HOLY WEEK Schedule Pg 18

April 2014—Volume VIII, Issue IIII

Faith Hope

HOLY WEEK

Schedule Pg 18

Easter is April 20th

Page 15

www.StThomasCC.org
ST THOMAS CHALDEAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

6900 W. Maple Rd. West Bloomfield, MI 48322 | 248.788.2460 |

MASS SCHEDULE
BAPTISM SCHEDULE

Weekdays: Saturdays: Sundays:

IN CHALDEAN @ 10:00 am - MON - FRI

Every Saturday 12:30PM

IN ENGLISH @ 5:00 pm



1st, 3rd, 4th Saturday are done by Fr. Jirjis Abraham

IN ENGLISH @ 9:00am

2nd Saturday are done by Fr. Frank Kallabat

IN ENGLISH (HIGH MASS) @ 10:30am IN CHALDEAN (HIGH MASS) @ 12:30pm IN ARABIC @ 2:00pm

ANOINTING SCHEDULE

Confessions:

- During Masses

Upon Request, please contact St. Thomas Church Office

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1st Friday of the Month at ECRC
- Thursdays 11p-12a at St Thomas

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CONGRATS! † BAPTISMS † MARCH 2014

CONGRATS! † WEDDINGS † MARCH 2014

March 1st, 2014

Juliana Nicole daughter of Scott & Monica Shamoun

March 8th, 2014

Roman Victor son of Victor & Nancy Dabish

March 22, 2014
March 1st, 2014

Zachary Bradley to Angela Jarjis

March 2nd, 2014

Jordan Rassam to Chanel Sarhan

March 8, 2014

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Gianna Hope daughter of Anthony & Darlena Marougi Christian Michael son of Eric & Zina Koppin

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Edwin Sadik to Tania Shamoun

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March 16, 2014
March 29, 2014

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Joey Toma to Stephanie Eisenhardt

March 23, 2014

Calvin Dabish to Ashley Saroki

March 27, 2-14

Aswan Alton to Athraa Elyas

March 29, 2014

Christopher Aielle to Christina Gappy

March 30, 2014

Dylon Putrus to Noura Garmo

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Greyson Leith son of Leith & Bonita Danou Annabell Rita daughter of Firas & Reta Samona Miquel Angel son of Miguel & Nora Linares

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March 30, 2014

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Faith Gabrielle daughter of Andy & Vanessa Seman

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CHECKWEBSITE at

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www.StThomasCC.org

for UpTo Date Events &
Schedule

APRIL 2014 FAITH & HOPE 3

4 FAITH & HOPE APRIL 2014

APRIL 2014

Eastern Catholic Re-Evangelization Center “E.C.R.C.”

For more information contact: (248) 538-9903 or Email: [email protected]

Sun

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

3

Fri

Sat

4

5

2

1 Bible Study

at 6:30pm at
E.C.R.C.

*8am - 8:30am Daily Mass Monday thru Fri- day at

1-2 pm ECRC Radio
Bible
Program In Arabic on 690am
Eucharistic Adoration at

5:30 pm
Holy Mass at 6:30 pm

Conquest Junior High
Boys

CLC High School
Group

at St. Thomas at
6:30pm
LIGHT 6-9:30pm at MoG

NO 1st Friday
Devotion/
Challenge for

11

6

7

8

Bible Study

9

10

12

BIble

NO Healing Ser- vice/

Stations of the Cross

5:30 pm

at 6:30pm at
E.C.R.C.

Challenge for Junior High Girls
CLC High School
Group

6:30pm

Boys

at St. Thomas 6:30

13PAL
MSUN- DAY

14

15 Bible Study

at 6:30pm at
E.C.R.C.

16

17

18

19HOL
Y
SATUR- DAY

Bible

HOLY THURSDAY

Follow St. Thomas Church Schedule

CLC High School
Group

6:30pm

GOOD FRIDAY

Follow St. Thomas Church Schedule

Challenge for
Junior High Girls at

24

26

20EAST 21EASTER

22 Bible Study

at 6:30pm at
E.C.R.C.
23

25 Pilgrims leave to Italy

Bible

E.C.R.C. Faith

ER SUN- DAY
MON- DAY

5:30 pm

Boys

CLC High School
Group

at St. Thomas 6:30

Challenge for

27 DI- VINE

28

29

30

Bible Study

at 6:30pm at
E.C.R.C.

MERCY SUN- DAY

CLC High School
Group

6:30pm

Challenge for

HOLY THURSDAY

o you ever think about what happened exactly on Holy Thursday and what’s so special about the day before the day that Jesus Christ would suffer for our sins? Wouldn’t you think Jesus would be

just praying and relaxing before his sufferings of being whipped, crowned with thorns, and crucified for our sake? Truly, Holy Thursday is one of the most epic days the Earth has ever

D

seen. Let me tell you why.!

Luke 22: ³Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve. ⁴And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus. ⁵They were delighted and agreed to give him money. ⁶He consented, and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them when no crowd was present.

It is the day that God, Jesus Christ, was betrayed by one of His friends for 30 pieces of silver! Let us reflect on Jesus. He was with His Disciples for 3 years; healing, teaching, eating, laughing, and living as a family! Even though Jesus knew that He was going to be betrayed, it still grieved our Lord that one of His friends would not fully trust in His endless love! Lord, We too are like Judas, who betrayed Jesus, every time that we sin. We kiss Jesus on the cheek and hold hands with the Devil! With the grace of the Lord, we must pray and hope that we can be purified and forgiven of our sins, which Is why he allowed the betrayal; to forgive us!

Matthew 26: 26 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his

disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” 27 Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for

the forgiveness of sins.

WOW! On Holy Thursday, for the first time in the history of mankind, God has given us His very own
Body and Blood, under the appearance of bread and wine! God, the creator of Heaven and Earth, the stars, planets, the sun, mountains and everything seen and unseen, has made for us, so that we might have Life through Him, His Body and Blood! Before typing this article I went to Mass and received the Eucharist and I

can tell you God’s greatest gift to mankind is Himself in the tiny white host we know as the Eucharist; Bread

from Heaven, the Living Bread, the True Manna and so on!

Padre Pio: "Every holy Mass, heard with devotion, produces in our souls marvelous effects, abundant spiritual and material graces which we, ourselves, do not know. It is easier for the earth to exist without the sun than without the holy Sacrifice of the Mass."

Jesus said, “Do this in memory of Me!”

Hi Father Frank, hello Abouna! Did Holy Thursday give us Priests? When Jesus Christ commanded

His Apostles saying, “do this in memory of me,” He gave them authority to celebrate Mass, to change bread

and wine, normal food into the Living Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. We know that only ordained men can celebrate the Mass, so those disciples of Jesus, on Holy Thursday became Apostles (Bishops) so that we can offer Jesus Christ to the Father by celebrating Mass!

Holy Thursday is a day filled with so many gifts that we are still unwrapping the love that God has for each and every single of us! We see that even Jesus had a bad friend; even Jesus was betrayed by one of His own! Jesus knows how a broken heart feels, I break His heart every time I sin against Him! He has given us the Eucharist, which will be our food and our shield against this world, no matter how dark and scary things get Jesus will be waiting for us in His beautiful bread form! Thank God for the gifts of Priests, who have given up so many other blessings to be able to serve Jesus Christ by being available to us, so they can baptize us and make us a son or daughter of our Heavenly Father, they even hear our ugly sins without judgment, always ready to reconcile us back to the Father, and the make for us the Food that brings Eternal Life, the Eucharist! I cant wait for Holy Thursday, God has really given us everything, Himself!

Article by Mark Zakar

WHY DOES GOD ALLOW SUFFERING?

During a time of tragedy, pain, and suffering, we often ask why God allows it. Why does all of this happen if there is a loving and powerful God? Why do bad things happen to good people? Does God really exist, or does he not have the time to tend after his creation? Even the most faithful people may be tempted to ask some of these questions during turbulent and painful times. In looking for answers, we may hear the following:

Original sin is the reason that we have afflictions, including death.

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We have rebelled against God, and he is teaching us a lesson through suffering. God wants to increase our faith, since we will not turn to him during happy and tranquil times. God gave us free will, and we suffer as a result of our own free decisions. God allowed his son to suffer unjustly, and as a result, humans should suffer also.
Before we start wrestling with God for answers, or complain that he allowed tragedies in our lives, we need to recognize that it is all a mystery. We cannot stand in the shoes of God and give a

complete answer to why God allows suffering. We don’t have God’s mind. We don’t see with God’s eyes. Suffering carries a message of mystery, and the Bible teaches us that “Great is the mystery of godliness” (1 Timothy 3:16). Our limited and imperfect human nature makes it impossible to grasp

the wisdom of God and understand his ways. St. Paul describes our shallow understanding as being

foggy and incomplete. “At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror, but then face to face.
At present I know partially; then I shall know fully, as I am fully known” (1 Cor 13:12). In other words, we won’t have the full answer in this world, but God will show us with clarity someday. For now things are foggy. We can’t understand everything from our finite perspective. This may sound a

bit frustrating to us suffering and impatient human beings. St. John gives us a clue as to how we

deal with all of this in the meantime: “Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we shall be has not

yet been revealed. We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like him, for we shall see him as

he is. Everyone who has this hope based on him makes himself pure, as he is pure.” (1 John 3:2-3).

In other words, having hope in the Lord is our coping mechanism until we are changed in his nature and see things more clearly according to his will.

Hope is a desire with expectation of obtainment. St. Paul teaches us “For in hope we were

saved. Now hope that sees for itself is not hope. For who hopes for what one sees? But if we hope

for what we do not see, we wait with endurance” (Romans 8:24-25). The liturgy of the Chaldean mass recites “Msabaru sabreth b-marya” or “My hope is in the Lord”. Suffering, deep hurts,

betrayals, loss of a loved one or a relationship, and tragedies are all invitations to build our Christian lives on hope in the Lord. Being hopeful requires us to be humble in front of the Lord. It teaches us

to ask “what” not “why” types of questions, and what we need is to be hopeful in Christ. Hope stops

our bitterness and helps us turn to God for peace and courage. It also increases our compassion for others who are suffering like us. Suffering is the soil where the deepest kind of hope in God grows. Suffering is an invitation for maturing our love for God, so we can love God foremost.

These are difficult words to accept, but they summarize the suffering until death that Christ

showed us. I sincerely see suffering as an invitation to be “Christ-like”. We can reject our suffering

with bitterness and dissention towards God or accept it with humility, hope, and love. Lastly, and as we live our lives being hopeful in the Lord, we need to complement our suffering with constant prayer. St. James encourages those who are suffering to pray (James 5:13). Living a life of obedience, hope in the Lord, and prayer are all Godly ways to deal with human suffering. I pray for all those who suffer unjustly or have faced tragedies. May Christ touch their broken hearts and bring

Article by “Suraya”

GOOD FRIDAY

L

et me apologize in advance for my next sentence in advance... Let us reflect on a day where one of our loved ones passed away! Let's think about the tears, the first time we heard about the death, and our family reacting to the news. I lost my favorite cousin a few years back and NOTHING was good that day! I,

myself, was crying like a baby and was so sad and full of darkness knowing that I will not hear “ What up Jr.”

from my cousin Amer again! Would I call that day good? Of course not! So why do we call the Friday that

Jesus Christ was killed "Good”?

We all know what happened on Good Friday; that the only Son of God, perfect and without sin, was whipped until we could no longer see His skin, crowned with thorns rather than the glory that He deserves, made fun of and mocked, spat upon, and hit with a cane. Jesus was made to carry the very same Cross that He would eventually be nailed upon until he died. And truly, this is not a story, these are recalled events that historically took place 2,000 years ago!

Hebrews 9:22 “Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.”

Back to my question; why is that day "good"? Because if God did not send His only Son, unblemished and perfect, to take upon our sins upon His shoulders, there would NOT be the forgiveness of our sins. Heaven would not be open for me and for you and for all if it was not for the beautiful act of Jesus on the Cross! If I give my life to the poor, if I become a Monk, if I never curse, If I never lust and remain chaste, if I take a bullet for someone evil, NO MATTER WHAT I DO, I cannot earn my Salvation. Only by the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ do I have Eternal Life!

You see, thanks to Jesus, freely and willingly taking my sins, my shame, and my cross, shedding His blood for my sake, that I have been reconciled back to my Heavenly Father! I am a child of God, thanks to Jesus Christ purchasing my life back to my Father in Heaven!

John 11:25 Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if

he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”

Jesus promises us LIFE, eternal life with Him, if we truly believe in Him and allow Him to work in us! Death is no longer our master and death is no longer our fear. Death is just a door to Jesus, a change of address from this world to the next!

When our loved ones pass away, pray a lot for their soul so that death to them will be a good thing, in that they will never cry, never be in pain or sorrow, but

will have true life in Jesus Christ who says, “ I have prepared a room for you!” Good Friday is indeed a

good, in fact, a great Friday, a Victorious Friday, a Freedom Friday! Lord, help us to await Your resurrection while we grow closer to you this season of Lent!

Article by Mark Zakar

THE PAIN MARY FELT (An Easter Poem)

Can you imagine the pain That Mary must have felt,
As her child hung on the cross that day;
The agony that filled her soul,
The tears that flowed,
Their decision she could not sway?

A Mother's love for her child
Is such a strong part of her life,
Like an extension of herself.
Every breath the child breathes,
Every tender hug and kiss, Not one memory every leaves.

So, for Mary to witness
Such a scene
Was probably more than she could bear.
She must have cried out,
Don't you know that's 'my child'
Hanging there?

God knew the agony
That Mary would feel, On that fateful day, For He himself felt
That same agony
As His Child hung that way!

"Crucify Him" they chanted, Not knowing what lay ahead.
They didn't realize that
He was their Savior,
Until He, too, was dead.

But, one bright and glorious morning, They checked the grave where Jesus lay.
The tomb was empty,
The rock had been rolled away.
Jesus had RISEN that day!

Mary had lost a Son,
But the World gained a Savior
On Resurrection Day.

Help us & Help Others with your generous donations.

We accept a wider range of donated materials than others. Most any estate, office, garage, furniture, attic, shed, closet, trade-in, obsolete, returns, sporting goods, clothes, shoes, lamps and on and on!

Donation Bin is located by the Church Office in the St. Thomas Parking Lot.

If you have items too large for the bin please call

St. Vincent De Paul at 906.266.3721.

Often people ask “How can I get more involved in Church?” There are

always ways that we can use our gifts and talents to help build the community. Recently, a few new groups were formed; check them