Well, my Mother’s Day weekend started out with something new and exciting as my personal email account was hacked into and a crazy ‘plea for money’ scam was sent out to all the contacts in my list. I have received close to a hundred concerned calls from so many of you and I would like to say a sincere thanks to all of you.  As a result, I have now closed my Yahoo account and opened a new account. If you were on my old email list and would like to continue there, please contact me with your email address and I will include it in my new account.

To our college students from both parishes, we welcome you back home and offer our congratulations and best wishes to you for the future. I invite all graduates – at any level – to join us at the 12:30 Mass on Sunday, June 10, for a special recognition and blessing, followed by some refreshments in the cafeteria. We are very proud of you.

I would also like to thank you all for buying up all of the flowers in the Fathers Club sale and for the wonderful generosity you showed to our parishioner, Adam Pizzaia, who leaves soon for a mission trip with the Rutgers Catholic Campus Ministry for 3 weeks in Tanzania. Your donations totaled over $5,500!

Coming soon is our annual Summer Carnival. This is our 11th year and I am very happy with how it has evolved to become a real community building activity (and fundraiser) for our parish. If you can volunteer some of your time, please let us know as soon as possible. Orientation is Tuesday evening, May 22. This year, we will feature a Seafood Raw-Bar with clams, oysters and delicious shrimp cocktails, as well as a beer garden. A Super Big-Bucks 50-50 Raffle will be drawn with the potential of big payouts! I hope to see you there!

God bless you,

Fr. Scott

The second collection this weekend is for the support of our Saint Vincent DePaul Society. And, we will also be hearing from one of our outstanding young parishioners who is readying for a mission trip to Tanzania. These are both ways to get the word out, telling others about the great joy we have in the Risen Christ. It is because of Jesus’ salvific act that we have the mandate to reach out to others in the name of Jesus.

Another way to share our faith is to live what we believe. When our lives proclaim the love of God to others, and the forgiveness that is ours in Christ, we unleash a mighty power. People yearn for what we have, and the power of God’s Spirit is awakened in them. So, yes, let’s put money in the collection, but let’s also strive to inject new life into the world around us by living our faith authentically.

God’s blessings on all our moms today-living and deceased. None of us would be here today without you. May this day be a time of blessing for you all. Thank you to all who attended my concert last Sunday! I have never felt so wrapped up in a comforter of love. Your support and enthusiasm was matched only by the prodigious talents of the many musicians who performed so beautifully. Thank you again for “making my day!”

God bless you all.

Fr. Scott

Many of our lives were affected and even shaped in part by the tenderness and direction of the Sisters who work in our schools, parishes and hospitals.  I know that, if it weren’t for certain Sisters in my young life, I might not have pursued the vocation in ministry that I have.  Sr. Laura, my elementary school principal, helped plant the seeds of vocation for me.  She showed me with her kindness and thoughtfulness what it means to be Christ to others.  Sisters Nick, Miriam, Judy and Maria, throughout my college experience, encouraged me to see the gifts that God had given me and to allow myself to be led by God’s plan for me.  More recently, Sr. Eileen, my co-worker and kindred spirit, has helped to keep me focused and sane(ish) in my job.  Working with her is a joy, and the compassion, wisdom and friendship that she brings to every situation that we face is invaluable to me and the others we work with.

This is my shout-out to the Sisters who have ministered to me. If you have a Sister who touched your life that you would want to thank, now is a good time to do it.  Like all of us, they need to know that the Church cares for them, as they have cared for us.

Jen Schlameuss-Perry

If we use our imagination, it’s not hard to place ourselves back in the days of the early Christian community in Jerusalem when they were greeted with the news that one of their chief enemies, Saul—later Saint Paul—was now one of them! They would have been completely freaked out by this revelation. Could it be true that someone who had been zealously seeking their imprisonment and death for proclaiming the name of Jesus was now going around doing the very same thing himself? Was it only a rumor? Was it a trick?

The first Christians had good reason to be wary of Saul, but in time they didn’t let their fear get in the way  of accepting him as a brother in Christ. Like them, we have to be careful that we don’t let our fears get in the way of seeing that real change is possible, both in others and in ourselves.

I have been examining this a lot in my own life and ministry as I prepare to leave Jackson and head to Toms River for a whole new adventure at St. Joseph’s.

Many of you have been so kind in offering your feelings to me and I have heard the refrain many times that “It’s not going to be the same without you.”  That’s an accurate statement, for sure. Things do change and, many times, change is for the good. I keep
reminding myself of that and encourage you to do the same.

God bless you all,

Fr. Scott

Today the church invites us to pray for vocations and I would encourage us all to consider starting with a prayer about your own religious vocation. Have you considered religious life, holy orders, or lay ministry? Living a life of Christian witness carries with it much responsibility, but when practiced with humility and compassion it brings about a life of great joy. The church, our church, needs each of you and your commitment to serve. Be open to unexpected options, and in the words of Pope John Paul II, “Trust Christ, because he trusts you.”

This weekend is a new beginning for many of our little ones who are receiving their First Holy Communion. What a time of joy as they, for the first time, receive our Lord Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. It is a rite of passage, but more than that it is an invitation for them to continue learning more about and growing closer to Jesus while coming to his table. Please pray for these young boys and girls that they continue to grow in the knowledge and love of our Lord Jesus.

Last, I invite you to come and enjoy some beautiful music with us next Sunday, May 6, 2:30 p.m. here at St. Aloysius Church. Some of our parish musicians, the choir of St. Ann Church in Lawrenceville and other musician friends of mine will offer some selections that are sure to please. I look forward to seeing you there in our concert, “Time to Say Goodbye.”

God bless you all,

Fr. Scott

Since Easter, we’ve been hearing the stories at Mass of what happened since Jesus was crucified—He rose and came back to see His friends so that they could really understand what happened. He sent His Spirit to guide and reside with them, and promised to be with them. He offered them (and us) His presence in the Eucharist. He is Emmanuel—God with us. Because of the sacrifice that He made for us, because he was willing to give all that He had, He has been able to remain here with us. By allowing us to share in His life in the Eucharist, and through the help of the Holy Spirit, Jesus continues to lead us, too.

Lion-O felt his responsibility and his love for the people (cats) that he was chosen to care for that made him not want to abandon them—even in death. Jesus loves us so completely that He chose death so that we could have life through it, and then He made Himself accessible to us in the Eucharist. True love is the willingness to give all that you have for the ones you love, and (in cartoon land) Lion-O and (in real life) Jesus were willing to give it all to fulfill what their love called them to. It is a difficult choice to step out in faith like that, one that could potentially bring some pain to loved ones, but a far greater good emerges. Repeatedly, we see that, “death cannot stop true love. All it can do is delay it for a while.” (Westley—The Princess Bride)

Jen Schlameuss-Perry

For those among us who only “go green” on Saint Patrick’s Day, note that today is Earth Day – a day when people around the world plead their case for Mother Earth. Many, though, remain skeptical about a show of support for a world that is passing. To that end, I looked to see what the leader of our Church had to say and was surprised to find that Pope Benedict XVI, not known for being a granola-munching liberal, updated the pop-justice slogan in 2010 by declaring: “If You Want Peace, Protect Creation.”

Calling governments, corporations, and individuals to account, the Holy Father asked, “Can we remain indifferent before the problems associated with such realities as climate change, desertification, the deterioration and loss of productivity in vast agricultural areas, the pollution of rivers and aquifers, the loss of biodiversity, the increase of natural catastrophes, and the deforestation of equatorial and tropical regions?”

In saying that, Pope Benedict added his voice to that of Pope Paul VI, who pointed out that by exploiting nature, we create wide-ranging social problems that concern the entire human family. Pope John Paul II noted decades ago that “world peace is threatened” by a lack of due respect for nature. And I would go so far as to say that all peace and right order is threatened by a lack of due respect for all life.

We see it in our own country with the escalation of violence in our cities, town and homes. We have tried to legislate respect through enacting ‘bullying laws’ and ‘hate crime’ legislation. But it can all be traced to a lack of respect for life – each and every life. Today, I encourage us all to look around and for all the good you see, let’s give thanks and pledge to protect it.

God bless you all,

Fr. Scott

When speaking about the First Reading from the Acts of the Apostles—the one where the whole community was sharing their stuff and no one had need of anything…because they were sharing—the Deacon said that today, this was not a practical concept.  He called it, “the honeymoon phase” of the Church.  He said that it was all well and good that that happened at one time in our history, but since we live differently now, we don’t need to do that anymore.  We can just pray for each other.  I’m sure if one pressed him on the issue, he’d take it back, but it was not a cool thing to say from the pulpit.

Now, don’t get me wrong—prayer is good—but it’s not nearly enough.  Jesus didn’t say in the judgment of the nations, “When I was hungry, you prayed for me.  When I was thirsty, you prayed for me.”  He said, “you gave me to eat…” and “you gave me to drink.” (Mt 25: 31-46) Jesus preached radical charity; unflinching love.  This cop-out idea of a “honeymoon phase” sounds more like the lukewarm folks that God said He’d “vomit out” of his mouth in Revelation.

It doesn’t matter what you have or don’t have—there isn’t a person alive who doesn’t have something they can share.  If we, as a Christian community, don’t believe that we ought to be living lives of radical charity, and sharing what we have with people who need what we have, then we have to ask ourselves what Christ we are worshiping.  Well, that crazy statement made me uncomfortable enough to question how I’m living; and if I’m saying that very thing with the way I live, or if I’m living the charity that Christ expects from me.  I’ll have to reflect more on it, but I know one thing—prayer is not enough.

Jen Schlameuss-Perry

This weekend is a special one because it has been designated as Divine Mercy Sunday, where people around the world celebrate the great love and mercy of our Lord as revealed to Saint Faustina Kowalska. It was on this Sunday, a year ago that Pope John Paul II was beatified at a Mass in Rome where over one million pilgrims attended from all around the world.

Today, I encourage you to pray the Divine Mercy devotional prayer or to make an extra effort to pray for someone else this day and give their intentions to our merciful Lord.

God bless you,

Fr. Scott

On this Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord, we hear the Passion account from the Gospel of Mark. His gospel has often been described as a passion narrative with an extended introduction and that’s no exaggeration. The entire Gospel is oriented toward the passion and resurrection of Jesus.

In comparison with the rest of the Gospel, which runs at a fast pace and wastes no extra words, time in the passion narratives of chapters 14-15 slows down, almost as if a camera has been put into slow motion to recount the last three days of Jesus’ earthly life, hour by hour. In just two chapters we witness the well-known events, which include the anointing in Bethany, the treachery of Judas Iscariot the Betrayer, the Last Supper and the prediction of Peter’s denial, the agony in the garden, the arrest of Jesus, the “trial” before the Sanhedrin, Peter’s tragic denial of Jesus, the hearing before Pilate, the mockery of Jesus as “king,” his crucifixion and death, and his burial in a rock tomb.

We celebrate these events through the Stations of the Cross during Lent, and we know them so well that we may forget just how theological the narrative is. We might even think of it just as history, but for Mark and his audience, it is more than simply an account of Jesus’ fate. This drama of divine salvation shows a life-giving sacrifice by a “king” dying for the sake of his people.

I encourage you to take advantage of the Holy Week events. The Sacrament of Reconciliation (confession) is offered Tuesday evening, 7:00, and Wednesday, 4:00 and 6:30. Tenebrae-Service of Darkness is Wednesday evening at 8:00. The Sacred Triduum begins Thursday with the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, Good Friday and the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday. I hope to see you at any or all.

God bless you,

Fr. Scott