Byzantine Catholic Mission
|
Holy Resurrection Byzantine Catholic Mission |
| Home | Location | Schedule | Photos | Bulletin | History | Prayers | Contact |
|
O ye incorporeal angels who stand before the throne of God, luminous with the brilliance thereof and everlastingly shining with radiance. As secondary luminaries, entreat Christ, that He grant unto our souls peace and great mercy. O immortal messengers of the truly incorruptible Life, ye most blessed ones who received life from the first Life, ye have become holy beholders of the eternal Wisdom, full of light, and reflecting lamps shown forth as is meet. O ye archangels and angels, principalities, thrones, dominions, six-winged seraphim, and divine, many-eyed cherubim, instruments of wisdom, virtues and powers most divine. Pray ye to Christ, that He grant our souls peace and great mercy. Archives:
|
HOLY RESURRECTION BYZANTINE CATHOLIC MISSION
Slava Isusu Chrisu! Slava Na Viky!
Divine Liturgy begins at 4 p.m. Every Sunday
Every Third Sunday of the Month is Food Sunday
Second Sunday after Pentecost
Divine Liturgy Intention:
Our Offerings
Second Sunday after Pentecost:
The Bad News, then the Good News
We have been privileged to receive the gift of faith without any merit on our part. In gratitude for this great gift the least
we can do is to show our appreciation and to share it with others.
We all know what bad news is. We are overwhelmed by it day after day in the media. In fact, there is so much of it we look for
something pleasant to clear our heads.
But what is good news? What does it mean? The Good News is Christ. The news is that Jesus is the Father’s gift to us,
that Jesus loves us, and that He is salvation and liberation from evil. The Good News is “God is with us.” He
inspires and helps us. In other words, the Good News is that God loves each one of us. He loves all and invites all to live
His life and to unite in His love.
The Good News is offering people a new and firm foundation for their lives. It is an invitation to build lives anew on
God’s love.
To bring the Good News to others is to evangelize. It is to witness and share what we ourselves have experienced and learned
from our relationship with Jesus. To be an evangelist is to love God and others as He loves us. Like Jesus, we must love
first, for then we can bring others into a loving relationship with God through our own lives and examples. This means we must
love people as they are, even as Jesus loves them. Evangelization is sharing — sharing something special — the
Good News of Jesus.
Evangelization is the responsibility of every baptized and chrismated person. “Go into the world and preach the Gospel
to all creation” (Mark 16:15). Everyone is to be invited to “come and see how sweet the Lord is.”
Sharing our faith proves we care. Thus, we, along with the Apostles in today’s Gospel, are invited to be “Fishers
of Men.”
— Father James Melnic
Six Reasons to Light Candles in front of Icons
Because our faith is light. Christ said, “I am the light of the world.” The light of a candle or vigil lamp
reminds us of the light with which Christ illuminates our souls.
To remind us of the radiant character of the saint whose icon we light the candle in front of, for saints are called
“sons of light” (John 12:36, Luke 16:8).
To serve as a reproach for our deeds of darkness, for our evil thoughts and desires, to call us to the path of evangelical
light, and so that we zealously try to fulfill the commandments of the Savior: “Let your light so shine before men, that
they may see your good works” (Matthew 5:16).
So that the candle will be a small sacrifice to God, who gave Himself completely as a sacrifice for us, and as a small sign of
our great gratitude and radiant love for Him from whom we ask life, health, salvation, peace and everything that only
boundless heavenly love can bestow.
So terror will strike the evil powers who assail us and lead our thoughts away from the Creator, even at the time of prayer.
The evil powers love darkness and tremble at every light, especially light that belongs to God and to those who reflect Him.
To remind us that the Creator created light before anything else: “And God said, ‘Let there be light;’ and
there was light” (Genesis 1:3). Light must be present at the beginning of our spiritual lives, so that the
light of Christ’s truth will shine within us before anything else. From the light of Christ’s truth every good is
created, springs up, and grows within us.
Pastoral Ponderings: Coming Stewardship Drive
As some of you may have already heard, the Diocese of Knoxville has begun a Capital Fund Campaign to raise $20 million for a
variety of causes, including each individual community. Although several “pilot” parishes have already begun their
individual campaigns, the majority of parishes are involved in two “waves.” The first wave begins in September;
the second, in which Holy Family will participate, begins in January 2005. Even though this seems to be in the distant future,
it’s not too early to begin thinking and praying about this event.
While it’s true that the financial aspect of any campaign is the most prominent feature, it should be noted that the
concept of stewardship — the wise use and appreciation of time, treasure, and talent as gifts from God — is the
constant theme of the campaign. Several of the priests from the pilot parishes reported that the campaign not only allowed
them to meet their financial goal, but benefited their parishes in other ways as well.
Obviously we will hear much more about this campaign in the months to come. It should be an exciting time in 2005, so brace
yourselves for the ride!
— Father O’Connell
Last updated: 14-Jun-2004 |
