Parish Update – Friday, Sept. 10
Happy Friday to one and all! I pray your week has been a good one, and I hope you were able to enjoy the relatively cool mornings, though you had to get up fairly early to catch it before the heat settled in. As we look to the weekend, we do so in a reflective mood as we prepare to mark the 20th anniversary of the events of Sept. 11, 2001. I’m sure all of us who are old enough to remember can recall where we were and what we did when we heard the news that day.
I can recall that it was a Tuesday without even looking at a calendar, as it was my day off from my assignment at St. Michael Church and I had just finished my morning jog at Memorial Park and was pulling into the parking lot of the Hot Bagel Shop on Shepherd for my post-workout reward when the news came on the radio. I stopped to fill up my truck with gas (and have kept the receipt all the years later, for some unknown reason) and returned to the parish rectory to watch the news all day before leading a prayer service that night in the church.
It’s odd how all the details are still fresh in my mind. In some sense, the 20th anniversary is no more significant than the 10th anniversary was, or the 13th, the 19th, or any year in the future. It’s just a convenient round number that marks a milestone. But we are a people of memory, and as Catholic Christians that corporate memory we share has deep roots within us. Every time we gather at Mass we are remembering the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. That is what we call the Paschal Mystery, and holding on to that memory is what helps us better understand all the other memories of our life, be they good or bad.
Our Gospel reading today on the
24th Sunday in Ordinary Time has no connection to the events of 20 years ago, but it is a timeless one nonetheless.
“Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me,” Jesus says. The idea – the reality – of the cross is ever before us, or at least it should be.
Every generation must be willing to bear the crosses of the world. Some are of our own making, while others are thrust upon us unexpectedly, but the truth is that the Lord is there to shoulder them with us, and in him, the cross is transformed from death into life. May we bear our crosses in the promise and hope that the God of mercy will comfort all who mourn and so redeem our world in his son, our Lord, Jesus Christ.
Here’s what is happening around CtR this week:
• We invite you to please join us for Mass this weekend, either in person or via our
livestream on Sunday at 9 a.m. on both our Facebook and YouTube pages. You can find the link to the livestream at
www.ctrcc.com/live-stream, and in addition, you’ll find there both a worship aid and a link to the Scripture readings to follow along with Mass. And you can make your weekly offertory contribution online at
www.ctrcc.com/donate. … If you’d like to join us in person for Mass, we welcome you on Saturday at 5 p.m., or Sunday at 7, 9, and 11 a.m. and 5 p.m.
• In addition, this Sunday we are hosting a special
Welcoming Sunday for those families who have joined the parish in the past year. If you are among them, you should’ve received an invitation to join us after the 9 or 11 a.m. Masses, but if not, please come join us at whichever time is convenient for you. It’s our first Welcoming Sunday in 20 months and we are excited to meet and greet our many newcomers. … Recall as well that next Sunday we’ll welcome everyone over to the Parish Hall after all the morning masses for the long-awaited return of Coffee & Donuts. We’ve got a new donut vendor, too, and it’s a Houston original, Shipley’s. I know many of you have been looking forward to that event returning to our calendar, so make plans to join.
Sugar and caffeine for everyone!
• We will host another opportunity to receive a
Covid vaccination tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 11 in our Parish Hall from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. This is for those in need of their second shot (following up from three weeks ago) or those who wish to receive the first vaccination. It’s open to everyone 12 years old and up, and no pre-registration is needed. The Church fully encourages those who are eligible to receive the vaccination, so please take advantage of its availability in our community.
• Additionally on Saturday morning from 10 a.m. – 12 noon we will host a
formation session for those who wish to serve as a Eucharistic Minister of Holy Communion. This is a wonderful way to put your Stewardship of Faith into action by serving at either Sunday or weekday masses. It’s truly a humbling gift to assist in the distribution of the most precious Body of Christ to our brothers and sisters, and though none of us is worthy, the Lord calls us to serve one another. We’ll give you all the training you need, so please prayerfully discern God’s call and join us in the main church tomorrow morning.
• We are excited to resume a beautiful ministry at CtR this week as we relaunch our
Divine Mercy Cenacle beginning on Monday, Sept. 13 at 10 a.m. More formally known as the Eucharistic Apostles of the Divine Mercy Cenacle, this group delves into the richness of our Catholic faith and the Divine Mercy message through the writings of
St. Maria Faustina Kowalska, the Sacred Scriptures, the Catechism of the Catholic Church and the Formation Manual. … It will meet every Monday morning in Room 208 of the Parish Office to unpack the richness of our Catholic faith and the Divine Mercy message. All are welcome. For more information, visit
www.ctrcc.com/divinemercycenacle.
•
Rejoice Counseling, as many of you know, is a Catholic counseling apostolate based in Houston whose services are offered at many parishes throughout the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, including here at CtR. Their counselors are licensed and accredited marriage, family, and personal therapists who see clients on our campus. They are rooted in the Catholic tradition and offer a valuable service to our parishioners in need, whether it be marriage issues, family dynamic issues, or personal growth. They’ve been a blessing to so many at CtR and beyond, and I’m grateful for their professional and pastoral work alongside the parish staff. To learn more and to make an appointment, visit
www.myparishcounseling.com/ctrcc. … The reality is that some marriages do end in divorce and for those Catholics who may find themselves in such a situation, we have a great support group that will be offering a 12-week
“Surviving Divorce” program this fall, beginning Tuesday, Sept. 14 at 7 p.m. It was created to bring hope and healing to those who have experienced the pain and loneliness of a broken marriage. It is for the newly separated and divorced and those still struggling with issues many years later. There is a virtual and in-person option available this semester. See
www.ctrcc.com/surviving-divorce for additional information and program overview.
• We are just two weeks away from our inaugural
CtR Men’s Retreat set for Sept. 24-25. I encourage the men of the parish to join their brothers from CtR for time together in prayer over a Friday night and all day Saturday. It will be an opportune time to “disconnect” and to satisfy our longing for communion with the Lord. In fact, the title of the retreat is “I Thirst.” There is a real need to drink deep from the well of the mercy of God, and the team has put together a beautiful retreat to help you do so. It starts on Friday, Sept. 24 from 6-9 p.m., and then will continue all day on Saturday, Sept. 25 from 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., ending in time to allow you to join us for the 5 p.m. Mass if you wish. Cost is $60 for all materials, and includes dinner Friday and lunch on Saturday. See
www.ctrcc.com/mensretreat for additional information and to register.
St. Helen, pray for us! (She had a special devotion to the cross of Christ, and this Tuesday, Sept. 14, is the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, which is celebrated by the Western, Eastern, and Orthodox churches to commemorate the dedication of the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem built on the site of the crucifixion and the tomb of our Lord.)
Peace, Fr. Sean