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Volume 20 Issue 41
Bulletin Edition
NEWS
Holy Spirit thrills and fills
once again!
In the latest BLD Newark LSS, held this past
weekend at Divine Mercy Parish in Rahway, New
Jersey, LOVE once again filled the hearts of everyone
who was there – lambs, shepherds, as well as auxies.
Good feelings permeated the entire weekend.
Adding to the victories claimed during the
weekend was the LSS emcee’s own return from months
of intensive chemotherapy. Vino Guiang , originally
scheduled to be the coordinator for the LSS last April,
found out last Friday afternoon, that his cancer is in
remission…. Yes indeed, God is good all the time!
The 49 Graduates receiving the gifts of the Holy
Spirit were the following:
(ME) Bernardino De Guzman, Gertrudes De Guzman,
John Erick Dimalanta, Rizalyn Dimalanta, George
Geronimo, Catherinie Geronimo, Salvador Lopez,
Teresita Lopez, Joel Manigbas, Maria Manigbas,
Almario Morales, Mary Lu Morales, Danilo Parale,
Nancy Parale, Elmerson Reyes, Annalyn Reyes, Leo
Seno, Susan Seno, Danilo Zuniga, Irene Zuniga, Fr. Jose
Saltarin, Rufino Santiago, and Josefa Santiago
Continued, page 4
October 10, 2014
COUNSELS
THE INVITATION
OF THE KING
THEME:
True disciples of Jesus respond with fruitfulness
when they depend on Him totally for strength.
WORD:
Is 25:6-10/Ps 23:1-3,3-4,5,6
Phil 4:12-14,19-20/Mt 35:1-14
Go out, therefore, into the main roads and invite
to the feast whomever you find.
REFLECTION:
ORDER:
This Sunday’s readings remind us that as we
walk on the hard and narrow path to salvation, Jesus
responds to our obedience of His directives with
bountiful blessings; especially when we rely solely on
Him to give us the strength to endure the persecution
and trials throughout our journey. Our Heavenly
Father knows all our weaknesses and concerns. He
reassures us by saying, “Fear not, I am with you; be
not dismayed; I am your God. I will strengthen you,
and help you, and uphold you with my right hand of
justice.” (Is 41:10)
We are called to be His disciples to invite those
who do not know Him to the feast. At the same time,
as believers we respond to the invitation with varying
degree of dedication and commitment to God. When
we accepted the call of God the Father, we became the
invitation; the bible to the people--the good news.
As such we are now obliged to share the gifts, the joy
and the benefits we have received from the Father
because of this courageous act of acceptance. Pope
John Paul II called for a New Evangelization. We are
all urged to deepen our faith, to believe in the
Gospel message and to go forth and proclaim the
Gospel. As instructed in this Sunday’s Gospel, “Go
out, therefore, into the main roads and invite to the
feast whomever you find.”
Continued, page 3
Promise of the Week
“My God will supply whatever you need, in accord
with his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” (Phil 4:19)
ONLY ONE THING
“The Lord said to her in reply, 'Martha,
Martha, you are anxious and worried about many
things. There is need of only one thing. Mary has
chosen the better part and it will not be taken from
her.’” (Lk 10:41-42)
It is not difficult to get lost in the daily
distractions of life, the restless churning of our everyday
routines: meals to cook, bills to pay, floors to mop,
errands to run...the list goes on and on. If you are like
me, a usual day would start with the alarm going off at
around 5:00 am. From there, each minute is carefully
calculated for every task and chore I have set out to do
for that day. Typically, a work day consists of 16-18
hours of commuting, office and house work. Unless I
intentionally set aside the one hour of prayer and
meditation, the day gets away from me, and I find
myself asking for forgiveness from the Lord as I
collapse into my bed late at night.
Like Martha, I start my day with the best of
intentions, but somehow fall short. Even when I make a
routine of going to mass daily, I find my mind
wandering while at Mass to the list of things I have to do
after I get out church.
In this passage, Jesus reminds us Marthas to
slow down and be mindful of what is truly important:
prayer and reflection on His Word, seeking God’s
guidance, and pausing to hear His answer. In the quiet of
the inner recesses of our hearts, the Lord is constantly
speaking to us. But, we need to slow down, and silence
the noise of our busy, task-filled days to hear His soft
whispers.
“There is need of only one thing.” Jesus’ words
reverberate in my heart. At once, I realize I am both
Martha and Mary. There is something in me that
compels me to serve, to be of action. Yet, my heart also
longs to sit quietly at the feet of Jesus, listening,
contemplating, praying.
I then realize that as a disciple, I am only able to
achieve a happy balance through God’s grace. St. Teresa
of Avila defines contemplation simply and succinctly.
Let us listen...
“Contemplative prayer is nothing else than a
close sharing between friends; it means taking time
frequently to be alone with Him who we know loves us.
...We seek Him, because to desire Him is always the
beginning of love, and we seek Him in that pure faith
which causes us to be born of Him and to live in Him.”
May the Lord grant me the grace to hear Him in
the busyness of my day, and to invest my time wisely that
what I do at each moment reflects the treasure I hold in
Jesus. Amen.
God’s Will and
Our Perseverance
“I tell you, if he
does not get up to give him
the loaves because of their
friendship, he will get up to
give him whatever he needs
because of his persistence.”
(Lk 11:8)
This verse reminds
me of The Parable of the
Unjust Judge, a story also in
Luke’s Gospel about a woman who seeks a just decision
against an adversary from a judge who, “neither feared
God nor respected any human being.” After many times
of refusing to render a just decision, the judge finally
grants the woman her wish because he does not want to
be bothered any longer. At the end of the parable Jesus
asks, “Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen
ones who call out to him day and night?” (Lk 18:7)
In the digital age, we communicate instantly
with one another through text messages, email, and
social media. However, it’s important to remember that
prayer is not a form of instant communication. We must
approach God with a pure soul because sin blocks us
from developing an intimate relationship with the Lord.
Once a personal relationship with Him is established, it
becomes easier to communicate with God.
The Word tells us that patient perseverance is
critical to the effectiveness of prayer. Instant
gratification diminishes the importance of faith, hope,
and patience – three keys to living a healthy Christian
life. In Genesis, we learn that even God needed six days
to create the world. Prayer, like maintaining a balanced
diet, requires sacrifice and time in order to get our
desired results. While the results do not come
immediately, we should feel overly satisfied in the end,
knowing that our patient perseverance did not go in vain.
When we pray for a specific intention for a
while, it’s in our human nature to think that God is not
listening. But God knows us better than we know
ourselves. It’s certainly possible that our intentions are
in conflict with His will or His timing. However, if you
feel in your heart that your intentions align with His will,
consider the possibility that God is shaping you into a
patient and perseverant prayer warrior. As it says in
Ecclesiastes 3:11, “He made everything appropriate in
its time. He also placed eternity within them – yet, no
person can fully comprehend what God is doing from
beginning to end.”
FR. PAUL SPEAKS
ROSARY AND
LECTIO DIVINA
With the beginning of the month of October, the
Church invites us to the devotion of the Holy Rosary. As
beautiful as this devotion is, I personally find it difficult
to recite the Hail Maries and keep my mind focused on
the mysteries rather than battling distracting thoughts.
After all, the rosary is a summary of the principal
mysteries of our Christian faith. A method I use when
saying the rosary privately, which can also be used in
communal recitation, is to interrupt each Hail Mary with
a phrase that reminds us of the mystery we should be
reflecting on. For instance for the first joyful mystery
after saying “Blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus”
add a phrase like “who was conceived by the Holy
Spirit”, and finish the hail Mary as usual. Similarly
during the second decade ad something like “who visited
Elizabeth”, etc. We thus connect the mystery by
focusing each Hail Mary on that event in the life of Jesus
or Mary.
I am sure you all know the importance of daily
reflection and contemplation of the scriptures, called
Lectio Divina, especially the readings that are used in
the Mass each day. I know many of you use the
“Magnificat” for that purpose, or for the technically
advanced, the smart phone or iPad can be used to locate
the assigned readings. Again we all face the problem of
distractions when we are trying to concentrate on the
meaning of a Scripture passage, or when we are trying to
pray over a verse, or even trying to be quiet and listen to
the still voice of the Lord.
May I suggest a method I am sure many of you are
familiar with, called “centering prayer”. This method,
even though used by many spiritual writers in the past,
has been taught extensively by Fr. Thomas Keating. His
method is quite simple. When a thought comes to mind
that is distracting and does not belong in prayer, or when
we are trying to focus contemplatively on the presence
of the Lord, and our mind wanders all over the place, he
suggests using a “sacred word” like Jesus or Abba in
order to interfere and derail the thought and refocus on
the original subject matter. He suggests doing this very
gently, because the tendency is to be annoyed with
ourselves when we find ourselves wrestling with
distraction. He reminds us that we are doing two things
when we engage in this practice. We are refocusing and
renewing our “attention”, and also renewing our
“intention” to pray. No matter how many times in prayer
we do this, the Lord is always pleased with our efforts,
and prayer has accomplished its goal, a deeper union
with the Lord.
C O U N S E L S (from page 1)
The kingdom of God, our inheritance, is that
feast that the Father invites us to attend. Even when
we refuse His invitation, He extends it again and
again, revealing to us the wonders and majesty that
await each of us in the heavenly home.
I was invited to the feast numerous times and had
various reasons for not accepting it wholeheartedly in
many occasions. I humbly admit, in true retrospect, I
lacked the faith of a true disciple at that time. Knowing
the hardship of being a true disciple, St. Paul exhorts us,
“I can do all things in him who strengthens me. My
God will fully supply whatever you need, in accord
with his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” (Phil
4:13&19). Simply stated, I did not want this burden, I
was selfish and materialistic. I cared more for matters of
the secular world than the state of my appearance before
the King.
Jesus said: “Many are invited, but few are
chosen.” (Mt 22:14) The king rejected the improperly
dressed man because he did not regard his invitation as a
great honor. Consequently, he did not bother to clothe
himself with “the new self, created after the likeness of
God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph 4:24).
The guest who was dressed in wedding garments
recognized God’s abundant mercy and love as their only
source of strength and hope, and so they “clothed”
themselves with His mercy.
In the distant past, I, myself, was that guest who
was improperly dressed. I came to the feast not ready to
really receive the fruits and graces set before me. Prior
to my renewal in the Spirit, I merely went through the
motions of going to church on Sundays as my Catholic
duties asked me to “keep the Sabbath day holy”.
However, I would stand in the back of the church.
I was constantly invited by God’s disciples to
come to the feast. When I had finally answered, I put on
that wedding garment, and at the same time, became one
of the servants instructed to invite others to the feast. I
started with my family by inviting my children to join
the Family Encounter to deepen their faith and
understanding of Christ’s love. They, too, have dawned
on their wedding attire and began to invite others to the
feast. As I journey alongside you, my brothers and
sisters in Christ, I am given the strength through Christ
to persevere on this arduous journey.
Accepting the invitation to the feast is the
beginning of our journey to being prepared for the
wedding, our reunion with our Father in His Kingdom.
The truest test to our Faith is remembering the Promise
that God is our Ultimate Provider.
Continued, page 4
COUNSELS
(from page 3)
As we follow His order to go out and evangelize and
spread the Word of God, not only through words but also
by our actions, we are preparing ourselves to the Greatest
feast we will ever attend.
Let us embrace God’s gift of love and grace in the
Eucharist. By so doing, He will enable us to accept
wholeheartedly His invitation to join in the celebration of
the Wedding of the Lamb.
DIRECTIONS:
1. Invite more people to a renewed life in Christ.
2. Live an abundant life in Christ in your humble
circumstances.
NEWS
(from page 1)
SPE: Norbert Aminzia, Julius Bryant, Camille Nagela,
Margaret De Filippo, Nicolle Elwin, Dennis James
Feliciano, Rosemarie Go, Yanick Joseph, Eliza Literato,
Belinda Pacaira, Dakila Romano, Leticia Vizcayno, and
Saneeta Somai
SE: Julia Carpio, Elaine Espejon, Olivia Felibrico,
Jesraye Flores, Francis San Andres, Liz Ortiz, Mikey
Pepino, and Kat Salonga
NE: Charlene Irino, Letty Teopengco, Lourdes Delara,
and Christeta Manigbas
The pastoral team was composed of Fr. Paul
Lehman (spiritual director) and sharers: Margarita
Ocasio & Amanda Anderson (God’s Love),
George/MaryAnn McGehrin (New Life), Sam/Rory
Olaso (Healing & Reconciliation), Ollie/Annie Felibrico
(Growth), and Reuben/Cherry Vibar (Transformation).
Congratulations to LSS 43 Graduates!
GOD never fails! To GOD be the Glory!
LSS 43 Reunion will be held on Oct. 19th, from 1-6 pm.
O THER A NNOUNCEMENTS
PROJECT I DO/MASS WEDDING
November 9, 2014 ~ St. Mary’s Church, Rahway NJ
What: For couples who are civilly married but not
sacramentally married in church / those who
want to be married in church.
Requirements & details: Contact Ray/Susie Atienza:
908-463-0449/ [email protected]
MEDICAL MISSION 2015
February 16-19, 2015
Koronadal City, South Cotabato, Philippines
Volunteers needed.
If interested, please sign-up on or before December 15th
Contacts: Mel/Remy Hernandez [email protected]
L ORD ’S P ROVISION
P REVIOUS W EEK ’ S
Actual
Collections
$2,442
Tithe/Love Offering
$101
Mission Collections
Walk Fundraising
$60
Fr. Paul’s SOH
YTD
$115,914
$7,302
$34,449
$5,737
Financial details are available to all members through
[email protected]
Thank you for your continued support!
Stewardship – It’s a way of life!
T EACHING C ALENDAR
Oct 18*- CMP 1 Part 1 – LSS 1-40
Oct 24 – Intercessory Immersion – ME 41, SPE 15
Service Immersion – ME 42
Venue: Divine Mercy Parish School Classrooms, Rahway, NJ
Time: Friday after worship, *Saturday 1:00 PM – 6:00 PM
C OMMUNITY C ALENDAR
“It is not enough to discover Christ, you must
bring Him to others.” – Pope John Paul II
SINGLES ENCOUNTER # 33
Date: November 7-9, 2014
Location: Graymoor Spiritual Life Center
Garrison, NY
Contacts: Jojo/Adelle Orosa ~ [email protected]
Jutt Bustos ~ [email protected]
MARRIAGE ENCOUNTER # 44
Date: November 14-16, 2014
Location: Hotel Executive Suites
30 Minue St. Carteret NJ
Contacts: Nong/Tricia Bustos ~ [email protected]
Every last Friday of the month
from 9:00 pm to 10:00 pm at
St. Mary’s Church (DMP).
Date
Oct 17
Oct 24
Oct 31
Nov 7
Apostolate
Pastoral
Evangelization
Formation
Management
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