Sacred Heart Parish
MASS INTENTIONS FOR THE WEEK
Saturday, July 3
4:00 PM Anna Esposito
Sunday, July 4
9:00 AM Parishioners of Sacred Heart
11:45 AM Karel Holbik
Saturday, July 10
4:00 PM John F. Walsh
Sunday, July 11
9:00 AM Frances & Leonard Lovat
10:30 AM Barbara Leonard
11:45 AM Parishioners of Sacred Heart
CONFESSIONS
Saturday, July 10 – 2:00 to 3:30 PM – Fr. Connelly
READINGS FOR THE FIFTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
First Reading: Deuteronomy 30:10-14
Second Reading: Colossians 1:15-20
Gospel Reading: Luke 10-25-37
BLACK AND NATIVE AMERICAN COLLECTION
Next week’s special collection supports programs for Black and Native American populations. Proceeds from this collection are distributed as grants to dioceses supporting and strengthening evangelization programs, which would otherwise be in danger of disappearing among the Black, American Indian, Eskimo, and Aleut communities of the United States. Please be generous.
HOLIDAY MASS SCHEDULE
On Monday, July 5, we will observe Independence Day. Mass will be celebrated at 9:00 AM in the lower Church.
THE 12:05 FRIDAY MASS
Regrettably it’s getting harder and harder to sustain two Masses on a Friday morning. Once a month, on Friday, we have to celebrate a 10:30 Mass at the Waban Nursing Home. If a funeral is scheduled for Friday, that is difficult for the Pastor to have three Masses. The 9 o’clock Mass is better attended than the 12:05, so a choice had to be made to move in that direction. It’s always difficult to drop a Mass from the Mass schedule, and it would have been wonderful if we could have stayed with our original schedule where we had two Masses every Friday – but that is impossible. We do hope that those who were so faithful to the 12:05 Mass will be able to find their way to the 9 o’clock here at Sacred Heart or elsewhere in Newton. The last 12:05 Mass on Fridays was celebrated on Friday, June 25.
Father Connelly
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION NEWS
If you would like to teach or be a classroom aide in the Religious Education program in the fall, please call the Religious Education Office @ 617-969-4031 or email: religious.education@sacredheart.ws. Please pick up a registration form at the back of the church if you would like to register your child for CCD. Drop the completed form off at the rectory anytime during the summer.
2010 CATHOLIC APPEAL
Thank you to all supporters of the 2010 Catholic Appeal. Our parish has raised $42,535 from 98 households, reaching 87.7% of our parish goal of $48,500. If you have not yet pledged, please consider a gift today and help us meet our goal. Remember, our parish will receive 25 percent of all funds we raise above our goal. Please remember to make your pledge now even if you plan on fulfilling that pledge later in the year. You can pick up information packets with pledge forms at the Church entrances to be mailed in, or visit www.BostonCatholicAppeal.com for more information. Every gift matters. Thank you!
CCSB VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL
Ahoy Mateys! Corpus Christi – St. Bernard Parish Vacation Bible School is setting sail from August 23rd to August 27th. All sailors ages 3 to 10 are welcome to join us for a High Seas Adventure while discovering God’s Love. Ages 11-12 are welcome to join as First Mates. Ages 13 and up are welcome to join us as Ship’s Officers.
The cruise will include crafts, games, songs, Bible discoveries, daily snacks, sharing our faith with each other and our families and meeting new friends. We will also be actively working to help bring God’s Love to children living in impoverished nations in Africa.
The adventure will take place at the CCSB parish hall (basement of Corpus Christi Church). Time: 9:00 AM to 2 PM Monday through Friday. There is an option to climb on board each morning at 8:30 AM. Daily snack will be served.
Cost for this exciting adventure in God’s Love is $75.00 per child. Ship’s Officers are no charge. For more information or to register your child, contact Maureen Connell at 617-244-0608 ext. 13 or mconnell@ccsbparish.org. Hope to see you all onboard as “we experience the deep rolling waters of God’s Love”.
OFFERTORY INCOME
Weekend of June 26/27 $3,905
“HE MUST INCREASE; I MUST DECREASE”
In the Rite of Infant Baptism, one of the godparents lights a candle from the Easter candle and holds it for the newly baptized. The celebrant then says to the newly baptized – who could very well be sleeping or crying or fussing – “Receive the light of Christ – Walk always as a child of the light.” Our Opening Prayer at this liturgy reflects this baptismal theme: “Father in heaven, the light of Jesus has scattered the darkness of hatred and sin. Called to that light as your Son’s disciples, we ask for your guidance.”
On June 24th, we celebrated the Feast of the Birthday of John the Baptist. It’s interesting to note that St. John is the only saint, along with Our Lady, who has a feast day for his birthday and one for his death. John’s birthday falls on the 24th of June at the time of the summer solstice. Why is that date chosen when we really don’t know when John the Baptist was born? The New Testament tells us that John was born six months before Jesus. Of course, we don’t know when Jesus was born. The Feast of Christmas was selected for the 25th of December to replace a pagan feast that was celebrated on that day. St. Augustine points out an interesting bit of information – the summer solstice is the longest day of the year; the winter solstice, when Jesus was born, is the shortest day of the year. As a result the days get shorter after the 24th of June and the days get longer after the 25th of December. This accords with what we read in John’s gospel with the saying of John the Baptizer – “He (Christ the Lord) must always increase; I must decrease”.
Strange as it may seem, John’s baptizing of Jesus created some difficulties for the early Gospel writers and preachers. Does the soldier baptize his king and leader? Does the servant baptize her lord? Why is the sinless Christ baptized by John whose grace was the grace of Christ and who came preaching a baptism of repentance? Mark’s Gospel recounts the event but offers no explanation why Jesus submits to a baptism meant for sinners. Matthew in his Gospel introduces a dialogue between Jesus and the Baptist prior to the baptism in which John professes his unworthiness but gives way when Jesus commands him to proceed. To quote St. Gregory the theologian – “The Baptist protests; Jesus insists. John says – I ought to be baptized by you. John is the lamp in the presence of the Sun; the voice in the presence of the Word, the friend in the presence of the Bridegroom; the greatest of all born of woman in the presence of the first-born of all creation.”
What did his baptism mean to Jesus? What does our baptism mean to us, his disciples? On Jesus’ part, his baptism meant the acceptance of the mission his heavenly Father gave him to be God’s suffering servant for the world’s salvation. Thus he began his saving mission by being numbered among sinners – for he was to be the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. He set himself to fulfill his Father’s will and saw in his baptism a foretaste of his death on the cross. In turn, God the Father responds to Jesus’ acceptance of his mission by anointing him with the Holy Spirit and with power – with the power to give that same Holy Spirit to those who follow him.
What about ourselves? Our baptism configures us into the image of him who willed to share our humanity. Baptism is the sacrament of the risen Christ’s dying and rising for our salvation. Baptism, then, is the sacrament of our dying and rising in and with the risen Christ. Baptism means our commitment to live the Lord’s paschal mystery for the on-going salvation of the world. We are to be dead to sin and selfishness – but alive for God and neighbor.
Deep truths come center-stage when we honor John whose ministry introduced the world’s redeemer. The first concerns Trinitarian life. Our Catholic way of life is nothing other than our sharing in the life proper to our Three-Personed God. What a remarkable exchange we celebrate. In the beginning, before all ages, the Word was God; that Word became a man to save the world. A second truth concerns Jesus. He who was the Son of God became servant for our sake – servant, first to his Father and then to us his brothers and sisters. Does it not follow, from our baptism, that we who have been baptized are servants also – first to God but then to our sisters and brothers – and servants as well to the world. And what does our world need? It is a dark world in need of light, a cold world in need of warmth, a warring world in need of peace, a violent world in need of reconciliation, a confused world in need of guidance, a sinful world in need of mercy. In brief, our world and everyone in it are in need of God. Our role, not unlike that of the Baptist, is to point the way to Jesus, who alone can bring us to God.
Father Connelly
HOLY LAND PILGRIMAGE – LENT 2011
Fr. Frank Silva, Pastor of Newton’s Corpus Christi-St. Bernard Parish, will serve as spiritual director for a Holy Land Pilgrimage scheduled for March 27-April 5, 2011. Jerusalem, Bethlehem, Nazareth, and the Sea of Galilee are just a few of the many places that will be part of this “trip-of-a-lifetime”. Cost $2,299 plus air taxes and fees. For a brochure about the trip, please call 617-244-0608 or email: fsilva@ccsbparish.org.
ST. FRANCIS HOUSE
Thank you for your continuing donations to St. Francis House. The items needed for July are condiments (mustard, ketchup, mayonnaise, creamer, etc.). You may leave your donations at any time during the month in the shopping cart or the bins provided at the church entrances.
SIGNINGS
The seventy-two elders Jesus sends out return rejoicing because they have the power to cast out demons. But Jesus says that the real reason to rejoice should be membership in heaven.
Pope Benedict has talked of the need to cultivate hope for heaven. He tells us that this is the real hope of a person who follows Christ in his encyclical entitled, "On Christian Hope," In Washington he told a group of Bishops that they needed to help people find new ways to think about heaven.
The first reading gives us a picture of what heaven will be like. It will be a place of wealth and riches. This is so ironic. Today we think that poverty is a goal. Poverty is not heaven.
The only warrant from Christ, the scriptures, or the saints, to seek poverty is because it is the way to riches.
Jesus is the ultimate rich man. He is God. All things are His. He has become our rich brother. He has the best taste and really knows what is good. He really knows what wine is the best. He knows what a fine house looks like. He knows luxury. He knows what investing is all about. He knows how to turn a profit. He knows music and beauty.
As a rich man, Jesus, does not fall victim to cheap imitations or to scams. The promises of riches that this world offers are all illusions. You can work really hard to attain them if you would like but you will be disappointed.
Jesus points us to a hope not in this passing world. That in a way is a pathetic kind of hope. Jesus points us to the riches, power, glory, joy, satisfaction, wealth, luxury, pleasure, all overflowing described in the first reading.
This is our hope. I hope, by God's infinite mercy, to enjoy the final, supreme, and eternal riches of heaven forever. There is a short stay here that calls us to count all this world has to offer as it is: passing and cheap.
In Christ,
Fr. St. Martin
WORLDWIDE MARRIAGE ENCOUNTER
Married couples: Give your marriage a well deserved vacation. Plan to go on a Worldwide Marriage Encounter Weekend and come back with a marriage that is refreshed and full of energy! The next Worldwide Marriage Encounter Weekends in New England are July 23-25, September 17-19 and September 24-26. For more information and to register, call 800-710-WWME or visit www.wwmeMA.org.
ROOM NEEDED
Long-time parishioner is in desperate need of a room – furnished or unfurnished - with storage space for occupancy mid-July through September (or longer if available). Please call Sue at 617-216-4687.
CYO GOLF TOURNAMENT
July 12th – 16th, 2010
The Office for the New Evangelization of Youth and Young Adults is sponsoring a Golf Tournament from July 12th – 16th at the Ponkapoag Golf Course, 2167 Washington Street, Canton, MA. The entry fee is $40. For more information, contact Peter Williams, Athletic Director at 617-746-5813 or pwilliams@rcab.org.
CATHOLIC MIDDLE SCHOOL LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE
Witness to Hope (August 12-15th at St. Thecla’s, Billerica) is an exciting overnight leadership institute specially designed for Roman Catholic Middle Schoolers who have just completed grades 6, 7, or 8. We use a very high-energy interactive workshop model that utilizes multiple learning styles and develops the skills required for various forms of leadership and peer ministry. The entire time is surrounded by different prayer experiences, the Sacraments, and Liturgies, that will feed, encourage, and equip the young people. Early Registration, $285 with $100 deposit due upon registration. For more information please contact Danielle Olsen at dolsen@rcab.org or 617-746-5750.
FULL DAY KINDERGARTEN PROGRAM
Saint Joseph Elementary School in Needham is currently accepting applications for the Full-Day Kindergarten Program. The school offers a top-notch academic program, specialty classes in art, music, library, gym and state of art technology, specifically designated for young students. The K-Program is housed in a newly renovated Kindergarten Facility next to the main school. For more information, please contact the office at 781-444-4459 or check out the website at www.saintjoes.com. Come and Catch the Spirit!!!
CALENDAR NOTES
COFFEE HOUR AFTER 10:30 ASL MASS:
Sunday, July 4 – 11:30 AM to 1 PM – Parish Center
LITURGY ON INDEPENDENCE DAY:
Monday, July 5 – 9 AM – Lower Church
COFFEE HOUR:
Friday, July 9 – Following 9 AM Mass – Parish Center
LITURGY, ADORATION AND THE ROSARY:
Saturday, July 10 – 9 AM to 12:30 PM – Lower Church
COFFEE HOUR AFTER 10:30 ASL MASS:
Sunday, July 11 – 11:30 AM to 1 PM – Parish Center