St Patrick's of Smithtown
Welcome to the Parish
due to the Martin Luther King Holiday.
As you may know, on Sunday, April 20, 2008, His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI will celebrate a Solemn Pontifical Mass at Yankee Stadium. Our diocese has been given a limited number of tickets to distribute to the faithful. They will be apportioned by lottery. Due to restrictions that have been placed on attendees by the United States Secret Service and the New York City Police Department, each ticket will be issued to an individual - tickets are non-transferable (similar to an airline ticket).&nsp; Everyone entering Yankee Stadium needs to have a non-transferable ticket and will be required to show a government-issued photo identification card (passport, driver’s license) and will be subject to search by either the Secret Service or the Police Department. Inside the bulletin or available for download here is a form for all those wishing to enter the lottery for Papal visit tickets. Please complete it and return it to the Chancellor’s Office by January 31st.
What are the principles of Catholic Christian morality
and decision-making?
How do they apply to today’s moral issues?
Investigate these questions and more through this Basic Theology Course offering. The course may be used for credit toward a Basic Theology Certificate or for personal faith enrichment.
Wednesdays, January 30th,
February 13th & 27th,
March 5th & 12th
from 7:30 to 9:30 PM in the Emmaus Room
Instructor: Mrs. Elaina Kedjierski, M.A.
An Invitation For Families with Babies
baptized in August, September or October
Msgr. Walden and the St. Patrick Legion of Mary invite all families who had a baby in November or December of 2007 to the 5 PM Family Mass on Saturday, February 8th. Children and families will be invited to come forward to recieve a special blessing and to join in the final procession. Come and celebrate the birth of you child into the Church!
at Frost Valley Retreat House, Claryville, NY
for young people in grades 7 to 12
April 18th (4 PM St. Patrick’s Departure)
to
April 20th (5 PM St. Patrick’s Arrival)
Please call the Youth Office for Reservations, 360-0185
Details Upcoming
CPR & First Aid Trained Adult Chaperones
March for Life - 2008
St. Patrick Pro-Life Family is once again sponsoring a bus trip to the march on:
Tuesday, January 22nd
in Washington, D.C.
For Information and reservations call Ignatius Rienzo at 265-1081.
If you are unable to join the March for Life
Washington D.C.,
show your support in Smithtown.
All are invited to meet at St. Patrick Cemetery at 11:30 AM on January 22nd to say a short prayer by the statue for unborn babies and then proceed to the Maple Avenue Planned Parenthood and recite the Rosary. Afterward, the Knights of Columbus and Columbiettes will offer a light lunch and hot beverage at the Council Hall, 130 Lake Avenue South in Nesconset. Please join in proclaiming the Right to Life for young and old. For more information, call Kay at 724-2105.
Congratulations! CYO Girls’ Teams
Congratulations to two of St. Patrick’s CYO Girls’ Teams who won first place in their divisions: A sixth grade team coached by Michael Redmond and an eighth grade team coached by Charlie Peck. Members of the sixth grade team are: Brittany Redmond, Gabriela Cabello, Alana Fitzgerald, Siobhan Kehoe, Angelica Bevinetto, Alyssa Bevinetto, Kerry Mackey, Michelle Scannell, Katherine Delanty, and Jennie Ingebretsen. Members of the eighth grade team are: Maggie Engellenner, Jenna Vinci, Lindsey Alfano, Stephanie Peragalio, Veronica Peck, Delia Phillips, Elizabeth O’Connell, Amira Jenkins, Lauren Descalzo, and Stephanie DeFazio.
Good luck in the playoffs!
St. Patrick School Open House
Sunday, January 27th
Join us as we celebrate the beginning of Catholic Schools Week at the 12 noon Mass on Sunday, January 27th. After Mass, St. Patrick School will host an Open House from 1 to 3 PM.
If you are interested in a Christ-centered education in a warm and supportive environment, please visit us to see what we are all about. St. Patrick School follows the New York State Curriculum for all academic areas as well as the Rockville Centre Diocesan Curriculum. Our school serves students and their families in nursery school through eighth grade.
Mark Your Calendar for a
Parish Communion Breakfast
hosted by the Rosary Altar SocietySunday, March 9th
following the 10:30 AM Mass
at the Hamlet Wind Watch Golf and Country Club
Breakfast Buffet, Cost: $30 per person
Director & Principal of the De La Salle School,
a Catholic scholarship school that provides quality education
for grades 5-8
for young men from economically disadvantaged situations
Don’t miss the annualSt Patrick’s Day
Dinner Dance
Friday, March 14th at 7:30 PMat Flowerfields of St. James
Cost: $75 per person
Tickets go on sale
February 9th & 1oth
As I listen to the thoughts of those who are seeking the presidential nomination from their parties in our nation, I sometimes wonder why they would really seek to be president. It is a very prestigious position in our world today. But ultimately it is a position of service and responsibility to the people of America. The president is public servant number one. The candidates all speak at length at how they will change things and make them better. But is that a real possibility?
One of the issues that keeps coming up is abortion. This week will mark the 35th year since abortion has been legal in our nation. Since that time more than 40 million children have had their lives ended through this practice. In looking at the statistics from the 2000 census in our nation, that is more than the population of the following states combined: New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Maine and Vermont. If we took all of the people out of those states it would still not equal the number of human beings that have been killed through abortion. Yet this issue is treated as a subject that is a right and a choice - it is legal and sanctioned by the majority of those running for the presidency. All of the candidates in the democratic party are pro-abortion, while only one candidate in the republican party is pro-abortion as a politician. One of the men of history who is remembered for the evil he did during the Christmas season is King Herod. Out of fear and jealousy to protect his position as king he ordered the slaughter of the holy innocents. Everyday holy innocents are slaughtered in our nation. Instead of the sword used by Herod’s army, we use instruments in the medical field. The methods are no less brutal nor immoral.
We all take pride as Americans in our nation and reverently salute our flag. I saw a picture of that recently in a newspaper. People began their gathering by placing their hands over their hearts and reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. It is considered un-American not to show our patriotism in this way and a desecration to show disrespect to our national flag, and rightfully so. Looking at ourselves as Catholics how do we live our faith with regard to the issue of abortion? Just as it is un-American to ignore the flag, so it is un-Catholic to support abortion and those who work to ensure its continuance. We all have rights and choices, and abortion is one of them. We also choose to do so many other things that are harmful, hurtful and sinful. Thank God we have the Sacrament of Confession when we realize the error of our ways. It is also in this sacrament of healing that those who suffer the guilt and anguish of an abortion find the road to peace and hope. Any nation or people that preys on the most innocent and vulnerable among us is eroding the moral fabric of its character. It sets a precedent for a future that will bring fear, guilt, regret and more evil.
In the first reading we heard proclaimed during the Christmas season, we heard St. John in his epistles encouraging us to live the faith we profess by loving one another as God has loved us. In 1 John 5:4-5 he says,
"The victory that conquers the world is our faith. Who indeed is the victor over the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God."
Through our faith we have the way to see, live and promote the truth about who we are as human beings and as the beloved children of God. Everyday I pray for an end to abortion, but that is not enough. Action is required. Writing to our legislators, educating our young people, and not supporting those who are pro-abortion as they run for public office are three very specific ways to make a difference. Much was made of the fact that Hillary Clinton cried from the rigors of her campaign. Everyday there are tears in heaven as an infant from the womb through the choice of abortion is taken into God’s gentle care.
It amazes me to see politicians speaking from the pulpit of certain churches. We are warned over and over again that we will lose our tax exempt status if we speak about politicians. There sure seems to be a double standard here. We do make a difference to God. We are gifted with his Spirit as his beloved children and trusted and strengthened to conquer the world with our faith. We do not use weapons and threats, but love, forgiveness and truth.
Father Walden
The Roman Catholic Community of St. Patrick, Smithtown sees itself as:
- The People of God, The Body of Christ.
- Enlightenment by the Word of God.
- Nourished by the Life of Christ in the Sacraments.
- Supported by our love for and our forgiveness of each other.
- Empowered to bring the love, justice and peace of Christ to our families, our neighbors, our friends, our enemies, the poor and the powerless.
- Called to reach out to the unchurched and the non-practicing members of our community and to assist in the spiritual, intellectual and social growth of all whose lives we touch.
