As we celebrate Christmas, the season will undoubtedly evoke many memories of Christmases past and recall the loved ones who made our celebrations very special. My most enduring memory of Christmas is decorating our house and, as I have preached for 40 years, watching Grandma Sorgie set up her massive (albeit bizarre) Christmas scene. Central to this was the setting up of the Nativity scene.

In our apartment, my mother always placed the figures in just the “right spot,” as though she knew exactly how it all took place. And, of course, she would never allow the infant Jesus to be placed in the manger until Christmas Eve. The “fuss” bespoke of her deep devotion to the Holy Family and her own not-so-holy family. Even now, our Rectory Nativity scene is set up as she did it and hopefully with at least half the devotion that my mother had for it.

The popularity of the Nativity scene, one of the most beloved and enduring symbols of the holiday season, originated in Italy and is attributed to St. Francis of Assisi. St. Bonaventure (d. 1274), in his “Life of St. Francis of Assisi,” tells the story the best:

“It happened in the third year before his death, that in order to excite the inhabitants of Grecio to commemorate the nativity of the Infant Jesus with great devotion, [St. Francis] determined to keep it with all possible solemnity; and lest he should be accused of lightness or novelty, he asked and obtained the permission of the sovereign Pontiff. Then he prepared a manger, and brought hay, and an ox and an ass to the place appointed. The brethren were summoned, the people ran together, the forest resounded with their voices, and that venerable night was made glorious by many and brilliant lights and sonorous psalms of praise."

“The man of God [St. Francis] stood before the manger, full of devotion and piety, bathed in tears and radiant with joy; the Holy Gospel was chanted by Francis, the Levite of Christ. Then he preached to the people around the nativity of the poor King; and being unable to utter His name for the tenderness of His love, He called Him the Babe of Bethlehem.”

Like St. Francis, perhaps you have your particular Christmas traditions, whether it be a nativity scene or a special recipe. Whatever it may be, may it bespeak of our faith and devotion to the Gospel. The Holy Family, through many challenges and trials, remained faithful to God’s Word. As you peer into your own Nativity scene and live out your traditions of Christmas, may you recognize that all our trials find their resolution in the simplicity of the birth of the Babe of Bethlehem.

I learned that my 40th Anniversary is known as my Ruby Anniversary. What a celebration it has been! The Mass at 2 PM last Sunday had Immaculate Conception Church filled with parishioners, family, friends, priests, and laity from all over the Archdiocese. If you were unable to attend, you can view the Mass HERE. I offered the Mass for Vocations to the Priesthood.

My thanks to the committee for all of their planning of the Mass, the Parish Reception in the gym, and the Dinner Dance at Glen Island. My entire staff, the ministries, and maintenance worked so hard to have the entire campus and church looking spectacular. The reception was so abundant with food, desserts, and drinks that it could have served 700 instead of 400. My thanks to Mario Cermele Catering and his staff.

The music was superb so a special thanks goes to Robert Harvey, our Music Director and Organist.

Watch for photos from Glen Island in next week’s bulletin. 

Prayer on the Anniversary of a Priest

God our Father, we praise You for Your great mercy.
You have sent priests to shepherd us,
to preach Your Holy Word, to bring us new life in Christ,
to nourish, forgive, heal, and strengthen us
through the sacraments of Your Church.

We thank You for the gift of
Fr. Anthony Domenic Sorgie’s priesthood
and for all that we, and so many others, have received
through Fr. Sorgie’s generous and self‐giving service.

Open our hearts now to the joy of Your Spirit as we listen
to Your Holy Word and praise You
for the gift of our beloved priest friend.

We make this prayer in the name of Jesus,
the Eternal High Priest,
who lives and reigns with You
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God forever and ever. Amen.

Apart from the Sacrifice of the Mass, the Liturgy of the Hours, and the Sacraments, there is probably no more powerful prayer than the Rosary. For millions and millions of Catholics throughout the centuries, it has become the most frequently used way to meditate on the various events (mysteries) in the lives of Jesus and Mary. In spite of all this, the Rosary is not an easy prayer to pray. The reason? By reciting one Hail Mary after another, it is very easy to become distracted and not even think about the actual words, never mind the mystery, on which one is supposed to be reflecting. That is the key: to reflect on the mystery so that one can better understand the love of God for us as it is revealed in the lives of Jesus and Mary.

One of the ways to accomplish this is to use your imagination and picture the mystery you are praying through a decade of beads. For example, the First Mystery of Light is the Baptism of the Lord. Picture it in your mind. The baptism has Jesus in the Jordan River, the sky above is opening, the Holy Spirit is descending like a dove, and the voice of the Father says: This is my beloved Son, listen to Him. Keep that image in your mind as you say the 10 Hail Mary’s and ask the Lord to reveal to you the beloved Son and how we are to listen to Him. We want to move from saying the Rosary to praying the Rosary.

I present these thoughts to you during the month of October, which is traditionally the month of the Rosary. (The Feast of the Holy Rosary is October 7.) We pray the Rosary as a community every morning during the week before the 7:30 AM Mass at Assumption and 8:30 AM Mass at Immaculate. Make a visit to the Divine Mercy Chapel at any time and sit and pray a Rosary in the presence of Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament and before the image of our Lady in the Retablo above the altar.

During the month, we will keep a basket at the entrance of each Church with Rosaries for you to use and keep. The pamphlet racks in both churches have take‐homes with the 20 Mysteries of the Rosary and the prayers. Think about introducing the Family Rosary into your family’s prayer life. Also, always carry your Rosary beads with you.

I once asked a grammar school religion class if anyone could explain the doctrine of the Assumption of Mary. A student replied, “yeah, that’s the teaching whereby the Catholic Church ‘assumes’ that Mary is in heaven.”

There’s a bit more to the dogma of the Assumption than that. Our Church has declared that Mary was taken up to heaven, body and soul, and is in glory and should therefore be honored in liturgy and imitated in life. From very early times, August 15 has been observed as the “birthday” of our Blessed Mother. On this great Marian feast, we celebrate the moment in her life when she was permanently reunited with her Son and shares His glory.

All the saints experience the “beatific vision” upon their entry into heaven, and we celebrate this on every Saint’s feast day. But, there is something unique about Mary’s day: the Church teaches authoritatively that it is not just Mary’s soul that was admitted to God’s glory but that, at the end of her earthly life, Mary’s body was assumed into heaven by the loving power of God.

There is a tomb at the foot of the Mount of Olives where ancient tradition says that Mary was laid but there is nothing inside. There are no relics, as with other Saints. Credible apparitions of Mary, though not recorded in the New Testament, have been recorded from the 3rd century until today.

The bodily corruption of death was not God’s original plan. It came into the world through sin, and, as St. Paul says, “the sting of death is sin.” (I Cor 15:56) So, it is fitting that she who knew no sin should know no decay and no delay in enjoying the full fruits of her Son’s work. It is fitting that she, who stood by Christ under the cross, should stand by Him bodily at the right hand of the Father. “The Queen stands at your right hand, in gold of Ophir.” (Ps 45) Enoch and Elijah, who the Old Testament says were assumed into heaven, were surely great in God’s eyes, but they do not begin to compare with the Immaculate Mother of His Son.

We, too, insofar as we accept God’s grace, will stand at His right hand. But, Paul says that “all will come to life again, but each one in proper order.” (I Cor 15:23) The Redeemer, of course, blazes the resurrection trail, but who is to be first among His disciples? The one who is last is first, the Lord’s humble handmaid who did no more than say “yes” and kept saying “yes,” and whose soul magnified not herself but the Lord.

Everyone in the parish knows our three deacons: Deacon Anthony Viola, Deacon Carl Degenhardt, and Deacon Frank Orlando. You have seen them assisting at Mass, Exposition, and Benediction; baptizing many babies; presiding at weddings, wakes, and Stations of the Cross, to mention a few. They are invaluable to the work and ministry in our Parish. I presume you know that all of them have been married and have children and grandchildren.

This weekend, Cardinal Dolan ordained men to the Permanent Diaconate, and Paul Reisman, our parishioner, was among them. We are all very proud and excited to add Deacon Paul to our prayers as he, his wife Maria, and their children begin this new chapter of their marriage adventure. We pray that the Lord will give him the grace and health to serve and minister.

The Permanent Diaconate was restored during Vatican Council II after many centuries. There are three orders in the Sacrament of Holy Orders: Bishop, Priest, and Deacon. Every bishop and priest is ordained a deacon, and each of these three orders contains a call from God and the Church. For example, I was ordained a deacon in December 1981 and ordained a priest on November 6, 1982. Although I completed my diaconate in one year, I am always a deacon as well as a priest. I also want you to remember that the deacons are ordained clergy for the Archdiocese of New York. They are assigned to a Parish by the Bishop. Although we are used to celibate clergy, our deacons have a married and family life outside the Parish family. They have the graces of the Sacrament of Marriage and Holy Orders.

I want to thank these generous men, their wives, and families for the ministry they provide among us: not only the Sacraments, but Youth Ministry, PREP, Bereavement, Baptismal Catechesis, RCIA, and many other hours of service for God and the building up of God's Holy people.

Prayer for Deacons
Saint Vincent of Saragossa (Deacon and Martyr)

Holy God,
St. Vincent served You as a permanent deacon
and gave his whole life and soul to You,
even to the point of becoming a martyr.
I lift up to You the deacons of the Church
and all those who are being called by God
to become deacons.
Guide them as they discern
how to serve the Body of Christ.
Prevent the attractions of the world
and the busyness of secular jobs
from interfering with their vocations.
Teach them to grow in humility.
Help their families learn from their examples
and support their diaconates with trust and joy.
St. Vincent, pray for us.
Amen.

Jesus left the details concerning “Divine Mercy” in a diary that He asked St. Faustina Kowalska to write in the 1930s. It was Pope St. John Paul II who canonized St. Faustina and fulfilled the wish of the Lord: that the Sunday after Easter be celebrated as Divine Mercy Sunday. 

To get this great promise of Divine Mercy in your life, one has to go to Confession before or after Easter, pray for the Holy Father Francis, and venerate an image of the Divine Mercy. Finally, one has to receive Holy Communion on the Feast of Divine Mercy, which this year is Sunday, April 24.

Remember these words of Jesus, “I desire that the Feast of Mercy be a refuge and shelter for all souls, and especially poor sinners. On that day, the very depths of my tender mercy are open. Wake up, people of the world, and repent of your sins, and bask in the glory of the Risen Lord Jesus!”

Schedule for Sunday, April 24

"Transubstantiation” is central to the Catholic faith. It is the idea that, during Mass, the bread and wine used for Communion become the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. Indeed, the Catholic Church teaches that “the Eucharist is ‘the source and summit of the Christian life.’”

A recent Pew Research Center survey finds that most baptized Catholics don’t believe this core teaching. In fact, nearly 69% of Catholics say they personally believe that during the Catholic Mass, the bread and wine used in Communion “are symbols of the body and blood of Jesus Christ.” Just 31% of U.S. Catholics say they believe that, “during the Catholic Mass, the bread and wine actually become the body and blood of Jesus.”

This sad statistic is what led young Blessed Carlo Acutis (1991–2006) to build a website chronicling Eucharistic Miracles throughout the world. View the website HERE. He catalogued moments that helped individuals once again believe that the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Our Lord Jesus Christ is truly and really present in the host and chalice after the consecration at every Mass.

One of these miracles occurred in the towns of Bolsena and Orvieto, north of Rome. We spent an entire day in the city of Orvieto in southern Umbria, set atop a hill. The Cathedral (Duomo) is the centerpiece of the visit. It is a masterpiece of the Gothic Era, with its breathtaking façade, home to the relic of the Miracle of Bolsena.

Here is the miracle in brief: In 1263, a visiting priest stopped in Bolsena to celebrate Mass at St. Christina’s Church. He had begun to doubt that the Eucharist was really the Body and Blood of Christ; however, he was shocked when the host began to bleed following the Prayer of Consecration. Unable to hide it, he interrupted the Mass and went to nearby Orvieto, where Pope Urban IV was in residence. After a thorough, fact-finding investigation, the Pope ordered that the miraculous host and the blood-stained linen altar cloth (Corporal) be brought to Orvieto and placed on display. It is still on display today for pilgrims to see.

I pray for each of you in Adoration before the Eucharist every day while on sabbatical. May our Lord Jesus, present in the Blessed Sacrament, strengthen your faith in His abiding presence until we are with Him in the joys of heaven.

May the Lord’s choicest blessing come upon every person and family in our parish for the New Year 2022!

Lovers of carols and holiday parties know that this season of Christmas has 12 days, packed with golden rings, calling birds, and various kinds of gentry, musicians, and domestic workers. Do the math, and you will see why shopping malls, newspapers, television networks, and other cultural fortresses annually deliver some kind of "Twelve Days of Christmas" blitz, beginning on December 13. (December 25 minus 12 Days = December 13.) The problem is that, for centuries, church calendars in the East and the West have agreed that there are 12 days of Christmas, beginning on Christmas Day and ending on January 6.

The 12 days of Christmas end with the Feast of Epiphany, also called "The Adoration of the Magi" or "The Manifestation of God." Celebrated on January 6, it is known as the day of the Three Kings, the Wise Men, or Magi. Caspar, Melchior, and Balthazar were the kings who saw the star over Bethlehem when Christ was born and followed it to find the Christ Child. They brought Him gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

This is the Feast when Christ revealed Himself to the whole world as the God from God and Light from Light. We have our faith in Him, and we must, in turn, evangelize the world by proclaiming with our mouths, our lives, and our good works that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.