Celebrating Mass with a new English translation

Dear Friends in Christ,

Next year at this time we will be celebrating Mass with a new English translation. The new translation is more poetic, more faithful to the original Latin, and more Biblical than the current translation. I think we will all find the new translation a joy and a challenge. A joy because of the beauty of the new words, a challenge because we will have to be more attentive in making our responses at Mass.

To help us prepare for the new translation over the next year we will conduct instructional sessions in our parish meetings, on our website and in the bulletin. These will include catechesis on the parts of the Mass, information on how the new texts came about, and comparisons of the current texts with the new texts. It will be an interesting and engaging time for us to deepen our understanding of the Mass.

Here is a quote from the U.S. Bishops’ website (usccb.org) regarding the new translation:

The Roman Missal, Third Edition, the ritual text containing prayers and instructions for the celebration of the Mass, has been approved by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. First use of the new text of the new Roman Missal will be on the First Sunday of Advent, November 27, 2011.

Pope John Paul II announced a revised version of the Missale Romanum (Roman Missal) during the Jubilee Year 2000. Among other things, the revised edition of the Missale Romanum contains prayers for the observances of recently canonized saints, additional prefaces for the Eucharistic Prayers, additional Votive Masses and Masses and Prayers for Various Needs and Intentions, and some updated and revised rubrics (instructions) for the celebration of the Mass. The English translation of the Roman Missal will also include updated translations of existing prayers, including some of the well–known responses and acclamations of the people.

May the implementation of the revised Roman Missal be a time of deepening, nurturing, and celebrating our faith through the renewal of our worship and the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy.

A joyous Advent 2010 to all of you.

Fr. Hildebrand

Stewardship

Dear Friends in Christ,

Sincere thanks to all of you who participated in our stewardship commitment drive last Sunday. Several hundred pledges were submitted, showing that St. John’s parishioners have really taken the message of personal conversion and sharing of resources, the fruit of God’s goodness. With this commitment from you I feel confident that we shall be able to move forward and develop our facilities for the benefit of the whole parish.

Stewardship, as you know, involves the proper management of resources, both personal and communal. As Christians we are responsible for the welfare of all members of the Church, including those who are poor. For this reason, we also have organizations like the St. Vincent de Paul Society which serves the poor in our area. Today I would like to share some information from the Society’s Annual Report so that you know that St. John’s is mindful of those in need.

The twelve active members of the St. Vincent de Paul Society provided nearly 2000 people with assistance in the form of food cards. Nearly 1400 received transportation help. Paid shelter was provided for 22 persons, 46 received medical aid, and utilities were paid for 28 households. Altogether our Vincentians logged 1448 hours of service to the poor and needy. A total of $55,513 was used to provide this assistance and none of it went to our Society’s members. As a matter of fact, members contributed from their own resources (over $900) in some cases. During the past year our parish provided $43,536 from collections and our poor box.

Recalling our Lord’s words in Matthew 25 that what we do for the least of His brothers we do for Him, we will again have an opportunity this week to share with our disadvantaged brothers and sisters. Thanksgiving reminds us of the need to return thanks to God for all the good He has done for us. Our Thanksgiving Day collection is entirely given to the St. Vincent de Paul Society so that they can continue their crucial work in our area. The weak economy of the past two years has resulted in more requests for help than ever before. In the spirit of good stewards of God’s blessings, I ask you to continue your support of the St. Vincent de Paul Society by sharing generously and cheerfully, for God loves the cheerful giver.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Fr. Hildebrand

Advisories

Dear Friends in Christ,

This week I want to focus on two advisories, one about books, the other about “chain” letters and emails. The first advisory is about books, specifically, books you might think are good for your children, but are really quite bad for them. I heard about these two books from a parishioner, but they have already been reviewed by both Catholic and other Christian leaders. These potentially dangerous books are Conversations with God and Conversations with God for Teens by Neale Walsch. The author uses a dialogue format in which a child or a teen asks questions and “god” answers.

The answers to the troubling questions on topics like cohabitation and sin are directly opposed to Biblical or any basically moral teaching. The books quote Scripture the way the devil would, to advance views on God and morality that contradict Christian doctrine. Keep them away from your children. Looking for good children’s gift books? A sequel to the Chronicles of Narnia is coming to theaters soon. Have your children read the original books by C.S. Lewis? It is a beautiful children’s series which teens will also enjoy. The message is very Christian and inspiring with plenty of fantastic scenes and images. There are seven books in the series, but each book has its own complete story.

My second advisory is about “chain” letters and emails. Sometimes I find photocopies of St. Jude novenas at the rear of church, which I always throw out. These are usually placed by people who think they will get a “miracle” by passing out ten or forty copies of the novena. The leaflet asks you to say the prayer for 9 or 10 or 30 days. This is a superstitious practice which violates the First Commandment. It pretends to have a power that only God Himself has.

The same goes for chain letters and chain emails. After some inspiring message, which may sound very good, they tell you to forward this email message to ten or twenty friends and expect a “miracle”. Again, this is superstition. The Catechism says: “To attribute the efficacy of prayers or of sacramental signs to their mere external performance, apart from the interior dispositions that they demand, is to fall into superstition”(no. 2111). Whenever I receive these emails I always press the delete button. I would advise you to do the same. You might also ask the sender not to include you on their mailing list for such mail.

God bless you and your family.

Fr. Hildebrand

Zacchaeus

Dear Friends in Christ,

Last weekend we heard the story of Zacchaeus who was very wealthy and received Jesus into his home. Now this man had more than what he needed and was protected by the policies of the Roman government. He could have just received Jesus, given him a nice dinner, and sent Him on his way without doing anything else. He would not have lost anything materially and he would have held on to his job as tax collector.

What made Zacchaeus change?

We may never know, but we do know that he did experience a real change of heart. We know that from what he said: “Behold, half of my possessions, Lord, I give to the poor, and if I have extorted anything from anyone I shall repay it four times over.” From this statement we can see that Zacchaeus had turned over a new leaf, that he had been converted. He was ready to let go of his wealth because he had found a treasure more valuable than silver or gold. He had found faith in God. Where our treasure is there is our heart, says the Bible. This is true. We find that we put most of our energies into what we want the most, what we are “passionate” about.

This weekend we are invited to reflect on the gifts God has given us and to respond to those gifts. This may mean joining a new group or ministry. It may mean deciding to commit to an hour of adoration every week. It may involve some talent that we have and wish to share.

During the coming week we are invited to reflect on the return we make to the Lord and His Church with respect to our material wealth. First of all we should thank the Lord for His gifts to us. After prayerful reflection we should be prepared to make a new commitment of our resources next Sunday. This new commitment should somehow be a measure of our desire to return something for God’s gifts. As a guide I would invite you to consider a percentage of your income rather than a fixed amount because money changes in value every day. Some say that 10% is a good percentage, 5% to the parish and 5% to your favorite charities. However, each one should give what he/she has inwardly decided.

Thank you for sharing your gifts of time, talent and treasure in our parish. The Lord loves a cheerful giver (see 2 Cor. 9: 7). May He reward you with true joy.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Fr. Hildebrand