September 8, 2002
Facing the Terrible Day
Dumb
Quote of the Week
Last week a columnist
for a daily paper was writing about the ongoing crisis of confidence
in the Boston archdiocese. He concluded his column by mentioning that
his “church watcher” on Long Island noted that “In Westbury,
they had to take thousands and
thousands out of the endowment for a food kitchen to pay the diocese.”
Of course this came as a shock to me, since there is no truth to that
statement at all. No money from any endowment funds have gone to
'pay the diocese.' In fact, St. Brigid's has been the recipient of
'thousands and thousands' of dollars in grants FROM the diocese because
of the work we do to minister to the hungry and homeless, the new immigrants,
the elderly and the children. The columnist’s “church
watcher” hasn't been watching closely enough.
Away at College?
By
this time, our parishioners who are in college, have gone off to school
and some are away from home. Being
away from home is a little less difficult these days because of e-mail.
Most colleges provide their students with an e-mail account, and families
and friends can stay in touch. For the past year I’ve been sending
a “letter from home” almost every week to our parishioners
who are away at college. The feedback on this was great as our college
students felt really connected to parish life here.
To receive the “letter from home”, take this bulleting with
you to college as a reminder to send in your e-mail address. Just Click
Here!
Cool Way to Pray
If you’d like to try out a new interactive prayer site online,
go to the St. Brigid’s home page and click on the “Church
Interactive” link.
Technology Ministry
If you’d like to give your time and expertise at helping our parish
connect its telephone systems or work on its website, you can let us
know by filling in our
online form
Want
to e-mail Father Ralph?
Past Columns:
Sep 1: Sharing the
Faith
Aug 25:Empty Shelves
Aug 18: Comemmorating
Sept. 11th
Aug 11: Taking Time
To See
August 4: Moving
Music
July 28:Meet
the Missionaries
July 21:
Press One Now
July 14: Having
Our Say
July 6: One
Nation Under God
June 30: Anointing
the Sick
June 23: Giving Thanks
to God
June 16: Father's
Day
June 9: Fall Mass
Schedule
June 2: Summer Plans
May 26: Spreading
the Faith
May 19: Passing Grace
May 12: Changing
Times
May 5: Reason for Hope
April 28: Changing
Ministry
April 21: The Poor Are Hurt
Again
April 14: Celebrating
50 Days
April 7: Where have
they put him?
March 31: Alleluia!
Alleluia!
March 24: Hardly
Hosanna
March 17: Roll The
Stone Back
March 10: Here's
Mud In Your Eye
March 3: Our Local
Drought
Feb 24: Welcoming
Bishop Murphy
Feb 17: We Will Rise
Again
Feb 10: Very
Good Now
Feb 3: The Multi
Cultural Church
Jan 27: Appealing
Words
Jan 20:Our
Wonderful School
Jan 13: Changing
Times
Jan 6: Farewell Father
Augustine
I don’t believe there is a wrong way to live through Wednesday this week. It will be one year since the terrorist attacks leveled the World Trade Center and caused the downing of four planes, here and in Pennsylvania and in Washington DC. Some people will re-live that day by being glued to the television set all day as the various networks bring us words and images, as if we need to see them again in order to remember. Others will engage in a self-imposed media black-out, avoiding all TV, Radio and newspapers for the day. Once was enough. They don’t need to see it again.
Some will head into the city -- there are those headed for specific memorial services or gatherings of victims families or survivor groups, others are just going in because it seems to be the place to be. Some will stay home from going into the city, even if they’re supposed to report to work.
Our children and our parents will react differently -- some will express anxiety in any number of ways; others will be seemingly indifferent. Some will call us during the day to see if we’re alright, while others will proclaim that it’s “silly” to be worried and that we ought to go on with our lives. People will cry “for no reason” or laugh “for no reason.”
A good way to face the day is through prayer. In praying we can both pour out our hearts to God and receive a comforting word from the Lord. We’ll have different opportunities for prayer throughout the day. Our regularly scheduled masses (7am, 9am and 12:10pm) will be a chance to pray together, using special prayers to remember and to look forward. During the afternoon, the Blessed Sacrament will be placed on the main altar so people can come and make a visit and pray quietly in the presence of Jesus. In the evening at 7:30, our community will gather for a prayer service featuring word and music so that we can support each other in prayer.
Each of us will choose the way to live through Wednesday that’s best for us. As for me, I’ll be not only remembering those who died, but I’ll be taking time to be grateful for the gift of those who are living, appreciating that they are still here among us. More than that, I can’t say how I’ll get through the day. It’s not Wednesday yet.
