July 31, 2016
Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Views From The Pews
2
Did You Know?
Rob writes, “I don’t agree with what
you said in your homily. I can’t imagine
God not wanting us to ask him to take
away our problems.”
“You misunderstood me. I
said it is perfectly okay for us to ask God to remove life’s
struggles. However, I also pointed out that the Our
Father, the perfect prayer, does not mention asking God
for relief from our struggles because, from time to time,
God wants us to have struggles. As I frequently point out
our struggles are our friends, not our enemies. It is our
proper use of our struggles, not our good times, that
make us holy. If we learn from our struggles, we’ll
develop empathy for others who struggle. And, if we use
that empathy to reach out in love, as Jesus commands,
to serve and help the needy, we’ll become holy.”
Mary writes, “My friend told me the Vatican is going to
make priests turn their backs to the people like we did in
the old days. Is that true?”
“No, it is not. Earlier this month, at a meeting
of the Sacred Liturgy Conference, Cardinal Robert
Sarah encouraged priests to celebrate Mass “ad
orientem.” Ad orientem means “to the East.” Cardinal
Sarah suggested the practice, essentially going back to
the way Mass was celebrated before Vatican II, begin
this advent. The request was given weight because
Cardinal Sarah heads-up the Congregation for Divine
Worship. About a week later, though, the Vatican said
Cardinal Sarah’s statement does not have the Vatican’s
endorsement The Vatican implied Cardinal Sarah’s
recommendation is just his personal opinion.”
Fr. Mike
Days of Mercy every Wednesday
at Visitation of Our Lady Church
5:15 pm - 6:15 pm
Confessions & Divine Mercy Chaplet
6:30 pm ~ Evening Prayer or Mass*
*Mass will be celebrated on the following evenings:
September 14, November 2 & November 16
Pew Research recently conducted a national poll in
which it asked American adults how the president should
talk about Islamic extremists. Here are the results.
Don’t Criticize
All Muslims
Democrats
70%
Republicans
29%
Total
Speak Bluntly, Even If
All Muslins Are Included
22%
65%
50%
40%
Fr. Mike
Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults
Are you or someone you know interested in
becoming Catholic? If you answered “Yes” then
please read on...
In August we will begin our next class for adults
interested in learning about the Catholic faith using the
Rite of Chr istian Initiation of Adults or RCIA. These
classes are for the un-baptized, those baptized in another
Christian faith who wish to become Catholic, and for
baptized Catholics who have not yet received the
sacraments of First Communion or Confirmation. If you
are interested in registering or need additional
information, please call the Pastoral Center at 347-2203.
R.C.I.A. begins in August.
CCD REGISTRATION
Registrations WILL NOT be accepted
on the first night of CCD.
All public school and non-Catholic private school
students residing in or registered in VOL Parish should
enroll in our CCD program to receive age-appropriate
faith formation essential for spiritual growth and the
reception of the sacraments. Information about the CCD
program and new student registration forms can be found
on the VOL website at www.vol.org. Returning student
registration forms were mailed to their homes.
I will be accepting registrations in the teachers lounge
o n August 2nd, 3rd & 4th from 4 - 7 p.m. The deadline
to register for CCD is August 4th. A late fee will be
added after that date.
Registration will NOT be
accepted on first night of class ~ NO EXCEPTIONS!!
Jenny Doskey
Director of Religious Education