Pastor's Blog for September 29, 2019

Our sympathies to Fr. Vesely on the death of his brother Richard who passed away on September 11th. We will keep him and Father’s family in our prayers.

Congratulations to Matt Stumpf and Jordan Laviano who will be getting married next Saturday, October 5th. May they have a long and joyful marriage.

Several of you have called the rectory office or have told me personally about the full paper recycling bins we have in the parking lot behind the school and parish community center. First, thank you to everyone who brings their used paper products here so that it can all be recycled. We receive a check every month for this plus we are doing good in recycling. We have been aware that the two bins are full however it is beyond our control. Two of the people who drive the trucks to empty them have been on medical leave and so they struggle to keep up. We are however getting a third bin placed there soon so hopefully that will help. If in the future they continue to be full, you can place bags or boxes next to the bins and we will be happy to hold onto them until the bins are emptied again. Just please make sure there is nothing that can blow away.

I had my 6 month follow up visit with my urologist and my PSA blood work continues to show that there is no detectable cancer so I’m grateful for that and for your continued concern. My next visit will be in another 6 months.

I am in talks with the man who is arranging our pilgrimage to the Holy Land for next year. We are pretty confident in the dates we have reserved which is October 5 -15, 2020. So if you are interested in joining us, please reserve those days. We will have a meeting here in November where we will be given more information on the trip, including the cost. So please watch this space for more information in the coming weeks.

I want to include another note concerning the issue of Sponsor Certificates which I’ve covered in the last 2 columns. The certificate lists these as qualifications: 1) You are at least 16 years old; 2) You have received the Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, Eucharist & Confirma- tion); 3) If you are married, it was in the Catholic Church; 4) You attend Mass regularly; 5) You will be a good example of the Faith to the person you are sponsoring. By signing this certificate, you attest to the truthfulness of these statements. So if you are asking someone to be a sponsor or godparent for a baptism or confirmation, PLEASE DO NOT ASK SOMEONE WHO IS NOT QUALIFIED. Notice how I used all caps there? It’s important that you invite someone into this relationship who is qualified to act in this role. Again, we are willing to work with someone who has been lax in their faith, but they must be willing to work with us.

Pastor's Blog for September 22, 2019

This Wednesday, September 25th, we will be having a Memorial Mass for Ron Cooke at 5pm. Ron died unexpect-edly at home. He was a longtime parishioner and a faithful member of our choir. He was a man of faith and will be remembered fondly, especially by the members of the choir. Please feel welcome to join us for a Mass in memory of him this Wednesday.

We congratulate Victoria Hahn & Tyler Kirby who are getting married this Saturday. They are both police officers so we owe them gratitude for their courage and service to the community. May they have a long and fruitful marriage.

In last week’s bulletin I wrote about the meaning of a Sponsor or Godparent for someone who is being baptized or confirmed. I also listed the qualifications that are necessary for someone to act in that role. But I also mentioned that we regularly face the problem of someone requesting a sponsor certificate when they are not practicing their faith. The purpose of the sponsor certificate is this: it is a statement by the sponsor and the priest of their parish that they are in fact practicing their faith, and the certificate is given to the priest or parish who will be administering the sacrament. Again, for a list of those qualifications, please see last week’s bulle- tin or pick one up if you didn’t get one. It’s a good idea to keep it somewhere where you can refer to it when needed.

Our dilemma concerns the person who has been asked to be a sponsor but is not practicing their faith. On the one hand, if I give a sponsor certificate to anyone who asks for one, even if they are not qualified, then I am not helping the person they are asked to sponsor. Both the one being asked to be a sponsor as well as myself are really lying about what the sponsor certificate is meant to attest to. On the other hand, if I do not allow such a person to receive a sponsor certificate, then they become angry with the Church and create even a further separation from the community they are meant to belong to and participate in. A very hard choice to make!

So after talking to Deacon Pat & Joan, we have decided to pursue a middle course. When someone requests a sponsor certificate, they will be told that they must meet with either Deacon Pat, Joan or myself. One of us should be available for this purpose on Sunday after the 8am and 11am Masses but we can also meet during the week. At this meeting, we can discuss with the potential sponsor their important role by discussing their current practice of their faith. We understand that many people have been lax practicing their faith for many different reasons but we are willing to work with them in helping them reconnect with the Church so that they can be a sponsor in good conscience. While not everyone will be able to act in this role or willing to make changes in their life, we can at least do everything in our power to help someone live the faith they profess.

Pastor's Blog for September 15, 2019

I would like to address the topic of Sponsor Certificates as it often tends to be a difficult practice for people to under- stand. When a child or adult is being baptized and/or confirmed, it has been a long tradition of the Church for them to have one or more Sponsors. The purpose of a Sponsor is to be an example of the faith to the person they are sponsoring. One can think of the role of a sponsor in the AA program where a person seeking sobriety has a sponsor to help them through the 12 Steps and to be available to them as they work out a life of sobriety. The concept closely resembles Sponsorship in the Church. A person who is being baptized can be helped tremendously by the guidance, prayers, and example of someone who is already living the life of a baptized Christian, and in our case, according to the Catholic Tradition. In order for someone to be this kind of Sponsor, they of course need to be qualified to act in that role and in that unique relationship. Using the example of an AA sponsor, a person starting to live a life of sobriety is not going to be helped by a sponsor who is not sober themselves or not knowledgeable about how the program works. There- fore, the Church wisely puts forth these qualifications for a sacramental Sponsor:

1. They must be at least 16 years old

2. Be a Catholic who has received the Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, Eucharist & Confirmation)

3. Leads a life in harmony with the faith and the role to be undertaken

4. Not be the father or mother of the one to be baptized The age requirement calls for the necessary maturity for someone to take on the responsibilities of this role. The reasons for the second qualification should be obvious: that someone has received the sacraments themselves. “Leading a life in harmony with the faith” would include things that the sponsor should and should not be doing. For example, they should be attending Mass weekly. If married, should be in a marriage that is recognized in the Catholic Church (in other words, their marriage should be sacramental which means they were married before a priest), and if not married, they should not be living with someone outside of marriage (cohabitation). These would be the minimum requirements

for living a life in harmony with the faith.
The problem we face regularly is this: people ask some-

one to be a sponsor who is not qualified to act in that role. This becomes awkward for those who have asked and for those who have been asked. Hence the need to make people aware of these qualifications.

Due to space constraints here I will continue to provide more information on how to obtain a sponsor certificate in next week’s bulletin. But I ask you to clip this article out & keep it for future reference. And feel free to share it with anyone you know who may be asked to be a sponsor in the future. Next week I will offer information on how to obtain a sponsor certificate. st

Father Vesely will be here next Saturday, Sept. 21 , to celebrate the 4pm Mass so as always we welcome him and keep him in our prayers.

Pastor's Blog for September 8, 2019

On August 24th we celebrated the funeral Mass for Elsie Rompala. She had been homebound for 3 or 4 years but attended Mass regularly when she was able. She always had a rosary nearby. She was able to be anointed and to receive the last rites when she was in Hospice Care. May she now be reunited with her husband and all those who have passed on to the kingdom of God. 

On Saturday (September 7 ), we held a Memorial Mass for Kathleen Domanski who has been living in Arizona and who passed away on June 13th at the age of 74. In her parish of St. Patrick in Scottsdale, Arizona, Kathleen was a Eucha- ristic Minister and a member of the Art & Environment Committee. She too had a devotion to Mary and to the rosary. She enjoyed being in a Scripture Study for several years and went on a pilgrimage through Israel, including the Sea of Galilee. She also went to Rome where she attended Mass by Pope Benedict. May her life of faith bring her into the joy of heaven.

I am especially saddened by the death of Maria Aponte, who’s Mass of Christian Burial was also this Saturday morning (September 7th). Maria attended daily Mass here and was enthusiastic in her Catholic faith. She made breakfast for us on many Sundays and would frequently bring us food for after morning Mass. Maria had a very large statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary in her living room and prayed the rosary devoutly. She was a very kind and holy woman whom I will miss very much along with many other parishioners. As the Church prays at the end of the Funeral Mass, “We look forward to the day when we will see her again and enjoy her friendship.”

Congratulations to the family of Jacob Kropp who is being baptized this Sunday after the 11am Mass. May he know the joy that comes from a life of faith in the God who loves him.

Our congratulations to Brittany Popa and Nicholas Tatoczenko who are being married next Saturday, Septem- ber 14th. May they enjoy many happy years together as husband and wife.

As you can see, once Labor Day has passed, the pace really picks up here at St. Leo’s. Our school is in session and the days get busier. But we need to be thankful for our rest and enjoyment of the summer months and to pray that the busyness of this time of year does not cause us to forget the Lord.

Just a reminder for you to pick up your raffle tickets in the vestibule of the church. Your help in selling them is very much appreciated as it is the largest part of our fundraising activity for the Parish Festival which is just a few weeks away. Maria Aponte, whom I mentioned above, was anxious to make sure we had her raffle tickets, even when she was very ill! I know the Festival Committee has already been hard at work on preparing a good time for all of us. It’s always good to have something to look forward to and there are many things to enjoy during this favorite time of the year. Be sure to enjoy every day of it.