Obama Administration Attacks Religious Freedom and Civil Liberties
Video: Cardinal-Designate Timothy Dolan Sign Cardinal Dolan's Petition Your senators and representatives: Senator Sharrod Brown, 713 Hart Senate Office Bldg, Washington DC 20510 Senator Rob Portman, 338 Russell Senate Office Bldg, Washington DC 20510 Rep. Jean Schmidt, 2464 Rayburn House Office Bldg, Washington DC 20515 Rep. Michael Turner, 2454 Rayburn House Office Bldg, Washington DC 20515 |
Prayer for Protection of Conscience Rights in Health Care
Father, in Jesus our Lord, we praise and thank you for your most precious gift of human life and for forming us in your divine image. Keep us, the dwelling place of your most Holy Spirit, ever healthy in body and soul. |
| Christians Are to Blame for the Commercialization of Christmas By Janet Morana The first volley in the “Happy Holidays” vs. “Merry Christmas” wars has been fired in Rhode Island, where Gov. Lincoln Chafee has announced there will once again be a “Holiday Tree” at the statehouse in Providence. What the heck is a "Holiday Tree"? It’s true this is a “holiday season,” with Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa all celebrated in December. A few years ago, even Ramadan arrived during the holiday season. But an evergreen tree decorated with lights and tinsel does not represent all those holidays. Do Jewish families light the Holiday Menorah at sundown? Do Muslims greet each other with “Holiday Mubarak”? A Christmas tree is a symbol of Christmas – and a secular one at that. Remember when you didn’t see Christmas decorations in the stores until after Thanksgiving? At least that’s how it was when I was growing up in Brooklyn. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade ushered in the Christmas season and yes, we called it "the Christmas season." All stores were closed on Thanksgiving Day as we celebrated our national holiday. The next day we went to Manhattan to see all the beautiful store windows unveiled and visit Santa with our wish lists. It was magical! Manger scenes were plentiful around town and there were no apologies or need for a campaign to “Keep Christ in Christmas”! Is this now just the Ghost of Christmas Past? How did we get from there to here? How did we go from that warm feeling about Christmas and knowing that we were celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, to the secular frenzy we have today? Don’t blame the non-believers. Instead I think those of us who believe in the divinity of Jesus need to examine our own consciences. If you are a Christian who celebrates Christmas, ask yourself these questions. 1) In decorating your home for Christmas, is the Christ Child and manger scene a focal point in your home, both inside and outside? Are there as many decorations depicting the Holy Family, Angels and the Wisemen as there are snowmen, Santas and reindeer? 2) When selecting Christmas cards, do you pick only cards with Mary and the Christ Child or do snowmen, Santa and skating penguins top your list? Oh, by the way, let’s not use the excuse “But I have some friends who are Jewish or don’t celebrate Christmas.” I do too, and for those folks I buy a handful of separate Happy Hanukkah cards for my Jewish friends, and for non-believers, a Happy New Year’s card. The point is, I don’t subtract the Christ Child from the equation! 3) Do you only say Merry Christmas or do you give in and find yourself spouting the correct “Happy Holidays”? 4) When purchasing stamps for mailing my Christmas cards I only buy the Madonna and Child. In fact, I buy extra to use throughout the year. What about you? 5) Wrapping paper for gifts: Here, too, no Season’s Greetings or Happy Holidays on my wrapping paper. Yours? The commercialization of Christmas is the fault of us Christians. We buy the secular cards, wrapping paper and other trappings. If we only purchased the items that are Christ-centered, then that would be what the companies would produce. For them it is all about profit. Here’s an example: One year I was selecting a Christmas card for our ministry from a large printing company’s book. Usually I place an order for a large number of Christmas cards. One year I noticed that there were only two styles that featured the Madonna and Child, both of which I had already used in previous years. I didn’t place an order with that company that year and I told them why. Don’t you know the following year they contacted me with their new catalog and were proud to tell me they have a larger selection of religious cards than ever before. So you see, we have power in our purchasing, if we do it wisely. In order to “Keep Christ in Christmas” and make sure people know that “Jesus is the Reason for the Season” we have to set the example. People of all religions are proud of their holidays and happy to share their special meaning with those of other faiths. It’s time for Christians to stop apologizing for Christmas. Priests for Life PO Box 141172 Staten Island, NY 10314 Phone: 888-PFL-3448 718-980-4400 Fax: 718-980-6515 Email: mail@priestsforlife.org www.PriestsForLife.org |
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Resurrection Response A Voluntary Lenten Exercise in Charity St. Jerome Church If you want to do a little extra during Lent, we suggest that each time you come to church, bring a non-perishable food item and place it in the basket as you enter. The ushers will bring the basket to the sanctuary during the offertory as a part of your sacrifice to God. Each week, the food will be given to Fr. Keller for the poor people in his community at Resurrection church. |
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St. Jerome Church and California Columbia United Methodist Church enjoyed great prayer, food, and fellowship at our 2010 Ecumenical Thanksgiving Prayer Service and Dinner. Take a look! |
          
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Come and Savor's trip to the Islamic Center of Greater Cincinnati was very informative and quite enjoyable. Click the play button below to see a slide show of snapshots taken by Sandra Deck. |
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The Rosary Altar Society's Meet and Greet Continental Breakfast was a huge success! Click on the image below for more pictures. |
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Congratulations! Nine young people from St. Jerome were Confirmed Thursday, September 30, 2010 At Guardian Angels' Church: Annie Blasch, Andrew Chapman, Nolan Ecker, Charles Grogan, Abby Hauserman, Claire Hemer, Anne Mills, Claire Sulken, and Zachery Von Holle. |
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August 22, 2010 The elevator project is complete and the elevator is fully operational! If you need to use it, please come to Mass early and the ushers will assist you and teach you how to use it. |
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St. Jerome's Adult Bible Study Resumes! Starting September 9, 2010, at 7:30 PM in the Hall We'll study the Book of Revelation Text and workbook will be provided |
St. Jerome's Elevator Project We are installing a lift for those who cannot use the steep front steps. The entire project is estimated to cost about $40,000 and the necessary money was donated by Robert Blum for that express purpose. We expect the lift to be complete and operational by August 15, 2010. We are grateful to Mr. Blum and his family. We would also like to thank parishioners Jerry Honerlaw and Hugh Lynch who have done heroic work overseeing all the many tasks necessary to finish this wonderful work. |
| Beginning July 1, St. Jerome Church became a mission church of Guardian Angels Parish and Fr. Tom King became our pastor. The people of St. Jerome's Community feel blessed and proud to be a part of Guardian Angels and we pledge full support to Fr. King. Fr. Carl Wollering retired but he continues to live at St. Jerome's Rectory and serves as our "priest in residence." About the only change you will really notice is that Sunday Mass is now celebrated at 9:30 a.m. and only once. Saturday, Tuesday, and Friday Masses remain unchanged. Jo Ann Leppert, our faithful secretary for over 26 years, also retired. Ron Kienzle is trying to step into that role but he has a lot to learn so please be patient with him. If you have any questions, please call the Rectory (231-7042) between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays. Or, if you like, you can send us email using the link below: |