Feast of the Assumption of Mary
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ß . ;Sunday 2408 SE 16th Avenue Portland, OR 97214 503-231-4955 Email: [email protected] www.stphilipneripdx.org Office hours: Tues-Fri 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. th 19 Sunday and The Assumption August 8 & August 15, 2021 of the Blessed Virgin Mary FEAST OF THE ASSUMPTION OF MARY n August 15, the Feast of the O Assumption is widely celebrated all over Christendom. The doctrine of the Assumption says that at the end of her life on earth Mary was assumed, body and soul, into heaven, just as Enoch, Elijah, and perhaps others had been before her. Some people think Catholics believe Mary “ascended” into heaven. That’s not correct. Christ, by his own power, ascended into heaven. Mary was assumed or taken up into heaven by God. She didn’t do it under her own power. No biblical passages describe Mary’s end of life, but keep in mind that if Scripture does not record an event, it does not follow that the event did not happen. Scripture does not record Paul or Peter’s journey to Rome, yet they were both martyred there while the Bible was still being written. Archaeology reveals two tombs of Mary that still exist today, one in Jerusalem and one in Ephesus. The two tombs are explained by the fact that Mary had lived in both places. But there was no body in either tomb. And there are no relics. None. Anyone familiar with Church history knows that Christian belief in the communion of saints and the sanctity of the body—…led early Christians to collect with intense fervor relics from the bodies of saints. Cities, and later, religious orders, would fight over the bones of the ‘great’ ones. That is why we have relics of Apostles and most of the major saints and martyrs in history. Yet, historically, no one claimed to have Mary’s remains which would have been prized above all others. As revered as she was to the early Christian community, her missing body was a sign that God had lifted up the one ‘full of grace,’ his purest creation, into heaven. How fitting that the Lord would take special care of his mother. By becoming man, Jesus was born under the law (Gal. 4:4) and was bound to obey the commandment to honor his mother. The Hebrew word for “honor” does not imply mere courtesy, but the bestowal of honor and glory. By preserving Mary’s body from corruption, Jesus fulfills the command to honor his mother in a way that only a divine Son could. What person, if he had the power to prevent the corruption of his mother’s body, would not do so? The love of Jesus for his mother seems to be the strongest argument for her Assumption. –exerpts from Catholic.com and Catholic exchange.com To a jubilant crowd on November 1, 1950, Pope Pius XII declared “…the Immaculate Mother of God… having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed, body and soul into heavenly glory”. Great Conversion Story Satoko Kitahara The tiny Church in Japan has given large, shining witnesses to its faith. Among modern Japanese converts, Satoko Kitahara is one example outstanding in the modern era. This remarkable young Our Parish barbeque will be on woman dedicated herself to the homeless people of Tokyo after World August 29th this year. It will begin War II, helping them recover their dignity and build new communities. with Mass at 10:00 a.m. outdoors in She was born in 1929 into a wealthy, educated family and grew up in a the parking area and will be followed loving home. As a child, her religious sense was first stirred when her by our picnic for St. Philip Neri parents brought her to a Shinto temple and she was struck by the parishioners. rituals of the Mikos, female attendants dressed in white who performed This promises to be a fun day for certain ceremonies. She was moved to desire a pure life dedicated to the service of the highest realities. This aspiration remained with her all and we are excited about coming through her adolescence and for a while was caught up in the naïve together again as a community to patriotism of the war. But the reality of Japan after 1945 put all of her celebrate. There will be a single Mass idealism into question. Tokyo was in ruins and many were that weekend (no Saturday vigil Mass impoverished. at 4:00 p.m.) We have fun things The disillusioned Satoko searched and wondered about the planned such as an ice cream truck, meaning of life. Around this time, she made her first visit to a Catholic cotton candy, popcorn, and a great church and was captivated by a statue of a woman in white (which time to socialize. Bring your chair that was Our Lady of Lourdes). The image stuck with her, and she was is comfy or we'll have chairs from the stirred again when in 1949 she and her mother brought her younger hall. Mark your calendars! sister to a Catholic school run by the Mercedarian Sisters. These were Picnic Volunteers Needed! women in white habits who came from thousands of miles away to dedicate themselves to serving Jesus Christ among the Japanese Volunteer forms are available in people. the Foyer for staging, setup and tear Satoko had found no peace or sense of purpose in her education, down the day of picnic and food prep. nor in the diversions and conventional opportunities open to an upper- class Japanese woman. She yearned for a deeper and more pure dedication. The grace of Jesus moved her heart secretly through the witness of the sisters, and one day she decided to confide her anxieties and longings to one of the nuns, Mother Angeles Aguirre. The friendship that sprung up between them took shape as a study of the Catholic Faith, which resonated so deeply with Satoko’s aspirations Continued on page 3 Join Father Andrew Candlelight Vigil, Friday May 7, AS HE BROADCASTS FROM THE at 6:30 p.m. CHURCH ONTO FACEBOOK & YOUTUBE Tuesday’s at 10:00 a.m. to share our weekly message. Aug 10 ……. No Talk Aug 16 ........... Chapel Chat - Family Aug 23 ............ Mass Kitahara continued from page 2 that in October 1949 she was baptized. Frail health prevented her from joining the Sisters’ religious community, but God’s plans led her to another kind of service among Tokyo’s destitute bataya, who survived by searching Sat. Aug 7: 8:00 a.m. – No Daily Mass through the garbage to find materials 4:00 p.m. – St Philip Neri that could be resold. Despised and living Sun. Aug 8: 9:30 a.m. – † William Fergus – Therese Baker in squalid conditions, these people were Tue. Aug 10: 8:00 a.m. – † Eulalia Johnson – Mary Ann Sullivan determined to work hard, and they (No Mass) called their makeshift village “Ants Wed. Aug 11: 8:00 a.m. – † All Souls – Andrew Le (No Mass) Town.” Thu. Aug 12: 8:00 a.m. – No Mass Satoko lived with them, shared their Fri. Aug 13: 12:10 p.m. – † Chris Helvey – Jeanne McPherson work, brought them the love of Christ, and by her luminous example led others Sat. Aug 14: 8:00 a.m. – People of St Philip Neri to embrace baptism. Her inspiration, 4:00 p.m. – † Mary Jane Nararra – Dorothy Bruck prayers, and the suffering that led to her Sun. Aug 15: 9:30 a.m. – Int. Bona Oh Family – Bona Oh death in 1958 from tuberculosis helped to Tue. Aug 17: 8:00 a.m. – Ambrose Calcagno Jr. shape the bataya of Ants Town into a Wed. Aug 18: 8:00 a.m. – † Int. Helen Wooja Park – Bona Oh model community enlivened by the Thu. Aug 19: 8:00 a.m. – Ambrose Calcagno Jr. presence of the Catholic Faith, whose Fri. Aug 20: 12:10 p.m. – † John Nerheim – Joanne Dindia work also pioneered recycling of Sat. Aug 21: 8:00 a.m. – Ambrose Calcagno Jr. reusable materials. 4:00 p.m. – Paula Nass – Dorothy Bruck Sun. Aug 22: 9:30 a.m. – People of St Philip Neri —Exerpts from The Magnificat, July 2019: by John Janaro, associate professor emeritus of theology at Christendom College. He blogs at Communion to the Sick www.johnjanaro.com. Home Visits Please call Lyndi or Fr. Andrew at 503-231-4955 if you wish to be visited or have the Eucharist brought to you at home if you are unable to come to Mass. August 8 – August 14 j j Andrea Del Rosario Antonette Amato People of St Philip Neri Family of Kelsey Harris j Marcia Angelos August 1 – August 7 Please contact the office if you, or someone you Ambrose Calcagno Jr know needs our prayers! “We the welcoming community of St. Philip Neri Parish, empowered by Reconciliation Times the compassion of Jesus and supported by the Eucharist and the Word, Saturday dedicate ourselves to engage with and enrich the lives of those we touch.” by appointment only Pastor – #101 Volunteer – #100 Pastoral Associate – #103 Fr. Andrew Thomas Lyndi Haugen Kim Zea [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Affordable Retirement Living Oregon Catholic Men Join The Knights of Columbus FOR SENIORS 62 YEARS & OLDER Catholic men from Oregon will be able to join the Order as online members for $30. 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