Cardinal Tobin invites all of the faithful to participate in a parish listening session. At your parish session you will learn more about the We Are His Witness initiative and your planning area and will see multiple draft model options to consider for the respective planning area. There will be a small group discussion and facilitated large group feedback. If your parish has more than one Listening Session, the information presented at both is the same.
You are encouraged to review the planning area information and draft models in preparation for attending your parish session-they will all be available at www.WeAreHisWitnesses.org beginning October 1, 2025.
For your parish to properly plan for its sessions, please register for the session you plan to attend here: Parish Session Registration.
>> Click Here for Direct Link to the Registration Site <<
26th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year C
I am embarrassed to admit that I frequently find myself dining and socializing with people who have millions and sometimes billions of dollars. I’ve eaten more caviar, lobster and wagyu steak than most people on the planet. I justify it by saying it’s part of my job. But I have seven pairs of nice jeans and expensive shoes. So it is rather uncomfortable to hear Our Lord say: “My child, remember that you received what was good in your lifetime, while Lazarus likewise received what was bad; but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented” (Luke 16:25). Fellow rich people (and if you’re American, you’re rich), do we not vehemently though quietly object to this parable’s karma-esque reward system? Why bless the rich man just to curse him later? And curse Lazarus just to bless him later? So Americans go to hell, while Burundians and Afghans go to heaven? What is going on? One clue is that the condemned rich man doesn’t complain of injustice. Rather, he simply begs to help his brothers to repent. Of what? We don’t know exactly. Perhaps another clue is that the rich man now seems more like the downtrodden Lazarus. He knows what it is to be hungry and thirsty, to be wounded in the gutter; that he deserved that, not fancy meals and clothes. Maybe the rich man finally understands how to receive true blessings, but it is too late for him. But not for me. Not for us. – Father John Muir
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Continuing the article I started last weekend in regards to bad things happening and why God allows them to happen. The second part of the answer is free will. There are two kinds of free will, the first is what I call the conscious free will and the second is what I call natural free will. The conscious free will is the choices we make freely in life in regards to what we do, say etc. The role of this kind of free will in regards to bad things happening in life is the fact that sadly there are bad people in the world that choose to do bad things. For example, Adolf Hitler chose to kill millions of people. Anytime there is a murder, theft, assault etc. it is a matter of people using their free will to choose to do bad things/evil things. This also applies to good things happening for people also use free will to choose to do good things in life. The second form of free will the one I call natural free will is just that it applies to nature like storms, animals, disease, it is the things in this world that run on their own. It does not involve thinking for the wind does not decide that it will become a hurricane or a tornado for example; it just happens for it is part of nature. In regard to disease for example would be cancer for it is cells reacting to something that turn into cancer cells, there was no thought, the cells did not decide to become cancerous; it just happened. I have often said God does not interfere with free will for it was His gift to us so that we could make our own choices in life. I have had some ask me if this is true that God does not interfere with free will what is the point of praying for miracles cannot happen. So, I must add to the statement above. God does not interfere with the free will that is the conscious free will. He allows us to make decisions, whether good or bad, without interfering. For example, God called me to be a priest but it was my choice to become one for I could have and for many years did say no. He did not force me to be a priest. He does not and will not force people to do things or not do things. However, He will, at times, interfere with the free will that I call natural free will. There are miracle cures of diseases, there are natural disasters that are avoided and/or survived due to prayer and a great amount of faith. In the end let us always remember we would not be happy if God interfered with the good things that happened in our lives and made them not happen thus, we should not get angry with God when He does not stop the bad things from happening but will help us deal with it. We need to have Job’s attitude and count our blessings not our losses.
God Bless you and have a wonderful week, Fr. Michael
PRAYER REQUESTS
That God will relieve their suffering and restore them to health. Please pray for:
Kellie Salata, Kelly Chinchar, Jessica, Daniel Breslin, Stanley, Joseph Marrone, Anthony, Michael, Joseph, Jessica Esopo, Steve, Audra, Bernadette, James Weiss, Baby Ford, Rosemary Malangone, Elizabeth Malangone, Sue West, Danny, Colleen Emery, Richard, Joan Russo, Christina Martin, Mornia Evans, Valerie Valverde, Diana McGuckin, Manny Scarangella, Cheryl Prinjinski, Ron Barth, Stephen West, John K. Hammel.
Holy Name Medical Center is looking for Eucharistic Ministers, volunteers, who are willing to help out in giving out Holy Communion to their patients. If you are interested, you can email them at pokafor@holyname.org or call their office at 201-833-3243 or stop by their Pastoral Care Office, behind the chapel, lobby/ground floor at Holy Name Medical Center.
SCRIPTURAL REFLECTIONS ON STEWARDSHIP
“My child, remember that you received what was good during your lifetime while Lazarus likewise received what was bad; but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented. Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established…”
When God created the world, He declared that it was good and He gave it to all mankind for us to enjoy. However, over the years we have created a chasm between those who have great gifts and those who do not. In today’s Gospel we see that with our own generosity we must bridge that gap between those who have much and those who have little, or we may find ourselves on the wrong side of the chasm in the next life.
The gift of Bread & Wine for the first two weeks of September has been given in memory of Louise & John Hansen by Mr. & Mrs. Raymond DeRiso. The last weeks of September is in honor of St. Padre Pio.
The Sanctuary Lamp for the month of September has been given in memory of Cecelia Jashembowski by Linda J. Sylvestri.
Please consider sponsoring our Bread & Wine, Altar Flowers, and the oil for the Sanctuary Lamp.
Opportunities for Parish Support
There are several ways you can help support our parish and honor loved ones at the same time. As you may have noticed on the first Sunday of every month in our bulletin, we thank the donors of our Altar Gifts. You can donate the Bread & Wine, Altar Flowers, or the Sanctuary Lamp in a two-week block for $50 in someone’s memory. We have blocks open for this year. We also need to purchase a new Easter candle each year (the tall candle on the altar) for $300-$400 which can also be donated in someone’s memory. You do not have to fund the entire amount, anything you wish to donate towards the purchase of our Easter candle is appreciated. We also have masses available for your intentions. If you wish to honor someone in any of these ways, please call the rectory.
Prayer for our Nation
God our Father, giver of life, we entrust the United States of America to your loving care. You are the rock on which this nation was founded. You alone are the true source of our cherished rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Reclaim this land for your glory and dwell among your people. Send your Spirit to touch the hearts of our nation’s leaders. Open their minds to the great worth of human life and the responsibilities that accompany human freedom. Remind your people that true happiness is rooted in seeking and doing your will. Through the intercession of Mary Immaculate, patroness of our land, grant us the courage to reject the “culture of death.” Lead us into a new millennium of life. We ask this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
Praying the ROSARY
The Rosary is a meditation, a time to recall and think about the life of Jesus as seen and experienced by Mary. As the model of faith, Mary’s life sets a pattern that we strive to follow: saying ‘yes’ to God’s will in our lives and sharing His love and message with others. The Mysteries of the Rosary form a mini lesson of faith, using the highlights and significant moments of the life of Jesus. Like paging through a family scrapbook, we see in brief the events of salvation history that are the core of our belief and the hope of our eternal life.
WE NEED BULLETIN ADVERTISERS!!
We would like to thank all the advertisers who have supported us throughout the past year. Our parish benefits greatly from the ads you see in the bulletin. The revenue pays for the printing which is an important means of communication for the parish. If we do not have enough advertisers, the cost of our bulletin goes up. We thank the local businesses that advertise with us especially in these tough economic times. We have some spaces on the back of our bulletin that need filling so if you would like to advertise your business as well as benefit your church, please contact John Patrick Publishing at 1-800-333-3166.
Please support our advertisers at the back cover of bulletin.