Church of Saint Monica Saint Elizabeth of Hungary Saint Stephen of Hungary 413 East 79 th St., New York, NY 10075 Church Offices and Parish Center: 406 East 80 th St., New York, NY 10075 (212) 288-6250 Fax: (212) 570-1562 Third Sunday in Ordinary Time Sunday, January 21st, 2018 Office Hours Our Offices are open: Mo. 9am 5pm Tu.-Th. 9am 7pm Fri. Closed Sat. 10am -2pm Sun. Closed Our offices close for lunch: 1pm 2pm daily Parish Staff Pastor Rev. Donald C. Baker frdcab@stmonicanyc.org Associates: Rev. Msgr. Leslie J Ivers msgrlivers@stmonicanyc,org Rev. Joslin K. Jose frjoslin@stmonicanyc.org Pastoral Associate: Ms. Maryann Tyrer mtyrer@stmonicanyc.org Parish Manager: Music Director Mr. Michael Ward Mr. John Zupan mward@stmonicanyc.org jzupan@stmonicanyc.org Asst. Music Director Ms. Lora Cohan lcohan@stmonicanyc.org Cantor: Mr. Joseph Neal Wedding Coordinator: Ms. Debbi Burdett DBweddingsnyc@gmail.com Mass Schedule Saturday: 12:00pm Saturday Vigil: 5:30pm Sunday: 7:30am 9:00am 10:30am 12:00pm 5:00pm Monday Friday: 7:30 & 12:00pm Confessions: Saturday 5:00 5:30pm and by appointment Our church is open: 7am 4pm daily for private prayer St. Stephen of Hungary School Pre-K through 8 th Grade Catholic Parochial School 408 East 82 nd St., New York, NY 10028 (212) 288-1989 Fax: (212) 517 5788 Ms. Caroline Walker www.saintstephenschool.org Principal: Interested in admissions to our parish school? admissions@saintstephenschool.org
TODAY S READINGS First Reading -- The people of Nineveh believed God and turned from their evil ways (Jonah 3:1-5, 10). Psalm -- Teach me your ways, O Lord (Psalm 25). Second Reading -- The world in its present form is passing away (1 Corinthians 7:29-31). Gospel -- This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand (Mark 1:14-20). The English translation of the Psalm Responses from Lectionary for Mass (c) 1969, 1981, 1997, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. All rights reserved. READINGS FOR THE WEEK Monday: 2 Sm 5:1-7, 10; Ps 89:20-22, 25-26; Mk 3:22-30, or any of a number of readings for the Day of Prayer Tuesday: 2 Sm 6:12b-15, 17-19; Ps 24:7-10; Mk 3:31-35 Wednesday: 2 Sm 7:4-17; Ps 89:4-5, 27-30; Mk 4:1-20 Thursday: Acts 22:3-16 or Acts 9:1-22; Ps 117:1bc, 2; Mk 16:15-18 Friday: 2 Tm 1:1-8 or Ti 1:1-5; Ps 51:3-7, 10-11; Mk 4:26-34 Saturday: 2 Sm 12:1-7a, 10-17; Ps 51:12-17; Mk 4:35-41 Sunday: Dt 18:15-20; Ps 95:1-2, 6-9; 1 Cor 7:32-35; Mk 1:21-28 SAINTS AND SPECIAL OBSERVANCES Sunday: Monday: Tuesday: Wednesday: Thursday: Friday: Saturday: Third Sunday in Ordinary Time Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children St. Vincent; Saint Marianne Cope St. Francis de Sales The Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle Ss. Timothy and Titus St. Angela Merici; Blessed Virgin Mary Bread & Wine This Week s Bread & Wine Intentions for M. Kiernan Offered by Kitty O Donoghue SATURDAY January 20th Vigil 5:30 PM Brian Scott SUNDAY January 21st Third Sunday in Ordinary Time 7:30 AM Werner Hertzel 9:00 AM Alfredo Baloyo 10:30 AM Patrick Doherty 12 NOON Parishioners of St Monica, St Elizabeth of Hungary, St Stephen of Hungary 5:00 PM Antonia Krass MONDAY January 22nd Day of Prayer of the Legal Protection of the Unborn Child 7:30AM Kathleen Farley 12NOON Bill Ryan TUESDAY January 23rd Weekday 9:00AM John McCabe 12NOON Adnan Hot WEDNESDAY January 24th St. Francis de Sales 7:30 AM Terry Hanrahan 12 NOON Charlie Burns THURSDAY January 25th The Conversion of St. Paul 7:30AM Peggy Durkin 12NOON Grace Moran FRIDAY 7:30AM 12NOON January 26th Ss. Timothy & Titus Bridie Kirby Mary Mahan Murphy SATURDAY January 27th Weekday 12 NOON Edward Flanagan PRAYERS FOR THE SICK Please remember in your prayers Fr. Peter Colapietro, Fr. Jim Gavin, Rosemary Catalano, James Baker, Kathleen Reddington, Roger & Franklin White, John Healey, John Shegina, Tobias Bustamante, Victor Worizid, James Leung, Raymond Feeley, Broley Gus, Frank Krescanko, Katie Kavanaugh, James Carberry, Fr. Ronald Stark, Alyssa Sardelli, Megan Driscoll & Loretta Pontcello AND ALL VICTIMS OF MILITARY ACTIVITY PRAYERS FOR THE DECEASED Bridget Murray, Donald Fitzgerald, Patricia McGuire- Randt, Larry Eivens, John Gambino, Donald Fitzgerald- Luis Gonzalez, & Gerhard Goede, Sotero Matta, Sebastian Fernandez Begne, Fr. Joseph Irwin & Agnes Lynch, Carol Dann Please pray for our deceased parishioners and family members If you wish to add the name of a loved one to the prayer list, please notify the parish center: (212) 288-6250
K-8 Religious Education and Adult Faith Formation meet in the Parish Center on Sundays, 10:15 11:45am. Save the Date! Our next Family Faith Formation event will be on Sunday, February 11, 9-11:30am in the Parish Center! This will take the place of K-8 Religious Education and Adult Faith Formation on that day. This Mardi Gras themed event will help all of our families get ready for Lent! All adults are welcome in the Parish Center, 10:45-11:15am on Sunday mornings, to discuss the Scriptures over a cup of coffee or tea, led by one of our clergy or our pastoral associate. This Adult Faith Formation program is open to any adults drop in any Sunday and check it out! Considering becoming Catholic? Catholic adult but not yet confirmed? Contact Maryann to continue your faith journey with our Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults or Adult Confirmation processes. You can join at any time of the year! One of our neighboring parishes, St. Francis de Sales (96 th and Lex) will be celebrating their feast day this week with a retreat on the spirituality of their patron saint, led by one of our parishioners, Joe Long - and everyone is invited! RSVP directly to their pastoral associate to sign up. Spirituality for Everyone A Parish Retreat St. Francis de Sales Church, 96 th and Lex St. Francis de Sales promoted the idea that all of us are called to be holy in whatever our daily situation calls us. Whether we are laborers, executives, computer wizards, teachers, bankers the list goes on and on...his simple spirituality is a way for us to find a deeper holiness/wholeness in our lives. Come join us and Mr. Joe Long for a day that promises to open our eyes to find the Lord in the many hidden spaces in our city lives. Retreat Day Sat. Jan. 27, 10am-3pm -$20 Fee/RSVP required to jayneporcelli@sfdsnyc.org, Lunch provided - Joe Long is a Pastoral Associate at St. Agnes Cathedral in Rockville Centre, NY. He hails from the Philadelphia area, most recently by way of pastoral work in North Carolina. He worked for years with the National Forum on Initiation and the RCL Benziger Publishing Company. His wealth of experience and his great love for St. Francis de Sales make him a great gift to us as we celebrate the Feast of St. Francis de Sales here at St. Francis de Sales Parish.
Discover the Trail of Martin Luther The Reformation in Germany Hosted by Father Donald C. Baker September 12 22, 2018 11 days 14 meals included Highlights... Mainz Worms Gutenberg Museum Erfurt Wartburg Castle Lutherhaus Eisleben Dresden Leipzig St. Thomas Church Wittenberg St. Mary s Church Berlin For information contact Maryann Tyrer Pastoral Associate St. Monica St. Elizabeth of Hungary St. Stephen of Hungary mtyrer@stmonicanyc.or g 212-288-6250 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity January 18-25, 2018 is the annual observance of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The theme chosen for 2018 is Your Right Hand, O Lord, Glorious in Power (Exodus 15:6). Throughout 2018, join Christians everywhere in praying that they may all be one joining our prayer with that of the Lord Jesus Christ. Today is Ecumenical Sunday when we celebrate what God is doing through the many ecumenical agencies local, regional, national and international that make up the modern ecumenical movement. As we continue our special prayers that all may be one... that the world may believe (John 17:21), we recognize what these various agencies do to promote understanding and cooperation among Christians and others in our community.
SPECIAL DEVOTIONS After all weekday masses Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament Every Friday after the Noon Mass to 3 PM, with Benediction following the Divine Mercy Chaplet Devotions Miraculous Medal on Mondays after each Mass Divine Mercy The Divine Mercy Chaplet is prayed each Friday afternoon at 3 PM Sacrament of Reconciliation: 5:00 PM on Saturdays Anytime by appointment BAPTISMS & MARRIAGES: Please call the rectory office for more information. COMMUNION FOR THE HOMEBOUND: If you know of anyone who cannot attend church because of illness or age, and would like to have communion brought to them, please contact the parish office, so that we can arrange for a Eucharistic Minister to bring communion to them. From Our Music Director Have you ever thought about being more involved at Mass? Do you like to sing? Then why not think about joining the Adult Choir here at St. Monica, St. Elizabeth of Hungary St. Stephen of Hungary. By being involved in the choir you get to experience Mass on a whole new level. You get to contribute more of yourself by offering your gift of song with others that love to sing. By being in the choir you learn about music. By being in the choir you help make the Mass more beautiful through song. Yes there is a commitment involved but one that is well worth it. If you have about 2 hours a week to spare than you can definitely join. Our Adult Choir rehearses on Wednesdays at 7:30pm and sings on Sundays for the 12 noon Mass each week. There is even some flexibility for those who have busy schedules already. For more details please see our Director of Music, John Zupan. TREASURES FROM OUR TRADITION "One of the most unusual Catholic churches in the world is in Amsterdam: Our Lord in the Attic, or as the locals say, "Ons Lieve Heer op Solder." What looks like a beautiful narrow brick mansion alongside a canal is a clever disguise for a very well-preserved seventeenth-century home and a secret church. During the Reformation, the Netherlands was divided into Protestant Holland and the Spanish Netherlands, now known as Belgium, a Catholic stronghold. Protestant reformers seized all the Catholic parishes in Holland and "de-catholicized" them. New laws forbade the celebration of the Mass in public. St. Nicholas Church was renamed "Old Church" by the new owners, and the dispossessed Catholics got to work "hiding" St. Nicholas Parish in the upper floors of this mansion. Other Catholics did the same thing, but this is the only hidden church that survives today. Sunday Mass is still celebrated here. It's a beautiful hideaway, with nothing spared in regard to marble, gilding, a pipe organ, and classic Dutch painting. A few steps away, the Old Church, begun in 1250, stands emptied of the statues and carvings of its Catholic days, its windows replaced by plain glass. The new tenants gave up when it came to the ceiling, which is still painted with saints, biblical scenes, and merchant ships. The Dutch reformers were tolerant sorts, and as long as the Catholics kept out of sight, they were out of mind. Catholicism was at last tolerated in Holland after 1853, but in 1924 when the International Eucharistic Congress was held in Amsterdam, processions of Catholics were still forbidden in the streets. Today, Roman Catholics are about 19 percent of the population, and there's no need for any of them to hide in the attic. --Rev. James Field, Copyright (c) J. S. Paluch Co. Monday, January 22nd Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children Wednesday, January 24th The Feast of St. Francis de Sales
From Your Pastor January 21st, 2018 I usually write these columns about a week in advance even though you read this on the weekend of January 21 st I am writing it the week of January 7 th while at a preaching conference in Tampa. FL (For reference it is 22 degrees in NYC as I write this it is 75 here just sayin ). This conference is part of that preaching institute that Msgr. Ivers and I have been speaking about this year. You will be hearing more about this institute in the spring, as we want to involve you in the evaluation process for the Institute. Even though it is still January, it will soon be Easter (I promise). Since I am away from the parish this week, I thought I might answer a question related to last week s column on Ordinary Time: Why does the date of Easter move around??? It is a great question. We know when Jesus rose from the dead. It was the Sunday after the celebration of Passover, i.e. the 14 th day of the month of Nisan in the Jewish calendar. So why don t Christians celebrate the resurrection every year on that day? Truth be told, many did. In the first 300 years of the Church s history many Christians celebrated Easter in connection with Passover. However, a growing number of Christians did not want Christian holy days being determined by Jewish feasts. This controversy was resolved at the Council of Nicaea in 325 CE, which determined that the celebration of Easter should fall on the first full moon following the spring equinox i.e. when the sun is directly over the equator, or as we would say, the start of spring. Sounds simple, right? But then some of you might ask: well then why do the ORTHODOX Churches celebrate Easter on a different date than we do? That has nothing to do with the Jewish calendar, but everything to do with ours. For centuries, the dates of Easter for east and west were the same. Everyone used the Julian Calendar, established by the Emperor Julius Caesar in 45 BCE. But that calendar was not really accurate, and over the centuries fell out of synch with the actual position of the earth as it revolved around the sun. In the 17 th century Pope Gregory XIII proposed a reform of this calendar, called the Gregorian Calendar, that was eventually adopted throughout the west. By this point however, the Eastern Church had split from the west and retained the Julian Calendar. In order to fix the error in the Julian calendar, the Gregorian calendar instituted the custom of leap years, where an extra day is added to keep it from sliding out of synch with the earth and sun, and it also shaved off 13 days, so that, for example, January7 th on our calendar is December 25 th on the Julian calendar. That is why some Russians celebrate Christmas on our January 7 th, or old Christmas as my mom used to call it. For them it is still December. Because the Spring equinox can happen on different days depending on where you live on the earth, the Church officially set it as March 21 st. In the Julian Calendar, that date would be our April 3 rd. Thus, for the Orthodox, Easter can never be before our April 3 rd, and sometimes gets pushed even into May depending when the first full moon lands. Confusing? I know. But check it out: look for the first full moon of spring, and right around there you will find yourself celebrating Easter. Since according to the Julian calendar, it might not be spring yet, expect your Russian and Greek friends to be celebrating later. Over the last several years Roman Catholics and the Orthodox have been trying to decide on a common date for Easter. But there is a lot of opposition to the change. why? Well, an Orthodox priest I know once said when asked if he wanted to change Never! When we celebrate Easter after you Romans, I get half off on the cost of my church s Easter flowers! Father Baker