ABVM PARISH COMMUNITY

“Be watchful! Be alert!” How many times have you heard these words? The first time I heard them I was a center fielder in little league. They are posted along the Atlantic City Expressway to wake up sleepy drivers. After 9/11 we saw signs with this message in transportation centers. If you were in the army, you may have heard these words from a drill sergeant. Maybe you used them to warn your college student as she was leaving for spring break. Public service announcements about Covid use similar language. “Be watchful! Be alert!” The words are good advice in many circumstances. They are always good advice for our relationship with the Lord. The Church presents them to us this weekend in the Gospel, as we begin the season of Advent. Jesus says to his disciples, “Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know when the time will come…What I say to you, I say to all: ‘Watch!’” The Prefaces of Advent, addressed to the Father, ask that “we who watch for that day may inherit the grea

Unlike worldly kings, who win or retain a kingdom by war, our Lord won his kingdom by self-sacrifice. His moment of victory was the moment of his greatest weakness, when on the Cross he was lifted up from the earth in order to draw all people to himself (cf. John 12:22). Our Lord wins souls into his kingdom not by the power of an army but by the ministers of Holy Baptism. By faith and Baptism they are delivered from the kingdom of darkness and transferred into the kingdom of God’s beloved Son (cf. Colossians 1:13). In contrast to the world, the Sovereign of this kingdom rules by mercy and love. Those who have the highest place in his kingdom are the meek and humble. On this Solemnity of Christ the King we might ask ourselves, if Christ became ruler by the weakness of the Cross, how are we to exercise authority in our various places of responsibility? A ruler normally displays strength, not weakness. But the Savior said to Saint Paul, “My power is made perfect in weakness” (2

  Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Parish welcomes musical guest, Barbara Prugh playing the trumpet for our Vigil and Noon Masses for the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe .  Barbara Prugh, trumpet, is a graduate of Eastman Conservatory of Music, finalist in the NYC Concert Artists’ Guild Competition, featured guest soloist in several international brass conferences, and soloist / principal in numerous regional orchestras.  She has premiered several new solo compositions for trumpet and is well known for her poignant rendition of "The Trumpet Shall Sound" from Handel's MESSIAH in churches in the region to the stage of the Academy of Music in Philadelphia.  She has recorded and performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra under Ricardo Muti.  Her CD Barbara Prugh, Trumpet Artistry is the basis of her shows "Lady with a Horn" and "Sophisticated Ladies."  See her performances on Youtube (search for “Barbara Prugh”) and on www.trum

Greetings! We have begun the transition of moving our Live Stream  over to YouTube . This move was done to help  facilitate the access and storage of our live stream videos from the parish. Access will still be available from our  Facebook    page and the Parish Website . I urge everyone to subscribe to our YouTube  channel:  ABVM PARISH COMMUNITY  and "bang the bell" so that you will receive notifications each time the parish and school "GO LIVE."  Michael Xavier Lundy Live Stream Administrator

            A newly released documentary about Pope Francis, aptly name “Francesco ,” caused a little stir because it included comments by the Holy Father which appear to support laws recognizing same-sex civil unions, as an alternative to recognizing the relationship as a civil marriage, which Pope Francis has spoken against.  Below are some things to keep in mind when considering these comments.             First, the remarks about same-sex union were not made in the interview with Francesco filmmaker Evgeny Afineezsky.  Rather, they were later inserted into the documentary, without attribution, from a 2019 interview of the pope with a Mexican journalist.  They were not included in the published written version of the script.  They were edited  to give the impression that they are a cohesive whole, which they are not.  The remarks were made by the pope, but in a different context, and phrases that were distinct are put together to leave an impression not intended by the Holy Fat

            A saint is a living Gospel for all to read.   The saint preaches and teaches by example.   He or she can say, with the same genuine humility as St. Paul to the Philippians, “Keep on doing what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me.   Then the God of peace will be with you.”   Perhaps it is a cliché but nonetheless true – you are the only Bible that some people will read.   They may not take up the New Testament in their hands, but by your good example they will learn its message and see what it offers for their lives. They witness the Word active in you, and then they want to check it out for themselves.   Countless numbers of people have come to the knowledge of Christ, and a personal relationship with him, through the living witness of their spouse, relative, friend, co-worker – and even their enemy.             Yes, even their enemy.   St. Paul is a premier example.   He writes in his Letter to the Galatians, “For you heard of my former way of life in