December 30, 2012

Our American culture ends Christmas on December 25th. How many radio stations play Christmas music on the 26th? The Church however, is just beginning its Christmas celebration. We celebrate Christmas until the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord (Jan 13,2013). During this time, there are feasts that help us focus on how the Incarnation of God becoming human has made a difference in our lives. They are The Holy Family, Mary, the Holy Mother of God (New Years’ Day) and the Epiphany.

Before we start putting those Christmas decorations away, may we take the time to reflect on what the birth of Christ means to us. What does it mean to live as a family of Nazareth? The spirit of Christmas should remain in our hearts long after
the day itself.

Two weeks ago, we were devastated by the shootings of 20 children and 8 adults in Newtown, CT . One can only remain speechless at such a violent act. Many people ask, “Where was God during this act?” God was there, but God allows for free will. Even though we have faith, we will still experience suffering. But, with God we are
not alone! Paul Claudel, a theologian, wrote that “Jesus came not to take away our suffering but to fill it with His presence”.

As we conclude the year of 2012, I offer you some beautiful photos where Christ has been present in our parish this past year. It is up to us with God’s grace in 2013, the Year of Faith, to let God’s presence grow stronger.

Happy New Year!

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families.
St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!

Fr. Jim,
Pastor

December 23, 2012

4th Sunday of Advent
Mic 5:1-4a;Heb10:5-10;Lk1:39-45
Christmas Day
Is 9:1-6;Tit2:11-14Lk 2:1-14

We have now entered into the final week of the Advent Season. This is the shortest of the four weeks since Christmas begins at 4pm on December 24th this Christmas Eve.

The readings speak for themselves as to the greatest event that could ever happen to the human race, our God has come to be with us.

For centuries, different religions have taught that they have a special relationship with the gods. They have made sacrifices and they have prayed to them in a variety of ways. Many have stories of how they had visions of the gods.  The Jewish and Muslim faiths had Abraham, Moses and the prophets who brought the world closer to the one and true God. Abraham was spoken to by the Lord and began to fulfill a promise that God would save His people forever. Moses brought forth the 10 Commandments which had the fingerprint of God. He along with the Israelites, carried the presence of God in the Ark of the Covenant. This had been the closest God had been with His people until He came through His Son Jesus Christ as fully God and fully Man on that first Christmas Day.

We as Christians are the first and only faith that can say that God has both blessed His people and shown up in visions of people. God has become His people in and through the Son, Jesus Christ. Christmas means that God not only created space and time; God entered us by inserting Himself through humanity becoming our flesh and blood, our kin, our child, our teen, and adult. This gives us great joy and hope, because everything we are experiencing now, God has been through. No other faith or religion can claim this as their own.

As we journey with Mary, Joseph, and the shepherds to Bethlehem, may we rejoice that the Lord has come to save us from sin and death and ultimately from our very selves. Listen to the voice of the Angels which say “Do not be afraid for a child, a Savior has been born for us, who is Christ and Lord.” (Lk 2:10)

On behalf of Frs. Saul, Jerome, McCabe, Msgr. Bennett, Srs. Mary, Cathy, Karen, Joan and the entire staff of St. Ignatius Loyola, I wish you and your loved ones a most blessed Christmas and a peaceful New Year. May the light of Christ illumine in your hearts forever. Oh, and lest I forget, please wish everyone you see a “Merry Christmas!”

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families.
St. Ignatius, pray for us!

Fr. Jim,
Pastor

December 16, 2012

Third Sunday of Advent
Zeph 3,14-18;Phil 4:4-7; Lk 3:10-18

During this Third Sunday of Advent, we light the third or rose candle. This candle is rose colored because we are at a time to rejoice. We call this Gaudete (Rejoice) Sunday. The prophet Zephaniah reminds us that we who are repentant and faithful to our God, will experience the joy of God’s coming to us.

Last week we were introduced to John the Baptist. This week, John tells us what we have to make right in our lives in order to have a straight pathway to God.

During this Advent, I have been reading reflections by Fr. Robert Barron. In his meditation this week, he writes that one of the problems in blocking Israel’s pathway to God was false worship of different gods. This is taking what is less than God and making it into one’s ultimate concern. One becomes conformed to what they value most.

The crowds have gone from Jerusalem to find John. They have a sense that something is wrong with their lives. The nation has fallen again into false worship that it lost its soul over when it was exiled into Babylon. They have come to be cleansed and start anew. That is the reason for his ceremonial washing, his baptism.

When they ask him “what should we do?” he tells them to do works of mercy and justice. If you give up your false idols of life, and worship the true God, who is righteousness and justice, then your life will conform to His.  Your lives will be filled with righteousness and justice.

The question this Advent is, how are we doing in regard to justice? How do we stand in regard to the poor and the disenfranchised?  One way of testing to see if we are living a life of justice, is to measure our lives according to the Corporal Works of Mercy:

To feed the hungry;
To give drink to the thirsty;
To clothe the naked;
To visit the sick;
To visit the imprisoned
(could be someone in jail or
homebound)
Sheltering the Homeless;
To bury the dead.

This could be best gift a person can ever receive.  Perhaps instead of stressing out over what retail gift to buy our loved ones, we can make a donation to a charity on their behalf.

Following the Corporal Works of Mercy helps us to share in God’s divine nature and possess eternal life, which we call sanctifying grace.

Another way to be faithful to John’s message is by participating in the sacrament of reconciliation. On Monday, December 17th we are offering penance service beginning at 7:30pm. What better way to prepare our hearts as a home for Jesus. Please join us, especially if you have not taken advantage of the sacrament for a while. We are also offering confession throughout the week. Check the bulletin for details.

What’s Happening Around Our Facilities

Decorating for Christmas is happening little by little. The lights around our trees reflect that as our days grow dimmer, the light of Christ grows stronger. As we decorate, try to keep the spirit of Advent until December 24th. This season flies by too quickly.

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. 
St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!

Fr. Jim,
Pastor

December 9, 2012

2nd Sunday of Advent
Baruch 5:1-9; Phl 1:4-6, 8-11; Lk 3:1-6

The Gospels for this 2nd Sunday of Advent and next Sunday focus on what some would call a “funny looking” character, according to our times, John the Baptist.

While today’s Gospel does not describe John the Baptist, Matthew tells us that John wore camel’s hair, a leather belt around his waist, and his diet was wild locusts and honey( Mt.3:4). It probably tastes like chicken.

John is certainly not the person you would invite to liven up a party. However, to seek the right path to God, John certainly has the expertise. He tells it like it is in life. There is no guile with John.

To describe John the Baptist in our times, is like a parent who corrects us when we did something wrong; a concerned friend who calls us to task when we may have said the wrong thing or been drinking too much; a teacher does tells the truth and his/her own bias opinions. John the Baptist is the last of the prophets, God’s mouthpiece, who speaks about our faithfulness or lackthere- of, and reminds us to place God first in our lives.

This Sunday, John tells us to “straighten our paths, lower our mountains and fill in the valleys for the coming of the Lord Jesus” (Lk 3:1-7). Luke writes that John speaks at the time of Roman and Jewish leaders in power, telling us how important John is even though he is a common man. He is a herald, an announcer, of the Lord.

To lower the mountains and fill in the valleys of our lives, we need to reflect on what pathways of life we have chosen. Are they leading us to or from God? We also need to identify those mountains and valleys such as pride, jealousy, selfishness, addiction, violence, fraud and lust. This leads to sin. One way to lower the mountains and fill in the valleys, is by looking at what we watch on television. Many of today’s television shows are a virtual wasteland of sex, sexual innuendos, violence, cursing, and bullying. Is this what we want for our children and ourselves?

A few weeks ago, we were all asked to submit names on a special card of people we know who have not been to Mass for a while. I now invite you to invite them to St. Ignatius Loyola. You may invite them to a Sunday or weekday Mass, or to some of the events we have here for Advent. On Friday, December 14th at 7:30pm, invite young people to our annual Christmas caroling starting in the new school cafeteria.

On Saturday, December 15th following the 5pm Mass, we are having a tree lighting with hot chocolate and cookies. What a great time to invite your family or friends to the 5pm Mass and enjoy the lighting of the tree.

You may also invite those for whom you pray, to the annual “Lessons & Carols at 3:30pm on Sunday Dec. 16th in the Church. This will only last for 1 hour. It is not a Mass, but a service with scripture readings from the Bible, prayers and music.  These are ways we can help people feel more at home here at St. Ignatius Loyola.

We recently learned that Fr. Joseph McCabe will be leaving us on Jan 6, 2013 for a new assignment.  Fr. McCabe is a Maryknoll missionary priest who has preached the Gospel to many nations around the world from Tanzania, to Russia and to Italy. We were lucky to have him for about 3 years here in little ol’ Hicksville. While here, Fr. McCabe has been the Diocesan Director of the Pontifical Missionary Societies (formerly called the Propagation of the Faith) and the Diocesan Mission Office for the Diocese of Rockville Centre.

Along with my brother priests, I am grateful for his service here at St. Ignatius Loyola. He has certainly gone above and beyond his call of duty as a priest in residence. Fr. McCabe has journeyed with us in our tears at funerals, wedded us at the altar, visited us when we were sick and he helped fill in the gaps at the rectory when we did not notice. I want to personally thank Fr. McCabe for helping and encouraging me in my first year as pastor. It is a blessing to have a guide when you embark onto new territory. May God bless you Fr. Joe in your new ministry as a student, again! Remember, you always have a home here at St. Ignatius Loyola, even if there is no heat in your room.

Please join us in celebrating Fr. McCabe’s Priesthood here at St. Ignatius Loyola at the 5pm mass on Sunday December 29th, followed by a reception in Msgr. Tarrant Hall.

May God bless you and Mary keep you always.
St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!

Fr. Jim,
Pastor

December 2, 2012

1st Sunday of Advent
Cycle C-Readings
Jer.33:14-16, 1Thes 3:12-4:2, Lk. 21:25-28,34-36

Happy New Year, everybody! You might be thinking, “we just finished Thanksgiving and Fr. Jim is wishing us a Happy New Year? Only a pastor for a year and already he’s lost it?” Don’t worry, I am not out of my mind, at least not yet. However, we are entering into a new year, not our secular calendar year, but the Church liturgical calendar year. When Church begins the First Sunday of Advent, she proclaims it a new liturgical year. Since the Second Vatican Council, the Church year is divided into 3 cycles or years, A,B and C. Each cycle focuses on a particular Gospel passage. During Cycle A, we focus on the Gospel of Matthew. During Cycle B, we focus on the Gospel of Mark. During Cycle C, we will focus on the Gospel of Luke. The first reading from the weekday mass readings is divided into Cycle 1 or 2. During Cycle C, we will hear the readings from Cycle 1. Then we alternate to Cycle 2, the next liturgical year. By the time we finish Year C, we will have heard much of the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke with John interspersed in-between along with the readings from the Old and New Testament, giving us a fuller sense of God’s acts in salvation history as found in the Bible. This neutralizes the argument that the Catholic Church is not scriptural enough. The Gospel of Luke tells us this week, nothing here on earth lasts forever; whether it is in nature, the cosmos, politics, our purchases from the store or online and even our own bodies. Fr. Robert Barron writes, “don’t’ expect to find your ultimate fulfillment in any of it”. I pray that as we begin the new Church Year with Advent, we will fix our eyes on Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, who belongs to all times and all ages. Amen!

CHANGE OF SUNDAY EVENING MASS SCHEDULE EFFECTIVE JANUARY 6. 2013:

After some consultation and careful consideration, the scheduled evening Masses on Sundays will have new times. Effective on Sunday January 6, 2013, the new time for the Masses will be at 5:15 P.M. (English) and 7:00 P.M. (Spanish).  The reason why I, in consultation with the other priests, have decided to change the Mass times is two-fold:
1)It has become obvious that we need some time and space between the former 6 PM and 7:15PM Masses on Sunday. I have witnessed increasing congestion outside and inside the Church. In our parking lots, people are trying to leave while others are trying to enter. Due to this congestion, the safety of our people has become compromised and there is the danger of some becoming injured.
2) The faithful, coming to both of these Masses, have a right to finish their worship without feeling rushed to leave the church, while also having sufficient time to prepare for the liturgy in a quiet and calm manner before each Mass. By changing the times in the way outlined above, we now have sufficient time for each group to come, pray, worship and leave (as we have with our regularly scheduled morning Masses) without feeling congested or rushed in the parking lot or in the sacristy area.
These changes are made to more effectively serve those who attend Mass on Sunday evenings, and I ask your support and cooperation in this decision to create a more comfortable and inviting worship experience for all. Please note the change, plan accordingly, and tell all your friends and neighbors of this new schedule.

LITURGICAL CHANGE IN FLOW OF HOLY COMMUNION LINE:

Beginning this weekend, the change in the flow of the assembly receiving Holy Communion goes into effect. This affects anyone sitting in the main body of the Church. During Holy Communion, you are asked to come up the center aisle, make a slight bow before the host, say Amen after you hear the words “The Body of Christ” and then return by way of the side aisle.  This pattern allows us to approach the table of the Lord and not have our backs to the Lord on our return.

SOLEMNITY OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION DECEMBER 8th:

The Church will soon celebrate the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary on December 8, 2012. This is the Patronal Feast Day of our nation as the United States of America. Please remember that this is a Holy Day of Obligation for all Catholics. Consult the bulletin for Mass times. With that in mind, I share with you this Ancient Prayer of the Virgin. I invite you to pray it during this season of Advent.

 We turn to you for protection, Holy Mother of God.
Listen to our prayers and help us in our needs.
Save us from every danger, glorious and blessed virgin. Amen.

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!

Fr. Jim,
Pastor

November 25, 2012

Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe
(34th Sunday in Ordinary Time-Last Sunday of the Liturgical Year)
Dn 7:3-14, Rv 1:5-8, 18:33-37

Reflection Question: How does the Kingdom of God differ from earthly
kingdoms? How do you help it spread?

PATTERN CHANGE IN THE COMMUNION LINE- DECEMBER 1ST AND 2ND 2012

The greatest act we can do as Catholics is to participate in the Eucharist  (the Mass).  In the Eucharist, one of the most important actions is the privilege of receiving Holy Communion. According to the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM), the reception of Holy Communion is the “consummation of the Mass where the people purchased for the Father by his Beloved Son eat and drink the Body and Blood of Christ” ( p. 131 #5). In Holy Communion, Christ is truly, really and substantially contained” body blood soul and divinity( GIRM p. 133 # 8). When we receive Holy Communion at the Eucharist, we are joined together as members of Christ’s mystical Body, sharing in the one life of the Spirit (GIRM p. 131 #5).

When I arrived last June of 2011, one of the first things that I noticed was the pattern of the Holy Communion line at mass in the main body of the church. On Sundays, we have been coming out from the side aisles to receive Holy Communion and then head back through the center aisle. After inquiring about this pattern of the communion line, I could not ascertain the reason why we do what we do - only that this is the way we have always done it.

Why do I want to change our communion line approach? First, all of the Church documents stress our approach to the altar, the table of the Lord to receive his Eucharistic food. We join in procession with the other members of our community to approach the altar to receive Holy Communion. By coming up from the side aisles we are not really in front of the altar. When we return, our backs are to the altar. Second, we need to be in union with one another. When we receive from the center aisle, physically and spiritually we will be in union with our brothers and sister who receive from the trancepts as they face the altar and our Hispanic brothers and sisters in Christ who have been receiving this way all along. In addition, we will be in unity with most of our parishes in the Diocese and across the world. In this great Sacrament of the Altar, we are united with the Lord and one another. Our approach from the center makes this more imminent. As a reminder, we show our respect and love for the Eucharist by bowing slightly before we receive Communion and answering “Amen” to “The Body of Christ.” Since this is the last Sunday of this season and of the liturgical year, the pattern change will happen next Sunday December 1 and 2, 2012 which begins the new season of Advent. I ask that all people who sit in the pews in the main body of the Church come up for Holy Communion by way of the center aisle and go back by way of the side aisle. Any person sitting in the disabled section, who cannot come toward the altar, will have communion brought to them. Thank you for your cooperation on this very important manner.

I would like to mention how happy and proud we are of our young people who received Confirmation. We pray that the Lord may bless them and that they may continue to be connected to Christ through our church.

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!

Fr. Jim,
Pastor

November 18, 2012

33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
Dn 12:1-3,Heb 10:11-14,18, Mk 13:24-32

This week, we celebrate the one Holiday that all Americans can take part no matter race, color or creed; Thanksgiving Day. From the events that have occurred around Long Island and the tri-state region from Super Storm Sandy, we can all be grateful to our God for the gift of human life. While grateful, we also pray in union with those o have lost loved ones to the storm.
Thanksgiving should teach us that we are to be thankful every day not just one day a year- most especially to our God. Meister Eckhart, a German Theologian, once said that if we just say “Thank You” to God each day, that is sufficient in itself to be a prayer. On behalf of Fr. Saul, Fr. McCabe, Fr. Jerome, Msgr. Bennett, our Dominican Sisters Mary, Kathy, Karen and Joan, and our entire staff of St. Ignatius Loyola, we thank you all for being faithful parishioners of St. Ignatius Loyola. Thank you to all who have worked so hard in helping to create a home in our Warming Center the past two weeks for those without power. Thank you to all who have donated and will donate to the cause in helping the victims of Super Storm Sandy. May you and your families, relatives and friends have a blessed Thanksgiving. I now share with you a proclamation by President Abraham Lincoln declaring ThanksgivingDay for the United States. As you read it, you will see that his words, though written in the 19th Century, still resonate very much with us today.

November 11, 2012

32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
1Kngs 17:10-16,Heb9:24-28, Mk 12:38-44

SUPERSTORM SANDY STORM RELIEF

During the last week of October, we all experienced a storm that was stronger than the Hurricane of 1938.  Back then, most of us were not even born or were very young. I hope you were safe during this storm.

Like you, we here at St. Ignatius did not have power for several days. Some people are still without power even I as write this column. We have some damage by our convent from fallen trees and a broken sidewalk. We join our prayers together for all those people whose lives were devastated by Superstorm Sandy, most especially those on the south and north shores of Long Island. May the Lord comfort them and bring them hope through the hands of others.

Events like this certainly remind us that no matter how much we human beings achieve in terms of technology or other forms of human accomplishment, we are still nonetheless subject to forces beyond our control. We are limited, we are dependent, and we are not divine. It’s good for us to dwell on that from time to time and how much we need God in our lives.

These events also bring out the best in people despite the tragedy around us. I have seen great generosity.   Thanks to Joe Samodulski and our Human Services Ministry team we have opened up a Warming
Center in the “new school” cafeteria during the weekday evenings from 6pm to 9pm for all those without power. We are now looking for donations to help the victims of Superstorm Sandy. These will be sent to the distribution centers of the hardest hit areas.

WE NEED YOUR DONATIONS

The following items are to be Travel Size, small, to fit into a zip lock bag with other items.
Body soap/wash
Toothpaste
Toothbrushes
Shaving Cream
Razors
Deodorant (Men’s & Women’s)
1 Gallon-Size Lock Bags
Travel-Size Tissues
Feminine Hygiene Products

DROP OFF TIMES AND LOCATION
Human Services located in the back of the
Convent Building:
M,T,Th 9:30am to 3:00pm
Wednesdays 6pm to 8:30pm
Saturdays-After the 9am
& 5PM Masses
Sundays-After all the Masses

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. St. Ignatius, pray for us!

Fr. Jim,
Pastor

August 12, 2012

18th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Ex 16:2-4,12-15;Eph 4:17,20-24; Jn 6:24-35

Reflection Question: How does the Bread of Life, Jesus help you to satisfy your hungers?

We continue our reflection on John chapter 6. . Last week Jesus fed the crowd in a physical way through the multiplication of the loaves and fishes. This week Jesus takes the crowd and us on a deeper level of understanding with His teachings. The people are looking for Him to be a simple miracle worker and they are questioning His authority.
Jesus, as God, is a whole lot more than a miracle worker. He not only fills people physically, but spiritually.

All who take heed of Jesus’ Word and make Him the center of their lives, are nourished for a life of eternity. Jesus, Himself, is the Bread of Life that we all need in order to “do the works of God.” Take time to listen to the Word at Mass in the Scriptures this week.

SOLEMNITY OF THE ASSUMPTION –A HOLY DAY OF OBLIGATION AUG14/15TH
Please join us, as it is our obligation, to participate in the Mass for the Assumption on August 14th(Vigil) or on the Holy Day of August 15th. The masses at St. Ignatius are as follows: Tuesday, August 14th-7:30pm; Wednesday August 15th 7, 9, 12 and 7:30PM. When we come to this Mass, we are commemorating the event of Mary being assumed(going) up to Heaven body and soul. We are saying to ourselves and the world that what the Blessed Mothers is now, we shall one day be; sons and daughters of eternal life!

SPIRTUAL ADOPTION PROGRAM—Dear friends in Christ, Two weeks ago the nation was stunned by the violence that occurred at a movie theater in Auroa, Colorado where at least 12 people were killed senselessly and at least 50 others were injured. Since then, the nation has cried out against this violence. As I contemplated this horrific event, I could not help but think of another horrific event that takes place right under our noses, even as I am writing to you right now.  This is the violence of taking an unborn human life by the act of abortion.

Since the Roe V. Wade decision in 1973, the number of abortions in the US has increased to 1.2 million annually.  Abortion is a violence that strikes directly at the beginning of human life. Why should we be surprised when violence hits us at other times when we allow it at life’s inception? With all this said, we can make a difference to
“stop the violence.”

I am asking you today to make a personal commitment to pray daily for one unborn child who is in danger of being aborted. I am also asking you to “spiritually adopt” one unknown baby for the next nine months. We will pray for this child that he or she will be carried to term and experience the fullness of life, as God intended. 

Picture for just a moment a young woman who discovered she is 7 weeks pregnant. She’s surprised and is contemplating an abortion. She does not realize that the baby needs to be totally dependent on her to live. She is pressured by others telling her there are no other options.

However, we can show her in a spiritual way there are options. All our prayers can make a difference whether or not this baby will be born. Please read the articles about the Spiritual Adoption program in our bulletin and seriously consider signing up to pray for a baby, yet to be born. On Aug 11th/ 12th, you will find spiritual adoption cards to think over. August 18th/19th is the official sign-up weekend where you can drop your card in a basket. Please consider this program as we try to reverse violence and never underestimate the power of prayer!

THE DEATH OF MSGR. FRANK MIDURA (What’s Happening Around our Facilities)
In working on my Pastor’s Corner, I have often looked at other parish bulletins for assistance and ideas. Every week one of our cooks, Mickey Margas, brings the bulletin from St. Thomas More, in Hauppauge where her brother Msgr. Frank Midura was the pastor. One thing that struck me about Msgr. Frank’s bulletin was his report about the facilities of the parish. Once he completed a project, he often wrote “progress”. I thought great idea! I’ll do that here too to keep people aware of what’s happening with the buildings of the parish.

This past week we received sad word that Msgr. Midura died suddenly. The Church has lost a great man. Our prayers go out to Mickey and her entire family. May Msgr. Frank Midura now rest in the peace of Christ in Heaven. There he can certainly say without a doubt “PROGRESS.” We hope that one day we can say that too.

Thank you to all who helped and came to our Mass and social in celebrating the Feast of St. Ignatius! We had at least 75 people.

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!

Fr. Jim,
Pastor

July 29, 2012

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time
2Kings4:42-44, Eph.4:1-6, Jn.6:15

Reflection Question: What are some of the ways God feeds you in this life?

As we proceed through the Scriptures this Sunday, you may notice that the Gospel has changed. Usually during Ordinary Time, the Church stays with the Gospel of the present cycle of readings; Cycle A, B, or C. This year we are in Cycle B, the Gospel of Mark. However, since Mark is the shortest of the Gospels, the Church in her wisdom decided to also include a part of the Gospel of John. So, every three years we get an opportunity to focus on John’s chapter six. This particular chapter is very important to us because it helps us focus on the importance of the
Eucharist in our lives. John’s Gospel does not have a Last Supper scene like the other three. However, we find in chapter six a foreshadowing of the Eucharistic banquet to come. For the next five Sundays, we will have an opportunity to focus on how our God takes care of us and feeds us through His Son Jesus - first through physical food such as bread, then through His teachings and the Word, and most importantly, through His very Self in His own Body and Blood. I invite each of us to take time to read chapter six because it will help us to have a deeper understanding of the Eucharist (the Mass) which is the “source and summit of our lives.”

This Sunday in 2 Kings and John 6:1-15 we recognize that God does care for us and that God always provides for us no matter the events we face in life. Elisha is at a place of worship, a shrine, named Gilgal. There are other men with him who want to learn because they are aspiring to be prophets. While there, someone shows up with twenty barley loaves, a gift for the prophet and his disciples. Usually this gift is offered up to God as a sacrifice.  However, Elisha, recognizing the hunger of the people, commands that the loaves be given to them to eat immediately. Though at first it looks like there is not enough, we see that there is just enough for all. This story tells us that God knows our needs. He works with what is available to provide abundantly for all our needs.

Today’s Gospel continues the theme of God providing. Where Mark left off last Sunday, John continues with the miraculous scene of the feeding of the multitude. Here we find that there are leftovers. This tells us that God continues to provide and care for us through the Church, the Word, and the Sacraments, most especially the Eucharist.
We are then transformed by God’s provisions to make Jesus’ mission our own by loving as He loved us and giving of ourselves so that others may be fed and will not go hungry.

Feast of St. Ignatius
An example of the Lord providing for the Church and the world is found in the life of the patron of our parish, St. Ignatius Loyola, whose feast day we celebrate this Tuesday July 31st. St. Ignatius went through a time of conversion that transformed him from a rich military man to a person who gave the rest of his life to God and founded the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) that have helped educate millions of Catholics in the faith at colleges and universities around the world.

St. Ignatius is the author of what is known as the “Spiritual Exercises” that helps make the Scriptures more real in our daily lives. St Ignatius’ motto is “For the greater glory of God.”

I have a special love for St. Ignatius because I had the opportunity to experience his Spiritual Exercises on a thirty day retreat during my last year in the seminary. To this very day, I credit these prayerful exercises for reaffirming my vocation to the ordained priesthood. I also believe that it is of no coincidence that I, along with my brother priests, have the opportunity to be here to serve all of you at St. Ignatius Loyola parish. Please join us for a special Mass on July 31st at 9am followed by a social outdoors. The rectory office will be closed till at least 10am Tuesday, July 31, 2012.

What’s Happening Around Our Facilities?

The parking lots are being painted, the spot for those with disabilities was moved one lot over and one parking space is no longer accessible so that the priests can move out more freely from the garage. We do not need accidents.  Progress!

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!

Fr. Jim
Pastor

July 22, 2012

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Mark 6:30-34

Reflection Question: When do you carve out time to rest with Jesus in prayer? Where do you pray best?

“Come away and rest awhile”(Mk 6:31) - There are many instances where this Gospel passage fits well with the season or the events happening in our lives. What a better time to hear Jesus’ words “come away and rest”, then during the summer when things should slow down, when we are given the opportunity to take time out of our busy schedules and “smell the roses” or to pay more attention to God in our lives. Even Jesus and the disciples needed to “get away” from the daily tasks of ordinary life.

Many times life goes by so quickly that we miss out on those occasions, where God wants us to be more present to Him. Perhaps as we go away or plan a stay-cation at home, may we take the time with our families and friends to notice God a little bit more so that we can be more open to His revelation. We can notice God in Church, in a park, on the beach, hiking, walking, bicycling, and even at home.

During this time of year, I take some time to pray in the mountains by a stream or by the ocean - quiet and alone. Each place has brought me a peace that no other can give. May we take the time so that we do not miss out on the good that is before us.

In regards to vacations, you may have read an article in Newsday, 7/7/12, about going to Mass while on vacation.  There is an excellent reply by Fr. Marty Klein, a retired priest at Our Lady of Mercy and our former business manager. Fr. Marty said that “Taking a break from faith is never an option. Faith is a part of your life”. The only time we would be excused from Mass while on vacation is if we are in transit, on a cruise or in an area where we just cannot find a Church. Besides, when we go to another parish, we get the sense of what the word Catholic really means, universal. As I mentioned last week, please bring a bulletin from whatever parish you visit.

Novena to St Ann - After the 7AM, before the 9AM weekday Mass, before all the Sat/Sun Masses, join us for a novena prayer to St. Ann, the mother of Mary and Grandmother of the Blessed Sacrament, Christ Jesus. You will find a prayer card in your row.

The Feast of St. Ignatius Loyola, Tuesday July 31st Come and join us for Mass at 9AM on Tuesday July 31st to celebrate our parish patron, St. Ignatius Loyola. What a great blessing that this saint, who taught us to do all things for the greater glory of God, is our patron. Please bring your families and your friends.!

What’s Happening Around our Facilities?

Thanks to our boy scouts for 1)varnishing and painting our outdoor benches and kneelers. They needed a lot of work, 2) the gardening, watering and weeding in our parish gardens. 3)cleaning up the school from unnecessary items. You have helped to beautify our parish grounds. Now the job for us all is to maintain its beauty.

In regards to the school, you may have noticed that there are a few filled dumpsters on the side of the school. This is to help us clean out the school of any unnecessary materials. There are quite a few items that will stay such as desks, computers, statues, the indoor playground and other items that are essential for our parish programs. We are currently looking into several possibilities for use of the school by other organizations. Once this has been finalized, you will be the first to know.

Congratulations to our New Altar Servers - We are installing the following new altar servers Sunday at the 9:30am Mass: Sean Dalton, Daragh Foley, Eoin Foley, Stephen Gonzalez, Luke Lavan, Erin McCartney, Mark Sullivan. Please join me in praying for them and congratulating them and their parents for this ministry of service.

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!

Fr. Jim,
Pastor

July 15, 2012

Reflection Question: How do your possessions help your discipleship in following Jesus?

Fr. Saúl Londoño - Father Saúl Londoño is a Colombian priest, belonging to a Society founded in his own country, called the Xaverian Missionaries, or “Misioneros javerianos de Yarumal”.  After spending more than 20 years in Africa, as a missionary priest, Father Saúl came
back to New York for eye treatment; he lost his vision in his right eye. In Africa, he was serving missions with very poor people in Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Angola. Starvation and death from all kinds of illnesses was the everydays scene. When he arrived in New York, Bishop Murphy of Rockville Centre assigned him as Chaplain at North Shore Plainview Hospital for one year. It was a new and great experience for him to be able to assist those suffering in so many ways. At the hospital, Fr. Saul was able to put into practice the languages he learned in the missions: French, Portuguese, Italian, Spanish and English.  Since the transfer of Fr.José was imminent, Fr. Saúl was assigned to our parish, St. Ignatius, as an Associate Pastor, while he continues with his eye treatment. Fr. Saúl has been a priest for 24 years and says “I feel very happy to be able to serve in the parish of St. Ignatius”. Father likes to be called “Fr. Saul”. Fr. Saul is away at the present time.  He will be joining us in late July.

Fr. Jerome Francis Whajah Ackah - Father Jerome came from Ghana in West Africa. He did his elementary, college, and seminary education in Ghana. He is the second son among 11 children. He entered the minor seminary in 1979 and completed in 1986. That same year, he entered the major seminary and after philosophy and theological studies and training for six years, he was ordained for the Diocese of Sekondi-Takoradi in 1992. After serving the Diocese in Ghana for 4 years, he was sent to South Africa for a missionary program for seven years in the Diocese of Witbank in Mpumalanga province. Later in 2001, he came back home to serve his mother diocese for five years before he applied for a sabbatical leave in 2008 in the USA. Before this time, Fr. Jerome had been coming for the summer months as a replacement from 2002-2007. He has been a Chaplain in the hospitals of South Nassau University Community Hospital, North Shore LIJ, Glen Cove, Huntington, Patchoque, Long Beach Hospital, Peconic Hospital, Riverhead, Mercy Medical Centre, Rockville Centre, St. Francis Heart Hospital, South Nassau Community Hospital and now LIJ Plainview Hospital. Fr. Jerome completed 4 units of Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) with the help of the Diocese of Rockville Centre. He says “When some ask do you like it here?” My answer always has been that I love America very much and all the good people. I am already liking it here at St. Ignatius Loyola, thanks be to God.”
PS. You can call him “Fr. Jerome”.

What’s Happening Around our Facilities

Check out the new kneelers in our Blessed Sacrament Chapel. Thanks to Robert Renner, one of our ushers who is also a talented carpenter. May God bless you Robert as you have helped us to kneel a little bit easier before our Jesus in the Eucharist.

Thank You! Thank You! Thank You! A great thank you to all who have given so much of their time and talent in preparation for the “Fortnight for Freedom”. It is through your efforts and creativity that all of our events were well attended and filled with a Spirit of prayer, freedom and justice. Most especially I want to thank Noreen Crayne for
assisting me in the planning of all these events. She was a great help to me.

Family Movie Night -Check out the flyer in the bulletin. On Thursday, July 26th our new Family Life ministry is offering an outdoor movie for everybody.  Please be safe during these summer months. There have been too many tragedies as of late. If you are traveling, bring back a bulletin from another parish. I always like to see what the other (guy) is doing.  Please remember in your prayers Sr. Jackie Walsh a sister of Mercy, her family and St. Edward the Confessor parish in Syosset. I knew Sr. Jackie since my days at St. Brigid in Westbury (’98-’03). Sr. Jackie was a sister of spirit, life and love. She will be sorely missed. May she rest in the peace of God.

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. St. Ignatius Loyola, pray for us!

Fr. Jim,
Pastor

July 1, 2012

June 30-July 1, 2012
13th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Mk 5:21-43

Solemnity of The Nativity of John the Baptist
Farewell and Thank You
Fr. Jose Quilcate

This past Monday, we received word that Fr. José will be moving from St. Ignatius Loyola to serve at Our Holy Redeemer parish in Freeport at the end of this month.  Fr. Jose’s new pastor is a familiar friend of St. Ignatius, Fr. Arcoleo. We are happy that Fr. José will certainly not be among strangers in his new home. Because Fr. Jose’s departure has
come rather quickly, we will sponsor a celebration for him sometime in the future based on his schedule. On behalf of the priests, sisters and staff of the parish, I want to personally thank Fr. José for his 10 years of service to St. Ignatius, most especially for his work with our Hispanic Community. One of Fr. José’s achievements was implementing the current weekly Sunday Spanish Mass. He has also worked faithfully with our Spanish Community in Religious Formation, Education and Community in helping Hispanics belong more deeply to our parish. We thank him for bringing us his joy at our English Masses too. May God bless you Fr. José. Remember that you always have a home here at St. Ignatius Loyola. Dios te bendiga! (God bless you!) In the meantime, the Bishop has assigned us two new priests, Fr. Saul (Saulo) Londono and Fr. Jerome Ackah. Fr. Saul is currently the Chaplain at North Shore Plainview Hospital. He will be our full time Associ ate Pastor. Fr. Ackah is now the Chaplain at South Nassau Hospital. He will be in residence and serving as Chaplain of North Shore Plainview. Fr. Saul will arrive on June 30th and Fr. Jerome will arrive sometime after June 27th. More on our
new priests in next week’s bulletin. Stay tuned!

June 17, 2012

11th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Ez17:22-24, 2Cor 5:6-10, Mk 4:26-34
Father’s Day

Reflection Question: What is God presently calling to grow to fullness in your own life and in the life of our parish community?

Coming from an agrarian society, Jesus often spoke with images of planting and farming in explaining the Kingdom of God. Today’s Gospel is a classic example. The mustard seed is the smallest of seeds for planting. It is 1/20th of an inch in size. Yet, once in the ground, it becomes the largest of plants. In fact, it grows and spreads very quickly as a bush. This image of the growth of the mustard seed describes what happens to the Kingdom of God once it is planted with in us as long as it is in the right place.

The seed of God’s Kingdom has been implanted in each of us from our baptism. All it takes is a little faith on our part and the Kingdom of God blooms within us. It’s not so much of what we do, but what we allow God to work within us. This means cooperating with His grace. To help work with God’s grace, our lives need to be ready, cultivated, fertile and open in listening to God’s Word. The growth of God’s Kingdom takes time, especially more for some than for others. However, if we continue to be faithful, patient and persevere, then the fruits of the Kingdom shall be made known.

Who better to help cultivate and prepare us for God’s grace than our parents, particularly our dads. On this Father’s Day, I want to take this time to thank my dad and all the dads both living and deceased who have given their time, talents, lives and their faith to help us grow into the people our God has called us to be. May God continue to bless all of our living dads and help them to continue to be beacons of hope. May God embrace all the fathers who are deceased and bring them to where one day we shall be; our home in heaven. Happy Father’s Day!

June 10, 2012

Solemnity of the Most Holy Body
and Blood of Christ-Corpus Christi
Mk. 14:12-14,22-26

Reflection Question: What can you do to appreciate the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ?

As mentioned previously, our Bishops have written a document entitled Our First, Most Cherished Liberty:  A Statement on Religious Liberty. In this document, they encourage each of us to take a stand in letting the government know that religion is to be practiced freely not only in our Churches, but also in the public realm without any fear of retribution. The Bishops call for each of us to express our solidarity as Americans during the weeks of June 21-July 4th entitled a “Fortnight for Freedom”, which is to be a “great hymn of prayer” for the country. In honoring their request, we here at St. Ignatius are offering three events to help us participate as witnesses of liberty.

• Friday, June 22nd 7:30PM: Movie “A Man for All Seasons” School Gym
  Come and watch the life and times of St. Thomas Moore who was martyred for his faith during the reign of King Henry VIII of England.

• Holy Hour and Adoration on Liberty and Religious Freedom: 7:30PM Church

  Tuesday, June 26th Speaker: Fr. Brian Barr, Vocations Director DRVC

  Tuesday July 3rd Speaker: Fr. Lachlan Cameron,
  Associate Pastor St Rose of Lima

I invite all of you to take part in at least one event. Please join us as one family to be the “conscience of the state” so that we can express our beliefs not only as Christians, Jews, Muslims, but as Americans.  This is one way we can live out the Eucharist we will receive on this Solemnity of Corpus Christi!

I urge all our parishioners to see “ For Greater Glory” starring Andy Garcia, Peter O’Toole and Eva Longoria. It is a terrific motion picture about what price you would pay for freedom . It is now playing in theaters and you can check your local listings for locations. “For Greater Glory is a top-flight production whose message of the importance of religious freedom has particular resonance for us today.”  Most Reverend Jose Gomez, Archbishop of Los Angeles.

June 3, 2012

Reflection Question: How can you build community in your family, our parish and community that resembles the relationship of the Holy Trinity; Father, Son and Holy Spirit, One?

Over the past few weeks, we have reflected upon several ways we can belong more deeply to Jesus and to His Church. We looked at ways to take a step in our prayer lives and in our participation and celebration in the life of church.  We acknowledge that we are accountable for all that we have been given. Our journey and self examination is intended to lead us to take action.

Commitment Weekend challenges us to do just that - commit to action. We are individually called by God to participate in the tangible mission of Jesus. We declare in writing our intention to take a step on our faith journey. Now it is your turn to respond to your Baptismal calling in building our Church by volunteering in one of the many ministries St. Ignatius has to offer. Please fill out the card you will find in your row at Mass. Through our commitment and sacrifice, we belong more deeply to Jesus and to His church!

Thank Yous :This past Sunday truly showed us what it means to live as the Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) when we share our time and talents together in honoring our Lord and His Mother, Mary. Though we come from different backgrounds and cultures, we were one in expressing our Faith in our prayer, our ministries and our sacraments.

*A very special thank you to Koreen Cassiero for her hard work in organizing our Ministries Fair last weekend. Though it rained for the first hour, the show still went on in our Gymnasium.

Thank you also to all of our parishioners from our different Ministries and Groups who helped make this a wonderful event for our Parish

*A special thank you also goes out to our St. Ann’s Mother’s Prayer Group who organized the beautiful day in honoring the Blessed Mother with a crown of flowers. Thank you also to our choirs and first holy communicants and the Knights of Columbus for participating in this special day.

*Thank you to Deacon George Mais and his Confirmation team in preparing our new parishioners for the Sacrament of Confirmation.

*Thank you to our Golf Outing Committee for the fantastic job you did in giving us a wonderful day at the Town of Oyster Bay Golf Course. It was a tie between Msgr. Thom Costa and myself in the putting contest. Now I know a little bit of what Phil Mickelson feels like with many people watching. Look for pictures to come!

May 27, 2012

May 20, 2012

Seventh Sunday of Easter
Acts1:15-26, 1Jn 4:11-17, Jn17:11-19

Religious Liberty: The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty recently wrote a document entitled “Our First, Most Cherished Liberty- A Statement on Religious Liberty.” It was in the Long Island Catholic April 18, 2012 issue. You can find it at licath.org.  We plan on putting the document on our parish website soon.

The Bishops are encouraging each Diocese and parish to speak out for the protection of our religious liberty. For our part, you will see 7 articles promoting religious freedom. The first article was published last week. The second one follows in this week’s bulletin. On the dates between June 14th and July 4th we hope to provide something more substantial in helping us all become more aware of the threats to our freedom by our government.

Please read carefully, pray, reflect and speak out for truth and justice. This is not just a Catholic or Christian matter. This is a Religious matter affecting all Religions. “If our obligations and duties to God are impeded, or even worse, contradicted by the government, then we can no longer claim to be a land of the free, and a beacon of the hope for the world.”-Excerpt from “Our First, Most Cherished Liberty-A Statement on Religious Liberty” USCCB

PS-Join us for our Annual Golf Outing next Tuesday May 29th! I am practicing my putting.

Please note the many events happening at St Ignatius Loyola next Sunday, May 27, 2012 Confirmation: Next Sunday, May 27, 2012 the parish will be confirming Catholics at the 11AM Mass who are baptized and have received the Eucharist. Confirmation makes one a full member of the Church where one is re-strengthened by the Holy Spirit to serve as a witness for Christ Jesus and His Church.

Crowning of the Blessed Mother: Since May is dedicated to the Blessed Mother, we will crown her as Queen of Heaven and Earth at the conclusion of the 12:30PM Mass next Sunday, May 27th in our Stations of the Cross Garden. Please join our First Holy Communicants for this special event.

Ministry Fair-Sunday, May 27, 2012: Join us for our Ministry Fair next Sunday after the 9:30AM, 11:00AM and 12:30PM Masses. Perhaps you might be interested in serving Jesus by joining a ministry that fits your gifts and talents.

Thank you, Thank You, Thank you –First Holy Communions: Thank you to all who gave us such beautiful First Holy Communions these past 3 weeks. We thank most especially our Religious Ed, St. Ignatius Parish School and Music Ministries! The liturgies were beautiful and inspiring. Children, please remember to ask your parents to bring you to church on Sundays or Saturday nights!

Diocese of Rockville Centre Catholic Ministries Appeal 2012 - Parish Totals: Thank you to all who gave to the Catholic Ministries Appeal 2012. When we reach our goal of $80,000, St. Ignatius receives a significant share from the Appeal. As of: 5/15/2012 Pledges $54,586.00 No of Donors 298 Percentage of Goal 68%

Where Oh Where is Fr. McCabe??? : Fr. Joe McCabe is traveling through the Western Caribbean to the islands off the coast of Venezuela. He is on a Mission Trip. Please pray for his success!

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. St. Ignatius, pray for us!

Fr. Jim,
Pastor

May 13, 2012

Sixth Sunday of Easter
Acts 10:25-26,34-48; 1Jn4:7-10; Jn 15:9-17
Mother’s Day

Awareness Weekend
The freshness of spring and the new life of Easter aid us in renewing our commitment to a Christ–centered way of life. This weekend we begin our annual stewardship renewal with Awareness Weekend. Awareness Weekend calls us to be aware – conscious – that all that we are and all that we have has been given to us by God. Each one of us has been, and continues to be, gifted by God. When we realize that all has been given as a gift, our natural response is gratitude. We cannot help but say “thank you” for what we have received. One important way we can thank God is through prayer. Prayer is our grateful response to God’s gifts and a natural way to continue to belong more deeply.

First Holy Communion: Congratulations to all of our children who received their First Holy Communion on April 28th, May 5th & May 12th. May God continue to bless them and their parents as they strive to remain close to Him by bringing their children to Mass on Saturday Night or Sunday.

Please continue to pray for our children and their parents who have yet to receive their First Holy Communion Saturday, May 26th.

May 6, 2012

Fifth Sunday of Easter
Jn 15:1-8

First Holy Communion: Congratulations to all of our children, who received their First Holy Communion on April 28th , and their parents. May God continue to bless you and help you remain close to Him by bringing your children to Mass on Saturday Night or Sunday. Please continue to pray for our children and their parents who have yet to receive their First Holy Communion May 5th, 12th and 26th.

Golf Outing Tuesday May 29th Town of Oyster Bay Golf Club: Let’s make this a real St. Ignatius Communal Event. Fr. Thom Costa, Pastor of Our Lady of Mercy and I will have a putting contest at the conclusion of the outing. This day is a combined effort with Our Lady of Mercy Parish. We have 36 participants from SIL. Let’s make it 50! Come and support the parish! More details to follow in future bulletins.

Sunday May 27th Pentecost Ministry Fair Day: In order for many of our ministries( parish organizations) to be Ministries Fair Day before and after all the Masses. Please stop by and see where the Lord may be calling you to serve the parish.

What’s Happening Around our Facilities: A big thank you to all of those who have responded to the request in cleaning and varnishing our benches. Stay tuned for more information. We are still working on the back entrance way of the rectory. Thank you to Randy, our maintenance man, and Bruce Wimbiscus.  Progress is coming.

School Play: Thank you to all in our parish school for doing such a wonderful job with the school play on Friday April 27th. All of our children did just a beautiful job. Thanks especially to Sr. MaryAnn Noonan, Sr. Mary O’Donnell, Mrs. Allison Nurick and all who had a part in the production of the play to make it a success! God bless you.

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I want to welcome two seminarians Jeff Yildirmaz and Christopher Mirabal, from the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception in Huntington, who will be speaking to us about vocations  in relationship to their own vocation to the ordained priesthood. We ask God to bless them and all of our seminarians who are listening and answering the call of Jesus to “come and follow Me.” Pray for more vocations to the ordained priesthood and religious life.

We welcome back Fr. Francis Arackal OP (Dominican), teaching in Rome, who will be serving here at St. Ignatius until June 29th. Many of you know Fr. Francis from being here in the past. Fr. Francis will be celebrating Mass, meeting with people and visiting the sick while here. Please give him a warm St. Ignatius greeting and welcome.

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. St. Ignatius pray for us!

Fr. Jim
Pastor

April 22, 2012

Throughout these 50 days of Easter, concluding Pentecost Sunday (May 27th), we will hear and read of different experiences of the Risen Lord Jesus. Who is Risen Jesus, what did He look like after the Resurrection? We know two things, He definitely was not a ghost (like Casper). This Sunday’s Gospel tells us that He asked his disciples for something to eat and they give Him a piece of cooked fish, which He ate right in front of them. We also know that He was not a resuscitated corpse for the disciples, including Mary Magdalene, did not recognize Him at first, until He called them by name or spoke to them on what happened and why He had to suffer and die. We also know that the disciples on the road to Emmaus, the passage before this present Gospel, recognized Him in the “breaking of the bread.”

This Risen Jesus has what we call a glorified body— something that we one day will attain, after our death, because of our Baptism. No one knows exactly what that looks like until they are one with the Lord. It is a state in which many of our loved one’s now share, and one that we all look forward to one day. This is the hope that carries us through each day of our lives.

In the meantime, we can recognize the Risen Lord as did the disciples through words. We can come to know Him through the Scriptures, the Word of God we read at home and what we hear at Mass each week. We can come to know Him through the words of the priest/deacon, in his homily and in the prayers where he leads us. We come to recognize the Lord, most especially, through the breaking of the consecrated (blessed) bread at the Eucharist, where the priest speaks the words “this is My Body, this is My Blood.” We come to recognize Jesus through the words we share with one another. Jesus said “where two or three gather in My name there am I in their midst.” Jesus is here, He is risen. May we take time to pay attention and not miss Him in the words spoken and written in our midst.

First Holy Communions - Please pray for all of our children who are preparing to receive their First Holy Communion April 28th, May 5th, 12th, and 26th.

Golf Outing Tuesday, May 29th Town of Oyster Bay Golf Club Lets make this a real St. Ignatius Communal Event. Even though I do not golf, I’ll be there for the last hole. This event will help St. Ignatius!!

What’s Happening Around our Facilities

Work is now being done on the floor next to the south entrance of the church, near the Blessed Sacrament Chapel. Our parking lot is being reviewed to see what we can do with a sink hole in the back and other pot holes along the way. The window on the white house will soon be replaced, as will the ceiling in the rectory near the back entrance way. Since Good Friday, we noticed that some of our emergency lights have been broken around the church. Also, one of the underground sprinklers was damaged in front of the upper school. Though there is no hard proof, it looks like vandalism. A sign of the times. If you are driving by St. Ignatius, just take a peek to see that no one is damaging our property. Four, Six, or even Eight eyes are better than two. St. Ignatius is a house to all of us.

Catholic Ministries Appeal Right now we are at 63% of our goal! We encourage you to keep up the great work. Your contributions, big or small, will help St. Ignatius.

Fr. Jim,
Pastor

April 15, 2012

Reflection Question: When do you find forgiving easy? When is it difficult?

Throughout Lent, and particularly the days of the Sacred Triduum, so many of you have shared your time and talents in order to make our celebrations here at St. Ignatius Loyola meaningful and beautiful, and so on behalf of our priests, sisters and parish staff, we offer our thanks to our many liturgical ministers and staff, including our wonderful adult and children's choirs, altar servers, lectors, extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist, ushers, church sacristan, our Martha's Guild, and our maintenance who worked diligently to make the liturgies so meaningful. In serving together, you have helped Jesus come alive here in Hicksville! This is what the Resurrection is all about. He comes through each of us as He does through the Scriptures and the Sacraments. When we serve our parish, we allow the Lord to open our hearts to see Him and spend time with Him and live out His word. Then we, like St. Thomas the Apostle, can say "My Lord and My God."

Most especially, a sincere word of thanks to so many of you who faithfully joined us to worship and pray - you filled our church and made the effort of so many more than worthwhile.

We pray that the Easter Season, from the Day of th e Resurrection to the day of Pentecost, may renew within us our resolve to live as God's people. May the message of Easter offer us hope in God's power to transform any darkness in our lives into life and light.

April 8, 2012

Easter 2012—Cycle ABC

Back in 2003, you may remember we had a major blackout all up and down the East Coast into Canada. I remember it well. I just began the Lord’s work in my previous parish and was testing the lights in the Church to see what switch belonged to a particular light. That is when the power went down. At first, I thought I did it. But, it was greater than me. The night was so dark you could barely see your hand in front of your face. But what was so striking was the light from the stars and the camp fires in different back yards. The dark seemed no longer severe anymore.

It was then that I realized that even the smallest amount of light can shatter the greatest amount of darkness. Today we see in the Gospel that it was still dark outside the first Easter morning and the disciples were quite afraid. This darkness represented their doubts and fears. Jesus, their Lord and Teacher, was taken from them. Imagine their surprise when the body of Jesus was no longer in the tomb.

First they think His body was taken. How could this happen.? But then from the first witness of the Beloved Disciple, who did not even have to enter the tomb, to Peter to Mary Magdalene, they slowly realized that Jesus’ body was not taken. He had risen from the dead. Jesus had become that light for them and for the world that shattered the darkness of sin and death.

It is because of Jesus’ resurrection that we are here today. In fact, every Sunday we celebrate Jesus’ Resurrection. Only this Sunday makes up the central part of our faith and who we are as Christians. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, our faith would be a sham. St. Paul tells us that if Christ had not risen from the dead, our preaching is empty, our faith is worthless- we would be the most pitied of people.

As we see with the disciples, Jesus is the light that gets brighter in the lives of His Apostles and in our lives. When He greets them, He does not chastise them for leaving him, but only says “Peace be with You.” When we read about the empty tomb, we notice that the stone has been removed, the clothing of the dead body was put in its place - meaning that nothing can keep Jesus down or away from us or the world. More important than the empty tomb, are His appearances to His disciples. This shows us that Jesus has conquered death and the good news of eternal life has flooded into our world and our lives.

What is our response? Our response is to live a Life that shows we are Christian. We are to live our Baptism where we began to share in the risen life of Jesus. We need to celebrate His risen presence at weekly Sunday Mass, practice forgiving others and seeking forgiveness, and cleaning out our inner closets that represent darkness and death like greed, pettiness, jealousy, and excessive pride, say yes to truth and no to falsehood and deception.

What’s Happening Around our Facility

On Saturday March 24th, the police were at our rectory door around 9:30pm. We learned that three men had attempted to break into the white house. Thanks to alert people, the men were caught and taken out of the building. No one was hurt. However, one of the windows was broken by a large brick that had been thrown into it. This is a sign that lighting needs to go up around this building. We will be putting up flood lights and other security measures. Security is very important especially here in the downtown area of Hicksville.

On behalf of our staff, our sisters and priests of the parish : Fr. José, Fr. McCabe, Msgr. Bennett and myself , we wish you a very happy and blessed Easter. May the Risen Christ permeate your lives and be with you always so that you can live in His love forever! May God bless you and Mary Keep you and your families. St. Ignatius, pray for us!

Fr. Jim,
Pastor

March 25, 2012

Fourth Sunday of Lent
John 3:14-21

Third Sunday of Lent
John 2:13-25

Reflection Question:  When is it appropriate to express justified anger? How do you think believers should express love and respect for God’s house?

Lenten Mission As a sign in living our faith seriously, may we all take time to participate in our Lenten Mission coming up March 19-21 at 7:30pm given by Deacon Frank Bice entitled “Your Cross is Your Gift.” This is where we can take time out of our busy lives and let the Lord in to shape our hearts so that we may follow Him more closely. Please read the bulletin for more details.

What’s Happening Around our Facility—Work is now completed in the sacristy to repair the damaged tiles from water leaks. We are have a new drop-ceiling which will help make the sacristy look more presentable. We are also working on the inside of the rectory in the back hallway which has been facing water damage from a leaking pipe. Little by little the plant is improving.

Second Sunday of Lent
Genesis 22:1-2, 9a,10-18; Mark 9:2-10

Obedience, is not an easy attitude to cultivate in one’s life unless one surrenders and listens to the one who asks of it. As children, we know how important obedience is to our spiritual and physical growth in life. Many of our parents wanted the best for us and wanted us to grow with moral values and a deep faith. As we grow in life, we develop independent spirits that want to follow our own desires or at least what everyone else is doing. Sometimes that collided with the obedience we should show our parents. If you did not listen to your mother or father or you did something you were not supposed to do, you were often punished in some way. Hopefully, the punishment came not out of revenge but out of love to show us a better way of life. Even though we may not have liked the punishment, we learned something that for a family to live well together, rules needed to be followed.

Obedience can even be freeing because that means that you put aside your personal interests to follow a greater good. That is what our Father in Faith Abraham did in the book of Genesis. The word obedience comes from the Latin ob audire which means to hear or to listen. Not knowing the future, Abraham believed in God’s promise and listened to God’s word when he moved to the new land of Cana at age 90 or so and when he nearly sacrificed his own son Isaac for the glory of God. This brought Abraham and his descendents abundant blessings in which he became the Father of many Nations.

Jesus, who is the fulfillment of the covenant given to Abraham, manifests a glimpse of His resurrection to the disciples on the mountain in the Transfiguration. While this is occurring, a voice is heard by the disciples  “this is my beloved Son, listen to Him” (Mk 9:7). The disciples were given the sign that they needed to listen to Jesus and focus on His words so that they would follow Him the rest of their lives, even through the cross of suffering and death. The Transfiguration occurred to strengthen them in the midst of the cross and remind them that only way they can have eternal life is to listen and be obedient to Jesus. The whole mission of Jesus was based on His obedience to the Father. He said in the garden “not My will but Yours be done” (Lk 22:42). This brought a freedom to Jesus, where he was not a slave to fear or the negative voices of His time, where he gave His life up so that we are given life eternal. In the end, the apostles chose to be obedient to Jesus’ command in taking up their cross which gave us a vibrant Church. The same can be said for us. There are many competing voices our world that will try to distract us from our mission in following Jesus through His Church. They can be voices of insecurity, selfishness, ingratitude, greed, bullying, and they never listen to the Church because it is behind the times.

Thank You-Activities Committee—Thank you to our Activities Committee in sponsoring our Mardi Gras/Lenten fundraiser at Friendly’s this past Tuesday. It was a great success! It was wonderful to see many of you and to get to know your names. This was an important night to build community and have fun doing it. Look ahead for more events planned for the Fall of 2012.

Catholic Ministries Appeal—Next weekend we will have a speaker from Catholic Charities who will speak on the Catholic Ministries Appeal at all the Masses. As I wrote in my column a few weeks ago, our pledge goal was reduced to $80,000 from $112,000.

What’s Happening Around our Facility—The work on our brick above the sacristy is completed. Hopefully no more leaks. Work will now be done on the inside of the sacristy to repair the ceiling from leaks.

Fr. Jim
Pastor

February 26, 2012

First Sunday of Lent
Mark 1:12-15

Reflection Question: In what ways do you want Lent to be a new beginning in your life as a Christian? What will you do to work toward these goals?

PLEASE JOIN US

Join us at Friendly’s for a family/parish night fundraiser this Tuesday February 28th from 5 to 8pm. You can come at any time! It will be an opportunity to meet your priests, have fun with other parishionesr and help the parish financially all at the same time. Thank you to our Activities Committee for making this event happen!

WELCOME іBienvenidos! Padre Roberto Olortegui

A warm welcome to Fr. Roberto Olortegui, who is visiting us from Peru. Fr. Roberto was the former rector of Fr. Jose in Peru. He will be with us till mid March.

God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. St. Ignatius Pray for Us!

February 19, 2012

7th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Mark 2:1-12

The Pope writes that God asks us all to be “guardians of our brothers and sisters (Gen 4:9), to establish relationships based on mutual consideration and attentiveness to the well-being, the integral well being of others. Responsibility towards others thus means desiring and working for the good of others, in the hope that they too will become receptive to “goodness and its demands”. The Pope warns that indifference in our society today can result in a “spiritual amnesia” that numbs us to the suffering of others.

Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Mark 1:40-45

Reflection Question: Who are the Lepers of today? How do we react toward them; with compassion or ignorance?

Propagation of the Faith-Fr. Joseph McCabe our priest in residence, will be speaking to us at all the Masses next weekend Feb. 18/19 for the Society of the Propagation of the Faith. Through the offering of Catholics worldwide, the Propagation of the Faith provides ongoing support for the pastoral and evangelizing programs of the Catholic Church in Africa, Asia, the islands of the Pacific and remote regions of Latin America. Please be generous as your means will allow.

Parish Celebration of Mardi Gras/Lent at Friendly’s -Join us at Friendly’s (Declo Plaza-285 S. Broadway Hicksville) on Tuesday February 28th at anytime between 5pm and 8pm for a parish Family Night at Friendly’s. A percentage of all sales will go to our parish of St. Ignatius Loyola. Tickets will be available for raffles and cash raffles. Look for the flyer in the bulletin which must be presented at the time of food purchase.

Spanish Choir to Sing at St. Patrick’s Cathedral-Our Hispanic Choir from the 7:15pm Spanish Mass will be singing at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, New York City, this Sunday Feb. 12, 2012 at 3:45pm for the Feast of Our Lady the Virgin of Suyapa , the Patroness of Honduras. Congratulations/Felicitaciones!

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families! St. Ignatius pray for us!

Fr. Jim
Pastor

February 5, 2012

Fifth Sunday In Ordinary Time
Gospel Mark 1:29-39

Dear Parishioners: On January 20, 2012 President Obama's Health and Human Services Department announced that all health care plans must cover the procedures of sterilization, abortifacets and contraception. The rule is set to take place on August 1, 2012 . All religious organizations must comply to the rule by August 13, 2013. Under this new ruling, virtually all Catholic ministries-schools, hospitals, colleges and nursing homes will have to comply because we serve people of all faiths. In effect, this rule is forcing us to break our own rules and fall into sin. It is also a violation of conscience. We as Catholics can no longer be the silent majority or we shall end up being the silent minority.

Please read a summary of the article that follows taken from Catholic World News. After reading this article, I ask you go to the New York State Catholic Conference website www.nyscatholic.org and read Bishop Murphy's column in last week’s Long Island Catholic dated January 25, 2012 for more information. Please e-mail and/or write a letter to Senator's Schumer and Gillibrand protesting this horrific action. Senator Schumer www.schumer.senate.gov. Senator Gillibrand www.gillibrand.senate.gov.

Obama Administration Denies' Conscience Clause' Exemption on Contraceptive Coverage Brushing aside concerns about religious liberty and respect for individual consciences, the Obama Administration has announced that Church-related institutions will be required to provide contraceptive coverage for employees in their health-care plans.

Calling the administration's decision "literally unconscionable," Cardinal-designate Timothy Dolan, the President of the US Bishops' Conference, said that the ruling "has now drawn an unprecedented line in the sand.” He promised that the US Bishops would fight against implementation of the administration's plan. "In effect, the president is saying we have a year to figure out how to violate our consciences," he charged.

In a token response to the conscience-clause appeals, Secretary Sebelius announced that religious institutions would be given a one-year reprieve from the rule. While all other institutions will be required to carry contraceptive coverage by August 1st of this year, church-related institutions that apply for an extension will have until August 1, 2013 to comply. However, those institutions will be asked to refer their employees to other sources of contraceptive coverage Secretary Sebelius announced.

January 22, 2012

This week beginning from Sunday, January 29th thru Sunday,  February 5th is Catholic Schools Week across this great land of the United States. The theme for Catholic Schools Week 2012 is “Catholic Schools: Faith, Academics, Service.”

The theme focuses on three priorities that Catholic schools establish that make them stand out from other educational institutions. Children are taught faith – not just the basics of Christianity, but how to have a relationship with God. Academics- which in Catholic schools are held to very high standards, help each child reach his or her potential. Service- the giving of one’s time and effort to help others, is taught both as an expression of faith and good character.

For us here at St. Ignatius Loyola, these are bittersweet moments for our students, their families, faculty, and staff as we are prepare to close our school at the end of the academic year in June. This will be the last time that St. Ignatius Loyola School will celebrate this special week. While we need to grieve this loss, we also need to celebrate the 104 years of fine Catholic Education established here in the center of Hicksville since September, 1907 under Pastor Fr. Lawrence Fuchs and the education of the Sisters of St. Dominic. Since that time, our faculty and staff have taught generations of children with dedication, commitment and faith. They have fostered an environment that has enabled children and parents alike to witness Christ’s message of peace, love and hope. While St. Ignatius Loyola School closes, she will always remain alive in the hearts of her students. No one or thing can ever rob our students of the foundation of education that has been built for them.

My gratitude to our principals Sr. Mary Ann Noonan & Sr. Mary O'Donnell and the entire faculty and staff for your love of Catholic Education and your love of our children. You have helped fulfill the mission of the school which is to “Teach as Jesus Did.” Our prayers are with you as you look ahead toward the horizon and new opportunities that await you.

I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone for being supportive of our principals, teachers and school community following the announced closing of our school. Your prayers and kind words of trust and shared emotion is an indication of the deep level of faith and trust you have in God and His Church.

Many have asked me, that with the school closing, will we still be able to have religious education, scouting etc? The answer is simply YES, but of course. The two buildings, newer and older, are a part of the parish and shall remain so. They will continue to be primarily used for Religious Education, Parish Ministries and other Faith Formation programs. Our Spanish Community, CYO , Scouts, prayer groups, and other groups will continue to use the buildings as they have done in the past. Just because the school system is shutting down, does not mean that parish programs are going out with it. The parish will continue and with God’s help. We will become stronger and more vibrant in faith as we progress through the years ahead.

During this time period, the School and I will focus on the process of closing and celebrating the best of St. Ignatius. The Finance Committee and Pastoral Council and I will focus on future plans with the hope of the use of our buildings for rent by other organizations . In fact, some propositions are already being reviewed. Any future organization that uses our facilities must fit in with certain guidelines and regulations of the Catholic Church. They also need to be approved by the Diocese of Rockville Centre.

May we continue to pray for all involved in this difficult process. May we also entrust our school and her families to the Blessed Mother so that they are brought closer to Jesus for comfort, strength and wisdom. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. St. Ignatius, pray for us.

Fr. Jim
Pastor

January 22, 2012

Last Monday, January 16th, the country celebrated the birthday of a remarkable man, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He was known for his bravery and his speeches in creating civil rights for all, most especially black Americans. This Sunday, Jan. 22nd is another special more somber day for our nation. It is the marking of the Supreme Court decision of Roe v. Wade back in 1973 that made abortion the law of the land. Please note: Because this day is on a Sunday, the Church will observe this anniversary on Monday Jan. 23.

What is interesting is this, Dr. King moved our hearts with his “I Have a Dream” speech which spoke about a nation where black and white would be together and all human beings would be held in respect and dignity. Our goal as Catholic Christians, is to remind our government leaders and our citizens of this great nation that Dr. King’s dream extends to those human persons born in the womb of a mother. Since Roe vs. Wade, there have been over 1 million babies aborted here in America.

In our world today, our culture is more concerned with the plight of an animal than a human being, most especially those in the womb. For example, it is against the law to kill a rattle snake in my home state of PA. Yet, a mother and father can choose to have an abortion any time they want. There is one bumper sticker that I saw one time that says it all:”SAVE THE BABY HUMANS”.

Protecting human life from the beginning of conception is not just a religious matter, it is also verified by science that human life is formed in the womb. The Church reminds us that God recognized each of us before we were born, and called us by name , so too may we recognize the value of each human life and pledge ourselves to continue to defend and nurture God’s greatest gift to us.” (1992 Respect Life Manuel NCCB). If we want to experience God’s kingdom on earth as Jesus brought it to earth, then each of us are called to speak up for the vulnerable babies not yet born in a mother’s womb.

1) For those who have reserved space, you can go on our parish March for Life to Washington which will join thousands of other Catholics around the country in Solidarity. Mass for our group begins at 5AM. If you cannot make the March, join us for Mass.

2) For those unable to go on the March, this is a day of fasting, penance and prayer. We can take time to pray silently in our homes, at work, outside or in Church. Pray not only for the dead but also for mothers who have committed an abortion or are contemplating one at this very moment.

This Monday, the main body of the Church will be available for prayer and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament with the conclusion of the 9AM Mass till 5PM. I invite all to come at any time.

PLEASE NOTE: If there are funerals, then the adoration will begin following the funeral Masses.

On behalf of the parish of St. Ignatius, I want to personally thank each of you who have contributed to our parish this Christmas. Our total Christmas collection to date is $48,667.92. On behalf of Joe Samoldulski, our Human Services Coordinator, I want to thank everyone who bought gift cards for the poor this Christmas. Your generosity is a witness to the words of Jesus who said “what you have done for others you have done for Me” (Mt. 25:40).

January 15, 2012

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time
“Speak Lord, for your servant is listening.” Samuel 3:10

Both roofs, smaller and larger, were replaced by Mr. John Skenello and his crew form JSDN. I am grateful to him and his team as well as to Mr. Anthony Natale from Diocesan buildings department. With anything new comes a price. The parish now needs to pay back at least $80,000 to repay the loan. Luckily this will be interest free for at least one year. A very special thank you goes out to those who have contributed to this fund.

Christian Unity Week—Please join us on Sunday January 22nd for an Ecumenical Prayer Service at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church at 4pm. The church is located on the corner of Jerusalem and Old Country Road. This service marks Christian unity week. We will gather with our Christian brothers and sisters from the other denominations here in Hicksville. A good showing from St. Ignatius will show our spirit in helping to keep Christianity alive and well here in Hicksville.

May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. St. Ignatius, pray for us!

January 8, 2012

The Epiphany of the Lord
The Little Drummer Boy

Today we reflect on the Three Wise Men who came from the East and brought rich gifts to Jesus. The gifts tell us about the givers. And these special gifts—gold, frankincense, and myrrh—tell us much.

When one king visited or sent an ambassador to another, he would give a gift of gold to show that he acknowledged the kingship of the other. So the first gift of the Wise Men tells us they recognized Jesus as king. The second gift is a type of incense, which was used in Jesus’ time to worship God. This gift shows the Wise Men paying homage to Jesus’ divinity. Oil, the gift of myrrh, is used to anoint the dying. It reminds us of Jesus’ suffering and death on the cross.

What gifts do we have for Jesus? Maybe we can take a hint from the Wise Men. If we acknowledge Jesus as king, maybe a better gift than gold would be pledging our obedience to him. Each day we can promise to live our vocation as best we can, to love those around us, and forgive those who hurt us.

A better way than burning incense to pay homage to Jesus’ divinity is taking time to pray throughout the day. Some people are able to attend daily Mass, others spend time in adoration before the Eucharist, or take even a few minutes of their lunch break to say the rosary.

The song “The Little Drummer Boy” reminds us that the best gift is not necessarily the most expensive one. Instead, it is the simple gift that only we can give. Let Epiphany remind us to offer our lives to Jesus each day.

We have just ushered in a new calendar year 2012 and we have wished 2011 goodbye. As we welcome in this year, I am sure we all hope and pray that this year will be better than last year. Of course we say this every year, and when we say this we are usually thinking about our economic situation, our family situation, our health, and what ever else applies to us in any given year. Hopefully this year will be better for us in all of these areas, and my greatest hope is that this year will be better for our relationship with God. As we celebrated last weekend, The Birth of Jesus and our birth to a new spiritual life, let us also celebrate this new calendar year with that same desire. May we make this year much better than it was last year as we hope to come closer and closer to God.

In making our New Year’s resolution in coming closer to God, who better to follow than Mary; the first tabernacle of Jesus, the Mother of God, Mother of the Church, Mother of us all. In this Sunday’s (New Year’s) Gospel of Luke, we see all the events that are occurring at the birth of Jesus; A bright star appearing, Angels announcing, shepherds coming and worshipping and later the Wise Men bowing before her baby, the God made human. While this was occurring, Luke writes “Mary kept all these things reflecting on them in her heart”.

What does this mean that Mary was reflecting on the events of her life in her heart. Not fully understanding everything about Jesus at the moment, Mary was praying. She was thinking about how God was working in her life through Jesus. While reflecting or praying, Mary was opened to God’s grace which helped her to understand God’s plan of salvation through Jesus and gave her the strength and the faith to face the problems and sufferings of life. Mary continued to reflect over certain events of Jesus such as; finding Him in the temple at age 12 preaching to scholars, Jesus being criticized and ridiculed by the scribes, Pharisees and her own family teaching threatening ideas, and most especially at the Cross where Jesus gave His life before her and gave her to the Church. Mary was able to say yes to God from the moment of Jesus’ conception to her own Assumption because she reflected and believed that what was promised to her and the people of Israel would be fulfilled in and through Jesus her Son.

On behalf of all the priests and staff of St. Ignatius, Happy New Year! May 2012 be filled with God’s grace and promise. May God bless you and Mary keep you and your families. St. Ignatius pray for us!