Category: Uncategorized

On February 28th, St. Matthias was fortunate to spend some time listening to the Rev. Dr. Dante R. Quick, Senior Pastor of 1st Baptist of Lincoln Gardens here in Somerset, share important background in a Zoom symposium on Critical Race Theory. He also offered his perspective on what CRT means for Christian education. The symposium was moderated by Dr. Sandra Donnay, parishioner ND and founder of the Racial Equity Initiative, and sponsored by the St. Martin de Porres Society of St. Matthias. First and foremost, Rev. Dr. Quick explained the history of CRT as an academic examination centered in legal studies which debuted in 1971 in the Harvard Law Review; however he put forth an explanation of CRT having begun far before 1971 as explained by forgone scholars and thinkers. He positioned CRT as nothing more than an examination of the relationship or “intersectionality” of race, economics, education, and health through the teaching of real and true American History, and the advocacy of equity vs. equality. You can listen to the full recording of the symposium on the St. Matthias YouTube channel by clicking here.  Also provided by Rev. Dr. Quick and the moderator, Dr. Donnay, is the list of resources below. We hope to have them both with us again sometime soon.

Recommended Reading/Books from Rev Dr. Danté R. Quick:

• David Walker’s Appeal by David Walker,
• The Meaning of July 4th For the Negro by Frederick Douglass
• black codes, by the Editors Encyclopaedia Britannica
• A Theology of Liberation by Gustavo Gutierrez
• The Strange Career of Jim Crow by C. Vann Woodward
• Jesus and the Disinherited by Howard Thurman
• The Souls of Black Folk by W. E. B. Du Bois
• Letter from Birmingham Jail by Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
• City of God by St. Augustine of Hippo

Resources from Dr. Sandra Donnay (on how to talk to children about race): Pursuant to the request by one of the attendees, below are some resources for talking to children about race provided by Southern Poverty Law Conference (SPLC).

https://www.embracerace.org. (Support for parents who want to hold discussions with their children about racism).

https://www.teachingforchange.org. (Recommended Social Justice Books)

https://raceconscious.org. (Resources for talking with children about racism)

March 8 was International Day for Women.

As Catholics, we believe that our church is called to be God’s agent of social change. Women have played and continues to play a pivotal role in the life of the church. RENEW International, a very evangelizing Catholic movement, is offering a wonderful webinar on Wednesday, March 16 at 2 pm, titled “Women in Conversation” with Genevieve Mougey, the Director of the Office of Social Concerns in the Archdiocese of Washington. Click here to register.

Pope Francis wants to hear from you! Yes, he wants input from everyone! The participants at the Synod on Synodality in 2023 will consider these ideas to make our church a more listening church. Besides the deanery-wise listening sessions that our Diocese organized, we did our own parish listening sessions here at St. Matthias. For those of us who could not attend any of these sessions, here’s the last chance to send in your ideas and concerns by answering the questions online. Click here to fill out the St. Matthias Synod 2023 survey

LISTENING SESSION HERE AT ST. MATTHIAS

People all around the world are participating in these Listening Sessions and your input, along with those of others, will be the focus of the upcoming Synod at the Vatican. Let’s walk together as a church listening to the Holy Spirit. St. Matthias is offering two Listening Sessions. This is YOUR chance to listen to fellow parishioners and to share your thoughts and questions about our church and how the Holy Spirit is guiding us.
All are welcome.

To participate, please register for either session as soon as possible at:

1. Via zoom: on Thursday March 3, at 7 pm.
To register for the ZOOM Session on Thursday, March 3 at 7 pm, please click here.

2. In Person: on Saturday March 5, at 10 am in the cafeteria.
To register for the IN-PERSON Session on Saturday, March 5 at 10 am in the cafeteria, please click here.

In case you are unable to attend these, you are still most welcome to send in your answers to the questions online. Click here to fill out the St. Matthias Synod 2023 survey

LISTENING SESSIONS IN OUR DIOCESE:

In each of the eight deaneries in the Diocese of Metuchen, a Synod Listening Session will be held in order that we may respond to the Holy Father’s call to journey together, to engage in dialogue with one another, and to listen to what the Lord is asking of us.
To view the list of hosting parishes, visit: https://diometuchen.org/synodlisteningsessions

Catholic Sisters Week will take place March 8-14. Our Sisters Marie Therese and Maria, are joining their community, the school sisters of St. Francis of the United States Province, in bringing awareness to the plight of hunger in our local areas. During this week, Srs. Marie Therese and Maria are inviting parishioners to make a financial online donation to the Franklin Food bank, which serves so many families in our neighborhoods, by visiting:

Catholic Sisters Week Fundraiser

Please be sure to include that you are from St. Matthias Parish so we will be able to see the total amount contributed that week.

On behalf of all our Sisters. We thank you for joining us in helping to alleviate hunger among those who are poor and in need: “Whatever you do to the least of my people, that you do unto ME”.

God bless you for your generous hearts,

Sisters Marie Therese and Maria, OSF