Our Lady of Hope Parish OUR LADY OF HOPE and ST. BRIGID SCHOOL

A Jesuit Ministry May 15 / May 16, 2021

seventh Sunday of Easter www.ladyofhopemaine.org Celebrating the Ignatian Year 2021-2022 Follow us on social media to stay connected! Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ourladyofhopemaine/

Pastoral Office, 673 Stevens Avenue, Portland, ME 04103-2540 207-797-7026 email: [email protected] Hours: Monday - Thursday 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM The office is closed on Fridays except by appointment (including phone calls). Phone messages left at any time are returned as soon as possible on the next regular work day.

NOTICE - Please watch our website for most recently updated information (www.ladyofhopemaine.org). There is about a week "lag time" from when the bulletin is completed and when you see it. The parish office no longer requires advanced appointments for regular parish business during our regular business hours (Monday- Thursday 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM) Fridays continue to be by appointment only. Please wear Face masks and practice social distancing when you arrive. Thanks for your faithful continuing of church support through your envelopes, WeShare and offerings dropped at the mail slot at the Parish Office. You have kept us going financially!

www.ladyofhopemaine.org 02 Seventh Sunday of East-

Fr. Paul Sullivan S.J. Fr. Kevin Hughes S.J. Fr. John d ’Anjou S.J. Fr. Vincent Curtin S.J. Pastor Parochial Vicar Senior Priest Senior Priest

Mary Cafazzo Linda McCormack Jean Ingalls Sandra Litcher Andrew Litcher Christopher Landry William Burke Melodye Deberadinis Business Mgr. Parish Assistance Office Assistance Faith Formation IT and Maintenance Maintenance School Principal School Bookkeeper Pastoral Staff Finance Council Fr. Paul Sullivan, S.J.- Pastor Bill Green, Charlie Noyes, Barbara Willey, Fr. Kevin C. Hughes, S.J - Parochial Vicar Ann Campbell, Tim Gibson Fr. John d ’Anjou, S.J.- Senior Priest Fr. Vincent Curtin, S.J. Senior Priest Pastoral Council Rev. Mr. John McAuliffe, Deacon Bill Slavick, Mary Ellen White, Kathy Eliscu Parish Musicians Estelle Lavoie, Elizabeth Manning Nancy Curran Joan Dube Dermot Bostock Tom Luna Lori Arsenault [email protected]

Office Staff Sacrament of Baptism Mary Cafazzo Parish Business Administrator Please call the Pastoral Office at 207-797-7026 to register Linda McCormack Parish Administrative Assistant for pre-baptism class. Jean Ingalls Office Assistant Melodye Deberadinis School Bookkeeper Sacrament of Marriage Andrew Litcher IT and Maintenance Couples should contact the Pastoral Office at least six Christopher Landry Maintenance months in advance.

Faith Formation Sacrament of Reconciliation [email protected] Saturday - St. Pius X Church 2:30 to 3:00 PM Sandra Litcher-Director of Religious Education or by Appointment

R.C.I.A. RCIA Core Team: Lori Arsenault, Jim Masi, Dick Niles, Father Paul Sullivan S.J.

Daily Mass Schedule - Saturday (05/15) - Saturday (05/22) All Masses celebrated at St. Pius X Church are livestreamed, available at the parish website Regular Weekend Masses Regular Daily Mass Schedule Mon-Friday 9 :00 AM All Masses need Prior Reservations to Attend Saturday - St. Pius X 8:00 AM - Livestreamed only Saturday - St. Pius X - 4:30 PM Additional Weekly Masses with our Jesuit Community: Sunday - St. Pius X - 7:00 AM School Mass at St. Brigid will be held differently and will Sunday - St. - 8:00 AM open only to students and school staff. Cheverus has resumed Sunday - St. Pius X - 9:00 AM the 7:15 AM Mass in the Loyola Chapel on school Sunday - St. Joseph - 10:00 AM days. Seating is limited. Sunday - St. Pius X - 5:00 PM

Act of Spiritual Communion

"Jesus, we believe that you are present in the most Blessed Sacrament. We love You above all things and desire to receive You into our hearts, minds, souls and bodies. Many of our brothers and sisters cannot now receive You sacra- mentally because of illness, or violence in their homelands, or because there is no priest and Mass can be celebrated only rarely. Come spiritually into those hearts. We embrace You, already there, and unite ourselves to You and to our brothers and sisters. Never permit us to be separated from You or from them. Amen.”

www.ladyofhopemaine.org Our Lady of Hope Parish 03 SATURDAY: May 15, 2021 The Sanctuary Candle burns this week at 8:00 AM - St Pius X Priest Intention ( Livestream Only) (Fr. Bob) St. Joseph Church SEVENTH SUNDAY OF EASTER 4:30 PM - St. Pius X Marie O'Connell by Guy O'Connell

( Reservations Only & Livestream) (Fr. Paul) St. Pius X Church SUNDAY: May 16, 2021 - SEVENTH SUNDAY OF EASTER 7:00 AM - St. Pius X Kevin Keane by Aunt Pat Sandie Jackson ( Reservations Only & Livestream ) (Fr. Jack) 8:00 AM - St. Joseph For The People Of The Parish both Living & Deceased 05/16/2021 to 05/22/2021 ( Reservations Only) (Fr. Paul) 9:00 AM - St. Pius X John Donald Neuts by Mark & Christine Coburn

( Reservations Only & Livestream ) (Fr. Kevin) th 10:00 AM - St. Joseph Rocco Sbardella by & Elizabeth Walsh Monthly Eucharistic Adoration ( June 04 ) ( Reservations Only) (Fr. Bob) 7:00 to 8:00 PM livestream from St. Pius X 5:00 PM - St. Pius X Ralph J. Aceto by Michael & Elizabeth Walsh Church, Eucharistic Adoration. Led by Deacon ( Reservations Only & Livestream ) (Fr. Kevin) John. Attendance is by livestream only at this MONDAY: May 17, 2021 time. 9:00 AM - St. Pius X For The Deceased Members of the Dostie Family ( Open No Reservations & Livestream ) (Fr. Jack) Marriage Blessing TUESDAY: May 18, 2021 Were you married “outside the church” ? It 9:00 AM - St. Pius X Rita Qualey by Bob & Tonya Hesket ( Open No Reservations & Livestream ) (Fr. Vince) may well be possible to celebrate a blessing of WEDNESDAY: May 19, 2021 your marriage. If this is of interest to you or 9:00 AM - St Pius X Sister Amy Zychal by Maureen Smith you have questions about this please contact ( Open No Reservations & Livestream ) (Fr. Bob) Fr Paul at the Parish Office. THURSDAY: May 20, 2021 Ministry to the Deaf and Hard of Hearing

9:00 AM - St. Pius X Helen-Ann (Tudsy) Bourke by her Daughter, Son & th Family Open No Reservations & Livestream ) (Fr. Paul) This weekend May 16 , Fr Kevin will offer FRIDAY: May 21, 2021 the 9:00 AM Mass at St. Pius X that is spo- 9:00 AM - St Pius X Kathleen Barnes Sawyer by the Zionce Family ken and also signed in American Sign Lan- ( Open No Reservations & Livestream ) (Fr. Kevin) guage. To attend this Mass in person you SATURDAY: May 22, 2021 must reserve in advance. The Mass is also 8:00 AM - St Pius X Priest Intention livestreamed. ( Livestream Only) (Fr. Bob) PENTECOST SUNDAY Prayers for our Parish Pastoral Council - 4:30 PM - St. Pius X For the People of the Parish Living & Deceased During the Weeks of Easter, we pray over the ( Reservations Only & Livestream) (Fr. Kevin) names of people who have been nominated to SUNDAY: May 23, 2021 - PENTECOST SUNDAY serve on our Parish Pastoral Council. Following 7:00 AM - St. Pius X Nancy T. Kashinsky by Mary Ann Bonetti the example of the Acts of the Apostles, on ( Reservations Only & Livestream ) (Fr. Bob) Pentecost we will draw the names of those 8:00 AM - St. Joseph Anna Anastasio by Corinne Holbine ( Reservations Only) (Fr. Paul) who will join the Council for this next year. 9:00 AM - St. Pius X William & Michael Jennings by The Family Plant Sale - As a spring ( Reservations Only & Livestream ) (Fr. Vince) 10:00 AM - St. Joseph Blessings for All Women of the Acts Retreat fund raiser on June Program ( Reservations Only) (Fr. Paul) 5th, 9:00 to 12:00 at St. 5:00 PM - St. Pius X Betty Dudley by Joan Della Torre & Family Pius X we will be ( Reservations Only & Livestream ) (Fr. Paul) selling plants. We are looking for perennials of all kinds. So, if you Pentecost Plans have plants that you could share, please pot

Next Weekend May 22nd - 23rd is Pentecost, celebrating the gift of them up for us. If you have questions or plants the Holy Spirit to us -and the birth of the Church. To mark this to donate, please call Tonya at 536-1457. graced moment and to celebrate the beginnings of a return to some more “normal” life, we are having coffee hours between the 8:00 and 10:00 AM Masses at St. Joseph and the 7:00 and 9:00 AM Mass- es at St. Pius X. These will be held outside. Plan to drop by on your way to and from Mass next week. In honor of the Holy Spirit, wear something red if you can!

www.ladyofhopemaine.org 04 Seventh Sunday of East- Scripture for the week of May 16, 2021 Observances for the Week of May 16, 2021 16 Sunday Acts 1:15-17, 20a, 20c-26/1 Jn 4:11-16/Jn 17:11b-19 16 Sunday SEVENTH SUNDAY OF EASTER 17 Monday Acts 19:1-8/Jn 16:29-33 17 Monday St. Paschal Baylon 18 Tuesday Acts 20:17-27/Jn 17:1-11a 18 Tuesday St. John I 19 Wednesday Acts 20:28-38/Jn 17:11b-19 19 Wednesday St. Theophilus of Corte 20 Thursday Acts 22:30; 23:6-11/Jn 17:20-26 20 Thursday St. Bernardine of Siena 21 Friday Acts 25:13b-21/Jn 21:15-19 21 Friday St. Christopher Magallanes 22 Saturday Acts 28:16-20, 30-31/Jn 21:20-25 22 Saturday St. Rita of Cascia 23 Sunday Acts 2:1-11/1 Cor 12:3b-7, 12-13 23 Sunday PENTECOST SUNDAY Availability of Holy Communion - With many of us now being fully vaccinated, we encourage people to return to Mass in-person. We have empty seats available every weekend. For those who are not able to attend in person we invite you to join in via our livestream Masses (www.ladyofhopemaine.org). For the time being we will continue making Holy Communion available for those attending the livestream Mass. A priest will be available at St. Pius X Church at about 9:45 AM Sundays. Please follow social distancing and wear a mask. Women’s Day of Reflection Thanks to those members of our parish who have signed up for the Women's Day of Reflection on Saturday May 22nd (9:30 AM - 4:00 PM). This day is being coordinated by our ACTS ministry, a collaboration between Our Lady of Hope and the Parish of the Holy Eucharist. The retreat will take place at Holy Martyrs Church in Falmouth. This retreat is now fully subscribed. May it be a day of blessing and grace for all. Join us in prayer as we kick off the Ignatian Year Please join us for “One Ignatian Community,” a bi- lingual prayer service to mark the launch of the Ig- natian Year.

This prayer service will be streamed live online in both English and Spanish at 7pm on Wednesday, May 19, 2021.

As our nation turns toward a more hopeful future, we hope that all those who are inspired by Ignatian spirituality will embark with us on a shared journey to “see all things new in Christ.” Fr. Joseph M. O’Keefe, SJ, provin- cial of the USA East Province, and others will reflect on the vision of the Ignatian Year to deepen our practice of Igna- tian spirituality and find new possibilities for ourselves and for our world.

This event is free and open to all. Register and we’ll send you a link to participate. Click here to Register. Seeking God/God seeking you - You are invited…… Some members of the parish have been gathering at 7:00 PM on a zoom link on Thursday evenings to discuss Fr. Jim Martin’s latest book “Learning to Pray”. You are welcome to join. Contact the Parish Office if you are interested or for more information.

That you think about prayer, come to Mass in person or online or even read this bulletin is an indication that God is seeking you, for it is God who has given you the desire to come to Mass or read the bulletin. If you are not interested in joining the group, you might just want to get the book and read it.

Our parish regularly offers opportunities to learn more about our faith, to join others in praying and in living out our faith. That is the role of a parish, to be an active community of faith, not just a “place to go to Mass.” Please think about ways you might respond to the opportunities being offered. Let us know if you have other ideas of things you are interested in supporting. Thanks

Thanks to those who attended in-person, by livestream or zoom our Ignatian Way “kick-off event” held on May 4th. Parishioners are encouraged to take advantage of the special programs we can offer from time to time. A parish is much more than just a “place to attend Mass.” We are grateful for those who do turn out. Our livestream audience included people from a number of States and several from Canada. Ours was the first East Coast event in the world- wide Ignatian Year 2021-2022 and was a successful beginning.

www.ladyofhopemaine.org Our Lady of Hope Parish 05 Finance and Administration Weekly Offertory Report Coming 2nd Collections Your Gifts of Stewardship 05-15/16-2021 — Snow Removal and Grounds Care Fund 05-22/23-2021 — Parish Assessment to School Fund May 01 / May 02, 2021 05-29/30-2021 — Fuel and Energy Fund First Collection- $6,455.00 envelopes - 119 06-05/06-2021 — Seminarians and Ecclesiastical Students Second Collection Parish- $586.00 - envelopes – 56 If you have any questions regarding your Second Collection Diocese-$194.00 -envelopes – 14 envelopes, please contact Linda at 207-797-7026 st Weshare:(1 Collection Parish)-$3,743.72 Transactions 105 Thank you for your continued support and generous donations. nd Weshare: (2 Collection Parish)- $404.89Transaction–19 Our Lady of Hope Sebastian Rasle, SJ Prayer Circle Weshare: (Diocesan) - $9.90 Transactions 1 May 2021 Prayer Intentions

TOTAL Parish First Offertory was $10,198.72 We now start the third year of urging parishioners and (In order to meet our budget for this year, our First friends to pray for our parish and other world needs and collection needs to average $13,500.00 per week.) for one another through these prayer intentions and the Thank you for your generosity—God Bless idea of a Parish Prayer Circle. I hope that these intentions and the commitment to pray have been a source of grace April Parish Poor Box Collection and blessing to you and to our parish, school, and world. $ 205.00 1. For the spiritual health, vitality, and financial support of Our Lady of Hope Parish and St. Brigid School. Sacred Heart - St. Dominic Food Pantry Wayside Soup Kitchen - May 2. Francis’ Intention for May - Universal intention - The world of finance. Let us pray that those in charge of finance will work with governments to regulate the financial sphere and protect citizens from its dangers. Mass Intentions - Arrangements for Mass Intentions for 3. As we move toward “life after covid” we pray for the the sanctuary candles can be made at the Parish Office and safety of all, for blessings on those who have helped in this past year. We also ask blessings of renewed life and by phone or email. Mass Intentions are being scheduled for activity in our parish and school. all the Masses being celebrated in the parish at this time. Parish Grounds Cleanup – Gardening

Thanks to everyone from Our Lady of Hope and the Ignatian Volunteer Corps who came by this Saturday morning to do some yard work at Pius and St. Joseph’s. The gift of your time and effort is appreciated.

The gardens are beginning to come alive and we have several developments/invitations to share:

• A Spring Plant Sale Fund-raiser is occurring on Sat. June 5th (9:00 - Noon). We are seeking donations of perennials. Questions or plants to donate- call the parish office. • We are inviting parish gardeners to lend a hand this year In keeping our grounds on Ocean Ave and Stevens Ave in good shape. A lot of good cleaning happened last year at St. Pius X. There is room for “creative attention” at St. Joseph. Good, outdoor, covid-safe exercise and companionship. Come and join. Let the Parish Office know if you are interested. 500 Years ago this Thursday

On this day in 1521, Ignatius of Loyola was seriously wounded defending the city of Pamplona from assault by French forces. The city’s defenders, numbering about 1000, were crumbling under the attack by the 12,000-member French army. Ignatius rallied them, and the Pamplonese resisted until Ignatius was wounded. As soon as he went down, the city surrendered.

Ignatius’ wounds were severe. A cannonball shattered his right leg and wounded his left. The French, admiring his bravery, carried him to his family’s home, where he endured two painful surgeries, nearly died, and spent more than a year recuperating. This time of enforced idleness was the turning point in Ignatius’ life. He became aware of the ways God was leading him through the ebb and flow of his inner life (feelings, desires, emotions) and eventually decided to devote his life to the service of God.

Recall a time when you went through a significant change in your relationship with God. Spend some time savoring those memories. Speak to God about them.

www.ladyofhopemaine.org 06 Seventh Sunday of East- Where is OLH Parish as we begin to emerge from this year+ of covid restrictions

• The Sunday 8 and 10 AM Masses have now moved back to St. Joseph Church. Enter by the ramp door. We are getting -25 50 livestream viewers for the 5:00 PM Sunday Mass. For now we will keep that at St. Pius X but look to move back at some point.

We have been asking for advance reservations for attending weekend Masses. This has been done to ensure that when you arrive for Mass you will have a seat. The advance reservations have also allowed us to seat- in safety – the greatest number of people per Mass. This is important and thanks to so many of you who have made those reservation. However, beginning on June 4-5 we will move to a “first-come-first-seated” policy. This will be a trial for the summer months. If it works, we can continue. If this creates problems, we will look at returning to reserva- tions. Starting in June you will not need reservations, but you will still need to sign in when you arrive for Mass (a CDC rule). Our Welcome Ministry will be here to assist you. It is important that you arrive in time to be seated be- fore the time Mass is scheduled to begin. If a church fills up, we cannot let additional people enter. Church doors will open a half hour prior to the start of Mass to be sure to give enough time for people to 'sign-in' and be seated before Mass begins. Larger family groups will want to arrive early for Mass to be sure that you can be seated to- gether. • We have had many empty seats at Masses every weekend, though some Masses do fill up. As more of us are fully vaccinated we urge families to return to Mass in-person. We miss our younger families who, for the most part, have not been at Mass in-person these covid months. • A great thanks to persons and families who have supported the parish financially during this time, even if you have not been able to be here in person. This is what has enabled us to continue our parish life during this past year. • Parish life has continued to exist under covid, but now it is time to begin to move forward and thrive. Our direction and goals have been set by our parish planning and discernment process:  Our parish ministries will resume their activities, and we are planning for a meeting of those in these ministries (a Ministry Convocation). This will take place in early fall if it is safe to do that.  We welcome people who have expressed interest in joining ministries or starting new works. In the parish survey, seventeen of our parishioners indicated interests in some parish activities that are not currently happening. It would be great to bring these ideas to life. Stay tuned for additional invitations and suggestions about how you can become involved in these parish activities. If you have an idea or suggestion or want to join in anything, please contact the Parish Office and we’ll put you in touch with the right people.  Pre-covid we had seven weekend Masses. Most of the Masses were lightly attended (many under 30% of the church seating capacity). We will look at what is the actual need for parish Masses going forward. Church docu- ments state that if a Mass is regularly attended by only a few people, it should not continue. As we get back to more regular attendance, these numbers will be examined. The question is: what Masses are not just convenient, but necessary and well-supported. Being well-supported means we have the numbers of people who are able and willing to serve as Eucharist Ministers, Lectors and members of the Welcome Ministry. We cannot have a Mass un- less we have all these ministries filled. That has often not been the case or we have relied on the same faithful people to fill these roles every week. We need also to examine why it is that the parish has virtually no young altar servers.  It is time to address the repair/renovation needs of our buildings. You can expect, soon, a revised report on the costs of maintaining our buildings and our ability and willingness to make the commitment to do that. Again the question is,“ what do we need” to fulfill the parish mission? • The planning process and survey tell us the Holy Spirit is calling us to reach out in new and renewed ministry to our neighbors and friends beyond the church walls. This year we will take concrete steps to move in this direction. We expect to hire a new part-time staff person to work with the development of new and existing ministries, including partnering with our younger parish families. Note that the “we” here is all of us, members of the parish. There is no one else to carry on the mission of our community

Parish Zoom Gatherings

You are invited to join our parish zoom conversations held Monday evenings 7:00 PM for an hour or so. A friendly group of 8 -10 have been gathering regularly and we invite you to join us. If you want to come, send an email to the parish office letting us know of your interest, and you will be sent the weekly link. You can opt-out anytime you wish. Thanks "the Monday evening group" www.ladyofhopemaine.org Our Lady of Hope Parish 07 Dear Friends,

I want to share with you some wise words written by Fr. Lou Phillips, our neighboring pastor. I’ve adapted them a bit to fit our circumstances (and the dates I got my shots).

Fr. Lou and I are making an appeal to all of you to get your Covid vaccine as soon as possible. You can make an appointment, or simply drop into vaccination sites. Doses are going unused. We are fortunate to live in Maine where vaccines are readily available. On a personal note, I’ve been fully vaccinated since Good Friday.

Why is this so important to us? Because we all long to get back to normal in our churches. Once we are all vaccinated, we can return to “worship as usual.” This can happen as quickly as the beginning of this summer if we all cooperate. Why is this so important? It is a moral obligation.

On a larger scale, we all have a moral obligation to all our brothers and sisters to achieve what is popularly called “herd immunity.” Personally, I’m not crazy about the term, but it makes a lot of sense. It’s the reason why we no longer fear smallpox, mumps, measles, tuberculosis and whopping cough. The science works. So, getting the vaccine is an act of charity toward others—moving beyond my selfishness and placing the common good over and above myself. To put it simply, by taking the vaccine, you are actively being “pro -life.” Please, be truly pro-life and get the vaccine.

I can’t help but reflect upon my own childhood memories when, as a kid, I failed to finish my dinner. I was told about the starving people halfway around the globe. Well, today there are thousands of people who are literally dying from Covid 19 in India and so many other third-world nations for lack of precious vaccines that we Americans are not using. How sad, and how selfish on our part. What a tragedy.

ALL Covid vaccines have been deemed MORALLY ACCEPTABLE BY THE UNITED STATES BISHOPS CONFERENCE AND . Unfortunately, Catholic Radio and some “rogue priests” have inferred otherwise. They are clearly wrong and misguided. Please know, that your moral obligation to receive the vaccine supersedes any other superficial concerns you may have.

Lastly, for those of you who haven’t yet returned to actual, live Mass, please get vaccinated and then, come back. We need to gather together in person. We do and will provide livestream Masses from St. Pius for those who are truly unable to come to Mass in-person. These are not meant to be a substitute for those who are able to attend. I expect that at some point before long we will be ending the practice of providing Communion outside the church doors after the 9:00 AM Mass and will be able to return to regular home visits for those who are home-bound or in health care facilities.

The social distancing rules do place significant restrictions on how many people we can seat at Mass. I am hopeful that as we become fully vaccinated those rules will be loosened or even removed. Please, get vaccinated. And when fully vaccinated , please come back to church and join us once again if you haven’t already. A warm welcome awaits you.

Fr. Paul (with Fr Lou)

PS And I remember what a relief it was and difference it made in the early 1950s when the polio vaccine be- came available; children were able to go out to play again and parents did not have to fear their child may be hit by a life-changing disease. Words of Welcome and Invitation….

Cardinal Joseph Tobin, Archbishop of Newark, NJ has written “In too many parts of our church LGBTQ People have been made to feel unwelcome, excluded, and even shamed. Fr. Martin’s inspiring book Building a Bridge invites church leaders [and members] to minister with more compassion and reminds LGBTQ Catholics that they are as much a part of our church as any other Catholic.” Our Lady of Hope Parish invites you to a “safe place” conversation on Tuesday June 1, 2021 at 7:00 PM at St. Pius X Hall, 492 Ocean Ave. Let us learn about each other, learn from each other and in that process become a more welcoming and loving community. We invite those with questions, allies and friends of the LGTBQ Community. We invite LGBTQ community members to help us learn how to welcome and include. This will be an in-person event but also will be zoomed. If you wish a zoom link, kindly contact OLH Parish and you will be sent an invitation and link. Similar events or gatherings are being planned in some other Maine parishes. Fr. Paul SJ

www.ladyofhopemaine.org 08 Seventh Sunday of East- Have I?: An Examen for Racial Justice

* Have I fully loved God and fully loved my neighbor as myself?

* Have I caused pain to others by my actions or my words that offended my brother or my sister?

* Have I done enough to inform myself about the sin of racism, its roots, and its historical and contemporary manifes- tations? Have I opened my heart to see how unequal access to economic opportunity, jobs, housing, and education on the basis of skin color, race, or ethnicity, has denied and continues to deny the equal dignity of others?

* Is there a root of racism within me that blurs my vision of who my neighbor is?

*Have I ever witnessed an occasion when someone “fell victim” to personal, institutional, systematic or social racism and I did or said nothing, leaving the victim to address their pain alone?

* Have I ever witnessed an occasion when someone “fell victim” to personal, institutional, systematic or social racism with me inflicting the pain, acting opposite of love of God and love of neighbor?

* Have I ever lifted up and aided a person who “fell victim” to personal, institutional, systematic or social racism and paid a price for extending mercy to the other? How did I react? Did my faith grow? Am I willing to grow even more in faith through my actions? by To Go Forth – a blog from the USCCB, Department of Justice, Peace & Human Development - inspired by Pope Fran- cis. Xavier University, Cincinnati website A few Thoughts for this Week May 16-22 "Pursue some path, however narrow and crooked, in which you can walk with love and reverence." - Henry Thoreau What is it that I am pursuing? Am I on the path that will reach my goal?

May 17 "Expectations become definitions."- Sue Bender Does this frustrate me or am I comfortable with such definitions?

May 18 "Love is the essence of human experience and emotion. It is at the root of all and everything we, as humans, do. Without love what do we live for?" - Anonymous How is love rooted in my life?

May 19 "Even if the mountains should leave their place and the hills be shaken, My love will never leave you." - 54:10

May 20 "Good is the enemy of great." - Jim Collins In what ways can I go from good to great? To keep from being overwhelmed, how do I know when good is good enough?

May 21 "In God we love and move and exist." - Acts 17:28

May 22 "If you find it in your heart to care for somebody else, you will have succeeded." - Maya Angelou For whom do I care? Are there others who may benefit from my care? The Ignatian Way for the Ignatian Year

We are now beginning an Ignatian Year for the Society of Jesus and all who follow the ways of Ignatian spirituality. May 20, 2021 is the 500th anniversary of St. Ignatius Loyola’s injury during the Battle of Pamplona, which ultimately led to his conversion from soldier to . We here at IgnatianSpirituality.com will be celebrating the year through its conclusion on the Feast of St. Ignatius, July 31, 2022.

First up, we invite you to learn more about the elements of Ignatian spirituality through the Ignatian Way series. This video series, based on materials written by Brian Grogan, SJ, of the Irish Jesuits, has already been a popular feature of our site. But now take advantage of our new e-mail series to accompany the videos. Each week’s message will include a link to one of the Ignatian Way videos, along with related content for further exploration of the themes.

To sign up to receive material from the Ignatian Way series, go to www.ignatianspirtuality.com and click on “The Ignatian Way for the Ignatian Year.”

www.ladyofhopemaine.org Our Lady of Hope Parish 09 Five Steps to Transform Negativity Through Prayer By Brendan McManus, SJ

St. Ignatius, who initially knew life as a vain soldier and courtier, was able to turn his superficial life around by attending to his inner life of thoughts, desires, and feelings. Ignatius offers us some helpful tips from his Spiritual Exercises that help us understand our humanity and make it work for our advantage in prayer. He shows us how daydreaming, desire, and reflection can be harnessed to change our lives and overcome negativity. God is always trying to reach us, and we need to be open to this. Ignatius outlines a process for disposing ourselves to God, based on his experience stumbling across God’s leadings while daydreaming.

1. The first step is affirming that we are in the presence of God. This means making a prayer or petition of our deepest desire: to connect with the loving God who holds us in being. Our superficial desires abound, of course—desires for comfort, security, wealth, or fame—but these are ultimately unsatisfying and deceptive. By contrast, our deepest de- sires are those things that really satisfy: helping others, changing our world, being an instrument of God’s love, or living free of our addictions and petty likes or dislikes. The amazing thing about starting prayer by acknowledging God’s pres- ence is that, even when we don’t feel it, it taps into our deepest desire for God and orients us to what will really satisfy us. There is something profound that occurs when I align my often weak and feeble desire with the great and constant desire that God has for me. The prayer just has to be real and name a desire. For example: Dear God, I don’t even know if you exist. My life seems so chaotic at times I’m not sure what is true. Help me to find a way, a purpose, a direc- tion for my life, that I might live happy and free.

2. The second step is acknowledging that often we are not acting in freedom. We have attachments, addictions, or other dependencies that pull us away from God. Ignatius knew this reality of the problem of vanity and egoism that is so much a part of being human and which we need to work through if we are to move beyond ourselves and away from negativity. The Ignatian approach is to name our attachments and to ask for God’s help in overcoming them. Make a prayer that captures this: God, help me to be free from the excesses of this life. Let me not get caught up with the superficial desire for wealth or comfort. I believe I can be a better person with your help.

3. The third step is consciously reflecting on the past, reminding ourselves of how God has worked with us in the past. We are part of an ongoing story or relationship that is developing and moving. The story will always have highlights and lowlights, peaks and troughs, but there is always a thread that indicates progress. It is often a matter of finding some- thing to be grateful for despite the negativity that exists. We can choose to believe that there is purpose and meaning, and this choice changes the way we act and live. By remembering the past positively, I can affirm how God works for our good and trust that the future will also be good. Prayer suggestion: Take a moment to find something in your past for which you are truly grateful. It could be a parent, teacher, friend, a moment of real joy, or a special place. Really feel that gratitude, how as an emotion it is felt in the heart.

4. The fourth step is reading the Word of God, which reminds us how God has worked in the lives of the faithful throughout history. This is especially evident in the person of Jesus, as we see how God is compassionately present in the Gospels, relating to our humanity, person to person. Ignatius recommends using our human faculty of imagination to make the scenes come alive, especially using our senses. The goal is to place ourselves in the presence of Jesus and recreate the dialogue and the interaction. The Word comes alive for us to transform our experience. Prayer sugges- tion: Reflect on this passage: “I have come in order that you might have life—life in all its fullness.” (John 10:10, GNT) How would you apply this to your life? What would this look like if it were true? Imagine Jesus or some other trusted figure saying these words to you personally; how would he say them and look at you?

5. The fifth step is inviting Jesus to have a two-way conversation with us. We can speak of our lives and reality and have dialogue about it. This is the conversation that we so want when we realize God’s great love and desire for us. Sweeping away all the distractions and distance, this is the prayer of the heart, speaking heart to heart with the be- loved. Prayer suggestion: Find a safe place in your imagination where you can have this conversation. What is there that you need to say, get off your chest, or put into words? How would a loving God listen to you? What would you hear in return? How would that change how you feel about yourself or your life? The key thing is the doing of these steps—not just thinking about the process—and then reflecting on whether it has helped us. It is crucial to stick to the experience, not the ideas, to appreciate what actually happens when we pray this way. Negativity and apathy are powerful and persuasive, but they offer no real solutions or escapes from dead ends. Sometimes we have to make a leap of faith, trusting and trying out the process. We have nothing to lose but the fear. The really good news is that God will meet us more than halfway; our loving God is waiting to be generous to us. www.ignatianspirituality.com www.ladyofhopemaine.org from our family to yours 508.875.7600 371 Worcester Rd., Rte 9 (Rear) / Framingham www.automaticapplianceservice.com Amana - Speed Queen - Kitchen Aid - Maytag Whirlpool - Frigidaire - GE - LG - Electrolux

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