ABVM PARISH COMMUNITY

  THOUGHTS ON FIDUCIA SUPPLICANS , “ON THE PASTORAL MEANING OF BLESSINGS” The recent Declaration by the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith is meant to provide a follow-up to Pope Francis’ response to one of the five Dubia (Latin for “doubts”) which had been presented to him by a few Cardinals.  Cardinals have the right to present Dubia directly to the Pope to ask for a clarification on a controverted moral or theological subject which has not been previously decided by the Magisterium or the Catholic tradition.  In Fiducia supplicans the Dicastery dealt with the second Dubium of the Cardinals and the Pope’s response.  The question was whether the Church has the power to give a blessing to unions of persons of the same sex through the ministry of ordained ministers. What provoked this Dubium is the practice in some dioceses of Belgium and Germany of the liturgical blessing of same-sex unions.  In his Responsa ad dubia Pope Francis wrote that the Church ca...

  HAVE A BLESSED NEW YEAR! Welcome to 2024!  Have you made New Year’s resolutions?  Catholics are always making resolutions, especially in Advent and Lent, and whenever they go to confession.  Of course, confession is only valid if the penitent is contrite and resolves to the best of his or her ability to avoid sin in the future.  According to the Council of Trent, repeated in the Catechism, contrition is “sorrow of the soul and detestation for the sin committed, together with the resolution not to sin again.”  In fact, usually the first act of the Mass after the celebrant’s greeting is the Penitential Rite, which is a communal confession of sins spoken by everyone in the first person: “I confess to almighty God and to you my brothers and sisters, that I have greatly sinned in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and in what I have failed to do...”  If the deacon or priest uses the option to speak the penitential tropes everyone responds ...

A DOUBLE-SHOT WEEKEND   The Universal Norms on the Liturgical Year and the Calendar, published in the Roman Missal which every priest uses to celebrate Mass, states that “Holy Church celebrates the saving work of Christ on prescribed days in the course of the year with sacred remembrance.  Each week, on the day called the Lord’s Day, she commemorates the Resurrection of the Lord, which she also celebrates once a year in the great Paschal Solemnity, together with his blessed Passion.  In fact, throughout the course of the year the Church unfolds the entire mystery of Christ and observes the birthdays of the Saints.”    The mysteries of the life of Christ include his Conception, Birth, Baptism, Transfiguration, Passion, Death, Resurrection, and Ascension into heaven.  All of these are celebrated as either Solemnities or Feasts.  What the Church calls the “birthday of the Saints” is the date of their passing from this world into heaven; they are ...

  SPE SALVI FACTI SUMUS – “IN HOPE WE WERE SAVED” (Romans 8:25) Hope must have a sure foundation if it is to give meaning and consolation to our lives.   It cannot be based on whimsical desires or unachievable goals.   It cannot be based on a person since human beings are fickle, prone to self-deception, and mortal.   The hope that will sustain and save us is faith in the living God, who is All-Just, All-Merciful, All-Powerful, and All-Good.   We cannot achieve peace and happiness by placing our hope anywhere else. Saint Paul writes in his epistle to the Romans: “We ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we await for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.   For in this hope we were saved.   Now hope that is seen is not hope.   For who hopes for what he sees?   But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it in patience” (8:23-25).   The ultimate hope of the Christian will be realized ...

DAY BY DAY I was recently hit with an unexpected, and unwelcome surprise.  It seemed like my allergies were acting up, which happens with a change in the weather, but the symptoms became worse, and on Monday two weeks ago, after an hour workout in the morning, I suddenly felt very weak and tired.  Wham!  I ended up sleeping the rest of the day and night.  On Tuesday I went for a Covid-19 test and, yes, the result was positive.  Following my doctor’s instructions I quarantined for five days, until last Sunday, by which time the symptoms were gone.  I want to thank everyone who provided soup, over-the-counter medicine and prayers.  I want to especially thank Monsignor Depman, who despite an already busy schedule celebrated the Masses for us which I could not celebrate.     The coronavirus came to me out of nowhere and I have no idea how I contracted it.  It’s surprise, suddenness, and power made me think of the Scriptures that are...

  IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING CONFESSIONS AT ASSUMPTION BVM PARISH ON SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2   Our pastor is under Covit-19 quarantine until Sunday, December 3 and will not be able to hear confessions on Saturday.  We have not been able to find a replacement.  However, there are other local options for confession on Saturday.  They are listed here for your convenience:   St. Patrick Parish in Kennett Square confessions from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.   Sacred Heart Parish in Oxford confessions from 3:30 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.   Saint Gabriel of the Sorrowful Mother Parish in Avondale confessions from 3:15 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.     Please note that we will celebrate all the regularly scheduled weekend Masses of the First Sunday of Advent: 4:30 p.m. on Saturday and 8:00 a.m. and 10 a.m. on Sunday.  May you all have a blessed Advent and my God give you good health!    

  PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD We begin the 2024 liturgical year with the First Sunday of Advent.  The Collect, or Opening Prayer of the Mass, is meant to set the tone of the season for all the faithful:  Grant your faithful, we pray, almighty God, the resolve to run forth to meet your Christ with righteous deeds at his coming, so that gathered at his right hand, they may be worthy to possess the heavenly Kingdom.   You may remember that there are two liturgical themes of Advent; a preparation for the Second Coming of Christ in glory at the end of time, and a preparation to celebrate in a holy way the Nativity of Our Lord on Christmas.  The first two weeks of Advent emphasize the first theme while the last two weeks focus more on the second theme.    At the beginning of Mass today we ask the Father to help us “ resolve to run forth to meet your Christ .”  In the Christian life we are running a race to heaven.  In the first ...

  GRATITUDE + GENEROSITY = HAPPINESS What kind of world would we live in if gratitude was absent from it?  Just think, if we never said thank you to the store clerk, if we never said thank you to the waiter, if we never said thank you to someone who went out of their way to give us a lift.  What if we never expressed gratitude to war veterans, firefighters, teachers, and doctors?  A world without thanks would be bleak indeed.  I imagine we would become like Ebenezer Scrooge, the famous protagonist in A Christmas Carol .  Never smiling, always frowning, he is described by Charles Dickens in his 1843 novella “as hard as flint…secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster.”    After the forced visit with the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Yet to Come, Scrooge changed his attitude and became a generous and warm person.  He forgot the things that he had allowed to make him mean; as a boy, the neglect of his father, the absence ...

  THE UNITY OF THE HUMAN RACE During his second missionary journey Saint Paul found himself in Athens after fleeing persecution from a city in the north.  In the town square he took the opportunity to share the gospel with any who would listen.  Some became curious and invited him to join them in the Areopagus, a famous gathering site of philosophers of different persuasions on a northern hillside of Athens.  According to Luke, “Now all the Athenians as well as the foreigners residing there used their time for nothing else but telling or hearing something new” (Acts 17:21).  They wanted to hear the new thing about a certain Jesus, and the resurrection of the dead, of which Paul spoke. Paul was exasperated from seeing so many altars erected to idols.  But he was intrigued by one altar which was dedicated “To an Unknown God.”  He intended to make Him known.  “What therefore you unknowingly worship, I proclaim to you.  The God who made the w...

  NOSTRA AETATE FOR TODAY Pope St. Paul VI promulgated a “Declaration on the Relation of the Church to non-Christian Religions” on October 28, 1965, the shortest of the sixteen documents of the Second Vatican Council.  He explains the reason for its promulgation: “In our time [ nostra aetate ] when day by day mankind is being drawn closer together, and the ties between different peoples are becoming stronger, the Church examines more closely her relationship to non-Christian religions. In her task of promoting unity and love among men, indeed among nations, she considers above all in this declaration what men have in common and what draws them to fellowship.”  Nostra aetate first briefly speaks of the relation of the Church to Hinduism and Buddhism, highlighting what she considers to be positive elements in their beliefs and practices.  It affirms that “The Catholic Church rejects nothing that is true and holy in these religions. She regards with sincere reveren...

  Dear Parishioners, As you know, our world is being torn by terrible wars and internal civil conflicts around the world.  The current situations in Ukraine and Israel and Palestine have the potential to become wider conflicts.  The situation is so serious that the United States has sent two aircraft carrier strike groups to the Eastern Mediterranean.  We are the children of the Prince of Peace, Jesus Christ, who taught us that those who are peacemakers will be called “children of God” (Matthew 5:9).  Let us be children of God by our prayers.  We came together as a Church in response to Pope Francis’ dedication of October 27 as a day of fasting and prayer for peace.  Thank you to all who participated here in our parish church.  Let us continue to be vigilant in asking God for peace, for a change of hearts that will lead to the laying down of arms and the reconciliation of enemies.  On October 4, 1965, in the first visit by the head of the C...

  WHY DO SO MANY AMERICANS SUPPORT TERRORISM? I am sure that you were horrified to learn about the terrorist attacks against innocent civilians in Israel by Hamas militants on October 7.  As of the writing of this article it was reported that there were at least 1,300 murdered.  Hamas was founded in 1987 during an antifada, or “uprising,” against the Israeli settlement of Palestine.  “Hamas” is an acronym for “ Ḥarakat al-Muqāwamah al-Islāmiyyah ” which means “Islamic Resistance Movement.”   Their purpose is to create an Islamic state in place of Israel and remove all Jews from Palestine.  They believe that it is a religious duty of all Muslims to fight Israel.  The means of accomplishing this purpose have included rocket attacks and suicide-bombings against Israeli civilians.  Israel withdrew its troops from Gaza in 2005.  Hamas took control of the administration of Gaza after fighting with the less radical Fatah Party in 2007.  Ever ...

THERE ARE MANY KINDS OF MARTYRDOM The above title is inspired by St. Ambrose’s commentary on Psalm 118. He writes, “As there are many kinds of persecution, so there are many kinds of martyrdom.” The English word “martyr” is derived from the Greek word μάρτυρας (mártyras), which means “witness.” The Catechism of the Catholic Church describes martyrdom as “the supreme witness given to the truth of the faith: it means bearing witness even unto death” by an act of extraordinary fortitude (#2473). In the Book of Revelation the apostle John has a vision of martyrs in heaven: “When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne.” When they asked when their blood will be avenged, “they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been” (Rev 6:9-11). Thu...

ONE HOLY CATHOLIC AND APOSTOLIC CHURCH Our Holy Father, Pope Francis, recently created twenty-one new cardinals for the Catholic Church.  According to Canon 349 in the Code of Canon Law, “The cardinals of the Holy Roman Church constitute a special college whose responsibility is to provide for the election of the Roman Pontiff in accord with the norm of special law; the cardinals assist the Roman Pontiff collegially when they are called together to deal with questions of major importance; they do so individually when they assist the Roman Pontiff especially in the daily care of the universal Church by means of the different offices which they perform.”  Those who are chosen must be men who have been ordained to the priesthood and to the episcopate.  They are to be “outstanding for their doctrine, morals, piety and prudence in action” (Can. 351).  Eighteen of the newly made cardinals are under the age of eighty, which means that they are eligible to participate in...

HOW TO RECEIVE HOLY COMMUNION On the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ last year the bishops of the United States launched a three-year initiative to promote National Eucharistic Revival.  This was in part a response to Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation “On the Proclamation of the Gospel in Today’s World” ( Evangelii Gaudium ) in which he invited “all Christians, everywhere, at this very moment, to a renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ, or at least an openness to letting him encounter them” (¶3).  Later in the same exhortation he writes, “ How good it is to stand before a crucifix, or on our knees before the Blessed Sacrament, and simply to be in his presence!” (¶264). There is no greater presence of Christ on earth than his Real Presence in the Most Holy Eucharist.  The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops explains on their website the reason for initiating a Eucharistic revival: “ Our world is hurting. We all need healing, yet ma...