The Bible & The Mass - a study series

A Biblical Walk through THE MASS and

The New Translation of THE MASS

Please join us for 5 one-half hour sessions on Wednesday evenings beginning September 14th at 6:30pm in the Tobin Room (Use Eggert Rd. Lot, door #5). Contact 833-6138, Allan Cecchini.

From the time of the apostles, the Mass has been the central act of Christian worship. For the Mass is nothing less than the celebration of the Eucharist that Jesus instituted at the Last Supper, when he commanded his apostles, "Do this in memory of me". (see Luke22:19)

     With this course, The Great Adventure moves from studying particular books and sections of the Bible to studying the Scriptural roots of the liturgy. For many Catholics, the Mass might, at least in a certain sense, be almost too familiar. We show up to church each Sunday and perform prayers and rituals that many of us have known since childhood, We stand, sit, and kneel. We make the sign of the cross. We recite "Holy, Holy, Holy," "Lamb of God," and "Thanks be to God". But do we really understand the significance of all that we are saying and doing in the liturgy?

     "The way in which the Mass is celebrated has undergone various changes throughout the centuries, but the heart of the liturgy has remained the same. It continues to be a celebration of the banquet of the Lord, in which Catholics come to hear the word of God in the Scriptures and receive the body and blood of Christ in the Eucharist.

     As we prepare to welcome the revised English translation of the Mass, we can be assured that the Eucharist we celebrate will stand in continuity with that first Eucharist institute by Christ-and that the new translation is intended to help enhance out worship of God and deepen our participation in the  sacred mysteries of the liturgy." (Edward Sri, A Guide to the New Translation of The Mass, 2011)

     Please join us for 5 one-half hour sessions on Wednesday evenings beginning September 14th at 6:30pm in the Tobin Room. 833-6138, Allan Cecchini.

Please join us for our workshop on the new English Revision of the Mass.  It will be held on Wednesday 26 October at 7:00 p.m. in our church.  Please invite others as well.  That is one month before the new spoken responses go into effect.

Salt and Light Group - Catholic Social Teaching

Perhaps no one has as clearly and beautifully stated the purpose of our Salt & Light group as Pope Francis in a letter to British Prime Minister David Cameron, MP (15 June 2013) - (click for full text)

...the goal of economics and politics is to serve humanity, beginning with the poorest and most vulnerable wherever they may be, even in their mothers' wombs. Every economic and political theory or action must set about providing each inhabitant of the planet with the minimum wherewithal to live in dignity and freedom, with the possibility of supporting a family, educating children, praising God and developing one's own human potential. This is the main thing; in the absence of such a vision, all economic activity is meaningless.

In this sense, the various grave economic and political challenges facing today's world require a courageous change of attitude that will restore to the end (the human person) and to the means (economics and politics) their proper place. Money and other political and economic means must serve, not rule, bearing in mind that, in a seemingly paradoxical way, free and disinterested solidarity is the key to the smooth functioning of the global economy.

Our Salt & Light group takes its name from the sayings of Jesus in Matthew 5:13-14: "You are the salt of the earth...You are the light of the world..." We are called to imitate Christ Jesus by serving others. The image to the right shows Jesus washing the feet of His apostles. He instructs them to do the same. As Jesus' disciples today, we carry out His mandate to become servants of peace and justice.

The dignity of the human person and the common good are key elements of our work and prayer.

The Salt & Light group of St. Benedict's Parish strives to make Catholic Social Teaching (CST) a reality. It is open to anyone interested in Peace and Justice issues. Examples include: life issues and bioethics (we work closely with our Respect Life Ministry on these), care for the environment, immigration, economic justice, global poverty, human trafficking, and unemployment/underemployment. With the charitable organizations of our parish, we attempt to focus on root causes of injustice, Catholic advocacy and education.

We usually meet once a month for approximately one hour. Our meetings begin with a reading from the Gospel, we introduce ourselves, receive an update on the progress of current projects, take some time to study and discuss part of a papal social encyclical or a document of the US Catholic Bishops, have an open discussion, ask for new ideas, and close with a simple prayer. We communicate often via email on current projects. Members receive periodic e-mailings from the Diocese of Buffalo on CST issues as well.

We would love to have you take part in our Salt & Light group. For information, please contact rectory@saintbenedicts.com or simply attend a meeting.

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Ash Wednesday - 15 Hours of Ashes

ASH WEDNESDAY

St. Benedict's

15 HOURS OF ASHES

Return to the Lord!
Please join us at any time from 6:00 am right through 9:00 pm on Ash Wednesday, March 9th.

We have masses at 7 am, 8:15 am and 7pm.  There is a prayer service at 12 noon. We highly encourage your participation in our liturgies and prayer service. Ashes will be distributed during Mass and at the prayer service.

Additionally, between 6am and 9pm, we will also be distributing ashes to those who wish to turn back to the Lord.  Whether you have been away for one day, one year, or haven't set foot in a Catholic Church in decades, we invite you to receive ashes as a sign of repentance and continual conversion.  You are welcome here! And you are welcome to receive ashes at anytime between 6am and 9pm at St. Benedict's.

Ashes are a biblical sign of penance. Here are some Biblical verses mentioning ashes - Jeremiah 6:26, Isaiah 58:5, Daniel 9:3, Matthew 11:21 and Luke 10:15. Ashes in the Catholic Church are the burnt remains of last year's palms used on Palm Sunday.  Ashes are placed on your forehead as a sign to others of your change of heart. You may hear either of these prayers as the minister puts ashes on your forehead: "Remember that you are dust and to dust you will return,"  OR "Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel."

At Mass on Ash Wednesday, we hear the prophet Joel exclaim "rend your hearts, not your garments and return to the LORD, your God."  Can you hear God's call within you?

Perhaps the most amazing result of keeping St. Benedict's Church open all day, as we have the past three years, is seeing the hundreds of people, from all walks of life, truly striving to reform their lives.  Three of our four priests (how blessed we are as a parish to have FOUR priests!) are kept busy all day hearing confessions of people who want a fresh spiritual start. [Say a prayer for our Pastor, Fr. Joseph Porpiglia, who is in Rome on sabbatical.]

Will you repent with us this year?  Don't worry if you forgot how to go to confession; we have information about the sacrament ready for you. 

Please invite all your friends and family members to join us Ash Wednesday. Directions are available under our Visitor tab on our website http://www.saintbenedicts.com/.
 
We are here to be the welcoming hands of Christ. 
Return to the Lord!
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Bible Study / Scripture Study - St. Benedict's

BIBLE STUDY:

St. Benedict's offers a number of Bible Studies. 

Are you looking for meaning in the scriptures? Do you open the Bible and wonder what God is saying to the world, to you? Do you feel it is time to do something more as a Catholic other than going to Mass? Come to Bible Study! We are a small group who meet weekly for an hour to study the Bible and we WELCOME new members.

Here is a link to the New American Bible which is the translation we use during our liturgies - http://www.usccb.org/nab/bible/index.shtml

Here is a brief history of our Monday evening Bible Study:
The group was started by then seminarian Richard Cilano during the first summer he was with us in 2003. He is now a priest in our Diocese. He had two classes at the time, a morning group and evening group. He asked for input and those attending wanted to go book by book starting with Genesis.

When he had to return to the seminary, he asked CArol Mathner to take over when he found out out that she had received a MAT (1997) from Christ the King Seminary. Carol directed the evening group and has ever since!. He encouraged the morning group to join us but only 1 person did (and she is still with us).

The Collegeville Commentary is used as a resource for the classes. Although it was not very good for the Psalms so a Hebrew commentary from the Jewish Center is also used. It works great. It is amazing to see how 1 or 2 words could change a meaning!

We started out with about six members. Five have always stayed. People come and go. Some would join for a year, then illness, a painting class , moving to care for a parent.. what ever life gave people, would stop coming. Some came once or twice, said they enjoined it but didn't come back.

The prologue of The Catechism of the Catholic Church says God "calls man to seek him, to know him, to love him" and the way to hand on faith is through "Catechesis..and education in faith of children,young adults and adults". For four of our members, this is the 2nd -3rd -4th Bible group they belonged to in their lifetime. They thirst for God's love and they know to find it in the scripture. It is this thirst which has them devoted to coming together weekly all these years. As we are in the now [July 2011] in the middle of the New Testament they have expressed concern as to what will come when we finish Revelations.

In the hour we gather (and is exactly an hour) we read a passage. Carol points out historical, sometimes archeological, theological facts on the passage. Since we are in the synoptic gospels, Luke is compared to Matthew and Mark. Anyone can comment, with any background they know of, which may get a conversation going. Conversation also may involve how the passage affects us today. May not always happens and Carol does all the teaching! It all depends upon how the Spirit moves us.
We would love to have you study the Sacred Scriptures with us.

If you are interested, send us an email at Rectory@saintbenedicts.com or call us at 834-1041.
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