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Catechesis Corner
(November 9 - 15, 2019) As we approach Christ the King In the aftermath of the violence and countless deaths of WWI, Pope Pius the XI wrote the encyclical “When in the inscrutable designs of God”. The encyclical decried the evil of any Christian who would place any empire or ideology above the fullness of Christian truth. He said that the root of all worldly ideologies are the love of money, the love of power, and the love of pleasure as an end in itself. He asked all Christian denominations to cry out to Christ as the only King of their personal and corporate lives. A few years later this same Pope instituted the Feast of Christ the King which in the Ordinary Form we celebrate this year on November 24th. Let us prepare our hearts by giving them fully to Jesus, King of the Universe! |
PAST BULLETINS
( 2018 / 2019 )
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Catechesis Corner
Week of June 22-28, 2019
Week of June 22-28, 2019
What is more dangerous than doctrinal relativism? Doctrinal relativism is defined as either holding that certain Christian convictions are not important (such as the belief in the Trinity) or that all Christian convictions are the same as other religions. Doctrinal relativism is an error in the sense that certain religions and ideologies have clear contradictions, and to respect any honest statement of faith by any person would be to recognize that one religion believes something different than a different religion in certain areas. Pope Francis in Joy of the Gospel has pointed out that there is something worse than doctrinal relativism that effects all Christians working to bring the Gospel to all: “Pastoral workers can thus fall into a relativism which, whatever their particular style of spirituality or way of thinking, proves even more dangerous than doctrinal relativism. It has to do with the deepest and inmost decisions that shape their way of life. This practical relativism consists in acting as if God did not exist, making decisions as if the poor did not exist, setting goals as if others did not exist, working as if people who have not received the Gospel did not exist. It is striking that even some who clearly have solid doctrinal and spiritual convictions frequently fall into a lifestyle which leads to an attachment to financial security, or to a desire for power or human glory at all cost, rather than giving their lives to others in mission,”
Jesus Christ is risen and we are called to rise with Him into a new life!
“Do not abandon yourselves to despair. We are the Easter people and hallelujah is our song.”
-St. Pope John Paul II (Karol Wojtyła)-
-St. Pope John Paul II (Karol Wojtyła)-
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Catechesis Corner
Week of June 1-7, 2019 Christianity versus every other religion believes in the reality of God’s very deep closeness with those whom he loves which is relayed to us in the historical events of the Ascension of Christ and Pentecost. This is summarized in an ancient prayer of the Church which says: “By your Agony and Bloody Sweat; by thy Cross and Passion; by your precious Death and Burial; by your glorious Resurrection and Ascension; and by the Coming of the Holy Spirit, Good Lord, deliver us.” We pray that “by… (the) Ascension… deliver us”: by this we mean that we know that God will one day save us and make a new world where there is no suffering and death. So we ask God to deliver/save us by it since one day we want to be saved and be a part of Christ’s coming kingdom. We pray that “by… the Coming of the Holy Spirit, Good Lord, deliver us,”: by this we mean that we want God to deliver us from our inclinations towards hatred and error to follow the Holy Spirit. We also pray that we may be filled with the Holy Spirit and our mortal bodies and souls saved by the Spirit’s work in our lives. Application: Pray the ancient prayer daily until Pentecost Sunday: “By your Agony and Bloody Sweat; by thy Cross and Passion; by your precious Death and Burial; by your glorious Resurrection and Ascension; and by the Coming of the Holy Spirit, Good Lord, deliver us.” |
Catechesis Corner
Week of June 8-14, 2019 One of the great beauties of time after Pentecost, (called Ordinary Time) is that the day after Pentecost we celebrate the great new Memorial of the “Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church”. In the decree that established the feast, Pope Francis tells of how St. Augustine thought Mary to be the Mother of all Christian people. He talked about how our relationship as Christians should be close to her. The placing of the Memorial right after Pentecost shares the great tradition that all sections of the Church has had, celebrating the work of the Holy Spirit in his people. This closeness of the Holy Spirit is especially true in St. Mary who as the decree says teaches us that “growth in the Christian life must be anchored to the Mystery of the Cross, to the oblation of Christ in the Eucharistic Banquet, and to the Mother of the Redeemer and Mother of the Redeemed, the Virgin who makes her offering to God.” Let us offer ourselves truly to God, and to His Blessed Mother, the Mother of all Christians as we grow in the graces of the Holy Spirit during Ordinary Time! |
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A special thank you to all of the volunteers and parishioners who helped to make our Easter Celebrations as meaningful as they should be. We very much appreciate your help and commitment. |
Catechesis Corner
Week of April 13-19, 2019
Week of April 13-19, 2019
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Now begins the descent after the glory of Palm Sunday. The same people who loved Jesus, now will hate him. As the ancient Psalm for the Church on this days says: But be not Thou far from me, O Lord: “Thou art my succour, haste Thee to help me. Save me from the lion's mouth: Thou hast heard me also from among the horns of the beasts. My God, my God, look upon me: why hast Thou forsaken me?” As we seek to spread the Gospel and to bring all to the Catholic Church, we have these contrasting feelings: glory and despair, happiness and a deep sadness. As human beings we sometimes hold these seemingly contradictory emotions. This is the great contradiction presented in Palm Sunday. And the message of it all is
that Jesus felt this too. And things will get worse. As the Psalm for Holy Monday (the day after Palm Sunday) says: “Awake, O Lord, and stand up to judge my quarrel! Avenge Thou my way, my God, and my Lord! Bring forth the spear, and stop the way against them that persecute me”. The only Mass permitted from this day (other than the Mass of the day) are funeral Masses. Even these stop on Holy Thursday. Even Evening Prayer is omitted on Good Friday until the glorious Easter Vigil begins…
Application: Pray Evening Prayer as many nights of Holy Week as you can (http://www.universalis.com/), or a short prayer, and then refrain from this specific prayer on Good Friday and Holy Saturday.
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Flowers of Remembrance In memory of our deceased family and friends |
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