ST. PADRE PIO PRAYER GROUP NEWSLETTER NOTABLE NOTES! We are still selling $20 raffle tickets to win a chance to go on our November 2014 trip to Italy! See Cindy Russo for your chance! We are also taking reservations for a confirmed trip. Make sure you frequent our website: www.padrepioleveland.org It has all of the event listings and copies of all of our prior Newsletters for you to see (and more!). You can reach us at: info@padrepiocleveland.org We can always use help with baking or bringing salad or snacks for the monthly prayer gatherings. Contact us at info@padrepiocleveland.org if you would like to volunteer for any one of our meetings. Thank you in advance! Novena to Our Lady of Lourdes begins Feb. 2 11 (see pg 6) February marks our first anniversary of the transfer of the Padre Pio Prayer group to St. Barnabas. It has been such an amazing journey this past year; all of the new members, as well as faithful old members, from so many parishes throughout the Diocese. St. Pio watches over all of his Spiritual Children with such devotion! A special thank you goes out to Fr. Edward Janoch, our Spiritual Director. He has devoted so much of his time and prayers for us and has done much of the behind the scenes work, too! We are so grateful, to all the witnesses and prayer leaders who have shared their love of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, as well as the honor to our Blessed Mother each month. St. Pio brings us closer each day to each of them. Your devotion, dedication and love is evident. We are one family as St. Pio would say, Familgia! We pray that God keeps increasing your faith through your commitment to his love. May the heavenly light continue to radiate through our prayer group. MARK YOUR CALENDAR! Prayer Group Gathering Dates First Saturday of the Month at 8:30 a.m. @ St. Barnabas March 1, April 5, May 3, June 7 Holy Hour for Vocations Sponsored by the Knights of Columbus Changed this month to: February 13, 2014 The Blue Army Prayer Cell Every Thursday at St. Barnabas Church 7-8 p.m. Rosary each Sunday 7:30 a.m.
FEBRUARY 2014 A WORD FROM OUR SPIRITUAL DIRECTOR HAPPY FIRST ANNIVERSARY! One year ago, on Saturday, February 2, 2013, the Diocese of Cleveland St. Padre Pio Prayer Group met at St. Barnabas Catholic Church for the first time. It was a cold and snowy day, much like this past week, and an impressive number of people came to our first meeting. Ever since that day, the number of spiritual children of St. Padre Pio has grown. We have people coming from Summit, Cuyahoga, Lake, Lorain, and Medina Counties of the Diocese of Cleveland and some members from the Youngstown Diocese, our Sister Diocese to the East. This group is truly becoming a diocesan group and not just a local group within the Diocese of Cleveland. All this could not be possible if not for the faith that we have, hold and profess, in Jesus the Christ, the Son of the Living God, through the life and intercession of St. Pio of Pietrelcina, our Spiritual Father. Our first year has been filled with wonderful experiences of God s love for us. Each First Saturday of the month [it is no coincidence that we meet on the First Saturday of each month, but specifically selected to help those who participate in the devotion of the five First Saturdays] we encounter of Crucified Lord in the celebration of the Mass. We continue with the prayer of the Rosary, Divine Mercy Chaplet, Litany of St. Padre Pio, and veneration of the relic of St. Padre Pio. We have obtained over the year a chalice used by St. Padre Pio and an Altar Cross. These are now monthly used at each First Saturday Mass. The chalice has been u sed by a number of priests, most notably by Fr. Andrew Apostoli, C.F.R., of EWTN and the main celebrant at the Mass at the Shrine of the World Apostolate of Our Lady of Fatima, in Washington, New Jersey, during our pilgrimage to the Shrine, in August 2013. This chalice has brought great comfort to many and has brought peace and joy to the dying that have come into contact with this chalice. We have had a number of speakers come in to tell us of their experience of God through St. Padre Pio. No worldly notable speaks, but members of our group who have come forward to tell us of God s wonderful and miraculous actions in their lives. Our faith is not just prayers along, but we have also put our faith in action through a winter clothing drive, and a monetary collection to Women Kind. This past year has been just one amazing year, to paraphrase our Group Leader, Cindy Russo. She is always telling me of one of her experiences dealing with St. Padre Pio and always uses the word amazing within the first sentence. This does not surprise me for she is an amazing woman of great faith and devotion. She is a woman who has truly been touched by God through her encounter with St. Pio. You will find a brief listing of special anniversaries associated with St. Padre Pio and our prayer group. I hope you find this listing interesting and remember that we share daily in the greatest of anniversaries at each Mass, the Paschal Mystery of Christ; His Life, Death and Resurrection. ~Rev. Edward J. Janoch Spiritual Director 2
Notable Anniversaries of St. Padre Pio and the St. Padre Pio Prayer Group of Cleveland, Ohio 2,014 th Anniversary of the Birth of Christ. [25 December as declared by the Roman Catholic Church] 1,981 st Anniversary of the Crucifixion, Death and Resurrection of Christ [Passover 33] 833 rd Anniversary of the birth of St. Francis of Assisi [1181] 804 th Anniversary of the Founding of the Order of Friars Minors, O.F.M. [16 April 1210] 791 st Anniversary of creating the first Christmas Manger scene [24 December 1223] 790 th Anniversary of receiving the Stigmata [14 September 1224] 788 th Anniversary of the Death of St. Francis of Assisi [3 October 1226] 786 th Anniversary of the Canonization of St. Francis of Assisi by Pope Gregory the IX [16 July 1228] 494 th Anniversary of the Founding of the Order of Friar Minors Capuchin, O.F.M. Cap. [1520] 127 th Anniversary of the Birth of St. Pio of Pietrelcina [25 May 1887] 104 th Anniversary of the Ordination to the Priesthood of St. Pio of Pietrelcina [1910] 96 th Anniversary of receiving the Stigmata [20 September 1918] 58 th Anniversary of the Opening of the Home to Relieve Suffering Hospital [5 May 1956] 58 th Anniversary of the Founding of St. Barnabas Catholic Church, Northfield, Ohio [11 June 1956] 46 th Anniversary of the Death of St. Pio of Pietrelcina [23 September 1968] 22 nd Anniversary of the Founding of the Diocese of Cleveland St. Padre Pio Prayer Group [6 February 1992] 15 th Anniversary of the Beatification of St. Pio of Pietrelcina [2 May 1999] 14 th Anniversary of the Ordination to the Priesthood of Rev. Edward J. Janoch [20 May 2000] 12 th Anniversary of the Canonization of St. Pio of Pietrelcina [16 June 2002] 1 st Anniversary of the St. Padre Pio Prayer Group at St. Barnabas Church, Northfield, Ohio [2 February 2013] Let Us Pray for the Souls of Our Recently Deceased John Danis, husband of Beverly Please Pray for Our Sick Brothers and Sisters Abbot Christopher Schwartz O.S. B., Carol Bertoni, Mary Dirda, Roger Reardon, Dan Peters, Joseph Russo Sr., Ron Firem, Joan Tomassi, Nicole Tomassi, Mike Friess, Jerry Lewis, James Green, Helen Husky, Joy Zivzak, Dennis Houlahan, Dan Houlahan, Gina Sacco, Carmelita Pruchnicki, Robert Snyder, Richard Merecki, Luella Merecki, Ed Chesar, Michael Orbany, Nicholas Anthony DiDonato, Jeff Bauer, Judy Selby. Rose Slee 3
FASTING FOR HOLINESS AND HEALTH WITH ST. PADRE PIO So many people believe that something is wrong with America- economically, spiritually, physically (health care is 18 percent of our national budget!) There is disorder in our land. Sin is disorder, desires and passions. Lent is God s gift to us so that we can deal with any disorder in our own lives and to offer up our penances to help bring order into the lives of others. Padre Pio was the master at bringing order into people s lives. We can journey through Lent, which begins on March 5 th with Padre Pio especially by fasting. Many disorders in our lives- - diseases, like diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, etc. MAY IN PART be due to the quality and quantity of the food we eat. We generally eat what we see advertised on TV- packaged foods, which are often full of sugar, sweeteners, preservatives and unhealthy fats. We eat fast food. So many of us eat unconsciously what everyone else eats and winds up taking pills eventually. During lent with Padre Pio s help, FAST for: First, HOLINESS and second, HEALTH by implementing the following: 1. Read the Catechism of the Catholic Church on fasting, paragraphs 2043, 1434, 1 438 and 538-540. 2. Examination of Conscience 3. Motivation 4. Education Do I maintain healthy eating habits? Am I overweight? Do I eat junk food? Do I follow my doctor s orders? Do I replace nourishing meals with questionable snacks in the evening? If I need help, Jesus is the answer. All things are possible with God. I tried fasting before and know I can t do it is a lie from Satan. We can pray to Padre Pio for help. He promised to help his Spiritual Children. Find good motives. Overcome or improve a health issue. Offering it up for a loved one who is struggling, children or grandchildren not practicing their faith, etc. Offering it up on reparation as requested by Mary at Fatima. Faith comes through hearing Read up on the effect that food has on our health. Some examples: High fructose corn syrup, white flour, sugar, pop, and artificial sweeteners weaken us. Read labels. If the ingredients include hard- to- pronounce words, it is probably not good for us. We generally need ½ ounce of water per pound of body weight. A person weighing 100 pounds would benefit from drinking 50 ounces of water. Coffee actually dehydrates. Talk with a friend who knows about nutrition. Watch Dr. Oz on TV. 4
FASTING FOR HOLINESS AND HEALTH WITH ST. PADRE PIO (cont d) 5. Befriend Fasting We can look upon lent as a great opportunity to improve ourselves, help our disordered world win graces for those we love, make eating a prayerful experience by inviting Jesus to eat with us. We could set a place and chair at our table as some ethnics do on holidays. We could invite Padre Pio to go grocery shopping with us. 6. Discern BEFORE WE DISEMBARK ON A JOURNEY, WE MUST PREPARE FOR IT. THE BETTER THE PREPARATION, THE BETTER THE JOURNEY. We can use this time before March 5 th to discern how to approach lent. What support can I enlist? - Weight Watchers, Overeaters Anonymous, a friend to pray for me, a fasting partner from church, prayer group, work, and confession weekly. 7. Decide After a month of discerning, we will hopefully have made a decision by Ash Wednesday. It s good to start small with a good possibility for success rather than biting of more than we can chew. (no pun intended!) 8. Victory on Easter! HOW GREAT WILL BE OUR JOY ON EASTER! BEGIN TO TASTE THAT JOY NOW! MY LENTEN SACRIFICE I AM OFFERING UP THE SACRAFICE OF: DURING THIS LENTEN PERIOD OF ASH WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5 THROUGH EASTER, APRIL 20, 2014! Bring this coupon to the March 1 st Padre Pio Meeting for the Offertory collection, or post in a prominent place in your home to remind you of your promise to Jesus who offered the Ultimate Sacrifice on the Cross. 5
CANDLEMAS DAY FEBRUARY 2 February 2, forty days after Christmas, we celebrate the Purification of Our Lady and the Presentation of the Child Jesus in the temple. It is also referred to as Candlemas Day. This is also the day that we bless the candles that are used in Basilicas and at home, recalling the prophet Simeon s recognizing the infant Jesus as the Light of the Nations. February 2 is also the beginning of the Novena, which leads us to the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, February 11, designated by Blessed John Paul II as World Day of Prayer for the Sick. The extended version of the Novena, with special prayers for all 9 days, can be found online at: http://www.ewtn.com/devotionals/novena/lourdes.htm 6