August 14, 2016 ___ ______Page 1

Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Karl Albrecht, Lisa B., Baby Alexandra Bachert, Caroline Bachert, Frances Baio, Dolores Barbi-eri, Catherine Capato, Sally Capoziello, Antoi-nette & Catherine Chiarelli, Marge D’Auria, Mary Ann D’Angelo, Baby Christopher Brian Demmerle, Domenica DeVito, Virginia DiGangi, Francesca Gaudino, Ian Genovese-Williams,

Joseph Gentile, John Joseph Gleeson, John Pierce Gleeson, Christine Healy, Aurea Hernandez, Maria Hernan-dez, Rosemary Hogan, Michael Hegel, Elizabeth Isolano, Keri & Baby Tristan, Amelia Kalb, Pam Karwan, John Kill-commons, Baby T.J. Krieg, Kathleen Krieg, Klavdia Krieg, Anthony Lamantia, James Leung, Thomas & Patricia Lipari, William J. Litt, Ralph Maresco, Mary Mastrangelo, Camillo Mazella, Rosemary Menechella, John Myers, Salvatore Noto, Angela Ottomanelli-Hubbs, Michael Palermo, Gina Palya, Santo Pantina, Doris & Carlo Pecchillo, Joseph Questore, Mary Romano, Jake Rothman, Louise Ruggiero, Anthony Russo, Felice Scimeca, Rosemarie Secreti, Fred Sepulveda, Rosalia Sindone, Michael Tamburo, Chrissie Tremblay, Paul Tremblay, Paul John Tremblay, Ann Marie Vayda, Sr. Joanne Walters, Elizabeth Weimer, Brittany Zaita.

Deceased: Nancy Parrino, Vincent Peritore, James Ricotta, Rosemarie Secreti, Karina Vetrano

T h i s We e k ' s M a s s I n t e n t i o n s

Sunday, August 14, 2016 8:00AM George & Ann Papandrea 9:30AM Clara Mendolia (Rosary for Peace Prayer Group) 11:00AM Christine Piotrowski (St. Helen’s Religious Ed) 12:30PM Jacquelyn Boutureira (Loving Family) 5:00PM For The Parishioners

Monday, August 15, 2016 Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary 9:00AM Christine Piotrowski (Pat Keighron) 7:30PM For The Parishioners

Tuesday, August 16, 2016 St. Stephen of Hungary 9:00AM Filomena Garcia (Nena Garcia)

Wednesday, August 17, 2016

9:00AM Butler Family (Margaret Butler)

Thursday, August 18, 2016 9:00AM Margaret Schubert (Ellen Heaney DeIesu)

Friday, August 19, 2016 St. John Eudes 9:00AM Grieco & McCarthy Family (Joan Grieco)

Saturday, August 20, 2016 St. Bernard 9:00AM Rose Melito (Andrew & Linda Mastrangelo) Clara Mendolia (Secular Franciscans) Peter Quartulli (Loving Family) 5:00PM Philip Carollo, Kevin McCosker, Yvette Santiago, Frank Uss, Francis Vizza

Sunday, August 21, 2016 8:00AM Robert Pecorino (Loving Family) 9:30AM Salvatore Berritto (Joe & Ann Berritto) 11:00AM Christina Spiniello (Ann Marcotrigiano) 12:30PM Nicolo & Susanna Caputi (M/M V. Caputi) 5:00PM For The Parishioners

GOOD SHEPHERD STATUE We would like to thank Maria Garcia, who kept the statue this past week. Anyone interested in keeping the statue in their home and praying for vocations for one week should contact the Recto-

ry.

PLEASE NOTE!

St. Helen Parish will not have a different Summer Schedule of Masses. All Mass times will remain the same as throughout the year:

Monday—Friday: 9:00AM Saturday: 9:00AM & 5:00PM Sunday: 8:00AM, 9:30AM, 11:00AM, 12:30PM & 5:00PM The Rectory office hours through September 5th will be:

Monday—Friday: 9AM-12:00PM, & 1:00-4:00PM No evening hours Monday-Friday

during the summer.

Saturday & Sunday: 9:00AM-12:00PM

Please Note: The Rectory will be closed:

August 15 (Feast of the Assumption) and September 5 (Labor Day).

If you are new to St. Helen Parish, please remember to stop in at the Recto-ry to register your family!

Please Note: The Rectory office will be closed Monday, August 15th in ob-servance of the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and will reo-pen on Tuesday at 9:00AM.

August 14, 2016 ___ ______Page 2

St. Helen’s Religious Education Registration for 2016-2017

Our program consists of Eight Religious Education grades: Kindergarten to 7th Grade

We are now registering children for the 2016-2017 school year. The registration packet may be ob-tained at the Religious Education Office located in the school building.

The registration fee is $75 for one child, and $100 for two or more children in the same family. If the child was baptized at a Church other than St. Helen you will need a copy of your child's baptismal certificate. If you do not have one available, you should contact the rectory of the Church where your child was baptized. Most parishes take a couple of weeks to process a bap-tismal certificate. Place your request now so your regis-tration for our program will not be delayed. If you have any concerns or questions please contact us at 718-916-2319. Registration for those enrolled in the 2016-2017 year was sent home with your child and/ or via email.

The Order of Franciscans Secular meet on the 3rd Saturday of every month in St. Helen’s Church Meeting Room after the 9AM Mass. Come and learn more about the Franciscan way of life.

St. Helen’s Anniversary Wall

St. Helen’s Anniversary Wall will shortly be undergoing a facelift!

New plaques have been obtained for all the names presently featured on the Wall, including those who have temporary plaques. These new plaques will be more durable to the elements, the names will be easier to read, and will provide a more beautiful and lasting tribute to our loved ones. If you are interested is placing a plaque on the Wall in Thanksgiving, or in Memory of a loved one, ap-plications are available at the entrance of the Church, or you may stop in at the Rectory. The offering for each plaque is $350.00.

We appreciate your patience and understanding during this transition!

This extraordinary endeavor—which St. Helen Parish is a part of—is designed to ensure the long-term ability of the Church in Brooklyn & Queens to support our immediate priorities, launch new programs, and address local needs in one coordinated effort within each parish.

Our parish’s target for this historic initiative is $790,000. Fifty percent (50%) of the total funds we raise (less our Annual Catholic Appeal obli-gation of $81,855 for 2016) will remain with us for our own parish needs:

Replacing the rug in our Church with a superior floor. Replacing the votive candles with new fixtures in a new and improved

shrine area for statues and images. Replacing our 40+ year old organ. Maximizing our seating capacity within the current structure of the

Church. Beautifying the Sanctuary with traditionally Catholic images.

If we surpass our target, we will then retain seventy-five percent (75%) of all funds raised above our goal. For every dollar over 125% of our goal, the parish will receive 100% of funds.

Your generosity, your gift, will allow us to address these worthwhile and vital parish projects as we build on our past, address our current needs and prepare for an even more vibrant future. Please help support us in this endeavor for the future of our parish and the Catholic community of Brooklyn & Queens.

This Campaign is underway at St. Helen’s, with a total of $618,270 raised to date. If your family has not already been contacted, please anticipate that in the near fu-ture you will be receiving information in the mail about how you can be part of this campaign to benefit our parish!

$618,270 as of August 10

August 14, 2016 ___ ______Page 3

August 14, 2016 ___ ______Page 4

St. Helen’s Women’s Bowling League

Pictured above are the ladies who attended St. Helen’s Women’s Bowling League end-of-year Luncheon in June. The new season is starting September 15th! There will be a meeting September 8th. If you are interested in joining this League please call Lorraine at 718-843-3431.

Policies Regarding Infant Baptism at St. Helen Parish

Parents seeking Baptism for their children who live within the territory of St. Helen Parish are asked to register as members of the parish before requesting an initial interview for Baptism. Registration is easily done at the parish office anytime during business hours. Parents seeking Baptism for their children who live outside the territory of St. Helen Parish are asked to obtain a letter from the parish in which they live authoriz-ing the Baptism to take place at St. Helen. Initial meetings with parents seeking Baptism for their children will normally take place on the second Wednesday of each month from 7:00–9:00PM and on the fourth Saturday of each month from 10:30AM–12:30PM.

AUGUST—SEPTEMBER, 2016

Mornings of Preparation Required Before a Baptism: (All begin at the 11:00AM Mass and continue in the Msgr. McGinness Room)

August 28 — September 11 & 25

Schedule for Baptisms: (All begin at 2:00PM) August 28 — September 11 & 25

Please call 718-738-1616 for more information and/or to schedule an appointment.

August 14, 2016 ___ ______Page 5

Mon., Aug. 15: Rev 11:19a; 12:1-6a, 10ab; 1 Cor 15:20-27; Luke 1:39-56 Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary The last enemy to be destroyed is death. Today’s Gospel tells the story of Mary racing to the hill country of Ju-dea to visit Elizabeth. The Spirit within leapt from Mary to Elizabeth and the jumping baby John. I guess Elizabeth

would be nonplussed if we told her she was speaking “ex cathedra,” infallibly, when she called her cousin Mary “the Mother of my Lord”! And then Mary, the first evan-gelist, writes her gospel on the open air, a prophetic résu-mé of her own baby’s mission to fulfill God’s promise of mercy. Or as Dorothy Day put it: “Jesus came to make the rich poor and the poor holy.” The Queen takes her place at your right hand, O Lord! Tues., Aug. 16: Ezek 28:1-10; Matt 19:23-30 It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for one who is rich to enter the Kingdom of God. Jesus just about shuts the door on the rich. Then Peter wants to know, “What will there be for us?” Jesus wel-comes the question. The apostles will get thrones, and everyone will get 100 times whatever they give up “for the sake of my name.” When the Prince of Tyre claimed that he was God, the prophet Ezekiel snapped back in the words of the Lord: “You shall die the death of the uncir-cumcised.” What is it about the rich that such extreme language is necessary just to get their attention? Well, let me check my own hoard, maybe not of money but of re-sentments and self-satisfaction. I might need some nee-dling, too! O Lord, have pity on your people! Wed., Aug. 17: Ezek 34: 1-11; Matt 20:1-16 He said to one of them …“Are you envious because I am generous?” The minimum wage is always controversial. Jesus’ answer seems extreme: Everyone gets a full day’s pay even if they worked only the last hour of the day. Should we crunch the numbers? Well, no. It’s not a Paul Krugman column; it’s a parable, a preview of our salva-tion. Do we work for our salvation? Oh, yes, work, work hard! But we are not paid for our “work.” This parable seems to be a variant of the multiplication of the loaves or the flood of wine at Cana. It’s about abundance, what the theologian Hans Urs von Balthasar called the “wastefulness” of God, whose pay is mercy — over-whelming, unlimited, immeasurable mercy. All of us workers share the same Jubilee. O Lord, you spread the table before me; my cup overflows.

Thurs., Aug. 18: Ezek 36:23-28; Matt 22:1-14

I will … take from your bod-

ies your stony hearts and give you natural hearts. Even apart from any debate about his divinity, Jesus the rabbi could be credited with making Judaism a religion about its prophets rather than its law. As Iñigo of Loyola self-identified as “Ignatius” after the brave bishop of Antioch, so Jesus took his name “Son of Man” from Ezekiel’s big-hearted visions. No one ever had a more natural heart than Jesus. When Matthew recorded this parable, noting that the king invited “the bad and good alike” to his wed-ding feast, he must have understood it well. He had gone from cold-hearted tax collector to the Tin Man in “The Wizard of Oz”: “Now I know I have a heart, ’cause it’s breaking.” A heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn. Fri., Aug. 19: Ezek 37:1-14; Matt 22:34-40 The Lord … asked me: “Son of man, can these bones come to life?” Why was there still a debate in Jesus’ day about the resurrection of the dead? How could anybody not remember Ezekiel’s vision: “O my people, I will open your graves and have you rise from them”? Jesus “silenced the Sadducees” when they mocked the whole idea of resurrection. So he’s happy to paint his own vi-sion in the broadest of strokes: Everything depends on love — love of God and love of neighbor. It’s so all-encompassing, it’s a paradox. Love God with all your heart, and love your neighbor. But what’s left over from “all” for God to spend on my neighbor? It only works if love of neighbor is precisely how we love God. We give you thanks, O Lord, for your mercy. Sat., Aug. 20: Ezek 43:1-7ab; Matt 23:1-12 Call no one on earth your father. Like “the roaring of many waters” pouring from the temple in Ezekiel’s vi-sion, Jesus sweeps away the “hypocrites” in the most unrelenting attack on “religion” in the New Testament. He is in no mood for half-measures. One Teacher, One Father, One Master! What is the sin of the Pharisees? “They preach but they do not practice.” This is getting a little close to home! I am writing these short reflections, six at a time, one week every month. I have to wonder why anyone would care what I have to say. Don’t let me off the hook. Just let Jesus do the talking, and the teach-ing, and the parenting. In your word, O Lord, kindness and truth shall meet; justice and peace shall kiss.

TWENTIETH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

Homiletic starters and scriptural

reflection points for each day of the month