A Word from Your Pastor
Dear Parishioners:
With the celebration of the Funeral
Mass for Marjorie Mains this past Wednesday, I am told that I have celebrated
the 100th Funeral Mass that included our Resurrection Choir since my
arrival at St. Timothy in 2008. Each
time our parish hosts the final celebration of a person’s life, we experience a
profound awareness of the Communion of Saints.
As many of you who have been part of such celebrations know, St. Timothy
Church does funerals well.
I thought it might be a good time
just to offer a few notes about funerals and planning for the end-of-life as
Catholics and members of St. Timothy Church.
Whether your own invitation to the Kingdom is coming soon or not, it is
good to prepare and to be sure your family knows your thoughts about this
important matter. I offer three
suggestions for you reflection.
First: Stay close to the
Sacraments. The final touches of the
Church mean most to those who have stayed close to her throughout their
lives. Certainly a Last Confession and
Absolution, with the Apostolic Pardon, Anointing and Viaticum (Last reception
of the Eucharist as “Food for the Journey) are experienced best by one who
knows their meaning in life. So, to
prepare for your “final exit,” be sure that you practice your Faith regularly
for as long as you can, by at least a weekly “entrance” into the church for
Mass and the practice of the Sacramental life.
If you are not able to come to the church, get in touch with us so we
can send Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion to you in your home. If you have relatives and friends who are
homebound, be sure to have them on our Sick List. Contact us as soon as you have received word
of an illness or of the nearness of death so we can accompany you all the
way. Don’t wait until such a word comes
until you have considered questions of healthcare and medical treatment.
Second: Consider how your Funeral
will be celebrated. The Church envisions
three moments for the final farewell: A Prayer Vigil at a Funeral Home, the
Funeral Mass, and the Graveside Service.
It is not really a good idea to try to simplify these too much. All of us need to grieve and pray together to
say a farewell that is adequate. The
Church’s preference is for burial and for the body to be present at each of
these.
If cremation is chosen, the body can
be present for the wake and funeral and interment can take place later. Scattering of ashes is not considered a
respectful way to treat what has been the temple of the Holy Spirit. Cremains may be present at the Funeral Mass
and a graveside service is always fitting.
The Church has no objection to cremation, as long as it is not intended
as a denial of our Faith in the Resurrection and as long as the cremains are
treated with the same respect as we show the body.
St. Timothy Parish has a Bereavement
Ministry to assist in planning of the Funeral and to arrange for a Funeral
Luncheon following the Funeral if requested.
Our Resurrection Choir attends to the music. The Parish Office has booklets and forms to
plan the Liturgy in a way that is personal and in accord with the Church’s
regulations. These may be obtained as
soon as they are useful to the family, even before death has taken place. Sometimes, the involvement of the person who
is approaching death in the choice of readings and music is a cherished last
memory.
Third: Don’t forget to arrange for your legacy in
contribution to your Parish. Put St. Timothy Church in your will. Invite those who wish to remember you in a
special way to donate to the Parish. These
may be in the form of direct contributions in your memory. You may also choose to contribute to the
Endowments that have been established for St. Timothy Parish and St. Timothy School
Mass Stipends are welcome, but these
do not directly benefit the parish since they are given directly to the priests
who celebrate them. When large amounts
are designated as Mass Stipends, these are often unable to be celebrated at St.
Timothy Church and must be sent off to the Missions or to other priests who
need them.
If you have questions, contact the
Parish Office or speak to any of the parish staff. We will be happy to assist you.
This week, we celebrate the Feast of
our Patron St. Timothy, along with St. Titus.
We will have two special Masses in honor of St. Timothy – the School
Mass on Wednesday and a special Mass Saturday, January 26th, at 9 a .m.10 a .m.
Year of Faith October
11, 2012 – November 24, 2013
II. The Stages of Revelation In the beginning God makes himself known
54 “God, who creates and conserves all things by his Word, provides men with constant evidence of himself in created realities. And furthermore, wishing to open up the way to heavenly salvation, he manifested himself to our first parents from the very beginning.” (Vatican II, Dei Verbum 3; cf. John 1:3; Romans 1:19-20.)
He invited them to intimate communion with
himself and clothed them with resplendent grace and justice.
55 This revelation was not broken off by our first parents’ sin. “After the fall, [God] buoyed them up with the hope of salvation, by promising redemption; and he has never ceased to show his solicitude for the human race. For he wishes to give eternal life to all those who seek salvation by patience in well-doing.” (Vatican II, Dei Verbum 3; cf. Gen 3:15; Rom 2:6-7.)
Even when he disobeyed you and lost your friendship you did not abandon him
to the power of death.... Again and again you offered a covenant to man. (Roman Missal, Eucharistic Prayer IV)
Comment: Revelation is
God’s act of making Himself known to us.
Sin is our rejection of the communion that is offered. Our first parents, Adam and Eve failed to
accept the relationship that was offered, but God did not abandon His plan for
us. How do you see the tendency to
reject God’s offer of relationship in your own approach to Faith?
This Week in Our History: January 20-27
Note: This project was
started in February 2012; we will continue it until a full year of review is
completed.
1969: It is obvious to every Catholic that
something is going on in the Church today.
Things are changing and the changes disturb some of us. We may have been used to doing things in the
old way and find now that for some reason the old way was not good enough. No matter how we feel about what is
happening, it is important to be aware of what is happening and why it is
happening. TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE LENTEN
PROGRAM IN YOUR PARISH TO GAIN MORE UNDERSTANDING OF THE CHURCH TODAY.
Further invitations
to attend the meetings about the Parish Council will be sent out this
week. You will find the meeting you are
asked to attend very helpful in understanding the council and plans to
establish it in our parish.
1970: Parish Debt:
The Diocese, under the direction of Bishop Elwell, has taken over the
responsibility for the debts of the parishes and is subsidizing this parish to
the extent that we are now paying 5% on the debt whereas we were paying 8.5% to
the bank.
Saturday Mass: We expect
an announcement soon that attendance at Mass on Saturday evening will fulfill
the Sunday obligation.
1972: There will be a Latin High Mass at 11:15 on Sunday, Jan. 30.
1978: Wedding Banns - Thomas Caserta of St.
Timothy and Sherry Stephens
1986: Dear Parishioners,
“Ashes to Easter” has been the parish’s Lenten program for
the last two years…(It) is a program based on the Sunday readings. Participants experience being part of the
parish community by praying and sharing faith with small groups…the sessions
take place in homes around the parish….It helps people get to know other
parishioners better and to build stronger relationships within the parish.
I encourage everyone to sign up …With the blessings of Our
Lord in our Lenten journey together,
Father Thomas
1991: Please remember in your prayers William
(Billy) Stechschulte, son of Mark and Elizabeth who was buried this past week.
1992: St. Timothy School invites all adult
alumni, parents and relatives of alumni, parishioners, current parents of
students and their friends to attend its first ever “Old Timer’s Night,” which
will be held in the school on Sunday, Feb. 2, 6:60-9:00 pm. Wine, light beverages and snacks will be served. Strictly
fun – not a fund-raiser.
We hope during the
gathering or whenever you are in the school, you will help us identify
individuals in the graduation photos hung in the hallways.
1994: Federal Health Plan
Do you want your tax dollars to pay for abortion on
demand? If not, stop at the entrance to
church today to pick up postcards to mail to your Senators and Representatives
in Washington
1999: Congratulations to Fr. Tom Shonebarger who
was chosen by the Bishop as the 1998 Pastor of the Year.
Congratulations to St. Timothy Scouts Brett and Ryan
Ballantyne and Trevor Teetor who were honored by Bishop Griffin for having earned
their religious emblem awards. They were
recognized during the Scout Day ceremony at Christ the King
Church
Give God a Second Thought.
Revival and renewal through parish mission with Paulist Father John E.
Collins, CSP, Monday, January 25th – Thursday, January 29th. Fr. Collins helps people recognize the
importance of developing their own faith story by appealing to their
experience, both negative and positive.
The four talks are provocatively titled: What Good is God?; Why Prayers Don’t Work; Ten Treasures Our Hearts Value More Than God; and Ten Kinds of People We Don’t Have to Love.
2000: For those interested in Father Ted Thomas’
book “Bent Halos and Other Saintly Stories,” a limited number of copies are
available at the rectory. The price is
$15.00.
2008: Remember in your prayers Bette Ghidotti who
died this past week.
2009: As many of
you have remarked about the restoration of the church front doors, we thank
Wayne Miller, who volunteered his time and energy in the very hot summer
weather to try and bring them back to the original finish.
Congratulations to Tim Grady and Becky Pierce, who were
married here on Saturday.
Remember in your prayers Paul Ambrose, James Murphy and Dr.
Hugo Cabrera, who recently died. May
they rest in peace.
2010: A Word from Your Pastor
This Sunday we will celebrate a Holy Hour in the Presence of
the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. We
will include three “themes” in our prayer for this celebration: our Parish
Feast of St. Timothy, Vocations in the Year for Priests, and Respect for Life
in the face of the current culture.
Each year on the
occasion of our Parish Feast, I have chosen to establish one special petition
to be prayed for by our children and by all of us….This year, in conjunction
with the Year for Priests, my choice is to pray that St. Timothy Parish may have members of our Parish respond to
vocations to the Priesthood and Religious life in service of the Diocese of
Columbus. In particular, I pray that
we may have a son of the parish ordained a priest for the Diocese of Columbus
in my time as Pastor….All are invited to join in this petition, and parents
especially are encouraged to build up a culture of openness to religious
vocations in their family.
2011: A Word from Your Pastor
As most of you have heard, we experienced a near disaster on
Friday, January 14, with a fire in the heating system of the School
Cafeteria. The experts suggest it was
actually caused by a dust ball catching fire.
Who would have thought dust bunnies could be dangerous?
We’re most grateful
to all who responded so quickly, including Peg Crossin, Phil Hall, Mary Pat
Boulware, George Cleary and George Mosholder.
This week we will
observe the Feast of our Patron Saint Timothy…This year we will begin an
observance of “The Year of Saint Timothy” from the Feast of Saints Timothy and
Titus until our celebration of the same feast in our 50th Jubilee
Year….This will serve to lead us to a deeper knowledge of our Patron and our
capacity to give witness to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ in the world
today.
Remember in your prayers, Betty Boulware, our sympathy to
her family. May she rest in peace.
To our St. Timothy Family Friends,
and School:
Kathleen, Eythan and
I have no words to describe our sincere thanks for all the thoughts, prayers,
support and love that you have given and continue to give in the loss of our
precious boy, Dominic. It has been 3
months today that we lost our special son, brother, and friend.
We are so thankful
to have a community like you that we can lean on, give us strength, hug, laugh
and cry with. God has truly blessed
us…We continue to struggle each day with the loss of Dominic. We continue to be amazed at 15 years old,
Dominic touched so many lives, especially ours.
Dom lived each day to its fullest and was a wonderful boy. His smile could brighten anyone’s day. We have been so blessed that Dom was a part
of our lives, and he will continue to live on in all of us. We all have a new Guardian Angel in heaven looking
over all of us.
Again, we want to say
thank you for all that you have done.
Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers. May God bless all of you, and Dom continues
to shine down his bright smile on all of us.
Much love, Sam,
Kathleen, and Eythan Gregory
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