TWENTY-FOURTH SUNDAY OF ORDINAY TIME – September 11, 2022

RESPONSORIAL PSALM: I will rise and go to my father.

TODAY’S MASS INTENTION: Alex M. Toth, by Lenny Toth

MASS SCHEDULE & INTENTIONS FOR THE COMING WEEK:

FROM THE DESK OF FR. BONA: Traditionally, we speak of two comings of our Lord: His Incarnation, and His return in glory. At His Incarnation, he visibly entered the world. He descended from Heaven, so that he can rescue us from the power of darkness and sin. This moment of Incarnation is so special to us that to honor it we bow our heads (or kneel on Christmas and Annunciation) when we mention it in the creed. Moreover, when our Lord entered the broken world, he showed us that he was not afraid of the death on the cross. The reason was his great love for us. As St. Catherine of Siena said: it was not the nails that held him attached to the cross, but His love for us. This week we will celebrate the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross and so let us remember our Lord Jesus Christ and his stupendous love for us. Let us rejoice in the marvelous Savior we have!

Our Lord Jesus Christ will also return one day in glory to judge the living and the dead. His Second Coming is real and we should be aware of the fact that it could happen at any time. Sure, it may not happen for many years, or even for many hundreds of years, but it will happen. It will definitely happen in our personal life at the end of our earthly journey. We must live in such a way that we are always ready for that end.

But, there is a third coming we can speak of which is His coming by grace into our lives. And this coming is quite real and should be something to which we are continually attentive. His coming by grace requires that we be continually “prepared” to meet Him. If we are not prepared, we can be certain we will miss Him. This was the mistake of the prodigal son and to a certain degree of the older brother as well. They did not recognize the value of their father’s presence.

How do we prepare for this coming by grace? We prepare first and foremost by fostering a daily habit of interior prayer. The moments we dedicate exclusively to prayer each day are essential to our holiness and relationship with God. An interior habit of prayer forms us and leads us to become sensitive to the spiritual matters. Our thinking will be different, our concerns will change, we will see ourselves, the world and its problems in different light.

Lord, help me to foster in my heart a life of prayer. Help me to seek You always and to always be prepared for You when You come. Jesus, I trust in You!

FALL HARVEST DINNER AND RECITAL: September 25^th. That day we will have Mass at 11AM here at the parish. The food will be served roughly beginning at 12:30 and the menu will include wiener schnitzel, sausage, gulyas, langos, and pastry. Three dance troops will perform and St. Elizabeth dance troop will lead people in dancing. No RSVP required.  

SUNDAY COLLECTION FIGURES: (8/28): Sunday Collection: $822; special donation: $350. THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROSITY in supporting our parish. Thank you for sending in your offertory donation through the mail, or through the PayPal option found on the website: https://www.stelizabethcleveland.org/donations/

WASHER/DRYER: Three men from the Kőrősi Csoma Sándor program will be living at the guesthouse of St. Emeric parish. If you know someone who is disposing of their older, but still in working condition washer and dryer, please let us know.

PLEASE PRAY FOR THE SICK, especially, Jay Kovács, Kathy Szabó, Kamilla Szabó and Anna Melega, Dorothy Fromhercz, and Alex Szaday.

PLEASE PRAY FOR THE DECEASED.

THIS SUNDAY the 11:15 AM Mass from St. Emeric church will be livestreamed at https://www.facebook.com/saintemeric/ and on the website, https://stemeric.com/

This post is also available in: Hungarian