The Liturgy of the Hours is the official prayer of the Catholic Church. As its name suggests it is the concrete expression of the Church’s desire to fulfill St Paul’s injunction to “pray without ceasing.” (1 Thess. 5:17) It is composed mostly of Psalms and other “songs” from the Old Testament and readings from both. It is often referred to as “The Breviary.” The word is derived from “breviarium” which means brief summary. We may not find it all that brief but it does put together the Church’s prayer in one place and is remarkably easy to master. Continue reading “Praying the Liturgy of the Hours”
3rd Sunday of Lent – Fr. Smith’s Homily
Christ and the Woman of Samaria, Rembrandt and student, c. 1655 (Met. Museum of Art, New York)
(The text of today’s Gospel, John 4:5–26, 39–42, can be found online).
The disciples were no doubt asking why they were in Samaria. Geographically Samaria is between Galilee to the north and Judea (Jerusalem) to the south. Obviously, it was easier to travel directly through it to get from Galilee to Judea but the Judeans (Jews of Judea and Galilee) and the Samaritans hated each other so much that it was a dangerous journey. This was a consequence of a centuries-old Assyrian colonization plan. After the death of King Solomon, the Kingdom of David split into the Kingdom of Israel in the North and Judea to the South. The Assyrians destroyed the Northern Kingdom in 722 BC. Their policy was to replace a significant percentage of native people with immigrants from other nations. They would intermarry and be more dependent on Assyria than the memory of what was there before. These foreigners adopted many Israelite customs but were never accepted by the Judeans (Jews) and there was always conflict between them. Although their religious practices were quite similar, the major issue was where sacrifice was to occur: for the Samaritans: Mt Gerizim; for the Jews: Mt Zion. To inflame things even further, the Jewish King John Hyrcanus destroyed the Samaritan temple in 129B C. So now the disciples find themselves in enemy territory in the heat of the day with no food. Continue reading “3rd Sunday of Lent – Fr. Smith’s Homily”
3rd Sunday Lent – 11:15 am (Fr. Smith)
Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained from ONE LICENSE with license #A-730437.
3rd Sunday Lent – 9 am (Fr. Smith)
Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained from ONE LICENSE with license #A-730437.
Collection to Support Catholic Charities Food Assistance
One of Catholic Charities’ services is providing nutritious meals to seniors. Because of the state of emergency in New York City, the Catholic Charities Centers are unable to have guests enter to receive meals. Take away baskets of healthy food are being provided instead. Catholic Charities has also expanded its outreach efforts to meet the growing need caused by the coronavirus outbreak. As a result, Catholic Charities is facing substantially increased demands on its resources.
We support Catholic Charities in its ministry. If you are able to contribute financially, we encourage you to donate online at https://stcharlesbklyn.weshareonline.org/CatholicCharitiesFoodCollection.
Sunday 3/15 Masses – Live Stream
Sunday 3/15 9 am, 11:15 am, 7 pm masses are still being held today. [Zoom meeting details removed from website for security reasons]
Eucharist Adoration will continue Monday-Friday 9 am – noon in the Church.
Beginning Monday 3/16 there will be no weekday or Sunday public Masses until further notice. Arrangements for online worship will be posted here and on our email list.
Urgent Update From the Diocese of Brooklyn 3/15/2020
Given the continuing and growing concern about the spread of the COVID-19 virus, Bishop DiMarzio has determined that all public masses be cancelled in the Diocese of Brooklyn beginning Monday, March 16th, until further notice. This includes weekday masses as well as Sunday. Funerals and Weddings will be permitted but should be limited to family members only. Parish baptism celebrations should be limited to family only, if they cannot be postponed. Confirmations should be celebrated with the Rite of Confirmation without Mass, if need be, and in consultation with the Bishop scheduled to celebrate the Confirmation.
The faithful of the diocese are reminded that the Bishop has already issued a dispensation from the obligation to attend Mass on Sunday. The obligation to keep the Lord’s Day holy can be fulfilled by maintaining a prayerful attitude and through personal and family prayer. The faithful are urged to watch the celebration of the Eucharist on TV, as well.
The celebrations are scheduled as follows:
Saturday at 6 pm: Vigil pre-recorded from Immaculate Conception in Jamaica (English)
Sunday at 11 am: Live from St. James Cathedral in Downtown Brooklyn (English)
Sunday at 1:30 pm: Pre-recorded from Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph in Prospect Heights (Spanish)
NET-TV can be seen in the New York City are on Spectrum (Channel 97), Optimum (Channel 30) and FIOS (Channel 48). Viewers can also tune in online at www.netny.tv.
In light of the continuing crisis, the situation is being monitored carefully and updates will follow. Let us continue to pray, especially through the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe, for those who are sick, for medical personnel and for all people as we confront this challenge.