LEARNING TO CROSS THE ROAD
One of the first vivid memories of independence for every little boy is surely when we ran ahead of our mothers and wanted to cross the road without having to hold on to our mommy's hand. At some point, perhaps, none of us can remember exactly when it happened, but our mother let us go, and from there on we were able to cross the road alone. I have similar memories of learning to ride a bicycle, my dad holding the seat, and quietly letting go without my knowing, because he knew it was time. I was on my own! Parents, teachers and Spiritual Shepherds have all been entrusted with the formation of minds and consciences of those entrusted to their care. The wise counselor is always aware that the moment, where the soul entrusted to their care must launch out into the deep, will eventually arrive. Such formation of conscience when done honestly, is not about the personal opinions of the Shepherd, but rather to ensure that Nemo will survive in the ocean of life.
All of us are aware that every so often, as citizens of this great nation, we must choose on a local and national level those who will lead us. While it is certainly true that this transpires in the secular realm, our Shepherds have a role to play, in as much as we know that our God watches over us in all that we do. There are many issues that confront us in our daily lives and it truly is a real challenge to view the world around me with the eyes of Faith. I recall the first time I rode a horse at a ranch outside Mexico City, the ranch hand, a pleasant young man called Francisco, taught me to swing my right leg over the saddle, while the left leg was still on the ground. The challenge of the faithful, who are also Faith filled, is to make sure that my time in church on a Sunday spills over to my life of business, home, relationships etc. Just as parents realize that they instruct their young children to face the challenges of life, Church leaders understand that their role is to enable their people to see the issues that confront them with the eyes of Faith. Each one must then resolve the issues as they feel guided by their conscience.
Some of our parishioners have taken the time to be active with the program,
Into the Fields. At this time we are discussing the impact of our belief in
the Eucharist in our daily lives. Our next session will begin on Saturday,
October 18, at 8.30a.m. with a little breakfast. The bishops of the United
States have written a document called Faithful Citizenship and I would ask
as many of you as possible to participate.
The future of our great country is a sacred trust which has been given to
all of us. Each one of us must figure how I can best protect that sacred
trust. It will never be the responsibility of those who shepherd us to make
these decisions for us, but, simply to provide us with the tools to make as
enlightened and faith filled decisions as possible. Prayer, Eucharist,
debates, opinions, issues and decisions, it is all a part of who I am and
what I must decide.
God Bless,
Fr. John McCormick, Rector
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PARISH EVENTS
St. James Catholic Cathedral and School is Going Green!
Well, we are still Going Green but the bags have been backordered and we have not yet received shipment. But, please look for when you will be able to purchase your very own church and school reusable bags for just $2.00. All proceeds will benefit St. Vincent DePaul Society and St. James Cathedral School Scholarship Fund. For more information & interested volunteers, contact Tammy White at twhite@stjcs.com.
Stewardship
September 27 & 28- $16,735.70
Sister Diocese $5.532.05
Join
in a fun-filled
Columbus Day celebration
with delicious food and lots of fun for the wahole family on
Saturday evening, October 11! Entertainment for the evening will
feature the talents of some of our own St. James musical family and
students from the studio of Kathleen LoPresti. The Social Hall
doors will open at 5:00 p.m. for the 6:00 dinner hosted by St. James
Knights of Columbus. Advance tickets can be reserved by phone.
Tickets will also be sold at the door the night of the event, space
permitting. Cost is $7 each for 4- to 12-year-olds and $14 each for
everyone over 12 – no charge for children 3 and under, proceeds
benefit the KNIGHTS’ charities. Please call Al at 407-658-4518 for
reservations or further information.
“VOTE 2008” LUNCHEON
Orange
County Supervisor of Elections Bill Cowles will be special guest
speaker at St. James
Prime Timers’
luncheon on Monday, October 20th, at 1 p.m. in the Cathedral social
hall. Cash donations for lunch will be accepted at the door.
(Suggested donation $3 per member and $4 per non-member.)
Reservations are required – no later than MONDAY, October 13.
For reservations or information, please phone Mary Alice at
407-894-8964 and leave a voice-mail message or Esther at
407-898-3667
(Spanish).
Food donations for St. Vincent de Paul and other regular monthly
“collectibles” will also be accepted at the luncheon.
OCTOBER IS ROSARY MONTH
This devotion is very pleasing to our Lord Jesus and His Holy Mother. In it, we recall very special moments in their lives. A daily Rosary would surely result in great blessings for all who pray it.
INTO THE FIELDS PRESENTS FAITHFUL CITZENSHIP
All parishioners are encouraged to join our next Into the Fields where we will present Faithful Citizenship. Please join us on Saturday, October 18 in the Social Hall beginning with a continental breakfast at 8:30 a.m. Even if you have never attended, anyone planning on voting in the upcoming election will be interested in this topic. In the statement Forming Consciences for Citizenship, the Catholic bishops in the United States remind us "In the Catholic tradition, responsible citizenship is a virtue, and participation in political life is a moral obligation. The decisions we make as citizens about who leads us and what policies are enacted have important moral and ethical dimensions. The values of our faith should be our guide to public life.
WE NEED YOUR HELP!
Beginning
in November, we will begin publishing a monthly newsletter that will
be distributed along with our weekly bulletin on the last Sunday of
each month. We are hoping to use this format to better communicate
with our parishioners. Some features being discussed are Mass
Intentions for the month, names of new parishioners, baptized,
married and those who have died in the previous month. Pictures of
our various parish events, more in-depth information about
liturgical events as well as updates about our renovations. Now, we
have a lot of ideas on what we want it to contain, though we would
always appreciate your ideas, right now we need a name. So put your
imagination caps on and name our new newsletter! Please send any
ideas to nance@stjcc.net or call Nancy or Jackie at 407-422-2005.
Please let us know who you are, we want to give credit where it is
due! Our due date for the name will be Monday, October 13!!
DISASTER IN HAITI & CUBA
Today’s second collection is to help those in Haiti and Cuba where aid is not as readily available as in our own country to help those affected recover from this year’s most recent hurricane. If you are unprepared to support this necessary cause today, please bring your donation next week. Please make sure your disaster relief donation is clearly marked and mail to the church office or drop in the collection plate next week. We will then send one check representing all of our donations and forward to Catholic Charities.
Sacramental Catechesis for Penance and Reconciliation
Every
year, we prepare hundreds of children and adults to receive
sacraments. Did you know that all adults are invited to join us in
deepening our understanding of the sacraments? Each session begins
with liturgical prayer and is followed by an adult learning session
on the sacraments. Our sessions are on Thursdays at 7:00 p.m. in
the Cathedral. The catechetical session follows in the Social Hall
from 7:30 to 8:15 p.m. Dates are as follows: October 23,
“Contrition”, October 30, “Confession”, and November 6, “Penance &
Absolution”.
RESPECT LIFE
The Church opposes abortion, but embraces with mercy those who have made this mistake. Let’s all take encouragement from these words of Pope John Paul II: “I would now like to say a special word to women who have had an abortion. The Church is aware of the many factors which may have influenced your decision, and she does not doubt that in many cases it was a painful and even shattering decision. The wound in your heart may not yet have healed. Certainly what happened was and remains terribly wrong. But do not give in to discouragement and do not lose hope. Try rather to understand what happened and face it honestly. If you have not already done so, give yourselves over with humility and trust to repentance. The Father of mercies is ready to give you his forgiveness and his peace in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. To the same Father and to his mercy you can with sure hope entrust your child.” (The Gospel of Life, #99).
St. James Cathedral School
505 E Ridgewood, Orlando, Florida 32803
8 blocks East of the Church
Principal: Gerri Gendall
407-841-4432
Montessori thru 8th
Coming Soon… .St. James Catholic Cathedral and School are GOING GREEN
Please mark your calendars for the first weekend in October! You can “Go Green” with your very own church and school reusable bags. The bags will be sold after all Masses on October 4 and 5. Price $2.00. All proceeds will benefit both St. Vincent’s DePaul Society and St. James Cathedral School’s Scholarship Fund. For more information and interested volunteers, please contact Tammy White at twhite@stjcs.com.
CONGRATULATIONS!
Kudos to St. James Cathedral School alum Dylan Fay who was one of 2 seniors at Bishop Moore Catholic High School to receive the National Merit Scholar Award. Dylan is a Knight Commander with the Altar Servers Ministry at St. James, a Minister of Holy Communion and sings in the Adult Choir.
MINISTERIO HISPANO
Una de las primeras memorias de independencia de todo niño es seguramente cuando corríamos al frente de nuestras madres antes de cruzar la calle sin agarrarle la mano. A un punto, quizás, no recordamos exactamente cuando paso, pero nuestra madre no dejo ir y desde ese punto en adelante cruzamos la calle solos. Tengo memorias similares cuando aprendí a montar bicicleta. Mi papa agarrando el asiento y calladamente soltándolo sin que yo me diera cuenta, porque el sabia que ya era tiempo. !Ya yo estaba listo! Padres, maestros y Pastores espirituales han sido confiados con la formación de las mentes y las conciencias de los que cuidan. El sabio consejero esta consciente del momento donde el espíritu confiado a su cuidado debe de tirarse al vacío y llegar a su destino. Tal formación de conciencia cuando se hace con honestidad, no es acerca de las opiniones personales del Pastor, pero en cambio se trata de la seguridad. La seguridad de que Nemo va a sobrevivir en el océano de la vida.
Todos nosotros estamos conscientes que de vez en cuando, como ciudadanos de esta gran nación, debemos escoger a un nivel local y nacional a aquellos que van a dirigirnos. Mientras que es muy cierto que esto transpira en un reino secular, nuestros Pastores tiene un rol que jugar, de la misma manera que Dios nos observa en todo lo que hacemos. Hay muchos temas que confrontamos en nuestro diario vivir y es ciertamente un reto el ver el mundo alrededor de mí con Fe. Me acuerdo la primera vez que monte caballo en un racho a las afuera de Ciudad Méjico, el ayudante, un amable joven llamado Francisco me enseño a subir mi pierna derecha sobre la montura mientras la izquierda todavía estaba en el piso. El reto de los creyentes, que están llenos de Fe, es el de asegurarse que el tiempo pasado en la Iglesia los domingos se derrame sobre su vida de negocios, del hogar, de relaciones, etc. Así como los padres realizan que ellos enseñan a sus hijos a encarar los retos de la vida, los lideres de la Iglesia entienden que su rol es el de permitir a su gente ver los problemas que los confrontan con una visión de Fe. Cada uno debe de resolver estos problemas como su propia conciencia los guía.
Algunos de nuestros feligreses han tomado de su tiempo para participar en el programa “Into the Fields.” En este momento estamos discutiendo el impacto de nuestras creencias en la Eucaristía en nuestra vida diaria. Nuestra próxima sesión será el sábado, 18 de octubre a las 8:30 AM. Los Obispos de los Estados Unidos han escrito un documento titulado “Ciudadanos Fieles” y yo les pido que ustedes participen. El futuro de esta gran nación es una tarea sagrada que se nos ha dado a todos nosotros. Cada uno de nosotros debemos discernir de cómo proteger esta tarea sagrada. Nunca será la responsabilidad de aquellos que nos pastorean el tomar decisiones por nosotros, pero el de simplemente proveernos con las herramientas para así tomar decisiones claras y llenas de fe.
Dios los bendiga,
Padre John McCormick, Rector
Clases de Bautismo
Las clases de Bautismo en español se estarán ofreciendo el segundo sábado de cada mes a las 4:00 de la tarde. Favor de llamar a Jackie al 407-422-2005 para mas información.
OCTUBRE
MES
DEL ROSARIO
El rosario es una verdadera fuente de gracias. Todo cristiano puede rezar el Rosario. Es una oración muy completa, ya que requiere del empleo simultáneo de tres potencias de la persona: física, vocal y espiritual. Las cuentas favorecen la concentración de la mente. Rezar el Rosario es como llevar diez flores a María en cada misterio. Es una manera de repetirle muchas veces lo mucho que la queremos.
Todos los feligreses de la Parroquia están invitados a unirse al próximo retiro titulado “Into the Fields” donde se presentara el tema “Ciudadanos Fieles”, el cual se llevara a cabo el sábado 18 de octubre en el Salón Social comenzando con un desayuno continental a las 8:30 A.M. La presentación será en ingles. Aunque no hayan atendido anteriormente, toda persona que este planeando votar en las próximas elecciones deberá atender.
Segunda Colecta
La segunda colecta de hoy es a beneficio de Haití y Cuba. Estos países han sufrido grandes perdidas debidos a las recientes tormentas. Favor de ser generosos con nuestros países hermanos.
28 de septiembre $1, 597.58
SISTERS: A LIFE OF LOVE”
On October 24 - 25, there will be a Vocation Discernment Retreat for Women age18 – 35 yrs. Do you ever wonder whether God is inviting you to consider a life of love as a religious Sister? If so, this retreat is for you! Suggested donation:$10 (but don’t let cost keep you away). To register or obtain information, contact Sr. Kathleen Power at 904-610-9228, or www.ssjfl.org.
RETROUVAILLE
Sometimes things can go very wrong in a marriage. Retrouvaille is a program to help heal and support married couples experiencing difficulties, couples broken, lonely and hurting. It’s also for couples who have separated or divorced and are willing to try again. Our next program begins October 24-26. For more information and registration, call 407-977-8136. All calls held in strictest confidence.
Find Your Purpose, Feed Your Soul
All are invited to attend this woman’s retreat Woman of Grace to be held at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Clermont, Florida, Saturday, October 25, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The $40 fee includes continental breakfast, lunch, and conference materials. The conference features the internationally known Catholic evangelist, speaker, and author Johnnette Benkovic. Registration is suggested and is available at www.catholicwomensministries.org.