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WEEKLY BULLETIN September 16, 2007
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FROM FATHER RICK THANK YOU
A sincere thank you for all the prayers, good thoughts, get well cards, Mass Cards and get well goodies. Your presence was palpable as I was going into surgery and your love and prayers and good wishes brought a peace with them that I did not think possible or imaginable. The recovery has been a little up and down this week but overall good so far. I received the final pathology report this week and it was excellent—all was benign and nothing further is needed. Thanks be to God!
UPCOMING EVENTS
Over the next couple of weeks I will be posting information here about two major upcoming events: The Bicentennial of the Archdiocese of Boston which will be celebrated in a variety of ways both within and outside of the parish. RENEW—A three-year parish program of spiritual growth and renewal which the Archdiocese is sponsoring in which we will be participating. Have a great week,
If you want peace – work for justice (Pope Paul VI),
Fr. Rick
Imagine being part of an organization that fills your heart and your mind with the joy of giving to others and the feeling that comes with making a difference. Knights are Catholic men, 18 years of age and older, who are committed to making their community a better place, while supporting their Church. Being a Knight is more than camaraderie; it is being involved with your community; it is supporting your local Catholic Church, while enhancing your own faith and setting a good faith example; it is about protecting and enhancing your family life. You can volunteer as much as you like or as little and on your own schedule. If you want to find out more, contact Jim McKain at 978-475-7931 or visit the website at www.kofc.org.
Next Meeting: Wed., Sept. 19, 7:30 PM in Driscoll Hall.
Money Matters
On the weekend of September 8/9 Weekly donations $2,562.00 Monthly donations $1,400.00
Stewardship Reflection
"Everything I have is yours." Luke 15:31
Our Heavenly Father gives us everything, including the chance to share in His eternal kingdom. Yet, like the Prodigal Son we are often lured away by the materialism of our society. Do we really want to turn our backs on all that God offers in exchange for a material wealth that has no lasting value?
Adult Education Opportunity Fall classes begin on Monday, September 17, at the Weston Jesuit School of Theology in Cambridge, MA. You may audit or take a class for credit. As a comprehensive school of theology, Weston Jesuit trains men and women at the graduate level for leadership, both in the Roman Catholic Church and the world. For more information, visit www.wjst.com.
Generations of Faith Needs You!
Activity leaders are needed for: all ages on Fridays grade school and middle school on Sunday afternoons and on Mondays Catechists are needed for: Reconciliation/Eucharist If you have questions or want more information about these opportunities, contact Amanda Roberts in the Parish Office at 978-683-8922 or amroberts@comcast.net.
WINGS—Women in God’s Spirit
WINGS is a faith enrichment group for women of all ages who want to grow in their relationship with God. With support from Jennifer Schiller of the Family Life Office for the Archdiocese of Boston, St. Michael Parish in North Andover started a WINGS ministry in 2005. This year St. Michael’s invites the women of St. Augustine and St. Robert Bellarmine parishes to join them.
The group meets on Sunday evenings from 7:00-9:00 PM in the St. Michael Parish Hall at 196 Main Street in North Andover. There are four meetings in each of the three seasonal sessions. Meetings consist of prayer, song, speakers, small group discussions, and, of course, hospitality! The meeting schedule for this year is:
Fall Session–Our Faith: 10/21, 10/28, 11/4, 11/11; Winter Session–Scripture: a Contemporary View: 1/6, 1/20, 1/27, 2/10; Spring Session–Faith in Action: 4/13, 4/20, 4/27, 5/4.
The registration fee is just $30 for all three sessions. To register, send your name, address, parish, phone number, and email address, along with your registration fee (make checks payable to St. Michael Parish, memo: WINGS) to: WINGS, c/o St. Michael Parish, 196 Main Street, North Andover, MA 01845.
Catholic High School Information Night
Malden Catholic High School will be hosting a Catholic high school information night on Wednesday, September 26th, from 6:00-8:30 PM. All 7th and 8th grade girls and boys and their families are invited to attend. All area Catholic high schools will be represented.
Mass Schedule and Intentions
Saturday, September 15, Vigil, 24th Ordinary Sunday 4:00 pm: People of the Parish
Sunday, September 16, 24th Ordinary Sunday 7:30 am 9:00 am 11:00 am
Thursday, September 20, Andrew Kim Taegon, Paul Chong Hasang, and companions, martyrs 12:10 pm: Ernie Picard
Friday, September 21, Feast of Matthew, apostle & evangelist 12:10 pm
Saturday, September 22, Vigil, 25th Ordinary Sunday 4:00 pm: Grace Ronsivalli
Sunday, September 23, 25th Ordinary Sunday 7:30 am: John Sudol 9:00 am: Roger LaFitte 11:00 am: Julia Keeler
Prayers requested for parishioner Gerry Christoffels
Readings for the Week of September 16, 2007
Sunday: Ex 32:7-11, 13-14/1 Tm 1:12-17/Lk 15:1-32 or 15:1-10 Monday: 1 Tm 2:1-8/Lk 7:1-10 Tuesday: 1 Tm 3:1-13/Lk 7:11-17 Wednesday: 1 Tm 3:14-16/Lk 7:31-35 Thursday: 1 Tm 4:12-16/Lk 7:36-50 Friday: Eph 4:1-7, 11-13/Mt 9:9-13 Saturday: 1 Tm 6:13-16/Lk 8:4-15 Next Sun.: Am 8:4-7/1 Tm 2:1-8/Lk 16:1-13 or 16:10-13
Question of the Week--Twenty-Fourth Ordinary Sunday
Question for Adults: When you wander away from being true to your faith, how do you know God will take you back? What signs do you see?
Question for Youth: The prodigal son was welcomed home even though he had sinned. How hard is it for you to ask for forgiveness? Is it hard for you to believe that you are still loved even when you have done things that aren’t really right?
Question for Children: The father in this story welcomed his son home, even after he ran away and did bad things. How do you know God welcomes you after you do that?
For Whom We Pray…
We share as a parish in the joy and hope in this update from the Farnham and Carman families:
"Bruce Farnham suffered a major heart attack on October 29th of last year. This heart attack essentially rendered his left ventricle—the part of the heart that pumps the clean blood back out to the body through the aorta—ineffective. The doctors at New England Medical Center installed a pump in his body that would serve as a stopgap until a heart donor could be found. Bruce had been in and out of the hospital for increasingly lengthy stays over these past several months. In the meantime, the prayer community of St. Robert’s Parish kept him in their prayers.
We are thrilled to report that, on August 14th of this year, Bruce received his new heart. After three weeks in the hospital to make sure that everything was working the way it was supposed to, Bruce is now home with his young family. He looks great, and is getting stronger every day through walks through his neighborhood. He is very much looking forward to getting back up to full functionality and even getting back to work and to coaching. In time, we know he will do all these things. This has been an extraordinarily tough year for Bruce and his family. We maintain our belief that the burden was made lighter, and his path back to health was made more sure through the prayers of this very special community of believers.
Thank you so much from the Farnham and Carman Families."
Saint Robert Bellarmine (1542-1621)--Scholar, Teacher, Saint
Born in Tuscany on October 4, 1542, St. Robert Bellarmine was the third of ten children, and a nephew of Pope Marcellus II. He entered the newly formed Society of Jesus in 1560 and was ordained priest at Ghent on Palm Sunday in 1570. After his ordination, he went on to teach at Louvain (1570-1576), where he quickly gained fame both as a professor and as a preacher. His gift for teaching, clearness of thought, and adroitness in controversy were indisputable.
In 1576, he was appointed by Pope Gregory XIII to lecture on polemical theology at the Roman College. He wrote the preface to the Latin Vulgate Bible, which became the standard Catholic text for more than 300 years. He was made rector of the Roman College in 1592, examiner of bishops in 1598, cardinal in 1599, and in 1602 archbishop of Capua.
This outstanding scholar and devoted servant of God defended the Apostolic See against the anti-clericals in Venice and against the political tenets of James I of England. He composed an exhaustive apologetic work against the prevailing heretics of his day. In the field of church-state relations, he took a position based on principles now regarded as fundamentally democratic—authority originates with God, but is vested in the people, who entrust it to fit rulers. It is thought by some that this thread in Bellarmine’s political philosophy was an inspiration to Thomas Jefferson and an influence in his writings.
He was the spiritual father of St. Aloysius Gonzaga; helped St. Francis de Sales obtain formal approval of the Visitation Order of nuns; and was an admirer of Galileo, acting as a moderating influence at his trial. He has left us a host of important writings, including works of devotion and instruction, as well as controversy.
Bellarmine died in Rome on September 17, 1621. He was canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1930 and declared a Doctor of the Church the following year. His body rests in the Church of Saint Ignatius Loyola in Rome, originally the chapel of the Roman College, near the body of his student, St. Aloysius Gonzaga. He is the patron saint of catechists.
Source biographies: Catholic Encyclopedia, 1907, by Sydney F. Smith; Catholic Online, by Terry Matz; Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.; New Catholic Dictionary, 1910 ed.; New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, 1911.
This Week in Our Parish
Tuesday, September 18 12:10 PM No Weekday Mass
Wednesday, September 19 7:30 PM Knights of Columbus, Driscoll Hall
Thursday, September 20 12:10 PM Weekday Mass, Church 5:45 PM Youth Choir Practice, Church 6:30 PM Scouts, Driscoll Hall 7:30 PM Adult Choir Practice, Church
Friday, September 21 10:45 AM Adult Enrichment, Bellarmine Room 12:10 PM Weekday Mass, Church
Lazarus House Ministries Hike for Hope--Pre-Registration Going on Now!
The 8th Annual Hike for Hope will take place on Sunday, September 30, 2007, rain or shine, starting at 1:00 PM. The five-mile pledge walk (one-mile route also available) begins and ends at Merrimack College. All proceeds will benefit the Lazarus House transitional housing program.
Pre-register now through September 26 to save $5 on the registration fee and receive a free Hike for Hope t-shirt. Onsite registration on the day of the walk is $20. For more information or to register, go to www.hikeforhope.org or contact Lana Schofield at 978-269-5206 or lana@lazarushouse.org.
Project Rachel
Do you know someone who is carrying grief and sorrow over past abortions? Project Rachel is the post-abortion ministry of the Catholic Church offering hope and healing to those hurting from the pain of abortion. Project Rachel will offer a weekend healing retreat October 19–21, 2007 and a one-day retreat on Saturday, November 10, 2007. For location and registration information, contact Project Rachel at 508-651-3100 or help@projectrachelboston.com.
In Service
Maj. Kurt O’Rourke Mark DuPont, USCC, Kevin Grace, USA, Lyle Shackelford, Jaime Ray Seluk, USN, Pvt. Alexander Sabu, USA, Lt. Col. Paul Severance, USAF, Gen’l. R. Steve Whitcomb, USA, Lt. Col. Brian P. Bedell, USA, Capt. Lauren Whitcomb, USA, Col. Patrick J. Donahue, USA, Col. Brian P. Donahue, USA, Cpt. Michael McGaffigan, USA, Beth Carriere, Nurse, USA, Steve Comstock, Pilot, USN, Lt. Jesse Salisbury, USAF, Sgt. Maureen Galvin, USA,SpOps, Lt.J .G. Kevin B. O’Brien, USN, Miko Belonia, Maj. Tony Hoffman, USA, Maj. Ross Coffman, USA, Maj. Garth Howe, USA, USA, Chief Warrant Officer II, Michael Morris, Captain Matthew Mancini, USA, Sgt. Ellen Barnes O’Connor, USA, Pvt. Adam James Mazza, USA, Pvt. Joseph D. Gagnon, USM, Col. Joseph Albanese, USA, Cpt. Eric Eckberg, USA
SCRIPTURE READINGS FOR NEXT WEEK–TWENTY-FIFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
A reading from the Book of the Prophet Amos 8:4-7
Hear this, you who trample upon the needy and destroy the poor of the land! "When will the new moon be over," you ask, "that we may sell our grain, and the sabbath, that we may display the wheat? We will diminish the ephah, add to the shekel, and fix our scales for cheating! We will buy the lowly for silver, and the poor for a pair of sandals; even the refuse of the wheat we will sell!" The LORD has sworn by the pride of Jacob: Never will I forget a thing they have done!
A reading from the first Letter of Saint Paul to Timothy 2:1-8
Beloved: First of all, I ask that supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone, for kings and for all in authority, that we may lead a quiet and tranquil life in all devotion and dignity. This is good and pleasing to God our savior, who wills everyone to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth. For there is one God. There is also one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as ransom for all. This was the testimony at the proper time. For this I was appointed preacher and apostle—I am speaking the truth, I am not lying—, teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.
It is my wish, then, that in every place the men should pray, lifting up holy hands, without anger or argument.
+ A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 16:1-13
Jesus said to his disciples, "A rich man had a steward who was reported to him for squandering his property. He summoned him and said, ‘What is this I hear about you? Prepare a full account of your stewardship, because you can no longer be my steward.’ The steward said to himself, ‘What shall I do, now that my master is taking the position of steward away from me? I am not strong enough to dig and I am ashamed to beg. I know what I shall do so that, when I am removed from the stewardship, they may welcome me into their homes.’ He called in his master’s debtors one by one. To the first he said, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ He replied, ‘One hundred measures of olive oil.’ He said to him, ‘Here is your promissory note. Sit down and quickly write one for fifty.’ Then to another the steward said, ‘And you, how much do you owe?’ He replied, ‘One hundred kors of wheat.’ The steward said to him, ‘Here is your promissory note; write one for eighty.’ And the master commended that dishonest steward for acting prudently. "For the children of this world are more prudent in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light. I tell you, make friends for yourselves with dishonest wealth, so that when it fails, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings. The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones; and the person who is dishonest in very small matters is also dishonest in great ones. If, therefore, you are not trustworthy with dishonest wealth, who will trust you with true wealth? If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours? No servant can serve two masters. He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon."
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