Next Sunday: Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Celebrant: Fr. Tharp
Trial Solution for Deaf and Hearing Impaired at Sacred Heart
When the sound system had to be rewired at Sacred Heart about a year ago, combined Parish Council considered and approved a proposal to allow for two monitors that would translate every word said over the PA in church into closed caption script displayed on the monitors. Recently the two monitors were installed in the front of church.
After discussion with the Archdiocese, this form of assistance to the deaf and hearing impaired was chosen because it enables both the person who is totally without hearing as well as the person with mild hearing impairment (these usually are people who do not understand American sign language) to be able to understand the homily and even the words to the music. Two people have expressed the opinion to me that the closed captioning is a great distraction. Some others have expressed gratitude as they are enabled to read what the priest and ministers are saying and others are hearing.
As Melody Wallace, Director of Worship has promised, (in the next few weeks) we will survey the congregation and allow a vote to: 1) make the option permanent at all precept Masses, 2) make the option available at only select Sunday Mass times, 3) remove the monitors and disengage this help to the hearing impaired because it is too distracting for the general congregation. Perhaps another option I have not considered will surface .
Please watch for the survey and cast your vote. This was done as a Beacons of Light initiative to invite the hearing impaired and deaf community to feel more welcome to worship more fully with the hearing community. If it fails to achieve that purpose, or is far too distracting, please give your opinion by participating in the upcoming survey.
Sacred Heart Festivals
The Parish Family of Immaculate Heart of Mary (St. Ann and Sacred Heart) will for the long term future continue to need both church facilities, as neither location is large enough to accommodate the number of people in our combined parish boundaries who wish to attend Sunday Mass during the most favored Sunday timeslots. Since both locations also support a vibrant Catholic School, we need to maintain and enhance all existing fundraising activities at both sites. Thus it continues to be necessary for each site to host an annual “Parish Summer Festival” even when we become one parish at two locations. The Saint Ann Festival concludes Saturday, July 27. Sacred Heart Festival is scheduled for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (August 9 – 11). Remember we are one Parish Family, with only one priest; operating at two locations. We need the revenues from both festivals to operate and maintain the physical plant at each of the two locations. If you are a parishioner at one or both, please prayerfully consider volunteering to work at the festival at one or both sites.
Beacons of Light: Phase Two: “Envisioning”
Reprint from Last Week! One part of the “envisioning process” is to brainstorm what we as one parish with two worship locations, and two schools, could become. We have envisioned possibilities to be prophetically relevant in the community at large in our evangelization efforts. We have envisioned how our “Love in Action” charitable efforts can become more coordinated with other outreach programs for greater efficiency in serving the general need. We have reflected on possibilities to expand worship opportunities into opportunities to live “lives of worship.” We have reorganized administrative structure around a model of unified teamwork. But in all of this, we must also reflect on our personal perspectives and corporate self-image. To quote a line from a classic old movie, “We have to get our minds right.” Eleven players have to reconfigure their athletic skills to work as a “team.” This calls for changing our understanding of who we are, so we can better envision who we can become. This soul searching must lead us into a decided paradigm change as to how we envision ourselves. If we see Immaculate Heart of Mary Family Parish as two people in one canoe, we don’t worry about how many holes your end of the boat has versus my end of the boat. Rather you focus on fixing the holes so the entire canoe can stay afloat and go faster. “Them and us” concepts, no matter how benign, must morph into a “Yin and Yang” model. Coaches have to impress upon their players that, if it does not enable the whole team, it is not a genuine strength. Similarly we must get our minds wrapped around that which is complementary. In building a sky-scrapper, paradigm change requires restructuring the foundation. As a parishioner of one parish with two locations, what structural predispositions do I need to change in myself?
DO NOT FALL FOR SCAMS!!!!
I keep running this article because there are new scams everyday
Remember I NEVER solicit funds, donations, favors, or any request of any kind over the telephone, text, email, carrier pigeon, drone, etc. NEVER! Do not allow yourself to be taken in by scammers. Even if they have my recorded voice, be assured it is computer generated fake! It is not me!!!
Reminder for volunteers who work with or around children
Please be aware that failure to register with and complete the requirements of Safe Parish will result in your inability to continue to work with or around children in any parish and/or school setting. We have been informed by the Archdiocese that there can be NO EXCEPTIONS.
Live Streaming for Precept Masses
Please remember to access the Sacred Heart / St. Ann Pastoral Region You Tube site by clicking on the following link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVLLqbEY5hKWinwz069MVcg
Reflection on Scripture:
The story of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes is found in all four gospels. (Mt 14:13-21, Mk 6:30-44, Lk 9:10-17 and Jn 6:1-15. It is obviously a prefiguring of the Most Holy Eucharist. In John’s portrayal, the attention to detail make it seem like a Sunday Mass. By the time John’s Gospel is written (late 90s AD) early Christians are already attending the Sacred Meal every Sunday. John portrays that as this was a part of the life of Jesus, so also the Eucharist is part of the everyday life of the Church, allowing us to live in Christ and allowing Christ to live in us. This sacrament enables us to be the Mystical Body of Christ.
As we have just concluded the Eucharistic Congress for the United States, let us see ourselves as Catholics not just as a denomination of Christianity, but as the living breathing Mystical Body of Christ.
NEXT SUNDAY Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Ex 16:2-4, 12-15 4:42-44
Eph 4:17, 20-24
Jn 6:24-35
Theme: I am the bread of life!