PASTOR’S MEANDERINGS 6 – 7 OCTOBER 2018 TWENTY-SEVENTH SUNDAY TIME (B)

This coming Thursday evening, 11 October St. Stephen, Martyr will be hosting one of the Regional for Atonement for Victims of Abuse. In accordance with the ’s directives the evening will begin with a dinner and a Listening Session for designated representatives of selected parishes and schools meeting with His Excellency Bishop Knestout. This will run from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. and will be held in the Commons of the church. Once this program starts no one will be admitted to the Commons.

Following the dinner and Listening Session, the Bishop will celebrate Mass beginning at 7:30 p.m. All are invited and encouraged to attend this liturgy to pray as a community of faith and to hear the comments of His Excellency. If you arrive early for Mass you will be directed around the building to the side doors, those on the cemetery side of the church for access to the worship space. Since this is the Month of the Rosary; while awaiting the beginning of Mass this could be an appropriate time to pray the rosary for healing of those who have suffered from abuse as well as for the cleansing of the Church.

SUNDAY REFLECTION Let us accept the vocation we have at the moment be it marriage, the single state, widowhood, single parenthood. Let us pray for marriage fidelity in our country, as we reflect on this gift of God to humanity. Father, You created man and woman in love to share Your divine life. We see their high dignity in the love of husband and wife, which bears the imprint of Your own divine love. Love is the origin of man and woman, love is their constant calling, love is their fulfillment in heaven. The love of man and woman is made holy in the sacrament of marriage, and becomes the mirror of Your everlasting love. (Irish of Christian Marriage, III)

In our Mass we bring before our minds the redeeming suffering and death of Jesus, and His being crowned in glory. Our minds and hearts are filled with grace, and we are given a foretaste of heaven. Our relationships, too, have a past, a present and a future. We ask Jesus, who triumphed through suffering, to heal the wounds we inflict upon each other, and to help us make our relationships signs of our future glory in heaven.

STEWARDSHIP: The phrase in today’s psalm, “May you see your children’s children,” is really a prayer for a long life. The good steward knows that every day is a gift from God, to be lived with joy and thanksgiving. “May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives!”

Josiah Royce “’Create me’ – this is the word that the Church, viewed as an idea, addresses to mankind.”

READINGS FOR THE TWENTY-EIGHTH SUNDAY 14 OCT ‘18 Wis. 7:7-11: The gift of wisdom is preferred to any riches. The ultimate treasure is found in seeking truth. Ps. 90:12-17: Heb. 4:12-13: The Word of God is alive and active. Our whole life is laid bare in the light of that Word. Mk. 10:17-30: Jesus asks the young man to move beyond observance to faith, beyond comfort to vulnerability.

Peter Abelard “The first key to wisdom is assiduous and frequent questioning. For by doubting we come to inquiry and by inquiry we arrive at truth.”

OCTOBER - MONTH OF THE ROSARY Following each weekend Mass that I celebrate during the Month of October you are invited to gather on the side of the church to pray the rosary.

The month of October each year is dedicated to the Most Holy Rosary. This is primarily due to the fact that the liturgical feast of Our Lady of the Rosary is celebrated annually on October 7. It was instituted to honor the Blessed Virgin Mary in gratitude for the protection that she gives the Church in answer to the praying of the Rosary by the faithful.

Scholarship traces the development of the Rosary to the High Middle Ages period when it came into use in various medieval monasteries as a substitute for the Divine Office for the lay monks, nuns and devout laity who did not know how to read. Instead of the 150 psalms, they would pray 150 “Our Fathers” counting them on a ring of beads known as the crown or “corona.” With the growth of popularity of Marian devotion in the twelfth century, the “Psalter of the Blessed Virgin Mary” developed now substituting 150 “Hail Marys” in place of the “Our Fathers.” The 150 “Hail Marys” were subsequently subdivided into fifteen decades by the young Dominican friar, Henry Kalkar (1328-1408), with each decade referring to an event in the life of Jesus and Mary. The Dominican, Alanus de Rupe (1428-1478) further divided the episodes in the history of salvation into the joyful, sorrowful and glorious mysteries. He also attributed the origin of the Rosary to St. Dominic. Accordind to legend the Rosary as a form of prayer was agiven to St. Dominic (1170-1221) by Mary, the Mother of Our Lord, who entrusted it to him as an aid in the conflicts with the adherents of the Albigensian heresy. This spurred the Dominican Order to make the Apostolate of the Rosary their special concern. The Dominicans have, since then, promulgated the Rosary with notable results. The Dominican , St. Pius V (1504-1572), did much to further the spread of the Rosary and it became over time one of the most popular devotions in Christendom. It was the same Pope St. Pius, who in 1565 officially approved the Rosary in its present form with the , Consueverunt Romani Pontifices. The feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, originally entitled Our Lady of Victory was introduced by Pope St. Pius V in the year 1571 to commemorate the miraculous victory of the Catholic League (an alliance of Spain, Venice, the Papal States, , Savoy, and Malta) over the forces of the Ottoman Empire who were seeking to take over in an effort to move into the heart of Europe. It was on October 7, 1571 when the battle was actually fought and the Catholic League was able to overcome the Ottoman forces.Christian forces in the Battle of Lepanto on October 7, 1571. The pope attributed more to the “arms” of the Rosary than the power of cannons and the valor of the soldiers who fought there. Prior to the ships sailing off towards battle, prayed the rosary, asking for Our Lady’s intercession in victory, and every man on board carried a rosary. For this reason, as soon as the men returned from the battle, the pope declared a feast day for Our Lady of Victory. A rosary procession was offered in St. Peter’s square after the victory and in time the whole month became associated with the rosary, rather than just one day. The practice of dedicating the entire month of Octobe to the Holy Rosary developed toward the end of the nineteenth century. Pope Leo XIII (papacy 1878-1903) strongly promoted the increase of devotion to the Blessed Mother by encouraging the constant use of the Rosary. Beginning on September 1, 1883, with Supremo Apostolatus Officio, he wrote a total of eleven on the Rosary, ending with Diuturni Temporis in 1898.

Pope Leo XIII officially established October as the Month of the Rosary in 1884. That year, he published Superiore Anno, an which was focused on recitation of the holy rosary. In it, he called for the entire Church to dedicate the whole of the month to the rosary and to pray it daily: “Last year, as each of you is aware, We decreed by an Encyclical Letter that, to win the help of Heaven for the Church in her trials, the great Mother of God should be honored by the means of the most holy Rosary during the whole of the month of October. In this We followed both Our own impulse and the example of Our predecessors, who in times of difficulty were wont to have recourse with increased fervor to the Blessed Virgin, and to seek her aid with special prayers…

… We therefore and make order that from the 1st of October to the 23nd of November following in all the churches, in all public churches dedicated to the Mother of God, or in such as are appointed by the Ordinary, five decades at least of the Rosary be recited, together with the . If in the morning, the Holy Sacrifice will take place during these prayers; if in the evening, the will be exposed for the adoration of the faithful; after which those present will receive the customary Benediction. We desire that, wherever it be lawful, the local confraternity of the Rosary should make a solemn procession through the streets as a public manifestation of religious devotion.” In recent years, really decades, devotion to the rosary overall has not been what it once was, and so interest in celebrating October as the Month of the Rosary has waned as well. Many churches, whether named for Mary or not, do not have a public rosary throughout the month and there has not been much publicized about reviving this. In part, this seems to have come about due to some misconceptions attributed to the . One aim of the council was to ensure that Marian devotion remained balanced. Church documents reiterated the value of Marian devotion, but also re-emphasized the truth of her role as an obedient servant to God: “Therefore the Blessed Virgin is invoked by the Church under the titles of Advocate, Auxiliatrix, Adjutrix, and Mediatrix. This, however, is to be so understood that it neither takes away from nor adds anyting to the dignity and efficaciousness of Christ the one Mediator. For no creature could ever be counted as equal with the Incarnate Word and Redeemer.” ( - Pope Paul VI, 1964)) Abolition of the rosary, Mariology, or devotion to Mary was never the intent of the Second Vatican Council. The council in fact recommended fervent devotion to Mary and never said anything against the rosary. However as an evening Mass replaced some evening para-liturgies that had previously included Marian devotions, and the faithful were expected to no longer pray the rosary during Mass (which was not at all uncommon to see while the was celebrated prior to the council) but to participate in the Mass by attending to what was taking place at the . Many assumed that these things together were implications that Marian devotion should be repressed. This was not true, but there was some decline in devotion to the rosary during the past decades. Interest in the Rosary began to be revived when in 2002, Pope John Paul II gave the world 5 new mysteries on which to meditate, and reiterated the value of the rosary as Christological prayer at its core. The world was in need of someone to speak out and encourage the rosary as a form of devotion again, and Pope John Paul II did this. It seems that devotion to the Blessed Mother through the rosary is increasing again. However, October as Month of the Rosary still does not enjoy the full participation by the faithful it once did.

What is of paramount importance is that the rosary is primarily a scriptural prayer. This can be summarized by the traditional phrase used by Pope Pius XII (papacy: 1939-1958) that the Rosary is “a compendium of the entire ” (AAS 38 [1946] p. 419). The Rosary draws its mysteries from the New Testament and is centered on the great events of the Incarnation and Redemption. To be continued.

SACRAMENTS Continued The sacraments are “efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us” (CCC1131). In other words, a sacrament is a sacred and visible sign that is instituted by Jesus to give us grace, an undeserved gift from God. (See also CCC 1084). Christ was present at the inception of all of the sacraments, which He instituted over 2000 years ago. Christ is also present every time each sacrament is celebrated. The has all of the seven sacraments instituted by Christ, which include Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Reconciliation, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders and Matrimony. The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains that “the seven sacraments touch all the stages and all important moments of the Christian life” (CCC 1210). The above statement is simply a quick synopsis of what was stated last week. What is the meaning of each of the sacrament being a sign. In his rather massive book “Theological Dimensions of the Liturgy” Dom Cyprian Vagaggini, OSB presents some interesting thoughts on this point. He contributes to our understanding that each of the liturgical signs of the sacraments has four dimensions, which unite the past, present and the future. The four dimensions of the sacraments as signs are: a sign demonstrative, a moral sign obligating, a sign commemorative and a sign prophetic. First, each sacrament “is a sign demonstrative of the present invisible sacred realities…” (p. 74). Another way of saying this is that each sacrament is an efficacious sign; the visible sign actually effects in us the invisible reality that it signifies. For example, the visible sign of water in baptism indicates cleansing. When someone is baptized, there is a cleansing of the flesh when the water is poured. But that indicates the cleansing of the person of sin by the invisible reality of Christ’s sanctifying grace being poured into our very being. We also know that water is necessary for life, but can also bring about death. This natural sign signifies the fact that “we were indeed buried with him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). Second, each sacrament “is a moral sign obligating even now in the present to the future actions in the life of him who receives the sanctification and renders worship” (p. 74). When we receive the sacraments, we swear to God to a life in imitation of Christ. St. Paul urges us “to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received” (Ephesians 4:1). Speaking to the Christians in , those who have been baptized, St. Paul also says, “By your stubbornness and impenitent heart, you are storing up wrath for yourself for the day of wrath and revelation of the just judgment of God, who will repay everyone according to his works: eternal life to those who seek glory, honor, and immortality through perseverance in good works, but wrath and fury to those who selfishly disobey the truth and obey wickedness” (Romans 2:5-8). In relation to the Eucharist, St. Paul says: “You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and also of the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and of the table of demons” (1 Corinthians 10:21). In the sacrament of reconciliation, we swear to God to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin. In matrimony, we swear to God to a lifelong fidelity to our spouse and to openness to children. In confirmation, we swear to God to spread and defend the fullness of the Catholic faith in word and deed. Third, each sacrament “is a sign commemorative of Christ’s saving action, especially of his Passion and death . . .” (p. 74). When we speak of a sign commemorative, this should bring to mind the institution of the Eucharist when Jesus says, “Do this in memory [or remembrance] of me” (Luke 22:19). We also recall that this was said during the Passover liturgy, and the Passover was said by God to be “. . . a feast for you . . .” (Exodus 12:14). Scripturally speaking, remembrance is the celebrating of a past event, but not merely as past. When the Passover was celebrated, the past event of the first Passover and exodus from Egypt was celebrated as actually occurring in the present, as a sign of what is to come in the future. So remembrance is a past event, made truly, really and actually present, as a pledge of future glory. The Passover of the old covenant is brought to fulfillment in the and Jesus’ Passion, death, resurrection and ascension. We know that “. . . our paschal lamb, Christ, has been sacrificed” (1 Corinthians 5:7). St. Paul goes on to say, “Therefore let us celebrate the feast . . .” (1 Corinthians 5:8). We too are supposed to “do this in memory of me.” Therefore, in the Mass the past event of the Last Supper and Christ’s death on the cross is made actually present. We are at the cross of Calvary as much as those in the early first century. This is possible because he who died is now risen and sits on the throne of glory at the right hand of the Father, where time and space no longer have significance. This applies to the other sacraments as well. They are all an actual, real participation in the saving actin of Christ. Fourth, each sacrament “is a sign . . . prophetic of the heavenly glory and of the worship in the future Jerusalem” (p. 74). In the New Covenant, each of the sacraments is also a pledge of future glory, not merely a pledge that we sit and await, but a participation in future glory. Christ gives us more than just words about what is to come, he gives us here and now a share in what is to come. Analogously, someone can give you their pledge by saying that they will give you a million dollars in the future, but they can also give you a pledge by giving you a share of what is to come now. Speaking of baptism, St. Paul says: “We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more; death no longer has power over him. As to his death, he died to sin once for all; as to his life, he lives for God. Consequently, you too must think of yourselves as being dead to sin and living for God in Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:9-11). According to Vagaggini: “The liturgical signs…gather into one place the whole reality of sacred history, present, past and future” (p. 75).

Many other have contributed to help increase devotion to the Rosary by their writings. In the recent past, Pope Paul VI ( papacy: 1963-1978) devoted the last section of his Apostolic Exhortation MARIALIS CULTUS to the Angelus and the Rosary (MC 40-55). In this document, he wrote that "the Rosary retains an unaltered value and intact freshness." (MC, 41)

The Rosary is primarily a scriptural prayer. This can be summarized by the traditional phrase used by Pope Pius XII (papacy: 1939-1958) that the Rosary is " a compendium of the entire Gospel" (AAS 38 [1946] p. 419). The Rosary draws its mysteries from the New Testament and is centered on the great events of the Incarnation and Redemption.

John Paul II called the Rosary his favorite prayer, in which we meditate with Mary upon the mysteries which she as a mother meditated on in her heart (Lk. 2:19) (Osservatore Romano, 44; 30 Oct. 1979). In this month of October, let us consider this beautiful prayer of the Rosary as a means that we too can use in order to draw closer to Jesus and Mary by meditating on the great mysteries of our salvation.

SAINT OF THE WEEK ST. POPE JOHN XXIII 1958 – 1963 11 OCT When on October 20, 1958 the cardinals, assembled in conclave, elected Angelo Roncalli as pope many regarded him, because of his age and ambiguous reputation, as a transitional pope, little realizing that the pontificate of this man of 76 years would mark a turning point in history and initiate a new age for the Church. He took the name of John in honor of the precursor and the beloved disciple—but also because it was the name of a long line of popes whose pontificates had been short. Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, the third of thirteen children, was born on November 25, 1881 at Sotto il Monte (Bergamo) of a family of sharecroppers. He attended elementary school in the town, was tutored by a priest of Carvico, and at the age of twelve entered the seminary at Bergamo. A scholarship from the Cerasoli Foundation (1901) enabled him to go on to the Apollinaris in Rome where he studied under (among others) Umberto Benigni, the Church historian. He interrupted his studies for service in the Italian Army but returned to the seminary, completed his work for a doctorate in theology, and was ordained in 1904. Continuing his studies in law he was appointed secretary to the new bishop of Bergamo, Giacomo Radini-Tedeschi. Angelo served this social-minded prelate for nine years, acquiring first-hand experience and a broad understanding of the problems of the working class. He also taught apologetics, church history, and patrology. With the entry of Italy into World War I in 1915 he was recalled to military service as a chaplain. On leaving the service in 1918 he was appointed spiritual director of the seminary, but found time to open a hostel for students in Bergamo. It was at this time also that he began the research for a multi-volume work on the episcopal visitation of Bergamo by St. Charles Borromeo, the last volume of which was published after his as pope. In 1921 he was called to Rome to reorganize the Society for the Propagation of the Faith. Nominated titular archbishop of Areopolis and apostolic visitator to Bulgaria (1925), he immediately concerned himself with the problems of the Eastern Churches. Transferred in 1934 to Turkey and Greece as apostolic delegate, he set up an office in Istanbul for locating prisoners of war. In 1944 he was appointed nuncio to Paris to assist in the Church's post-war efforts in France, and became the first permanent observer of the Holy See at UNESCO, addressing its sixth and seventh general assemblies in 1951 and 1952. In 1953 he became cardinal-patriarch of Venice, and expected to spend his last years there in pastoral work. He was correcting proofs of the synodal Acts of his first diocesan Synod (1958) when he was called to Rome to participate in the conclave that elected him pope. In his first public address Pope John expressed his concern for reunion with separated Christians and for world peace. In his coronation address he asserted "vigorously and sincerely" that it was his intention to be a pastoral pope since "all other human gifts and accomplishments—learning, practical experience, diplomatic finesse—can broaden and enrich pastoral work but they cannot replace it." One of his first acts was to annul the regulation of Sixtus IV limiting the membership of the to 70; within the next four years he enlarged it to 87 with the largest international representation in history. Less than three months after his election he announced that he would hold a diocesan synod for Rome, convoke an ecumenical council for the universal Church, and revise the Code of . The synod, the first in the history of Rome, was held in 1960; Vatican Council II was convoked in 1962; and the Pontifical Commission for the Revision of the Code was appointed in 1963. His progressive encyclical, Mater et Magistra, was issued in 1961 to commemorate the anniversary of Leo XIII's Rerum novarum. Pacem in terris, advocating human freedom and dignity as the basis for world order and peace, came out in 1963. He elevated the Pontifical Commission for Cinema, Radio, and Television to curial status, approved a new code of rubrics for the and , made notable advances in ecumenical relations by creating a new Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity and by appointing the first representative to the Assembly of the World Council of Churches held in New Delhi (1961). In 1960 he consecrated fourteen bishops for Asia, Africa, and Oceania. The International Balzan Foundation awarded him its Peace Prize in 1962. Since his death on June 3, 1963, much has been written and spoken about the warmth and holiness of the beloved Pope John. Perhaps the testimony of the world was best expressed by a newspaper drawing of the earth shrouded in mourning with the simple caption, "A Death in the Family." An inspirational book for many was his biography, “Journey of a Soul”.

PRAYERS Prayer for Persecuted Christians O God of all the Nations, the One God who is and was and always will be, who in Your providence willed that Your Church be united to the suffering of Your Son, look with mercy on Your servants who are persecuted for their faith in You. Grant them perseverance and courage to be worthy imitators of Christ. Bring Your wisdom upon leaders of nations to work for peace among all peoples. May Your Spirit open conversion for those who contradict Your will that we live in harmony. Give us the grace to be united in truth and freedom, and to always seek Your will in our lives. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Our Lady Help of Persecuted Christians, pray for us.

An Act of Consecration in the Universal Call to Holiness O Lord, Jesus Christ, my Savior, my Master, my love, I give myself entirely to You this day in an act of offering to consecrate myself – all that I am, all that You have given me – in union with Your Sacrifice of the Cross. Lord Jesus, I offer myself for the salvation of souls and the consecration of all the world in Your holiness. Accept me as a living victim of Your Love, so that Your Church may be transformed in Your holiness to be a sign of salvation for all the world. Master, I offer myself for Your Vicar on earth, for all bishops, priests, , religious, and for all Your faithful people, so that we all may have hearts made only for love. Help us to be victims of love, one for the others, as You have given Yourself in love for us. As a member of Your Mystical Body, grant that I may participate in Your Eucharistic Sacrifice with even greater love and reverence. Take me, Lord Jesus, and with me Your Church and all of the world in Your Love to Your Father, in the power of the Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen

UP-COMING SCHEDULE Sunday 7 Oct Masses 7:00 a.m., 8:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 5:00 p.m. 7:00 Brig Participants in the ASP Mission Trip leave for West Virginia Monday 8 Oct Labor Day Holiday Mass 8:30 a.m. in the church Tuesday 9 Oct 8:30 a.m. Mass 5:30 p.m. Mass St. Bride’s Correctional Facility Wednesday 10 Oct Masses 6:30 a.m. 8:30 a.m. Confessions between Masses Mass PCRS 10:00 a.m. – Indian Creek Correctional Facility Mass 5:30 p.m. – Thursday 11 Oct Mass 8:30 a.m. Bishop’s Mass of Atonement for Victims of Abuse 7:30 p.m. Friday 12 Oct Mass 8:30 a.m. Saturday 13 Oct Mass 8:30 a.m. Confessions 1:30-4:30 p.m. Mass 5:00 p.m. Aftert all weekend Masses throughout the month of October the rosary will be prayed. Please set aside the time (approximately 15 minutes) to join us as we pray for healing of those who have been abused and for a thorough cleansing of the Church. ASP Mission Trip will be returning today. Please pray for their safety. Priests’ Convocation 15-18 Oct Stanton Va. Teaching Mass Sunday 21 October 5:00 p.m. Trunk – or – Treat (Halloween) 27 Oct Church parking-lot All Saints Day 1 Nov Mass schedule 6:30 a.m., 8:30 a.m. 12 Noon 7:00 p.m. All Souls Day 2 Nov Mass schedule 6:30 a.m., 8:30 a.m. 12 Noon Mass of Remembrance 7:00 p.m. Cemetery weather permitting Veterans Day 12 November Mass 8:30 a.m. in the cemetery weather permitting Dedication of the St. Martin of Tours Columbarium and Fountain