Message from Fr. David November 21, 2021

NEWS AND UPDATES

MENTOR COUPLE MARRIAGE PREPARATION PROGRAM
As a Church, we can do a lot better when it comes to preparing newly engaged couples for the Sacrament of Marriage.  Our new marriage preparation program will pair the newly engaged couple with a mentor couple from St. James.  In addition to working with me, the engaged couple with meet with their mentor couple throughout their year of preparation.  Not only will this program provide the newly engaged couple with a better understanding of the Sacrament, it will also enable the sharing of experiences, while at the same time creating a greater connection between the engaged couple and our local parish community.  I am super excited to launch this new program here at St. James.

New ‘APOSTLE IN ACTION’ Charity Fund
In an effort to provide support to families and individual parishioners in need, we are initiating a new charity fund, Apostle in Action Charity Fund.  This parish-based fund will provide parishioners and members of our local community with some financial assistance.  Whether it be rent, utility bills, unforeseen medical expenses, or mental health expenses, I feel it is important that our parish support those who are in need.  100% of the funds donated to the Apostle in Action Charity Fund will be used to help those in need right in our own neighborhood.
This Thanksgiving, as you thank God for your many blessings, please consider donating to this special fund.
While anyone can donate to this fund at any time, we will take up a special collection every Thanksgiving Day at Mass and every Holy Thursday at Mass.  In the future, the envelope company that we use will provide a special envelope for this special collection for every Thanksgiving Day and Holy Thursday.  Thank you in advance for whatever you can do to help those in need.
*Anytime a donation is made via personal check, be sure to write “Apostle in Action Charity Fund” in the memo section.
*When a donation is made via our online giving service, Parish Soft Giving, be sure to look for the Apostle in Action Charity Fund.

REFLECTION ON THE READINGS
Baseball legend Yogi Berra, who died at the age of 90 after a long and storied career, was revered for his wisdom-filled malapropisms as much as his baseball prowess.  Among his more memorable observations: “If you don’t know where you’re going, you might wind up someplace else.”
Berra didn’t want to end up anywhere else but playing the game of baseball.  He reportedly told his dad: “I can’t ever have a job because I love to play ball too much.”  Although he did have a few odd jobs and a stint in the Navy—including being part of the largest amphibious invasion in history: D-Day, the June 6, 1944, assault on the beaches of Normandy—his focus remained on playing ball.
That dedication paid off when at age 17 he signed with the Yankees.  He became a mainstay on the Yankees lineup in the 1950s and ’60s, went on to coach and manage the Yankees, Mets, and Astros, was named into the Baseball Hall of Fame, and became one of the most beloved characters in baseball.
Jesus, too, was a beloved man of focus who knew where he was going: “For this I was born,” he tells Pontius Pilate, “and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth.”
Friends, Christians are called to listen to the voice of Jesus so that they know where they are going; otherwise, they’re sure to end up someplace else.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

A man who was completely innocent offered himself as a sacrifice for the good of others, including his enemies, and became the ransom of the world. It was a perfect act.
—Mahatma Gandhi