Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time. 20 August Young Neighbors In Action San Diego

Transcription

1 Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time 20 August 2017 Young Neighbors In Action San Diego

2 Responding to a Time of Testing Cardinal Seán O Malley Nations live and flourish because of their ideas and ideals, not simply because of their material wealth or power. Our ideas and ideals express our identity and set the standards for our behavior as citizens. For the United States a core statement of our identity is expressed in the phrase E Pluribus Unum, from many peoples we shape one nation. This treasured civic truth reflects and is rooted in the biblical heritage of belief in the dignity of all people, and a shared humanity. We have not always as a nation reflected the best of our ideas and ideals, but they stand as a goal toward which we strive. Our country is once again in a moment when the civic and biblical heritage is being attacked and tested. We need to reassert and reaffirm the belief that one nation is meant to include all: the multiple races, cultures, ethnicities and religions which make up our country. The angry and violent mob which gathered in Virginia this past weekend, by word and deed, contradicted our national creed and code of civil conduct. As a nation in the past century we led the struggle against the pagan ideas of Nazism. Those who seek to resurrect a new form of Nazism and extreme nationalism those who denigrate African Americans, who preach and practice anti-semitism, who disparage Muslims, those who threaten and seek to banish immigrants in our land all these voices dishonor the basic convictions of the American political and constitutional traditions. They must be opposed in word and deed. As a Catholic bishop I welcome the opportunity to stand with other religious leaders of the land in opposition to the voices of fragmentation and hatred. As the Archbishop of Boston, it is my responsibility to call the Catholic community which I serve to remember the basic truths of faith and reason which are so central at this moment. The truth that our rights and our duties to each other derive from God. The truth that we can successfully oppose hatred and bigotry by civility and charity. These truths can bind us together across racial, religious and ethnic communities. They can help us celebrate our pluralism as a rich treasure which strengthens this land. Today when our unity is tested, when our basic truths of faith and reason are violated, as people of faith and as citizens we must uphold our ideas and ideals. My prayer is that we can rise to this challenge. My belief is that we are surely capable of doing so.

3 our community news Ministers of the Liturgy Saturday 5:00 p.m. Rev. Peter Grover, OMV, celebrant Cynthia Wanner, lector Sunday 8:00 a.m. Rev. Peter Gyves, SJ, celebrant Caitie Meyer, lector Sunday 9:30 a.m. Rev. John Unni, celebrant Kevin Dumas, Mary Kane, and Tom Nicolini, lectors Special intentions Saturday, August 19 5:00 p.m. Bridie Maloney, Memorial Sunday, August 20 8:00 a.m. Frank Wuest, Memorial Sunday, August 20 9:30 a.m. Robert Kimball, Second Anniversary Sunday, August 20 9:30 a.m. Victor Blanco, Memorial Sunday, August 20 11:15 a.m. Rudy Kikel, Memorial Sunday 11:15 a.m. Rev. John Unni, celebrant Chika Offurum, Virgen Palermo, and Karen McMenamy, lectors today s readings Isaiah 56:1, 6-7 Romans 11:13-15, Matthew 15:21-28 next sunday s readings Isaiah 22:19-23 Romans 11:33-36 Matthew 16:13-20 DID YOU BRING SOMETHING TO MASS FOR THOSE IN NEED? We are hoping to make it a Saint Cecilia custom come to Mass and bring one of the following items with you. Even if you bring the same item every week, Catholic Charities and the women, men, and children they serve will be more grateful than you can imagine. Peanut Butter Canned Tuna Fish Canned Chicken Breast Cooking Oil Cheerios Corn Flakes White Flour Spaghetti Macaroni & Cheese Tomato Sauce 3

4 Prayers & Occasions Our Deceased Charlie Sargent died on August 3. Pray for his eternal repose and for the consolation of Sheila, Kathleen, and Kira. May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Our Sick Please pray for all our sick and for those who are in need of our prayer, especially Annette Kulas, Rosea Aubrey, Pilar Estrada, Mildred McLaughlin, Brenna Smith, Mark Anderson, Bill Downing, Skyler Stevenson, Silvana Franco, Brian Donnelly, Theresa Wier, Bill Ahern, Lena Bryant, Kenny Borum, George Driscoll, Mary Curley, Bill Pennington, Bryan Thomas, Rachel Fitzgerald, Bob Carroll, John Morris, Mark Edward McHugh, Laura Bellias, Angelo Valente, Eugenia Valente, Betty Sellers, Jack Kacewicz, Daniel Grapski, Nancy Wolterman, Callie Boyce, Mary Chisholm, Brian Burdette, John Pelletier, Mary Maciora, Stephanie Brown, Bob Butler, Mary Dupont, Mary Jacobs, Francesca Stanizzi, Hilary Dillon, Paul Lakschewitz, Pam Phillips, Louise Reohr, Tom O Keefe, Pamela Massey, Mary Sullivan, Lyn Scalfani, Germaine Durette, Mimi Hart, Mei Day, Edris Kelley, Rick Dalby, Grady Richards, Jerry O Connor, Bill Doran, Claire Smith, Karen Boutin, Cindy O Meara, Sal Mateus, and Irene Faldetta. Evening Prayer This Tuesday In commemoration of the Memorial of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we will celebrate Evening Prayer on Tuesday of this week at 6:30. All are welcome! Congratulations, Carly and Dave! Congratulations to Carly Caminiti and Dave Barner who were married at Saint Cecilia on Saturday, August 19. May the Lord who brought Carly and Dave together bless them with many happy years together in the company of family and friends. Thank You! On behalf of the Little Sisters of the Poor, thank you for your generosity last weekend. We collected $4, to help support the Sisters in their ministry to the elderly poor. Young Neighbors in Action Many of the teens and adults who participated in last month s Young Neighbors in Action trip to San Diego will be with us at the 11:15 liturgy to share some of their service experiences. Following the liturgy, they will gather for a cookout in the Saint Francis Garden with food, outdoor games, and reflection. We are happy to have them with us! Happy Anniversary, Nicolas Love! This Tuesday, August 22, we celebrate the baptismal anniversary of Nicolas Love. May the Lord continue to bless Nicolas with the grace to live out his baptismal call. Happy Feast Day, Nicolas! This Week s Bulletin Article The abhorrent acts of violence and hatred that occurred last weekend in Charlottesville, Virginia left a good number of America s priests and ministers scrambling to re-write whatever homilies and sermons they had prepared for Sunday morning. On page 8 of the bulletin, we have reproduced a very thought-provoking sermon written on the fly last Saturday night by the Rev. Christopher Arnold of Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Arnold, an Episcopal priest, notes his discomfort with the topic, but acknowledges his responsibility as a spiritual leader to address it. 4

5 wisdom and mature spirituality group During our first year anniversary meeting in July, we reflected on what worked well this past year and what changes we might like to make to ensure the continued growth and development of our group. As part of our work together, we developed the following statement that articulates our mission and identifies our goals for the coming year. WHAT WE ARE ABOUT This community of energized adults, journeying in the second half of life, is looking to build a deeper relationship with our Christian faith through fellowship, trust, sharing, and prayer. We meet on a monthly basis and delve into the meditations, teachings, and reflections of Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM. We are looking for other like-minded individuals who are willing to firmly commit one hour each month to participate in meetings that dig deeper into the practices of prayer and reflection. Being with others in the second half of life is important to us and we want to continue to build a community where relationships can be formed and nurtured and experiences and insights shared as a means of better discerning the call of God in our lives. We ask the members of this group to commit to regular attendance at our monthly meetings in order to create and sustain a community and to allow for continuity in our conversations. Because long holiday weekends often occur on the fourth Sunday of the month, beginning on October 22 we are changing our meeting dates from the fourth Sunday of the month to the third Sunday. Throughout the coming year we will be focusing on the writings of Fr. Richard Rohr. His meditations and reflections provide a roadmap for the rediscovery of the foundations of Christian belief and practice and speak to the importance of cultivating contemplation in order to be instruments of compassionate action in the world. Since we have already scheduled our first meeting for September 24 (the fourth Sunday of September), we will keep the date. At this meeting we will discuss the Eight Core Principles of the Center for Action and Contemplation. For more information, please visit about-cac/missionvision/. drivers needed Each month parishioners have the opportunity to pick up donated meat, dairy products, and produce from three local supermarkets and deliver it to either Catholic Charities Haitian Multi-Service Center in Dorchester or the Pine Street Inn in the South End. This vital ministry takes place at 7:30 a.m. every Saturday and Sunday morning and on Sundays can be completed in time to attend the 9:30 parish Mass. We need drivers for all the Saturdays and Sundays in August and September. To volunteer or for more information, please contact Mark Lippolt at mark.lippolt@gmail.com. coffee hour help needed As you no doubt have noticed, we are trying to make the Coffee Hour a nicer experience and are grateful to the volunteers who have come forward to help with this ministry of hospitality following the 9:30 and 11:15 liturgies. But, we still need more help. If you can give a couple of hours on a Sunday morning to help with hosting the Coffee Hour or would like more information about what is involved with this ministry, please contact Lisa Pickering at lpickering@stceciliaboston.org or call the Parish Office. book discussion The Paulist Center is hosting a discussion on J.D. Vance s deeply moving memoir, Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis next Tuesday, August 29 from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. The Paulist Center is located at 5 Park Street. All Saint Cecilia Parishioners are welcome to participate. Who doesn t love babies? Do you enjoy spending time with babies and toddlers? The Young Families Ministry is looking for volunteers to help with childcare during their monthly parent meetings following the 9:30 liturgy. If you are interested, please contact Valerie at valerie.diment@gmail.com. 5

6 calendar note On August 21, we celebrate the feast day of Pope Saint Pius X. It was during the 1954 renovation of the upper church that Pope Pius X, born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto, was canonized and so our east side altar was rededicated in his honor. Pope Pius X was generally regarded as very conservative theologically he restored Gregorian Chant to prominence over Classical and Baroque music for ecclesiastical purposes but he was also known for his devotion to Mary and for being very pastoral. In addition to the statue of Pius X on the side altar, there are two paintings above the altar that depict important reforms he initiated. One painting shows him speaking to children, commemorating the fact that he instituted Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (CCD) for children in every parish. The other painting, which prominently features a chalice and the Eucharist, honors Pius X for promoting the frequent reception of Holy Communion and for lowering the age of first Communion for children because, as he said, Holy Communion is the shortest and safest way to Heaven. Saint Pius is the patron saint of first communicants and the U.S. dioceses of Atlanta, Georgia and Great Falls-Billings, Montana. celebration of the priesthood dinner On Thursday, September 28, parishioners across the Archdiocese of Boston will gather to honor and thank our priests at the Ninth Annual Dinner in Celebration of the Priesthood. This annual event, held at the Seaport World Trade Center, benefits the Clergy Health and Retirement Trust, which helps to ensure the highest level of care and quality of life for our 614 active and senior diocesan priests. If you would like to purchase a ticket, please contact Lisa Pickering at lpickering@ stceciliaboston.org. You may also visit their website to directly purchase your ticket(s) today. Tickets are $500 each and all sponsorship opportunities are listed at org/ celebration. Thank you for your generous and prayerful support of our Boston priests. saint cecilia Cares pastoral training program In September we will be providing an opportunity for the next training group for the Saint Cecilia CARES pastoral visiting team. The September workshop, entitled Pastoral Care to the Sick and Homebound, is the first step toward expanding your pastoral skills in order to become a member of our CARES team of visiting ministers. This team responds to the growing need for support to the most vulnerable members of our parish and the surrounding community. CARES ministers visit individuals who are sick, homebound, and isolated in order to be a source of pastoral presence and support. The six-week training program will begin on September 13 at Saint Margaret Parish in the Highlands section of Lowell. This training will provide the foundation of skills to companion individuals through the emotional and spiritual challenges of loss, grief, and suffering. If you are feeling called to this particular form of discipleship and wish to register for the training program or discuss this ministry in light of your gifts, please contact our Coordinator of Pastoral Outreach, Jeanne Bruno, at or jbruno@stceciliaboston.org. 6

7 catholic charities As you know, we have been collecting food for the Catholic Charities food pantry in Dorchester for nearly seven years. If you are unable to bring groceries with you to church or forget to do so, there are Catholic Charities envelopes in the narthex that you can use to send a donation. Just write food pantry on the memo line of your check. VOLUNTEERING AT PINE STREET inn Our parish has committed to volunteering at the Pine Street Men s Inn one night a month throughout Because of our proximity to the shelter, we are often assigned evenings that are difficult for the Inn s other groups to fill. Our next time at the Inn will be on Sunday, September 3. There are eight slots open for volunteer parishioners to assist in feeding the Inn s guests. If you would like to join us from 4:45 to 6:30 p.m. on Harrison Avenue in the South End, please contact Mark Lippolt mark.lippolt@gmail.com for more information! Some parking is available at the shelter, but please indicate if you can help with carpooling. welcoming the stranger While visiting a refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos last year, Pope Francis decided to bring twelve Syrian Muslims back to the Vatican with him on the papal plane. The Pope addressed the refugees and said, As people of faith, we wish to join our voices to speak out on your behalf. We hope that the world will heed these scenes of tragic and indeed desperate need, and respond in a way worthy of our common humanity. Inspired by the Pope s words and actions, Saint Cecilia Parish is working with Catholic Charities to assist refugee families who have relocated to the Greater Boston area. With no friends or relatives in the United States, they have a great many needs. The parish has offered to provide them with supermarket gift cards so that they will have food while their applications for political asylum are processed. If you would like to purchase gift cards to Market Basket specifically and no more than $25 per card please feel free to drop them in the offertory basket. If you do not live near a Market Basket and cannot purchase a gift card, you can also help by making a check for $25 or $50 payable to Saint Cecilia Parish and including it in the offertory. Please write Refugee Families in the memo line. boston healthcare for the homeless fall soirée The Boston Healthcare for the Homeless Program s Emerging Leaders Board is hosting its second-annual Fall Soirée on Thursday, October 19 at the New England Aquarium. Tickets are $100 each and include hors d oeuvres, open bar, silent auction, and a cocktail hour with the penguins! For more information or to purchase tickets, visit If you are interested in even greater involvement, Boston Healthcare for the Homeless is looking for Emerging Leaders Ambassadors to join their event committee to help drive sponsorship and event awareness. Interested young professionals should contact Laura Ricci before August 15 at lkricci@gmail.com. seeking new choir members We are in need of new choir members. If you have a musical talent to share with the community, we would love to have you join us. Please stop by and see Richard Clark after Mass, call him at or RClark@ stceciliaboston.org. We look forward to hearing from you! You can also find more information about our music ministry at 7

8 Mercy and Truth, Righteousness and Peace By CHRISTOPHER ARNOLD A draft of a sermon for tomorrow, August 13. I ve already re-written parts of it several times, and it will be a work in progress until I step down from the pulpit. I m wrestling. Here s what I have so far, in hopes that it s useful to someone else. Hear again the words of today s Psalm: I will listen to what the Lord God is saying, for he is speaking peace to his faithful people and to those who turn their hearts to him. Truly, his salvation is very near to those who fear him, that his glory may dwell in our land. Mercy and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other. Truth shall spring up from the earth, and righteousness shall look down from heaven. The Lord will indeed grant prosperity, and our land will yield its increase. Righteousness shall go before him, and peace shall be a pathway for his feet. The Lord God is speaking peace to his faithful people, and to those who turn their hearts to him. He is speaking peace in Charlottesville Virginia, this weekend, but his voice is not heard there today. I am angry. I am sad. I am deeply, deeply troubled by what is happening in that place. I am even more angry when I hear the words of the Psalm, that God speaks peace and we cannot listen. I am even more sad when I hear the words of the Psalm, that mercy and truth have met together in God s kingdom, but here in our land it is hatred and deception that have gathered. And I am even more troubled when I hear again the words of the Psalm, that God s salvation is so very near, and that his glory could dwell in our own land, if only we could hear him and fear him, and bend our knees in repentance, and replace our hardened hearts with hearts of love, become a people of righteousness. Now, I am sorry to vent all this upon you. I know you are a good and decent people, and you strive to live in charity and compassion with all. And I too strive for these things. But from time to time the church must speak against the actions of the Devil in this world, and that means preachers must preach these sorts of sermons. Let me be clear from this pulpit that this is an evil thing that is happening in Charlottesville. An evil thing is happening in America. It is a gathering of white supremacists. They arrived with guns. They acted in violence against defenseless people. They shouted slogans and made gestures that remind anybody with half a memory of Hitler s Germany. Now, I know about the Constitution. I know that these people have a right to gather, to carry firearms, and to say what they like. I m not a legal scholar. But I am a 8

9 priest, and I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, and so I say it: this racist demonstration is immoral, wicked, and evil. It is of the Devil, and Christians must not stand for it. Mercy and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other. God grant it in our time! Mercy, truth, righteousness, and peace. All four seem very distant today. We follow a savior who was born into a Jewish body, to Jewish parents, and raised in a Jewish world. We follow a savior who came to gather all the nations into his kingdom, as Paul reminded us in today s epistle, there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; the same Lord is Lord of all and is generous to all who call on him. The Lord God has created all people and called them good, and no race or people or nation or language can be called superior to the others. So I name this gathering of white supremacists an evil gathering, bereft of mercy, or truth, or righteousness, or peace. But why do I speak now? Surely other races and other ethnicities have had their gatherings and parades and political movements. Surely the racial tensions of this troubled land aren t entirely the fault of white people, are they? To be sure, it s not as easy as it used to be to be a white person in this country. We have discovered that we have to share the country with other people. I say this as a straight, white, married, educated, ordained, Englishspeaking man. That s a lot of privilege. I can get away with a lot. But things are indeed starting to change. People who don t look and act like me are also starting to get a fair shake in this country, and that s good. We re starting to look a little more like God s kingdom. But consider the white supremacists marching in Charlottesville: When they walk around with weapons, nobody stops them. They have never had trouble getting mortgages or insurance because of the color of their skin. There is no hotline to report crimes caused by white people. Nobody writes big books of bad science trying to prove their intellectual inferiority. Nobody has banned them from traveling because of their religion. Nobody burns down their churches. Nobody forced their ancestors into the ghetto and the reservation. Nobody enslaved their great-grandparents. Nobody hung their grandparents from a tree. Nobody shoots them when they are unarmed. Oh we have plenty of work to do on race in this country plenty of healing to be done. Lord we need your mercy and your truth and your righteousness and your peace. I am sad and angry and deeply troubled today but I cannot be surprised. This racism, this nationalism, this so-called White Pride has been present in our country for a long time. Our black and brown brothers and sisters have been telling us that for a long time, and not enough of us have been listening. And because so many of these white supremacists claim to be defending Christian culture, the church must speak loudly and persistently that they do not march under the banner of Christ, but under the flag of the Adversary. Today my task is to condemn and reject White supremacy and nationalism. As as white man I condemn and reject it, and as a Christian leader I call it a devilish thing. Sixteen million American servicemen and women served in World War II. More than a million of them died or were injured in that war, fighting against Nazi and fascist cruelty. I wonder how it must feel to a veteran of that war to see Hitler s salute and the swastika in the streets of an American city today. I trust that this evil will not grow much more than this. I trust that we are better than this, as a nation. But wickedness of the Devil is not opposed by apathy. We are Christians, and we will listen to what the Lord God is saying, for he is speaking peace to his faithful people. I personally will do what I can to listen better to people who don t look like me, because they are speaking to God s faithful people too. We will strive to make the world better in any way that we can, because no Godly work is fruitless. We pray for an end to the sin of white supremacy, and more importantly for it to be replaced with God s kingdom, with mercy, truth, righteousness, and peace. The Rev. Christopher Arnold is the rector of Trinity Episcopal Church in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. 9

10 Parish RESOURCES Parish Office & Mailing Address 18 Belvidere Street, Boston, MA Hours Monday Friday, 9:00 a.m. 6:00 p.m. Phone Fax Website Parish Staff Rev. John J. Unni, Pastor Mary Kaye, Pastoral Director of Operations, Mark Donohoe, Pastoral Associate for Administration, Scott J. MacDonald, Director of Faith Formation and Parish Visibility, Jeanne Bruno, Chaplain, Pastoral Associate, Coordinator of Pastoral Outreach, Richard J. Clark, Director of Music and Organist, Lisa Pickering, Events and Facilities Manager, Assisting Clergy Rev. Erick Berrelleza, SJ Rev. Peter Grover, OMV Rev. Peter Gyves, SJ Rev. James Shaughnessy, SJ Schedule for Liturgy Wednesday, Thursday, & Friday 8:00 a.m. Lord s Day Sat 5:00 p.m.; Sun 8:00, 9:30, and 11:15 a.m. Holy Days 8:00 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. Reconciliation The sacrament of reconciliation is available by appointment. Please call the Parish Office. Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults is the communal process through which non-baptized men and women become members of the Catholic Church. It is also suitable for those baptized in different faith traditions who are interested in becoming Catholic, or, for those who were baptized Catholic, but have yet to receive the sacraments of Eucharist and confirmation. Baptism for Infants Infant baptism is celebrated on the first Sunday of the month. For more information, please contact Mark Donohoe in the Parish Office. Faith Formation for Children To register your child for our Faith Formation Program, please contact Scott MacDonald in the Parish Office. Marriage Couples who wish to prepare for marriage should contact Mark Donohoe in the Parish Office at least six months in advance. Care of the Sick To arrange for the Sacrament of the Sick, for Holy Communion to be brought to those unable to attend the Sunday celebration, or for Viaticum for the Dying (Holy Communion for those in danger of death), please contact the Parish oofice. It is always possible to anoint the sick during regularly scheduled liturgies. Order of Christian Funerals The parish is prepared to celebrate the Vigil (wake) in the church. Please contact the Parish Office for more information. Child Abuse Prevention (CAP) Team The CAP Team is responsible for training all parish staff and volunteers in mandated reporting laws and the Protecting God s Children program (VIRTUS). They also provide consultation and support to anyone in the parish who has concerns about reporting child abuse and neglect. Please contact Lois Flaherty (loisflaherty@gmail.com), Maria Roche (maria.roche15@gmail.com), Letitia Howland (l_howland@hotmail. com), or Erin Young (erin.t.young@gmail.com) if you have any questions or concerns. The Archdiocese of Boston has in place a vigorous program to protect children from harm and to educate its ministers and faithful about the nature of abuse, with a goal of increasing knowledge, creating a safe environment for children, and recognizing and reporting potentially dangerous situations. The full text of the policy is also available in the narthex and Parish Office, as well as on our website. For Those with Celiac Disease If you have celiac disease, please let us know. We have a supply of low-gluten altar bread available for those who cannot tolerate gluten. Hearing Assistance in Church The church is equipped with an FM listening device. Small receivers are available for anyone who may have trouble hearing the sound system. Simply request a receiver from any one of our greeters before Mass. Access for the Disabled Both the church and Parish Pastoral Center are accessible by elevator. Parking There is redued rater parking for $11.00 at the Hynes Auditorium Garage located on Dalton Street on Sundays until 3:00 p.m. and every evening after 4:00 p.m. Please be sure to ask one of our greeters for a parking validation ticket before leaving the church. There is also reduced-rate parking on Sundays only at the Prudential Center South Garage (enter at Huntington Avenue or Dalton Street); up to 4 hours: $14.00, up to 5 hours: $ Joining Our Community We re happy that you re with us! Our community offers a warm, spiritual home for a diverse group of Catholics. We come from many neighborhoods in and around Boston but also have parishioners from as far afield as Marlborough, Newburyport, and Stow. Please introduce yourself to a staff member, drop in for coffee on Sunday, or fill out a new parishioner form in the narthex.. No matter what your background, please know that you are always welcome at Saint Cecilia. 10