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Parish life Second Sunday of Easter

Apr. 11, 2021

From the Pastor (Page 9)

From Our Parish Manager ( Page 4)

Faith Formation ( Page 6)

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Mission Statement The Roman Catholic Parish of St. Monica-St. Elizabeth of Hungary-St. Stephen of Hungary opens its doors to welcome and embrace all in our community. We strive through worship, hospitality and service to receive those seeking a spiritual home. In the midst of diversity of thought, life style, nationality, economic status & age, we endeavor to live as a community of faith and invite you to join our family a family seeking to know and love Jesus Christ.

Parish Staff

Pastor: Rev. Donald C. Baker .......................... frdcab@stelmo79.org Rev. Msgr. Leslie J. Ivers ........................... msgrlivers@stelmo79.org Weekend Associates: ...............................................Rev. Tony Ciorra Pastoral Associate: Ms. Maryann Tyrer ........ mtyrer@stelmo79.org Pastoral Associate: Ms. Jasmine Gomez ..... jgomez@stelmo79.org Parish Manager: Mr. Michael Ward ............. mward@stelmo79.org Music Director: Mr. John Zupan .................... jzupan@stelmo79.org Wedding Coordinator: Ms. Debbi Burdett . dbweddingsnyc@gmail.com Plant Manager: Guillermo Vanegas ......... gvanegas@stelmo79.org Sacristan: Pedro Pizarro ................................ ppizarro@stelmo79.org Administrative Assistant: Gladys Tejada ..... gtejada@stelmo79.org Church Address: 413 East 79th Street, NY, NY 10075 Parish Center Address: 406 East 80th Street, NY, NY 10075 Tel: 212-288-6250 Fax: 212- 570-1562 Email: info@stelmo79.org Our Offices are open:

Monday ............................................................. 9am - 5pm Tuesday - Thursday ....................................... 9am - 7pm Friday .......................................................Closed Saturday ................................................. 10am - 2pm Sunday ..................................................... Closed Closed for Lunch Weekdays......................1pm - 2pm Visit us at: www.STELMO79.org

Mass Intentions

Saturday, April 10th Vigil

5:30pm

Brian Thompson

Sunday, April 11th Second Sunday Lent 8:00am Werner Hertzel 10:00am Dr. Varnes Bellevue 12:00pm All Parishioners 5:00pm Barbara Mary Longa

Monday, April 12th Easter Weekday

12:00pm Adam Armetta Tuesday, April 13th Easter Weekday

12:00pm Robert McAuvic Wednesday, April 14th Easter Weekday

12:00pm

German Ornes

Thursday, April 15th Easter Weekday 12:00pm

Priests of St. Monica’s

Friday, April 16th Easter Weekday

12:00pm

Peg & Patrick Briody

Follow us on social media by searching STELMO79

Mass Schedule

Daily Mass: Mon-Sat, 12 noon Saturday Vigil: 5:30pm Sunday: 8am, 10am, 12pm & 5pm Confessions: Saturdays at 5pm or by appointment

Saturday, April 17th Easter Weekday

12:00pm

Jack Kelly

For Mass Intentions, please visit the Parish Center.

Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament Every Friday after the Noon Mass until 3pm in the church and live on-line Devotions Miraculous Medal on Mondays after Mass in the church and live on-line Divine Mercy

Bread & Wine This Week’s Bread & Wine In Memory of Pascuale Ionta Offered by Maria Ionta

Prayed every Friday at 3pm in the church and live on-line Vespers (Evening Prayer) Every Friday at 5:10pm in the Chapel and live on-line Sacrament of Reconciliation Saturdays at 5pm or by appointment

Sanctuary Lamp This Week’s Sanctuary Lamp Irene Huszar Offered by Attilio Leonardi

Anointing of the sick Every third Saturday of the Month after the noon Mass.

Baptisms & Marriages Please call the rectory office for more information.

Communion for the Homebound: If you know of anyone who cannot attend church because of illness or age, and would like to have communion brought to them, please contact the Parish office, so that we can arrange for a Eucharistic Minister to bring communion to them.

PRAYERS FOR THE SICK Maria Ioanta, Donna Menegaz, Zita Zilverman, Eileen Ford, Nancy Dorsinville, Nancy Hermann, Joan McKeagney, George & Magie Samra, Andres Rodriguez, Jasmine Gomez, James Mooney, & all those ill with or recovering from the COVID-19 virus and all Victims of Military Activities PRAYERS FOR THE DECEASED Louis Rich, Irene Huszar, Louis Schmidt, Msgr.

Francis Boyle, Rafael Romero, Edward J. Moreno, Emil De Spirito, Nora Hickey & Pascuale Ionta

Today’s Readings First Reading — With great power the apostles bore witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus (Acts 4:32-35).

Psalm — Give thanks to the Lord for he is good, his love is everlasting (Psalm 118).

Second Reading — The victory that conquers the world is our faith (1 John 5:1-6).

Gospel — Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed (John 20:19-31).

The English translation of the Psalm Responses from the Lectionary for Mass © 1969, 1981, 1997, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. All rights reserved.

Readings for the Week Monday: Acts 4:23-31; Ps 2:1-3, 4-9; Jn 3:1-8 Tuesday: Acts 4:32-37; Ps 93:1-2, 5; Jn 3:7b-15 Wednesday: Acts 5:17-26; Ps 34:2-9; Jn 3:16-21 Thursday: Acts 5:27-33; Ps 34:2, 9, 17-20; Jn 3:31-36 Friday: Acts 5:34-42; Ps 27:1, 4, 13-14; Jn 6:1-15 Saturday: Acts 6:1-7; Ps 33:1-2, 4-5, 18-19; Jn 6:16-21 Sunday: Acts 3:13-15, 17-19; Ps 4:2, 4, 7-9;

1 Jn 2:1-5a; Lk 24:35-48

St. Stephen of Hungary School Pre-K through 8th Grade Catholic Parochial School

408 East 82nd St., New York, NY 10028 (212) 288-1989 Fax: (212) 517 – 5788 Principal: Ms. Kelly Burke

www.saintstephenschool.org Interested in admissions to our parish school?

admissions@saintstephenschool.org

The Mass Book: I am writing to inform the parish base that all of our masses for 2021 are now booked with intentions.

That is a bizarre sentence to write at the beginning of April, that masses through December 31 st are booked. At the same time, that is a good problem to have as it is one (of many) signs of a vibrant parish.

We have worked to try and keep the mass book as fair as possible. Calendar year 2016 was the first year the parishioners from the original parishes shared a mass book via merger, and we needed to learn the habits of the parishioners and the practices of the three individual offices that parishioners were used too. Then a few years back, with the changes to the mass schedule, we opened the book for half-year periods. The purpose of that was to try and be as fair as possible to people, specifically, we did not want to take masses that ultimately would have been erased from the schedule based upon changes. The last two years we have made it a practice to open generally the first Monday of October, announcing at masses and via social media in September the upcoming opening of the book for the following year, and providing masses at a first come, first serve basis. I am sharing all of this to let the parish base know that it has truly been our intent to provide the opportunity to obtain mass intentions for loved ones in as fair a way as possible.

However, I will circle back and say it is mid-April and we cannot aid our parishioners in offering mass intentions for the rest of the year; is that fair? Probably not. Therefore, we will try something different for the 2022 Mass Book. We will open the 2022 book via thirds of the year, with a schedule that will look something like the following: October 2021: February 2022: June 2022: October 2022:

Mass Book for 2022 will open for January-April May-August of 2022 masses will open September-December of 2022 masses will open Mass Book for 2023 will open for January-April

We think this will be fair in that there is still a first come first serve basis, but we will also not face an 8-month period being unable to offer intentions to our parishioners. Hopefully, this is the solution.

-Mike Ward, Parish Manager

K-8 Parish Religious Education: •

Religious Education resumes on April 11. We continue to meet online each Sunday morning at 10:15am.

Zoom links are emailed each week to all registered families.

Adult Faith Formation: •

Our Sunday morning Adult Faith Formation, an informal discussion of the Sunday Scriptures, led by a facilitator, is open to all. We meet on Sundays 10:15 to 11:30am, in the Parish Center. Social distancing and face masks are required. Please join us! No registration is required – you can drop in any Sunday. Sessions resume on April 11.

Adult Sacraments of Initiation (RCIA):

If you have ever thought about becoming Catholic, or if you are a baptized Catholic who has not yet celebrated First Communion or Confirmation, please contact Maryann Tyrer at mtyrer@stelmo79.org to discuss our adult initiation process (commonly known as the RCIA). You can begin this process at any time throughout the year, and options are available for face-to-face or Zoom meetings.

Icon Painting Workshop

Reverend Peter Pearson, professional iconographer and teacher, returns May 3-7, 2021 to lead us in painting this icon of St. Joseph. We will gather in the Angelo Room (observing safe distancing and wearing masks) each evening of the week, 6:30-9pm. The $250 fee covers all the materials (board, brushes, paints, and tools) that you will need to paint your own icon, as well as the expert instruction of Reverend Peter Pearson.

Don’t miss out on this annual opportunity!

Contact Maryann at mtyrer@stelmo79.org to save your spot.

The Concert Series at St. Monica Since the pandemic, we unfortunately have not been able to present our Concert Series at St. Monica. I know it has been a disappointment for many of our parishioners. However, I am happy to let you know that we will have our first concert since the pandemic closed us down. Yes, the Concert Series at St. Monica – St. Elizabeth of Hungary – St. Stephen of Hungary is back.

Since singing a full out concert is not advisable at this time, we will be presenting a live cello and piano program. On Sunday, April 18, 2021 at 3:00 pm Colleen Ruddy - cellist and parishioner & John Zupan - pianist and Director of Music will be performing well-known classics by Rachmaninoff, Fauré, Shubert, Saint-Saëns and Satie. Contemporary works by Kalemba, Leonard Cohen, Astor Piazzolla and Christina Perry. Come join us for an afternoon of live, beautiful music!

Admission is free! Social distancing and masks are required. This event will be livestreamed. So, if you don’t feel comfortable in crowds, join us online at www.stelmo79.org.

Bereavement Support Group • • • • • • •

Wednesday Evenings, 7-8:30pm, April 21, 28, and May 5, 12, 19, 26 In the church, with masks and social distancing Open to men and women, but with separate discussion groups Led by trained facilitators Open to anyone who has experienced a significant loss Sessions include prayer, reflection, journaling, and discussion Register at stelmo79.org, or contact Maryann Tyrer at mtyrer@stelmo79.org

Five Minute Jesus

Using the Gospel for Prayer – Third Sunday of Easter April 18, 2021 It’s simple. 1. Read the Gospel for the following Sunday slowly, reflecting on the story it tells. 2. Reflect on the questions assigned for each day. 3. Make some resolution about how what you read can be lived that day. 4. Then thank God for speaking to you through this reflection.

The Gospel according to Luke 24:35-48 The two disciples recounted what had taken place on the way, and how Jesus was made known to them in the breaking of bread.

While they were still speaking about this, he stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” But they were startled and terrified and thought that they were seeing a ghost. Then he said to them, “Why are you troubled? And why do questions arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see I have.” And as he said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed, he asked them, “Have you anything here to eat?” They gave him a piece of baked fish; he took it and ate it in front of them.

He said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the law of Moses and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. And he said to them, “Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.”

Monday Was there something in this reading that spoke to me? Comforted me? Challenged me? Why did it have this effect on me?

Tuesday Jesus appears to his disciples, apparently out of nowhere. The disciples’ reactions are startled and terrified. And with good reason.

Dead people, rumored to be alive, are either one of two things: deceivers, who faked their death for some reason, or ghosts. These disciples buried Jesus. They knew he was dead. And yet here he was. Whatever he was, they certainly did not expect him to show up this way. But then the implication is that that is exactly how God shows up; unexpectedly. Have I ever had a time when I became aware that God showed up in my life? When was it? Was I aware of God’s presence at the time or did I recognize it later? How did I feel, and what did that appearance mean to me?

Wednesday This must be a ghost – that is the only conclusion they could come to. As a result, Jesus shows them his hands and feet. He shows them his wounds. That is odd: what person identifies themselves by their wounds? Are their wounds that I have that marked me, as indelibly as Jesus’ does him? Do I identify myself by a wound? Maybe not in the flesh but in the heart? What are they? And most importantly, why are they not healed?

Thursday Jesus also goes further, inviting them to touch his wounded hands and feet and see that he is not a spirit, but flesh and blood – his bodily resurrection was real. For the disciples this did not just mean they had their dead friend back; but the resurrection of the dead was something that was only supposed to happen at the end of the world. For the disciples, the resurrection of Jesus meant that the end of the world and the Kingdom of heaven was at hand. God was fulfilling God’s promises, and the resurrected body of Jesus was the sign. What does Jesus’ resurrection mean to me? Does belief in it change the way I live my life? The way I look at suffering – or even death? IF so, how? And if not why not?

Friday This gospel starts oddly, beginning at the end of the previous story in the Gospel of Luke, the road to Emmaus, where Jesus appears to two disciples, explains that the Law and the Prophets all point to him as the Messiah, and then reveals himself to them in a meal where he “breaks the bread” - Jesus is known by his followers at a meal. Here we are at a meal again: Jesus eats with them; as proof that he is indeed risen. Clearly meals were a central part of early Christianity. To this day Catholic worship centers on a meal – the Eucharist or Mass, which is a direct descendent of the meals Jesus ate with his friends. Luke seems to be saying that Jesus is still present at their meals. We believe he is at ours. Have I ever experienced the presence of Jesus at mass? Where? And what does that mean to me and my life?

Saturday “Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures”. Here Jesus is doing for the disciples what he did on the road to Emmaus; showing how everything that the people of Israel believed and hoped for are fulfilled in his life death and resurrection. Our faith then, is rooted in the Jewish faith. Jesus was Jewish. His disciples were too. So was his mother. Which makes Christian antisemitism so puzzling. Have I ever felt prejudice towards the Jewish people? If so, where did it come from? Why did I feel it? Do I still feel it? And how do I think Jesus and his mother would react to that prejudice?

From the Pastor 04.11.21 International Justice Mission Several years ago, I was part of conversation where a young person asked an older wealthy New Yorker what they do to advance the cause of justice, human rights or to fight climate change. They replied, without missing a beat: “I write checks.”

Charity is essential. It is what enables organizations which advocate for justice to do their work. Many not-for-profit organizations, not the least of which the Church, absolutely depend upon the generosity of their supporters. The Cardinal’s Appeal for example, is an essential part of the charitable works of our Archdiocese. Catholic Charities, Catholic Schools, Catholic healthcare organizations simply would not function as they do now, were it not for “people who write checks”.

And yet. My father always used to say, “Give a man a fish, you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, you feed him for life.” Wouldn’t it be better to try to mend the system that keeps people dependent on charity? In short, even while charity is vitally important, so is the struggle for justice.

There are many organizations, faith-based and not, that advocate for those who suffer at the hands of unjust structures in our world. One such organization is the International Justice Mission . An ecumenical organization (i.e., not just Catholic) It says of itself: “We are a global organization partnering with local justice systems to end violence against people living in poverty”. Depending on where they are in the world, they work with local governments to stop sex slavery and other forms of human trafficking.

Next weekend, Ms. Jenn Pedersen will speak at all our masses and talk to us about the IJM. Jenn is no stranger to New York. She is an evangelical pastor who, with her husband, shepherds a church in New York City. Jenn and her husband came and introduced themselves to me right after I arrived in our parish in 2015. IJM gave a presentation to the priests of the East Manhattan in 2019, and I was delighted to discover that Jenn is now their representative here.

IJM partners with churches here in New York (St. Ignatius Loyola is the church which introduced them to the priests of East Manhattan, for example). Jenn is coming to talk to us about what they do, and how we can become active. If you want to find out more about IJM you can check out their website: www.ijm.org.

So often I hear criticism that while the Catholic Church is great when it comes to charity, its record on justice is far more mixed. Perhaps. But whatever people think, to advocate for the hungry, the lowly, the poor and the dispossessed is part of our biblical tradition. Consider the biblical prophets who railed against the injustice of the rulers in Judah and Israel in their day; Jesus’ advocacy for his “little ones” who suffered at the hands of Roman oppression; Mary’s joyful Magnificat in which she celebrates the Lord who through her, fills the hungry with good things and lifts up the lowly.

Jenn Petersen will come and speak about how we can continue in that biblical tradition of support for the hungry, the oppressed and those who suffer injustice. Of course, they also just accept checks! And there is no obligation. As with many organizations which come to speak with us, support is voluntary; we are a big Church and there are many ways we can respond to our Tradition’s concern for justice. I hope this will become a way for many of us.

Father Baker

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