BLESSED SACRAMENT PARISH December 10, 2017 Staten Island, New York 10310

Reverend Monsignor Peter G. Finn, Pastor Reverend Francisco Lanzaderas Reverend Roland Antony Raj, MMI Reverend Monsignor Francis V. Boyle, Pastor Emeritus MASSES: Saturday in the Church: 5:00 PM (Vigil), Sunday 8:00, 9:30, 11:00 AM, 12:30 PM. Weekdays in the Church: 7:00 AM and 9:00 AM. Saturday in the Church: 9:00 AM. Holy Days in the Church: 7:00 PM (Vigil), 7:00, 9:00, 11:00 AM and 7:00 PM. SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION Saturday: 12:00 to 1:00 PM; 4:15 to 5:00 PM. Anytime upon reasonable request. SACRAMENT OF BAPTISM

Sunday at 2:00 PM. (Except during July & August, then only on the First and Third Sunday and other specified days) Arrangements should be made at least one month in advance with the priest of the Parish. Parents of a first child and parents who are new to Blessed Sacrament must attend a Baptism Instruction Class which is held the second Tuesday evening of every month (except July and August) at 7:30 P.M. in the Parish House Meeting Room. Godparents should be Practicing Catholics, and must obtain a Sponsor Certificate from their Parish.

SACRAMENT OF MATRIMONY

Arrangements should be made about six months in advance, with a priest of the Parish. Couples must attend Pre-Cana Conferences.

SICK CALLS - At any time. MIRACULOUS MEDAL NOVENA - Every Monday after the 9:00 AM Mass. EUCHARISTIC ADORATION - First Friday from 12:00 Noon to 2:00 P.M. NEW PARISHIONERS - Welcome to our Parish.

We invite all parishioners to participate fully in our spiritual and social life. If you are new in the parish, please introduce yourself after Mass and register at the Parish House Office weekdays 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM. Kindly notify us if you change your address.

PARISH HOUSE

30 Manor Road 442-1581

http://www.blessedsacramentchurchsi.org

SCHOOL Mr. Joseph Cocozello

Principal 830 Delafield Avenue

442-3090

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION Sister Anne Dolores Van Wagenen, C.S.JB. - D.R.E.

830 Delafield Avenue 448-0378

PAGE TWO DECEMBER 10, 2017

There is still time to visit the Sacred Heart Altar and take an ornament and give a Christmas gift to someone in need. Your gift will bring joy to a child or adult this Christmas season. Please bring your new, wrapped gift with the original tag ornament back to

the Sacred Heart Altar or the Parish House Office. Thank you! ST. VINCENT DE PAUL SOCIETY The St. Vincent de Paul Society is selling grocery gift cards after all the Masses this Sunday, Dec. 10th and next weekend, Dec. 16/17. Cards are available for Stop & Shop and ShopRite in denominations of $25 and $50. Use them to purchase your Christmas fixings or purchase one to donate to the St. Vincent de Paul Society for distribution to those in need in our parish area. TITAN LEAGUE BREAKFAST CLUB The Titan League Breakfast Club will hold its Christmas Luncheon on Thursday, Dec. 14th at 1:00p.m at O’Neill’s Restaurant. Cost is $25.00pp. any questions, please contact: Harry Bavaro at 718-442-7317 or Charlie McKeever at 718-448-8423.

SUNDAY COLLECTION 2010 2009 $5495.00 (Weekly) $6144.00 (Weekly) $1961.00 (AirCondition) $2136.00 (AirCondition) ATTENDANCE

2010 2009 776 (Adults) 755 (Adults)

179 (Children) 198 (Children) 955 953

THE SANCTUARY LAMP KEEPS ITS SILENT VIGIL

BEFORE THE BLESSED SACRAMENT IN LOVING MEMORY OF

DONALD PACE

PRAY FOR THE SICK The sick are comforted just knowing that you pray for them In your charity please remember: Margaret Pittman-Boyle, Douglas Pfleging, Jr., Phyllis Ribaudo, Ann Socci, James Burghardt, Concetta Chicolo, Mary Kenny, Jean Carter, Jane Redmond, Carolyn DeStefano, Robert Tursi, Deirdre Westergren, Nicholas Toto, Marykate Rose, Peggy Travers, Mary Anne Blaine, Jean Cunningham, Jean Elmadary, Alan March, Sebastian Lattuga, Grayce Novaro, Angela Siuzdak, Helen Ramsey, Katherine Barbera, Phyllis Scharfenberg, Margaret Romani, Br. William Herbst, Barbara Brown, Michael Caruso, Patricia Connelly, Mary Belli, Mark Volpe, Linda Hansen, Dean Robert Ziegler, Danielle Ziegler, Marco Antonio Gonzalez, Larry Taylor, Jr., Kathy Quinlan, Katie Hanley, Jose Ruiz, Rosemary Callahan, Elizabeth Coyne, Lucy D’Angelo, Robert Hammerton, Catherine Vitale, Capala Lusi, Jack McGarry, Robert McQuade, Brian Nelson, Joan Callahan, Julia Micol, Molly Cafaro, Bob Miuccio, Maryann & Danny Brown, James McGarrigle, James Finnigan, Robert Blake, Lelia Moran, Gail Kees, Troy Crispino, Michelina Farley, Cara Healy, Eileen Doran, Phyllis Morrell, Marion Coolen, Michael Roskowinski, Barbara Braisted, Jeff Orr, Debbie Caporale, Renee McRoberts, Marieanne Corrente, Ana Ely Diaz and Ruth Orr.

SYMPATHY

Remember the soul and the souls for whom Mass will be offered during the week, especially: MONDAY 7:00 Riley O’Rourke (Living) 9:00 Frank Falzetta TUESDAY 7:00 Erin O’Connor 9:00 Tino Buscema WEDNESDAY 7:00 Maria Riggio 9:00 Kathleen Ward THURSDAY 7:00 Special Intention 9:00 Kathleen Ward & Deceased Members of Legion of Mary FRIDAY 7:00 Jeanne Helbock 9:00 Louis J. Caccese (8th Anniv.) & Michael L. Caccese SATURDAY 9:00 Pasquale Ciavarello 5:00 Madeline Murphy SUNDAY 8:00 Beverly Casucci 9:30 Mary Reilly & Lt. Joseph Gullickson 12:30 Concetta Maccarone

SUNDAY COLLECTION 2017 2016 $5,426 (Weekly) $7,016 (Weekly) $2,735 <Monthly > $1,819 ATTENDANCE

2017 2016 831 (Adults) 879 (Adults)

203 (Children) 244 (Children) 1,034 1,123

PAGE THREE SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT SCHEDULE FOR DECEMBER 17, 2017 ALTAR SERVERS LECTORS EXTRAORDINARY MINISTERS 5:00 PM Vigil Team 6 K. Kelley A. Aponte & K. Byrne 8:00 AM Team 7 F. Molanphy D. Vigliotti & B. Collorec 9:30 AM Team 8 M. Boyd & D. Meagher J. Ryan & L. Ryan 11:00 AM Team 9 M. Peries W. Boyd & M. McKeever 12:30 PM Team 10 M. Conigati H. Wodzinski & E. Laub RICHMOND CHORAL SOCIETY In the spirit of the holiday season, Richmond Choral Society is pleased to present, “Holiday with Brass”, Saturday, Dec. 16th, 8:00p.m at St. Clare’s Church, 110 Nelson Ave. General Admission $20, Seniors $15, Student with ID $10, children under 12 years of age are free. Featuring Christmas Cantata by Daniel Pinkham, Glory to God by Alan Hovhaness, holiday favorites plus RCS’s traditional carol sing-along. Please support your fellow parishioner, Ginny McKeever by attending this concert and enjoying a festive choral celebration of the holiday season. PARISH NURSE PROGRAM The Parish Nurse’s office hours are on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00 A.M. to 4:30 P.M. If you wish to make an appointment with the Parish Nurse, Peggy Smith, please call her at 718-447-9657. LESSONS & CAROLS The festival of Lessons and Carols is an Advent service of scripture and song that dates back to the late 19th century and is followed around the world. Through readings from the Old and New Testaments interspersed with beautiful music, the congregation is invited to pray and reflect on the birth of Jesus as we prepare our hearts and minds for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Lessons and Carols will take place on Tuesday, December 12th at 7pm in the Church. MOORE CATHOLIC’S ANNUAL HOLIDAY FAIR Moore Catholic’s Holiday Fair, 100 Merrill Ave. will be held on December 10th from 10:30am to 4:30pm. Vendors, Raffles, White Elephant Table, Santa’s Café and Baked Goods by our own elves! Admission is $1.00

ST. JOSEPH RETREAT CENTER The St. Joseph Retreat Center, 850 Hylan Blvd. is offering Winter Overnight Retreats, Arrive Friday evening at 4pm for supper and Depart Sunday after 2pm Closing Prayer. Fee: $250 single; $200 double. Visit: SJRetreatCenter.org or call 718-720-1097 for details and to reserve your spot. TREASURES FROM OUR TRADITION Many people think that Saint Francis originated the Christmas crèche, but its origins go far back. The Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome has housed what is said to be relics of the cradle of Jesus since the seventh century. In time, every year during the Christmas season the reliquary (container for relics) was surrounded by an increasingly grand three-dimensional scene of the place of Jesus’ birth. Rocks and trees, houses, streams, figurines of villagers going about their daily tasks were all included. It was a very dramatic presentation. If you’ve ever seen an elaborate model train installation, you get the idea. The proper term for this depiction is presepio, from the Latin word for “surround” or “hedge.” Over the centuries, the custom spread first to churches, and then to aristocratic homes. In Italy, whole chapels are often set aside for the presepio, and it is not unusual to have hundreds of figures. It can sometimes be a challenge to locate the Holy Family amid the crowd, almost like a Where’s Waldo? children’s book. The oldest surviving presepio is in St. Mary Major and dates from the thirteenth century, although many pieces have been broken or lost. Saint Francis of Assisi took a decidedly creative step in 1233 in the village of Greccio, when he directed his followers to fill a manger with hay and tether an ox and ass nearby. He then invited the villagers to attend Mass outdoors near the crib, the worshipers themselves becoming a living presepio. By the seventeenth century, the tradition was well-established, particularly in Naples, and had a firm hold in Portugal, Spain, and in the Provence region of France. Today, it is not unusual to find presepios with five hundred figures, a vivid reminder of Emmanuel, God-with-us! —Rev. James Field, Copyright © J. S. Paluch Co.

PAGE FOUR FROM THE PASTOR During this Second Sunday of Advent we are offered an Advent Penance Service for the Parish Family with our wonderful choir on Tuesday and your Parish Priests an Advent Day of Recollection and Confession at the Seminary on Wednesday and on next Monday, Dec. 18th from 4:00p.m. to 8:00p.m., Reconciliation (Confession) for our Parish Family. I pray we shall all experience the beauty and wonder of the Sacrament of forgiveness. Forgiveness is rooted in kindness and kindness can be, if we permit it, contagious. Permit me to share with you “Angels on Earth” from Light One Candle, by Tony Rossi of the Christophers. Laura Schroff could have easily ignored the 11 year-old boy begging for spare change on the streets of New York City, but there was something compelling about his words, “I am hungry.” That day in 1986, she took young Maurice Mazyck for a bite to eat at McDonald’s and that act of kindness changed both their lives and launched a friendship that continues to this day. Schroff shared that story in her memoir “an Invisible Thread” and the 2015 children’s book “An Invisible Thread Christmas Story.” Both of which went on to win Christopher Awards. More than that, those books resulted in people sending Schroff their own stories. Now, she is sharing many of them with the world in her latest book, “Angels on Earth: Inspiring Stories of Fate, Friendship, and the Power of Connection,” co-authored with Alex Tresniowski. During an interview on “Christopher Closeup,” Schroff and I discussed several of those stories, beginning with that of Dru Sanchez, a mother from Tucson, Arizona, who was out shopping one day when she noticed a young woman with three children. She could tell this family was on a tight budget because the boy kept typing numbers into a calculator, and they would then put food back on the shelf if it was too expensive. “In that moment,” said Schroff, “Dru remembered what it was like many yhears ago when she was a struggling mom, and she thought, “I can make a difference.’ So Dru went and bought a gift card, and brought it over to this young woman. And what she received in return was this extraordinary gift that she never could have anticipated: hugs from the woman and her children.” Schroff also discovered new aspects of her friends’ lives in the course of writing this book. Case in point: Linda DeCarlo. Schroff recalled, “Linda and I worked together at People magazine, but it wasn’t until ‘An Invisible Thread’ came out that she sent me her story. At 17 years old, her stepfather threw her out. It was a cold, wintery day, and she rode her bicycle to the only place she knew where to go” her friend Cynthia’s home. Cynthia’s father, Irving, who was also living on a very tight budge, put his hand on her shoulder and invited her into their home. She lived there for over a year. He could have just as easily taken her to the police station or to a shelter, but instead he opened up his home, his heart, and his family to Linda.” Schroff hopes that in reading “Angels on Earth,” people will recognize the power of simple acts of kindness: “When you reach out and touch another person, sometimes you see that immediate impact. But in the case of Dru Sanchez, she really doesn’t know the impact that she had. But the likelihood is that this woman and her three children will never forget this kindness.” Schroff also believes that the people she’s written about offer a much-needed antidote to cynicism. She concluded, “There is so much goodness in our world, and we need to stop and celebrate that! Research shows that kindness is contagious. The more you do it, the more you want to do it. And when you incorporate kindness into your daily life - something as simple as saying ‘good morning’ to someone in your elevator or saying ‘thank you’ to the person who’s helped package your groceries - you’ll see that you’re going to live a happier, more purposeful life.” God bless you and make this your Best Advent Ever! MSGR. FINN

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