Announcements

April 21, 2024 Fourth Sunday of Easter Bulletin - Jesus is Our Shepherd

Easter is the perfect time for Christians to remember the life and saying of Jesus. Even the Apostles used the original time in between the Resurrection and the Ascension as a time of reflection upon Jesus' words. The words we have today are most worthy of reflection. We read that we are sheep and that Jesus is our Shepherd. This is meant to strengthen our sense of closeness with Our Lord who lays down His life for our life. He sacrifices Himself so that we may live and we should be willing then to follow Him. That means that it is no secret that we are Christians and disciples of the Lord. We tell others about Him. We pray regularly and read Scripture. We manifest our faith before others that they may also believe in the One who died and rose for us all.

Happy Easter,
Very Rev. Samuel Moses Brown

Del Pastor Cuarto Domingo de Pascua
La Pascua es el momento perfecto para que los cristianos recuerden la vida y las palabras de Jesús. Incluso los Apóstoles utilizaron el tiempo original entre la Resurrección y la Ascensión como tiempo de reflexión sobre las palabras de Jesús. Las palabras que tenemos hoy son muy dignas de reflexión. Leemos que somos ovejas y que Jesús es nuestro Pastor. Esto tiene por objeto reforzar nuestro sentido de cercanía a Nuestro Señor, que da su vida por la nuestra. Él se sacrifica para que vivamos y nosotros debemos estar dispuestos a seguirle. Esto significa que no es un secreto que somos cristianos y discípulos del Señor. Hablamos a otros de Él. Rezamos con regularidad y leemos las Escrituras. Manifestamos nuestra fe ante los demás para que ellos también crean en Aquel que murió y resucitó por todos nosotros.

Felices Pascuas,
Very Rev. Samuel Moses Brown

April 14, 2024 Third Sunday of Easter Bulletin - Resurrection: nice idea or truth?

Have you ever noticed how arguments against the Resurrection of Jesus do not really make sense? People can be dismissive of Our Lord's Resurrection by simply thinking of it as a nice story. Once upon a time I heard a non-Catholic preacher say that he thought that the stories of the Resurrection of Jesus were allegories of how we can have better lives, but not actual new and eternal life. In short, he thought that it was a nice idea. We should not be interested in nice ideas, but rather we should be interested in the truth. The truth is that the stories of the Resurrection of Jesus are meant to convince us of the reality of the event. Jesus talks with the Disciples, He has them feel His Body, He eats in front of them. Luke wrote this story because he believed that it really happened and he is inviting us to believe that as well. The life that Jesus offers us is not a literary device or a way to live a better life. It is real and true new life that He offers to us who believe. It's not just a nice idea. It's the truth.

Your Pastor,
Very Rev. Samuel Moses Brown

Del Pastor - Tercer Domingo de Pascua

¿Ha notado alguna vez cómo los argumentos en contra de la Resurrección de Jesús no tienen realmente sentido? La gente puede despreciar la Resurrección de Nuestro Señor simplemente pensando que es una bonita historia. Una vez escuché a un predicador no católico decir que pensaba que las historias de la Resurrección de Jesús eran alegorías de cómo podemos tener una vida mejor, pero no una vida nueva y eterna. En resumen, pensaba que era una idea bonita. No deberíamos interesarnos por las ideas bonitas, sino por la verdad. La verdad es que los relatos de la Resurrección de Jesús pretenden convencernos de la realidad del acontecimiento. Jesús habla con los discípulos, les hace palpar su Cuerpo, come delante de ellos. Lucas escribió este relato porque creía que había sucedido de verdad y nos invita a creerlo también a nosotros. La vida que Jesús nos ofrece no es un recurso literario ni una forma de vivir mejor. Es una vida nueva, real y verdadera que Él nos ofrece a los que creemos. No es sólo una idea bonita. Es la verdad.

Su Pastor,
Very Rev. Samuel Moses Brown

April 7, 2024 Second Sunday of Easter - Divine Mercy Sunday - Bulletin - Several titles - 2nd Sunday of Easter

This day has many different titles and I'll say a little something about each one. It is the Second Sunday of the Easter season which lets us know when we are in the season and it's the conclusion of the octave of Easter. This day is also called Doubting Thomas Sunday because of the Gospel reading read on this day. We see that Thomas has faith, otherwise he wouldn't be with the other disciples at all, yet we also see that his faith needs some help. All of us need help from God to believe more like Mark 9:14- 29. We can believe and doubt at the same time and Jesus can help us to move along towards a more complete and perfect faith. This day is also called Quasimodo Sunday because that is the first word of the opening antiphon in Latin. The word literally means "half-made" which explains why Victor Hugo named his character Quasimodo, because it was as if he was half-made as a man. However, in the opening antiphon of the Mass, it is meant to be a reference to us being newly made in Christ. Thus, it is now translated "like newborn infants." Lastly, today is also Divine Mercy Sunday which is a new devotion from the twentieth century based on the private revelations given to St. Faustina. We celebrate God's great mercy and forgiveness which we need to be saved.

We rejoice, yet again in the Lord.

Your pastor, Fr. Samuel Moses Brown

March 31, 2024 Easter Sunday Bulletin - Christ the Lord is Risen!

Here we are at our primary and biggest feast day of the year when we celebrate the Resurrection of the Lord from the dead. We have seen how He was unjustly arrested on Holy Thursday, put on trial while being innocent, and then crucified on Good Friday. His own mother (and ours) lovingly placed Him in a tomb with the help of others not knowing what would become of Him. We can only imagine the depths of sorrow and the hurt that Our Lady experienced and then the sudden joy at the reversal of His Death on the first Easter Sunday when Jesus rose from the dead. This shift from sorrow to joy is mimicked in the liturgical seasons of the Church.

Now we see the fruit of our labor during the season of Lent. We have grown in virtue, learned to incorporate more prayer into our life, and seen that we can live with less. The best gift that we can give Our Lord and ourselves is to incorporate our Lenten practices into our life to continue to grow in holiness. Lent isn't just about doing something for a season, though that has value. Lent is about changing our heart and life to make them conform more to the will of God. Let us rejoice in the victory of Christ over the grave!

Happy Easter to One and All,
Fr. Samuel Moses Brown

March 24, 2024 Bulletin - Welcome the Lord… at all times

March 17, 2024 Bulletin - Countdown to the Passion

March 10, 2024 Bulletin - The Light of God

March 3, 2024 Bulletin - Spiritual & Physical maintenance

February 25, 2024 Bulletin - Transfiguration - God’s Ways

February 18, 2024 Bulletin - All About Lent

February 11, 2024 Bulletin - Jesus Heals a leper - Thanking God

February 4, 2024 Bulletin - Jesus is the Messiah - the Healer

January 28, 2024 Bulletin - The Word of God

January 21, 2024 Bulletin — Time of Fulfillment in the Gospel of Mark

January 14, 2024 Bulletin - Ordinary Time/Gospel of Mark

January 7, 2024 Bulletin — Epiphany

Pastor’s Corner