Category: Fr. Abraham’s Weekly Column

Dear Friends,

November 1, 2 & 3 are all very important days for us. The annual observance of All Saints Day and All Souls Day make us think lovingly of those who are no more with us. At all the Masses this weekend, we are remembering in prayer all our dearly departed ones. All Souls Day Mass intention envelopes on the altar during November are a visible reminder to us to keep the memory of our loved ones alive. You can read in this bulletin why the Church gives so much importance to the holy souls. Explaining the true concept of Purgatory as an “existential state” and not a place, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI wrote that it is “the fringe of heaven, a state where heaven’s eternal light has a refining effect on the “holy souls” (not ‘poor souls’), who are held in the arms of Divine Mercy.”

There are many in our parish who are grieving a dear one who passed into eternity this year. We have a very meaningful Memorial Mass this evening to remember them and thank God for their lives with us in a special way. A Scottish poet has written, “If I have done anything in life, it is because I was able to stand on the shoulders of my dad.” The memory of our near and dear ones is a reminder that we need to be grateful to them for their love and sacrifices because they have a big share in what we are today.

The doctrine of “Communion of Saints” that we profess every Sunday is a happy reminder to us, of all those who are gone to God. Pope Francis calls it a “spiritual connection that exists between those who continue their pilgrimage on earth and those who have passed the threshold of death into eternity.” The ‘All Saints’ we honor are not only the canonized saints, but also what Pope Francis calls the “saints next door.” He explains it thus: “I like to contemplate the holiness present in the patience of God’s people: in those parents who raise their children with immense love, in those men and women who work hard to support their families, in the sick, in elderly religious who never lose their smile. In their daily perseverance, I see the holiness of the Church militant. Very often it is a holiness found in our next-door neighbors, those who, living in our midst, reflect God’s presence. We might call them “the middle class of holiness.”

The feast of St. Martin de Porres is on November 3. Born in Peru to a Spanish gentleman and a freed slave from Panama, of possibly African descent, Martin experienced a great deal of ridicule for his mixed-race origin. Such an early experience of racial and social prejudices could have made him a bitter man, but he chose to hold no anger but love towards all. He joined the Dominicans as a ‘lay helper’ but was accepted as a full-fledged Religious Brother due to his prayer, penance and humility. His days were filled with nursing the sick and caring for the poor. It was particularly impressive that he treated all people regardless of their color, race, or status. The weekend after his feast is an ideal time to launch the Social Justice Initiative that the Parish Pastoral Council has been planning. All the justice-related issues fall under the umbrella of Social Justice Initiative. Our Parish has the St. Martin de Porres Society trying to live and promote the values that St Martin espoused and it is good that the SMDP society has already announced the Racial Justice Initiative. Happy Feast of St. Martin de Porres! Happy Feast of All Saints!

Your brother in Christ,

Fr. Abraham Orapankal

Saints of October- Respect Life Month

During the month of October the church celebrates the lives of great saints who teach us respect for all life. Among these are Saint Francis of Assisi (Oct 4) , Saint John XXIII (Oct 11) and Saint John Paul II (Oct 22) .

Francis of Assisi (1181—1226) is among the most beloved of all the saints. He had a deep love for all creation and showed particular love for the poor, the sick and the outcasts. He befriended lepers, beggars, birds and wild beasts alike. Francis knew that all life is a gift from God and so he gave thanks for the beauty and goodness found in all creatures, especially in the human person.

Saint John XXIII , Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli (1881—1963), was elected pope in 1958. He called for and presided over the first sessions of the Second Vatican Council. This ever smiling, always jolly, portly man wrote a powerful encyclical letter, Pacem in Terris, in which he addresses issues about life. “Man has the right to live. He has the right to bodily integrity and to the means necessary to the proper development of life, particularly food, clothing, shelter, medical care , rest and finally the necessary social services” ( #11). But for each right the pope listed, he also listed a corresponding duty. “The right to live involves the duty to preserve one’s life; the right to a decent standard of living , the duty to live in a becoming fashion; the right to be free to seek out the truth , the duty to devote oneself to an ever deeper and wider search for it.” The right to life involves all of us and places on us a duty to work to support all life.

The most recent of these great saints, Pope John Paul II, Karol Jozef Wojtyla (1920-2005), was elected pope in 1978. He holds the record for the most traveled and one of the longest serving popes of all time. Among several great Encyclical letters he wrote is Evangelium Vitae, The gospel of life . “We are facing an enormous and dramatic clash between good and evil, death and life, the culture of death and the culture of life. We find ourselves not only faced with but necessarily in the midst of this conflict: we are all involved and we also share in it, with inescapable responsibility of choosing to be unconditionally pro-life”. Speaking to a group of ambassadors in 2000 Pope John Paul said, “A society will be judged on the basis of how it treats its weakest members; and among the most vulnerable are surely the unborn and the dying”.. By his very life and in his dying, Pope John Paul II showed us the proper attitude we must have towards God’s gift of life.

These three saints, whose feast days we observe in October, are wonderful models and teachers about the dignity of human life and remind us of our duty to work to protect all human life from conception to natural death .

Msgr. Brennan

Dear Friends,

We Catholics are pretty much aware that October is Respect Life Month. The Catholic Church is rock solid in its pro-Life doctrine which is consistent with the gospel mandate to respect every human being – both born and unborn. We have heard bishops, priests, deacons and lay leaders preaching vigorously about the sanctity of life and the evil of abortion. So many Catholics, together with other Christians of different denominations, have been witnessing to and promoting the same truth. Every Pope has spoken out clearly in defense of the unborn, including Pope Francis who has repeated: “Every child who, rather than being born, is condemned unjustly to being aborted, bears the face of Jesus Christ, bears the face of the Lord, who even before he was born, and then just after birth, experienced the world’s rejection.”

The National Life Chain is a very visible way of witnessing to the truth of our pro-life stand as people of all ages and denominations. Last weekend, Msgr. Brennan and myself had announced that the National Life Chain in Somerset County will be held today (Sunday) in Somerville, along Somerset St. and Mountain Ave., from 2 to 3:30 pm. Msgr. Brennan added that the location is right in front of Immaculate Conception Church.

The Pro-Life ministry of our parish is actively promoting awareness of the sanctity of life at all stages. They are speaking at every Mass this weekend about one of their projects to distribute baby feet magnets as part of the NJ Pro-Life movement’s Project 20-20. Our parish has been blessed last year when the Diocese of Metuchen chose two of our parishioners as the Diocesan recipients of the prestigious ‘Pro Vitae’ Award: Fran Johnson and Frank McMann. Their involvement was detailed both in the Catholic Spirit and in our parish bulletin. Fran and Frank will be thrilled to have you join this ministry. Contact her at: tfxj@msn.com.

And yet, why do some not appreciate the Pro-Life movement? Why do some Catholics seem to ignore the Pro-Life issues that are so central to Catholic faith? The answer can be found, as pointed out by Pope Francis, in the mistake of limiting the pro-Life movement to just one issue of abortion, relegating or even ignoring other life issues. Pope Francis continues to proclaim the consistent teaching of the church that “a pro-life stance cannot be only concerned with life before birth. Our defense of the innocent unborn…needs to be clear, firm and passionate. Equally sacred, however, are the lives of the poor, those already born, the destitute, the abandoned and the underprivileged.” He clarified further: “Unfortunately, what is thrown away is not only food and dispensable objects, but often human beings themselves, who are discarded as ‘unnecessary.’ For example, it is frightful even to think there are children, victims of abortion, who will never see the light of day; children being used as soldiers, abused and killed in armed conflicts; and children being bought and sold in that terrible form of modern slavery which is human trafficking, which is a crime against humanity.”

So how do we keep October as the Respect Life month? By going beyond the narrow vision of promoting life, by listening to our Pope who strongly opposes abortion, but has also elevated what he calls an “economy of exclusion and inequality that kills,” the death penalty, care for the elderly, the treatment of immigrants, etc., as central pro-life concerns. Yes, we are truly a pro-life Catholic Community.

Your brother in Christ

Fr. Abraham Orapankal

Dear Friends,

A couple of Sundays ago, our sanctuary was decorated with some exquisite flower arrangements. People loved to see such beautiful flowers and commented on them. Those were more than the usual for a Sunday. That was thanks to the good will of Ed and Marcia Santucci who had a Sunday Mass offered in memory of Marlene and Anthony Volpe who were long-time parishioners of St. Matthias until their passing away last year. Mr. Volpe was a committed Catholic who used his career as a dentist and his compassionate heart to do so much good together with his wife Marlene. A few years ago he was honored by the Oral Health Alliance of USA for his many achievements in international research in science and his involvement with “Bridges to Peace” in the middle east, particularly in Israel and Palestine.

Ed and Marcia Santucci’s gesture of bringing those lovely flower arrangements on the Sunday for the Mass for the Volpe’s was their way of honoring the memories of this wonderful couple who made a difference in the lives of many people. It made me realize that it would be something that many of our parishioners may want to emulate. Every Sunday Mass is usually offered in memory of a beloved departed family member. Will the family like to honor that person by coming to attend that particular Mass? Yes many do that. Will the family like to honor that person by getting two flower arrangements in the sanctuary as the Santucci’s did? Maybe. In any case, I wanted to share this idea with you. If anyone wishes to do that, kindly contact the Parish Office and you will be directed on how to go about it. If more than one family likes to do it, the expenses can be shared. The names of those who sponsor such flower arrangements can be announced in the bulletin.

Quite a few of you have told me that you are happy to hear the intention for each Mass (weekdays and Sundays) announced and prayed for. I am happy to do so, as it brings a special focus on that family member whose memory is important for the family who asked for that prayer intention. I am told that this practice was discontinued a few years ago due to complaints about mispronouncing some of the names when announced during Mass. I’m sure all of us will agree that certain names are difficult to pronounce in the way it should be pronounced. I was happy that I myself was corrected a couple of times when I pronounced the intention names wrongly. Therefore I request you to let me and Msgr. Brennan know the specific pronunciation of a difficult or uncommon name so that any unpleasant feeling, though unintended, can be avoided. And if it does happen, I am taking an anticipatory bail through this column.

Your brother in Christ,

Fr. Abraham Orapankal

Dear Friends,

The summer season is coming to an end. Most people, especially young families, have been busy with preparations for back to school and work. Here at St. Matthias, our students return to school this Thursday, starting with higher grades. It will be a joy for us all to see our campus more alive with the presence of our students and faculty. We are excited to welcome everyone back to school, but in a special way we welcome the new members in the faculty and staff as well as over fifty new students who have enrolled this year.

There are feelings of stress and anxiety among parents and kids about being back to school. On the one hand, there is excitement about the benefits of in-person learning which we, here at St. Matthias, have been having practically for the whole of the pandemic times. On the other hand families have concerns about potential disruption of studies in the event their child or a classmate tests Covid positive.

Such mixed feelings are very normal and so we have been planning to have measures in place to make the parents and students feel comfortable and confident. Mrs. Mary Lynch, our new Principal, has prepared a comprehensive “Return to School Plan” for reopening the school, putting in place all the health guidelines and safety measures, taking into consideration all possible scenarios. Certainly, such detailed planning gives us, especially all the parents, a sense of confidence that our students are welcomed into a safe learning environment.

It is important for us to spread this confidence in safety measures and speak positively about the care and love with which we, the teachers, aides, faculty, office staff, administration, and maintenance staff, welcome each child to our campus. We take it as a sacred responsibility that the parents have entrusted to us to become co-parents for their children for a good chunk of the school days. Parents are also partners in this. Students will experience fear and anxiety OR safety and confidence depending on what they hear the parents discuss about politics and policies about the pandemic response to face masks, social distancing, stay-at-home orders, etc.

It is here the importance of trusting in God must be underlined. I always have this line to sign off my email correspondence: “Let us keep taking all precautions and keep praying, because though we do not know what the future holds for us, the good news is that we know who holds our future!”

These uncertain times are the best chance that God has provided us to instill into our children the sense of dependence on a loving God who will protect us always if we turn to Him and make Him part of our daily life. After all, His promise is true: I will be with you always, even to the end of times.” (Matthew 28:20).

Your brother in Christ,

Fr. Abraham Orapankal