The annual Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) Mass, sponsored by the 10 parishes in Queens Deanery No. 5 was celebrated at American Martyrs Church, Bayside, on Saturday, Oct. 21. Father Frank Schwarz, pastor and main celebrant, offered a special blessing to the boys and girls as they began a new CYO season. Father Robert Mema, parochial vicar at St. Kevin Church, Flushing, gave the homily.
Author: settinger
Be Open to the Power of Grace
by Msgr. Joseph P. Calise
THE READINGS of today’s liturgy are not the readings I would have chosen for Vocation Awareness Sunday. I would probably have opted for something with a softer, gentler invitation to consider Christ’s invitation to follow Him with a promise of divine assistance. However, the readings do present an appropriate message for today – a challenge to the ordained that contains within it a call to reflection for those seeking their God-centered path in life.
Conversations with My Favorite Authors
HAVING JUST finished writing the column that appeared in last week’s issue, I am looking at the three large bookshelves I have in my room. Even though I gave away more than a hundred books a few years ago, there are still hundreds of books in this room. Memories of being profoundly influenced by some of these books when I first read them are coming back to me as I type.
Vocations Are Nourished Within Families
by Msgr. Steven Ferrari
“LET THE DEAD bury their dead” (Matthew 8:22), declared Our Lord Jesus when confronted by a would-be disciple. Yet, one of the corporal works of mercy in our Christian tradition demands that we, the “living” Body of Christ, bury our deceased sisters and brothers with dignity and honor.
We All Have a Unique Purpose to Pursue
IN THE WEEK ahead, the Catholic Church in the United States is celebrating National Vocation Awareness Week. It is a celebration that is dedicated to promoting vocations to priesthood, religious life, the permanent diaconate and married life through prayer and education.
Father Edward Flanagan’s Legacy
by Effie Caldarola
THE TALL, GOOD-looking priest had the craggy profile prompting the comment, “He had the map of Ireland written all over his face.”
Regina Pacis Parishioners Make a Pilgrimage of Mercy
Hispanic members of Regina Pacis parish, Dyker Heights, went on pilgrimage Oct. 28 to the National Divine Mercy Shrine, Stockbridge, Mass. The group is encouraging devotion to the Divine Mercy for the Hispanic community in the parish.
Lebanese Patriarch Brings Peace Mission to B’klyn
The Maronite Patriarch of Lebanon completed his peace mission to the United States by celebrating a liturgy in Brooklyn Heights with his fellow countrymen.
Mexicans Pray for Deceased On the Dia de los Muertos
by Amy Wise Taylor
BLUFFTON, S.C. (CNS) – When Jennifer Bermejo was growing up in Aguascalientes, Mexico, her family celebrated Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead, every year.
Private Conscience And the Church
by Father John Catoir
The late Bishop Fulton Sheen explained that there are two kinds of truths: “Outer truths, which we master, like the distance of the Sun from the Earth; and inner truths, which master us; for example: God is merciful to the penitent. Inner truths affect a person’s destiny, like a vocational calling; they are matters of conscience.”