In this Sunday’s Gospel, the blind Bartimaeus cries out to Jesus and asks for compassion. Bartimaeus recognizes that his need for God’s grace is far more important than the ability to see. Jesus responds to him out of deep compassion for every human being. In our busy lives, we may become blind to the people and things that bring real joy and meaning; however we have to use every opportunity that Christ gives us to respond to the needs of others. When Christ gives us grace for our daily lives, he is challenging us to pass that grace along to others.
The ‘Feast of All Saints' is the day in the Church to focus on known saints --that is those recognized in the canon of the saints by the Catholic Church. All Saints Day is an opportunity for us to thank God for the life and witness of those holy people and it also is an opportunity to implore the saints for their intercession that we may imitate their holiness in our own lives. All Saints' Day was formally started by Pope Boniface IV, who consecrated the Parthenon at Rome to the Virgin Mary and all the Martyrs on May 13 in 609 AD. The holy day was eventually established on November 1 by Pope Gregory III in the mid-eighth century as a day dedicated to the saints and their relics. In communion with us as members of the Church, the saints are actively concerned for our growth in holiness and we benefit from their intercession before God.
For the Feast of All Saints, October 31st vigil Mass will be at 7:00 pm, on November 1st the Masses are scheduled for 8:00 am and 7:00 pm. There will be a special Luminaria Mass for All Souls Day, Friday November 2nd at 7:00 pm. You can purchase a special luminaria candle for the Luminaria Mass, with envelopes are in the back of the Church or go on line at Sthyacinth.org. Request for candles will be accepted through Monday October 29th.
The anointing of the sick is administered to bring spiritual and even physical strength during times of illness and to those who are about to undergo a serious operation. The anointing of the sick is a rite that is performed to convey God’s grace to the recipient, through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Catechism teaches, "This sacred anointing of the sick was instituted by Christ our Lord as a true and proper sacrament of the New Testament. It is alluded to indeed by Mark, but is recommended to the faithful and promulgated by James the apostle and brother of the Lord" (CCC 1511; Mark 6:13; James. 5:14-15). STHY offers a Healing Mass on the First Saturdays of every month. The next Healing Mass will be held on November 3rd at 8:00 am. If you are in need of the graces of the sacrament, I am encouraging you to come to this special Mass for prayer.
National Vocation Awareness Week (NVAW) is an annual week-long celebration of the Catholic Church in the United States dedicated to promote vocations to the priesthood, diaconate and consecrated life through prayer and education, and to renew our prayers and support for those who are considering one of these particular vocations. During November 4th- 10th , please take the opportunity to specifically pray for the Deacons, Sisters, Brothers and Priests of the Church who are called to a vocation.
Praying for vocations is the most powerful way to support vocations. A vocation is a call from the Holy Spirit, a gift from God that is nurtured in prayer. When we pray for vocations, we lift up to our Father those men and women whom He is calling to follow Him in a very special way. Each week at the end of one of the Masses, an volunteer family is called by the priest to come forward to receive the Vocations chalice. The family takes the chalice home and puts it in a place of honor. If you want to have the opportunity to have the chalice in your home, please contact the parish office for details.
I send out my sincere thanks to all who made a pledge for our Building Faith, Family and Future Capital Campaign. I truly appreciate your generosity and support. Please consider making a year-end pledge. Envelopes are in the Narthex along with our collection box specifically designed for our Capital campaign or you can do so online through the parish website. Now is the time for giving, and we can all do our part, pledge. Thank you for doing your part to help us reach our goal.
There will be several capital repair and improvement projects that are currently on the schedule at STHY. First, we have are the repairing and replacing several of the Center Street parking lot light fixtures at a cost of $3500. Next, we have to install a new control panel for the Church HVAC system at a cost of $8006. Next, we have to replace the lighting fixtures (all 19) in the main Church (back of church and narthex) due to electrical shorting and arcing. The cost of the repair is estimated to be $4000. (We had this problem 5 years ago with the lighting on the Altar and we replaced all of the lighting with LED lighting.)
Finally, over the next few months our attention will be focused on the making the necessary continued repairs on the Center Street Parking lot. We are currently working on accepting bids from contractors. The Center Street parking lot is overdue to be repainted and sealed. There has already been extensive repairs made to Center Street parking lot over the last few months; moreover, now we have to make sure that there is no more continued damage to the parking lot due to use and weather. Most likely this project will not be completed until summer 2019 Thank you for your generosity to our Capital Improvement fund.