The Thirty Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Parishlife NOVEMBER 17, 2024 The Thirty Third Sunday in Ordinary Time

Thanksgiving Interfaith Service (pg 5) The Concert Series: A Musical Tapestry (pg 6) Just a Word from Fr. Michael (pg 11)

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Welcome!

The Roman Catholic Parish of St. Monica, St. Elizabeth of Hungary, St. Stephen of Hungry opens its doors to 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, lifestyle, nationality, economic status, and age, we endeavor to live as a community of faith.

We invite you to join our family: a family seeking to know and love Jesus Christ!

Weekly Schedule

Parish Staff

Pastor: Rev. Donald C. Baker ................. frdcab@stelmo79.org Daily Mass: Mon - Sat, 12:00 PM Parish Manager: Jennifer DeSpirito....jdespirito@stelmo79.org Saturday Vigil Mass: 5:30 PM Sacristan: Pedro Pizarro.......................ppizarro@stelmo79.org Sunday Mass: 8 AM, 10 AM, 12 PM, 5:00 PM Administration: Gladys Tejada..............gtejada@stelmo79.org Confessions: Saturdays at 5:00 PM* (*or by appointment) Pastoral Associate: Taryn Tonelli...........ttonelli@stelmo79.org Pastoral Associate: Maryann Tyrer.........mtyrer@stelmo79.org Plant Manager:Guillermo Vanegas....gvanegas@stelmo79.org Devotions Music Director: John Zupan...................jzupan@stelmo79.org Miraculous Medal on Mondays after 12:00 PM

mass in the church and live online

Priest in Residence: ..........................Rev. Michael K. Holleran Weekend Associate: .........................Rev. Anthony Ciorra, IVD Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament Weekend Associate: ..............................Rev. Edward Beck, CP Every Friday after the 12:00 PM mass until 3:00 Wedding Coordinator: Debbi Burdett...dbweddingsnyc@gmail.com PM in the church and live online

Divine Mercy

Every Friday at 3:00 PM in the church and online Vespers (Evening Prayer) Every Friday at 5:10 PM in the chapel and online

Contact

Sacrament of Reconciliation

Our church is located at 413 E. 79th St, New York, NY 10075 Our parish center is located at 406 E. 80th St, New York, NY 10075 (Phone): 212 - 288 - 6250 (Fax): 212 - 570 - 1562 (Email): info@stelmo79.org The parish center offices hours are

Monday/Wednesday.............................. 9 AM - 4 PM Tuesday/Thursday ................................. 9 AM - 7 PM Saturday ................................................ 10 AM - 2 PM The office is closed Friday and Sunday and weekdays from 1 -2 PM for lunch.

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@stelmo79

stelmo79.org

Saturdays at 5:00 PM or by appointment Anointing of the Sick Every third Saturday of the month after the 12:00 PM mass Baptisms & Marriages Please call the parish office for more information.

Communion for the Homebound: Those wishing to receive communion, but unable to travel to church due to illness/age, please contact the parish office for arrangements.

Mass Intentions

Saturday, November 16, Vigil 5:30 PM -Mila -Mila Juris Marcelo (Living) and Maureen Reyes (Living) Sunday, November 17, The Thirty Third Sunday in Ordinary Time 8:00 AM - Ruth Farley 10:00 AM - Robert O’Brien 12:00 PM - All Parishioners 5:00 PM - Elizabeth and Patrick McCormark Monday, November 18, Weekday 12:00 PM - Basia Niemczyc Tuesday, November 19, Weekday 12:00 PM - Souls in Purgatory Wednesday, November 20, Weekday 12:00 PM - Michael P. Keating Thursday, November 21, The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary 12:00 PM - Josefa Ortiz Litrenta (Living) and Hugo Alberto Litrenta (Living) Friday, November 22, St. Cecilia 12:00 PM - Priests of St. Monica’s Saturday, November 23, Weekday 12:00 PM - Nine Souls of Lima

Collections

WEEK ENDING 11/3/24

10/31, All Saints Day Vigil: $142.00 11/1, All Saints Day: $806.00

11/2, 5:30 PM Mass Attendance: 216 Collections: $1516.00 11/2, 8:00 AM Mass Attendance: 109 Collections: $1840.00 11/3, 10:00 AM Mass Attendance: 105 Collections: $321.00 11/3, 12:00 PM Mass Attendance: 100 Collections: $2767.00 11/3, 5:00 PM Mass Attendance: 122 Collections: $1237.00 Gross Online WeShare Collections: $3371.00

TOTAL: $11,052.00

Prayers for the Sick

Angela Mitchell Daniel Murphy Sebastian Escobar Antoinette Paone Nancy Salerno Angela Mitell Daniel Murphy

Giancarlo Tonelli Steven Moses Desiree Amato Parke Peter Farley Mary Ann Ruddick Marybeth Hart Galvin Anne Sabatini Maria Simanca

Prayers for the Deceased

Rafael Parra Fredy Beras Peggy Schroeder

Eric Pappert Joseph Catalano

Weekly Observances & Readings

Sunday, 11/17: The 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Dn 12:1-3/Heb 10:11-14, 18/Mk 13:24-32 Monday, 11/18:

Weekday Rv 1:1-4; 2:1-5/Lk 18:35-43

Tuesday, 11/19:

Weekday Rv 3:1-6, 14-22/Lk 19:1-10

Wednesday, 11/20:

Weekday Rv 4:1-11/Lk 19:11-28

Thursday, 11/21: The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Rv

Rv 5:1-10/Lk 19:41-44 Friday, 11/22: Saint Cecilia, Virgin and Martyr Rv

Rv 10:8-11/Lk 19:45-48 Saturday, 11/23:

Weekday 3 Jn 5-8/Lk 18:1-8

Next Sunday, 11/24:

Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe

Dn Dn 12:1-3/Heb 10:11-14, 18/Mk 13:24-32

Baptism Announcement On Sunday, November 17 at 1:30 PM, we baptize

Fiona Ann Solowitz

child of Noel F. McKenna and Rebecca A. Solowitz Please join us in congratulationing this family as they celebrate their child’s new life in Christ!

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Est. 1928

JOIN US for an OPEN HOUSE You’ll have a chance to tour the school; meet parents, students, and members of the administrative team; gain insight into our application process; and learn about the amazing benefits of attending Saint Stephen of Hungary School!

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 22 AT 8:30 AM To register and for more information, email admissions@saintstephenschool.org

A 2023 National Blue Ribbon School 408 EAST 82ND STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10028

(212) 288 - 1989

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www.saintstephenschool.org

Prime Time Ministry: Upcoming Events MONDAY

NOV

CREATING A PLAN: Preserving Your Assets

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Attorney Michael N. Connors of Connors and Sullivan will present an informative seminar on a wide range of estate planning, probate and elder law topics. Learn how to protect, preserve, and direct your assets at every stage of life. (Parish Center, 6:30 PM)

FRIDAY

LOVE, DEATH, LOVE with Ellen Long Stilwell

DEC

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Join us for a discussion on the subject of grief and how best to process the emotion when a loved one passes. Ellen Long Stilwell has seventeen years of experience with hospice. She is a registered nurse, a trained death doula, and a faculty member at Adelphi University, teaching Caring for the Patient Nearing End of Life. (Parish Center, 1PM)

Questions? Email primetime@stelmo79.org

INTERFAITH THANKSGIVING PRAYER SERVICE

Please join us at the Church of St. Monica to welcome outside faith communities in the area to an evening of togetherness in music, prayer, and reflection. All are invited to give thanks for God’s many blessings, and to pray for peace in our world, our nation, our communities, and in our hearts. A reception with drinks and light bites will follow.

November 21, 2024; 7PMstelmo79.org 5

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2024 3:00 PM The Church of St. Monica 413 E 79th St. New York, NY 10075 6

16TH ANNUAL

Thanksgiving Dinner A meal of gratitude with our beloved Yorkville community THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 2024, 1:30 PM (Doors open at 1:00 PM)

Tickets are on sale for $5 a person, and purchases must be made in person at the Parish Center during office hours.

We need your help - scan the QR code to volunteer!

Liz’s Pantry

PROVIDING FOOD ACCESS FOR ALL

Our next pantry is on November 23, 2024 from 10 -11 AM.

ALL ARE WELCOME. Following Jesus' command to feed others and faithful to the example of our patron St. Elizabeth of Hungary, the mission of Liz’s Pantry is to support and nourish others in need with dignity and respect, without regard of age, race, creed, or lifestyle.

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CENTERING PRAYER GROUP Mark your calendars! Centering Prayer is a Christian contemplative practice popularized by the Trappists in the 1970's but based on a 15th century treatise on prayer called, "The Cloud of Unknowing." Fr. Michael Holleran will be establishing a weekly Centering Prayer group in the St. Elizabeth of Hungary Chapel on Wednesday evenings.

The Introductory session will take place at 7 PM on Wednesday, December 4th. Everyone is welcome!

The first sessions will include beginner instruction for those new to this type of prayer. The meetings will conclude around 8:15 PM. For more information about Centering Prayer, please visit www.contemplativeoutreach.org.

Crafting for a Cause Seniors in nursing homes often feel forgotten and lonely, especially around the holidays. Join us in making Christmas cards for our local rehabilitation and nursing center on

Saturday, November 30 from 10AM - 2PM in the Angelo Room at the Parish Center.

Craft supplies will be provided, just bring your creative spirit!

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Bake Sale Fundraiser Please come to our bake sale on

Sunday, November 24 for a delectable assortment of baked goods: Irish soda breads, cupcakes, cookies, pies, and more!

DATE:

Sunday, November 24, 2024

TIME:

11AM, 1PM, 6PM (following the 10AM, 12PM, & 5PM masses.)

PLACE: Church of St. Monica - 413 E. 79th Street (between 1st and York Ave)

Bakers Wanted!

This fundraiser will support the cost of our many ministries. Please consider donating a homemade or store bought item!

Baked goods can be dropped off at the Parish Center on Friday 11/22 and Saturday 11/23.

To participate, email theresa10021@gmail.com, or sign up with the QR code below!

Thank you for your support!

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33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time: November 17, 2024

Christmas Mass Schedule

CHRISTMAS EVE

CHRISTMAS DAY

8:00 AM - Mass (Cantor and Organ) PM - Christmas Caroling 10:00 AM - Family Mass (Children’s Choir) PM - Family Mass PM - Lessons and Carols 12:00 PM - Mass (Adult Choir and Chamber Ensemble) 10:00 PM* - Candlelight Christmas Eve Mass 5:10 5:30 9:00

*This year, the 10:00 PM mass takes the place of the the midnight mass. There will be no mass at midnight.

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*No 5:00 PM mass

From Priest in Residence, Fr. Michael Holleran NOVEMBER 17, 2024 Do You Know God? My guess is that many people know things about God, or have beliefs in God, but do not actually have personal knowledge or experience of God. It would be as if a husband or wife could write down all the autobiographical details of their spouse, but never had any personal intimacy with them. And make no mistake, a marriage is precisely the language that God uses, in both the Gospels and the Hebrew Scriptures, for the relation between God and His People, Christ and His Church. The experience of heaven, according to the Book of Revelation (21:2), is one in which the New Jerusalem descends as a “bride prepared to meet her husband.” In this regard, therefore, it is rightly said that mystics or contemplatives are simply believers whose faith has allowed them to have a deep experience of God rather than just accept certain propositions about God. In that sense, mystics should not be rare and strange, but rather the identity of every Christian, and indeed every human, since that ecstatic eternal relationship is our destiny and the reason for our creation.

My own history testifies to what is often such a neglect in our formation. In grammar school, and even Jesuit high school, I experienced the wonderful riches of the liturgy, rightly called by the Second Vatican Council the “source and summit” of our Christian life; but God still somehow remained external, an object of worship, and our relationship with God mainly one of moral obligation. We were not taught that prayer could be other than vocal, prayers of petition or praise, etc.. It was only when I entered the Jesuits after high school that I learned the meditation techniques of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola. I later learned that they mirrored a famous medieval treatise, written by a Carthusian monk in the 12th century (the “Ladder of Monks”, or “Ladder of Paradise”) with its fourfold ascent: 1) Reading (Lectio) of a Scripture passage or Gospel parable; 2) Meditation (Meditatio) or discursive reflection on it; 3) Prayer (Oratio), an outflow of the heart to God in response; 4) Contemplation (Contemplatio), a silent resting in the Lord as a culmination. Before long, I also learned from my Novice Master that an inability to meditate, but rather an invitation to plunge into silence, was the normal evolution of the spiritual life. I was astounded and attracted, and eventually led into the Carthusian Order of monks; but such is the calling, the internal vocation, that wondrously awaits everyone, whatever their external vocation.

Nor should this surprise us! God is obviously beyond the grasp of any word or concept. As the great mystic (the Mystical Doctor, according to the Church) St. John of the Cross famously says: “God speaks only One Word from all eternity, in silence.” Dionysius the Areopagite, a monk of the sixth century often quoted by St. Thomas Aquinas, pointed out that beyond all Church structures and sacraments, beyond even the angelic hierarchies, a “ray of darkness” brings us into contact with God. St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Jesus outline the trajectory, as each one of our faculties turns silent in the face of a loving mystery, and then is united with God. Our own Mind and Will, Heart and Soul, become one with Christ’s (Cf. 1 Cor. 2:16; Phil. 2:5).

Finally, as both authors exuberantly point out, we enter the Transformation of Mystical Marriage with the Lord. United with Him, we breathe the same Spirit of Love as God, the Holy Spirit (cf. the magnificent chap.

8 of the Letter to the Romans), which we can then breathe with Christ into the World, transforming it more and more in Mercy and Love into the Kingdom of God. (Thus does “Thy Kingdom Come”). Since this is the ultimate calling of the whole universe, and the purpose for which each one of us is created, the experience is enormously satisfying and ineffably transporting. We were created for ecstasy, a standing outside of ourselves, and we finally encounter here the most authentic way to do that, in the face of all the counterfeits we so easily find.

Of course, much more could be said, and asked, about this. The important point is to practice this Life of Prayer and allow it to develop. One method that can be used is both simple and traditional: Centering Prayer: I will be introducing such a weekly prayer group here in the parish (starting in Advent, on Wednesday evenings), as I have also done in my previous three parishes. Please do not hesitate to join us, or simply to inquire more profoundly, even if you cannot attend, as I am more than happy to encourage and assist on the path!

– Father Michael

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