C A M P U S M I N I S T R Y N E W S L E T T E R JOSEPH'S WORD I S S U E # 1 / / S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 8 Families of our St. Joe's School Community, saint of the month P O P E S T. J O H N P A U L I I Happy new school year! I am so excited to be back! Though I won't be in the classroom this year (the past two I ve taught in our middle school), I will now be working as the Campus Minister for SJS. This role is a new development in our efforts as a school to provide the best Catholic education possible. We recognize the immense responsibility that accompanies the gift of teaching and caring for your children each day. We also recognize that we do that best when we are working to empower you flourishing as families. Pope St. John Paul II once wrote in his 1994 letter to families, "Parents are the first and most important educators of their own children." We succeed when we support you in those efforts. We are planning new initiatives during this inaugural year of our Campus Ministry Program and a monthly newsletter is one! Our hope is that this newsletter may be for you a source of inspiration an aid in living out our faith in the rhythm of day to day life - which can be busy, wonderful, and sometimes overwhelming. Each month you ll find reflections and resources about our faith specifically related to the current liturgical season with practical, easy ways to celebrate it, as well as fun information about our community and the people that make us so great. We believe that our faith is meant to be lived in the ordinary moments of our life, with the people God has placed around us. Faith lived like that changes the world. We want to help you do that. And it s an absolute joy to be on the journey together. Scan the QR Code for a Bio and video about the life of JPII! wordy wisdom A F U N C A T H O L I C W O R D Y O U M A Y N O T H A V E K N O W N B E F O R E! LAVABO DISH: small bowl that catches the water when the Priest washes his hands during the Eucharistic rite at mass. Its name comes from the opening word of Psalm 25, which the priest prays at that moment. Pope Francis' monthly intention All for Him, Corinne Gannotti "That young people in Africa may have access to education and work in their own countries."
Renewing Your Faith. You know that moment after the ball drops each January when everyone is revved up about New Years Resolutions? I've always felt a similar feeling when school starts each September. It's like another mini "new year" when we can start again. And even though resolutions often focus on our physical or intellectual health, we shouldn't forget to also check in on our spiritual well being. With the routine of a new school year in full swing again, what about our routine of prayer? Maybe your reading this and your prayer life rocks. Praise God! I wish I was more like you. Maybe you're reading this and thinking that cultivating time for prayer in your already packed days seems daunting and impossible. I understand. Being spiritually healthy doesn't necessarily mean doing an entire holy hour every day (if you can - amazing!). It's more about learning to place ourselves in the posture of prayer throughout the ordinary moments of our schedule. So ask yourself, what kinds of prayer do you find appealing? Do you enjoy listening to Christian radio when dropping your kids at school or driving to work? Maybe you love reciting a certain devotion before bed or saying a decade of the rosary throughout the day. Do you find peace in speaking to God in your own words each morning? There are so many forms of prayer. You're allowed to love some and not others! That's our uniqueness come alive in our spiritual lives. There's a reason there's no one official prayer we must pray every day to prove our faithfulness. God sees and loves the individuality of our heart in the way that we find most fulfilling to commune with him. Mother Teresa once called prayer a "surge of the heart". Beyond trying to choose forms of prayer that we actually enjoy, building reminders into our days can make it easier for our heart to "surge" towards God. Maybe even literally - like little alarms on your iphone that ding and remind you to stop and thank Jesus. I love reading short prayerful reflections sent to my email every morning. Below I've listed 3 of the daily reflections that have really helped me grow. If you go to the link listed for each, you can sign up to receive them! As we start this "new year", I hope you can find renewal in prayerful moments of peace with God. C O F F E E W I T H S A I N T S T H E M O R N I N G O F F E R I N G C A T E C H I S M I N A Y E A R "Motivation to be a saint direct to your inbox every morning". Short bullet points about the saint of the day every Monday-Friday! coffeewithsaints.com "Starting your morning off with God is the key to strength and success in your day. Each morning you will receive: Meditation of the Day, Daily Readings & Gospel, Saint of the Day, Liturgy of the Hours! A fast and convenient way to start your day off right!" catholiccompany.com/subscribemorning-offering.tr "Join the largest group in human history (120k+) to ever study the catechism together! Get one email a day (MON-FRI) and cover the entire catechism in a year!" A daily message with one or two paragraphs from the Catechism of the Catholic Church - quick to read, and so much to learn! flocknote.com/catechism
G E T T O K N O W Q: How long have you been a priest? Fr. Steve: I have been Ordained for 30 wonderful years, May 21, 1988 Fr. Steve Leva Q: What is your favorite thing about your priestly vocation? Fr. Steve: Having the blessing of serving in twelve different parish communities since being Ordained, I have to say my favorite thing about being a priest is the chance to meet, get to know and be involved in the life of the people of each and every parish. It really does bring me such life. Q: If you had to eat only one food for the rest of your life, what would you choose? Fr. Steve: That is an easy one, PASTA (any kind, any sauce). Q: Do you have a favorite Bible verse? What is it? Fr. Steve: The Bible verse that was the theme (remember this was in the 80 s) for my First Mass of Thanksgiving and is my favorite verse is Micah 6:8 You have been told, O mortal, what is good, and what the LORD requires of you: Only to do justice and to love goodness, and to walk humbly with your God. Q: What are you most excited about for this upcoming year as our pastor? Fr. Steve: New school year, new Religious Education year, all of the parish groups starting for the new year, it s all about meeting people and journeying with them for me. Q: What is your best advice for an SJS student who wants to grow closer to Jesus? Fr. Steve: Talk to Jesus, take time to listen to Jesus, pay attention to the wonderful people that Jesus puts in your life: parents, teachers, others who help you to grow closer to Jesus each day. Q: What's your favorite color? Fr. Steve: Green, it makes me happy. JOIN US ON SEPT. 15 @ 5PM FOR FR. LEVA'S INSTALLATION AS PASTOR!
Michaelmas - Feast of the Archangels Have you ever heard of Michaelmas? More commonly, at least in the Church in the US, we call September 29th the feast of St. Michael or the feast of the Archangels. But it's traditionally called "Michaelmas" in England. On this September Feast Day, we celebrate and honor the three major Archangels - Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael. St. Michael, whose name means Who is like God?, fought against Lucifer and the fallen angels and defended the friends of God. St. Gabriel, whose name means Strength of God, announced the coming of Jesus to the Virgin Mary and also the coming of John the Baptist to Zachariah. St. Raphael, whose name means God s Healing, is found in the book of Tobit. From fairly early on, Michaelmas was an important holiday beyond even its spiritual importance. It became a kind of Christian equivalent to the autumn equinox. In England, it was considered the start of a new quarter. It marked the beginning of a new business year, a time for electing officials, making contracts, paying rent, hiring servants, holding court and starting school. For our lives of faith, this is a great day to celebrate God's gift of the angels - protectors and sharers in His Divine Life, who can be powerful intercessors for us. So how can you celebrate? Besides reading about the angels in the parts of the Bible where we find them mentioned and maybe praying the St. Michael prayer written by Pope Leo XIII (printed below!) as a family, there are some really fun traditional foods and flowers that you can easily incorporate into your day! There s a legend that says Lucifer fell into a blackberry bush after being expelled from heaven by St. Michael, who spit on the blackberries to make them bitter so they couldn't be picked after Michaelmas. According to a The aster flower is Scottish custom, also known as the "Michaelmas women harvested wild carrots on Daisy" and is in Michaelmas by season in North America at the end digging triangular holes with a threeof September. pronged mattock. The holes represented St. Michael s shield and the mattock his trident. St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke Him, we humbly pray; and do thou O prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God, cast into Hell Satan and all the other evil spirits, who prowl around the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen. info and ideas from: carrotsformichaelmas.com & feastofstmichael.com
LITURGICAL LIVING Ordinary Time Right now in the Liturgical Calendar, it s Ordinary Time. So, is there even much to say? Sometimes these weeks can feel like the in-betweens of Catholic living. We re not knee deep in penance and fasting with the glimmer of Easter ahead. We re not gathered around an Advent wreath kindling our hearts in hope as we light each candle. Even though Christmas and Easter are the big feasts the whole Liturgical Year hinges on, Ordinary Time makes up most of the Sundays that we re in the pews. That s 33 or 34 weeks each year! It can t be that these are just token weekends we have to sit through until we get to the good stuff. Can it? The truth is, this period in our cycle of worship is not meant to be boring, or to leave us feeling like we re just waiting for what s next. Calling it "ordinary" can throw us off course if we re not careful. We tend to use that word to describe things that are plain, unexciting, even dull. But boring is not what the Church had in mind when titling these weeks on the calendar at Vatican II. Ordinary Time can also be called Ordinal Time, which gets us closer to its root meaning. Ordinal comes from the Latin ordinalis, meaning showing order, denoting an order of succession. So, Ordinary Time is the standard, orderly time outside of the other liturgical seasons. Okay, standard and ordered. We re still sounding a little bland. But we have to consider what standard we are in fact ordering here. And that s where we ll find the beauty and incredible grace in the rhythm of these weeks in Ordinary Time. These Sundays draw us into the narrative of Christ s life what it looked and felt like in the world Jesus lived. These are the stories of healing and grace, the teachings of beatitude and calling to forgiveness that show us what it means to be a disciple. What is standard and ordered to the Christian is a walk in the way of Jesus, and that is not ordinary looking to the world we live in! During Ordinary Time, we're invited to continue to grow with Jesus in the nitty gritty of our real life so that we re prepared to follow him to Calvary and then rejoice in his Resurrection. This is why it s fitting that the liturgical color designated for this season is green a color of growth, life, and vitality. It s a visual reminder to us of what should be going on in our hearts. If you re tempted to believe that this is just another week until we get to the real Catholic stuff, look to the vestments of Fr. Rossi at mass. Be reminded that we are growing closer to Jesus who says, I am the vine, you are the branches (John 15:5) and wants to give us his life every day of the year. Feasts &Holy Days this month... 3rd - St. Gregory the Great 5th - St. Teresa of Calcutta 8th - Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary 12th - Most Holy Name of Mary 24th - Our Lady of Mercy 26th - Sts. Cosmas & Damian 29th - The Archangels! Thoughts or ideas? Corinne Gannotti, Campus Minister cgannotti@stjosephrc.org