September 29, 2013

Twenty SixthSunday in Ordinary Time

Am 6:1a, 4-7 1 Tm 6:11-16 Lk 16:19-31 (138)

“Man of God that you are, seek after integrity, piety, faith, love, steadfastness, and a gentle spirit. Fight the good fight of faith. Take firm hold on the everlasting life to which you were called, when in the presence of many witnesses, you made your profession of faith… I charge you to keep God’s command without blame or reproach until our Lord Jesus Christ shall appear.”

When we pause to examine our conscience we often look at the Ten Commandments God gave to Moses, or the great commandment of Jesus to love God, neighbor and ourselves. Some prefer to evaluate their lives reflecting on the beatitudes.

Frequently St. Paul provides a litany of virtues which can assist us in assessing our lives as disciples. The listing today allows us to view our life with the Lord using a different lens... A vibrant faith, sought after and shared with others in love. A gentle spirit, reflecting the tenderness and care of a loving God for me, and for others.

Growth in the Christian life is a constant challenge. The revealed word of God can help us meet all challenges. Take time to read the entire text, replacing the name ‘Timothy’ with your own. How comforting is the challenge!

His Word Today by Rev. William J. Reilly

Our Collection

The collection for September 22nd was $7,010

We encourage you to enroll via the Parish Pay website and click on the St. Joseph West Village link. Use the paperless way to help our ministry.

Here is the breakdown of our collection from last Sunday’s collection. Please do your best to be as generous as you can.

5:30 Mass $619 9:00 Mass $1,478

11:30 Mass $2,823 6:00 Mass $1,133

This week’s total for Air Conditioning $$957

Total to date for our Air Conditioning Collection $23,835

Remaining needed for our Air Conditioning Collection $51,165

Control YourBody and Set Your Soul Free

Your soul needs to take control of your body, says St. Leo the Great. By suppressing your bodily desires, you give yourself ore time for meditation and prayer.

Everyday experience, dear friends, proves that overindulgence of the flesh blunts the edge of the mind. Too much food dulls the strength of the heart. So the delights of eating work against even bodily health, unless we resist the temptation with reasonable moderation, and unless thinking about further discomfort keeps us from the pleasure.

For although the flesh desires nothing without the soul, and takes its sensations from the same source that gives it motion, yet the soul’s job is also to deny some things to the body under its control. By its inner judgment, it must restrain the outer parts from what is unreasonable, so that the soul may be more often free from bodily lusts, and have leisure for divine wisdom in the palace of the mind, where---away from all the noise of earthly troubles--- it can enjoy holy meditations and eternal delights in silence.

And although it’s hard to keep up this silence in this life, we can still keep trying. That way we can be occupied with spiritual rather than bodily cares more often and longer. And by spending more and more time on higher cares, we may make even our worldly acts gain incorruptible riches.

~~St. Leo the Great, Sermon 19, 1

In God’s Presence, Consider…

Do I control my appetites, or do I let them control me?

Closing Prayer

Lord, help me restrain my earthly desires, and let me grow in my love for heavenly things.

As we listen to today’s Gospel, it’s obvious whom God is calling us to be, and it’s easy to identify people in contemporary society with the rich man and Lazarus. After all, they are clearly the greedy politicians and corporate executives who pad their pockets and care not one hoot for the poor except to use them for their profit-making.

But wait a minute. Could Jesus’s parable be meant only for them? Were they even listening? Isn’t it more likely that Jesus was talking to all of us? Are we listening? Do we see not only the homeless person on the sidewalk or subway platform, but also the unjust system that allows some of us to live very comfortably while others struggle for the most basic necessities? Do we invest at least some of our time and resources to change that system? How are we living the Gospel and how can we help others to do the same? ~~Pax Christi Metro New York

Anyone who needs to report an alleged incident of sexual abuse of a minor by a priest, deacon, religious or lay person serving in the Archdiocese of New York is asked to contact Sr. Eileen Clifford, O.P. at 212-371-1000 x 2949 or Deacon George J. Coppola at 917-861-1762. Both may also be reached via e-mail at . Information can also be found onthe Archdiocesan website, . In keeping with the Archdiocesan policy regarding sexual abuse of minors, this information is provided to ensure that our children remain safe and secure.

Please send your announcements and events to be included in the bulletin to:

Uneasy Grace: Can Faith and Doubt Co-Exist?

A presentation by Terry Eagleton, Tuesday, October 15, 2013, 6 p.m., held at Pope Auditorium 113 W. 60th St., Fordham University, NYC.

Religious traditions often answer confounding questions with an air of supreme confidence. Yet is faith an all-or-nothing proposition? To what extent does doubt endanger belief? And in what sense may doubt actually stir faith?

This forum brings together a distinguished panel to explore the paradoxical relationship between doubt and faith---a source of anguish for those groping for a deeper sense of life’s meaning and a hotly contested topic in the engagement between religion and science.

SPEAKERS:

Terry Eagleton, author of Reason, Faith, and Revolution: Reflections on the God Debate and On Evil.

Meghan Sullivan, Rev. John A. O’Brien Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Univ. of Notre Dame

Lamin Sanneh, D. Willis James Professor of Missions and World Christianity, Yale University

Elizabeth Johnson, C.S.J., Distinguished Professor of Theology, Fordham University

Free and Open to the Public, RSVP: or 212-636-7347.

Liturgical Ministry

St. Joseph’s needs liturgical ministers at all its weekend Masses. We need candle and cross bearers, lectors, extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist, and ushers to help the Mass run smoothly. Learn more and sign up online: washingtonsquarecatholic.org/liturgy

Calling All Catechists

Share your gift of faith with the children of our parish. Joining our Religious Education Program as a volunteer catechist/instructor will help serve our community and bring you a personal sense of joy and accomplishment, as well as enriching your own faith. University students are encouraged to participate as well. The Religious Education program meets Sunday mornings after the 9 a.m. Mass. If you are interested, please contact Thom Sabatelli at or at (917) 602-1224 for more details.

RCIA CLASSES

St. Joseph’s RCIA began on Sunday, September 8th, after the 11:30 Mass. This group is for individuals interested in joining the Catholic Church or in completing the Sacraments of Initiation: Baptism, First Communion and Confirmation. For further information, please contact Joe Brown at

There will be another RCIA class for students only, which will be held at the Catholic Center at NYU beginning in October. The date will be forthcoming.

FEAST DAYS, SCRIPTURES, CITATIONS & SPECIAL INTENTIONS

Saturday, September 28 Saint Wenceslaus, Saint Lawrence Ruiz and Companions

Zec 2:5-9, 14-15a Lk 9:43b-45 (454)

12:10 PM Man Sik Kim

5:30 PM Joseph Hemmes

Sunday, September 29

Am 6:1a, 4-7 1 Tm 6:11-16 Lk 16:19-31 (138)

9:00 AM Special Intention

11:30 AM Ed Levy

. 6:00 PM Stefano Kim

Monday, September 30 Saint Jerome

Zec 8:1-8 Lk 9:46-50 (455)

12:10 PM Man Sik Kim

Tuesday,October 1 Saint Therese of the Child Jesus

Zec 8:20-23 Lk 9:51-56 (456)

12:10 PM Raymond Bonomi

5:15 PM Rhe Kennedy—living, Mass celebrated at Catholic Center, at NYU

Wednesday, October 2 The Holy Guardian Angels

Neh 2:1-8 (457)

12:10 PM Rose Arias

Thursday, October 3

Neh 8:1-4a, 5-6, 7b-12 Lk 10:1-12 (458)

12:10 PM Catherine Sirignono

Friday, October 4 Saint Francis of Assisi

Bar 1:15-22 Lk 10:13-16 (459)

12:10 PM Man Sik Kim

Saturday,October 5

Bar 4:5-12, 27-29 Lk 10:17-24 (460)

12:10 PM Special Intention

5:30 PM Special Intention

MONTHLY PARISH ACTIVITIES

Sunday
10:00 AM / Children’s Religious Studies / Casserly
10:00 AM / Scripture Discussion / Library
2:30 PM / Roman Forum Lectures / Casserly
7:00 PM / Grad Law / Casserly/Rectory
Monday
6:30 PM / Centering Prayer / Church
6:50 PM / Bible Study / Library
Tuesday
Wednesday
6:30 PM / Korean Catholic Students / Catholic Center at NYU
Thursday
6:30 PM 1st /mo / Pax Christi Bd Mtg / PCMNY
7:00 PM
7:00 PM / Newman Club
YATCH Club for Young Adults / Catholic Center at NYU
Friday
6:00 PM 1st/mo / Novena/ Sacred Heart / Church
Saturday
10:00-3:00 PM / Soup Kitchen / Casserly
12:30 PM 1st/mo / Blessing of the Sick / Church
6:00 PM / Alcoholics Anonymous / Casserly