Sunday, June 2, 2013

MONDAY MORNING MISSION MEDITATION for the week of June 2, 2013


Catholic Charities. Providing Help. Creating Hope. 

VISION: Believing in the presence of God in our midst, we proclaim the sanctity of human life and the dignity of the person by sharing in the mission of Jesus given to the Church. To this end, Catholic Charities works with individuals, families, and communities to help them meet their needs, address their issues, eliminate oppression, and build a just and compassionate society.

MISSION: Rooted in the Mission of the Diocese of Youngstown "to minister to the people in the six counties of northeastern Ohio . . .(and) to the world community", we are called to provide service to people in need, to advocate for justice in social structures, and to call the entire Church and other people of good will to do the same.

GOALS: Catholic Charities is devoted to helping meet basic human needs, strengthening families, building communities and empowering low-income people. Working to reduce poverty in half by 2020.

KEY VALUE: Hospitality

WHAT WE DO: Organizing Love. "As a community, the Church must practise love. Love thus needs to be organized if it is to be an ordered service to the community" (Deus Caritas Est, par. 20) 


On Sunday, (The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ -- Corpus Christi --  http://usccb.org/bible/readings/060213.cfm)  we read from the Gospel of  Luke about Jesus’ feeding of the multitude -- about 5,000 men without counting the womena and children.  In other words, a very large crowd listened eagerly to Jesus’ words and were touched by His healing presence.  When the time drew late, the Apostles got tired and wanted to dismiss the crowds since they were “in a deserted place.”  Jesus tells them to feed those gathered.  But the complaint:  we only have 5 fish and 2 loaves.  Jesus then calls all to gather in small groups, and after His blessing, all were fed so that 12 baskets of leftovers remained.  Jesus calls us to continue to feed those in our midst through Word, Worship and Service.  This feast of Corpus Christi reminds us that we are indeed the Body of Christ and are called upon to care for each other.  Jesus prayed with, feed and healed those who gathered with Him.  Today as the Church, we continue that ministry of Jesus to love one another, spiritually and practically.


Catholic Charities  (http://www.ccdoy.org) continues that ministry of Jesus through its concrete actions of feeding those in need.  As a core dimension of the Church, Catholic Charities organizes resources and people to help maintain, grow and feed the Body of Christ today.  When some are hurting -- like those who increasingly come to Catholic Charities for food due to their growing food insecurity -- we the Church must respond with material and spiritual care.  Our regional Catholic Charities’ agencies, along with parishes and St. Vincent de Paul Societies, work together to ensure that no one goes hungry. Even though we may have only 5 loaves and 2 fish, we do the best we can -- together -- to ensure that those in need find assistance. Thanks to your generous support to the Annual Bishop’s Appeal for Catholic Charities and Church (http://www.doy.org) we continue to feed the hungry -- multiplying our resources -- witnessing our love for each person as they are made in the Image and Likeness of God.

Reflection from Church Documents and Official Statements


http://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/how-we-teach/new-evangelization/year-of-faith/images/year-of-faith-logo-montage.jpg







http://cmsimg.news-press.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=A4&Date=20130315&Category=OPINION&ArtNo=303150023&Ref=AR&MaxW=640&Border=0&Editorial-Pope-Francis-unique-chance


Pope Francis:  On the Most Holy Trinity


Vatican City, May 26, 2013 (Zenit.org) http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/on-the-most-holy-trinity--2


Here is the Holy Father's address before and after the recitation of the Angelus to the faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square.
* * *
Dear brothers and sisters!
Hello! This morning I made my first pastoral visit to a parish of the Diocese of Rome. I thank the Lord and I ask you to pray for my pastoral service and this Church of Rome, which has the mission of presiding in universal charity.
Today is Trinity Sunday. The light of Easter renews in us every year the joy and stupor of the faith: let us understand that God is not something vague, our God is not something vaporous, he is concrete, he is not an abstraction, but has a name: “God is love.” It is not a sentimental or emotive love, but the love of the Father that is the origin of every life, the love of the Son who dies on the cross and rises, the love of the Spirit, who renews man and the world. Understanding that God is love does us a lot of good, because it teaches us to love, to give ourselves to others as Jesus gave himself to us, to walk with us. Jesus walks with us along the road of life.
The Most Holy Trinity is not the product of human reasoning; it is the face with which God himself revealed himself, not from the height of a cathedra, but walking with humanity. It is precisely Jesus who revealed the Father and promised us the Holy Spirit. God walked with his people in the history of the people of Israel and Jesus always walked with us and promised us the Holy Spirit, who is fire, who teaches us all the things that we do not know, who guides us from within, he gives us the good ideas and the good inspirations.
Today we praise God not for a particular mystery but for himself, “for his great glory,” as the liturgical hymn says. We praise him and we thank him because he is Love, and because he calls us to enter into the embrace of his communion, which is eternal life.
Let us place our praises in the hands of the Virgin Mary. She, the most humble of creatures, through Christ has already arrived at the goal of the earthly pilgrimage: she is already in the glory of the Trinity. Because of this Mary our Mother, Our Lady, shines for us as a sign of sure hope. She is the Mother of hope; on our journey, on our road, she is the Mother of hope. She is also the Mother who consoles us, the Mother of consolation and the Mother who is with us on the journey. Now we all pray to Our Lady together, our Mother who accompanies us on the journey.



Some important date(s) this week:


See website http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/Saints/ByDate.aspx for biographies of Saints and Blessed celebrated this week.



MONDAY.  JUNE 3.  Blessed John XXIII  (1881-1963)

Although few people had as great an impact on the 20th century as Pope John XXIII, he avoided the limelight as much as possible. Indeed, one writer has noted that his “ordinariness” seems one of his most remarkable qualities.


The firstborn son of a farming family in Sotto il Monte, near Bergamo in northern Italy, Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli was always proud of his down-to-earth roots. In Bergamo’s diocesan seminary, he joined the Secular Franciscan Order.

After his ordination in 1904, Angelo returned to Rome for canon law studies. He soon worked as his bishop’s secretary, Church history teacher in the seminary and as publisher of the diocesan paper.
His service as a stretcher-bearer for the Italian army during World War I gave him a firsthand knowledge of war. In 1921 he was made national director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith; he found time to teach patristics at a seminary in the Eternal City.

In 1925 he became a papal diplomat, serving first in Bulgaria, then in Turkey and finally in France (1944-53). During World War II, he became well acquainted with Orthodox Church leaders. With the help of Germany’s ambassador to Turkey, Archbishop Roncalli helped save an estimated 24,000 Jewish people.

Named a cardinal and appointed patriarch of Venice in 1953, he was finally a residential bishop. A month short of entering his 78th year, he was elected pope, taking the name John, his father’s name and the two patrons of Rome’s cathedral, St. John Lateran. He took his work very seriously but not himself. His wit soon became proverbial, and he began meeting with political and religious leaders from around the world. In 1962 he was deeply involved in efforts to resolve the Cuban missile crisis.

His most famous encyclicals were Mother and Teacher (1961) and Peace on Earth(1963). Pope John XXIII enlarged the membership in the College of Cardinals and made it more international. At his address at the opening of the Second Vatican Council, he criticized the “prophets of doom” who “in these modern times see nothing but prevarication and ruin.” Pope John XXIII set a tone for the Council when he said, “The Church has always opposed... errors. Nowadays, however, the Spouse of Christ prefers to make use of the medicine of mercy rather than that of severity.”

On his deathbed he said: “It is not that the gospel has changed; it is that we have begun to understand it better. Those who have lived as long as I have…were enabled to compare different cultures and traditions, and know that the moment has come to discern the signs of the times, to seize the opportunity and to look far ahead.”

He died on June 3, 1963. Blessed John Paul II beatified him in 2000.





CHARITIES NEWSBYTES


CHURCH AT HOME COLLECTION.  JUNE 1-2

The Church at Home Combined Collection includes the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, the Catholic Communications Campaign, and The Catholic University of America/Newman Campus Ministries.  For more information visit http://doy.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=267:church-at-home-combined-collection-set-for-june-1-2-2013&catid=3:press-release&Itemid=95


FORTNIGHT FOR FREEDOM:  June 21-July 3.  

The U.S. bishops have called for a Fortnight for Freedom, a two-week period of prayer and action, to address many current challenges to religious liberty, including the August 1, 2013 deadline for religious organizations to comply with the HHS mandate;  Supreme Court rulings that could redefine marriage in June, and religious liberty concerns in areas such as immigration and humanitarian services.  For more information, visit http://doy.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=264:diocese-of-youngstown-participates-in-the-2013-fortnight-for-freedom-&catid=3:press-release&Itemid=95


2013 Annual Bishop’s Appeal for Catholic Charities and Church.  

The in Church/parish appeal is now underway.  Please consider a gift to help support the work of Catholic Charities and other ministries of the Diocese of Youngstown https://secure.acceptiva.com/?cst=450afc




PAPAL INTENTIONS:   JUNE

Mutual Respect. That a culture of dialogue, listening, and mutual respect may prevail among peoples.

New Evangelization. That where secularization is strongest, Christian communities may effectively promote a new evangelization.




Corporal Works of Mercy:  The seven practices of charity toward our neighbor

  1. Feed the hungry
  2. Give drink to the thirsty
  3. Clothe the naked
  4. Shelter the homeless
  5. Visit the sick
  6. Visit those in prison
  7. Bury the dead



Note: Please consider joining our

TWITTER account, CCDOY, http://twitter.com/CCDOY
for current updates and calls to action that we can all use. 

See our website at http://www.ccdoy.org for links to the our ministries and services.    
For more information on Catholic Social Doctrine and its connection to our ministries, visit my blog at:  http://corbinchurchthinking.blogspot.com

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