Pallottine Collection 2021

Kathy From our Pastor

     On Palm Sunday a Second Collection will be made that will go toward the works and missions of the Pallottines in India. I know there have been several 2nd collections during Lent, we are not asking for a big amount; whatever you give will go a long way for the good of the missions. And if you are not able to do that, then just offer a prayer for our missionary works and you will feel blessed.

      Since the last time I have written about the Pallottine Missions a lot has happened in our Province which is the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Province (ABVM). Until December 2019 we were Three Provinces in the whole of India. Since January of 2020 ABVM Province gave birth to Our Lady of Good Health Province and Gloria Dei Region. This has taken place in order to accommodate growth within the order. I have been appointed as the in-charge of the Mission Coordination work for ABVM Province.

 As I have mentioned before, our ministry here helps our Province in India to continue and to support our missionary works including the formation of seminarians. Besides that here is a glimpse of some of the activities we are now engaging ourselves in:

 · Home for the destitute and the aged. (A place for the destitute both men and women.) Presently we have 28 residents. Here we have two dormitories, for men and women. As the destitute are with varied psychological backgrounds, it’s difficult to keep them in one dormitory. The need of the place is to construct individual rooms for both men and women and also to make provision for the increasing number of residents and to accommodate them. Another requirement is the sustenance of the house. We are developing a dairy farm as one of the sources of income to achieve self-sustenance. We also help people with medical aid.

· Tuition Center’s in our missions: poor children are given tuition. Establishing the tuition centers is the need. There isn’t a structure to accommodate these students. Either we bring them to the church campus or any of the villages and impart education. Secondly, we support the teachers by paying their salaries from the Mission Secretariat.

· Educational scholarship to the students in mission areas (An annual program that has been carried out over the years now). Especially the poor who cannot afford to pay their school fees, financial help is given.

· Educational outreach: During this year of the pandemic, we have reached out to the students through our educational institutions: particularly distribution of smart phones and laptops as an aid to attend online classes to the needy who otherwise would have had to skip this academic year.

· House construction: Financial aid is given to the less privileged to have a better living facility. Financial aid is also needed for the construction of places of worship and presbyteries in mission stations.

      Out of the 13 years since the Pallottines started ministering here, I have been blessed to serve you for 7 years. Your prayers, words of encouragement and your support helps me to keep serving you all the more. Let us keep up our good works. May our Founder St. Vincent Pallotti and our Patroness Mary Queen of the Apostles continue to guide me as I minister to you.

 

     Thank you everyone for all your beautiful birthday wishes.  It was truly over whelming!!  

 

   God Bless you.

 Fr. Socorro

 

5th Sunday of Lent

Kathy Weekly message

The history of the Jewish people tells of their relationship with God – a relationship that ebbed and flowed, grew hot and cold, went from a passionate, loving bond to infidelity.  Every time Israel turned their backs to the Lord, He came back with a new sign of His love, a new covenant by which He reaffirmed His love for His people.  This Lent we have been hearing the stories of what led up to three of the covenants, the promises God made to His people.

In today’s first reading, we hear about yet another new covenant.  This one will be different, though.  God saw that a rainbow in the sky, or promising a nation whose members numbered more than the sands on the seashore, or giving the people His words written on stone were not enough. All these signs of the covenants God made with His people were not enough for them to internalize His message.  With this new covenant, God wanted to show His desire to have a greater personal relationship with His people.

 

          “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new       covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.

           I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. 

          And I will be their God, and they shall be my people; for they shall all know me.”   Jeremiah 31:31-33

 When Jeremiah wrote these words, the Jews were captured by the Babylonians and exiled from Jerusalem. The words were meant to console them, to remind them that they were not abandoned by God, even though they had turned from Him.  God wanted to assure His people that He was with them always.  He wanted to restore their broken relationship caused by the Jews’ infidelity. This new covenant was about God forgiving us of our sins, offering us mercy, salvation, and life. He opens His arms again to us, wrapping us up in His love.

 “God will make a new covenant within them and write it on their hearts!” (Jer 31:33-34).  “Create in me a clean heart,” we reply with Psalm 51.  Are we willing to live the words we pray?  How do we internalize the words of the covenant?  How are we keeping God’s promises?

Next week is Holy Week, are we living the promise? Living the covenant?

Confessions are heard in the Church on Friday from 6 p.m.—7 p.m. prior to Stations of the Cross.

4th Sunday of Lent—Laetare Sunday

Kathy Weekly message

   The readings for the fourth week of Lent remind us of how much God is committed to His covenants, how much He loves us, and what He will do to demonstrate that love to us. What does it mean to say God loves us, though? To understand what the Bible means by God’s love we must bear in mind that whereas the Greek language, (the language of the Bible from about 300 BCE), has three different words for three different types of love, English has only one. In Greek we have (1) eros meaning romantic love (like the love between a man and a woman that leads to marriage), (2) philia meaning fellowship love (like the love for basketball which brings fans together), and (3) agape or sacrificial love (like the love that makes a mother risk her own life for her yet unborn child).

In romantic love we long to receive, in fellowship love we long to give and take, in sacrificial love we long to give. This agape love is the love we see in today’s first two readings. This week we are not reminded of a new covenant God entered with His people.  Instead, we see how he honored previous covenants, even when His people did not. Time and again, the Israelites turned from God. He continued to show His love, though, – sending His prophets to remind His people of their part of the covenants, the promises, God made with them, but to no avail.

  “The people added infidelity to infidelity, practicing all abominations of the nations and polluting the Lord’s temple…  “ 2 Chr 14.

“Early and often did the Lord send His messengers to them, for He had compassion on His people and His dwelling place…” 2 Chr 15.

But God loves us with agape or sacrificial love. That is one big difference between God and us: God gives and forgives, we get and forget. Giving is a sign of agape. This is the kind of love God has for us. He sent His prophets “early and often” to call His people back to His covenant love.  They refused and were sent into exile, then the Lord draws them out to return and rebuild (2 Chr 36).  “Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!” we respond with Psalm 137, along with the exiles in Babylon. 

 The scripture readings remind us that God has been trying for thousands of years to get our attention.  Through messengers, miracles, healings, and proclamations, God has been trying to convince us that the love that is offered us is eternal, sufficient and a gift.  Do our Lenten actions reflect that?  Do our attitudes reflect what God has been trying to convince us of?  Has God gotten our attention yet?

Today we are invited to say yes to God’s love. It is sometimes hard to believe that God loves each of us, but He does because God loves unconditionally; no ifs, ands, or buts. Once we realize this, then we can love God back and enter into a love relationship with God. Then we shall learn to share God’s love with those around us. Then we shall learn to give to God and to one another.  We will be living the covenant, living the promises God has made with His people.

 

Happy Birthday, Fr. Socorro!

 You are a blessing to all of us at St. Valentine Parish! May our Lord continue to bless you.