In a recent interview with the Argentine publication Viva, Pope Francis issued a list of 10 tips to be a happier person, based on his own life experiences.  The Pope encouraged people to be more positive and generous, to turn off the TV and find healthier forms of leisure.

 But his number one piece of advice came in the form of a somewhat cliche Italian phrase that means, “move forward and let others do the same.” It’s basically the Italian equivalent of, “live and let live.” You can check out the full list below.

The Pope’s 10 Tips for a Happier Life

1. “Live and let live.” Everyone should be guided by this principle, he said, which has a similar expression in Rome with the saying, “Move forward and let others do the same.”

2. “Be giving of yourself to others.” People need to be open and generous toward others, he said, because “if you withdraw into yourself, you run the risk of becoming egocentric. And stagnant water becomes putrid.”

3. “Proceed calmly” in life. The pope, who used to teach high school literature, used an image from an Argentine novel by Ricardo Guiraldes, in which the protagonist — gaucho Don Segundo Sombra — looks back on how he lived his life.

4. A healthy sense of leisure. The Pope said “consumerism has brought us anxiety”, and told parents to set aside time to play with their children and turn of the TV when they sit down to eat.

5. Sundays should be holidays. Workers should have Sundays off because “Sunday is for family,” he said.

6. Find innovative ways to create dignified jobs for young people. “We need to be creative with young people. If they have no opportunities they will get into drugs” and be more vulnerable to suicide, he said.

7. Respect and take care of nature. Environmental degradation “is one of the biggest challenges we have,” he said. “I think a question that we’re not asking ourselves is: ‘Isn’t humanity committing suicide with this indiscriminate and tyrannical use of nature?’”

8. Stop being negative. “Needing to talk badly about others indicates low self-esteem. That means, ‘I feel so low that instead of picking myself up I have to cut others down,’” the Pope said. “Letting go of negative things quickly is healthy.”

9. Don’t proselytise; respect others’ beliefs. “We can inspire others through witness so that one grows together in communicating. But the worst thing of all is religious proselytism, which paralyses: ‘I am talking with you in order to persuade you,’ No. Each person dialogues, starting with his and her own identity. The church grows by attraction, not proselytising,” the Pope said.

10. Work for peace. “We are living in a time of many wars,” he said, and “the call for peace must be shouted. Peace sometimes gives the impression of being quiet, but it is never quiet, peace is always proactive” and dynamic.

Only faith in the extraordinary action of a God provides the reasonable answer—faith in a God, who wants to make us aware that He is truly present in the mystery of the Eucharist.

The Eucharistic miracle in Buenos Aires is an extraordinary sign attested to by science. Through it Jesus desires to arouse in us a lively faith in His real presence in the Eucharist. He reminds us that His presence is real, and not symbolic. Only with the eyes of faith do we see Him under appearance of the consecrated bread and wine. We do not see Him with our bodily eyes, since He is present in His glorified humanity. In the Eucharist Jesus sees and loves us and desires to save us.

In collaboration with Ron Tesoriero, Mike Willesee, one of Australia’s best-known journalists (he converted to Catholicism after working on the documents of another Eucharistic miracle) wrote a book entitled Reason to Believe. In it they present documented facts of Eucharistic miracles and other signs calling people to faith in Christ who abides and teaches in the Catholic Church. They have also made a documentary film on the Eucharist—based largely on the scientific discoveries associated with the miraculous Host in Buenos Aires. Their aim was to give a clear presentation of the Catholic Church’s teaching on the subject of the Eucharist. They screened the film in numerous Australian cities. The showing at Adelaide drew a crowd of two thousand viewers. During the commentary and question period that followed a visibly moved man stood up announcing that he was blind. Having learned that this was an exceptional film, he had very much wanted to see it. Just before the screening, he prayed fervently to Jesus for the grace to see the film. At once his sight was restored to him, but only for the thirty-minute duration of the film. Upon its conclusion, he again lost the ability to see. He confirmed this by describing in minute detail certain scenes of the film. It was an incredible event that moved those present to the core of their being.

 Through such wondrous signs God calls souls to conversion. If Jesus causes the Host to become visible flesh and blood, a muscle that is responsible for the contraction of a human heart—a heart that suffers like that of someone who has been beaten severely about the chest, if He does such things, it is in order to arouse and quicken our faith in His real presence in the Eucharist. He thus enables us to see that Holy Mass is a re-presentation (i.e. a making present) of the entire drama of our salvation: Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection. Jesus says to his disciples, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe” (Jn 4: 48). There is no need to actively seek out wondrous signs. But if Jesus chooses to give them to us, then it behooves us to accept them with meekness and seek to understand what He desires to tell us by them. Thanks to these signs, many people have discovered faith in God—the One God in the Holy Trinity, who reveals His Son to us: Jesus Christ, who abides in the sacraments and teaches us through Holy Scripture and the Magisterium of the Catholic Church.

The weakening of faith in the real presence of the Risen Christ in the Eucharist is one of the most significant aspects of the current spiritual crisis. Jesus wants to strengthen our faith in His Eucharistic presence. That is why from time to time in the history of the Catholic Church He gives us signs–Eucharistic miracles that clearly underscore the fact that He, the Risen Lord Himself in the mystery of His Divinity and glorified humanity, is truly present in the Eucharist. The most recent Eucharistic miracle recognized by the Church authorities occurred in 1996 in the capital of Argentina–Buenos Aires.

A Consecrated Host Becomes Flesh and Blood

At seven o’clock in the evening on August 18, 1996, Fr. Alejandro Pezet was saying Holy Mass at a Catholic church in the commercial center of Buenos Aires. As he was finishing distributing Holy Communion, a woman came up to tell him that she had found a discarded host on a candleholder at the back of the church. On going to the spot indicated, Fr. Alejandro saw the defiled Host. Since he was unable to consume it, he placed it in a container of water and put it away in the tabernacle of the chapel of the Blessed Sacrament.

On Monday, August 26, upon opening the tabernacle, he saw to his amazement that the Host had turned into a bloody substance. He informed Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio, who gave instructions that the Host be professionally photographed. The photos were taken on September 6. They clearly show that the Host, which had become a fragment of bloodied flesh, had grown significantly in size. For several years the Host remained in the tabernacle, the whole affair being kept a strict secret. Since the Host suffered no visible decomposition, Cardinal Bergoglio decided to have it scientifically analyzed.

On October 5, 1999, in the presence of the Cardinal’s representatives, Dr. Castanon took a sample of the bloody fragment and sent it to New York for analysis. Since he did not wish to prejudice the study, he purposely did not inform the team of scientists of its provenance. One of these scientists was Dr. Frederic Zugiba, the well-known cardiologist and forensic pathologist. He determined that the analyzed substance was real flesh and blood containing human DNA. Zugiba testified that, “the analyzed material is a fragment of the heart muscle found in the wall of the left ventricle close to the valves. This muscle is responsible for the contraction of the heart. It should be borne in mind that the left cardiac ventricle pumps blood to all parts of the body. The heart muscle is in an inflammatory condition and contains a large number of white blood cells. This indicates that the heart was alive at the time the sample was taken. It is my contention that the heart was alive, since white blood cells die outside a living organism. They require a living organism to sustain them. Thus, their presence indicates that the heart was alive when the sample was taken. What is more, these white blood cells had penetrated the tissue, which further indicates that the heart had been under severe stress, as if the owner had been beaten severely about the chest.”

Two Australians, journalist Mike Willesee and lawyer Ron Tesoriero, witnessed these tests. Knowing where the sample had come from, they were dumbfounded by Dr. Zugiba’s testimony. Mike Willesee asked the scientist how long the white blood cells would have remained alive if they had come from a piece of human tissue, which had been kept in water. They would have ceased to exist in a matter of minutes, Dr. Zugiba replied. The journalist then told the doctor that the source of the sample had first been kept in ordinary water for a month and then for another three years in a container of distilled water; only then had the sample been taken for analysis. Dr. Zugiba’s was at a loss to account for this fact. There was no way of explaining it scientifically, he stated. Only then did Mike Willesee inform Dr. Zugiba that the analyzed sample came from a consecrated Host (white, unleavened bread) that had mysteriously turned into bloody human flesh. Amazed by this information, Dr. Zugiba replied, “How and why a consecrated Host would change its character and become living human flesh and blood will remain an inexplicable mystery to science—a mystery totally beyond her competence.”

In Attendance: Fr Henry, Fr Socorro, Lisa Alexander, Mary Anthony, Walt Bankowski, Dan Benard, Ron Fron, Beth Jachman, Anthony Janisse, Joe Kelly, Jeff Kramer, Suzanne Mote, Mike Nowak, Alan Pawlik, Frank Zbikowski.

 New Business

· Fund Raiser – Looking for new fund raisers to replace Irish Fest.  Silent Auction to coincide with the Parish anniversary May 2017.  Auction items could include baskets put together by school classrooms, time with Fr. Socorro (cooking) and Fr. Henry (soccer).    Committee to be formed by Frank Zbikowski and Lisa Alexander.  Raffle for $10K cash or a car?

· Church Picnic –Men’s Club will sponsor the meat.  David Prowse & Ted Kozlowski have volunteered to cook.  Request to change the alphabetical designation for donations – people would like to bring different dishes.

 Commissions

Pastoral update:

· Thanks to Mike Nowak for facilitating and Deacon Lawrence for being scribe for the Church Dialogue.

· Amazing conference attendees of OLL + St. Val meeting to discuss the effect.  They are e-mailing each other daily prayers.

· Fr. Socorro is going on vacation from 10-AUG to 06-SEP.

· Amazing Parish Conference: 207 parishes attended; 1,300+ people.  “Form a Leadership Team” people willing to serve the church and evangelize.  Team has been formed.  All in preparation for Synod.  More importance should be placed on getting the youth involved.

· Fr. Henry is getting a new kitchen because of a water leak—insurance to cover all costs.  Work starts Monday, May 23^rd.

· Works of Mercy – need representative to attend meetings & organize doing works of mercy.  Suggestion to reach out to St. Vincent De Paul.

 Roundtable:

· EM’s & lectors response to the dress code.

 · Next meeting August 2^nd, 2016 @ 7:30pm to discuss the Parish Picnic

Religious Education

Vacation Bible schools allow children to enjoy themselves while growing spiritually.

 Through the archdiocesan Department of Evangelization, Catechesis and Schools, your gifts to the Catholic Services Appeal support the work of catechists, who plan vacation Bible schools in parishes throughout the Archdiocese of Detroit. These faith-filled weeks during the summer help children learn about Jesus in a relaxing and fun way.

Dedicated catechists also teach our faith in parishes and Catholic schools. Their mission includes helping others to reflect on their Catholic faith and understand its purpose in today’s world. For information about CSA-funded ministries, programs, and services, please go towww.AOD.org.

Single fathers usually sit in the back row of their children’s school performances. Fathers who are married usually sit as close to the front of the audiences, with their spouses. Why is this?

Well, we all know how important mothers are to the well-being of a family. However, we as a culture look at single fathers with a bit of suspicion. Fathers are as important as mothers are, but offer a different perspective on life and bring a much
needed role in bringing up children. Let us welcome all fathers today to the front row of our lives and acknowledge how important they have been, and continue to be in our lives.

Let us pray…
Gracious God and Father, our first father,
You are the One who has brought us to life in this world you created.
You created us and everything around us.
We turned away from you
and only after disappointing you did we return your love.

Look with favor on our earthly fathers.
They helped create us in your image.
We have disappointed them,
but have come to realize just how important they are to us.

Bless all our fathers, living and deceased, with comfort and health.
We bring all their needs to you
and ask for strength so they may live worthy lives.

We ask all this in the name of your Son,
our model of what it means to reverence our fathers.
In Christ’s name.
Amen.

St. Valentine Parish Council Meeting Minutes for April 19th, 2016

In Attendance: Lisa Alexander, Mary Anthony, Dan Benard, Beth Jachman, Anthony Janisse, Joe Kelly, Jeff Kramer, Mike Nowak, Alan Pawlik, Frank Zbikowski.

Absent: Fr Henry, Fr Socorro, Walt Bankowski, Patrick Fox, Ron Fron, Allison Wright, Bob Zimmerman.

Old Business

Donut Meet & Greet Sunday – April 10^th.  Poor turnout; likely due to Confirmation.  June 5^th is the next date.  High School & College graduates invited to attend.

Proper dress & attire for Lectors and Eucharistic Ministers.  Worship commission working on a communication to lectors and EMs.

New Business

Fund Raiser – Looking for ideas.  Irish Fest no longer an option.  Suggestions included: school reunion, dinner/dance, silent auction & camel race.

Church Picnic – Will be held in the School Gym on Sunday, August 28^th, 2016.  Need to confirm whether the Men’s Club will sponsor the meat this year.  Jeff Kramer to contact David Prowse & Ted Kozlowski about cooking.  Suggestion to start cooking earlier & use the new warmer.  Need access to the soda machine.  Lisa Alexander volunteered to chair games for the children; bounce house & trampoline possible.

Commissions

Christian Service:

Still looking for a volunteer to attend PC meetings.  Rosemary Fox sent an e-mail outlining this year’s accomplishments:

November Blanket Drive
Giving Tree
Lunch for the homeless
Collecting pantry supplies for Angels’ Place
Soup Supper (cancelled due to weather)
Right to Life Baby Shower

Worship:

Final plans reviewed for HS & College graduations at the June 5^th noon mass.
Rosary will be prayed after weekend masses throughout May.
First Communion will be celebrated on May 1^st at the noon mass.
Pentecost Sunday celebrated on May 15^th.  Parishioners will be reminded to wear red at all masses.
Feast of Corpus Christi is Sunday, May 29^th.

Roundtable: