All Are Welcome to Attend an April 22nd Diocesan-Wide Morning of Reflection Here at St. Matthias

 

The Diocese of Metuchen’s Office of Multicultural Ministry is holding a Day of Reflection for Black Catholics on Saturday, April 22, 2023, in preparation for the National Black Catholic Congress to be held July 20-23, 2023. The theme is “Write the Vision: A Prophetic Call to Thrive”. Representatives from the different Black Catholic Communities are invited to attend the Day of Reflection on April 22nd which will be held at St. Matthias Parish in Somerset, NJ from 8:30 am to 12 pm.

Please note that registration for the April 22nd Day of Reflection is open to all, not just Black Catholics, although the topics will be focused on issues most relevant to Black Catholics in preparation for the Congress.

There will be no charge to attend, but registration is required please visit: www.diometuchen.org/2023nbc

To learn more about the National Black Catholic Congress 2023, please visit the National Black Catholic Congress website: nbccongress.org.

Fourth Sunday of Lent

 

Dear Friends,

Welcome back to Msgr. Brennan who had gone to Ireland when he got the sad news of his sister’s passing away. He is grateful to our community for remembering Brigid during our Prayers of Intercession at all our weekend Masses and for the loving support we offered him.

We know that the feast of St. Joseph is on March 19 [today]; but this year it is postponed to March 20 [tomorrow], because it is falling on a Sunday, the Lord’s Day. As I discussed last week in this column, some traditions are changeable with the changing situations. Thus the doctrine on St. Joseph and the honor we give him with a Solemn Feast can be seen as Primary Traditions that will not be changed; but the date to celebrate this Solemn Feast can be considered as Secondary tradition and so can be changed if a need arises as it happened this year.

This reminds me to share with you another question that we priests are asked often: What to do with old and unusable sacred items? Many people have holy objects like broken rosaries, holy cards, statues, pictures of Jesus and saints, etc., remaining in a clutter box in many houses, in a state of permanent limbo as people don’t know how to dispose of these items. Some do have an attachment to these sacred objects, even if they are broken or unused. But many, in my understanding, hold on to broken or unused holy items due to unspoken guilt. A fear that something can happen if they simply discard these sacred items.  People fear that something can go wrong if they fail to handle these religious items properly.

The Church does provide guidance on this. The rule of thumb for the disposition of these items is that anything that has been blessed should be burned or simply buried. Now, If you’re reading this and feel anxious about the palms, rosaries, and prayer cards you’ve thrown away over the years, there’s no need to lose sleep over it.

One important thing we need to understand is this: all sacred objects are means to an end. They are tools for our spiritual growth. If the water flow in our faucet is faulty, we call the plumber who will replace the parts or the pipe. The old parts and pipes will be discarded. God uses created things as channels of grace. That means grace is coming to us through these channels from Jesus Christ who is the source of our life-giving water, as he told the Samaritan woman: “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” (John 4:11). Therefore, if these channels or tools are no more usable, they need to be discarded.

I liked this explanation from the Diocese of Superior in Wisconsin: “It is not a sin to throw away blessed items, but out of proper respect, one should dispose of them in this way. If devotionals have not been blessed, such as some of the holy cards and such that come through the mail, those are simply pictures and can be thrown away. If you feel uncomfortable throwing them away, you can burn or bury them as well.”

Jesus said: “Know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32). May we all seek the truth and experience true freedom in Jesus Christ. His truth will bring us true joy. And, today is “Laetare Sunday” when the Church is inviting us to be joyful in anticipation of the approaching celebration of Easter.

Your brother in Christ,

Fr. Abraham Orapankal

Third Sunday of Lent

Dear Friends,

This coming Friday is the feast of St. Patrick, “when everyone is Irish,” celebrating the saint who plucked a shamrock from the ground and used it, with its three leaves in one plant, to explain the Mystery of the Trinity – three Persons in one God.

Interestingly, this year, this feast falls on a Friday in Lent! So what about the corn beef dinner without which St. Patrick’s Day is incomplete? Don’t worry, our Bishop has already announced the dispensation so you may enjoy corned beef (or other meat) that day and abstain from meat on another day that same week. That brings us to an important discussion about the meaning of Tradition. When Catholic Church gives so much importance to Tradition, can we easily change the hallowed tradition of abstaining from meat on a Friday of Lent, or any other tradition?

It depends on your understanding of tradition. All traditions are not of equal value. We need to distinguish between Primary Traditions (with a capital T) and Secondary traditions (with a small case t). Primary Traditions are those fundamental beliefs and practices that constitute who we are as Catholics. Some examples are belief in the Holy Trinity, Pope as the Vicar of Christ, Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, Immaculate Conception, etc. These are non-negotiable. While examples of Secondary traditions are days of fasting and abstinence, Holy Days of Obligation, devotions like rosary, novena, etc. These can be changed or suspended as per the decision of the conference of Bishops. So the dispensation given for the feast of St. Patrick’s day when it falls on a Friday in Lent is precisely because it is a secondary tradition.

It is also good to point out that the feast of St. Joseph on March 19th  (which is a higher ranking feast in the Liturgical calendar in comparison to
St. Patrick’s) is moved to March 20th this year. Why? When it falls on a Sunday, the priority is given to the feast of our Lord (which every Sunday is) and so the feast of St. Joseph is celebrated a day later.

This is a big Feast for Italians because in the Middle Ages, God, through St. Joseph’s intercession, saved the Sicilians from a very serious drought. So in his honor, the custom has been for all to wear red, in the same way that green is worn on St. Patrick’s Day. In many parishes with large Italian population, a big altar (“la tavola di San Giuse” or “St. Joseph’s Table”) is laden with food that people bring to be blessed by the priest on the feast day and to have a big feast day meal. I myself have blessed baskets of food that Italian families bring in every parish I have served.

These celebrations do not take away the penitential spirit of Lent. The sacrifices we make, the extra devotions we practice are all meant to bring us to a joyful connection to the Lord. In the Lenten Preface of the Mass we hear: “Each year You give us this joyful season when we prepare to celebrate the paschal mystery with mind and heart renewed.” In fact, next Sunday is called ‘Laetare Sunday’ because we focus on Christian joy in the Mass.
Let us continue and complete this joyful season of Lent!

Your brother in Christ,

Fr. Abraham Orapankal

St. Matthias is a Proud Sponsor of Empty Bowls

The Catholic Community of St. Matthias is proud to be a sponsor of the 5th annual Empty Bowls being held on March 26, 2023, from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM at the Doubletree Hotel and Conference Center located at 200 Atrium Drive, Somerset, New Jersey. All are welcome to attend, this is a family-friendly event!

Empty Bowls is a grassroots effort to raise both money and awareness in the fight to end hunger, personalized by artists and art organizations on a community level.

With your ticket purchase, guests choose a handmade bowl to keep and enjoy food from local restaurants.

All proceeds are given to the Franklin Food Bank which provides groceries to our neighbors with dignity and respect.

For more information or to register for this event, visit: https://franklinfoodbank.org/empty-bowls-2023/

STATIONS OF THE CROSS

 

Join us on Fridays during Lent in Church at 7:00 PM. The Stations are a devotion intended to help us follow Jesus on his way to Calvary.

By accompanying him on the Way of the Cross, we see ourselves mirrored in him, gain his courageous patience, & learn to trust God who is with us no matter what we have to go through. Each Friday we have a different theme with beautiful reflections, led by our different ministries. Welcome to pray this ancient devotion of the church.

Second Sunday of Lent

 

Dear Friends,

On March 27, 2020, at an early point in the global pandemic, Pope Francis walked alone in the rain across an empty St. Peter’s Square to offer prayer for the world in a time of crisis. “Faith,” he said, “begins when we realize we are in need of salvation. We are not self-sufficient; by ourselves we flounder: we need the Lord, like ancient navigators needed the stars.” Recalling when Jesus was asleep in the boat as a tempest was raging (Mark 4:35-41), the Holy Father said, “The Lord awakens so as to reawaken and revive our Easter faith.” On that day, Pope Francis presided over the rite of Eucharistic Exposition and Benediction in order to focus our attention on the presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. The Pope was reminding us that even in a time of turbulence and crisis, Jesus is present among us, as present as he was long ago in the boat on the Sea of Galilee.

This presence of Jesus, the Real Presence, that we experience in a very tangible way is when we all gather for the Eucharist daily but especially on Sundays. I am sure you heard that the US Catholic Bishops have called for a three-year National Eucharistic Revival, which aims to renew devotion and belief in the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, This initiative has three phases: the national phase, the diocesan phase and the parish phase. At the moment we are in the diocesan phase which will come to an end with the Corpus Christi Sunday on June 11, 2023 when the parish phase will begin. This Revival will culminate with a National Eucharistic Congress, in Indianapolis, July 17-21, 2024. The year after that is the ‘Year of going out on Mission.’ Having enkindled a missionary fire in the hearts of the American faithful, the Holy Spirit will send us out on mission to share the gift of our Eucharistic Lord as we enter the universal Church’s jubilee year in 2025. The Bishops have written a beautiful document titled “The Mystery of the Eucharist in the Life of the Church” which is worth reading and studying.

Our Diocese of Metuchen has suggested that we form a parish committee to make the parish phase more participatory and beneficial. I wish to invite individuals who wish to be part of this committee to contact me or Msgr. Brennan. No qualifications necessary. Just a desire to deepen our faith in the Eucharist and an interest to promote the Eucharistic understanding and implications to our parish community. There will be guidance from us as well as from our Diocesan Office.

There are already many resources that all of us can easily access:

Start reading the USCCB’s article: https://eucharisticrevival.org

Have a look at the free study guide at: https://reviveparishes.com/eucharist Also you can watch a free two-hour online course, presented by Bishop Andrew Cozzens, on the Bishops’ document on the Eucharist.

This is a chance for our whole parish to take a fresh look at our Holy Eucharist which the Catechism of the Catholic Church (1324-1327) describes as “the source and summit” of the Christian life. We will certainly gain new appreciation and insights into what we celebrate and who we receive in Holy Communion, Jesus Christ, the Lord of our life.

 

Your brother in Christ,

Fr. Abraham Orapankal

 

St. Matthias School HSA is organizing its first Blood Drive!

Did you know that 1 blood donation saves THREE LIVES?!

February was American Heart Month and the St. Matthias School HSA is organizing its first Blood Drive!  We have been asked to gather interest before booking a date and time, so please let us know if you would be interested in donating.

SMS families receive 1 hour toward their 4-hour commitment.

To register to let us know you’re interested, please click here.

 

First Sunday of Lent

 

Dear Friends,

It was great to see so many of our people making an extra effort to begin Lent with the symbol of ashes, reminding us all to “turn away from sin and believe in the gospel.” Besides the distribution of the ashes at the different Masses and the Prayer Service, our unique practice of the “Drive-thru” ministry of ashes also attracted a lot of people who, due to their own particular situation, would not have got the ashes and the message in the little card we gave them. I am grateful to the many volunteers and parish staff who made the drive-thru ministry a success. This is a sign of goodwill from the Church to reach out to those who cannot come to church or those alienated from the church for whatever reason.

As I was reflecting on the different ways of living Lent, I was fascinated by this “If-we-were” reflection a friend sent me:

If we were:
knives, Lent would be a time to sharpen our cutting edges.
cars, Lent would be a time for an oil change and a tune-up.
swimming pools, Lent would be a time to filter the dirt out of our water.
gardens, Lent would be a time to fertilize our soil and dig out our weeds.
carpets, Lent would be a time to get power-cleaned.
VCRs, Lent would be a time to clean our heads and adjust our tracking.
computers, Lent would be a time to overhaul our disk drive.
highways, Lent would be a time to repair our cracks and fill our potholes.
TV sets, Lent would be a time to adjust our focus and our fine-tuning.
silverware, Lent would be a time to clean away our tarnish.
batteries, Lent would be a time to be recharged.
seeds, Lent would be a time to germinate and reach for the sun.

But the truth of the matter is that we are none of these things. We are people who sometimes do wrong things, and we need to atone for them. Sometimes we get spiritually lazy – we need to get back into shape; sometimes we become selfish – we need to stretch out of our narrowness and begin giving again; sometimes we lose sight of our purpose on earth and the immense promise within us – we need to regain our vision. And because we are also people who sometimes tend to put those things off, we need a special official time to concentrate on doing them. So we have Lent.

I hope we all have chosen some particular way or ways to spend these 40 days. If not, “Now is the acceptable time,” as St. Paul reminds us (2 Corinthians 6:2). Our small faith-sharing groups have already begun to meet weekly. Anyone is still welcome to drop in and see what it is all about! The Stations of the Cross at 7 pm every Friday of Lent is a devotion worth attending. The reflections are truly relevant and practical. Can we all put that in our Lenten schedule?

I wish us all a happy experience of Lent as we make some Lenten practice these 40 days. Then the Easter candy will taste sweeter, the Easter flowers will bloom more brightly, the Easter Sunday sun will shine more warmly!

Happy and fruitful Lent!

Your brother in Christ,

Fr. Abraham Orapankal

Sign up now for the third and last module of the Faith and Racial Justice series – Changing Systems and Structures.

8 Sessions – Saturdays from February 25, 2023 (Retreat) until June 10, 2023 (Session 8).

Books available for loan.

February 25; March 4, 18; April 1, 22; May 6, 20; June 3, 10
(Makeup sessions available for missed sessions)
9:00 – 11:30 AM
(Sessions on Zoom)
Contact program facilitators for more information or email matthiasracialjustice@gmail.com

         Neil Purcell                                          Kerry Millan                                     Phyllis Stone
neil.purcell.nj@gmail.com                  kerrytheinterim@gmail.com                 phylliswstone@aol.com

Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

 

The Miraculous Medal Novena

One of the most popular and widespread devotions in the Catholic Church is the Miraculous Medal Novena. Here at Saint Matthias the novena is prayed every Monday morning after the 8 am Mass. The miraculous medal had its origin in Paris France in 1830 when Saint Catherine Labouré received an apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Catherine was born on May 2, 1806. Her mother died when she was 9. Catherine asked the Blessed Mother to be her mother in place of her deceased mother. In January 1830 she joined the Daughters of Charity and in July of that year, she had the first of several apparitions of the Blessed Mother. During one of these apparitions in the chapel of her convent in Paris, the Blessed mother showed herself inside an oval frame standing upon a globe with rays of light coming from her hands towards the globe. Around the frame were the words, “O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.” Mary asked Catherine to have the image struck as a medal. The image rotated and on the back, Catherine saw a large letter M surmounted by a cross with a bar at its base. Below this monogram, there was an image of the Sacred Heart crowned with thorns, and the Immaculate Heart of Mary pierced with a sword.

Initially 2000 medals were made and distributed and some extraordinary healings and miracles occurred so quickly that people began to call the medal The Miraculous Medal. Today millions of Catholics wear the medal as a sign of their devotion to Mary and to implore her intercession.

Reciting the novena prayers takes less than 10 minutes. Among the prayers is the Novena Prayer which goes like this: O Immaculate Virgin Mary, Mother of Our Lord Jesus and our mother, penetrated with the most lively confidence in your all-powerful and never-failing intercession, manifested so often through the Miraculous Medal, we your loving and trustful children implore you to obtain for us the graces and favors we ask during this novena, if they be beneficial to our immortal souls and the souls for whom we pray.

Msgr. Brennan