive the sacraments during the Easter Vigil. Those who had completed their preparation, become members of the church by receiving the sacraments of Christian Initia- tion which are Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist.
Stage 4.- Mystagogia: {post bautismal catequesis} this is the last stage, and usually last several weeks from Easter to Pentecost. It is a time to reflect on the mysteries of the sacraments and to begin to live your new faith in a practical way.
This year we have a group of 18 people who are preparing to receive the Sacraments of Initiation. We meet every Tuesday from 7 to 9 PM which is in Spanish, Deacon George does the English preparation.
I want to thank Migdalia Vasquez who works along with me in this program. Without her help, it will be almost impossible to run this program. May God continue to bless her in this ministry among others that she performs in our parish.
Brothers and sisters in Christ let us pray for these catechumens that the Lord may accompany them and enlighten them on this path of preparation.
Remember our mission statement - We Believe, We Welcome, We Worship, We Serve
May the God of Love Bless you Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen
Deacon Mario
February 17, 2019
CONTINUING OUR MISSION- CAPTIAL CAMPAIGN UPDATE
As of January 31, 2019, we have reached up to $1,332, 155.83 in paid pledges in our Capital Campaign, Continuing Our Mission. Our goal is $1.5 Million. We are only $167,844.17 shy of reaching this goal. Thank you to all who have contributed and are contributing to this ambitious campaign. May God bless each of you for your generosity.
Our next two projects, for the church are leaders and gutters, and a fire alarm system. If you have not yet had the opportunity to contribute to this worthwhile cause, please contact the rectory at 516-931-0056. It is never too late to contribute. Remember no gift is ever too small. The Lord looks at equal sacrifice, not equal giving.
Jesus says “for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” Mt 6:21.
Please remember to continue donating to our weekly collections. While I am grateful to each of you who give, our weekly totals have been decreasing. It is with your help that we can keep our parish vibrant in maintaining its structure and building its programs and ministries. Giving to the campaign only does not help the parish pay its bills. Thank you!
Remember to always live your life for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
As of January 31, 2019, we have reached up to $1,332, 155.83 in paid pledges in our Capital Campaign, Continuing Our Mission. Our goal is $1.5 Million. We are only $167,844.17 shy of reaching this goal. Thank you to all who have contributed and are contributing to this ambitious campaign. May God bless each of you for your generosity.
Our next two projects, for the church are leaders and gutters, and a fire alarm system. If you have not yet had the opportunity to contribute to this worthwhile cause, please contact the rectory at 516-931-0056. It is never too late to contribute. Remember no gift is ever too small. The Lord looks at equal sacrifice, not equal giving.
Jesus says “for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” Mt 6:21.
Please remember to continue donating to our weekly collections. While I am grateful to each of you who give, our weekly totals have been decreasing. It is with your help that we can keep our parish vibrant in maintaining its structure and building its programs and ministries. Giving to the campaign only does not help the parish pay its bills. Thank you!
Remember to always live your life for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
February 10, 2019
WE ARE ALL CALLED
This Sunday, we learn that each of us are called to serve the Lord in some capacity. The interesting thing is that both Isaiah and Peter, who are called, both feel unworthy. That is natural. No one is worthy for the Lord. However, the Lord has made himself worthy for us by being born into the world like us, embracing our humanity and giving us a share in his life.
Isaiah was very young when the Lord called him to serve. Israel was divided into two kingdoms, Judah and Israel. Both states were not following God’s ways. So God chose the young Isaiah to lead the people back to him. Isaiah felt unworthy. Even though he may have felt unworthy, this was not an obstacle to God. God made Isaiah aware of his sinfulness and then cleansed him so that he could carry out his plan. God gave him the strength to speak his word, interpret his will and call his people and leaders to seek forgiveness and return to God’s ways. At every Mass, right before the Gospel, the priest recalls this event by asking God to cleanse his lips or by praying over the Deacon for God to cleanse his lips so that they can worthily proclaim the Gospel.
Peter is similar to Isaiah in that he too was young and sinful. Peter was also probably more stubborn. Yet, after resisting Jesus’ call to drop his nets, he finally listens to his call. That makes all the difference. When we listen to the Lord, great things will happen. We are all called to serve the Lord as Priests, Prophets and Kings from our Baptism. Read paragraph 31 of Lumen Gentium, the Constitution on the Church. There are some of us who are called in a particular way to become an ordained priest, deacon, or religious sister or brother. Jesus may be calling you to share your gifts and talents this way.
Do you know someone who may consider the ordained priesthood?
One special event in March is the retreat for young men ages 16-35 who may have a calling to the priesthood. Bishop John Barres will lead this retreat at the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception in Huntington, NY, March 8th through March 10th. There may be a member of your family or someone you know who may be a possible candidate for this retreat. If you know of someone, ask them to consider attending. Go out into the deep and bring others to Jesus. If we don't invite or encourage someone we know, they may never consider the priesthood. My dream was to serve as a meteorologist like Elliot Abrams of Accu-Weather. However, the Lord called me to serve him as a priest by helping people through the storms of life or to recognize his presence when all is bright. I am grateful to God for that. If you or someone you know is interested, please contact me or one of the priests here at the parish or the Vocations Office at (516) 678-5800 x214 vocations@drvc.org.
Here is a Prayer for us to catch people for Jesus like the disciples: - Father God, we want the hands of the true fisher of men. Lord, help us not to be afraid to go wherever the fish are. Let us not be afraid to get our hands dirty. Father help us not to just “catch and release” new converts, let us also be disciplers of people as well. Amen.
PRAYERS FOR JEANNE CALHOUN
Jeanne Calhoun, our parish bookkeeper, will not be in the office for the next 4 weeks because she had knee surgery last week. Please keep Jeanne in your prayers for a full and speedy recovery. In the meantime, any business you may need with the business office, please contact Dave Fantry (Ext 118) on Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays or Joan Della Ratta (Ext 117)
Fr. REID IS BACK AND HE THANKS YOU!
I am happy to report that Fr. R. Michael Reid is back! He thanks everyone for their prayers, cards, gifts and concern while he was in the hospital and in rehabilitation. He recently celebrated 7:30am Mass last Sunday, February 3rd. Please continue to keep him in your prayers so that he continues to improve.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor
This Sunday, we learn that each of us are called to serve the Lord in some capacity. The interesting thing is that both Isaiah and Peter, who are called, both feel unworthy. That is natural. No one is worthy for the Lord. However, the Lord has made himself worthy for us by being born into the world like us, embracing our humanity and giving us a share in his life.
Isaiah was very young when the Lord called him to serve. Israel was divided into two kingdoms, Judah and Israel. Both states were not following God’s ways. So God chose the young Isaiah to lead the people back to him. Isaiah felt unworthy. Even though he may have felt unworthy, this was not an obstacle to God. God made Isaiah aware of his sinfulness and then cleansed him so that he could carry out his plan. God gave him the strength to speak his word, interpret his will and call his people and leaders to seek forgiveness and return to God’s ways. At every Mass, right before the Gospel, the priest recalls this event by asking God to cleanse his lips or by praying over the Deacon for God to cleanse his lips so that they can worthily proclaim the Gospel.
Peter is similar to Isaiah in that he too was young and sinful. Peter was also probably more stubborn. Yet, after resisting Jesus’ call to drop his nets, he finally listens to his call. That makes all the difference. When we listen to the Lord, great things will happen. We are all called to serve the Lord as Priests, Prophets and Kings from our Baptism. Read paragraph 31 of Lumen Gentium, the Constitution on the Church. There are some of us who are called in a particular way to become an ordained priest, deacon, or religious sister or brother. Jesus may be calling you to share your gifts and talents this way.
Do you know someone who may consider the ordained priesthood?
One special event in March is the retreat for young men ages 16-35 who may have a calling to the priesthood. Bishop John Barres will lead this retreat at the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception in Huntington, NY, March 8th through March 10th. There may be a member of your family or someone you know who may be a possible candidate for this retreat. If you know of someone, ask them to consider attending. Go out into the deep and bring others to Jesus. If we don't invite or encourage someone we know, they may never consider the priesthood. My dream was to serve as a meteorologist like Elliot Abrams of Accu-Weather. However, the Lord called me to serve him as a priest by helping people through the storms of life or to recognize his presence when all is bright. I am grateful to God for that. If you or someone you know is interested, please contact me or one of the priests here at the parish or the Vocations Office at (516) 678-5800 x214 vocations@drvc.org.
Here is a Prayer for us to catch people for Jesus like the disciples: - Father God, we want the hands of the true fisher of men. Lord, help us not to be afraid to go wherever the fish are. Let us not be afraid to get our hands dirty. Father help us not to just “catch and release” new converts, let us also be disciplers of people as well. Amen.
PRAYERS FOR JEANNE CALHOUN
Jeanne Calhoun, our parish bookkeeper, will not be in the office for the next 4 weeks because she had knee surgery last week. Please keep Jeanne in your prayers for a full and speedy recovery. In the meantime, any business you may need with the business office, please contact Dave Fantry (Ext 118) on Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays or Joan Della Ratta (Ext 117)
Fr. REID IS BACK AND HE THANKS YOU!
I am happy to report that Fr. R. Michael Reid is back! He thanks everyone for their prayers, cards, gifts and concern while he was in the hospital and in rehabilitation. He recently celebrated 7:30am Mass last Sunday, February 3rd. Please continue to keep him in your prayers so that he continues to improve.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor
February 3, 2019
Recently, we Catholics were appalled at the passage of the Reproductive Health Act (RHA) and signed by Governor Cuomo. This expands the abortion rights already on the books in New York State, now permitting a woman to have an abortion up to the moment of the birth of her child. Children in the womb have been stripped of their protection under the law. It is now maintained that protection under the law begins at the birth of a child.
Many have called for excommunication of politicians like our governor from the Church.
Here is an explanation offered by Canon Lawyer Ed Peters on the excommunication of politicians:
“To those wanting the immediate excommunication of pro-abortion politicians, I have to say that canon law simply does not read that way. To make a long story short, an excommunication for abortion has to be linked to a specific abortion and, given the structure of American government and medical institutions, one simply can’t link a given legislator’s vote with a specific abortion within the limits of casualty recognized by canon law. Now, I like to think that the words of law generally mean what they say. If we distort the words of penal canon law to the degree necessary to make legislators fall within the present terms of the abortion canon, we would do violence to the text of the law, and that’s always bad; distortions in law tend to come back and haunt us in other contexts.
Of course, maybe it’s time to redraft the canon law in this area, precisely to help the Church deal more directly with the grave scandal and harm being caused by pro-abortion Catholic politicians; but the law itself would need to be changed. I’m certainly open to that, but as I’ve said, the rule of law means that such changes must come about in accordance with the law.
In the meantime, though, as I have also pointed out many times, there are most certainly immediate actions that the Church can take against pro-abortion politicians, and I’m happy to say that some bishops are doing that. I have in mind here, for example, the withholding of the Eucharist under Canon 915 from those whose conduct in government office is objectively gravely evil. Elsewhere, I have argued that Canon 1369 gives us canonical leverage against those who use their public office to spread contempt for the gift of life.”
Many parishioners have asked, “what can we do”? A few suggestions, 1) We can pray for the change of mind and hearts of the citizens of the state of New York. 2) Write letters to our governor and legislators expressing our dismay. 3) Resurrect a Respect Life Ministry that stands on the forefront of any issue that affects life from the moment of conception to natural death. 4) Support the Life Center of Long Island, Catholic Charities , Birthright and the Knights of Columbus. Our support of these organizations will give them the tools to assist in helping moms/dads and also in adoptions so that an unwanted child will be found in the arms of loving parents.
World Day for Consecrated Life
In 1997, Pope Saint John Paul II instituted a day of prayer for women and men in consecrated (Religious) life. This celebration is attached to the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord on February 2nd. This Feast is also known as Candlemas Day; the day on which candles are blessed symbolizing Christ who is the light of the world. So too, those in consecrated life are called to reflect the light of Jesus Christ to all peoples. Please pray for the consecrated women who live in our parish. We have three sisters who live in our convent; Sr Mary O’Donnel, Sr. Kathleen Murphy and Sr. Karen Laderman. Other religious sisters live in our parish boundaries and minister in other parishes. Our Sisters have dedicated their lives from serving in a parish as Pastoral Ministers, Liturgists, Directors of Religious Education, Teaches and Advocates for the elderly.
They remind us of the importance of embracing our commitments to the Lord and others. They also remind us of how we are to live as St. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13:1-13; to live our lives and to share our faith in love. May God bless our religious sisters and other religious brothers and priests who continue to serve the Lord with great fidelity and perseverance. In 2019, this day is celebrated in parishes around the world on February 2-3. We have a special blessing at the 5pm mass on Saturday Feb. 2, 2019.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
ORGANIZATIONS TO CONTACT TO SUPPORT LIFE
Life Center of Long Island 516-798-9100
Catholic Charities of Long Island 516-733-700
Birthright 516-785-4070
New York, Abortion and a Short Road to Chaos
by Bishop Robert Barron January 29, 2019 (Wordonfire.org)
It was the celebration that was particularly galling. On the 46th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision, the governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, signed into law a protocol that gives practically unrestricted access to abortion, permitting the killing of an unborn child up until the moment of delivery. In the wake of the ratification, the legislators and their supporters whooped, hollered, and cheered, a display depressingly similar to the jubilation that broke out in Ireland when a referendum legalizing abortion passed last year. Of course, all of the rhetoric about women’s rights and reproductive health and empowerment was trotted out, but who can fail to see what was at stake? If an infant, lying peacefully in a bassinet in his parents’ home, were brutally killed and dismembered, the entire country would rightfully be outraged and call for an investigation of the murder. But now the law of New York confirms that that same child, moments before his birth, resting peacefully in his mother’s womb, can be, with utter impunity, pulled apart with forceps. And the police won’t be summoned; rather, it appears, the killing should be a matter of celebration.
An ideology, taken in the negative sense, is a conceptual framework that blinds one to reality. The purpose of any ideational system, obviously, is to shed light, to bring us closer to the truth of things, but an ideology does the reverse, effectively obfuscating reality, distancing us from truth. All of the buzz terms I mentioned above are ideological markers, smokescreens. Or if I can borrow the terminology of Jordan Peterson, they are the chattering of demons, the distracting hubbub of the father of lies. I recall that during the presidential campaign of 2016, Hillary Clinton was asked several times whether the child in the womb, within minutes of birth, has constitutional rights, and this extremely intelligent, experienced, and canny politician said, over and over again, “That’s what our law dictates.” Therefore, by a sheer accident of location, the unborn baby can be butchered, and the same baby, moments later and in the arms of his mother, must be protected by full force of law. That many of our political leaders can’t or won’t see how utterly ludicrous this is can only be the result of ideological indoctrination.
As I watched film of Andrew Cuomo signing this repulsive bill into law, my mind drifted back to 1984 and an auditorium at the University of Notre Dame where Cuomo’s father, Mario—also Governor of New York at the time—delivered a famous address. In his lengthy and intellectually substantive speech, Gov. Cuomo presented himself, convincingly, as a faithful Catholic, thoroughly convinced in conscience that abortion is morally outrageous. But he also made a fateful distinction that has been exploited by liberal Catholic politicians for the past thirty-five years. He explained that though he was personally opposed to abortion, he was not willing to pursue legal action to abolish it or even to limit it, since he was the representative of all the people, and not just of those who shared his Catholic convictions. Now this distinction is an illegitimate one, which is evident the moment we draw an analogy to other public matters of great moral import. “I’m personally opposed to slavery, but I’ll take no action to outlaw it or limit its spread”; “I personally find Jim Crow laws repugnant, but I will pursue no legal strategy to undo them”; etc. But at the very least, Mario Cuomo could declare himself deeply conflicted, anguished, willing to support abortion law only as a regrettable political necessity in a pluralistic democracy.
But in a single generation, we have moved from reluctant toleration to unbridled celebration, from struggling Mario to exultant Andrew. And there is a simple reason for this. A privatized religion, one that never incarnates itself in gesture, behavior, and moral commitment, rapidly evanesces. Once-powerful convictions, never concretely expressed, devolve, practically overnight, into pious velleities—and finally disappear altogether. In Robert Bolt’s magnificent play regarding St. Thomas More, A Man for All Seasons, we find a telling exchange between Cardinal Wolsey, a hard-bitten, largely amoral politico, and the saintly More. Wolsey laments, “You’re a constant regret to me, Thomas. If you could just see facts flat on, with- out that horrible moral squint, with just a little common sense, you could have been a statesman.” To which More responds, “Well...I believe when statesmen forsake their own private conscience for the sake of their public duties...they lead their country by a short route to chaos.” Abandoning the convictions of one’s conscience in the exercise of one’s public duties is precisely equivalent to “I’m personally opposed but unwilling to take concrete action to instantiate my opposition.”
And this abandonment—evident in Mario Cuomo’s 1984 address—has indeed led by a short road to chaos, evident in Andrew Cuomo’s joyful celebration of a law permitting the murder of children.
Many have called for excommunication of politicians like our governor from the Church.
Here is an explanation offered by Canon Lawyer Ed Peters on the excommunication of politicians:
“To those wanting the immediate excommunication of pro-abortion politicians, I have to say that canon law simply does not read that way. To make a long story short, an excommunication for abortion has to be linked to a specific abortion and, given the structure of American government and medical institutions, one simply can’t link a given legislator’s vote with a specific abortion within the limits of casualty recognized by canon law. Now, I like to think that the words of law generally mean what they say. If we distort the words of penal canon law to the degree necessary to make legislators fall within the present terms of the abortion canon, we would do violence to the text of the law, and that’s always bad; distortions in law tend to come back and haunt us in other contexts.
Of course, maybe it’s time to redraft the canon law in this area, precisely to help the Church deal more directly with the grave scandal and harm being caused by pro-abortion Catholic politicians; but the law itself would need to be changed. I’m certainly open to that, but as I’ve said, the rule of law means that such changes must come about in accordance with the law.
In the meantime, though, as I have also pointed out many times, there are most certainly immediate actions that the Church can take against pro-abortion politicians, and I’m happy to say that some bishops are doing that. I have in mind here, for example, the withholding of the Eucharist under Canon 915 from those whose conduct in government office is objectively gravely evil. Elsewhere, I have argued that Canon 1369 gives us canonical leverage against those who use their public office to spread contempt for the gift of life.”
Many parishioners have asked, “what can we do”? A few suggestions, 1) We can pray for the change of mind and hearts of the citizens of the state of New York. 2) Write letters to our governor and legislators expressing our dismay. 3) Resurrect a Respect Life Ministry that stands on the forefront of any issue that affects life from the moment of conception to natural death. 4) Support the Life Center of Long Island, Catholic Charities , Birthright and the Knights of Columbus. Our support of these organizations will give them the tools to assist in helping moms/dads and also in adoptions so that an unwanted child will be found in the arms of loving parents.
World Day for Consecrated Life
In 1997, Pope Saint John Paul II instituted a day of prayer for women and men in consecrated (Religious) life. This celebration is attached to the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord on February 2nd. This Feast is also known as Candlemas Day; the day on which candles are blessed symbolizing Christ who is the light of the world. So too, those in consecrated life are called to reflect the light of Jesus Christ to all peoples. Please pray for the consecrated women who live in our parish. We have three sisters who live in our convent; Sr Mary O’Donnel, Sr. Kathleen Murphy and Sr. Karen Laderman. Other religious sisters live in our parish boundaries and minister in other parishes. Our Sisters have dedicated their lives from serving in a parish as Pastoral Ministers, Liturgists, Directors of Religious Education, Teaches and Advocates for the elderly.
They remind us of the importance of embracing our commitments to the Lord and others. They also remind us of how we are to live as St. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13:1-13; to live our lives and to share our faith in love. May God bless our religious sisters and other religious brothers and priests who continue to serve the Lord with great fidelity and perseverance. In 2019, this day is celebrated in parishes around the world on February 2-3. We have a special blessing at the 5pm mass on Saturday Feb. 2, 2019.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
ORGANIZATIONS TO CONTACT TO SUPPORT LIFE
Life Center of Long Island 516-798-9100
Catholic Charities of Long Island 516-733-700
Birthright 516-785-4070
New York, Abortion and a Short Road to Chaos
by Bishop Robert Barron January 29, 2019 (Wordonfire.org)
It was the celebration that was particularly galling. On the 46th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision, the governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, signed into law a protocol that gives practically unrestricted access to abortion, permitting the killing of an unborn child up until the moment of delivery. In the wake of the ratification, the legislators and their supporters whooped, hollered, and cheered, a display depressingly similar to the jubilation that broke out in Ireland when a referendum legalizing abortion passed last year. Of course, all of the rhetoric about women’s rights and reproductive health and empowerment was trotted out, but who can fail to see what was at stake? If an infant, lying peacefully in a bassinet in his parents’ home, were brutally killed and dismembered, the entire country would rightfully be outraged and call for an investigation of the murder. But now the law of New York confirms that that same child, moments before his birth, resting peacefully in his mother’s womb, can be, with utter impunity, pulled apart with forceps. And the police won’t be summoned; rather, it appears, the killing should be a matter of celebration.
An ideology, taken in the negative sense, is a conceptual framework that blinds one to reality. The purpose of any ideational system, obviously, is to shed light, to bring us closer to the truth of things, but an ideology does the reverse, effectively obfuscating reality, distancing us from truth. All of the buzz terms I mentioned above are ideological markers, smokescreens. Or if I can borrow the terminology of Jordan Peterson, they are the chattering of demons, the distracting hubbub of the father of lies. I recall that during the presidential campaign of 2016, Hillary Clinton was asked several times whether the child in the womb, within minutes of birth, has constitutional rights, and this extremely intelligent, experienced, and canny politician said, over and over again, “That’s what our law dictates.” Therefore, by a sheer accident of location, the unborn baby can be butchered, and the same baby, moments later and in the arms of his mother, must be protected by full force of law. That many of our political leaders can’t or won’t see how utterly ludicrous this is can only be the result of ideological indoctrination.
As I watched film of Andrew Cuomo signing this repulsive bill into law, my mind drifted back to 1984 and an auditorium at the University of Notre Dame where Cuomo’s father, Mario—also Governor of New York at the time—delivered a famous address. In his lengthy and intellectually substantive speech, Gov. Cuomo presented himself, convincingly, as a faithful Catholic, thoroughly convinced in conscience that abortion is morally outrageous. But he also made a fateful distinction that has been exploited by liberal Catholic politicians for the past thirty-five years. He explained that though he was personally opposed to abortion, he was not willing to pursue legal action to abolish it or even to limit it, since he was the representative of all the people, and not just of those who shared his Catholic convictions. Now this distinction is an illegitimate one, which is evident the moment we draw an analogy to other public matters of great moral import. “I’m personally opposed to slavery, but I’ll take no action to outlaw it or limit its spread”; “I personally find Jim Crow laws repugnant, but I will pursue no legal strategy to undo them”; etc. But at the very least, Mario Cuomo could declare himself deeply conflicted, anguished, willing to support abortion law only as a regrettable political necessity in a pluralistic democracy.
But in a single generation, we have moved from reluctant toleration to unbridled celebration, from struggling Mario to exultant Andrew. And there is a simple reason for this. A privatized religion, one that never incarnates itself in gesture, behavior, and moral commitment, rapidly evanesces. Once-powerful convictions, never concretely expressed, devolve, practically overnight, into pious velleities—and finally disappear altogether. In Robert Bolt’s magnificent play regarding St. Thomas More, A Man for All Seasons, we find a telling exchange between Cardinal Wolsey, a hard-bitten, largely amoral politico, and the saintly More. Wolsey laments, “You’re a constant regret to me, Thomas. If you could just see facts flat on, with- out that horrible moral squint, with just a little common sense, you could have been a statesman.” To which More responds, “Well...I believe when statesmen forsake their own private conscience for the sake of their public duties...they lead their country by a short route to chaos.” Abandoning the convictions of one’s conscience in the exercise of one’s public duties is precisely equivalent to “I’m personally opposed but unwilling to take concrete action to instantiate my opposition.”
And this abandonment—evident in Mario Cuomo’s 1984 address—has indeed led by a short road to chaos, evident in Andrew Cuomo’s joyful celebration of a law permitting the murder of children.
January 27, 2019
CAPITAL CAMPAIGN - CONTINUING OUR MISSION WHAT’S HAPPENING AROUND OUR FACILITIES?
Recently, during the brutal cold weather, work was completed on the roof of our rectory by George Parsons Roofing. 112 pieces of slate that were either cracked or broken replaced by new ones. Other work done included the installation of a new ice and water shield underlayment and installed fabricated copper valleys. We have a 20 year manufacturer warranty and a 15 year workmanship warranty. Our next project will be work done on the inside of the rectory to fix the ceilings and other parts of the building where leaking occurred. These are your dollars at the work from our Capital Campaign.Thank you to all who have given to the campaign. If you have not given yet, there is still time to do so. What a great way to begin the new year by giving to your parish. Remember no gift is too small. Our campaign is all about equal sacrifice, not equal giving. contact the rectory business office.
FIRST RECONCILIATION
Congratulations to all of our children in 2nd Level who have recently received their first Sacrament of Reconciliation (also called Confession and Penance). Thank you to our Director of Religious Education, Colleen, her staff and catechists for their hard work. May the example of our young people inspire each of us to avail ourselves of the sacrament. We offer it here on Saturdays at 4pm and additional times during Advent and Lent. You may also make an appointment with one of the priests who is on call for the day.
THE SICK AND HOMEBOUND
If you know someone who is ill and homebound, please contact the rectory office and let us know so we can visit. Our policy is the priest visits first and then the family has a regular schedule with an Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist. I want to thank all of our EM”s who faithfully bring the Lord each week to those in need. There have been too many families where a homebound person did not have the opportunity to receive Communion and/or Anointing of the Sick before he/she died. Please keep this in mind.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
On January 22, the 46th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, Governor Cuomo signed into law the dangerous “Abortion Expansion Act”. Attached is the official statement just released from the Catholic Bishops of New York State.
A Statement from the Catholic Bishops of New York State
Words are insufficient to describe the profound sadness we feel at the contemplated passage of New York State’s new proposed abortion policy. We mourn the unborn infants who will lose their lives, and the many mothers and fathers who will suffer remorse and heartbreak as a result.
The so-called “Reproductive Health Act” will expand our state’s already radically permissive law, by empowering more health practitioners to provide abortion and removing all state restrictions on late-term procedures. With an abortion rate that is already double the national average, New York law is moving in the wrong direction.
We renew our pledge to offer the resources and services of our charitable agencies and health services to any woman experiencing an unplanned pregnancy, to support her in bearing her infant, raising her family or placing her child for adoption. There are life-affirming choices available, and we aim to make them more widely known and accessible.
Our Governor and legislative leaders hail this new abortion law as progress. This is not progress. Progress will be achieved when our laws and our culture once again value and respect each unrepeatable gift of human life, from the first moment of creation to natural death. Would that not make us truly the most en- lightened and progressive state in the nation?
Timothy Cardinal Dolan
Archbishop of New York
Most Rev. Edward B. Scharfenberger
Bishop of Albany
Most Rev. Nicholas DiMarzio
Bishop of Brooklyn
Most Rev. Richard J. Malone
Bishop of Buffalo
Most Rev. Terry R. LaValley
Bishop of Ogdensburg
Most Rev. Salvatore R. Matano
Bishop of Rochester
Most Rev. John O. Barres
Bishop of Rockville Centre
Most Rev. Robert J. Cunningham
Bishop of Syracuse
And the Auxiliary and Retired Bishops of New York State
Recently, during the brutal cold weather, work was completed on the roof of our rectory by George Parsons Roofing. 112 pieces of slate that were either cracked or broken replaced by new ones. Other work done included the installation of a new ice and water shield underlayment and installed fabricated copper valleys. We have a 20 year manufacturer warranty and a 15 year workmanship warranty. Our next project will be work done on the inside of the rectory to fix the ceilings and other parts of the building where leaking occurred. These are your dollars at the work from our Capital Campaign.Thank you to all who have given to the campaign. If you have not given yet, there is still time to do so. What a great way to begin the new year by giving to your parish. Remember no gift is too small. Our campaign is all about equal sacrifice, not equal giving. contact the rectory business office.
FIRST RECONCILIATION
Congratulations to all of our children in 2nd Level who have recently received their first Sacrament of Reconciliation (also called Confession and Penance). Thank you to our Director of Religious Education, Colleen, her staff and catechists for their hard work. May the example of our young people inspire each of us to avail ourselves of the sacrament. We offer it here on Saturdays at 4pm and additional times during Advent and Lent. You may also make an appointment with one of the priests who is on call for the day.
THE SICK AND HOMEBOUND
If you know someone who is ill and homebound, please contact the rectory office and let us know so we can visit. Our policy is the priest visits first and then the family has a regular schedule with an Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist. I want to thank all of our EM”s who faithfully bring the Lord each week to those in need. There have been too many families where a homebound person did not have the opportunity to receive Communion and/or Anointing of the Sick before he/she died. Please keep this in mind.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
On January 22, the 46th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, Governor Cuomo signed into law the dangerous “Abortion Expansion Act”. Attached is the official statement just released from the Catholic Bishops of New York State.
A Statement from the Catholic Bishops of New York State
Words are insufficient to describe the profound sadness we feel at the contemplated passage of New York State’s new proposed abortion policy. We mourn the unborn infants who will lose their lives, and the many mothers and fathers who will suffer remorse and heartbreak as a result.
The so-called “Reproductive Health Act” will expand our state’s already radically permissive law, by empowering more health practitioners to provide abortion and removing all state restrictions on late-term procedures. With an abortion rate that is already double the national average, New York law is moving in the wrong direction.
We renew our pledge to offer the resources and services of our charitable agencies and health services to any woman experiencing an unplanned pregnancy, to support her in bearing her infant, raising her family or placing her child for adoption. There are life-affirming choices available, and we aim to make them more widely known and accessible.
Our Governor and legislative leaders hail this new abortion law as progress. This is not progress. Progress will be achieved when our laws and our culture once again value and respect each unrepeatable gift of human life, from the first moment of creation to natural death. Would that not make us truly the most en- lightened and progressive state in the nation?
Timothy Cardinal Dolan
Archbishop of New York
Most Rev. Edward B. Scharfenberger
Bishop of Albany
Most Rev. Nicholas DiMarzio
Bishop of Brooklyn
Most Rev. Richard J. Malone
Bishop of Buffalo
Most Rev. Terry R. LaValley
Bishop of Ogdensburg
Most Rev. Salvatore R. Matano
Bishop of Rochester
Most Rev. John O. Barres
Bishop of Rockville Centre
Most Rev. Robert J. Cunningham
Bishop of Syracuse
And the Auxiliary and Retired Bishops of New York State
January 20, 2019
SIXTY PLUS AND COUNTING AFTER 46 YEARS
This Tuesday, January 22, 2019 the nation will mark the 46th Anniversary of Roe v Wade, which made abortion a legal act across our land. Since then, there have been over 60million pre-born children abort- ed . I have a pin on my jacket that says 60, representing the number killed from abortions. This year the annual March for Life happened on Friday, January 18, 2019. I want to thank Fr. Frank and the parishioners from St. Ignatius who went on the march. They joined Fr. Vincent Schifano and St. Frances De Chantal for this journey. Thank you to Fr. Vin and St. Frances for organizing this day. The march for life brings Catholics and non-Catholic, old and young alike together saying we embrace life, especially at its beginning.
St. Theresa of Calcutta once said “any country that accepts abortion is not teaching its people to love, but to use any violence to get what they want. This is why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion”. “We must not be surprised when we hear of murders, of killings, of wars, of hatred. If a mother can kill her own child, what is life but for us to kill each other”.
What can we do? As a caring and compassionate people we can:
Pray.
Pray for the intercession of St. Gianna Molla, the patron saint of mothers, physicians and preborn children. Pray for changed minds, changed hearts and a deeper awakening to the sacredness and dignity of all human life.
Provide life-affirming choices for women.
Contact the Life Center located in Massapequa, under the direction of Gloria Schreiber, our parishioner. The Life Center provides support for mothers and fathers who are confused and are either on the fence or have decided not to have an abortion. (515) 789-9100
Also through our Diocese of Rockville Centre, immediate assistance is available for women and families with an unexpected or unplanned pregnancy. In collaboration with Catholic Charities, Catholic Health Services (CHS) has established a one-call outreach program via 1 (855) 301-4CHS with access to re- sources in the community. Services are given both to uphold the unborn baby’s right to life and help sus- tain mother and baby following birth.
Help women and men who have suffered an abortion.
Programs offering hope and healing following abortion are also available. Project Rachel is a network of specially trained, compassionate caregivers, who are prepared to assist those who suffer from abortion loss. Call 1-516-766-2538 se habla espanol | Email projectrachel@drvc.org to begin healing after abortion loss. The Life Center can help too at (515) 789-9100.
Build the Culture of Life
Speak the truth with love. St. Teresa said the mother and father who are thinking about an abortion should be helped to love. Help them respect the life of the child.
Talk the pro-life talk... with your family members, friends, co-workers, schoolmates. We can build consensus and change the culture one person at a time.
Help educate the next generation. We must nurture young pro-life leaders who are unconditionally, unapologetically pro-life, who see the connection between their faith and their politics, and who are willing to put their faith into action.
Walk the pro-life walk...every minute of every hour of every day. Teach people to love and value one another. Our actions and words must reflect our respect and deep appreciation for the wondrous gift of human life.
Walk the pro-life walk...every minute of every hour of every day. Teach people to love and value one another. Our actions and words must reflect our respect and deep appreciation for the wondrous gift of human life.
Write to Our Legislators
Another important action we can take is write our legislators to change their hearts and minds. Don’t be the SILENT MAJORITY! Here in the state of New York the 2019 NYS Senate and Assembly will have a democratic majority of seats. This may ensure the passage of what is called the Reproductive Health Act.
Please read the flyer on the Reproductive Health Act (on the following page) that may be passed by our NY State Legislature. If this legislation is indeed enacted into law this year, there will be a time when in New York it is a crime to be pro-life, as stated by Kathleen Gallagher, director of pro-life activities and the Catholic Action for the NYS Bishop’s Conference.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
The Abortion Expansion Act: Lives in the Balance
Sadly, New York State is the Abortion Capital of our nation, with a rate of 29.6 abortions for every 1,000 women of reproductive age. That’s more than twice the national average.
New York legalized abortion in 1970, three years before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Roe vs. Wade. Abortion is legal here for any reason up to 24 weeks of pregnancy, and any time after that if the mother’s life is at risk. So even if Roe were to be overruled, the vast majority of abortions in our state would continue to be legal and available.
The Governor and the Democratic leadership in the New York State Legislature want to go even further, and make abortion less safe and more expansive than it is now. They’ve promised to enact the so- called “Reproductive Health Act” early in 2019.
This bill would:
Take Action Now
Pro-life New Yorkers need to stand up in unison and make their voices heard on behalf of women and their unborn children. Tell your state lawmakers that enough is enough.
Here’s a simple way to do this. Go to the New York State Catholic Conference website at www.nyscatholic.org. Click on “Stop Abortion Expansion.” Enter your home address information, then select “Send Message.” Your message will automatically be sent to your State Senator, State Assembly Representative and the Governor. Please do it as soon as you can. It is so important to register our strong protest at this time.
Tragically, the political reality following the 2018 mid-term elections means that we are unlikely to defeat this measure in the State Legislature. Governor Andrew Cuomo is a strong proponent of the bill, and has promised to sign it into law.
We must also do all we can to ensure that vulnerable women facing unplanned pregnancies do not avail themselves of it.
-New York State Catholic Conference of Bishops
This Tuesday, January 22, 2019 the nation will mark the 46th Anniversary of Roe v Wade, which made abortion a legal act across our land. Since then, there have been over 60million pre-born children abort- ed . I have a pin on my jacket that says 60, representing the number killed from abortions. This year the annual March for Life happened on Friday, January 18, 2019. I want to thank Fr. Frank and the parishioners from St. Ignatius who went on the march. They joined Fr. Vincent Schifano and St. Frances De Chantal for this journey. Thank you to Fr. Vin and St. Frances for organizing this day. The march for life brings Catholics and non-Catholic, old and young alike together saying we embrace life, especially at its beginning.
St. Theresa of Calcutta once said “any country that accepts abortion is not teaching its people to love, but to use any violence to get what they want. This is why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion”. “We must not be surprised when we hear of murders, of killings, of wars, of hatred. If a mother can kill her own child, what is life but for us to kill each other”.
What can we do? As a caring and compassionate people we can:
Pray.
Pray for the intercession of St. Gianna Molla, the patron saint of mothers, physicians and preborn children. Pray for changed minds, changed hearts and a deeper awakening to the sacredness and dignity of all human life.
Provide life-affirming choices for women.
Contact the Life Center located in Massapequa, under the direction of Gloria Schreiber, our parishioner. The Life Center provides support for mothers and fathers who are confused and are either on the fence or have decided not to have an abortion. (515) 789-9100
Also through our Diocese of Rockville Centre, immediate assistance is available for women and families with an unexpected or unplanned pregnancy. In collaboration with Catholic Charities, Catholic Health Services (CHS) has established a one-call outreach program via 1 (855) 301-4CHS with access to re- sources in the community. Services are given both to uphold the unborn baby’s right to life and help sus- tain mother and baby following birth.
Help women and men who have suffered an abortion.
Programs offering hope and healing following abortion are also available. Project Rachel is a network of specially trained, compassionate caregivers, who are prepared to assist those who suffer from abortion loss. Call 1-516-766-2538 se habla espanol | Email projectrachel@drvc.org to begin healing after abortion loss. The Life Center can help too at (515) 789-9100.
Build the Culture of Life
Speak the truth with love. St. Teresa said the mother and father who are thinking about an abortion should be helped to love. Help them respect the life of the child.
Talk the pro-life talk... with your family members, friends, co-workers, schoolmates. We can build consensus and change the culture one person at a time.
Help educate the next generation. We must nurture young pro-life leaders who are unconditionally, unapologetically pro-life, who see the connection between their faith and their politics, and who are willing to put their faith into action.
Walk the pro-life walk...every minute of every hour of every day. Teach people to love and value one another. Our actions and words must reflect our respect and deep appreciation for the wondrous gift of human life.
Walk the pro-life walk...every minute of every hour of every day. Teach people to love and value one another. Our actions and words must reflect our respect and deep appreciation for the wondrous gift of human life.
Write to Our Legislators
Another important action we can take is write our legislators to change their hearts and minds. Don’t be the SILENT MAJORITY! Here in the state of New York the 2019 NYS Senate and Assembly will have a democratic majority of seats. This may ensure the passage of what is called the Reproductive Health Act.
Please read the flyer on the Reproductive Health Act (on the following page) that may be passed by our NY State Legislature. If this legislation is indeed enacted into law this year, there will be a time when in New York it is a crime to be pro-life, as stated by Kathleen Gallagher, director of pro-life activities and the Catholic Action for the NYS Bishop’s Conference.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
The Abortion Expansion Act: Lives in the Balance
Sadly, New York State is the Abortion Capital of our nation, with a rate of 29.6 abortions for every 1,000 women of reproductive age. That’s more than twice the national average.
New York legalized abortion in 1970, three years before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Roe vs. Wade. Abortion is legal here for any reason up to 24 weeks of pregnancy, and any time after that if the mother’s life is at risk. So even if Roe were to be overruled, the vast majority of abortions in our state would continue to be legal and available.
The Governor and the Democratic leadership in the New York State Legislature want to go even further, and make abortion less safe and more expansive than it is now. They’ve promised to enact the so- called “Reproductive Health Act” early in 2019.
This bill would:
- Allow non-doctors to perform abortions.
- Allow abortions for any reason in the third trimester of pregnancy right up to a mother’s due date. -Remove all criminal penalties for abortion, even if it was contrary to the mother’s choice, such as the intentional targeting of an unborn child in an act of violence.
- Remove our state’s protections for infants accidentally born alive in the course of an abortion. This extremism goes far beyond Roe vs. Wade!
Take Action Now
Pro-life New Yorkers need to stand up in unison and make their voices heard on behalf of women and their unborn children. Tell your state lawmakers that enough is enough.
Here’s a simple way to do this. Go to the New York State Catholic Conference website at www.nyscatholic.org. Click on “Stop Abortion Expansion.” Enter your home address information, then select “Send Message.” Your message will automatically be sent to your State Senator, State Assembly Representative and the Governor. Please do it as soon as you can. It is so important to register our strong protest at this time.
Tragically, the political reality following the 2018 mid-term elections means that we are unlikely to defeat this measure in the State Legislature. Governor Andrew Cuomo is a strong proponent of the bill, and has promised to sign it into law.
We must also do all we can to ensure that vulnerable women facing unplanned pregnancies do not avail themselves of it.
-New York State Catholic Conference of Bishops
January 13, 2019
LAST DAY OF THE CHRISTMAS SEASON
Today, (Sunday January 13th) is the last day of the Christmas Season. So, we may now take down our Christmas decorations. Unfortunately, our secular culture celebrates Christmas beginning in October and definitely after Veteran’s Day. By the time we get to Christmas Day, the culture shuts Christmas down on December 26th. But we, as Catholic Christians, only began celebrating Christmas on the evening of December 24th (Christmas Eve) through the Baptism of the Lord (January 13th). Next year please wait, if you can, a while through ADVENT, so that Christmas will be more meaningful for its 3 to 4 weeks beginning with Christmas Eve.
LIVE OUT YOUR BAPTISM
Jesus did not need to be Baptized because he had no sin. John’s acts of Baptism were for repentance. However, Jesus chose to be Baptized for three reasons:
Today reminds us of our own Baptism, when we first belonged to Jesus Christ and his Church. It is by our Baptism that we share in the Mission of the Christ and his Church to continue to spread the message of the Gospel. Pope Pius XII once said that through our Baptism “we don’t merely belong to the Church, but we are the Church”. The Holy Spirit that came upon Jesus at his Baptism, announcing that he was a Beloved Son of the Father, is the same Spirit that came down upon us reminding us that we too be- long to the same Father who loves us, takes care of us and will guide us.
May we ask ourselves, what has happened to my Baptismal call from years ago? If it has become dormant, this is the time to bring it back to life. It is always there inside us, waiting to spring back. Just call on the Holy Spirit for help. Look up your and your family’s baptismal date, light your baptismal candles on that anniversary day, celebrate the most important day of your life and begin to live it out! Whatever comes and goes in our life, the commission to follow and do the work of Christ lasts as long as we do on this earth!
PRO-LIFE WATCH
Please consider going on the Pro-Life March in Washington D.C. with St. Frances De Chantal on Friday, January 18th at 5am if you are able. More details are in the bulletin. If you are unable to go, then try to make January 18th and January 22nd, Anniversary of Roe V Wade, a day of prayer to change the hearts and minds of those who don’t see abortion objectively as murder.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
Today, (Sunday January 13th) is the last day of the Christmas Season. So, we may now take down our Christmas decorations. Unfortunately, our secular culture celebrates Christmas beginning in October and definitely after Veteran’s Day. By the time we get to Christmas Day, the culture shuts Christmas down on December 26th. But we, as Catholic Christians, only began celebrating Christmas on the evening of December 24th (Christmas Eve) through the Baptism of the Lord (January 13th). Next year please wait, if you can, a while through ADVENT, so that Christmas will be more meaningful for its 3 to 4 weeks beginning with Christmas Eve.
LIVE OUT YOUR BAPTISM
Jesus did not need to be Baptized because he had no sin. John’s acts of Baptism were for repentance. However, Jesus chose to be Baptized for three reasons:
- To show forth to the world that he was the Son of God. This is part of his Epiphany which means to “show forth”. The first Epiphany came when the Magi came, the second is the Baptism and the third will be the Wedding at Cana when Jesus changes the water into wine.
- To publicly announce his Mission/Ministry to the World in the spreading of the Kingdom of God.
- To unite himself with us. To show his solidarity with our human nature.
Today reminds us of our own Baptism, when we first belonged to Jesus Christ and his Church. It is by our Baptism that we share in the Mission of the Christ and his Church to continue to spread the message of the Gospel. Pope Pius XII once said that through our Baptism “we don’t merely belong to the Church, but we are the Church”. The Holy Spirit that came upon Jesus at his Baptism, announcing that he was a Beloved Son of the Father, is the same Spirit that came down upon us reminding us that we too be- long to the same Father who loves us, takes care of us and will guide us.
May we ask ourselves, what has happened to my Baptismal call from years ago? If it has become dormant, this is the time to bring it back to life. It is always there inside us, waiting to spring back. Just call on the Holy Spirit for help. Look up your and your family’s baptismal date, light your baptismal candles on that anniversary day, celebrate the most important day of your life and begin to live it out! Whatever comes and goes in our life, the commission to follow and do the work of Christ lasts as long as we do on this earth!
PRO-LIFE WATCH
Please consider going on the Pro-Life March in Washington D.C. with St. Frances De Chantal on Friday, January 18th at 5am if you are able. More details are in the bulletin. If you are unable to go, then try to make January 18th and January 22nd, Anniversary of Roe V Wade, a day of prayer to change the hearts and minds of those who don’t see abortion objectively as murder.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
January 6, 2019
THANK YOU
THANK YOU to all of our liturgical ministers including our Altar Servers, Extraordinary Ministers
of Holy Communion, Lectors, Ushers, Maintenance Staff under our Facilities Manager Tony Condron, our Choir members under the direction of Jennifer Toohey, our Music Director and our organist Jennifer Barsemian. We also want to thank those who counted our Christmas collection and to all of our ladies from our Martha’s Guild for the beautiful Christmas decorations. Thank you to all who have come to participate and share in the celebration of the Masses at Christmas with us. Your presence makes every bit of effort worthwhile.
From all us here at St. Ignatius Loyola, we wish you the gift of faith, the blessing of hope and the peace of God’s love throughout the year 2019! Remember to always include God in your calendar of the 365 days of this New Year! One thing you can do, is to be grateful for 7 things each day, as we learned from Pastor Greg Dwyer in his talk during Advent.
A NEW YEAR’S PRAYER TO SAY AND SHARE
God, thank you for a New Year. May everyone in our family be willing to begin anew with a clean slate. We know that you are always ready to forgive us. Help us to be willing to forgive ourselves and to forgive one another.
As we begin a New Year, remind us of our truest values and our deepest desires. Help us to live in the goodness that comes from doing what you want us to do. Help us to put aside anxiety about the future and the past, so that we might live in peace with you now, one day at a time. Amen.
To all who have been baptized in 2018 (children and adults) you are invited to attend the 9:30 Mass on Sunday, January 13th for a blessing.
CAPITAL CAMPAIGN- MOVING ON UP- YET COLLECTIONS ARE DOWN
As we begin our New Year, we are moving closer toward our Capital Campaign goal in paid pledges of $1.5 Million. Currently as of December 18, 2018, we are at $1,289, 930.33. We are at 86% of our goal. Thank you to all who have given and are giving for your generosity. Please remember to give also to our weekly Sunday collection as you would normally give. If you read our Financial letter, we are 19% down in our collections in comparison to 2016 and 2017. Try giving $1 more this year than last year. If you have not yet given to the campaign, what a great way to begin the New Year by giving to your parish to help us with our capital needs.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
THANK YOU to all of our liturgical ministers including our Altar Servers, Extraordinary Ministers
of Holy Communion, Lectors, Ushers, Maintenance Staff under our Facilities Manager Tony Condron, our Choir members under the direction of Jennifer Toohey, our Music Director and our organist Jennifer Barsemian. We also want to thank those who counted our Christmas collection and to all of our ladies from our Martha’s Guild for the beautiful Christmas decorations. Thank you to all who have come to participate and share in the celebration of the Masses at Christmas with us. Your presence makes every bit of effort worthwhile.
From all us here at St. Ignatius Loyola, we wish you the gift of faith, the blessing of hope and the peace of God’s love throughout the year 2019! Remember to always include God in your calendar of the 365 days of this New Year! One thing you can do, is to be grateful for 7 things each day, as we learned from Pastor Greg Dwyer in his talk during Advent.
A NEW YEAR’S PRAYER TO SAY AND SHARE
God, thank you for a New Year. May everyone in our family be willing to begin anew with a clean slate. We know that you are always ready to forgive us. Help us to be willing to forgive ourselves and to forgive one another.
As we begin a New Year, remind us of our truest values and our deepest desires. Help us to live in the goodness that comes from doing what you want us to do. Help us to put aside anxiety about the future and the past, so that we might live in peace with you now, one day at a time. Amen.
To all who have been baptized in 2018 (children and adults) you are invited to attend the 9:30 Mass on Sunday, January 13th for a blessing.
CAPITAL CAMPAIGN- MOVING ON UP- YET COLLECTIONS ARE DOWN
As we begin our New Year, we are moving closer toward our Capital Campaign goal in paid pledges of $1.5 Million. Currently as of December 18, 2018, we are at $1,289, 930.33. We are at 86% of our goal. Thank you to all who have given and are giving for your generosity. Please remember to give also to our weekly Sunday collection as you would normally give. If you read our Financial letter, we are 19% down in our collections in comparison to 2016 and 2017. Try giving $1 more this year than last year. If you have not yet given to the campaign, what a great way to begin the New Year by giving to your parish to help us with our capital needs.
Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
December 30, 2018
OUR FAMILIES - A HOLY FAMILY
A woman was at home doing some cleaning when the telephone rang. In going to answer it, she tripped on a scatter rug and, grabbing for something to hold onto, seized the telephone table. It fell over with a crash, jarring the receiver off the hook. As it fell, it hit the family dog, who leaped up, howling and barking. The woman's three-year-old son, startled by this noise, broke into loud screams. The woman mumbled some colorful words. She finally managed to pick up the receiver and lift it to her ear, just in time to hear her husband's voice on the other end say, "Nobody's said hello yet, but I'm positive I have the right number." (James Dent, Charleston, West Virginia Gazette).
Does this story sound familiar? This is all about family as we celebrate the second Feast of Christmas, with this Sunday being the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Often we confuse holiness with perfection. However, even though Jesus, Mary and Joseph were holy, they still experienced the same challenges, growth pains and imperfections of life as you and my family experiences each and every day. Despite that, they were faithful to the path that God laid out for them. The Holy Family teaches us that we too can be faithful to our vocation as a family in love, unity, forgiveness, peace and service, despite the messiness of family life. All we need to do is open our hearts to God and trust God each day as did the Holy Family.
St. John Paul II, tells us that each of our families makes up a domestic (home) church. In his Apostolic Letter Familiaris Consortio (The Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World), he writes that the “Christian family shares in the mission of the Church in building God’s Kingdom here on earth” (49). When we gather around our tables, in our living/recreation rooms, around the television, computer or kitchen, pray together, play together, share and care for another, we act as Church. We go to Mass to deepen our relationship with Jesus Christ to renew us and help us become more like the family God plans for us to be. The family is “not only a saved community receiving the love of Christ, but a saving community communicating Christ’s love to others” by how we act and in our words (FC 49). How does your family communicate Christ’s love? We pray especially for all families who experience hardship, dysfunction, addiction and suffering. During this Christmas season and the New Year, invite the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph to bring their presence into your home each day binding your family together, healing any rifts and allowing you to give yourself over to a loving God and others. Then your family will truly be God’s Holy Family!
THANK YOU....THANK YOU...THANK YOU AND HAPPY NEW YEAR 2019
Thank you to all who sent us (your priests and staff) Christmas cards, cookies, cakes, fruit, flowers, edible arrangements, gifts and wine. Your generosity shows how much you love your priests and parish staff. May God bless you!
Happy New Year! As we begin the new year 2019, we give thanks for the past and look forward to the future knowing that God is certainly with us! Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always.
St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
A woman was at home doing some cleaning when the telephone rang. In going to answer it, she tripped on a scatter rug and, grabbing for something to hold onto, seized the telephone table. It fell over with a crash, jarring the receiver off the hook. As it fell, it hit the family dog, who leaped up, howling and barking. The woman's three-year-old son, startled by this noise, broke into loud screams. The woman mumbled some colorful words. She finally managed to pick up the receiver and lift it to her ear, just in time to hear her husband's voice on the other end say, "Nobody's said hello yet, but I'm positive I have the right number." (James Dent, Charleston, West Virginia Gazette).
Does this story sound familiar? This is all about family as we celebrate the second Feast of Christmas, with this Sunday being the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Often we confuse holiness with perfection. However, even though Jesus, Mary and Joseph were holy, they still experienced the same challenges, growth pains and imperfections of life as you and my family experiences each and every day. Despite that, they were faithful to the path that God laid out for them. The Holy Family teaches us that we too can be faithful to our vocation as a family in love, unity, forgiveness, peace and service, despite the messiness of family life. All we need to do is open our hearts to God and trust God each day as did the Holy Family.
St. John Paul II, tells us that each of our families makes up a domestic (home) church. In his Apostolic Letter Familiaris Consortio (The Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World), he writes that the “Christian family shares in the mission of the Church in building God’s Kingdom here on earth” (49). When we gather around our tables, in our living/recreation rooms, around the television, computer or kitchen, pray together, play together, share and care for another, we act as Church. We go to Mass to deepen our relationship with Jesus Christ to renew us and help us become more like the family God plans for us to be. The family is “not only a saved community receiving the love of Christ, but a saving community communicating Christ’s love to others” by how we act and in our words (FC 49). How does your family communicate Christ’s love? We pray especially for all families who experience hardship, dysfunction, addiction and suffering. During this Christmas season and the New Year, invite the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph to bring their presence into your home each day binding your family together, healing any rifts and allowing you to give yourself over to a loving God and others. Then your family will truly be God’s Holy Family!
THANK YOU....THANK YOU...THANK YOU AND HAPPY NEW YEAR 2019
Thank you to all who sent us (your priests and staff) Christmas cards, cookies, cakes, fruit, flowers, edible arrangements, gifts and wine. Your generosity shows how much you love your priests and parish staff. May God bless you!
Happy New Year! As we begin the new year 2019, we give thanks for the past and look forward to the future knowing that God is certainly with us! Remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always.
St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
December 23, 3018
Last weekend St. Ignatius celebrated the many gifts we find in our parish. On Saturday, December 15, we had our annual Christmas Pageant and on Sunday, December 16, we had our Ecumenical Lessons and Carols at Holy Family Parish. What better way to celebrate the coming of Jesus than in our children and in unity with others. The children who participated in the pageant reminded us of Christmas’ true meaning. We often say Christmas was made for children, maybe because we only think of Santa Claus, the presents under the tree and a child’s joyful face on opening the gifts. Our children can also teach us how to accept Christ more into our lives and to be born more into our hearts. Jesus always said “let the children come to me for such is the Kingdom of God”. What he meant was we are to have a childlike faith when it comes to our relationship with God by opening our hearts and letting down our guard and depending more on Him. Perhaps this Christmas we can think about how we can be
childlike as we welcome the Lord Jesus into our world again by being loving in our relationships, more forgiving, and more giving in our relationships with one another. God came as a child for a reason, to remind us of what the innocence and beauty of life is all about and that it can never be lost, if we don’t let it.
The Ecumenical Advent Lessons and Carols at Holy Family was a prime example of having a child-like faith of unity. Our friends from a variety of Christian Churches took part in this great event. Fr. Gerard Gentleman, Pastor of Holy Family, noted that no matter what church we come from, we all share in this special geographical area we call Hicksville. We all go to same supermarkets, eat at the same restaurants, get gas at many of the same gas stations, bank at the same banks and shop at some of the same stores. We share in many of the same challenges and hardships of life. We also share in the same event that Jesus Christ, the God made human, came to live as one of us on earth, by taking on our very human flesh. How amazing is that? Christmas reminds us that God shows up especially when we live a childlike faith. When we embrace him in a childlike faith as did Mary and Joseph, the shepherds and the Magi, then we allow him to use us as his instruments of love, unity, innocence, service and peace; and Jesus is born in us!
On behalf of the Sisters of St. Dominic, Srs. Karen, Kathy and Mary; and our Parish Priests, Frs. Andres, Benjamin and Frank, I wish you and your families a very blessed and Merry Christmas. May the light of Christ always glow in your hearts and may he help you to be a light for all who come into your midst. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim , Pastor
childlike as we welcome the Lord Jesus into our world again by being loving in our relationships, more forgiving, and more giving in our relationships with one another. God came as a child for a reason, to remind us of what the innocence and beauty of life is all about and that it can never be lost, if we don’t let it.
The Ecumenical Advent Lessons and Carols at Holy Family was a prime example of having a child-like faith of unity. Our friends from a variety of Christian Churches took part in this great event. Fr. Gerard Gentleman, Pastor of Holy Family, noted that no matter what church we come from, we all share in this special geographical area we call Hicksville. We all go to same supermarkets, eat at the same restaurants, get gas at many of the same gas stations, bank at the same banks and shop at some of the same stores. We share in many of the same challenges and hardships of life. We also share in the same event that Jesus Christ, the God made human, came to live as one of us on earth, by taking on our very human flesh. How amazing is that? Christmas reminds us that God shows up especially when we live a childlike faith. When we embrace him in a childlike faith as did Mary and Joseph, the shepherds and the Magi, then we allow him to use us as his instruments of love, unity, innocence, service and peace; and Jesus is born in us!
On behalf of the Sisters of St. Dominic, Srs. Karen, Kathy and Mary; and our Parish Priests, Frs. Andres, Benjamin and Frank, I wish you and your families a very blessed and Merry Christmas. May the light of Christ always glow in your hearts and may he help you to be a light for all who come into your midst. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim , Pastor
December 16, 2018
This past Tuesday, December 11, 2018, St. Ignatius held a funeral Mass unlike any the church has seen. Two homeless men from our community, James Bolson and Robert Angell, both died in November and a Mass was celebrated for them at 11am. What was special about this service was that most of the people who attended were homeless friends of Bobby's and Jimmy's. In addition, many people from our parish and who volunteer at Human Services were also there to participate in the Mass. The second special part of this service was Rev. Cheri Kroon, Minister of the Plainview Reformed Church, who assisted me in leading the Mass.
Pastor Cheri wrote to me that “St. Ignatius and I provided a beautiful gift to the homeless community; truly being the hands and feet of Christ in a troubled and hurting world. The Mass was beautiful, respectful and loving. It was the same Mass that would have been offered for a rich executive, yet here it was for two men who had lived most of their adult life on the street.”
We invited the congregation to share stories and memories; and they spoke through tears about their love and gratitude for their dear friends.
We gave thanks for the lives of these two beloved children of God. But we also felt a call to repent; repent for the fact that we have homeless neighbors across the street from the church who are cold and hungry and we have yet to find them shelter.
May we not soon forget the tears that were shed in the sanctuary today and may we remember that after this beautiful service, our homeless neighbors went back out into the cold looking for some kind of shelter for the night.
My hope is in following through on the words of John the Baptist in this Sunday’s Gospel, that we can do more here at St. Ignatius along with the other churches in our community. In response to questions, John the Baptist says if you have two cloaks give one to someone who has none. The same goes with food. He tells us that if we want joy in our lives this Advent and always, then we need to open our hearts to the needs of others. They are right here in our backyards. Perhaps as a parish, we need to think about a homeless shelter for sleeping once a week during the winter or a soup kitchen at various times during the week. What are your thoughts? Please let me know. Shoot me an email.
May we remember to always strive to work for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim,
Pastor
Pastor Cheri wrote to me that “St. Ignatius and I provided a beautiful gift to the homeless community; truly being the hands and feet of Christ in a troubled and hurting world. The Mass was beautiful, respectful and loving. It was the same Mass that would have been offered for a rich executive, yet here it was for two men who had lived most of their adult life on the street.”
We invited the congregation to share stories and memories; and they spoke through tears about their love and gratitude for their dear friends.
We gave thanks for the lives of these two beloved children of God. But we also felt a call to repent; repent for the fact that we have homeless neighbors across the street from the church who are cold and hungry and we have yet to find them shelter.
May we not soon forget the tears that were shed in the sanctuary today and may we remember that after this beautiful service, our homeless neighbors went back out into the cold looking for some kind of shelter for the night.
My hope is in following through on the words of John the Baptist in this Sunday’s Gospel, that we can do more here at St. Ignatius along with the other churches in our community. In response to questions, John the Baptist says if you have two cloaks give one to someone who has none. The same goes with food. He tells us that if we want joy in our lives this Advent and always, then we need to open our hearts to the needs of others. They are right here in our backyards. Perhaps as a parish, we need to think about a homeless shelter for sleeping once a week during the winter or a soup kitchen at various times during the week. What are your thoughts? Please let me know. Shoot me an email.
May we remember to always strive to work for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim,
Pastor
December 9, 2018
ADVENT-DO NOT WORRY, THE LORD WANTS US HOME!
Often at Christmas and Thanksgiving we look forward to returning home with our families and friends or cannot wait for our loved ones to return home after not seeing them for a while. They always say “home is where the heart is.” For the people of Israel, their heart was back home in Jerusalem because they were forced out of their home to live in Babylon. They had to serve a hostile King Nebuchadnezzar, who had no love for God. In the Book of Baruch, the prophet who was a secretary of the prophet Jeremiah, gives hope to the people of Israel writing that one day they will return home! He tells the people that Jerusalem, their city, will prosper again and God will bring them back home. Their journey represents our journey to our promised land of Heaven. We need to take the time this advent to listen to the voice of another prophet, John the Baptist to lower our mountains of pride, selfishness and greed and fill in our valleys of loneliness, depression and addiction with his love and grace. We have Christ Jesus, who knows us and wants every day to leads us. All we need to do is trust in him, listen to him and follow him.
As we journey through this 2nd week of Advent, may we ask ourselves two questions:
1) What is needed in my life to make the roads of my journey straighter and easier to travel?
2) Where am I in my relationship to Jesus: wondering, an exile or a disciple? Remember, Advent reminds us that our Salvation is at hand! Mary, the mother of Jesus and our Mother will help us too. Please pray this Ancient Prayer of the Virgin Mary together with family and/or friends.
We turn to you for protection, Holy Mother of God.
Listen to our prayers and help us in our needs.
Save us from every danger,
Glorious and blessed Virgin.
Amen.
CHANGE OF SUNDAY EVENING MASS SCHEDULE EFFECTIVE JANUARY 6, 2019
After some study of our Mass attendance, prayerful consideration and consultation with the Parish Staff and Pastoral Council, a decision has been made to discontinue the 5:15 p.m. Sunday evening Mass beginning the first Sunday of January, 2019.
Currently, we have seven Masses each weekend; one on Saturday and six on Sunday. There has been a decline in Mass attendance, at St. Ignatius as in many other parishes, and particularly at the Sunday evening 5:15 pm Mass. The church accommodates 500-600 people, depending on personal size and comfort of seating. We can easily accommodate our average weekend attendance with six Masses each weekend. Therefore, beginning Sunday, January 6, 2019, the Sunday 5:15 pm Mass will be removed. A full church fosters a better sense of community, encourages participation, and conserves resources of priests and maintenance. The Pastoral Council will continue to study Mass attendance and how we as a community can encourage more participation at Sunday liturgy.
People who need to attend Mass on Sunday evening are welcome at the 7 p.m. Mass and at Masses at nearby churches. Thank you for your understanding, especially to all those who have participated at the 5:15pm Mass. Thank you also to Mr. James Sheehan for his music ministry at this Mass. Jim will be play- ing at other Masses on the weekend as needed.
May we remember to always strive to work for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
Often at Christmas and Thanksgiving we look forward to returning home with our families and friends or cannot wait for our loved ones to return home after not seeing them for a while. They always say “home is where the heart is.” For the people of Israel, their heart was back home in Jerusalem because they were forced out of their home to live in Babylon. They had to serve a hostile King Nebuchadnezzar, who had no love for God. In the Book of Baruch, the prophet who was a secretary of the prophet Jeremiah, gives hope to the people of Israel writing that one day they will return home! He tells the people that Jerusalem, their city, will prosper again and God will bring them back home. Their journey represents our journey to our promised land of Heaven. We need to take the time this advent to listen to the voice of another prophet, John the Baptist to lower our mountains of pride, selfishness and greed and fill in our valleys of loneliness, depression and addiction with his love and grace. We have Christ Jesus, who knows us and wants every day to leads us. All we need to do is trust in him, listen to him and follow him.
As we journey through this 2nd week of Advent, may we ask ourselves two questions:
1) What is needed in my life to make the roads of my journey straighter and easier to travel?
2) Where am I in my relationship to Jesus: wondering, an exile or a disciple? Remember, Advent reminds us that our Salvation is at hand! Mary, the mother of Jesus and our Mother will help us too. Please pray this Ancient Prayer of the Virgin Mary together with family and/or friends.
We turn to you for protection, Holy Mother of God.
Listen to our prayers and help us in our needs.
Save us from every danger,
Glorious and blessed Virgin.
Amen.
CHANGE OF SUNDAY EVENING MASS SCHEDULE EFFECTIVE JANUARY 6, 2019
After some study of our Mass attendance, prayerful consideration and consultation with the Parish Staff and Pastoral Council, a decision has been made to discontinue the 5:15 p.m. Sunday evening Mass beginning the first Sunday of January, 2019.
Currently, we have seven Masses each weekend; one on Saturday and six on Sunday. There has been a decline in Mass attendance, at St. Ignatius as in many other parishes, and particularly at the Sunday evening 5:15 pm Mass. The church accommodates 500-600 people, depending on personal size and comfort of seating. We can easily accommodate our average weekend attendance with six Masses each weekend. Therefore, beginning Sunday, January 6, 2019, the Sunday 5:15 pm Mass will be removed. A full church fosters a better sense of community, encourages participation, and conserves resources of priests and maintenance. The Pastoral Council will continue to study Mass attendance and how we as a community can encourage more participation at Sunday liturgy.
People who need to attend Mass on Sunday evening are welcome at the 7 p.m. Mass and at Masses at nearby churches. Thank you for your understanding, especially to all those who have participated at the 5:15pm Mass. Thank you also to Mr. James Sheehan for his music ministry at this Mass. Jim will be play- ing at other Masses on the weekend as needed.
May we remember to always strive to work for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
December 2, 2018
CHANGE OF SUNDAY EVENING MASS SCHEDULE EFFECTIVE JANUARY 6, 2019
After some study of our Mass attendance, prayerful consideration and consultation with the Parish Staff and Pastoral Council, a decision has been made to discontinue the 5:15pm Sunday evening Mass beginning the first Sunday of January 6th.
Since I arrived at St. Ignatius Loyola seven years ago, I noticed that we have more Masses than people coming to our church. Currently we have 7 Masses each weekend; 1 on Saturday and 6 on Sunday. There has been a steady decline in Mass attendance at all of our Masses, particularly the Sunday evening 5:15pm Mass. The full capacity of the church appears to accommodate 500-600 people, depending on personal size and comfort of seating. It has been evident that, given this seating capacity, our church is too large for a Mass that averages less than 100 people during the year. We can easily accommodate our average weekend attendance with less than 6 Masses on Sunday. Therefore, beginning Sunday, January 6, 2019, the Sunday 5:15pm Mass will be removed.
A fuller church fosters a better sense of community, encourages participation, and conserves resources of priests and maintenance. People who need to attend Mass on Sunday evening are welcome at the 7 pm Mass and at Masses at nearby churches. Thank you for your understanding, especially to all those who have participated at the 5:15pm Mass. Thank you also to Mr. James Sheehan for his music ministry at this Mass. Jim will be playing at other Masses on the weekend as needed.
ADVENT- BE PREPARED
Happy New Year, everybody! I write this because we are not entering a new secular calendar year, we are entering a new Church liturgical calendar year beginning with this season of ADVENT! So it is appropriate to say “Happy New Year?”
When the Church begins the First Sunday of Advent, she proclaims it a new liturgical year. Since the Second Vatican Council, the Church year is divided into 3 cycles or years, A,B and C. Each cycle focuses on a particular Gospel. During Cycle A we focus on the Gospel of Matthew. During Cycle B we focus on the Gospel of Mark. During Cycle C we will focus on the Gospel of Luke.
The first reading from the weekday Mass readings is divided into Cycles 1 or 2. During Cycle C, we will hear the readings from Cycle 1. Then we alternate to Cycle 2 the next liturgical year. After three years, we will have heard much from all of our Gospel readings.
The word Advent comes from the Latin term “adventus” or coming. During the first two weeks until December 16th, we will focus on the Christ who will come again. From December 17th thru December 24th our focus is on the Christ who came at Christmas in Bethlehem. The Gospel of Luke this Sunday focuses on the end times and Jesus’ coming again in glory.
Jesus refers to the end, not to scare or frighten us, but to prepare us to be ready to meet him face to face. Luke tells us that nothing here on earth lasts forever: whether it is nature, the cosmos, politics, money, our Christmas purchases and even our own bodies. Bishop Robert Barron writes, “don’t expect to find your ultimate fulfillment in any of it” that is, the material world. Our only true happiness is to be found in God.
Jesus, who is God on earth, leads us to the God the Father. Jesus gives us every reason to hope that despite life’s challenges and threats, he will get us through this world and help us to share in his eternal glory in Heaven to come. May we never forget that Jesus is our only source of our sal- vation. May we take this Advent to stop, pray, light the candles of an advent wreath, listen and talk to Jesus so that we discover him as Emmanuel, God with us at all times. As St. John Paul II tells us, “be not afraid” your salvation is at hand. A blessed and Happy Advent to All! I share with you this Ancient Prayer of the Virgin Mary and I invite you to pray it during this season of Advent.
We turn to you for protection, Holy Mother of God.
Listen to our prayers and help us in our needs.
Save us from every danger,
Glorious and Blessed Virgin. Amen.
May we remember to always strive to work for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
After some study of our Mass attendance, prayerful consideration and consultation with the Parish Staff and Pastoral Council, a decision has been made to discontinue the 5:15pm Sunday evening Mass beginning the first Sunday of January 6th.
Since I arrived at St. Ignatius Loyola seven years ago, I noticed that we have more Masses than people coming to our church. Currently we have 7 Masses each weekend; 1 on Saturday and 6 on Sunday. There has been a steady decline in Mass attendance at all of our Masses, particularly the Sunday evening 5:15pm Mass. The full capacity of the church appears to accommodate 500-600 people, depending on personal size and comfort of seating. It has been evident that, given this seating capacity, our church is too large for a Mass that averages less than 100 people during the year. We can easily accommodate our average weekend attendance with less than 6 Masses on Sunday. Therefore, beginning Sunday, January 6, 2019, the Sunday 5:15pm Mass will be removed.
A fuller church fosters a better sense of community, encourages participation, and conserves resources of priests and maintenance. People who need to attend Mass on Sunday evening are welcome at the 7 pm Mass and at Masses at nearby churches. Thank you for your understanding, especially to all those who have participated at the 5:15pm Mass. Thank you also to Mr. James Sheehan for his music ministry at this Mass. Jim will be playing at other Masses on the weekend as needed.
ADVENT- BE PREPARED
Happy New Year, everybody! I write this because we are not entering a new secular calendar year, we are entering a new Church liturgical calendar year beginning with this season of ADVENT! So it is appropriate to say “Happy New Year?”
When the Church begins the First Sunday of Advent, she proclaims it a new liturgical year. Since the Second Vatican Council, the Church year is divided into 3 cycles or years, A,B and C. Each cycle focuses on a particular Gospel. During Cycle A we focus on the Gospel of Matthew. During Cycle B we focus on the Gospel of Mark. During Cycle C we will focus on the Gospel of Luke.
The first reading from the weekday Mass readings is divided into Cycles 1 or 2. During Cycle C, we will hear the readings from Cycle 1. Then we alternate to Cycle 2 the next liturgical year. After three years, we will have heard much from all of our Gospel readings.
The word Advent comes from the Latin term “adventus” or coming. During the first two weeks until December 16th, we will focus on the Christ who will come again. From December 17th thru December 24th our focus is on the Christ who came at Christmas in Bethlehem. The Gospel of Luke this Sunday focuses on the end times and Jesus’ coming again in glory.
Jesus refers to the end, not to scare or frighten us, but to prepare us to be ready to meet him face to face. Luke tells us that nothing here on earth lasts forever: whether it is nature, the cosmos, politics, money, our Christmas purchases and even our own bodies. Bishop Robert Barron writes, “don’t expect to find your ultimate fulfillment in any of it” that is, the material world. Our only true happiness is to be found in God.
Jesus, who is God on earth, leads us to the God the Father. Jesus gives us every reason to hope that despite life’s challenges and threats, he will get us through this world and help us to share in his eternal glory in Heaven to come. May we never forget that Jesus is our only source of our sal- vation. May we take this Advent to stop, pray, light the candles of an advent wreath, listen and talk to Jesus so that we discover him as Emmanuel, God with us at all times. As St. John Paul II tells us, “be not afraid” your salvation is at hand. A blessed and Happy Advent to All! I share with you this Ancient Prayer of the Virgin Mary and I invite you to pray it during this season of Advent.
We turn to you for protection, Holy Mother of God.
Listen to our prayers and help us in our needs.
Save us from every danger,
Glorious and Blessed Virgin. Amen.
May we remember to always strive to work for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
November 25, 2018
CHRIST, KING OVER OUR LIVES AND ALL THE WORLD
As we have carved our turkeys and saved some leftovers for Turkey sandwiches, which I like, the Church is looking at the end of the year. Not the calendar year, but the Church year. We always end the year with the Sunday of the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, traditionally known as Christ the King, the last Sunday of the liturgical year. Pope Pius XI instituted this feast on February 25, 1925 in an encyclical entitled Quas Primas, meaning the First applying the title to Christ as our Lord and King.
The Pope is addressing the problems of secularism where God is left out of the lives of human beings and society organizes its life as if God did not exist. Pius XI states that where God is thrown out, chaos erupts and man is on a downfall. Sound familiar? His letter was written just as the Nazi, Communist and other Dictator regimes were growing around the world.
This feast was established to remind us of who it is we worship. We worship Christ who is a king that does not lord his power and authority over others or takes others freedoms away. He is a King that uses love, mercy and forgiveness to draw all men to himself. Instead of a crown of jewels, our Christ receives a crown of thorns. Instead of a throne of gold, his seat is the cross. Is this the King we all acclaim to follow? If so, do we allow Christ to be the King over every aspect of our life? Do we allow him to reign in our hearts? Are we faithful to his word and his actions? Is Christ our King on Sunday while we make up the rest of the rules during the week? If we are his followers, then may his grace up us to come to serve and not be served, to love and not hate, to strive for the truth and not follow or make up stories. There are so many pressures in this life that knock us off track. But, today’s feast tells us that we have a God, a King who is all merciful, and always there for us to help us serve and love him better. May we open our hearts now before it is too late.
THE NEW ALLEN ORGAN & OUR CHOIR-CONTINUING OUR MISSION
Here is another, clearer picture of our new Allen Organ. I hope you are enjoying its new sounds and tunes. The Organ is a GENYSIS G330. It has 46 STOPS with A GYNYSIS VOICE. The total cost of the organ is $68,000.
The Organ’s dimensions are
Width 58-5/16” (148cm);
Height 47-5/8” (123 cm);
Depth 31-3/4” (80.6 cm) without pedalboard, 49” (124.5 cm) with pedalboard.
For more information, please contact Jennifer Toohey our Music Director. Jennifer is planning a concert in the near future to demonstrate the capabilities of our new organ. Stay tune! Thank you to all who have given and are giving to the campaign. No giving is ever too small and no sacrifice is ever too big.
May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always! St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
As we have carved our turkeys and saved some leftovers for Turkey sandwiches, which I like, the Church is looking at the end of the year. Not the calendar year, but the Church year. We always end the year with the Sunday of the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, traditionally known as Christ the King, the last Sunday of the liturgical year. Pope Pius XI instituted this feast on February 25, 1925 in an encyclical entitled Quas Primas, meaning the First applying the title to Christ as our Lord and King.
The Pope is addressing the problems of secularism where God is left out of the lives of human beings and society organizes its life as if God did not exist. Pius XI states that where God is thrown out, chaos erupts and man is on a downfall. Sound familiar? His letter was written just as the Nazi, Communist and other Dictator regimes were growing around the world.
This feast was established to remind us of who it is we worship. We worship Christ who is a king that does not lord his power and authority over others or takes others freedoms away. He is a King that uses love, mercy and forgiveness to draw all men to himself. Instead of a crown of jewels, our Christ receives a crown of thorns. Instead of a throne of gold, his seat is the cross. Is this the King we all acclaim to follow? If so, do we allow Christ to be the King over every aspect of our life? Do we allow him to reign in our hearts? Are we faithful to his word and his actions? Is Christ our King on Sunday while we make up the rest of the rules during the week? If we are his followers, then may his grace up us to come to serve and not be served, to love and not hate, to strive for the truth and not follow or make up stories. There are so many pressures in this life that knock us off track. But, today’s feast tells us that we have a God, a King who is all merciful, and always there for us to help us serve and love him better. May we open our hearts now before it is too late.
THE NEW ALLEN ORGAN & OUR CHOIR-CONTINUING OUR MISSION
Here is another, clearer picture of our new Allen Organ. I hope you are enjoying its new sounds and tunes. The Organ is a GENYSIS G330. It has 46 STOPS with A GYNYSIS VOICE. The total cost of the organ is $68,000.
The Organ’s dimensions are
Width 58-5/16” (148cm);
Height 47-5/8” (123 cm);
Depth 31-3/4” (80.6 cm) without pedalboard, 49” (124.5 cm) with pedalboard.
For more information, please contact Jennifer Toohey our Music Director. Jennifer is planning a concert in the near future to demonstrate the capabilities of our new organ. Stay tune! Thank you to all who have given and are giving to the campaign. No giving is ever too small and no sacrifice is ever too big.
May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always! St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
November 18, 2018
The following is the Thanksgiving Proclamation as given by President Abraham Lincoln on October 20, 1864. Please take some time with your family to read and reflect over his words. They are as meaningful today as they were back in the 19th Century.
One thing to think about from this Sunday’s Gospel is asking ourselves this questions, in all that I do in my life, am I helping God to build his kingdom or am I standing in the way? God will judge us on that at the end of our time. One great way to build God’s Kingdom is be thankful not just on Thanksgiving Day but every day. An- other way is to celebrate Thanksgiving ! While I realize our cultural circumstances, we have only ourselves to blame if we make this Thanksgiving a shopping day. The stores and websites will be there. Family and friends are temporary. While there are jobs that demand people to be there, I often think of those families who are separated due to our consumer demand. We can set the pace. It starts first with you and me. From all of us here at St. Ignatius Loyola; staff, sisters and your priests, have a blessed and joyous Thanksgiving! May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. May we strive to do all things for the greater glory of God. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr Jim,
Pastor
A Thanksgiving Proclamation by Abraham Lincoln President Lincoln emphasized a national day of thanks
It is the duty of the nations as well as of men to own their dependence upon the over ruling power of God;
to confess their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow, yet with assured hope that genuine repentance' will lead to mercy and pardon; and to recognize the sublime truth, announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history, that those nations are blessed whose God is the LORD.
We know that by His divine law, nations, like individuals, are subject to punishments and chastisements in this world. May we not justly fear that the awful calamity of civil war which now desolates the land ,may be a punishment inflicted upon us for-our presumptuous sins; to the needful end of our national reformation as a whole people? We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven. We have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity. We have grown in numbers, wealth and power as no other nation has ever grown.
But we have forgotten God. We-have forgotten the gracious hand-which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us. It has seemed to me fit and proper that God should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice by the whole American people.
I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November as a day of Thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens. And I recommend to them that, while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners, or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty hand to heal the wounds of the nation, and to restore it, as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes, to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility, and union. Done at the city of Washington, this 20th day of October, A.D. 1864, and of the Independence of the United States the eighty-ninth.
One thing to think about from this Sunday’s Gospel is asking ourselves this questions, in all that I do in my life, am I helping God to build his kingdom or am I standing in the way? God will judge us on that at the end of our time. One great way to build God’s Kingdom is be thankful not just on Thanksgiving Day but every day. An- other way is to celebrate Thanksgiving ! While I realize our cultural circumstances, we have only ourselves to blame if we make this Thanksgiving a shopping day. The stores and websites will be there. Family and friends are temporary. While there are jobs that demand people to be there, I often think of those families who are separated due to our consumer demand. We can set the pace. It starts first with you and me. From all of us here at St. Ignatius Loyola; staff, sisters and your priests, have a blessed and joyous Thanksgiving! May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. May we strive to do all things for the greater glory of God. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr Jim,
Pastor
A Thanksgiving Proclamation by Abraham Lincoln President Lincoln emphasized a national day of thanks
It is the duty of the nations as well as of men to own their dependence upon the over ruling power of God;
to confess their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow, yet with assured hope that genuine repentance' will lead to mercy and pardon; and to recognize the sublime truth, announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history, that those nations are blessed whose God is the LORD.
We know that by His divine law, nations, like individuals, are subject to punishments and chastisements in this world. May we not justly fear that the awful calamity of civil war which now desolates the land ,may be a punishment inflicted upon us for-our presumptuous sins; to the needful end of our national reformation as a whole people? We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven. We have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity. We have grown in numbers, wealth and power as no other nation has ever grown.
But we have forgotten God. We-have forgotten the gracious hand-which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us. It has seemed to me fit and proper that God should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice by the whole American people.
I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November as a day of Thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens. And I recommend to them that, while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners, or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty hand to heal the wounds of the nation, and to restore it, as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes, to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility, and union. Done at the city of Washington, this 20th day of October, A.D. 1864, and of the Independence of the United States the eighty-ninth.
November 11, 2018
THE WIDOW WHO GAVE HER ALL
Women during Jesus’ time had no opportunity to form an identity on their own. They always had to rely on men, either their spouses or their sons to help them have influence in life. If they lost the men in their family, they had nothing. Without the man, she could not own property, a home or have an income.
Yet in this Sunday’s Gospel, we see a widow who defies all the odds against her. She presents herself in the temple with great courage and humility showing her brave faith. She gives all that she has to the temple collection, because she has such hopes in God’s promise and trusts in His word. The widow gave from her very means and goes beyond her comfort zone. Jesus notices!
What about us? How do we give of ourselves to God? If we want to be his followers, are we willing to go beyond our comfort zones when we give of ourselves like that widow who gave everything she had? Are we willing to follow humility, emptiness, brokenness, littleness, and sacrifice. This means letting go of all that I want or desire and giving to God my time, talent and treasure.
Many of you have been generous in giving to our Capital Campaign. As you can see by the projects we have completed, your dollars are at work. I am deeply grateful for your sacrifice to your parish. However, my great concern is our regular Sunday collection. They have fallen quite dramatically since 2011. They have fallen even greater since 2016 when our Capital Campaign began. While it is important that each of us complete our payments to the campaign, it is equally crucial that we continue our regular contributions to the Sunday collection. This is what helps us with our daily operations here at St. Ignatius Loyola. Without it, we would be at a great economic loss and would have to cut our ministries and programs. Here is an example of our recent collections in September and October 2018 compared September & October 2017.
Women during Jesus’ time had no opportunity to form an identity on their own. They always had to rely on men, either their spouses or their sons to help them have influence in life. If they lost the men in their family, they had nothing. Without the man, she could not own property, a home or have an income.
Yet in this Sunday’s Gospel, we see a widow who defies all the odds against her. She presents herself in the temple with great courage and humility showing her brave faith. She gives all that she has to the temple collection, because she has such hopes in God’s promise and trusts in His word. The widow gave from her very means and goes beyond her comfort zone. Jesus notices!
What about us? How do we give of ourselves to God? If we want to be his followers, are we willing to go beyond our comfort zones when we give of ourselves like that widow who gave everything she had? Are we willing to follow humility, emptiness, brokenness, littleness, and sacrifice. This means letting go of all that I want or desire and giving to God my time, talent and treasure.
Many of you have been generous in giving to our Capital Campaign. As you can see by the projects we have completed, your dollars are at work. I am deeply grateful for your sacrifice to your parish. However, my great concern is our regular Sunday collection. They have fallen quite dramatically since 2011. They have fallen even greater since 2016 when our Capital Campaign began. While it is important that each of us complete our payments to the campaign, it is equally crucial that we continue our regular contributions to the Sunday collection. This is what helps us with our daily operations here at St. Ignatius Loyola. Without it, we would be at a great economic loss and would have to cut our ministries and programs. Here is an example of our recent collections in September and October 2018 compared September & October 2017.
There were only two Sundays where we were over last year’s results. All the other Sunday collections took a loss. So this Sunday and in the future, when you are preparing your envelope, or when the basket comes by, please think of the widow and the coin. She was noticed by Jesus and rewarded the glory of heaven because she gave from her heart. How about you? If you want to be rewarded by Jesus, are you willing to give to God from your heart by giving to your parish of St. Ignatius? Jesus notices!
May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
November 4, 2018
The Saint Agnes Medal of Service
Please congratulate St. Ignatius Loyola’s recent recipient of the St. Agnes Medal for Service, Carol Hogan who has been a parishioner here for many years. The St. Agnes Medal of Service was instituted twelve years ago by Bishop William F. Murphy to recognize members of our local Church who have contributed their time and talent to all of our parishes in the Diocese of Rockville Centre.
Carol, like all of our past recipients, had been chosen for this honor because of her consistent, generous and meaningful contribution to the life of St. Ignatius Loyola. Carol has served in many ministries in and outside of our parish, including the Martha’s Guild, Parish Activities and Fundraising, the Mercy League which benefits Mercy Hospital, moderator of our parish Adult Altar Servers and the Finance Committee. Carol currently serves as a Parish Trustee. Thank you, Carol, for all your dedicated work and service to our parish of St. Ignatius Loyola. May God continue to bless you and Mary keep you!
Thank you also to all of past recipients for your dedicated work to our parish! You are examples of what Jesus means in the Sunday’s Gospel Mark 12:28-34 to Love God and Love neighbor.
Please congratulate St. Ignatius Loyola’s recent recipient of the St. Agnes Medal for Service, Carol Hogan who has been a parishioner here for many years. The St. Agnes Medal of Service was instituted twelve years ago by Bishop William F. Murphy to recognize members of our local Church who have contributed their time and talent to all of our parishes in the Diocese of Rockville Centre.
Carol, like all of our past recipients, had been chosen for this honor because of her consistent, generous and meaningful contribution to the life of St. Ignatius Loyola. Carol has served in many ministries in and outside of our parish, including the Martha’s Guild, Parish Activities and Fundraising, the Mercy League which benefits Mercy Hospital, moderator of our parish Adult Altar Servers and the Finance Committee. Carol currently serves as a Parish Trustee. Thank you, Carol, for all your dedicated work and service to our parish of St. Ignatius Loyola. May God continue to bless you and Mary keep you!
Thank you also to all of past recipients for your dedicated work to our parish! You are examples of what Jesus means in the Sunday’s Gospel Mark 12:28-34 to Love God and Love neighbor.
CONTINUING OUR MISSION, THE CAPITAL CAMPAIGN
As you can see, our new organ was recently installed last Friday, Oct. 19, 2018.
It is an Allan Organ filled with many beautiful sounds and melodies that will en- hance our prayer of song here at St. Ignatius Loyola! Thank you to all who are giv- ing and have given to our Capital Campaign. We are still a little less than $300,000 to reach our goal of $1.5 million. If you have not yet given, it is never too late. We look at equal sacrifice, not equal giving!
I have noticed however that our regular Sunday collections have dropped considerably. My sense is that we may be giving to the campaign but not to the church collection. Please remember that we still rely on our Sunday collections to help run our daily operations and our ministries. This is so important. It is difficult when we rob Peter to pay Paul. I humbly ask each of us to continue to give to our Sunday offerings. Please do not think that if you give to the campaign, that helps us on Sunday. It is for a different purpose.
ALL SOULS’ MASS
Please join us for our All Souls’ Mass on Monday November 5, 2018 at 7:30pm. This is a special time to
pray for and remember all those who died in our parish over this past year. We also pray for those who have died previously and for all the souls in purgatory that will now receive them to enter into the eternal happi- ness of Heaven.
May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always! St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
As you can see, our new organ was recently installed last Friday, Oct. 19, 2018.
It is an Allan Organ filled with many beautiful sounds and melodies that will en- hance our prayer of song here at St. Ignatius Loyola! Thank you to all who are giv- ing and have given to our Capital Campaign. We are still a little less than $300,000 to reach our goal of $1.5 million. If you have not yet given, it is never too late. We look at equal sacrifice, not equal giving!
I have noticed however that our regular Sunday collections have dropped considerably. My sense is that we may be giving to the campaign but not to the church collection. Please remember that we still rely on our Sunday collections to help run our daily operations and our ministries. This is so important. It is difficult when we rob Peter to pay Paul. I humbly ask each of us to continue to give to our Sunday offerings. Please do not think that if you give to the campaign, that helps us on Sunday. It is for a different purpose.
ALL SOULS’ MASS
Please join us for our All Souls’ Mass on Monday November 5, 2018 at 7:30pm. This is a special time to
pray for and remember all those who died in our parish over this past year. We also pray for those who have died previously and for all the souls in purgatory that will now receive them to enter into the eternal happi- ness of Heaven.
May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always! St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
October 28, 2018
During my priestly formation years in the Seminary, we were involved in seminars that are different from our usual studies in Theology. The purpose was to give us a well-rounded experience of priestly ministry in the Church. One such program was on how to work with people with disabilities. During this seminar, we actually got to experience what it was like to be nearly blind. We were given special glasses to wear that made everything very blurry. We had to walk down the hallway and down the steps with these glasses. One certainly could not do this alone. We were given guides. Even though we could not see, the guides were our eyes in helping us not fall or bump into the walls. We needed to trust them.
In Mark’s Gospel today, we see this man Bartimaeus who was blind from birth. Blindness like many other disabilities, was thought to be a curse from God. Those who could not see, could not work. So, Bartimaeus experienced suffering not only with his eyes. but with poverty and hunger. However, even though he was blind, he could see in other ways from his heart. He sensed that Jesus was someone very special in whom he could trust. Bartimaues, who never saw Jesus, makes an act of faith in calling out to the Lord. Not only does he show great faith, but also great perseverance in not allowing others to prevent him from getting Jesus’ attention. Jesus of course, grants him his request and opens him to the fullness of God’s presence because he had faith.
While many of us may not be blind from sight, we are all blind by our sins that prevent us from seeing God in our midst and fully living out our faith. This is shown through our addictions, fears, anger, pride, selfishness and insecurities. Maybe we are just too busy to see the Lord in our midst. But, we must not lose hope because God in his infinite mercy is reaching out to all of us each day to help us to see his loving presence before him. We need not be afraid of him because Jesus who acts as our High Priest, knows what we are going through. He is able to “sympathize with our weaknesses” (Hebrews 4:15) and take them to the cross. Since he is victorious through the cross, we too share in his victory! But, do we really believe and trust Him or are we ashamed, afraid, and filled with doubt?
Our Catechism of the Catholic Church, tells us that we are “all invited by Jesus to enter the Kingdom of God. Even the worst of sinners is able to change and accept the boundless mercy of the Father. Already on earth the Kingdom belongs to those who accept it with a humble heart” (CCC 541-546, 567). We can form a humble and open heart by talking to God , asking for His grace, participating in the Mass, reading the Scriptures, receiving the sacraments, helping others and looking to others who are role models of faith as mentors. My dad, Stanley, who was an optometrist, helped us to see in more ways than one. He helped us to see life with faith, hope, perseverance and ultimately with love. He was a part of that “greatest generation” who taught us respect for others and self. He also taught us the gift of hospitality. My hope is to continue to follow his ways so that I can be lead closer to Jesus.
Notice that Bartimaeus did not return home. He went and followed Jesus. He shared his good fortune with others, helping them to see Jesus in their midst. We pray that the Lord will deliver each of us from our blindness to sight, in our heart, from death to new life. Once we really see the world and all around us through the eyes of faith, then we can truly find and serve Christ in one another and ultimately we pray, in Heaven.
Congratulations to Carol Hogan, who is this year’s recipient of the St. Agnes Medal for dedicated service to our parish! Please pray for Carol and her family! More to come.
May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
In Mark’s Gospel today, we see this man Bartimaeus who was blind from birth. Blindness like many other disabilities, was thought to be a curse from God. Those who could not see, could not work. So, Bartimaeus experienced suffering not only with his eyes. but with poverty and hunger. However, even though he was blind, he could see in other ways from his heart. He sensed that Jesus was someone very special in whom he could trust. Bartimaues, who never saw Jesus, makes an act of faith in calling out to the Lord. Not only does he show great faith, but also great perseverance in not allowing others to prevent him from getting Jesus’ attention. Jesus of course, grants him his request and opens him to the fullness of God’s presence because he had faith.
While many of us may not be blind from sight, we are all blind by our sins that prevent us from seeing God in our midst and fully living out our faith. This is shown through our addictions, fears, anger, pride, selfishness and insecurities. Maybe we are just too busy to see the Lord in our midst. But, we must not lose hope because God in his infinite mercy is reaching out to all of us each day to help us to see his loving presence before him. We need not be afraid of him because Jesus who acts as our High Priest, knows what we are going through. He is able to “sympathize with our weaknesses” (Hebrews 4:15) and take them to the cross. Since he is victorious through the cross, we too share in his victory! But, do we really believe and trust Him or are we ashamed, afraid, and filled with doubt?
Our Catechism of the Catholic Church, tells us that we are “all invited by Jesus to enter the Kingdom of God. Even the worst of sinners is able to change and accept the boundless mercy of the Father. Already on earth the Kingdom belongs to those who accept it with a humble heart” (CCC 541-546, 567). We can form a humble and open heart by talking to God , asking for His grace, participating in the Mass, reading the Scriptures, receiving the sacraments, helping others and looking to others who are role models of faith as mentors. My dad, Stanley, who was an optometrist, helped us to see in more ways than one. He helped us to see life with faith, hope, perseverance and ultimately with love. He was a part of that “greatest generation” who taught us respect for others and self. He also taught us the gift of hospitality. My hope is to continue to follow his ways so that I can be lead closer to Jesus.
Notice that Bartimaeus did not return home. He went and followed Jesus. He shared his good fortune with others, helping them to see Jesus in their midst. We pray that the Lord will deliver each of us from our blindness to sight, in our heart, from death to new life. Once we really see the world and all around us through the eyes of faith, then we can truly find and serve Christ in one another and ultimately we pray, in Heaven.
Congratulations to Carol Hogan, who is this year’s recipient of the St. Agnes Medal for dedicated service to our parish! Please pray for Carol and her family! More to come.
May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
October 21, 2018
CELEBRATION OF DİA DE LA RAZA The Day of the Races
Every year, our Spanish speaking parishioners celebrate Dia de la Raza, or Day of the Races. It marks the time when Christopher Columbus discovered the Americas on October 12, 1492. His discovery opened the door for many explorers from Spain (Home of Fr. Andrés) including Amerigo Vespuci who gave our continents here the name America. He discovered South America.
On this day, the countries of Central and South America celebrate their traditions and culture with food, dance, traditional clothing and song. Our parishioners come from El Salvador (Home of Deacon Jose), Guatamala (Home of Deacon Mario) Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador and the Dominican Republic.
This day reminds me of the letter of St. Paul to the Ephesians. He writes may we all “bear with one another in love striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit as you were also called to the one hope of your call one Lord, one faith , one Baptism under one God and Father of all who is overall and through all and in all”. Eph 3-5. May we reflect on these words of Paul to help us in this culture of division, negative politics and selfishness. Fr. Jim Pastor
Every year, our Spanish speaking parishioners celebrate Dia de la Raza, or Day of the Races. It marks the time when Christopher Columbus discovered the Americas on October 12, 1492. His discovery opened the door for many explorers from Spain (Home of Fr. Andrés) including Amerigo Vespuci who gave our continents here the name America. He discovered South America.
On this day, the countries of Central and South America celebrate their traditions and culture with food, dance, traditional clothing and song. Our parishioners come from El Salvador (Home of Deacon Jose), Guatamala (Home of Deacon Mario) Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador and the Dominican Republic.
This day reminds me of the letter of St. Paul to the Ephesians. He writes may we all “bear with one another in love striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit as you were also called to the one hope of your call one Lord, one faith , one Baptism under one God and Father of all who is overall and through all and in all”. Eph 3-5. May we reflect on these words of Paul to help us in this culture of division, negative politics and selfishness. Fr. Jim Pastor
October 14, 2018
ST. OSCAR ARNULFO ROMERO, PRAY FOR US
Today, Sunday, October 14th Pope Francis will canonize two influential and faithful priests into official Saints of the Church; Blessed Pope Paul VI and Blessed Oscar Arnulfo Romero, Archbishop of San Salvador, El Salvador. I had the opportunity not only to visit the hospital of the Divine Providence where St. Oscar Romero was martyred, but also to celebrate Mass at the very altar where his blood was spilled. We will have a Mass of Thanksgiving in Spanish at 7pm Sunday, October 21, 2018 in honor of St. Oscar Romero. Join us please!
My visit was with the youth of my first assigned parish of St. Brigid, Westbury. Every year the Youth Minister from St. Brigid held a pilgrimage for youth and adults sponsored by the CFCA (Children’s Foundation for Children and Aging). The purpose of the trip was to see and experience true poverty where many families of St. Brigid originated from and still do today, including our own from St. Ignatius.
When we arrived at the chapel where St. Oscar Romero died while celebrating Mass, I could not help but think about Good Friday and where Jesus spilled his blood on the cross for us out of love.St. Romero did the same out of love for his Church and his Country. I decided to enter the chapel as we would enter our church for Good Friday. I wore red vestments for the occasion. While I prostrated on the floor, all knelt in silence. It was an incredible, indescribable moment in being at the altar where this great man was martyred and thinking about the life of a man who gave himself to Jesus for the souls of his people in need.
Archbishop Romero was born on August 15, 1917. He was ordained a Priest in 1942. After earning a doctorate in ascetical theology, he returned home and became a parish priest and rector of an Inter-diocesan seminary. He was appointed Archbishop of San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador, in 1977.
St. Romero was considered a “safe choice” at the time of the violent Civil War in his country. He refused to make waves against the government in any way, even though it was accused of kidnapping and murdering its own people, for fear of communism. It did not matter if they were guilty or innocent. The Church hierarchy often sided with governing forces at the time, for fear of a communist takeover.
It was not until three weeks after his appointment as archbishop, that Romero was shaken and transformed by the murder of his good friend, Jesuit Father Rutilio Grande, a vigorous defender of the rights of the poor. Five more priests were assassinated in the Archdiocese of San Salvador during Romero’s years as its shepherd.
When a military junta seized control of the national government in 1979, Archbishop Romero publicly criticized the US government for backing the junta. His weekly radio sermons, broadcast throughout the country, were regarded by many as the most trustworthy source of news available. St. Romero’s funeral was celebrated in the plaza outside the cathedral and drew an estimated 250,000 mourners. His tomb in the cathedral crypt soon drew thousands of visitors each year. On February 3, 2015, Pope Francis authorized a decree recognizing Oscar Romero as a martyr for the faith. His beatification took place in San Salvador on May 23, 2015.
St. Oscar Romero is called the Model Pastor and the Model Bishop for us all. As one Salvadoran woman described him, Archbishop Romero “is not ours but he is St. Romero of the Americas, now he is going to be St. Romero of the world." Following Jesus always requires choices. Romero’s fiercest critics conveniently dismissed his choices as politically inspired. He shows us how an incarnational faith must be expressed publicly. Pray for the people of El Salvador and all Salvadorans of our parish today. May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor
Today, Sunday, October 14th Pope Francis will canonize two influential and faithful priests into official Saints of the Church; Blessed Pope Paul VI and Blessed Oscar Arnulfo Romero, Archbishop of San Salvador, El Salvador. I had the opportunity not only to visit the hospital of the Divine Providence where St. Oscar Romero was martyred, but also to celebrate Mass at the very altar where his blood was spilled. We will have a Mass of Thanksgiving in Spanish at 7pm Sunday, October 21, 2018 in honor of St. Oscar Romero. Join us please!
My visit was with the youth of my first assigned parish of St. Brigid, Westbury. Every year the Youth Minister from St. Brigid held a pilgrimage for youth and adults sponsored by the CFCA (Children’s Foundation for Children and Aging). The purpose of the trip was to see and experience true poverty where many families of St. Brigid originated from and still do today, including our own from St. Ignatius.
When we arrived at the chapel where St. Oscar Romero died while celebrating Mass, I could not help but think about Good Friday and where Jesus spilled his blood on the cross for us out of love.St. Romero did the same out of love for his Church and his Country. I decided to enter the chapel as we would enter our church for Good Friday. I wore red vestments for the occasion. While I prostrated on the floor, all knelt in silence. It was an incredible, indescribable moment in being at the altar where this great man was martyred and thinking about the life of a man who gave himself to Jesus for the souls of his people in need.
Archbishop Romero was born on August 15, 1917. He was ordained a Priest in 1942. After earning a doctorate in ascetical theology, he returned home and became a parish priest and rector of an Inter-diocesan seminary. He was appointed Archbishop of San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador, in 1977.
St. Romero was considered a “safe choice” at the time of the violent Civil War in his country. He refused to make waves against the government in any way, even though it was accused of kidnapping and murdering its own people, for fear of communism. It did not matter if they were guilty or innocent. The Church hierarchy often sided with governing forces at the time, for fear of a communist takeover.
It was not until three weeks after his appointment as archbishop, that Romero was shaken and transformed by the murder of his good friend, Jesuit Father Rutilio Grande, a vigorous defender of the rights of the poor. Five more priests were assassinated in the Archdiocese of San Salvador during Romero’s years as its shepherd.
When a military junta seized control of the national government in 1979, Archbishop Romero publicly criticized the US government for backing the junta. His weekly radio sermons, broadcast throughout the country, were regarded by many as the most trustworthy source of news available. St. Romero’s funeral was celebrated in the plaza outside the cathedral and drew an estimated 250,000 mourners. His tomb in the cathedral crypt soon drew thousands of visitors each year. On February 3, 2015, Pope Francis authorized a decree recognizing Oscar Romero as a martyr for the faith. His beatification took place in San Salvador on May 23, 2015.
St. Oscar Romero is called the Model Pastor and the Model Bishop for us all. As one Salvadoran woman described him, Archbishop Romero “is not ours but he is St. Romero of the Americas, now he is going to be St. Romero of the world." Following Jesus always requires choices. Romero’s fiercest critics conveniently dismissed his choices as politically inspired. He shows us how an incarnational faith must be expressed publicly. Pray for the people of El Salvador and all Salvadorans of our parish today. May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor
October 7, 2018
CONTINUING OUR MISSION-THE CAPITAL CAMPAIGN UPDATE WHERE WE ARE-$1,231,645.28 WHERE WE NEED TO BE- $1,500,000
As we inch closer toward our Capital Campaign goal, work on the parking lot continues. My hope is that by the time you read this column, the project will be completed! Thank you for patience and flexibility during this time. Due to the weather and other conditions in the lot, the project took longer than expected. Doesn’t an issue happen at home, work or school that tries your patience?
In light of all that is going on in our country, our Church and on social media, we can easily lose patience with one another. Jesus said “By your patience you will save your soul”. In an article I read on Catholic Exchange.com by Fr. Ed Broom, OMV, here are 5 simple suggestions that can help us with building patience within ourselves and each other.
FIRST-PRAY
Pray not only for the charming ones we love, but pray also for the person who irritates you or can be a thorn in your side.
SECOND-HUMILITY
When you are tempted to look down on a person, think about your own egregious actions and God’s mercy towards you. This will help you look upon that person with a different set of eyes. We seem to live in a country that points fingers, but has no mercy.
THIRD-ACT CONTRARY TO YOUR IMPULSIVENESS-AGERE CONTRA
In his Spiritual Exercises, St. Ignatius Loyola, writes about agere contra. This is a short Latin phrase to go against. The next time you feel tempted to be impatient, unkind, cold, or downright mean to a person who presses your buttons, do the opposite. A smile, kind word, nice gesture-even a small gift is pleasing to God. This conquering of self is difficult. But once done, this is a victory and a sign of God’s grace in your life.
FOURTH-PATIENCE WITH YOURSELF
Sometimes we are so concerned with perfection, that we lose sight of being kind to our- selves. When we are not kind to self, we act out against everyone else. While we all sin, this should not discourage us from starting again. The Founder of the Oblates of the Virgin Mary, Venerable Bruno Lanteri expressed it in two short words, and these two words say it all: Nunc coepi, meaning now I begin. In other words, after we fall or fail in one way or another, we should get up, dust ourselves off, launch ourselves into the loving arms of God the Father (the image of Saint Therese of Lisieux), and simply start anew! Trust in God’s grace.
FIFTH-PATIENCE WITH GOD
God’s ways are not always our ways. Instead of fighting with God when things don’t go your way, ask him to help you to trust in his infinite love, care and plan for you. Beg our lady, who stayed at the cross watching Jesus suffering and die, to help you to have great trust and patience in God’s plan for your life.
Our next Continuing Our Mission projects are the rectory roof and a new organ! Thank you for your contributions! If you have not donated yet, think of doing so. No gift is ever too small! May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
As we inch closer toward our Capital Campaign goal, work on the parking lot continues. My hope is that by the time you read this column, the project will be completed! Thank you for patience and flexibility during this time. Due to the weather and other conditions in the lot, the project took longer than expected. Doesn’t an issue happen at home, work or school that tries your patience?
In light of all that is going on in our country, our Church and on social media, we can easily lose patience with one another. Jesus said “By your patience you will save your soul”. In an article I read on Catholic Exchange.com by Fr. Ed Broom, OMV, here are 5 simple suggestions that can help us with building patience within ourselves and each other.
FIRST-PRAY
Pray not only for the charming ones we love, but pray also for the person who irritates you or can be a thorn in your side.
SECOND-HUMILITY
When you are tempted to look down on a person, think about your own egregious actions and God’s mercy towards you. This will help you look upon that person with a different set of eyes. We seem to live in a country that points fingers, but has no mercy.
THIRD-ACT CONTRARY TO YOUR IMPULSIVENESS-AGERE CONTRA
In his Spiritual Exercises, St. Ignatius Loyola, writes about agere contra. This is a short Latin phrase to go against. The next time you feel tempted to be impatient, unkind, cold, or downright mean to a person who presses your buttons, do the opposite. A smile, kind word, nice gesture-even a small gift is pleasing to God. This conquering of self is difficult. But once done, this is a victory and a sign of God’s grace in your life.
FOURTH-PATIENCE WITH YOURSELF
Sometimes we are so concerned with perfection, that we lose sight of being kind to our- selves. When we are not kind to self, we act out against everyone else. While we all sin, this should not discourage us from starting again. The Founder of the Oblates of the Virgin Mary, Venerable Bruno Lanteri expressed it in two short words, and these two words say it all: Nunc coepi, meaning now I begin. In other words, after we fall or fail in one way or another, we should get up, dust ourselves off, launch ourselves into the loving arms of God the Father (the image of Saint Therese of Lisieux), and simply start anew! Trust in God’s grace.
FIFTH-PATIENCE WITH GOD
God’s ways are not always our ways. Instead of fighting with God when things don’t go your way, ask him to help you to trust in his infinite love, care and plan for you. Beg our lady, who stayed at the cross watching Jesus suffering and die, to help you to have great trust and patience in God’s plan for your life.
Our next Continuing Our Mission projects are the rectory roof and a new organ! Thank you for your contributions! If you have not donated yet, think of doing so. No gift is ever too small! May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim
Pastor
September 30, 2018
WE ARE ONE IN THE SPIRIT, WE ARE ONE IN THE LORD
In our Sunday Gospel from Mark, we read that the youngest apostle (John, the brother of James) has the loudest voice. Jesus called these two the “Sons of Thunder” (see Mark 3:17) John seems to be moti- vated by a holy zeal to stop others who are doing good without the disciples’ authorization. John tells Jesus that he came across a man casting out demons in the name of Jesus—but he is “not one of us” and John thinks he should be silenced. Exorcists of this sort were common in antiquity. We see in the Gospel of Luke how James, the other brother, shows a similar intolerance toward a Samaritan who refused the hospitality of Jesus and his disciples. James calls for fire from Heaven to come down upon him. In the Book of Acts of the Apostles, the seven sons of a Jewish priest named Sceva have a rude surprise when they try to cast out demons in the name of “Jesus whom Paul preaches” (Acts 19:11-20).
Jesus does not accept this attitude at all. As their leader, he is certainly aware of the demands on loyal- ty needed to keep his group of Middle Eastern men together. However, Jesus wants to expand the boundaries of loyalty and include those working toward the same goals, like the person working to free another person, from the oppression of the devil. Jesus is telling his disciples that whenever good work is done in service of others, it should not be stopped. This volunteer is on their side and will not be inclined to speak against Jesus and his ministry.
This reminds me of how our Church has changed toward other Christians who worship and serve in our midst. When my parents grew up, you would not even dare to enter into a Protestant church because it was considered sacrilegious.
We felt that the Protestants were on the wrong side of history and were in error in their teachings. The Church has evolved, however, since the Second Vatican Council, where the Church recognizes that Christ is also in the other churches, not only our own. In the Vatican II Decree on Ecumenism, Unitatis Redintgratio, the Church recognizes the wounds caused by historic division between other Christians and herself. The documents states that “large communities became separated from the Catholic Church of which both men are to blame.” (Catechism of the Catholic Church CCC #187) We cannot blame those who are born today for the problems of today, not of their own making. “Those who are Baptized, no matter in what Church, are incorporated into the Body of Christ. They therefore, have a right to be called Christians and with good reason are accepted as brothers (sisters) in the Lord, by the Children of the Catholic Church” (CCC 818). Many elements of holiness and truth are found outside the Catholic Church such as the Word of God, the life of grace, hope, faith and charity; and the gifts of the Holy Spirit” (CCC 819) All of these gifts lead us to Christ and call of Christian Unity.
To honor our perseverance for unity, Joe Samodulski and I take part in an ecumenical breakfast meeting once a month with the pastors and some of the outreach coordinators of Holy Family, Our Lady of Mercy, Trinity Lutheran, St. Stephen’s Lutheran, Holy Trinity Episcopal, Hicksville United Methodist, and the Graffiti Church. We discuss the issues of our community and how best to work together as one body of Christ. We host different Worship Events in Advent, Christian Unity Week and during Lent. Please check the bulletin for announcements and try to come and join us because they are not against us, they are for us! Currently, we are working on a project to have a shelter for the Homeless. More details to come at a later date.
May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always.
May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God! St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor
In our Sunday Gospel from Mark, we read that the youngest apostle (John, the brother of James) has the loudest voice. Jesus called these two the “Sons of Thunder” (see Mark 3:17) John seems to be moti- vated by a holy zeal to stop others who are doing good without the disciples’ authorization. John tells Jesus that he came across a man casting out demons in the name of Jesus—but he is “not one of us” and John thinks he should be silenced. Exorcists of this sort were common in antiquity. We see in the Gospel of Luke how James, the other brother, shows a similar intolerance toward a Samaritan who refused the hospitality of Jesus and his disciples. James calls for fire from Heaven to come down upon him. In the Book of Acts of the Apostles, the seven sons of a Jewish priest named Sceva have a rude surprise when they try to cast out demons in the name of “Jesus whom Paul preaches” (Acts 19:11-20).
Jesus does not accept this attitude at all. As their leader, he is certainly aware of the demands on loyal- ty needed to keep his group of Middle Eastern men together. However, Jesus wants to expand the boundaries of loyalty and include those working toward the same goals, like the person working to free another person, from the oppression of the devil. Jesus is telling his disciples that whenever good work is done in service of others, it should not be stopped. This volunteer is on their side and will not be inclined to speak against Jesus and his ministry.
This reminds me of how our Church has changed toward other Christians who worship and serve in our midst. When my parents grew up, you would not even dare to enter into a Protestant church because it was considered sacrilegious.
We felt that the Protestants were on the wrong side of history and were in error in their teachings. The Church has evolved, however, since the Second Vatican Council, where the Church recognizes that Christ is also in the other churches, not only our own. In the Vatican II Decree on Ecumenism, Unitatis Redintgratio, the Church recognizes the wounds caused by historic division between other Christians and herself. The documents states that “large communities became separated from the Catholic Church of which both men are to blame.” (Catechism of the Catholic Church CCC #187) We cannot blame those who are born today for the problems of today, not of their own making. “Those who are Baptized, no matter in what Church, are incorporated into the Body of Christ. They therefore, have a right to be called Christians and with good reason are accepted as brothers (sisters) in the Lord, by the Children of the Catholic Church” (CCC 818). Many elements of holiness and truth are found outside the Catholic Church such as the Word of God, the life of grace, hope, faith and charity; and the gifts of the Holy Spirit” (CCC 819) All of these gifts lead us to Christ and call of Christian Unity.
To honor our perseverance for unity, Joe Samodulski and I take part in an ecumenical breakfast meeting once a month with the pastors and some of the outreach coordinators of Holy Family, Our Lady of Mercy, Trinity Lutheran, St. Stephen’s Lutheran, Holy Trinity Episcopal, Hicksville United Methodist, and the Graffiti Church. We discuss the issues of our community and how best to work together as one body of Christ. We host different Worship Events in Advent, Christian Unity Week and during Lent. Please check the bulletin for announcements and try to come and join us because they are not against us, they are for us! Currently, we are working on a project to have a shelter for the Homeless. More details to come at a later date.
May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always.
May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God! St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor
September 23, 2018
CONTINUING OUR MISSION-THE CAPITAL CAMPAIGN UPDATE
WHERE WE ARE- $1,228,029 WHERE WE NEED TO BE- $1,500,000
Here are your dollars at work. Our new parking lot has begun! Thank you to all who are contributing to this worthwhile endeavor. If you have not yet contributed to our Campaign and would like to, please contact our business office at the rectory (516) 931 -0056 Ext. 118. It is never too late. Every dollar that you contribute will be matched by our Diocese up to 1.5 Million Dollar. This is truly a gift.
Thank you for being patient and doing what you can to arrive at church during this time. Perhaps you had to park a little further than usual. When something like this happens, we can make our extra walk into a prayer, like the rosary, offering it for someone in need! Our next capital project will be the roof of the rectory which is in need of repair from all the rain we have been having over this past year. Stay Tune!
100TH ANNIVERSARY OF ST PIO-PADRE RECEIVING THE STIGMATA OF CHRIST
This past Thursday September 20, 2018, marked the celebration of the 100th anniversary of Padre Pio receiving what is called the Stigmata of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Stigmata are the five major wounds that Christ received on his hands, in his feet and in his side from the experience of his passion, crucifixion and death. A few saints have been given this gift as a sign of their union with the crucified Christ.
St. Pio, as a Capuchin priest, received the Stigmata on September 20, 1918. St. Pio’s stigmata showed how he lived the passion of Christ in a mystical way. The wounds of Christ appeared on his body while he was praying before a crucifix. Padre Pio’s wounds helped him to understand the cosmic power of the Catholic Mass, the unbloody representation of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross and a relationship between a holy living of the priesthood and the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Although painful like Christ’s wounds, the stigmata helped Padre Pio to be a Doctor of Mercy in the confessional and a Doctor of Mercy for all those who faced all types of traumas of life. St. Pio’s wounds gave him a unique understanding of how to heal the wounds of the Church throughout History. As we contemplate his wounds, may we think about what in life has wounded us and ask Padre Pio’s intercession to help heal them. May we also ask St. Pio to help heal the wounds of our Church during this time of hurt and uncertainty. (For More Information See Bishop Barres’ Video on below - Padre Pio – Reflection (English)
We pray: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, we thank you for the Holy Witness of your priest, St. Pio and the gift of the Stigmata you gave him. We ask St. Pio’s intercession that the wounds and traumas of survivors of abuse and the wounds of the entire Church may be touched by the glorified wounds of the risen Christ. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God St. Ignatius Loyola pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor
WHERE WE ARE- $1,228,029 WHERE WE NEED TO BE- $1,500,000
Here are your dollars at work. Our new parking lot has begun! Thank you to all who are contributing to this worthwhile endeavor. If you have not yet contributed to our Campaign and would like to, please contact our business office at the rectory (516) 931 -0056 Ext. 118. It is never too late. Every dollar that you contribute will be matched by our Diocese up to 1.5 Million Dollar. This is truly a gift.
Thank you for being patient and doing what you can to arrive at church during this time. Perhaps you had to park a little further than usual. When something like this happens, we can make our extra walk into a prayer, like the rosary, offering it for someone in need! Our next capital project will be the roof of the rectory which is in need of repair from all the rain we have been having over this past year. Stay Tune!
100TH ANNIVERSARY OF ST PIO-PADRE RECEIVING THE STIGMATA OF CHRIST
This past Thursday September 20, 2018, marked the celebration of the 100th anniversary of Padre Pio receiving what is called the Stigmata of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Stigmata are the five major wounds that Christ received on his hands, in his feet and in his side from the experience of his passion, crucifixion and death. A few saints have been given this gift as a sign of their union with the crucified Christ.
St. Pio, as a Capuchin priest, received the Stigmata on September 20, 1918. St. Pio’s stigmata showed how he lived the passion of Christ in a mystical way. The wounds of Christ appeared on his body while he was praying before a crucifix. Padre Pio’s wounds helped him to understand the cosmic power of the Catholic Mass, the unbloody representation of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross and a relationship between a holy living of the priesthood and the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Although painful like Christ’s wounds, the stigmata helped Padre Pio to be a Doctor of Mercy in the confessional and a Doctor of Mercy for all those who faced all types of traumas of life. St. Pio’s wounds gave him a unique understanding of how to heal the wounds of the Church throughout History. As we contemplate his wounds, may we think about what in life has wounded us and ask Padre Pio’s intercession to help heal them. May we also ask St. Pio to help heal the wounds of our Church during this time of hurt and uncertainty. (For More Information See Bishop Barres’ Video on below - Padre Pio – Reflection (English)
We pray: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, we thank you for the Holy Witness of your priest, St. Pio and the gift of the Stigmata you gave him. We ask St. Pio’s intercession that the wounds and traumas of survivors of abuse and the wounds of the entire Church may be touched by the glorified wounds of the risen Christ. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families always. May we remember to always do things for the greater glory of God St. Ignatius Loyola pray for us!
Fr. Jim, Pastor