A Word from Your Pastor February 12

A Word from Your Pastor

Dear Parishioners:

As we continue our Parish Golden Jubilee, we are called to look more deeply into the reality of God’s plan for our community. Each year since I have been Pastor of St. Timothy Church, I have used the occasion of our Parish Feast Day, the Feast of Saints Timothy and Titus on January 26th, to highlight a particular need for prayer. This year, we pray in thanksgiving for our first fifty years, and especially for the witness of the first families of our Parish community, and we ask God to reveal to us His Plan for our Parish in the years ahead.

This weekend, as we welcome Bishop Campbell to celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation with our 8th Graders, we may intensify our prayer that the Gift of the Holy Spirit be poured out among us in order to lead us into the Plan God has in store for us. May our youth be confirmed in their Faith and in their commitment to God and His Church, and may our whole Parish Family be ever more united in our response to the call that brings us together as a community.

As we look to our history and to the deepening of our Faith, we are inspired at the same time to look outward to share with others the gifts we have received, both materially and spiritually. It is becoming ever more evident that God wants us to discover a way of being for others as a community. At the moment, it seems to me, we are being invited to consider how we may support very specific missions in the Church locally and more globally.

Our Parish Pastoral Council is studying a project that our community has been asked to think about in Haiti. While I was away, a priest from Food for the Poor was present to share the plight of our brothers and sisters who have experienced many losses due to nature. Many have personally responded to his plea for support. Could we as a Parish do more? See the note Fr. Glen Baptiste, C.R., wrote to me recently after his visit to our Parish and let members of the Parish Council hear your thoughts.

A member of our Parish, James Foley, has taken up a more local challenge, becoming President of the Cristo Rey High School to be established in the Diocese of Columbus in 2013. Since that year will also begin our School’s Golden Jubilee, it might be that we could support that venture as a Parish and as a School on the more local level. Read the information included below and let Jim Foley and the Parish Council hear your ideas as to how we might support this venture.

As Pastor, I try to listen to the voice of the Spirit to “hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches.” It seems to me that we are being called to answer a call to look beyond ourselves, at home and abroad, in some very concrete ways. Do you hear the same call? How will you respond?

An Invitation to support our Brothers and Sisters in Haiti

Father Tim,

. . . I have to tell you that I enjoyed my short weekend at St. Tim's.....both the community and Bill......and Marion...... great community....the way a Parish ought to be! Thank you for the invite! And, thank you for forming that community so well!
I did, however, share much with your community at St. Timothy's, but with a great emphasis on the needs of our Haitian brothers and sisters. By the way, this week marks the two year anniversary of the quake in Haiti...... And, having just returned again, I can attest that there are still a remaining 600,000 plus people who continue to live in tent cities.....families who lost what little home they had in the experience of the quake..... its terrible...... bits and pieces of dry rotted, shredded tarpaulin strapped from one bush, to a tree, to a make shift pole........and these things are not water tight by any stretch of the imagination. Young families, Tim, with young kids lying on wet, soggy, mildewed mattresses inside these tents......its unbelievable!!!! Wish I could have shown you the photos in my phone......

We have built in excess of 2600 little concrete block homes with sanitation since the quake (we have been building them for 29 years there)....but, there are so many more families in need of getting out of those horrid tent city conditions......
Little homes are $3200...or $178 a month for 18 months (and a home will be built up front, not at the end of the 18 months)....... So, I encouraged / invited your community to give that some consideration....or groups within the Parish (K of C), etc., as a possible project......Would you kindly remind and encourage your community to remember to mail in their brochure and to participate to whatever capacity they are able?

I would also, however, like to gently ask if the Parish itself might have any interest in participating by way of building a home in the name of St. Timothy's Community? I would like to further ask, if you....and or a group from the Parish....may ever wish to visit Haiti (or one of the other Countries we serve) for a few days to see and experience. I (we) would be delighted to show you some of our projects in action.......Life altering experiences to see!!
At any rate....so much to share...perhaps you might, when you have a moment, visit foodforthepoor.org to see in greater detail the nature of our work.....the how, the where, the what, etc....... Again, thank you much for the invite, and giving me an opportunity to share with St. Tim's Parish Community!

With every best wish,
Glen

Reverend Glen P. Baptiste, C.R.
Food for the Poor, Inc.
6401 Lyons Road
Coconut Creek, FL 33073
(954)427-2222 ext. 6419
(815) 451-8065 cell
gpb1042@comcast.net

A Letter from the Cristo Rey Columbus President
October 21st, 2011

Here I am Lord
Is it I Lord
I have heard You calling in the night
I will go Lord
If You lead me
I will hold Your people in my heart

That St. Louis Jesuit hymn speaks to all of us at times in our lives. It spoke loudly to me one night as I was contemplating a decision to leave behind my law practice and apply to be President of Cristo Rey Columbus. I am humbled to have been given this opportunity to help make this wonderful dream a reality. I am also thankful for the tremendous work and support of the many people who have committed themselves to bring Cristo Rey to Columbus. While we still have work to do, this mission would never even have gotten off the ground without the sponsorship and strong encouragement of Bishop Campbell. Nor would we have made the great progress to date without the generous support of our donors and work-study employers, the leadership of our Board, the energy of our volunteers, and the tireless work of our Program Director, Barbara Brown. God has called us all. We can do nothing greater and nothing less than to answer that call.

All of us have much in common with the freshmen who will be coming through the doors of our school beginning in two years. We are on a journey that will require a lot of hard work and sacrifice, and may have bumps along the way. For us—just like those future freshmen—this school is an opportunity. Having opportunities is certainly better than not having them. But at the end of the day, it is about what we make of those opportunities. All of us—like our students—are going to have to work hard, to persevere, to overcome obstacles, and to give this effort our hearts and souls, our minds, and our hands.

I am confident that we will do everything that needs to be done. In Cristo Rey, we have an amazing model that has worked in 24 other high schools to bring a high quality, Catholic, college preparatory education to economically challenged students of all religious backgrounds. We will create an academically rigorous program, and give our students the tools to succeed in high school and college. The corporate work-study program will provide our students the opportunity to pay for most of their education. It will let them experience professional job settings they would never have had a chance to be part of. Through those jobs, our students will learn first-hand the value of the education they are receiving and the importance of obtaining a college degree. We will make “learning to work and working to learn” a reality in Columbus.

Indeed, we are already well on our way. We have identified our school building. We have received offers from many businesses to be part of our work-study program. We have made significant progress on our fundraising goals. Next year, we will be adding staff and reaching out to the community and our future students. Our Board, volunteers, and supporters will be hard at work to put the final pieces in place for our 2013 opening. In the end, I have faith and confidence that we will make real what our students could barely have dreamed of. We look forward to graduating and sending on to college the future leaders of our community. In doing this, each of us will be, like Mother Teresa, “a little pencil in the hand of God who is sending a love letter to the world.”

Thanks to all of you for your interest and support.

Jim Foley
President
Cristo Rey Columbus High School
(614) 395-1505
JimF@cristoreycolumbus.org

http://www.cristoreycolumbus.org/

http://www.facebook.com/cristoreycolumbus?v=wall#!/cristoreycolumbus?sk=info


Celebrating our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy’s Community of Faith.

We will begin a look at St. Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, since Ephesus was the see where St. Timothy served as Bishop. This may offer some perspectives on the Church and the Community among whom Timothy lived and ministered.

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, to the holy ones who are in Ephesus faithful in Christ Jesus: grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 1:1-2)

Scriptural Scholars have some questions about the authorship of Ephesians and, due to the fact that manuscripts are found that leave out the words “in Ephesus” in the opening address of the letter, they have doubts about the community of believers to whom the letter is addressed. This means, in short, that in the first instance, it might be that the letter was not done by Paul himself and it may not have been sent in the first place to the Ephesians. The opinion has been expressed that the author was a disciple of Paul and that the letter was sent to several different Church communities as a sort of “Circular Letter.”

Having said this, it is nonetheless possible to associate it with Ephesus, since at least some early copies “belonged” to the Church in Ephesus. The custom of sharing Paul’s Letters was clearly developed very early, since we have a Pauline Corpus, namely, the Letters attributed to Paul and the anonymous Letter to the Hebrews. Letters by Paul himself or by his disciples represent the earliest forms of writing among Christians about their Faith in Christ. Ephesus was one of the major centers of Christianity, associated with many figures familiar to us in the New Testament. Timothy’s Ephesus was Christian Community at its beginnings after the move from Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple in A.D. 70.

The first words of the Letter to the Ephesians (and to all Christian Faithful) place at the heart of the discussion God’s Call to discipleship, the Universal Call to Holiness, and the centrality of Faith in the formation of Community. Grace and Peace, that is, Covenantal Hesed and Shalom, are presented not simply as customary greetings, but as an expression of a living relationship with God in Christ. The Apostle is addressing the Community of Believers in order to speak to them of Faith and to invite them to grow in their understanding and commitment to the Gospel that they have been living for some time. We can easily accept what is written as addressed to us as well. We are called to live in Communion with God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, pursuing a life of Holiness and Confident Faith as the Church alive in the world today.


How well do you know Saint Timothy?

At the St. Timothy Women’s Prayer Breakfast, there was a Quiz about our Patron Saint Timothy. Test your own knowledge about the Saint. Each week, a question or two will be put in the bulletin. You’ll have to come back next week to get the answer!

Fill in the Blanks:

St. Timothy was born in _______________ in modern day _________________.

His father was _______________ and his mother’s name was _______________;

his grandmother was _________________.

He became a companion of _______________, who called Timothy his own

beloved _______________.

A Word From Your Pastor February 5

Dear Parishioners:

Last weekend, as you know, the Parishes of the Diocese of Columbus and Catholic Parishes around the country shared an invitation to you to participate in the process of government by contacting your legislators about an issue of great importance, namely, the right to religious liberty and to live in accord with our conscience.

Our Constitution guarantees us the right to “free exercise” of our religion.

Amendment 1 - Freedom of Religion, Press, Expression.
Ratified 12/15/1791.

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

We are called upon by our Bishops to respond through prayer and by the exercise of our duty as citizens. The Internet makes it possible to study the issue and to contact our civil officials very simply. Use thes web links:

For Bishop Campbell's Letter read at all the Masses last weekend:

http://www.colsdioc.org/Portals/0/Departments/COM/Documents/Bp.%20Campbell%20letter%201.29.12.pdf

For further information:

http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/religious-liberty/conscience-protection/upload/preventiveservicesbackgrounder-3.pdf

The U.S. Bishops' general website highlights the issues of importance:

http://www.usccb.org/.

Follow the links and you will be sending messages to those who can work to guard the Constitutional rights that are being ignored.

The Catholic Church in our time has highlighted in a particular way the responsibility of her Lay Members: the charge to take the Gospel to the Nations, that is, to make the secular holy. This means being in the world, but not of the world. It also means allowing the Church and her teaching authority to offer us insight into the Word of God and its application to the problems of our time.

All Men and Women of the Parish are invited to participate in the conferences that will be held in a few weeks to build up the Body of Christ. Fathers and Sons, Mothers and Daughters: join other members of the Church to hear the Lord’s Call.

The Women’s Conference will be February 25: http://www.columbuscatholicwomen.com/.

The Men’s Conference will be March 3: http://www.columbuscatholicmen.com/.

Our Parish will experience a Parish Lenten Mission in the intervening week, February 26-29. Mark your calendar now and keep this week free for a spiritual experience you won’t soon forget.


Entering into our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.

We have completed a journey through the Scriptures of the New Testament that explicitly mention St. Timothy. This has given us a deeper understanding of our patron. Now we will begin to reflect on a few more Scriptures that may be implicitly associated with St. Timothy, although he is not mentioned by name. It is clear from Church Tradition that our Heavenly Patron was identified as the first Bishop of Ephesus. So, those Scriptures that mention Ephesus and the Ephesians can offer insight into the Community associated with St. Timothy.

The first of the Letters to the Seven Churches found in the Book of Revelation is to the Church of Ephesus.

"To the angel of the church in Ephesus, write this:

" 'The One Who holds the seven stars in His right hand and walks in the midst of the seven gold lampstands says this:

"I know your works, your labor, and your endurance, and that you cannot tolerate the wicked; you have tested those who call themselves apostles but are not, and discovered that they are impostors. Moreover, you have endurance and have suffered for my name, and you have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: you have lost the love you had at first. Realize how far you have fallen. Repent, and do the works you did at first. Otherwise, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. But you have this in your favor: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

"Whoever has ears ought to hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the victor I will give the right to eat from the tree of life that is in the garden of God.' " (Revelation 2:1-7)

Some commentators suggest that the “angel” mentioned in each of the Letters is the local episkopos, or bishop, the one who is responsible for leadership in the Community addressed. In the case of Ephesus, tradition indicates that this would be Timothy.

John is writing the Letters and the Visions of the Book of Revelation from the Island of Patmos, where he has been exiled. In writing to Ephesus, he is writing to a community he knows very well, since he and the Mother of the Lord were residing there together before the Assumption. He will eventually be able to return there and to die there himself, and to have his first tomb there. (Later, his relics were taken to Constantinople and at the time of the Crusades to Rome.)

This message is to be taken in the context of the whole Book of Revelation, and along with the details of the letters to the other churches. It is an encouragement to perseverance and patient endurance under persecution. It is also a promise from the Risen Lord that the Gift of the Resurrection will bear fruit in the lives of those who hold fast to Faith.

At the same time, however, we may see the message as a personal appeal from the Lord through John to Timothy and his community. With that perspective, it brings into relief the fact that Timothy is now at an advanced age. He is no longer the young man who was charged by Paul not to let others look down on him because of his youth. Paul is gone, having been martyred in Rome. John, who himself was the youngest among the Apostles and now is an old man, is now in exile. In a short time, John will be restored to Ephesus, where he will die peacefully at home.

Timothy, perhaps inspired by this letter’s charge and remembering his mentor Paul’s efforts to proclaim Christ among the pagan Ephesians, will be martyred, being clubbed to death by revelers on the pagan feast of Katagonia, when he tries to turn the crowd from their raucous worship of the goddess Artemis. He hears the call of the Spirit to renew his youthful zeal and he joins the Apostles in their witness to Christ. Under St. Timothy’s patronage, we pray that we may also renew our zeal for the freedom that belongs to us in Christ.

A Word from Your Pastor January 29

Dear Parishioners:

As you have heard, our former Pastor Fr. Thomas Shonebarger passed away January 6, 2012. He had experienced quite a number of years of poor health and was on dialysis three days a week. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend his funeral at St. Mary’s in Lancaster since I was away on vacation at the time. We will have a special Memorial Mass for Fr. Tom at St. Timothy Church on Monday, February 6, at 6:30 p.m. It is a tradition to remember our beloved dead the first month after their death in a Mass known as the “Month’s Mind.”

My own first assignment as a priest in the Diocese of Columbus was at St. Mary’s in Lancaster, which was Fr. Tom’s home parish. So I had the opportunity to get to know many of his family members of multiple generations.

Throughout the years of my priesthood, I have followed behind Fr. Tom in three different assignments: both Fr. Tom and I had the role of Diocesan Director of Vocations, and we both served as Pastor at the Church of the Blessed Sacrament in Newark, and at St. Timothy Church in Columbus. I got to know Fr. Tom both personally and by way of the fruits of his ministry in the various communities I also served.

There is one other detail worth noting: Fr. Tom Shonebarger and I had the same birthday (August 23rd). He had it before I did, of course. When I was Director of Vocations, Fr. Tom was still the Chaplain to the Columbus Serra Club downtown. The Serrans would host a picnic for the priests which took place on or around our common birthday. Fr. Tom would tell them it was my birthday, but he would not let me tell them it was his as well.

The Columbus Serrans will be present at the Memorial Mass. Perhaps some members of the parish would be interested in becoming Serrans in order to honor Fr. Tom and to pray for and to promote Vocations to the Priesthood and Religious life.


Entering into our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.

Greet Prisca and Aquila and the family of Onesiphorus. Erastus remained in Corinth, while I left Trophimus sick at Miletus. Try to get here before winter. Eubulus, Pudens, Linus, Claudia, and all the brothers send greetings. The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with all of you. (II Timothy 4:19-22)

As St. Paul ends his Second Letter to St. Timothy, his greetings and directions become very personal. The names of various Christians who worked with them in their mission of proclaiming the Gospel throughout the Mediterranean world are mentioned in a manner that suggests a real depth of communion.




The Erastus mentioned in Corinth was a likely the public official whose inscription can be read amid the ruins of old Corinth to the present day, indicating that Christianity appealed to members of every social class. Paul’s appeal to Timothy to visit him before winter also gives us a sense of his desire to see his younger companion.

The final words of the letter are familiar to all of us through their frequent use in the Liturgy. “The Lord be with you – And with your spirit!” is newly on our lips, pointing back across two thousand years of Christian history. “Grace be with all of you” likewise crosses the ages and invites us to acknowledge the grace of God at work in us forming us as a community of believers united in mind and heart.

A Word from Your Pastor January 22

Dear Parishioners:

A day that lives in infamy! January 22, 1973, represents a date when our nation forgot itself and chose to relinquish its duty to protect innocent life in the womb. We have not yet awakened from this madness. There are no winners in this battle until our eyes are opened once again.

We are a Church of compassion, and all who have been affected by this unilateral decision by the Supreme Court to change the law of the land are in our prayers.

We remember the mothers whose lives have been forever changed by the loss of their children by this act of violence against them and their sons and daughters in the womb.
“In Ramah is heard the sound of sobbing, bitter weeping! Rachel mourns for her children, she refuses to be consoled for her children—they are no more!” (Jeremiah 31:15 – quoted in Matthew 2:18, at the death of the Holy Innocents in Bethlehem.) Healing is possible. God is a God of forgiveness and love and the Church reaches out in many ways to comfort them.

We remember the fathers of the children who are no more, especially those who had no voice in the fate of their little ones and those who were the coerced the act. We remember grandmothers and grandfathers, brothers and sisters, classmates and friends who never came to know their companions due to the world’s refusal to allow them to enter.

We remember all those who are confused by the world’s values and by their own blindness in the face of fear, greed or disrespect for the value of life itself. We hold all these, and our nation, in prayer, as we ask God for a way to overcome this evil in our world.

Entering into our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.

But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the proclamation might be completed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was rescued from the lion's mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil threat and will bring me safe to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory forever and ever. Amen. (II Timothy 4:17-18)

St. Paul acknowledges that his life and the life of every Christian involve a battle, a struggle with the world that rejects Christ. He notes also that the Lord is the source of his strength as he works to fulfill his own ministry of proclaiming the Gospel to the Gentiles. Many times he faced the threat of death. At the moment he writes, he is aware of the fact that he will continue to face such a threat. He is confident that whatever the outcome, the Kingdom awaits him. The mention of the Heavenly Kingdom leads Paul to acclaim a doxology, a word of praise for God’s glory.

This is a model worth imitating. When we experience the trials and tribulations that are part of life, especially part of the life led in proclamation of the Gospel, we ought to keep our hearts fixed on the glory that lies ahead in the Kingdom.

The new English translation of the Mass has a reference to this text that may not be known because it is not heard by the people. When the priest receives the Host, he prays, “May the Body of Christ keep me safe for eternal life.” Similarly, when he receives from the Chalice, he says “May the Blood of Christ keep me safe for eternal life.”

A Word from Your Pastor January 15

Dear Parishioners:

This weekend, we once again welcome some priests from the Pontifical College Josephinum to assist with some of the Masses. We are grateful to them for their willingness to assist us in the parish in addition to their duties with the seminarians. They bring a richness of experience and their Faith serves to build us up.

The first Reading at Mass today highlights the call of Samuel the Prophet. He is a young boy when he first hears the call, but he does not yet understand that it is the Lord Who is speaking to him. This image is often all too apt for our own experience today. Have you taught your children to listen for the voice of the Lord as they discern their own vocation? Parents and others need to invite the next generation to know the Lord, and to give the answer that Samuel learns to give: “Speak, Lord, Your servant is listening.”

As we wind down from the Christmas Season, it is not too early to make plans for Lent, which will arrive February 22. Our Parish will be experiencing a Lenten Retreat, starting with the First Sunday of Lent, and going through Wednesday. So, please, mark the dates from February 25-29 on your calendar now. Watch the bulletin for details, but make sure not to plan any Parish or School events those days. There will be an evening session from Sunday to Wednesday. Our children will also be participating, both in the School and through PSR. This is our Jubilee Year. Let it be a year of growth in Faith for you and your family.

Entering into our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.

Try to join me soon, for Demas, enamored of the present world, deserted me and went to Thessalonica, Crescens to Galatia, and Titus to Dalmatia. Luke is the only one with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is helpful to me in the ministry. I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus. When you come, bring the cloak I left with Carpus in Troas, the papyrus rolls, and especially the parchments. Alexander the coppersmith did me a great deal of harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds. You too be on guard against him, for he has strongly resisted our preaching. At my first defense no one appeared on my behalf, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them! (II Timothy 4:9-16)

As St. Paul comes to the close of his letter to St. Timothy, he offers some rather mundane and practical comments. This indicates the sort of friendship he had with Timothy. They shared ministry with many fellow workers in the vineyard. Paul is ready to share his frustrations, even naming those who are the source of some of his current difficulties.

We ought not to judge those mentioned as “enemies” too harshly, since it is clear that Paul often patches up his disagreements with individuals as the years go on. The mention of Titus recalls the fact that Timothy and Titus now share a Feast day, January 26. Luke is, of course, the beloved physician of Gospel and Acts of the Apostles fame. Mark is likewise the Gospel writer, who was part of the disagreement that separated Paul from Barnabas in missionary journeys. Paul seems to have been a lot of trouble to folks in the trades of working with metals (especially precious metals), which were often used to create statues and shrines to the pagan deities he denounced. It is of interest to note Paul’s request for some practical items: his cloak, left in Troas, where he first heard the call to take the Gospel to the West, and papyrus documents and parchments, likely scrolls of the (Old Testament) texts used to proclaim the fulfillment of God’s plan through Jesus Christ. Timothy is obviously one whom Paul trusted to attend to such matters on his behalf. He is also a friend who could sympathize with Paul and pray with him about his difficulties. We who have Timothy as our patron would do well to be such friends to those who walk with us on the journey of Faith.

A Word from Your Pastor January 1, 2012

Dear Parishioners:

A Blessed New Year to all! As we celebrate the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, we are invited to put God first in our lives as Mary did. When our priorities are straight, everything else falls into place. We may not realize this simple truth until we put it into effect, but it is written into our very bones. Mary is the model human being who puts her entire life, body, mind and spirit, heart and soul, at God’s disposal. “Let it be done to me according to Your Word” (Luke 1:38) is the attitude she lives. Her life is proof that God is trustworthy and faithful to His Promises, and that human beings become their best selves through free and willing cooperation with God’s grace. “The Holy Spirit will overshadow you….” (Luke 1:35) Let Mary’s example serve to call you to make a resolution to put God first in your life in the coming year and for your whole life.

As we move into a new calendar year, remember that we are still in the 50th Jubilee Year for St. Timothy Parish. When you have your first meetings of the year, look at your own calendar of events and see what can be highlighted as part of the Jubilee. Be sure to assign someone the responsibility of writing up a description of your organization and its history in the life of the parish for use in a Parish Jubilee Directory. Make up a comprehensive list of your past leaders and of members through the years. Honor those who are still with you from the earliest days of your group’s existence. Don’t let the year pass you by.

One resolution we can make as a parish is to live more truly our own Parish Mission:

“United in the Body of Christ, we strive to promote the greater glory of God
through a spirit of welcome and willing service to our brothers and sisters.”

(Adopted by the St. Timothy Parish Pastoral Council February 25, 2010.)

To help us on our way, we join together in our Parish Prayer:

To the King of ages, the immortal, the invisible, the only God
Be honor and glory, forever and ever! Amen. (I Timothy 1:17)

May 2012 be our best year ever!


Entering into our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingly power: proclaim the word; be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient; convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching. For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine but, following their own desires and insatiable curiosity, will accumulate teachers and will stop listening to the truth and will be diverted to myths. But you, be self-possessed in all circumstances; put up with hardship; perform the work of an evangelist; fulfill your ministry. (II Timothy 4:1-5)

St. Paul does not shrink from laying the burden he has carried on those who seek to follow his example. He writes to St. Timothy in his role as leader in the Christian Community in Ephesus, and he charges him do accomplish the task assigned to him with boldness and zeal. Proclamation of the Word, perseverance in the face of hardships, exhortation of others, and teaching the Truth are the duty of anyone who is sincere in the desire to follow the Gospel of Christ.


Thanks Gracias Merci Grazie Danke

Fr. Tim Hayes and Fr. Bill Faustner thank all who have sent cards and gifts and food items to us at the Rectory for Christmas. You show great hospitality to guests and take good care of your priests. We are most grateful for all that you do and are for us and for St. Timothy Church. May God bless you for your many kindnesses!

A Word from Your Pastor December 25

Dear Parishioners and Guests for Christmas and to those in the Blogosphere:

The Lord be with you! And with your spirit!

This is the new language of the Liturgy for Catholics which you now hear at all the Masses. The most recent change was instituted the First Sunday of Advent 2011.

At St. Timothy Church, we were privileged to have Bishop Frederick Campbell with us for the first use of the new English form of the Mass on the occasion of the Opening of our Parish Golden Jubilee, at the Saturday evening Mass, November 26th. Now we are living in this special time of reminiscing and celebrating. The parish observance will continue throughout 2012. Our School will celebrate its Jubilee 2013-2014.

We are happy to have all of you with us as we experience our Jubilee Christmas. Your presence is a reminder to us that God is with us and that Salvation is for all. We hope you will feel at home at St. Timothy Church and know that we keep you in our prayers throughout the year. We invite you to a greater involvement in the life of our Parish and School. We have come a long way in our 50 years as a Parish and we can go further if we work together.

Blessings to you and your family for the Christmas Season and for the New Year!

Rev. Timothy M. Hayes, Pastor
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Entering into our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.

But you, remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know from whom you learned it, and that from infancy you have known the sacred scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work. (II Timothy 3:14-17)

St. Paul’s Letters to St. Timothy are an invitation to all to discover what God can accomplish in a Christian Community when there is cooperation with His grace. In these verses, Paul reminds Timothy of the centrality of the Word of God in the life of the Christian. The Sacred Scriptures (in this case, the Jewish Scriptures) are available to assist in the proclamation of Christ and for exhortation to a holy way of life in accord with God’s call.

We who have both the Hebrew Scriptures and the Gospels, Paul’s Letters and all the other texts of the New Testament must be ever aware of the riches shared with us through the Bible. God has breathed His Word into the sacred texts in order to train us in the Way of the Gospel. “The Word became man and made His dwelling among us.” (John 1:14)

The new version of the English Mass serves to help us see the connection of the whole Mass with Sacred Scripture. Every prayer is an outgrowth of Scripture. Many of the prayers in the new form can easily be recognized as a living use of the texts on our lips in the act of worship. We have been equipped by the Scriptures we read and prayer every good work that has been entrusted to us by God.

A Word from Your Pastor December 18

Dear Parishioners:

Christmas is coming! We have a full four weeks of Advent this year with Christmas on a Sunday. Let this be to your advantage. Live the time of anticipation and waiting to the full. Open your heart to the Lord and invite Him to make use of you and your family to reveal His Presence in the world. Take the time to think about the Reason for the Season. Read the accounts of Jesus’ Birth from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke as if you have never heard the Story before. Make plans to enter fully into Christmas next weekend.

Heartfelt thanks to all who participated in last week’s Penance Service. We had a good crop of sinners for the eight priests who worked with them. It was obvious that grace and mercy were flowing. Confession is good for the soul. It clears the spiritual pores and allows baptismal grace to do its work in us. I was truly a proud Pastor as I saw how many came, how many approached the Sacrament, and especially how many stayed to pray with and for their brothers and sisters until the prayer of thanksgiving and the final blessing. “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” was sung with gusto.


I have one more favor to ask for the Season: Please fill up all the Masses of Christmas, especially those on Christmas Day. Many have the custom of participating in the first Vigil Mass at 5:00 p.m., and then the number of attendees dwindles as the Mass times go on: 7:00 p.m. Vigil, 10:00 p.m. “Midnight” Mass, and 8:00 and 10:00 a.m. Christmas morning. This year, we need the strong voices of our usual weekly Mass-goers to assist our annual guests with the new English responses. If you plan to attend the Vigil Mass, come again to at least one of the other Masses. For Christmas, you are able to receive Holy Communion again at a second Mass.

There are four distinct Masses of Christmas: the Vigil, Midnight, Dawn and Day, each with different prayers and readings. The Incarnation is celebrated by the Church’s Liturgy in high style. It is truly worthwhile to experience all that the Church has to offer at this special time. Let’s join the effort to put Christ and Mass back in Christ-mas.

Entering into our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.

You have followed my teaching, way of life, purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, and sufferings, such as happened to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra, persecutions that I endured. Yet from all these things the Lord delivered me. In fact, all who want to live religiously in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. But wicked people and charlatans will go from bad to worse, deceivers and deceived. (II Timothy 3:10-13)

St. Paul is not afraid to admit the struggles he experiences in his witness to Christ. He recalls them with emotion, but not with self-pity. Rather, he is able to see the action of the Lord in delivering him “from all these things.” He sees clearly, and reminds St. Timothy, that all who want to follow the Lord will have the same experience. There are two ways: the way of those who seek to follow Christ, and the way of the wicked.

Our life as a Parish Family is meant to be a living witness of the “teaching, way of life, purpose, faith, patience, love, and endurance,” that Paul and Timothy put into practice. When we undergo hardships, especially the persecutions and suffering that come from our efforts to put our Faith into practice, we are in good company. We can be sure that we are on the right track when we experience such struggles and we can put our trust in the God Who calls us.

CHRISTMAS MASSES AT ST. TIMOTHY CHURCH, COLUMBUS

Christmas Eve – December 24
5:00 & 7:00 p.m., Vigil Mass: Family Unity
10:00 p.m., Solemn Mass at Night: Light in Darkness
Christmas Day – December 25
8:00 a.m., Christmas Mass at Dawn: Let us go to Bethlehem
10:00 a.m., Christmas Day Mass: The Word Made Flesh

Note: No 12:00 p.m. Mass for Sunday, December 25, 2011

Feast of the Holy Family, Friday, December 30
9:00 a.m., Family Blessing after Mass

Solemnity of Mary, January 1, 2012

Usual weekend Schedule: Saturday, 5:00 p.m.;
Sunday, 8:00 a.m., 10:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m.

A Word from Your Pastor December 11

Dear Parishioners:

The readings of Advent are so rich! If we would only allow our hearts to be open to their message and to respond with the kind of Faith that witnesses to the Truth of God-with-us!

Can you hear St. Paul’s words to the Thessalonians as addressed to you personally?

May the God of peace make you perfectly holy
and may you entirely, spirit, soul, and body,
be preserved blameless for the Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The One Who calls you is faithful,
and He will also accomplish it.
(I Thessalonians 5:23-24)

This past week, we celebrated the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, which reminds us that God can get to the basic goodness that is in our human nature and allow it to shine forth. This coming week, we celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which reminds us that Heaven is concerned with our land and the Faith of little ones. Soon we will enter more profoundly into the Mystery of the Incarnation, the wondrous Gift of Jesus Christ, the Only-Begotten Son of God Who takes our human nature to Himself.

Our Parish will experience the Sacrament of Reconciliation this week through a Penance Service on Wednesday, December 14. Now is the time to allow the Spirit of God to give you the Peace that only God can give. Will you embrace the holiness that is yours by right through your Baptism? Will you allow Jesus Christ to touch you with His Healing Mercy so that you may entirely, spirit, soul and body, become free from sin by the grace of the Sacramental Absolution available to you through Confession?

God is Faithful. He proves this again and again. He can make us faithful as well, but only if we respond to the invitation to grace. God is faithful to what He promises. He has said it and He will do it. Will you allow Him to do what only He can do?

We will have several priests with very compassionate hearts available to offer you the Mercy of God at the Penance Service on Wednesday. Please come and bring your friends and enemies. Children, bring your parents and grandparents. Promise them you will clean your room if they clean theirs!

Entering into our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.

But understand this: there will be terrifying times in the last days. People will be self-centered and lovers of money, proud, haughty, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, irreligious, callous, implacable, slanderous, licentious, brutal, hating what is good, traitors, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, as they make a pretense of religion but deny its power. Reject them.

For some of these slip into homes and make captives of women weighed down by sins, led by various desires, always trying to learn but never able to reach a knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so they also oppose the truth--people of depraved mind, unqualified in the faith. But they will not make further progress, for their foolishness will be plain to all, as it was with those two. (II Timothy 3:1-9)

The “last days” began with the Incarnation and especially with the Suffering, Death and Resurrection of Jesus. St. Paul reminds St. Timothy and his community that the struggles in the pagan world and the persecutions they are experiencing are all part of the terror of the last days. But something is more terrible than these outside troubles: sin that comes from a selfish and self-centered heart does more damage to souls than anything else

Paul’s list of attitudes and behaviors present in the last days makes a good “examination of conscience” for all of us: Are we “self-centered and lovers of money, proud, haughty, abusive, disobedient to our parents, ungrateful, irreligious, callous, implacable, slanderous, licentious, brutal, hating what is good, traitors, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God” and do we “make a pretense of religion but deny its power”? Can we see ourselves in those who opposed Moses, when he came to deliver his people from bondage in Egypt?

Sin is defeated by Faith. Putting Faith in God means being willing to be led to knowledge of Truth. The truth of ourselves as sinners in need of God’s Mercy is the most basic Truth of all.

A Word from Your Pastor December 4

A Word from Your Pastor

Dear Parishioners:

We have arrived! Our Golden Jubilee has been the occasion for many wonderful encounters and announcements. The gathering last weekend was truly an experience that revealed the wonder of what God can do with willing hearts. Thanks go out to all who were part of the celebration and we look forward to all that will go on as the year unfolds.

One of the best bits of news that we were able to share last weekend is the fact that we have completed repayment of our Loan from the Diocesan Parish Aid Fund for our new facility and the upgrades to the church that took place in 2000. The “tearing up of our mortgage” (not a burning because it took place indoors!) allowed us to acknowledge that the Parish no longer owes an outside debt. In our 50th Year, “we owe nothing to anyone except the debt of Love.” The largest amount that we owed the Diocese at any one time was One Million, Nine Hundred, Sixty-Four Thousand, Five Hundred, Ninety One Dollars & 33 cents. As of September 30, 2011, we no longer have a loan from the Diocese.



A Large Check displays the largest amount of our Parish Debt




A Certificate from the Diocese of Columbus, signed by the Bishop
and by the Diocesan Director of Finance, acknowledges we are Paid in Full

The repayment of the debt was made possible this Fall by two major donations, one in the form of a challenge gift, along with the monthly Campaign envelopes, that covered the remaining principal. We still “owe ourselves” the funds that were used from “parish coffers” (the weekly stewardship collection and parish reserves) to cover the interest. So the campaign continues “in house” and the funds still being collected on the pledges made are still needed. As was mentioned, we still have some projects of building improvement that incoming funds will be used for. But the wonderful news we can delight in is that the mortgage is ended and for the second time in our parish history, we are free of outside obligations. Heartfelt thanks to all the benefactors who have made this possible. Special kudos are due to Msgr. John Johnson who saw to the most recent debt retirement efforts. May God bless him and all involved in the Campaign for St. Timothy!

Congratulations are also due to the People of St. Timothy Parish for their transition to the new Roman Missal and the new form of English used in our Liturgy. Bishop Campbell himself went on record in the Columbus Dispatch telling the world that we were well prepared. The enthusiastic “And with your Spirit” that met his Apostolic Greeting “Peace be with you” was a sign that we are where we need to be. In time, we will be as familiar with the new form as we have been with the one we have been using. Blessings to all of you!

Entering into our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.

In a large household there are vessels not only of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for lofty and others for humble use. If anyone cleanses himself of these things, he will be a vessel for lofty use, dedicated, beneficial to the master of the house, ready for every good work. So turn from youthful desires and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord with purity of heart. Avoid foolish and ignorant debates, for you know that they breed quarrels. A slave of the Lord should not quarrel, but should be gentle with everyone, able to teach, tolerant, correcting opponents with kindness. It may be that God will grant them repentance that leads to knowledge of the truth, and that they may return to their senses out of the devil's snare, where they are entrapped by him, for his will. (II Timothy 2:20-26)

The call to be mature is given to all who seek to grow in Faith. St. Paul addresses Timothy and his community with the charge to set aside youthful ways of acting and to put into practice the virtues that go along with the Life in Christ: righteousness, faith, love, and peace. We are to be among those who call on the Lord in purity of heart. This reminder is fitting for our community as well as we enter into a new phase of our life as a Parish. We are a people of welcome, faithfulness, and service. This can deepen if we set our sights on the Truth that comes from God and the teachings of our Church.

A Word from Your Pastor November 20

Dear Parishioners:

Next weekend will truly be a banner weekend in the life of our Parish Family. So many things are happening of great note for St. Timothy Church that it is hard to keep up with them!

The formal opening of our Golden Jubilee will take place as we welcome Bishop Frederick Campbell to our parish on Saturday evening. The dedication of our Rosary Prayer Garden, Mass, Dinner, and a look back on our Parish History will highlight the graces and blessings we have received in our 50 years.
The First Sunday of Advent will bring the promulgation and first use of the new English version of the Mass. With the new Liturgical Season, we will enter into a new Church Year.

We will also celebrate the Rite of Welcome for the members of our R.C.I.A. group, those who are preparing to become Catholic at Easter. This year’s group is overflowing. (Is anyone hearing God’s call to serve as a sponsor for a new Catholic? Contact Rita Feige – the need is great!)

This weekend, we are witnessing a step forward with our 8th Grade Students in our School and PSR, as they make their commitment to enter into the time of special preparation for their reception of the Sacrament of Confirmation.

All of these events are a sign of the life and vitality of our Parish Community. As we experience them, we need to be sure that we are reaching out to all who are with us. Have you taken the time to welcome a new member? If there is someone you don’t know sitting near you in church, take the initiative and introduce yourself. Say, how long have you been at St. Tim’s? You may be meeting a long-time member (we still have many Founding Members among us) or someone new to the community.
As we welcome many guests next weekend, let us show them the renowned St. Timothy Parish hospitality. May our life together be a little taste of the Kingdom for all!

Countdown to our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.

“This saying is trustworthy: If we have died with him we shall also live with him; if we persevere we shall also reign with him. But if we deny him he will deny us. If we are unfaithful he remains faithful, for he cannot deny himself.” (II Timothy 2:11-13)

The Paschal Mystery is the heart of the Christian Life. St. Paul reminds St. Timothy that the Gospel that he has heard is the Truth. Christ’s Life, Death and Resurrection belong to us. If we embrace the dying, we shall also receive the gift of living a New Life. Our cooperation with His Grace will lead us to the Kingdom, where we shall reign with Christ.

Paul makes clear that it is a matter of choice. Faithfulness to Christ means standing with Him in the face of a hostile world. Our fidelity will be rewarded, but it is always possible to lose our place by our failure. Nonetheless, Christ is ever faithful, claiming us as His own.

Reflections on the Liturgy:

The Mass is a tremendous gift that is often taken for granted. The change in the English version that we will experience at the beginning of Advent will challenge us to pay close attention to what we say. It is an opportunity to renew our understanding of the depth and meaning of the Liturgy. This effort to understand also serves to call us to a deeper attention to our prayer outside of the Mass.

All the forms of prayer that Christians experience must flow from and prepare for a worthy celebration of the Mass. It is important to realize that Mass is the highest form of prayer, because it is the prayer of Christ Himself. In these last weeks before we begin to make use of the new Roman Missal, we can prepare by looking into the forms of prayer that make up our daily lives.

There are four primary ways of prayer: Adoration, Contrition, Thanksgiving and Supplication.

Thanksgiving is the heart of the Mass. Eucharist means Thanksgiving. In the act of giving thanks, we acknowledge that all we have and are comes from God. We accept the gifts that we have received precisely as gifts, not as something we have earned. We turn to the Giver and enter fully into the relationship that is offered. The Communion that is established through the act of giving thanks opens us to a greater capacity to receive and to share freely what God has given to us.

The attitude of thankfulness is one of humility. It is part of a heart that is open, ready to be filled. Such an attitude must be cultivated. Every moment that leads up to the celebration of the Mass, and every moment that comes after the Mass is ended must be seen as preparing for the supreme act of Worship, Christ’s rendering Thanks to the Father, and as flowing from that one supreme act that unites Time and Eternity. In the Mass, this becomes one single reality and we are taken up to experience the Heavenly Liturgy with all the Saints and Angels, who give God thanks and glory.

A Word from Your Pastor November 6

Dear Parishioners:

We have entered into the month of November in full force. All Saints Day and All Souls Day at the start of the month remind us of our Communion with those who have entered into the Paschal Mystery and into the embrace of God. Thanksgiving and the Opening of our Golden Jubilee at the close of the month will remind us of our connections with our families and our parish community through the years. In all of these observances, we acknowledge one wonderful simple truth: we are not alone. We are never alone. God is with us, and, as a gift, He has invited us to share communion with one another.

Among the many insights that were part of my recent Pilgrimage to Turkey and Greece was the simple realization that we are all connected in surprising ways. As we were departing, news of the wild animals on the loose in Muskingham County was literally going world wide. The whole world, for a moment, had its eyes on central Ohio. We met many who remembered the story as we explained where we are from…. Similarly, the demonstrations and protests in Greece were in the headlines as we headed toward that part of the world. While we were in Turkey, on the West Coast, the Eastern part of Turkey experienced a devastating earthquake, giving concern to families and friends at home. (We were on the opposite end of the country and did not experience anything.) Facebook and the internet allowed for contact with folks all around the world to share our pilgrim journey and to let everyone know we were okay.

The gift of our Christian Faith with its awareness of Who God IS as the Holy Trinity, a Community of Persons united in Being and in Love, opens us to a dimension of Reality to us that allows us to see the unity that is possible among human beings across cultural divides. It offers us a sense of hope about the future and a confidence in God in the present moment, whatever our circumstances.

Countdown to our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.

So you, my child, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And what you heard from me through many witnesses entrust to faithful people who will have the ability to teach others as well. Bear your share of hardship along with me like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. To satisfy the one who recruited him, a soldier does not become entangled in the business affairs of life. Similarly, an athlete cannot receive the winner's crown except by competing according to the rules. The hardworking farmer ought to have the first share of the crop. (II Timothy 2:1-6)


St. Paul’s love for St. Timothy is like that of a father for a son. He calls Timothy to be the best person he can be and to share with others what he has received from Paul. Grace is the gift of God’s own relationship with us, a source of strength and commitment that bears fruit the more we rely on it.

Paul’s images, taken from the reality of life in the first century, are still very familiar: from the military, from athletics and from farming. Keeping order in society, taking recreation and entering into competition, and providing food from the cultivation of the earth are all human activities that remain constant. God works through the ordinary, and so Paul is able to encourage Timothy by appealing to the ordinary experiences of the people of all ages. Bearing hardship (no pain, no gain), following the rules, and being rewarded for one’s labor point to the practical application of the Gospel. Paul invites Timothy to do what he himself has done. We too have the responsibility of proclaiming the Gospel and teaching others to do the same.

Reflections on the Liturgy:

The Mass is a tremendous gift that is often taken for granted. The change in the English version that we will experience at the beginning of Advent will challenge us to pay close attention to what we say. It is an opportunity to renew our understanding of the depth and meaning of the Liturgy. This effort to understand also serves to call us to a deeper attention to our prayer outside of the Mass.

All the forms of prayer that Christians experience must flow from and prepare for a worthy celebration of the Mass. It is important to realize that Mass is the highest form of prayer, because it is the prayer of Christ Himself. In these last weeks before we begin to make use of the new Roman Missal, we can prepare by looking into the forms of prayer that make up our daily lives.

There are four primary ways of prayer: Adoration, Contrition, Thanksgiving and Supplication.

Adoration is prayer of praise. In our daily prayer, we ought to praise God for Who He IS. This form of prayer is the most unselfish. It is utterly directed toward God. We acknowledge God as God and focus our attention to Him for Himself, not for anything we may get from Him.

We express adoration through psalms of praise, through hymns and songs, and through shouts of joy. When we enter into praise, we are taken out of ourselves and our tendency to put our own needs and desires at the center of attention. To adore God means to give God His due, to glorify Him and to acknowledge that He is first in our priorities. Praise of God allows us to see that our relationship with God is at the heart of things.

In the Mass, we are part of the Sacrifice of Praise, through which Jesus Christ acknowledges His Father, in the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus lifts us up through His Risen and glorified Human Nature to share in the very Life of the Trinity. Our own prayer of praise disposes us to enter into this Movement.

The Mass has many expressions of praise: the hymns and songs that are present throughout the Mass, the Gloria, the Responsorial Psalm, the Alleluia or Gospel Acclamation, the Sanctus and the Doxology.

In our life of prayer, let us praise God for His Glory!

A Word from Your Pastor October 30

Dear Parishioners:

As you celebrate the Masses of this weekend, my Pilgrim journey will be coming to its close. If all goes well, our group should arrive back Sunday evening. We will have a day that lasts more than 24 hours and will have negotiated two flights and the hassle of customs and return. But no doubt we will be able to take all of these in stride because our journey has been a Pilgrimage.

Do you know the difference between a Tourist and a Pilgrim? A Pilgrim can never complain. To whatever happens along the way, the Pilgrim says “Deo Gratias! – Thanks be to God!” and seeks to hear a message from God through the experience.

The Pilgrimage that I have been part of was created to serve as an “entry” into our time of Golden Jubilee, since it is “in the Footsteps of St. Timothy and St. Paul.” We are all under the patronage of St. Timothy, the companion of St. Paul.

The heart of the Pilgrimage was Ephesus, where St. Timothy served as First Bishop. Two Apostles lived and worked there, St. Paul and St. John. According to tradition, it was there that St. John also cared for Mary, the Mother of Jesus. The Community of Ephesus received several Letters from St. Paul, the Letter to the Ephesians, and I and II Timothy. Ephesus was also one of the Seven Churches of the Apocalypse to receive a Letter from the Risen Lord through St. John as he was in exile on the Island of Patmos. Our own parish family is called to put into practice the life that was shared by that first generation of Christians. We are a witness to the Truth of the Gospel in our time.

In the weeks ahead, I am sure that we will benefit from the experience of the Pilgrimage. May we continue to grow in our understanding of the life we share in Christ and may our witness serve to draw others to hear the call of the Gospel.


Countdown to our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.


Take as your norm the sound words that you heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Guard this rich trust with the help of the Holy Spirit that dwells within us. You know that everyone in Asia deserted me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes. May the Lord grant mercy to the family of Onesiphorus because he often gave me new heart and was not ashamed of my chains. But when he came to Rome, he promptly searched for me and found me. May the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that day. And you know very well the services he rendered in Ephesus. (II Timothy 1:13-18)

St. Paul is a realist. He knows the score and the consequence of accepting the call to follow Christ. He also knows that what enables the disciple of Christ to persevere is the inward commitment to hold fast to the Truth and the discernment of those who are allies in the witness of Faith.

Paul charges Timothy and the members of the Church of Ephesus to live by his example and by what he taught of Christ when he was with them. He also shares with them, naming names, how some fellow disciples scored in the manner of support they showed for him in his hardships experienced on account of the Gospel. Some deserted him, but one went out of his way to be of help.

In the life of the Church today, we often hear of those who fail to live up to their responsibilities. We must also give credit where credit is due for those who are faithful witnesses and those who encourage us with their support. Who has helped you to live in fidelity to the call of the Gospel?


Reflections on the Liturgy:


As we enter into immediate preparation for the transition to the new English form of the Mass, it is good to take the opportunity to renew our understanding about what is happening in the Liturgy and our own part in it. We are called to full, conscious, active participation. Each person present has a role and a responsibility even if there is no particular ministry or function being exercised.

The Mass has four primary “movements”: Gathering, Hearing the Word, the Sacrifice, and the Sending Forth. Our final reflections are meant to highlight aspects of each of these parts of the Liturgy. All of us would do well to review our own practice and to become more conscious of the meaning of what we are doing.

The Sending Forth from the Mass is expressed in Closing Rites that are rather simple and straightforward. The Priest gathers the Community together for the Prayer after Communion. Announcements concerning the life of the Parish Family are made. The Final Blessing is given. Then, the Deacon or Priest call out the Dismissal. As the Ministers process out, a Closing Hymn is sung. Thus, the Mass is ended.

Just as the Collect or the Opening Prayer at the beginning of the Mass draws the Community into one spirit for worship, the Post-Communion Prayer summarizes the grace that has been received through the act of worship and allows the Community to stand in awareness of the Unity that has been experienced.

When Announcements are made, it is a reminder that the assembly newly confirmed in grace by the Eucharist now has a job to do. All that we do as Church flows from our Eucharistic Worship. The Eucharist is the Source and Summit of our Life in Christ. Some may find this moment tedious or somehow “unworthy” of the action we have experienced together. But in truth, it is the very consequence of the Incarnation we come to understand more deeply through the Eucharist. Christ is with us in the ordinary reality of our lives. We are now to put into practice the Mystery we have experienced in a way that brings Christ to the world.

The Final Blessing corresponds to the Sign of the Cross that began the Mass. On special occasions and in particular seasons and feasts, a Solemn Blessing or Prayer over the People may accompany the Priest’s Blessing. How sad it is that many tend to duck out before receiving the Blessing!

The Dismissal Proper is the very rite that gave the name to the Mass: “Ite, Missa est.” The Deacon or Priest at this moment is the voice of Christ, Who has sent His disciples into the world. This formal act is our commissioning to be Christ to the world and to carry away to those who are awaiting the Good News that we have heard and tasted in the Mass.

Do an examination of your family conscience with these questions:

Do you take advantage of time after receiving Holy Communion for silent prayer and an act of thanksgiving? As the Presider prays Prayer after Communion, do you join in with the rest of the Congregation with a lifting of your mind and heart to God? Do you listen to the words being prayed and allow them to direct your own thoughts and reflections of the heart?

As the Announcements are being made, do you respond to the invitation to participate in the life of the Parish Community? Do you think about how your family can be involved or who else might benefit from the events and activities being described? Are you an active member of any of the Parish groups? Do you make sure that your own group or organization is in communication with the wider Parish?

When the Blessing is given, do you bow your head and do you make a “full-body Sign of the Cross”? Do you resolve to put into practice what you have received through the Mass?

Do you hear the Lord’s Call as the Dismissal is proclaimed? Do you and your family maintain an awareness of the fact that Sunday is the Lord’s Day, by allowing it to continue as a day of prayer and leisure, with true quality time as a family?

Are you called to be a member of any of the Parish groups or organizations that assist with the life of the Parish and School? Have you and your family chosen a group to which you will belong or that you will keep in your prayers? Do you have one “world concern” to which you devote time and prayer as an individual and as a family, serving as a leaven of the Gospel in the world? Does any major world crisis or problem move your heart to compassion and call for your involvement in the search for a solution? Are you and your family a living sign of the truth of the Word and Sacrament you have received?

A Word from Your Pastor October 16

Dear Parishioners:

This week I will be departing on a Pilgrimage that is, for me, a special part of my preparation for our Parish Golden Jubilee. As Pastor of St. Timothy Church, I am carrying you with me in heart and mind to the See of Timothy, Ephesus, and on a pilgrim journey to the places where Our Heavenly Patron exercised his ministry at the side of St. Paul as Christianity was first beginning.

Over the next couple of weeks, I am sharing with you the day-by-day itinerary of the pilgrimage so that you can join me and my fellow pilgrims in spirit. You may want to read through the Acts of the Apostles with the sections about Timothy and Paul’s travels. The Letters to the Ephesians and I & II Timothy and the first three chapters of the Book of Revelation might also be texts that send you in spirit where we will be visiting in person.

Day 1 Wednesday, Oct. 19: Depart U.S.A.
Our spiritual pilgrimage begins as we depart on our transatlantic flight to Istanbul. We will fly to New York and then directly to Istanbul.

Day 2 Thursday, Oct. 20: Istanbul
Upon arrival in Istanbul we will be met by our guide who will give us a brief orientation of the city before driving to our hotel.

Day 3 Friday, Oct. 21: Istanbul
Our morning begins with a visit to the Hagia Sophia, considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World. This basilica dedicated to Divine Wisdom has a history dating back to the Fourth Century and we almost touch the birth of the Christian Church. Next visit the architecturally superb Sultan Ahmed’s famous Blue Mosque with its six minarets and sparkling interior. Then in the afternoon visit Topkapi Palace, the residence of the Ottoman Sultans, where we will view the Treasury and the world’s biggest emerald. Proceed to the Grand Bazaar, the oldest and largest covered market in the world where over 4,000 shops sell everything from herbs to gold.

Day 4 Saturday, Oct. 22: Istanbul / Canakkale
This morning we will visit some famous World War I sites along the Marmara Sea. We cross the Dardanelles and time permitting will visit ancient Troas or Troy. St. Timothy spent sometime here with Paul. Proceed to Canakkale for overnight.

Day 5 Sunday, Oct. 23: Canakkale / Kusadasi
The most favored of the Seven Churches was Pergamum. Christianity reached the city very early and the church was praised for its forbearance during hard times. In Pergamum, Rome executed the first Christians. Towering 1,000 feet above the town and commanding a spectacular Panorama is the fabled Acropolis. As we pass through the Royal Gates, we will enter one of the great centers of classic Greek culture. We will see the foundations of the Temple of Zeus and the Temple of Athena and the ruins of the Library, which once held 200 thousand parchment volumes. We will see the remains of the Temple of Trojan, the Grand Theatre, the Gymnasium and the Health Center (Aesclepion). We will also catch a glimpse of a 3-storey fountain built by Titus. Overnight in Kusadasi.

Next weekend, in my absence, we welcome Fr. James Wehner, rector of the Josephinum to assist Fr. Bill Faustner with the weekend Masses. Be sure to give him a warm welcome, and don’t believe him if he tells you he is the new Pastor. Perhaps some of our young men from High School are ready to speak to him about the possibility of entering the Seminary for College. At least let him know that you are thinking about it!

Countdown to our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God for the promise of life in Christ Jesus, to Timothy, my dear child: grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I am grateful to God, whom I worship with a clear conscience as my ancestors did, as I remember you constantly in my prayers, night and day. I yearn to see you again, recalling your tears, so that I may be filled with joy, as I recall your sincere faith that first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and that I am confident lives also in you. (II Timothy 1:1-5)

Faith is best shared through the reality of family life. When we come to Faith through the witness of members of our own households, it is “written” into the very fibers of our being. As St. Paul opens his Second Letter to St. Timothy, he calls to mind the familial bonds that nurtured Timothy’s faith. Lois, his grandmother, and Eunice, his mother, were Jews who had opened to the understanding of Jesus as the Messiah, presumably through the preaching of St. Paul.

The affection Paul has for Timothy, and his touching account of the emotions shared when they were last together serve to offer a wonderful vision of the power of Faith to unite us as true members of a common family. Any who have ever been away from someone they love will recognize the longing Paul mentions. The sense of interior communion, expressed through the constant prayer, is a consolation during the time apart. The acknowledgment of shared Faith is also a source of solace. Hope for future opportunities to see one another in person provide a motivation to put Faith into practice.

The witness of Faith across the generations is needed in order for it to grow. Many families lack this cohesiveness. Note that Paul does not mention the Faith of Timothy’s father. From Acts of the Apostles, we know that Timothy’s father was Greek, that is, not Jewish. Whether he ever chose to embrace the Faith of his wife and son is not known. Nonetheless, the witness of Eunice and her mother Lois, along with the teaching and companionship of Paul, work together to give Timothy a solid foundation for his own Faith. Paul expresses his gratitude to God and claims Timothy as his own “dear child.”

Reflections on the Liturgy:

As we enter into immediate preparation for the transition to the new English form of the Mass, it is good to take the opportunity to renew our understanding about what is happening in the Liturgy and our own part in it. We are called to full, conscious, active participation. Each person present has a role and a responsibility even if there is no particular ministry or function being exercised.

The Mass has four primary “movements”: Gathering, Hearing the Word, the Sacrifice, and the Sending Forth. Our final reflections are meant to highlight aspects of each of these parts of the Liturgy. All of us would do well to review our own practice and to become more conscious of the meaning of what we are doing.

The Word of God is spoken to us in the Person of Jesus Christ. The Liturgy of the Word is our act of Worship, hearing the Word proclaimed so as to bear fruit in our lives. In the context of the Mass, the Word of God, taken from the Sacred Scriptures, is presented to us in order to enliven the response of Faith. We hear and so we are able to believe. Believing, then, we are now made capable of living the Word.

The First Reading is taken through most of the year from the Old Testament, at certain times and on some feasts, from Acts of the Apostles or the Book of Revelation. The text is selected in most cases for its connection to the Gospel. The Responsorial Psalm is an adequate response to God’s Word, because it is taken from God’s Word in the Book of Psalms. The Second Reading is from the Letters of the Apostles. The Gospel follows a three-year cycle, in a continuous reading over the Sundays of the year, covering most of the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, with John filling in some Sundays and special feasts.

The Homily is meant to bring the hearers to an understanding of the Word proclaimed and to evoke an attitude of praise, preparing for the Eucharistic Worship. The Profession of Faith or the Creed is a common expression of the content of Faith as it has been formulated by the Church. It puts on the lips of those who have just listened to the Word the Faith that is shared by believers throughout the centuries and throughout the world. The General Intercession or Petitions then present the needs of the Church, the World and the local community to God, with confidence that God hears our prayer.

As we enter into the Liturgy of the Word, we are called to open our hearts to the Lord as He reveals Himself to us. This is at once a personal act and a communal act. There is power in the Proclamation of the Word at Mass that is different from a personal, private reading the Scripture texts. This moment calls for an awareness that we are One Church, united across the ages and through the world, as servants of the Word. The fact that all Catholics (and some Protestant communions who make use of the Common Lectionary) are hearing the same Scriptures is a powerful reminder that One Lord speaks to His Church.

An effective celebration of the Liturgy of the Word comes from an adequate preparation for hearing the Word. Reading the texts before Mass, listening attentively, interiorly expressing the Faith and entering into the prayers that are made in the name of the whole Church are all part of a true Hearing of the Word.

The Scripture Readings for Mass are available online for each day of the year at the U.S. Bishops’ Website: http://www.usccb.org/bible/index.cfm.

Do an examination of your family conscience with these questions:

Do you prepare to celebrate the Liturgy of the Word by reading the Sunday Scriptures ahead of time? Do you discuss the readings that are proclaimed at Mass with your children and make sure that they understand?

How well do you and your family know the Scriptures? Do you make use of a personal Bible? Does your family have a formal Bible enthroned in a prominent in your home? Do you take time to pray with Scripture? Have you participated in a Bible Study?

At Mass, do you listen carefully to the Scriptures as they are proclaimed? Do you and your family make the responses and gestures that are assigned to the congregation? Have you explained to your children the significance and meaning of the liturgical gestures?

Do you listen to the Homily attentively? Are you able to keep your mind focused and receptive to the Lord’s message to you personally? Do say the Creed with understanding or is it only by rote? Do you bring your own needs and petitions to mind as the General Intercessions are read? Do you pray at home for the needs of the Church, the world and your own community?

Is God calling you or someone in your family serve as a Lector? Is it time for you to attend a Bible Study or to host a gathering of your fellow parishioners to read and share the Scripture together in your home? Is the Lord inviting you to be a Catechist in P.S.R. or R.C.I.A. to bring the Word of God to others?

A Word from Your Pastor October 9

Dear Parishioners:

The Gospel is not a solitary game. Right from the start, Jesus sent out His disciples two-by-two, and any who tried to do it on their own were bound to fail. Involvement in the life of the Community of Believers is not an option. Our current culture treats Faith as if it is a “do-it-yourself” construction. Inevitably, we end up creating only a house of cards that will not stand when troubles come.

Those who identify themselves as Catholic are a substantial minority in our society at large, nearly 25%. According to some, the largest group after that is made up of those who identify themselves as former (non-practicing or fallen-away) Catholics. What is the difference? It is simple: involvement in the life of the Parish Community. When folks are involved, they are more likely going to attend Mass. And they are more likely going to be willing to study the Faith.

Next weekend, our Parish will be holding a Ministries and Activities Fair. All the groups and organizations in the Parish and School have been invited to be present. As Pastor, I invite all of you to stop by and to claim your group. If you are already a member, an active participant, then stand by your group’s display and share what your involvement has meant to you. If you are not part of any of the groups or activities and want to be, then sign up. If it is not possible to join, then choose a group that is yours to support from sidelines.

One goal of this year will be to discern how we need to reach out beyond our Parish and School Community to assist others. Let the various Ministries and Activities we share among us lead us to a deeper knowledge and understanding of how we can make ourselves available in the name of the Lord. The responsibility of the Laity in the Church is to work to bring the Gospel into the secular world. We gather together to learn and then we are sent out to serve. How is the Lord calling you and your family to be involved in the work of the Kingdom?


Countdown to our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.


O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you. Avoid profane babbling and the absurdities of so-called knowledge. By professing it, some people have deviated from the faith. Grace be with all of you. (I Timothy 6:20-11)

The close of the First Letter of Timothy is a reminder to guard the “deposit of Faith.” It is entrusted to us to hold onto in good conscience and to make it available to the world. The babbling and absurdities of the first century are still present in our modern world. Deviation from the Faith happens all to easily when we fail to see the worth of the treasure that has been given to us in our Catholic Faith. God’s grace can help us to persevere in the Faith and to deepen our knowledge of it.

As those under the patronage of St. Timothy, who was charged to guard the Faith, may we all see the gift that has been entrusted to us!

Reflections on the Liturgy:


As we enter into immediate preparation for the transition to the new English form of the Mass, it is good to take the opportunity to renew our understanding about what is happening in the Liturgy and our own part in it. We are called to full, conscious, active participation. Each person present has a role and a responsibility even if there is no particular ministry or function being exercised.

The Mass has four primary “movements”: Gathering, Hearing the Word, the Sacrifice, and the Sending Forth. Our final reflections are meant to highlight aspects of each of these parts of the Liturgy. All of us would do well to review our own practice and to become more conscious of the meaning of what we are doing.

The Gathering takes place as Mass begins. Ushers and Greeters are at the door, setting a tone of welcome. Ministers are signing in at the Sacristy so that we know that all the roles needed are covered. Altar Servers and Sacristans are seeing to the immediate preparation of the Altar and the credence table: the chalice and cups, bread, wine and water, and the other vessels needed, the candles and the books, etc., are all being placed where they belong. Musicians and Cantors are preparing to lead the Congregation in song.

The Assembly is gathering. The best way to attend to this part of the Liturgy is to arrive early. We have a habit of coming at the last minute or even five minutes to half an hour late. Although this may happen from time to time due to circumstances beyond our control, it ought not to be a weekly occurrence. The Gathering Rites are meant to form us as the People of God, united in mind and heart, ready for worship. The opening of Mass prepares us to receive the Word.

Entering the church, using Holy Water and making the Sign of the Cross, genuflecting toward the Tabernacle, and showing an attitude of welcome to “neighbors” in the pews are all acts that we can do consciously, rather than by rote.

The Opening Hymn expresses our unity as the Church, the Assembly called into being by God. The procession of the Priest and Ministers is our welcome to Christ in the various ministries and functions He Himself performs through us.

The Penitential Rite allows for an attitude of humility, acknowledgment of our awareness of our need for forgiveness and of the Lord’s Mercy. The Gloria, which is used on Sundays in Ordinary Time, Christmas and Easter, and on Feasts and Solemnities, is our joining with the Angels in their Eternal Song of Praise to the Holy Trinity. The Collect or the Opening Prayer allows for a moment of silence for the members of the Congregation to join their own spirits in the prayer of the whole Body, and then brings to expression the purpose and meaning of this particular Assembly.

Do an examination of your family conscience with these questions:

How do you ensure that you are ready for the celebration of Mass? Are you regularly on time? Have you considered the possibility of arriving early and developing a readiness by reflecting on the needs of your family, the Church and the world for which you will pray during Mass?

Do you call to mind your Baptism when you make use of the Holy Water at the door? Do you help your little children make the Sign of the Cross? As you enter the pew, do you make a full genuflection (unless you are unable to do so)? Do you commune in spirit with the Lord, Who is present in the Tabernacle?

When others come into church, do you make it possible for them to join you in the pew if there is room by moving toward the center? As the Mass begins, do you sing the Opening Song and participate with your voice in the parts of the Mass that belong to the People?

Have you begun to learn the new responses that will be used when Advent arrives? Are you prepared to practice them at home with your children?

Is the Lord calling you or someone in your family to the ministry of Usher/Greeter?

Ministry and Activities Fair October 15-16


We need your help. St. Timothy’s is a warm and welcoming parish at least in part because of our army of volunteers (you may have seen the army in action at Festival Time) but we can be even better with your help. Stop in after Mass on October 15 or 16 and have a cup of coffee and see what it’s all about. Bring the kids too, we have donut holes. For most of the ministries and activities, the time commitment can fit even the most busy schedule.

A Word from Your Pastor September 25

Dear Parishioners:

Last weekend we had a lively visit from Fr. Jim Wehner, Rector of the Pontifical College Josephinum, here to assist while Fr. Bill Faustner was away for vacation. Although I did not hear his homily myself, I heard from a number of parishioners as I met them at the door after Mass that they found Fr. Wehner very easy to hear (just like Fr. Bill, who has no need of a microphone to get his message through). There was much the same reaction last summer to the presence of our Seminarian Intern Vince Nguyen.

I do hope that every member of the parish really got the message that I have been preaching and that Vince Nguyen shouted in word and action, and that Fr. Wehner repeated as an extra announcement: our Parish is due to make a return on the Church’s investment of priestly service among us. Fr. Wehner suggested that “all unmarried men over the age of 18 can sign up for the Seminary in the vestibule after Mass.” This may overstate the call just a bit, but it makes the point that we need to be supportive of the reality of vocational discernment. It was gratifying to see many stop to greet Fr. Wehner and I made it a point to introduce him to some of our high school students who are looking toward their College prospects.

The Pontifical College Josephinum is a real option to be considered. Some may have heard that a former religion teacher at Watterson, Shane Ball, is at the “P.C.J.” for Pre-Theology, and his position at the high school has been taken by Deacon Byron Phillips, who is on staff at the Josephinum as well. In other words, real people we know make this kind of a decision to “check it out.”

The Tuesday Morning Bible Study was speaking on the topic of Vocations to Priesthood and Religious Life and St. Timothy Parish this week as well. We have come up with just two names of members of our parish who have responded to the call to Consecrated Life: Brother David Henley who is a member of Glenmary Missioners, and Tom Rea, who became a Deacon. Do you know either of these former parishioners or their families? Do you know of any others who have taken vows or been ordained who have roots in our Parish? We want to be sure to invite them to take part in our Jubilee and to assist in the effort to remind us all of our Call to Holiness in every Vocation.

Countdown to our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.

But you, man of God, avoid all this. Instead, pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and gentleness. Compete well for the faith. Lay hold of eternal life, to which you were called when you made the noble confession in the presence of many witnesses.

I charge you before God, who gives life to all things, and before Christ Jesus, who gave testimony under Pontius Pilate for the noble confession, to keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ that the blessed and only ruler will make manifest at the proper time, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, and whom no human being has seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal power. Amen. (I Timothy 6:11-16)

The Call that comes from God is addressed to every human being. We who are Christian and Catholic have the privilege of having heard the Gospel and of being pledged to a witness of its truth and its power. Through Baptism and Confirmation, we have made “the noble confession” of our Faith. It is now our responsibility to hold onto what we have received and to do all we can to share the Gift of New Life in Christ with others.

Many have stood as witnesses for us: our godparents and sponsors, our parents and all who have walked the way of Faith before us. We are to serve as witnesses for others and to bring them to a knowledge of the truth.

St. Paul charges St. Timothy as a “man of God” and holds out before him and us the example of Jesus Christ. What we have learned from Christ we are to put into practice and to pass on to those who have yet to hear it.

In giving Timothy the charge, Paul is drawn into a hymn of praise to the God Who has made Himself known in Christ. When we respond to God’s Call and live our Noble Profession of Faith before the world, we too are caught up in an experience of this glory.
“To him be honor and eternal power. Amen.”

Reflections on the Liturgy:


The document that guides the Church in the Latin Rite in the celebration of the Liturgy is called “Institutio Generalis Missalis Romani,” the General Instruction of the Roman Missal. This has been published in three editions. The new Roman Missal which will be promulgated in English this November finds its norms in this Instruction. It will be helpful to offer a few notes on the principles guiding the celebration of the Liturgy as they are given in the G.I.R.M.

The G.I.R.M. is available online on the US Bishops’ website.

http://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/roman-missal/general-instruction-of-the-roman-missal/

Accommodation to New Conditions (Continued and Conclued)

14. Moved by the same desire and pastoral concern, the Second Vatican Council was able to give renewed consideration to what was established by Trent on Communion under both kinds. And indeed, since no one today calls into doubt in any way the doctrinal principles on the complete efficacy of Eucharistic Communion under the species of bread alone, the Council thus gave permission for the reception of Communion under both kinds on some occasions, because this clearer form of the sacramental sign offers a particular opportunity of deepening the understanding of the mystery in which the faithful take part. [Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, no. 55.

15. In this manner the Church, while remaining faithful to her office as teacher of truth safeguarding "things old," that is, the deposit of tradition, fulfills at the same time another duty, that of examining and prudently bringing forth "things new" (cf. Mt 13:52).

Accordingly, a part of the new Missal directs the prayers of the Church in a more open way to the needs of our times, which is above all true of the Ritual Masses and the Masses for Various Needs, in which tradition and new elements are appropriately harmonized. Thus, while many expressions, drawn from the Church's most ancient tradition and familiar through the many editions of the Roman Missal, have remained unchanged, many other expressions have been accommodated to today's needs and circumstances. Still others, such as the prayers for the Church, the laity, the sanctification of human work, the community of all peoples, and certain needs proper to our era, have been newly composed, drawing on the thoughts and often the very phrasing of the recent documents of the Council.

Moreover, on account of the same attitude toward the new state of the present world, it seemed that in the use of texts from the most ancient tradition, so revered a treasure would in no way be harmed if some phrases were changed so that the style of language would be more in accord with the language of modern theology and would truly reflect the current discipline of the Church. Thus, not a few expressions bearing on the evaluation and use of the earthly goods of the earth have been changed, as have also not a few allusions to a certain form of outward penance belonging to past ages of the Church.

Finally, in this manner the liturgical norms of the Council of Trent have certainly been completed and perfected in many respects by those of the Second Vatican Council, which has brought to realization the efforts of the last four hundred years to bring the faithful closer to the Sacred Liturgy especially in recent times, and above all the zeal for the Liturgy promoted by Saint Pius X and his successors.

The General Instruction makes clear two central points: First, the Liturgy we celebrate is the Liturgy of the Church that is available to the People of God in every time and place. There is unity, continuity, and coherence of the Liturgy as it is celebrated in our time with the very same Liturgy celebrated in other times and cultures. The Councils of the Church do not invent a new reality. Secondly, each age in the life of the Church has its own shape and the Liturgy, as a divine reality expressed through human forms, can freely adapt itself to the time under the guidance of the Church.

Offering the Faithful the opportunity to eat and drink of the Eucharist under the form of bread and wine, is a fuller sign of a sharing that is permissible in our time. Deeper insight into the goodness of Creation and an awareness of modern ways of expression are also given consideration in the way prayers are formulated. This has truly been the custom of the Church and of the People of God from the earliest days.

Tradition is not merely a repetition of the past, but rather it is a forward movement of handing on the Faith with a real understanding. “Everything that is received is received according to the mode of the receiver.” Passing on the Faith means being able to express it and experience in forms that fit those who are today coming to know the truth of Christ and the Salvation He won for us through His Holy Sacrifice. The Sacred Liturgy is the most powerful moment of union with Christ our Savior this side of Eternity.

This completes our reading of the Introduction of the General Instruction of the Roman Missal.