Fourteen men were recently received into the Franciscan Interprovincial Novitiate in Santa Barbara, California. Among them is Loren Moreno, a parishioner of St. Francis of Assisi (third from the left in the top row.)
Let us join together in prayer that he and his fellow novices will have a novitiate year filled with God’s love in the spirit of St. Francis.
On Thursday, July 26, the Feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, we invite you to join the participants of our summer course, “The Psalms: Sing a New Song to the Lord,” for a special Solemn Vespers in the upper church.
We will begin at 6:15 PM with an orientation to the liturgy led by Fr. Bill Beaudin, and then we will celebrate the beautiful, ancient Evening Prayer of the Church.
Solemn Vespers
6:15 PM in the Upper Church
THE UGNAYAN FILIPINO MINISTRY PRESENTS
PIYESTANG PINOY ANNUAL FILIPINO FIESTA EXPERIENCE
Celebrating the Culture & Cuisine of the Philippines
SATURDAY, JULY 28, 2018 1:00-5:00 PM • SAN DAMIANO HALL
Tickets are $20 each and are available at the reception desk in the lobby of the St. Francis Parish House
They will also be available at the door.
For more information contact filipinoministry@stfrancisnyc.org,
or Princess (347-850-3558) or Carla (718-503-4637).
Proceeds will benefit the Church of St. Francis of Assisi and its ministries.
Thousands are fed on a few barley loaves and a couple of fish in today’s Gospel. What an outpouring of compassion and love upon the huge crowd of people that was following Jesus and this wasn’t the only great sign of his concern for the crowd. Earlier, he and his disciples had been taking care of the sick who were following him and the crowd kept growing. It is remarkable how several of the apostles joined with Jesus in taking care of a crisis that was about to happen because of the lack of food. It is also remarkable that after all had eaten, there were 12 baskets of fragments left over. Jesus couldn’t be outdone in his generosity and deep concern for thousands of hungry people. The apostles with him were a great help in turning this situation from a crisis to an experience of how God takes care of us.
Speaking of food and the feeding of a large crowd, our Filipino Community is holding their annual Festival of Food and Culture this weekend. It takes the work and dedication of many people to organize the event: those who cook, decorate, serve, entertain, and clean up to make this not only a success but a memorable day for all who attend. Many thanks to all who worked so hard to make this day possible. This is part of our Filipino Commuity’s 35th Anniversary of being here at St. Francis. Congratulations!
This Thursday, August 2, we Franciscans celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of the Angels of the Porziuncula. This small chapel is our Mother Church in Assisi and it meant so much to St. Francis and continues to be a place of blessing for all who visit it. A Blessed Feastday!
-Fr. Andrew Reitz, O.F.M
“The word of God also invites us to recognize that we are a people: ‘Once you were no people but now you are God’s people.’To be evangelizers of souls, we need to develop a spiritual taste for being close to people’s lives and to discover that this is itself a source of greater joy. Mission is at once a passion for Jesus and a passion for his people. When we stand before Jesus crucified, we see the depth of his love which exalts and sustains us, but at the same time, unless we are blind, we begin to realize that Jesus’ gaze, burning with love, expands to embrace all his people. We realize once more that he wants to make use of us to draw closer to his beloved people.
He takes us from the midst of his people and he sends us to his people; without this sense of belonging we cannot understand our deepest identity.”
We invite you to take part in Days of Prayer dedicated to Parents and Grandparents in honor of Saints Joachim and Anne, the parents of Mary, and grandparents of Jesus.
Special prayers will be said after the 11:30 AM and 4:30 PM Masses Monday to Thursday, July 23-26.
Envelopes will be available on which you may write the names of parents and grandparents whom you would like to have remembered on these days.
“In union with Jesus, we seek what he seeks and we love what he loves. In the end, what we are seeking is the glory of the Father; we love and act ‘for the praise of his glorious grace.’
The word of God also invites us to recognize that we are a people. ‘Once you were no people, but now you are God’s people.’To be evangelizers of souls, we need to develop a spiritual taste for being close to people’s lives and to discover that this is itself a source of greater joy. Mission is at once a passion for Jesus and a passion for his people.
When we stand before Jesus crucified, we see the depth of his love which exalts and sustains us, but at the same time, unless we are blind, we begin to realize that Jesus’ gaze, burning with love, expands to embrace all his people. We realize once more that he wants to make use of us to draw closer to his beloved people. He takes us from the midst of his people and he sends us to his people; without this sense of belonging we cannot understand our deepest identity.”
Offertory Collections in Church: 39,640
Online Sunday Collections: 16,551*
Total Sunday Collections for June 2018: 56,191
Total Weekday Collections for June 2018: 27,191
Total Sunday and Weekdays for June 2018: 83,382
Budgeted for June 2018: 83,333
Offertory Sunday Collections in church: 39,947
Online Sunday Collections: 7,190*
Total Sunday Collections for June 2017: 47,137
Total Weekday Collections for June 2017: 25,792
Total Sunday and Weekdays for June 2017: 72,929
Budgeted for June 2017: 83,333
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* Please Note: the online giving numbers for June 2017 and 2018 were incorrectly reported in this week’s bulletin. These are the corrected figures.
Thank you to all of our faithful stewards. All Christians are called to financially support the church as part of our discipleship. We ask all of our people to strive to offer ONE HOUR of their weekly pay to support the church, which is 2.5%. If you haven’t yet committed to your offering, we invite you to sign up for ONLINE GIVING NOW HERE.
In today’s Gospel we hear Jesus say: “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” The apostles had been out among the crowd that was following them and had been so busy that “they had no opportunity even to eat.” Jesus calls them to come and step away from their busy lives. He had done the same himself, going to deserted places for time to pray and be renewed. He knew that their ability to be good shepherds depended on their relationship with the Father and the way that they managed their time and energy. We need to have the same balance in our lives no matter what our responsibilities. I hope that during this summer you will have time to relax and be refreshed. Whether you go on a trip or stay here locally, build in time to enjoy this time of the year.
The course on the Psalms this week will feature Fr. Timothy Shreenan speaking on how the Psalms have inspired artists and musicians over the centuries. His presentation on Wednesday, July 25, will include examples of beautiful illuminated manuscripts from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. The presentation will be given at 12 Noon and repeated at 6:15 PM. On Thursday there will be a Solemn Celebration of Vespers in the church, showing how the Psalms are part of our worship. Vespers or Evening Prayer is said or sung every day by those who pray the Liturgy of the Hours. It is a beautiful way to end this series on the Psalms.
-Fr. Andrew Reitz, O.F.M.
