We will regularly attend and participate actively in all liturgical services, especially
the Holy Mass in order to live a life of true Christian Faith nourished by the Sacraments. We will contribute our talents and time and be involved in social service activities by joining some of the pious associations and
charitable organizations of the Parish.
Liturgical Services
The Church has always venerated the divine Scriptures just as she venerates the body of the Lord, since, especially in the sacred liturgy, she unceasingly receives and offers to the faithful the bread of life from the table both of God's word and of Christ's body.
Remember that prayer should accompany the reading of Sacred Scripture, so that God and man may talk together; for "we speak to Him when we pray; we hear Him when we read the divine saying." (cf “Gaudium et spes. 6”).
The Promotion of Pastoral-Liturgical Action
Zeal for the promotion and restoration of the liturgy is rightly held to be a sign of the providential dispositions of God in our time, as a movement of the Holy Spirit in His Church. It is today a distinguishing mark of the Church's life, indeed of the whole tenor of contemporary religious thought and action.
THE MOST SACRED MYSTERY OF THE EUCHARIST
At the Last Supper, on the night when He was betrayed, our Saviour instituted the Eucharistic sacrifice of His Body and Blood. He did this in order to perpetuate the sacrifice of the Cross throughout the centuries until He should come again, and so to entrust to His beloved spouse, the Church, a memorial of His death and resurrection: a sacrament of love, a sign of unity, a bond of charity, a paschal banquet in which Christ is eaten, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to us. (cf “Gaudium & Spes.36”).
Live a life of true Christian faith
The Christian faithful gathered together out of all nations into the Church "are not marked off from the rest of men by their government, nor by their language, nor by their political institutions,"and so they should live for God and Christ in a respectable way of their own national life. As good citizens, they should be true and effective patriots, altogether avoiding racial prejudice and hyper nationalism, and should foster a universal love for man.
To obtain all these things, the most important and therefore worthy of special attention are the Christian laity: namely, those who have been incorporated into Christ and live in the world. For it is up to them, imbued with the spirit of Christ, to be a leaven working on the temporal order from within, to dispose it always in accordance with Christ.
(cf “Ad Gentes 15”).
THE OTHER SACRAMENTS AND THE SACRAMENTALS
The purpose of the sacraments is to sanctify men, to build up the body of Christ, and, finally, to give worship to God; because they are signs they also instruct. They not only presuppose faith, but by words and objects they also nourish, strengthen, and express it; that is why they are called "sacraments of faith." They do indeed impart grace, but, in addition, the very act of celebrating them most effectively disposes the faithful to receive this grace in a fruitful manner, to worship God duly, and to practice charity.
nIt is therefore of the highest importance that the faithful should easily understand the sacramental signs, and should frequent with great eagerness those sacraments which were instituted to nourish the Christian life.
Our Gifts and our Talents
It is not only through the sacraments and the ministries of the Church that the Holy Spirit sanctifies and leads the people of God and enriches it with virtues, but, "allotting his gifts to everyone according as He wills,(114) He distributes special graces among the faithful of every rank. By these gifts He makes them fit and ready to undertake the various tasks and offices which contribute toward the renewal and building up of the Church, according to the words of the Apostle: "The manifestation of the Spirit is given to everyone for profit".(115) These charisms, whether they be the more outstanding or the more simple and widely diffused, are to be received with thanksgiving and consolation for they are perfectly suited to and useful for the needs of the Church. (cf “Lumen Gentium 114-115”)
Charitable
Whatsoever you do to the least of my brother that you do unto me.
nIn sum, where Christianity spread it carried with it the teaching that charity was a religious duty and should be broadly given. When Christianity rose to prominence in the Roman Empire, new charitable programs were instituted. Through the Middle Ages, Christianity promoted wide-spread charity to those in need. Even into our modern day, the great charitable organizations in the West were founded upon this Christian ethic. Modern day polls also show that Christianity plays a very significant role in providing charitable giving and services. Accordingly, Christian promotion of charity is one of its great contributions to humanity.
If there is among you a poor man of your brethren, within any of the gates in your land which the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your poor brother, but you shall open your hand wide to him and willingly lend him sufficient for his need, whatever he needs.You shall surely give to him, and your heart should not be grieved when you give to him, because for this thing the Lord your God will bless you in all your works and in all to which you put your hand. For the poor will never cease from the land; therefore I command you, saying, 'You shall open your hand wide to your brother, to your poor and your needy, in your land.Deuteronomy 15:7-8, 10-11
Nurturing the quality of Family life:
- by fostering genuine and healthy relationships between spouses;
- by guiding our youth in prioritizing spiritual and social values;
- by involving parents and children in faith formation programs;
- by promoting outreach services to the poor and marginalized.
There are many paths to Christ, but that “the family is the first and the most important path.
It is a path common to all, yet one which is particular, unique and unrepeatable, just as every individual is unrepeatable.
It is a path from which man cannot withdraw. Indeed, a person normally comes into the world within a family, and can be said to owe to the family the very fact of his existence as an individual.
One of the monumental missions of the Catholic Church in the next millennium will be to recover our lost sheep and help them to "revert." Recovering Catholics are those who have returned after having fallen away. There are many millions of these prodigal sons. We have to be the merciful father who rushes out to meet them half way and then escorts them back home to the sacramental feast.
Conclude:
Ours is a community striving to be a stewardship parish. We encourage every parishioner to participate in each of the components of true stewardship:Time, Talent and Treasure, the “Three T's.”
We need such participation to fulfill the vision of our parish: “Together, through the grace of the Holy Spirit, we ‘Live Jesus’, reaching out, embracing all with compassion, humility and gentleness.”
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