by Antonina Zielinska

Jan Roszkowski and Malgorzata Kellis perform for at St. Rose of Lima, Parkville, in an effort to help those in attendance gain a better understanding of God.

In an effort to make the most of the current Year of Faith, St. Rose of Lima parish, Parkville, hosted a concert and art exhibit to explore the Catholic faith.

By combining an evening of music and art, Father Luke Trocha, pastor, said those gathered had a chance to gain a glimpse of that which is impossible to fully comprehend.

“We can’t grasp all of God, we can only approximate God,” he said. “I believe that artists have a gift of perception of faith, and they share that gift with us.”

Malgorzata Kellis, a professional soprano singer, and Jan Roszkowski, a professional cello player, started the evening by performing an “Unusual Concert,” so titled because of the atypical pairing of instruments.

Before each part, Kellis told the standing-room-only audience about the composer of the works. She explained their biographies and the motivation behind their pieces as well as their struggles in their relationships with God.

“I feel that we, as artists, should not just make art but also educate,” she said, describing her performance style. “Everyone has the right to know, but not everyone has the opportunity.”

She said people of all walks of life should be able to benefit from and enjoy live classical music.

“I think Father Luke did a great deed because not everyone has time or money to go to an exhibition hall,” she added.

New Ways of Experiencing God

Exposing people to new ways of experiencing God was the effort behind the art exhibit that was coordinated by Magdalena Zielinska.

The parish invited amateur and professional artists from throughout the diocese to submit works to be displayed in the church’s cultural center. Artists from Brooklyn and Queens responded with work displaying their interpretation of the exhibit’s theme: “Varying Paths of Faith.”

Joan Vuolo, a parishioner of St. Rose, said she thoroughly enjoyed the evening of culture. She said the music and art complemented each other well because the musicians and artists were able to express different aspects of faith.

“It makes me feel the presence of God,” she said.

Zielinska said inviting people to experience God in a new way is the role of religious art. Artists should compel people to think outside of their comfort zones.

“When someone represents his or her own faith, it makes you think,” she said. “Artists are meant to shake your stagnation.”

Among the artists who responded to the challenge was Theresa Flaherty of St. Fidelis parish, College Point.

“I don’t usually make religious art because it’s hard to show truths that can’t actually be seen,” she said. “But God is really important in my life, so I thought this was a good opportunity to start.”

Vuolo said she was grateful to Flaherty and the other artists who took the time to share their talents.

“I feel like I am in a museum,” she exclaimed as she stood in the parish cultural center. “Having the artists here, walking around with the people – that’s a great feeling.”

Zielinska added that another goal of the exhibit was to bring people together from different walks of life. She said that the different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds of the artists, musicians and attendees enriched the evening because it had the benefit of drawing from many different life experiences.

“We all believe in one God, but we express ourselves differently,” she said.

by Marie Elena Giossi

Women of Faith, a special bilingual conference in observance of the Year of Faith, drew nearly 450 women to the Immaculate Conception Pastoral Center, Doulaston, on Saturday, March 9.

As prime agents of the new evangelization, women need and thirst for encouragement, enrichment and affirmation in their faith lives.

For that reason, nearly 450 women from Brooklyn and Queens accepted the call to attend Women of Faith, a special bilingual conference for women sponsored by the Brooklyn Diocese in observance of the Year of Faith.

The day-long event was held at the Immaculate Conception Pastoral Center, Douglaston, March 9.

“We’re here to celebrate your life of witness, generosity and faithfulness in our diocese,” Auxiliary Bishop Frank Caggiano said in his welcoming address.

Recognizing that the women present “mirror the Lord Jesus” in countless ways, he said the diocese was proud to sponsor the day.

“My sisters, you are one of the prime agents of the new evangelization,” he said. “If we are going to change the world and spread the faith, we need you.”

On Fire with Faith

He expressed his hope that participants would benefit from the opportunity to “celebrate each other, to celebrate our Lord” and leave “more on fire” with the faith.

Conference organizers, Annmarie McLaughlin and Cruz-Teresa Rosero, led the morning prayers.

Both lay volunteers, McLaughlin is a parishioner of Sacred Heart, Bayside, and Rosero is a member of the Hispanic Committee of the National Catholic Charismatic Renewal.

Assisting them were Sister Angela Gannon, C.S.J., diocesan secretary for Catholic education and formation; Barbara McArdle, assistant superintendent in the diocesan Catholic School Support Services Office; and Sonia Casanova, religious education director at St. Sebastian, Woodside.

McLaughlin said she hoped the day would inspire women to reflect on “what it means to be Catholic and a woman of faith.”

Women, she noted, are great multi-taskers, caring for their families, including children and aging parents; working outside the home; and serving in their parishes. Yet, they often do not realize how much they are contributing to the world around them.

“I hope the women will have a sense of being little lights in their families and parishes,” she said.

Following morning prayers, women separated into English and Spanish tracks. Dr. JoAnn Heaney-Hunter, associate professor of theology at St. John’s University, Jamaica, gave the keynote address in English, while Elisa Montalvo, Hispanic achievement specialist in the Howard County Public School System, Columbia, Md., offered the keynote in Spanish.

Returning to the roots of the Catholic faith in her talk, Dr. Heaney-Hunter examined the lives of notable biblical women of faith, who, she said, “give us clear hints as to how to live each day.”

She touched upon the attributes of fidelity, prayerfulness and courage as displayed in the Old Testament by Ruth, Hannah and Queen Esther, respectively.

In the New Testament, she pointed to Priscilla, a teacher of the Good News, and Phoebe, a minister in the early Church.

“These stories,” Dr. Heaney-Hunter said, “are our stories, stories of courageous women who do what they have to do to make the lives of those around them better.”

“Women of faith,” she said, “are women who are called to serve. We have been called by God to a vocation of faith.”

Expounding on her theme, Dr. Heaney-Hunter said “women are programmed to be servers. … Somewhere along the way, we got the mistaken notion that being good to ourselves is being selfish.”

“We don’t have to go and give 24 hours a day,” she said. “Even Jesus took time for Himself, and we have to remember that.”

Maricela Quintana, coordinator of the lay ministry program and the Hispanic Leadership Institute at the College of St. Elizabeth, Morristown, N.J., conducted a Spanish-language workshop at the Women of Faith conference.

Following the keynote, women attended workshops on nurturing their faith, using the Blessed Mother as a role model, and the challenge of passing on the faith. Presenters included Dr. Heaney-Hunter, Montalvo, Maricela Quintana and Dr. Marilyn Martone.

Participants also had the opportunity to go to confession, pray the rosary and celebrate Mass with Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio.

The overwhelming number of women brought a smile to Bishop DiMarzio, particularly because a similar conference for men had been cancelled due to low registration.

Unique Spirituality

Explaining to the participants why a day had been set aside just for their spiritual needs, he said, “I think it’s because of the uniqueness of women’s spirituality that you deserve special attention.”

“The faith of women carries so much weight in the Church,” he noted.

Looking to the Scriptures, he spoke about the unique role of the Blessed Mother, who gave herself completely to God’s will, and various women in Jesus’ life who were witnesses to His miracles, guardians of His message and heralds of His resurrection.

The Church throughout the ages has benefited from the “fruits of feminine holiness,” he said, pointing to the modern examples of Dorothy Day and St. Gianna Beretta Molla.

Acknowledging the role of women in the new evangelization, he exhorted attendees to keep on living and practicing their faith.

“Live it. Practice it. It makes all the difference in the world and the Church,” he said.

Lise Marc, a parishioner from St. Gerard Majella, Hollis, is one of those women making a difference. She started and leads a eucharistic adoration group at her parish. She also ministers to young Haitian women.

“This has been a great experience,” Marc said of the day.

She appreciated the “genuine teachings on faith, daily life, suffering and care giving. It has inspired me as a woman and a disciple.”

Likewise, Jocelyn Rodriguez, a young adult from St. Elizabeth parish, Ozone Park, who has been active in the Jovenes de Valor youth ministry, said she was “taking away a lot of encouragement and hope from today.”

Augusta Van Duzen, president of the local chapter of the National Council of Catholic Women, was proud to bring nearly 100 women from nine diocesan parishes to the event.

The council was scheduled to have its own conference on the same day, but Van Duzen said members felt it was more important to be part of the diocesan gathering.

Carmen Rodriguez, a young adult from St. Michael Church, East New York, who participated in the conference’s Spanish track, said she felt “renewed” as the day came to a close.

“After He renews us, we have to go out and be light for other people,” she said. She planned to share what she had learned with members of her parish’s Las Magdalenas ministry.

Organizers say they hope to make the conference an annual or biennial event.

by Msgr. Joseph Calise

I must be getting older since I find myself saying, “When I was growing up,” more and more frequently.

Nonetheless, when I was growing up, television was very different than it is today. Some might say things were more naïve like Ricky and Lucy sleeping in single beds in I Love Lucy as did Fred and Wilma Flintstone in the Flintstones cartoon series. Others would claim not naiveté but innocence, child friendly as demonstrated by the absence of four-letter words and nudity. Whatever you want to call it, television today and 50 years ago are not the same experience. This is certainly evident in the portrayal of family.

I grew up with Leave It to Beaver, Father Knows Best and the Donna Reed Show. Each family had a mom, a dad and kids who never had a problem that could not be solved in half an hour.

My Three Sons was a dramatic departure because it tackled the question of a father raising three sons as a widower. The episodes were humorous in a heartwarming way. They were, in a sense, the ideal that every family strove to attain.

Then came Archie Bunker. All in the Family maintained the basic sense of family but challenged the notion that every life question could be solved so easily. The Bundys of Married with Children notoriety continued on the theme that every family does not have to fit the same mold to be happy and loving. Although there was an attractiveness to the earlier innocence, the later shows often painted a more realistic picture.

The picture painted of the Holy Family in today’s Gospel is far from a Christmas-card image. When we read the text, it could actually be material for a bulletin on the 11 p.m. news. Can’t you imagine a news reporter reading the following, “Mary and Joseph, Nazarene parents, were visiting Jerusalem for the holy days and while on journey home realized their son was missing. The search went on for three days. The good news is – they found Him safe and sound. But you’re not going to believe where and what He was doing.”

Of course, finding Christ after three days in the Temple and amazing the elders all point toward His later ministry and shed light on the deeper significance of the Christmas mystery. As important as that is, we should not lose sight of the portrait painted of the personalities involved within this Scripture account.

Mary was frantic with worry. Her question, “Son, why have you done this to us?” betrays the fear she and Joseph experienced when they realized Jesus was not with them in the caravan.

Although we have the gift of hindsight, Mary and Joseph did not understand why Jesus had to be in “His Father’s House,” and their amazement was not only because they were impressed by His confidence among the elders but also because they were confused by it.

There we have the last image of the Holy Family before Jesus begins His public ministry: Mary, the loving mother with a pondering heart; Joseph the faithful husband and foster-father; and Jesus, obedient but destined. Life’s questions for them would not be answered within half an hour.

Complicated, But Holy

We revere them as the family worth imitating not because their lives were uncomplicated but because they are known first and foremost as “holy.” If we look up the definition of “family,” the responses range from “parents and child(ren) together” to “people living under the same roof” to “a common genus of plants.” However, when I researched a definition of “holy,” the first and most frequently repeated answer was, “belonging to the sacred.”

Jesus, Mary and Joseph each belonged to the sacred in their own unique way. Joseph, the upright man of faith, obeyed the angel when told to take Mary into his home so that she could fulfill God’s will; Mary’s very soul magnified the Lord with obedience; and Jesus sought not His will but the Father’s from Cana to the Cross. That centeredness on God, that belonging to the sacred is ultimately the goal of every family that wants to be known as holy. Of course, most of us are grateful we do not have to live it as dramatically as they did and are equally grateful that those were once for all time events.

But we are still called to consider God’s will in the decisions we make. If each person in the family seeks personal connectedness with the Sacred, then the family will become holy as a unit.

Father Patrick Peyton relied on this when he adopted as the motto for the Family Rosary Crusade the slogan: “The family that prays together stays together.” The actual motto, however, continues: “A world at prayer is a world at peace.”

As we continue in this Year of Faith and begin to prepare for 2013, may we strive to grow closer to Christ as individuals so that when joined with others on the same journey toward holiness our united prayer can change the world.

Readings for the Feast of the Holy Family

Sirach 3: 2-6, 12-14 or 1 Samuel 1: 20-22, 24-28

Psalm 128: 1-2, 3, 4-5 or Psalm 84: 2-3, 5-6, 9-10

Colossians 3: 12-21 or Colossians 3: 12-17 or 1 John 3: 1-2, 21-24

Luke 2: 41-52

Year of Faith Retreat

Ladies of the Confraternity of the Immaculate Conception from Our Lady of Lebanon Cathedral, Brooklyn Heights, recently participated in a “Year of Faith” retreat at Graymoor Spiritual Life Center, Garrison, N.Y. They were accompanied by Msgr. James A. Root, cathedral rector, center.

Photo © Marleine Aflak

Our Lady of Grace parish, Gravesend, would like to thank and recognize parishioner Rosalie Bruno for her donation of an American flag and stand to be displayed in the school cafeteria — a reminder to the boys and girls that they live in one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Dec. 1 is World AIDS Day. More than 107,000 New Yorkers are living with HIV. New York City’s AIDS case rate is almost three times the U.S. average, and HIV is the third leading cause of death for N.Y.C. residents age 35 to 54.
Our Lady of Mt. Carmel parish, Williamsburg, will host a section of the AIDS Memorial Quilt as it commemorates the vigil of World AIDS Day on Nov. 30 at 7 p.m. All are welcome to join in the prayers, listen to speakers and participate in a candle-lighting memorial. Call 718-384-0223.
St. Augustine, Park Slope, will mark the day with a memorial prayer service and candle-lighting ceremony on Dec. 1, 7 p.m. in the church. Call 718-783-3132.

PICK OF THE WEEK (a little early so you can get your ticket for next weekend!):  Windsor Terrace Supports Breezy Point Fundraiser, sponsored by Farrell’s Bar and Grill, Dec. 1, 7-11 p.m. at Bishop Ford H.S., Park Slope. Donation: $50, includes wine, beer, soda, light fare. Guest bartenders from The Sugar Bowl, Kennedy’s, The Blarney and The Bayhouse. DJ Kevin Conlon. Live bands: Anthem and John Rafferty and Comany. For reservations, call Holy Name Church, 768-3071.

Lumina/Hope and Healing after Abortion will be holding a fundraising banquet at the Mansion On Broadway in North White Plains, N.Y., Dec. 6, 6-9:30 p.m. The evening’s guest speaker is Allan Parker, Esq., of The Justice Foundation, and the honoree is Msgr. Philip Reilly, founder and executive director of the Helpers of God’s Precious Infants. Tickets are $75. For tickets, call 718-881-8008 or e-mail lumina@postabortionhelp.org.

If you or someone you know has a problem with alcoholism, drug abuse or gambling, help is a phone call away. Call 1-877-846-7369.

Tablet TALK Quote of the Week: “We are called to be witnesses, not lawyers or judges.” — Unknown

Troupe Eclat, the choir of St. Jerome Church, East Flatbush, will release its debut CD — “Nos chants de prieres et de louange” (Our prayers and songs of praise) — in St. Jerome School cafeteria, Dec. 2 at 5 p.m.
Founded by Father St. Charles Borno, Troupe Eclat embraces a diversity of musical styles, ranging from classical to contemporary, under the direction of Carlo Balthazar. The group’s motto is Briller Pour Servir (Shining Brightly to Serve).
All are welcome to attend the CD release party. The donation is $20, and all guests will receive a free CD. For details or more information, contact Sherley Lamothe, 347-932-1165 or sherleylamothe@hotmail.com.

This week’s Tip of the Tablet TALK Top Hat goes to everyone who contributed to the Hurricane Sandy Relief Drive at St. Francis of Assisi parish, Astoria, right.
Volunteers met to sort, pack and deliver two truckloads of donations from parishioners to the hurricane victims in the Rockaways.

Broadway Visits Woodside

Broadway actors with big hearts recently performed for a crowd of 300 people at Corpus Christi parish, Woodside. Local resident Nathan Scherich gathered other Broadway actors to put on the show as a benefit for the church. The participating actors, seen above, include Scherich, Matthew LaBanca, Allie Scherich, Eddie Schnecker, Katie Bruestle, Michael Jablonski, Kim Sava, Shane Saldivar, Courter Simmons and Matthew Simpkins. They have been on Broadway in shows such as Jersey Boys, Book of Mormon, White Christmas, Cry-Baby, Young Frankenstein and West Side Story. A portion of the proceeds from the benefit show went to the victims of Hurricane Sandy.

Photo courtesy Father Pat West

Send items for Tablet TALK to Marie Elena Giossi at megiossi@desalesmedia.org or megiossi@diobrook.org.

by Antonina Zielinska

An estimated 2,000 pilgrims from Brooklyn and Queens made their way to Washington, D.C., for a daylong pilgrimage to the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, on Saturday, Oct. 27.

Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio, Auxiliary Bishop Octavio Cisneros and retired Auxiliary Bishop Guy Sansaricq joined the priests and faithful of the Diocese of Brooklyn at the basilica to entrust the Year of Faith to Mary, Mother of God.

“We seek her intercession – looking to her to teach us how to do God’s will every moment of our life,” Bishop DiMarzio said during his homily after reminding the congregation that Pope Benedict XVI entrusted the world-wide Year of Faith to Mary during his pilgrimage to the shrine of Loreto in Italy.

Bishop DiMarzio urged the pilgrims to take the responsibility of evangelization seriously.

“It’s time to consider how we have used the gift of faith we have received in baptism,” he said. “Everyone who has received the gift of faith is obligated to share it with others” and not keep it as something private.

John Vollmertausen, a freshman at Cathedral Seminary Residence, Douglaston, said he hoped to share an atmosphere of faith and prayer with the pilgrims of the diocese.

“I’m looking forward to have some time to pray alone and with the community,” he said. “It’s good for people to see the young men who are beginning their journey to the priesthood. It’s important for people to see that we are very prayerful, but we are regular guys, too.”

Jose Diaz, who is working on his first year in pre-theology in Douglaston, said that when the faithful comes together through the sacrifice of a pilgrimage they share with each other the gift of faith.

“For our Church to get together for this celebration – I believe the Lord will bless us with an increase in faith,” he said. “When you have faith, the Lord will bless you, especially during the sacrifice of Mass.”

Nidia Rivera, a pilgrim from Our Lady of Refuge, Flatbush, said God has granted her deeper faith during the pilgrimage.

“He let me know today that no matter what, He is always on my side,” she said. “He loves me.”

Johny Escobar, a pilgrim from Presentation of B.V.M., Jamaica, said he was on the path to reuniting himself once again with the Church. He used the opportunity of the pilgrimage to reconcile himself with God through the sacrament of Penance and prepare himself for World Youth Day 2013. He said the day helped him feel once again welcome in the Church.

“It all kind of reminds me of my childhood when my mom used to take me to church,” he said.

While Escobar found familiarity in the pilgrimage, Belinda Madero, a pilgrim from Our Lady of Refuge, said it helped her discover new aspects of her faith. She said the day was different from the Hispanic retreats she is used to. While Hispanic retreats are usually full of energy, this pilgrimage was “more peaceful and more meditative.”

She said she enjoyed the time she had to pray before the different sacred images throughout the basilica. She walked to the various chapels, altars, statues and paintings dedicated to Mary, under many different titles, and various saints.

At the end of the pilgrimage, Bishop DiMarzio urged the faithful to remember to bring home the fruits of their pilgrimage.

“We return as pilgrims to our diocese to evangelize – and to ask our mother Mary to take us by the hand and show us how to do it,” he said.

Bishop DiMarzio with diocesan seminarians.

Pope Benedict XVI is accompanied by Archbishop Giovanni Tonucci of Loreto as he leaves after praying inside the Holy House in Loreto, Italy, Oct. 4.

LORETO, Italy (CNS) – During a visit to the Shrine of Our Lady of Loreto, Pope Benedict XVI formally entrusted to Mary the world Synod of Bishops and the Year of Faith.

The pope was marking the 50th anniversary of Blessed John XXIII’s visit to the Marian shrine, about 175 miles northwest of Rome, when he entrusted to Mary’s care the Second Vatican Council, which began Oct. 11, 1962.

“Fifty years on, having been called by divine providence to succeed that unforgettable pope to the See of Peter, I, too, have come on pilgrimage to entrust to the Mother of God two important ecclesial initiatives: the Year of Faith,” which was to begin Oct. 11 and the Synod of Bishops, which was to open Oct. 7.

About 10,000 people gathered in the square outside the Loreto shrine for the pope’s morning Mass. Most of the pilgrims stood in the shadow of the shrine, protected from the sun shining in a clear blue sky.

At the end of his homily, Pope Benedict turned to Our Lady of Loreto with several petitions.

“I wish to entrust to the Most Holy Mother of God all the difficulties affecting our world as it seeks serenity and peace,” the pope said.

He prayed for Mary’s intercession in responding to the “problems of the many families who look anxiously to the future” and for young people just starting to build their adult lives.

The pope prayed for the poor, lonely and suffering who are “awaiting signs or decisions of solidarity and love.”

And, finally, he returned to the Year of Faith and the synod on new evangelization, saying, “I also wish to place in the hands of the Mother of God this special time of grace for the church, now opening up before us.”

With the famous conical statue of Our Lady of Loreto near the altar, Pope Benedict’s homily focused on Mary as the best possible example of following God’s will and bringing Christ to the world.

“She placed her entire being at the disposal of God’s will, becoming the ‘place’ of his presence, a ‘place’ of dwelling for the Son of God,” the pope said.

When Blessed John visited Loreto 50 years ago, the pope said, he told people that the aim of the Second Vatican Council was to spread throughout the world the benefits and blessings of God having become human, suffering and dying to redeem humanity.

Importance of Humans

At a time when the world is struggling with a global financial crisis and crises in many spheres of social life, he said, “the incarnation of the Son of God speaks to us of how important man is to God, and God to man.”

Without God and without faith-inspired values, he said, “man ultimately chooses selfishness over solidarity and love, material things over values, having over being. We must return to God so that man may return to being man.”

Pope Benedict told the crowd that with faith, “even in difficult times or moments of crisis, there is always a horizon of hope: The Incarnation tells us that we are never alone, that God has come to humanity and that he accompanies us.”

United in faith, he said, all men and women become brothers and sisters, caring for and supporting one another.

Commitment Required

Often today, he said, people think making a faith commitment means giving up their freedom, when in reality God liberates people from the selfishness and thirst for power that can consume them and harm others.

Just as God wanted Mary to agree to carry his son, “God asks for mankind’s ‘yes.’ He has created a free partner in dialogue, one from whom he requests a reply in complete liberty.”

Pope Benedict traveled to and from Loreto by helicopter. After the Mass, he remained for lunch and a rest before a scheduled 5 p.m. return to the Vatican.

Pope Benedict uses incense in front of a statue of Our Lady of Loreto as he celebrates Mass outside the Sanctuary of the Holy House in Loreto.

The Holy Father walks inside the Holy House in Loreto.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Catholics who participate in events connected with the 2012-2013 Year of Faith can receive a special indulgence, the Vatican said.

Pope Benedict XVI authorized the granting of a plenary, or full, indulgence in order to highlight the Year of Faith and encourage the “reading, or rather, the pious meditation on” the documents of the Second Vatican Council and the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

The decree was signed by Cardinal Manuel Monteiro de Castro, head of the Vatican tribunal that deals with indulgences and with matters related to the sacrament of penance.

An indulgence is a remission of the temporal punishment a person is due for sins that have been forgiven.

Pope Benedict established the Year of Faith, “dedicated to the profession of the true faith and its correct interpretation,” to run from Oct. 11, 2012 to Nov. 24, 2013. It begins on the 50th anniversary of the opening of Vatican II.

All are invited to attend a prayer service led by Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio as the diocese formally launches its observance of the Year of Faith on Thursday, Oct. 11 at 7:30 p.m. No tickets necessary.

Bishop DiMarzio will lead Vespers at St. James Cathedral-Basilica, Downtown Brooklyn.

Pope Benedict XVI has called for Catholics around the world to participate in the Year of Faith as a way to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second  Vatican Council (see this week’s centerfold) as well as the 20th anniversary of the issuance of the new Catechism of the Catholic Church.

The pope recently told a meeting of newly appointed bishops that the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council and the opening of the Year of Faith Oct. 11, is a time for them to focus on being “teachers and heralds” of the Catholic faith.

“Your priority concern is that of promoting and sustaining a stronger ecclesial commitment to new evangelization in order to rediscover the joy of believing and the enthusiasm for communicating the faith,” the pope said.

Pope Benedict told the bishops that “Evangelization is not a work for a few specialists, but for the whole people of God under the guidance of pastors.”

Bishop DiMarzio Visits

St. Columba

Sept. 16 was not the average Sunday at St. Columba Church, Marine Park. Clergy and parishioners joyfully received a special guest, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio, who made his pastoral visit to the church. The bishop was the main celebrant of the 10 a.m. Mass, at left. Father Charles Matonti, pastor emeritus, left, and Father Francis Hughes, pastor, right, concelebrated the Mass. Assisting on the altar were parish Deacons Larry Coyle and Fred Ritchie, and Deacon Jaime Varella, assistant to the bishop. (Photo courtesy Father Francis Hughes)

Tablet TALK Pick of the Week: Join the Young Adults at Queen of All Saints Parish in Fort Greene for First Friday Mass and Holy Hour this Friday, Oct. 5. Arrive by 7:15 p.m. for Mass with Holy Hour right after. Some of your favorite Frassati musicians will lead the music. Join them for a night of prayer and adoration.

And here’s a special treat… Tablet TALK Pick of the WEEKEND: You don’t want to miss the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal’s Catholic Underground this Saturday, Oct. 6 at Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, 230 East 90th St., Manhattan. The first part of the evening is Eucharistic adoration, and begins with Vespers at 7:30 p.m. After Vespers, there is a time of simple praise and the Holy Hour ends with Benediction. This month they welcome the Blackfriars Repertory Theatre production of “Maurice and Therese.” It is based on the book Maurice and Therese: The Story of Love by Bishop Patrick Allen and narrated by Father Richard Veras.

Alumni and friends of Power Memorial Academy, Manhattan, are invited to the 81st Reunion and second annual Hall of Fame Dinner, Oct. 20. Though the high school closed in 1984, alumni reunions and contributions continue to fund scholarships for the leaders of tomorrow. This year’s Hall of Fame honorees are Len Elmore, NBA Star; Joe Mullen, NHL Stanley Cup Winner and Hockey Hall of Fame member; Matt Centrowitz, Sr., N.Y.S. record-holder and Pan-Am Games track gold medalist; the 1963-’64 basketball team; and Brother Lawrence Killelea ’43, teacher and principal emeritus. Tickets are $125 per person and proceeds benefit the Power Memorial Academy Scholarship Fund. Reservations may be made by contacting Mike Kelly ’55 at 845-462-2865 or parades2@verizon.net. Also visit www.powermemorialacademy.com.

Feeling lucky? This may be your year to win big at the annual Card Party and Chinese Auction at St. Paul-St. Agnes, Cobble Hill, Oct. 13 at 7 p.m. But you have to be in it to win it, so get your tickets — $15 per person — today. Call 718-624-0179 ext. 20 or 718-625-1717.

St. Francis de Sales, Belle Harbor, will have its annual Blessing of the Quilts on Oct. 7 at 10:30 a.m. Mass. The parish’s ABC Quilter group, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary, distribute handmade quilts to newborns in need and those in hospice care. Following Mass, a raffle for some of the handmade quilts will be held in the small hall. All are welcome. For further information, call Maureen Walsh at 718-474-6813.

Treat yourself to an early Christmas present and support Catholic education in the Brooklyn Diocese. Futures in Education will present The Spirit of Christmas, featuring the New York Tenors: Daniel Rodriguez, Michael Amante and Andy Cooney at Carnegie Hall on Dec. 19, 8 p.m. Tickets go on sale Oct. 19. A portion of the proceeds will support scholarships for Catholic schoolchildren. For tickets, log onto www.carnegiehall.org.

Are you a young adult searching for meaning and open to having a transformative experience? Consider journeying to the mountains of the Dominican Republic on a Catholic Mission Immersion, Nov. 5-11. You will spend the week following and working with mission workers and peace corps volunteers. You will have opportunities for spiritual discussion, Mass, reflection and meditation. To participate, you must be physically fit as you will be doing a great deal of walking from village to village. For questions and pricing, call Dave Cervini at 212-873-2256.

Get some exercise and support a worthy cause next weekend. From Here to Haiti (FHTH), a nonprofit that raises funds to rebuild churches in Haiti following the 2010 earthquake, will have its annual walk-a-thon, Saturday, Oct. 13, at Joe Michaels Mile on Totten Ave. and Cross Island Pkwy. in Bayside. Walk begins at 9 a.m., rain or shine. To register, contact FHTH founder Pat Brintle at 646-209-3891 or fromheretohaiti@gmail.com.

Join Msgr. David Cassato, pastor of St. Athanasius, Bensonhurst, as he explores Traditions of the Italian-American Parish: From Processions to Prosciutto on Oct. 9, 6:30 p.m. at Marco Polo Restaurant in Carroll Gardens. This Theology on Tap event is sponsored by Sacred Hearts-St. Stephen parish, Cobble Hill. For more details, check out www.sacredhearts-ststephen.com.

The Cathedral Club of Brooklyn hosts its Fall Social, Oct. 11, 6-9 p.m. at Monte’s Restaurant, Carroll Gardens. The theme of the evening is entrepreneurial discipleship. To register, visit www.cathedralclub.org.

YEAR OF FAITH
Pope Benedict XVI will open the Year of Faith next Thursday, Oct. 11. This year was called by the Holy Father as a time to ask the Holy Spirit for greater faith and witness in our lives.
Throughout the year, Tablet TALK will be sharing ways that our local parishes, clergy and even individuals are celebrating. For instance, at St. Mark, Sheepshead Bay, and St. Margaret Mary, Manhattan Beach, special Year of Faith prayer cards were printed for parishioners. The cards feature a dozen popular prayers and a rosary guide to encourage the faithful to continue growing in their prayer lives.

Oct. 11 is a day worth noting on your calendar. Not only is it the first day of the “Year of Faith” announced exactly one year prior to that date by Pope Benedict XVI; it also marks the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council (Vatican II) and the 20th anniversary of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Consequently, the Holy Father has invited all Catholics to study and reflect on the documents of Vatican II and the Catechism during this Year of Faith.

The Gospel is, at heart, a graced call to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. While the seed of this saving grace is planted at baptism, it will not grow to its potential without the sustained nourishment of prayer, Scripture and the sacramental life. Many Catholics, though fully initiated in the strict sense — that is, baptized, confirmed and having received their First Communion — have never fully savored the fruit of the banquet table of grace to which the Lord has invited them. The seed lies dormant in the soil, waiting to be re-awakened.

Symptoms of this spiritual atrophy abound in Western societies which, though once Christianized, have become detached from their roots through secular and materialistic ideologies or, in some circumstances, outright hedonism. Christ is the bridge that ensures that the human and the divine can live at one together. Deny, ignore or attempt to suppress the reality and integrity of either, and a society will invariably disintegrate into chaos.

It is the vision of Blessed John Paul II, in his repeated calls for the New Evangelization, continued by his successor Pope Benedict, which calls us to take an active part in re-evangelizing our own culture which so sorely needs the saving message of the Gospel. One of the stumbling blocks in all this talk about “evangelization” is that, unfortunately, many Catholics tend to associate it with the more obnoxious kinds of proselytism with which we are all familiar from some so-called televangelists or self-styled street-corner “prophets.” Evangelization, as both popes have re-iterated, has nothing to do with force or intimidation. It is the most essential, constitutive dynamic of the mission of the Catholic Church. And it isn’t just for missions or missionaries!

Recently, Pope Benedict has reminded us that it is the responsibility of every Catholic — layperson and clergy, single or not — to proclaim and live the Gospel boldly, which is to say, to know, love and serve Jesus as the very center of our life and to do so quite publicly. It all begins and ends in Christ. The particular urgency at this time stems from an awareness that we have lost ground — our Christian roots — in Europe and in the U.S.

Pastors, directors of Religious Education, liturgical and catechetical ministers and many other faithful members of our parishes are all too well aware of the influences and pressures that distract Catholics from their Sunday observance and the practice of prayer and Bible study, as well as seduce them from a moral life consistent with the Gospel.

At the same time, the Lord continues to send us seekers who readily join our RCIA sessions and Bible groups. Maybe it is also time to invite more systematically some of our “initiated” but inadequately “churched” or catechized Catholics into such processes.

Re-evangelization means not so much a conversion to good will — which is certainly present in many of our nominal but unengaged Catholics — but a head-on and, may we suggest, bold bid to taste and see what their souls are starving for: the love and forgiveness of a God who dies for us so that we might actually have a life. God’s people are hungry. They need to be fed.