Our Lady Queen of Martyrs 53 Prospect Road, Centerport, NY 11721 631.757.8184 www.olqmparish.org October 25, 2020 Pastor Reverend Stephen J. Pietrowski [email protected] Associate Pastor Fr. Collins Adutwum [email protected] Deacons John Rieger [email protected] Lou Cosentino [email protected] Pastoral Associate 631.757.6250 Brother Etienne, OSF [email protected] Assistant to Pastor Nanci DeSantis [email protected] Parish Administration Judy Smith [email protected] Children’s Faith Formation 631.757.0720 Nancy Dougherty, Director [email protected] The Thirtieth Sunday Georgena Ryan, Coordinator [email protected] Parish Social Ministry in Ordinary Time 631.754.9045 Maria Ryan, Director [email protected] Mary Ellen Pisano, Assistantme- [email protected] Music Coordinator Deirdre Kupka Come Pray With Us Facilities Paul Kupka This abbreviated bulletin has been issued for our website to ensure parishioners have the most current information. ~ Our Lady Queen of Martyrs ~ Dear Brothers and Sisters, Thanks to the hard work of our Virtual Golf Outing Committee and the generosity of so many of you we were able to raise over $90,000.00 for the support of our parish! Thank you all for your support and dedication to our parish. All of the proceeds, after expenses are paid, will go to supplement our parish budget which in these difficult times has been stretched to the max. Please see the pages in this bulletin for prize winners and sponsors of this year’s Outing. Also, please show our sponsors your support by supporting them or their businesses. A special thank you to our committee, especially Deacon John, who coordinated our online services which were crucial to this year’s Outing. To Judy Smith, for keeping us organized and informed and coordinated the ground forces involved in getting things done. Thank you to Liz Madigan for her Prize Basket Creations and refreshments after the Mass the other day. And thank you to Georgena Ryan for doing the leg work in getting sponsors and arranging for some of our prizes. The real winners and heroes of this year’s Outing were our Healthcare Workers, our First Responders and Essential Workers whom we honored in our Field of Heroes on the South Lawn of the parish. The field will remain in place until Thanksgiving. Please stop by and look at the people listed. Also, please keep them in your prayers. If you would like to still honor a loved-one, please contact Judy in the Parish Office. Our honorees truly are our life savers every day but their hard work, dedication and struggle in the fight with Covid made all the difference in the battle for our safety, security and daily life. Thank you to them and to their families who supported them through the worst of times. We honored and blessed some of our local Heroes at the 8 AM Mass last weekend with the closing Mass for the outing. Thank you to each and every one of them and may God continue to watch over them and their loved ones. ~ All Are Welcome ~ On to our gospel… “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” The above quote from this weekend’s Gospel at the outset might seem like a unique statement on Jesus part, but the truth of the matter was that he was quoting two of the most well-known sections of the Hebrew scriptures. They are words that every good Jewish man and woman would have been well acquainted with. The first part is called the Great Commandment, or in Hebrew the Shema yisra ‘el. It was given to the people of Israel as they were preparing to enter the promised-land and begins the section of the Book of Deuteronomy dedicated to the covenant God had made with his people and the laws he commands that Israel obey as their part of that agreement. Jesus then adds to this section another commandment, this time from the book of Leviticus, on how a good Jewish person should conduct themselves in the midst of the world and how to relate to others. Again, both of these quotes would have been well known by the both the teachers and leaders of his day, as well as the ordinary person in the street. Why is this important for us to know? Well over the past few weeks we have been listening to Gospel accounts of Jesus parables as he taught the people in the Temple precincts. The parables have been centered on challenging the leaders of his day and their failure to follow the law they claim to uphold. In return they challenge Jesus’ authority to teach and his judgment of them. In today’s selection he answers the challenge of a Scholar of the Law with a response that puts him to silence because of the truth his answer contains. By quoting these two scriptures Jesus sets himself up as a Good Jew and a believer. The Scholar cannot even argue with him. To do so would be to challenge the very law itself. What does this mean to us? For us a Christians in the 21st century this scripture can give us tremendous insight into the mind of Jesus and how he views his Heavenly Father and his love for us. By coupling those two very different but well known quotes Jesus connects our human experience of loving each other to our relationship with God. In essence Jesus challenges us to love as God loves: perfectly! Now you and I know that the world is filled with a lot of false or shallow love. But we also know and have felt REAL love in our lives and our relationships with one another. Real love will risk anything, be anything, fulfill, challenge, hope, support – the list goes on and on. Now, if that love is limited and at times conditional because of who it comes from – the imperfect people we are- then how much more powerful is God’s love for us. Therefore the challenge is to, as best we can, imitate God. Look at the length and breadth of that first part of the quote – “with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind”- in essence, with every fiber of our being. As imperfect as we are it is only a shadow of the way God loves YOU. So our question for today: What if God only loved you as much as you loved him? Who are the people who have shown me what real love is in my life and how have I lived up to what I have learned? Peace, Fr. Steve ~ Schedule of Masses ~ Parking Reminder: If you plan to leave your car to sit outside, PLEASE PARK IN OUR MAIN PARKING LOT and walk with your chair to the Sacred Space. If you have a passenger who is unable to walk that distance,please drop them off at the Sacred Space and then go to park your car. The parking spaces in the lower Church lot adjacent to the Sacred Space should be reserved for those who wish to remain in their cars and listen to the Mass on their car radio. Our regular weekend Mass schedule has resumed, with the only difference being that the 8:00 am Sunday Mass Those who remain in will continue to be outside at the Saint Gabriel Sacred Space, their cars for Mass and weather permitting and until further notice. wish to receive Holy Communion,please put For the outdoor Masses, you have the option to “drive in” and your car lights on after remain in your car, parked at the edge of the parking lot, Mass has concluded, and facing the Sacred Space, or bring your own chairs and the celebrant will bring a radio or boom box to tune into the Mass, Communion to you after which will be broadcast on 105.3 FM. those seated outside This allows you to safely participate with proper social distancing. have received. We plan to resume the Saturday morning Mass in November. Please check our website for the most current schedule of Masses. Thank you for your patience and understanding. For the duration, Father Steve will continue to video Mass for those who are not ready to return. One thing that we request, regardless of which Mass you attend, is that you please wear a mask, and bring gel to sanitize your hands as you prepare to receive Communion. ~ We Celebrate The Sacraments ~ Congratulations to proud parents Robert & Gloria Klesaris on the baptism of their daughter Alicia Rae Klesaris. Congratulations to proud parents William & Kristine Calderone on the baptism of their son Logan Jax Calderone. The Carillo family celebrates the marriage of their daughter Christie to Austin Milan. Congratulations Mr. & Mrs. Austin Milan! Congratualtion to proud Send us your photos parents Joseph &Paige Caprioli so we may share your joy with our parish on the baptism family! of their daughter [email protected] Parker Georgie Caprioli. ~ 38th Annual Msgr. Joseph F. Colligan ~ Thank you to all who supported our virtual Golf Outing this year! It was a tremendous success, raising over $90, 000 for the parish. Your generosity enables us to continue to provide the many programs and ministries that support both our parish and our community. Special Sponsors Virtual Golfers Tee & Green Sponsors Jan Fantozzi Gellerman Orthodontics Heroes Sponsorships Robert Warburgh East Neck Nursing & David Borg Rehabilitation Center Carillon Nursing & Package All Joe Carillo Cliff Hotte Rehabilitation Center Nolan Funeral Home Mike De Pirro Upper East Side Nursing & Michael Dooley Rehabilitation Warriors Sponsorships Thomas Dooley Morningside Nursing & Stephen Dooley Rehabilitation Rich & Grace D’Amato Margaret Ames JOPAL Matchbox Richard Griffiths Prospect Acquisition Steve Hoey LI Script Lifesavers Sponsorships Ernest Vomero Salem Ridge Advisory Erik Zetterstrom Centerport Automotive M.