The Merriam - Webster dictionary defines ‘greed’ as “ a selfish and excessive desire for more of something than is needed.” We see this greed played out in today’s gospel with the rich man who finds himself with such a bountiful harvest that he cannot possibly use it all. Instead of sharing his bounty with others or putting it to some good use, the rich man decides to tear down his current barn to build an even bigger one to hold the excess. There is a lesson in this Gospel for us. If we are not careful, the desire for more can take over every aspect of our lives, because nothing will satisfy our deepest hunger. Only God can do that. As St. Augustine said, “Our hearts are restless until they can find rest in you.”
Pope Pius XII dogmatically proclaimed the assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary as a matter of faith in 1950. In Pope Pius XII Apostolic Constitution “Munificentissimus Deus” (Most Bountiful God), which defined the dogma, contains the Pontiff's accounts of many longstanding traditions by which the Church has celebrated the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary throughout its history. The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary recalls the spiritual and physical departure of the mother of Jesus Christ from the earth, when both her soul and her body were taken into the presence of God. The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a holy day of obligation. STHY will have three mass celebrations for this solemnity: August 14th, Vigil Mass 7:00 pm, August 15th Masses 8:00am and 7:00 pm.
August is here and that means that we will be celebrating the commemoration of our St Hyacinth Feast day and Parish 54th anniversary. We will have our St Hyacinth Parish Feast day celebrations with a reception, in Guyot Hall after the Sunday Noon Mass on August 18th. Let us all make plans to join in the celebration of the life of our parish.
On behalf of STHY, I would like to say a special thanks to the Knights of Columbus for their generous gift of time and hard work for trimming the trees on the Church complex this past week. The K of C did a wonderful job. I want the K of C to know that their work has not gone unnoticed in our community.
This past weekend, a number of our young people attended the Archdiocesan Youth Conference at the Hilton Americas Hotel in downtown Houston. All who are participated were blessed with a powerful message from Cardinal DiNardo and other presenters. I want to send a special thank you to our Coordinator of Youth Ministry Youth Ministry, Steven Sotelo; Youth Volunteer Ethan Rangel, and Director of Faith Formation, Mrs. Pamela Johnson, along with a team of adult chaperones who provided supervision for our youth.
Church attendance during the summer months tends to drop off as vacations and weekend sporting events often conflict. On the other hand, the services STHY provide with the parish and for the larger community continue year round, as do their associated expenses. Thus, your consistent financial support of our parish is vital to achieving our stewardship mission. The easiest way to be sure that your gift of treasure reaches us, even when you can’t be here, is through enrollment in our electronic offertory program: Faith Direct. Enrollment forms are available in the Church office or you can visit Faith Direct’s secure website at www.faithdirect.net to enroll on line. Our parish code is TX526. As always, know that your generosity is truly a gift from God.
Come join us this Fall starting August 13th, for an exciting new parish bible study on the Gospel of Matthew: The King and His Kingdom. This Bible study program shows how Jesus fulfills God’s promises to Israel and establishes his kingdom on earth. Through references to the Old Testament promises of God to his people and the messages God sent them through the prophets, the Bible study of the Gospel of the Matthew provides the key to understanding the rest of the New Testament and Christ as the fulfillment of God’s plan. Finally, repair work on the Center Street parking lot will begin this Monday August 5th. The Center Street parking lot will be closed to ongoing traffic until the work of repairing the parking lot is done. For those attending daily Mass, Tuesday through Friday, we ask everyone to park on the ‘P’ Street side of the Church. The Adoration Chapel will be closed starting 1:00 pm Sunday and should reopen Saturday August 10th at 9:00 am. (Barring any inclement weather during the week). Thank you for your patience as we work to improve the Church facilities.