St. William Catholic Church 4932 Easley Street Millington, TN 38053 (901)872-4099 November 2018 7 Newest Saints Canonized — October 14, 2018 Article inside... Front row: Archbishop Óscar Romero, Sister Nazaria Ignacia de Santa Teresa de Jesús March Mesa and Father Vincenzo Romano; Second row: Father Francesco Spinelli, Nunzio Sulprizio and Sister Maria Katharina Kasper; Separate photo: Pope Paul VI With many blessings and prayers from our staff! St. William Formed: www.stwilliamcc.formed.org Thank you very much! QR Code Rev. Michael Werkhoven (Fr. Mike) St. William Website: www.stwilliamcc.org Deacon Jimmy Schmall Debi Yetman St. William Facebook Page:www.facebook.com/St-William-Catholic-Church-Millington Lisa Schmidt -TN-167434053305186/ Debbie Breckenridge ! YOUTH NEWS ! PRE is just rolling right along! Parents please remember that you are your children’s first Teacher. We must set the perfect example and get these kids to Mass…not just drop them off at class. Class is from 9:45 sharp until 10:45 so you can go to the 8:30 or 11:00 Mass. November 18th will be our next Children’s Mass. It will be led by our 6th grade class! These kids will be doing lots of great things this year so please keep them and all the youth in your prayers. Thanks to the Confirmation class that did the Mass for us in October. They did a wonderful job and are excellent examples of what these kids are capable of doing! There will be NO PRE on November 25th because of the Thanksgiving holiday. Youth Group News We are very excited about this year’s youth group! We are working toward a summer trip to attend a Steubenville retreat including some Six Flags time in Missouri! Please come and enjoy delicious breakfast prepared by our youth group every third Sunday of the month! Also, please keep our group in your pray- ers as we complete a service project at the end of this month to assist a parishioner! As always, those with- in the grades of 9-12 are always welcome! Please contact Janna Dominguez with any questions at 901 -652-2898 or [email protected]. from the Deacon’s corner… From the Deacon’s Desk: To say that the last several weeks have been hectic would be an understatement. I was going to write something on St. Martin De Porres the Dominican Friar from Lima, Peru in the 17th centu- ry. However, due to other obligations, I simply did not get around to it. My apologies, but I en- courage you to look him up and learn more about this most interesting saint. I would like to use this month’s platform and say thank you. Thank you to all of the wonderful parishioners of St. William. My dad was always there for me and my family. It’s hard to imagine that he isn’t anymore. While my family and I mourn his loss, I know many of you do as well. We mourn together, and we will all get through this. We will lean on each other. That’s what families do. And. Yes, I consider St. William my family. My dad did too. He served three differ- ent parishes as a Deacon of the Diocese. But no matter where he served, he always considered St. William home. Just before he died, my mom told my dad that he was the best part of her. He made her a better person. If that is the case, then we are all better people for knowing Deacon Jim. He led by ex- ample and humility. But, that shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone who knew him. As I said in my funeral homily, that’s just the kind of guy he was. Never afraid to give of himself to others. So, on behalf of my mother and the rest of the Schmall clan, thank you. Thank you all for the outpouring of love, prayers, and support (and cooking) during my dad’s illness and death. I am truly blessed. My family is truly blessed. Blessed because we have such a wonderful parish family. Words simply are not enough. But know that you all are in our prayers. In closing, I’d like to share this with you. My dad was having a particularly bad night one night, so I grabbed his bible which was sitting on the nightstand. I was looking for some inspiration and this passage was highlighted: “So, we are always courageous, although we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yet we are courageous, and we would rather leave the body and go home to the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 5:6-8 NABRE) Peace, St. Marn de Porres Deacon Jimmy The Nicene Creed, Part 2 When we participate in the Mass, we always state our belief as Christians by reciting the Nicene Creed. Over the next few months, we will be looking at our Creed in depth as to explore the detail of what we do believe through faith and the teachings of the Church. This month, we will focus on the origin of the Nicene Creed with the Council of Nicaea. The First Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church, was held in 325 in Nicaea on the occasion of the heresy of Arius (Arianism), who was preaching that Jesus was only Human and not divine. As early as 320 or 321 St. Alexander, Bishop of Alexandria, convoked a council at Alexandria at which more than one hundred bishops from Egypt and Libya anathematized Arius. The latter continued to officiate in his church and to recruit followers. Being finally driven out, he went to Palestine and from there to Nicomedia. During this time St. Alexander published his "Epistola encyclica", to which Arius replied; but henceforth it was evident that the quarrel had gone beyond the possibility of human control. Finally, Constantine concerned himself with the re-establishment of religious peace as well as of civil order. He addressed letters to St. Alexander and to Arius deprecating these heated controversies regarding questions of no practical importance, and advising them to agree without delay. Hosius of Cordova, his counsellor in religious matters, bore the imperial letter to Alexandria, but failed in his conciliatory mission. Seeing this, the emperor, judged no remedy more apt to restore peace in the Church than the convocation of an ecumenical council. The emperor himself begged the bishops of every country to come promptly to Nicaea. Several bishops from outside the Roman Empire (from Persia) came to the Council. It is not historically known whether the emperor in convoking the Council acted solely in his own name or in concert with the pope; however, it is probable that Constantine and Sylvester came to an agreement. The choice of Nicaea was favorable to the assembling of a large number of bishops. It was easily accessible to the bishops of nearly all the provinces, but especially to those of Asia, Syria, Palestine, Egypt, Greece, and Thrace. The assembly numbered among its most famous members St. Alexander of Alexandria, Eustathius of Antioch, Macarius of Jerusalem, Eusebius of Nicomedia, Eusebius of Caesarea, and Nicholas of Myra. Some had suffered during the last persecution; others were poorly enough acquainted with Christian theology. Among the members was a young deacon, Athanasius of Alexandria, for whom this Council was to be the prelude to a life of conflict and of glory. The Council was opened by Constantine with the greatest solemnity. The emperor waited until all the bishops had taken their seats before making his entry. The emperor made an address expressing his will that religious peace should be re-established. He had opened the session as honorary president, and he had assisted at the subsequent sessions, but the direction of the theological discussions was aban- doned, as was fitting, to the ecclesiastical leaders of the council. The emperor began by making the bishops understand that they had a greater and better business in hand than personal quarrels and interminable recriminations. Nevertheless, he had to submit to the infliction of hearing the last words of debates which had been going on previous to his arrival. Rufinus tells us that daily sessions were held and that Arius was often summoned before the assembly; his opinions were seriously discussed and the opposing arguments attentively considered. The majority, especially those who were confessors of the Faith, energetically declared themselves against the impious doctrines of Arius. St. Athanasius assures us that the activities of the Council were nowise hampered by Constantine's presence. The Council did create the first formulation of the Creed. The Creed did conclude that Jesus was fully human and fully divine and was of the same substance of God the Father. The adhesion was general and enthusiastic. All the bishops save five declared themselves ready to subscribe to this formula, convinced that it contained the ancient faith of the Apostolic Church. Next month, we will focus on the First Council of Constantinople which was called in part to con- firm the Faith of the Nicaean Council and to continue to dispute Arianism. 7 Newest Saints Canonized on October 14th Meet the New Saints Pope Paul VI born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini (1897 – 1978) He served as Pope from 21 June 1963 to his death in 1978. Upon his election to the papacy, Montini took the name Paul VI. He re-convened the Second Vatican Council, which had automatically closed with the death of John XXIII. After the Council had concluded its work, Paul VI took charge of the interpretation and implementation of its mandates, often walking a thin line between the conflicting expectations of various groups within Catholicism.