DIOCESE OF ALTOONA-JOHNSTOWN

Transcription

1 DIOC OF OO-OHOW May 15, 2018 Office of iturgy 925 outh ogan Boulevard Hollidaysburg, P elephone: Fax: O: FROM: Clergy Monsignor Robert C. Mazur COCRI: (1) Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church (2) une 17 Father s Day (3) ugust 15 ssumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary / HO D (4) ummer iturgical Inserts (1) Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church he Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the acraments has inscribed a new obligatory Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church, into the eneral Roman Calendar. his memorial is celebrated every year on the Monday after Pentecost. his year that date is May 21, full Mass formulary, including Collect, Prayer over the Offerings, Preface, Prayer after Communion, and ntrance and Communion ntiphons are already included with the Roman Missal. White vestments are worn. he reference in the Roman Missal is from the Votive Masses: 10; Blessed Virgin Mary, B: Our ady, Mother of the Church. set of proper (i.e., mandatory) readings has been assigned for this new memorial he Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church: First Reading: enesis 3:9-15, 20 or cts 1:12-14; Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 87:1-2, 3 and 5, 6-7; ospel: ohn 19: he ocal Church previously celebrated this title of Our ady on May 27, the date of the establishment of the Diocese of ltoona. Mary, Mother of the Church, is the principal patroness of the Diocese of ltoona- ohnstown. his year, May 27 falls on a unday (olemnity of the Most Blessed rinity). ext year information will be given about celebrating the anniversary of the ocal Church on this date. (2) Honoring Fathers on Father s Day une 17 unday, une 17, 2018, is Father s Day. ach Presider is encouraged to bless all fathers at the end of Mass before the general blessing and dismissal. he blessing may be found in the Book of Blessings, Chapter 56, umber ) ssumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary ugust 15 Wednesday, ugust 15, is the olemnity of the ssumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary a holy day of obligation. n insert is provided to place in your bulletin. 4) ummer iturgical Inserts he bulletin iturgical Inserts for ummer continue to review the funeral rites and, also, the Church s call for the proper disposition of cremated remains - Order of Christian Funerals and Cremation. hese inserts will offer proper catechesis to our faithful on the funeral rites (Vigil for the Deceased, Funeral Mass, and Committal), and the practice of cremation along with the proper burial of the cremains. hank you.

2 BI IR: iturgy Office, he Diocese of ltoona-ohnstown, 2018 ORDIR IM M 27, and M 27 oday the Church commemorates the olemnity of the Most Holy rinity. It is our custom to begin and end prayer in the name of the rinity. he great doxology at Mass celebrates the triune being of od: hrough him, and with him, and in him, O od, almighty Father, in the unity of the Holy pirit, all glory and honor is yours, for ever and ever. men. oday make the sign of the cross slowly and reflect on the words you speak. May od, our Creator, Redeemer, and anctifier, watch over us, protect us, and lead us through this life to our home in heaven. H o l y r i n i t y 3 What grounds us in our faith? What gives us identity as believers in Christ? What is at the center of our Catholic lives? oday the Church celebrates the olemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. It is bread that becomes the true Body of the ord and wine that becomes the true Blood of the ord. he great gift of the Church is to gather on the day of resurrection and meet our Christ in word and sacrament. oday we pause and give thanks for the great sacrament of the Body and Blood of the ord. Body and Blood of Christ 10 ORDR OF CHRII FR aint Paul tells the Corinthian Christians today that our earthly body shall be destroyed, but our true hope is that we will live eternally in heaven. In death od will call us back to the kingdom. During the Committal of a loved one, the Church prays: o let us commend our brother/sister to the ord, that the ord may embrace them in peace, and raise up their body on the last day. In the mercy and love of od, we pray that our deceased be welcomed into the kingdom of od s love. Order of Christian Funerals, 1998/1989, umber 219.

3 iturgy Office, he Diocese of ltoona-ohnstown, 2018 ORDIR IM 17 ORDR OF CHRII FR aint Paul continues to remind the Corinthian Christians that believers walk by faith. he day will come when each of us will leave our body behind and go home to the ord. Death is a great separation from our bodies that have been formed in the image of od. We believe that our soul will be reunited with its body on the great day of the ord s coming again in glory. s we pray at graveside, od of the living and the dead, accept our prayers for those who have died in Christ and are buried with him in the hope of rising again. Order of Christian Funerals, 1998/1989, umber 222:B. 24 he name ohn means the ord has been generous. Indeed od had been abundantly generous to lizabeth and Zechariah, elderly parents who had lost hope in conceiving a child in their old age. od had certainly favored them. nd the child grew and became strong in spirit. he greatest prophet who would announce esus as the amb of od! t each Mass we hear the Baptist proclaim, Behold the amb of od, behold him who takes away the sins of the world. We celebrate the generosity of od towards us. 1 PROPR BRI he Church has made clear statements on the practice of burying the remains of our dead. he Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in 2016 stated doctrinal and pastoral reasons for the preference of the burial of the remains of the faithful and to set out norms pertaining to the conservation of ashes in the case of cremation. he Church encourages conventional burial of the faithful whenever possible, i.e., burial in a grave or mausoleum, as well as requires the appropriate reservation of the remains when cremation occurs. Instruction d resurgendum cum Christo, Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 2016, umber 1.

4 iturgy Office, he Diocese of ltoona-ohnstown, 2018 ORDIR IM 8 PROPR BRI he resurrection of esus is the culminating truth of the Christian faith. hrough his death and resurrection, Christ freed us from sin and gave us access to new life. It is true that Christ will raise us up on the last day, but it is also true that, in a certain way, we have already risen with Christ in the acrament of Baptism. Because of Christ, Christian death has a positive meaning. By death the soul is separated from the body, but when the ord comes in all his glory, he will give incorruptible life to our body, transformed by reunion with our soul. Instruction d resurgendum cum Christo, Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 2016, umber , Diocese of ltoona ohnstown, iturgy Office, 925 outh ogan Boulevard, Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania PROPR BRI Following the most ancient Christian tradition, the Church insistently recommends that the bodies of the deceased be buried in cemeteries or other sacred places. In memory of the death, burial and resurrection of the ord, the mystery that illumines the Christian meaning of death, burial is above all the most fitting way to express faith and hope in the resurrection of the body. By burying the bodies of the faithful, the Church affirms her faith in the resurrection of the body, and intends to show the great dignity of our humanity which was assumed by esus our ord. Instruction d resurgendum cum Christo, Congregation for the Doctrine of the faith, 2016, umber PROPR BRI By burying the bodies of the faithful, the Church confirms her faith in the resurrection of the body, and intends to show the great dignity of the human body. he Book of enesis tells that we are each made in the image of od, in body and soul. he body of the deceased Catholic is the body once washed in the waters of Baptism. his body was anointed with the oil of salvation. his body ate and drank the very Body and Blood of Christ, the Bread of ife. It is the same body that reached out in service to the needs of others. Instruction d resurgendum cum Christo, Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 2016, umber 3.

5 iturgy Office, he Diocese of ltoona-ohnstown, 2018 ORDIR IM 29 PROPR BRI Burial in a cemetery adequately corresponds to the piety and respect owed to the bodies of the faithful departed who through Baptism have become temples of the Holy pirit. he Church considers the burial of the dead as one of the corporal works of mercy. Burial of the faithful departed in cemeteries encourages family members and the whole Christian community to pray for and remember the dead. hrough the practice of burying the dead in cemeteries, in churches or their environs, Christian tradition has upheld the relationship between the living and the dead. Instruction, d resurgendum cum Christo, Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 2016, umber , Diocese of ltoona ohnstown, iturgy Office, 925 outh ogan Boulevard, Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania PROPR BRI Cremation is sometimes chosen as an option because of sanitary, economic or social considerations. he Church raises no doctrinal objection to this practice, since cremation of the deceased s body does not affect his or her soul, nor does it prevent od, in his omnipotence, from raising up the deceased body to new life. Cremation does not negate neither the Christian doctrine of the soul s immortality nor that of the resurrection of the body. he Church continues to prefer the practice of burying the body of the deceased, because this shows a greater esteem towards the deceased. Instruction, d resurgendum cum Christo, Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 2016, umber PROPR BRI he Church continues to prefer the practice of burying the bodies of the deceased. he reason is that this ancient Christian custom shows a greater esteem towards the deceased. evertheless, cremation is not prohibited, unless it is chosen for reasons contrary to Christian doctrine. In the absence of motives contrary to Christian doctrine, the Church after the celebration of the Funeral Mass or Funeral iturgy outside Mass, accompanies the choice of cremation. he relevant liturgical rites are provided. nd care is to be taken to avoid any appearance of religious indifference. Instruction, d resurgendum cum Christo, Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 2016, umber 4.

6 iturgy Office, he Diocese of ltoona-ohnstown, 2018 ORDIR IM 15 HO D his Wednesday, ugust 15, is the olemnity of the ssumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is a holy day of obligation. he Church commemorates that Mary, who bore the Incarnate and Risen Word in her womb, did not experience death and decay. Rather she is the first to share in her on s resurrection. he is assumed into heaven body and soul. he first cathedral of the nited tates in Baltimore bears the title of the ssumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Please check the parish bulletin for the times of Mass on this solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. 2018, Diocese of ltoona ohnstown, iturgy Office, 925 outh ogan Boulevard, Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania PROPR BRI With the legitimate motives present for the choice of cremation, the ashes of the faithful must be laid to rest in a sacred place such as a cemetery or in a church. From the earliest times, Christians have desired that the faithful departed become the objects of the Christian community s prayers and remembrance. heir tombs have become places of prayer, remembrance and reflection. he faithful departed remain part of the Church, united with those who are pilgrims on earth, the dead who are being purified, and the blessed in heaven, all together forming one Church. Instruction, d resurgendum cum Christo, Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 2016, umber PROPR BRI he faithful departed remain part of the Church, made up of the living and the dead. he reservation of the ashes of the departed in a sacred place ensures that they are not excluded from the prayers and remembrance of their family or the Christian community. It prevents the faithful departed from being forgotten or their remains from being shown a lack of respect when the immediate subsequent generations have too passed away. ombs are holy places respecting the dignity of deceased Christians. Instruction, d resurgendum cum Christo, Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, 2016, umber 5.