ST. JOSEPH PARISH

EMAIL NEWSLETTER

JUNE 16, 2010

FATHER’S DAY.  My father was very good with his hands; he could build and/or fix anything. He tried to pass on some of his knowledge onto me. However, I didn’t have the talent or the desire to learn how to build and/or fix things.  

My father would take me places: he would get me up at 4 a.m. to go lake fishing (I liked the fishing and being with him but I hated getting up that early – I’d always wonder why the fish were biting so early – aren’t they hungry at lunch or dinner time?); he would take me with him when he went to buy our Christmas tree (always the coldest day in December, and he would want to stay and talk with a friend he met there); and he took me out once (and only once) to teach me how to drive a car. He decided to leave that to the driver’s education class at my high school. Was I that bad? 

This December will be the 40^th anniversary of my father’s death. 40 years, and I can still remember what he looked like and the sound of his voice. I can conjure up these and other things in my mind about my father like it had been only 40 hours since we last saw each other, not 40 years. 

I don’t write this to elicit any sympathy (please don’t offer me any), but to show what an influence a father can have on his children. You may not think your children are watching, Dads, but I can assure that they are. Some days you may feel like you have “ATM” written on your forehead when your kids ask for money. Other days you may feel like your only use is as a chauffer, or a handyman, or one of many other jobs. You may feel unnecessary to your family except when they want something. It may seem like your kids aren’t paying any attention to you, or it may seem like they aren’t hearing what you say. They are paying great attention to what you say and do. 

How you live your lives, Dads, will have a great deal to do with how your kids adjust to adult life. How is your son supposed to know what it is to be a good, faith filled, virtuous man unless you model it for him by your own example? How is your daughter supposed to know what kind of a man she should date and eventually marry if she doesn’t see it in you? 

What Makes A Dad?
God took the strength of a mountain,
The majesty of a tree,
The calm of a quiet sea,

The generous soul of nature,
The comforting arm of night,
The wisdom of the ages,
The power of the eagle's flight,

The joy of a morning in spring,
The faith of a mustard seed,
The patience of eternity,
The depth of a family need.

Then God combined these qualities.
When there was nothing more to add,
He knew His masterpiece was complete,
And so, He called it ... "DAD!" 

COMFORT. Elizabeth Kubler-Ross MD was the first medical professional to actually talk to people who were dying and to record their thoughts and feelings. While I don’t know if she was writing from a Christian or even from any religious perspective, the following paragraph, titled “Graduation Day” beautifully expresses much of what we believe: 

“When we have passed the tests we were sent on earth to learn, we are allowed to graduate. We are allowed to shed our body, which imprisons our soul the way a cocoon encloses the future butterfly, and when the time is right we can let go of it. Then we will be free of pain, free of fears, and free of worries…free as the beautiful butterfly returning home to God…which is a place where we are never alone, where we continue to grow and to sing and to dance, where we are with those we loved and where we are surrounded with more love than we can ever imagine.”

Please feel free to pass this on to whoever needs it. 

LETS GO METS!! Join us as we visit Citifield to watch the NY Mets play against the Colorado Rockies on August 12th.  The bus will leave our parking lot at 9:30am.  The cost is $60, which includes the ticket, the bus and snacks/drinks on the bus.  There are only 55 tickets available, so reserve yours NOW!  If you are interested, send a check made out to St. Joseph’s Church along with your name, phone and/or email address to the attention of Tina Vatrano.  You can drop your envelope into the collection basket or send it to the rectory.  If you have any question, feel free to call Tina at 973.476.1228. 

CAR WASH. The Lincoln Park Emergency Medical Service car wash will be held on Saturday, June 26, 2010 from 9 am to 1 pm in our parking lot. Please come out and support this very important group of volunteers who do so much to aid our community.

JOKE – GOAT FOR DINNER

The young couple invited their elderly pastor for Sunday dinner. While they were in the kitchen preparing the meal, the minister asked their son what they were having. "Goat," the little boy replied. 

"Goat?" replied the startled man of the cloth, "Are you sure about that?" 

"Yep," said the youngster. "I heard Dad say to Mom, 'Today is just as good as any to have the old goat for dinner."

Lord keep Your arm around my shoulder and Your hand over my mouth!!!

RACHELS VINEYARD RETREAT. A past abortion that is kept as a hidden secret can be the cause of struggles and stress in a marriage. This retreat offers a woman or a man the chance to grieve the loss of a pre-born child and begin to heal a wounded heart. Couples are welcome to attend together. The next retreat sponsored by the Paterson Diocese is July 9-11, 2010. Call (973) 777-8818 ext.264. All calls are kept strictly confidential. 

FUNERAL. Patrick Keeler, son of Janet Keeler of our parish, died on June 14^th of a heart attack. He lived in Newton, NJ, and was 54 years old. His mother, Janet, is our parish bookkeeper. The wake is at the Morrison Funeral Home, 86 Bartholdi Avenue, Butler, NJ, on Thursday, June 17, 2010, from 2-4 pm and 7-9 pm. The funeral is here at St. Joseph’s at 10 am on Friday, June 18, 2010. Please keep Patrick and his family in your prayers.

BIBLE STUDY. What I would like everyone to do is to make sure they have an up to date bible. There are many good Catholic bibles, but make sure it is the New American Bible with the revised New Testament and the revised psalms in it, a summary of each book that precedes each book, that there are plenty of footnotes, and at least some reference material. Someone gave me a bible I like called “The New Catholic Answer Bible”. It has all the above plus 88 ‘inserts’, which deal with many different topics in scripture, theology, and morality. These are very useful, because they give a scripture context to many current topics. 

The readings for a particular Sunday are listed in the previous weeks bulletin; for example, the readings for Sunday, June 20^th are listed in the June 13^th bulletin. One way to do your own bible study is to read the summary in front of the gospel, read the reading itself, making sure that you read the footnotes. This will help you to understand the meaning. I will try to give you a little help in understanding the gospel each week. If you have any questions about the Gospel or my reflection, please let me know, and I’ll do my best to answer it personally in an email to you and/or in a subsequent newsletter.

Gospel for Sunday, June 20, 2010 – Luke 9:18-24 

Once when Jesus was praying in solitude, and the disciples were with him,he asked them, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” They said in reply, “John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, ‘One of the ancient prophets has arisen.’”

Then he said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”

Peter said in reply, “The Christ of God.”

He rebuked them and directed them not to tell this to anyone. 

He said, “The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised.” 

Then he said to all, “If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.” 

The Gospel of the Lord 

Reflection 

The first part of Luke’s gospel, from when Jesus begins his public ministry in chapter 3, to chapter 9, verse 50, we learn a lot about Jesus identity. This long section has Jesus’ baptism, his healings, teachings, miracles, and the transfiguration. The whole issue of identity comes to a head today when Jesus asks his disciples, “Who do the crowds say that I am?” They respond, “John the Baptist, Elijah or an ancient prophet.” 

Jesus asks them specifically, “Who do you say that I am”? Peter responds, “The Christ of God.” The term ‘Christ is’ not a name, but a title. It means ‘Anointed’ in Greek, or ‘Messiah’ in Hebrew. Many people thing that Christ is Jesus last name, but it is not. More properly, Jesus should be called Christ Jesus. 

What is the vocation of Jesus the anointed, the messiah? We see the answer to that in the second paragraph. “The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed on the third day and be raised.” The core of Jesus identity is much more than a healer, a teacher, and a miracle worker, but it is to suffer, die, and rise from the dead. That is why Jesus tells them not to tell anyone that he is the Christ, because his life must be taken in the context of his death and resurrection (this is called the messianic secret). Jesus suffering, death, and resurrection conquers sin and death; he pays the price for our sins, a price we can’t pay, and makes it possible for us to live with him forever in heaven. Jesus identity is, first and foremost, as our Savior. 

The whole issue of Jesus identity also includes the fact that he is alive, not dead. Being a disciple of Jesus is more than knowing things about someone who lived and died, but about following someone who is alive. Studying someone who is dead may turn into just an educational, scholarly exercise, but following someone who is alive demands a conversion of heart and a radical change of lifestyle. We believe that scripture is alive and contains the presence of the Lord. I have said many times that scripture is God’s owner’s manual. In Scripture are the living words of a happy, faith filled life, words that will lead us to eternal life, and words that help us to be holy, a calling we all have in our lives.   

Jesus identity also influences our own identity. When we were baptized, we were incorporated in Jesus own mission and ministry. The third paragraph tells us that to be Jesus disciple, we must deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow him. Before Pentecost the disciples really didn’t understand Jesus identity, but they certainly did afterwards. And the amazing thing is, that they still wanted to follow him. They knew that they might end up with the same fate as Jesus, and yet they still remained his disciples. That is pretty impressive to me. I don’t know what I would do if it was me. 

We probably won’t be called to such heroic acts of courage as martyrdom, but there are many ways we can deny ourselves and take up our crosses. Being a virtuous person in a sinful world can be difficult; so can being a forgiving person in a vengeful world or being a moral person in an immoral world. 

God bless all of you. I hope you have a safe, restful, and enjoyable summer.

Fr. Phil

Insert to May 30, 2010 Bulletin

Revival. Yes, it’s hard to believe that we have been doing this for 14 years!

We kick this year’s revival off with a very special workshop that we’re really

excited about. We have the privilege of hosting a one-day workshop with Ralph

Martin. I’m sure that just about everyone who is receiving this email knows of

Ralph!

For those of you who don’t, Ralph is an author and one of the foremost teachers in

the Catholic Church today. He is President of Renewal Ministries in Ann Arbor,

MI., sponsor of the weekly Catholic television and radio program “The Choices

We Face”, also aired on EWTN.

Ralph has planned a fantastic agenda filled with topics we all want to know more

about. He will be speaking about Our Call to Holiness, Our Call to Mission and

Living as Catholics Today. We then conclude the day with a Q&A Session.

gymnasium at St. Veronica Church in Howell, NJ. The registration fee is $30 per

person and includes a light breakfast and lunch.

at 6:30pm.

This event is packed with fun activities for everyone, great music, dynamic

speakers, bookstore, ministry booths and affordable food for the entire family.

There’s face painting and Christian skits for the kids with Master Clowns on

Every year we here at Good News get busy searching for speakers for our next tent

revival. This year we have gathered some of the best. Each one of these speakers

delivers their message in their own unique and exciting way. We know you’ll

enjoy them.

and vibrant Catholic lay evangelist.

We’re also really excited about a new venture that we have been working on lately.

new area to explore and a great way to spread the Good News of God. We’re

diligently working to get this site up and running. We’ll send more information, as

we get closer to the day we actually go “on-air.”

have any ideas for our new radio network we would love to hear them. Drop us an

email.

Laurie Collins, singer, songwriter and author of the beautiful Pro-Life song

“Choose Life” has been invited by Divine Mercy Healing Ministries of New Jersey

to appear at their Annual “Living Gods Mercy” Conference on July 24, 2010, at St.

Mary’s Parish 179 South Main Street, Manahawkin, NJ 08050. Laurie, a new

member of Good News International, is also scheduled to appear at our Tent

Revival here in Howell as well as the Tent Revival at St. Padre Pio Parish in

We hope you all will mark your calendar and join us for a weekend of faith, fun

and family!

For more information on upcoming events and to register for Ralph Martin visit

goodnews@cybercomm.net