| | |  | SAINT AUGUSTINE - SAINT FRANCIS XAVIER ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH
Located in Brooklyn, New York, Park Slope | | | | | | Third Sunday of Easter April 14, 2024 |  | | From the Pastor | The Easter Celebration Continues!
Although the secular world might believe that Easter is in the past, the Church continues the celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus all the way to Pentecost Sunday, May 29th, 2024. These weeks of celebration can help us to recognize the incredible love and mercy that God shows us through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
We have reason to celebrate the 1350 adults and children who prayed with us on Easter Sunday alone. So inspiring was our prayer together, that faith filled people of other faiths sought greater information on the process by which they can be formed, and ultimately initiated into the Catholic faith we profess. Incredible as it may sound, God is moving and acting in our midst. Join me in praying that we may all be vibrant witnesses to Jesus’ resurrection, and in all things, deepen our trust in God’s love and mercy.
The Order of Christian Initiation of Adults (OCIA) is the process by which Catholics can complete the initiation begun in baptism, Christians from other churches can be received into the Catholic church and those not baptized can be fully initiated by receiving the sacraments of baptism, confirmation, and holy communion after a process of formation.
Annual Catholic Appeal
The Annual Catholic Appeal provides needed funds for the various programs that impact the lives of many in the Diocese of Brooklyn and beyond. The 2024 Annual Catholic Appeal supports the mission of Saint Augustine~Saint Francis Xavier, and the daily work of the Catholic Church in Brooklyn and Queens in ways no one parish can accomplish alone by supporting the following ministries:
Catholic Youth Ministry Initiative, Catholic Charities; Hospital, College, and Prison Chaplains; Diocesan Vocations Office; Catholic Migration Services; Office of Faith Formation; Bishop Mugavero Residence for infirmed clergy; and the Futures in Education Scholarship Foundation
For a more complete understanding of how your sacrifice and generous response will be utilized, please see www.CFBQ.org/ASAVideo
Last year, 124 parishioners and friends helped us meet and exceed our goal in helping others. As a way of widening the circle of those supporting these important ministries, please prayerfully consider a one-time gift or pledge payable over the next 7 months. Many corporations provide matching gifts. Completed pledge cards may be placed in the collection next weekend, April 21st.
May continued Easter joy fill your heart with peace and hope,
Fr. Frank Tumino
Pastor | | ANNUAL CATHOIC APPEAL 2024 | Welcome to the 2024 Annual Catholic Appeal: a journey of faith, unity, and purpose. This year, we are Called to Communion, Participation, and Mission – a powerful theme that encapsulates the essence of our shared commitment to make a meaningful impact.
Individually, none of us can fully address the needs of our diocese. However, when we come together, we have the power to accomplish remarkable things! The Annual Catholic Appeal offers us the chance to continue spreading Christ's love throughout Brooklyn and Queens, providing hope in the process.
This year, we urge you to become a beacon of light and hope for those facing challenges. Assume a leadership position by actively participating in the 2024 Annual Catholic Appeal, setting a model of Christian stewardship for others to follow. Acknowledge the abundance in our lives and demonstrate gratitude through dedicated support for the mission and initiatives of the diocese, as they work tirelessly to bring the Gospel to those in greatest need. If you choose to become a sustaining donor, opting for the "Recurring" option when pledging online, you will further advance the Church's mission. Your monthly commitment will automatically renew each year, offering convenience and efficiency, ensuring that more of your gift goes towards supporting the crucial ministries outlined on this webpage.
We appreciate your partnership in the Lord's work and invite you to join forces with your neighbors again in this year's Annual Catholic Appeal. Together, we can make a significant impact. |  |  | Thank you to those who have sacrificed to support the programs funded through the Annual Appeal. For more in depth information on the campaign, and who it assists, please see https://catholicfoundationbq.org/annual-catholic-appeal/
For those able to donate, pledge cards will be available at the entrances of the Church. Help us meet and exceed our assigned goal of $69,821, with a pledge payable until the end of the year or a one-time gift. | | | Join our Garden Committee | The Reflection Garden & Gardens at Saint Francis Xavier are in great need of garden volunteers to plant and take care of the garden. The gardeners each have a section of the Saint Francis Xavier garden that they care for. If you are interested please complete the volunteer form below. |  |  | | |  | | | SCRIPTURE READINGS FOR THE WEEK | Readings for the Week (April 15-21)
Monday: Acts 6:8-15; Jn 6:22-29 Tuesday: Acts 7:51—8:1a; Jn 6:30-35 Wednesday: Acts 8:1b-8; Jn 6:35-40 Thursday: Acts 8:26-40; Jn 6:44-51 Friday: Acts 9:1-20; Jn 6:52-59 Saturday: Acts 9:31-42; Jn 6:60-69 Sunday: Acts 4:8-12; 1 Jn 3:1-2; Jn 10:11-18
Daily readings and reflections can be found at https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading | | | MASS INTENTIONS | Saturday, April 13, 2024
5:00PM +Mr. & Mrs. Charles and Gloria Esposito
+The Dethill Family
+Sr. Dolores Crepeau, CSJ
Sunday, April 14, 2024—Third Sunday of Easter
9:30am +People of Saint Augustine—Saint Francis Xavier Parish
+Sister Dolores Crepeau, CSJ
12:00pm +Grace Taranto
+Nicholas Okibiya
+People of Haiti & St. Andre Parish, Dufort, Haiti
Monday, April 15, 2024
9:00am +Sister Dolores Crepeau, CSJ
Tuesday, April 16, 2024
9:00am +Mark vonSternberg
Wednesday, April 17, 2024
9:00am +James Gilchriest
Thursday, April 18, 2024
9:00am +Anthony Basile
| WEEKLY MEMORIALS | | The Bread and WineIn Memory of Sister Dolores Crepeau, CSJ
The Altar Candles In Memory of Sister Dolores Crepeau, CSJ
The Sanctuary Lamp In Memory of Sister Dolores Crepeau, CSJ
Parishioners may request these memorials at either Saint Augustine or Saint Francis Xavier, for one week, in memory or in honor of a loved one. Intentions will be published in the weekly bulletin and on the email blast. Please contact the parish office to schedule. 718/638-1880 or email info@sasfx.org.
Checks can be mailed to our parish office 225 6th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11215. | IN OUR PRAYERS | May God strengthen and give peace to all of our sick parishioners, relatives and friends, especially for:
Annette Beckworth, Sarah Hawas, Neil Napolitan, Elscena M. Rickman, The Leger family, Mary Owens, Denise Keys, Jordan Louis, Suzanne Ramdial, Archento Anzil, James Leger, Bob Beaumont, Jenny Whetstine Hoffman, Sister Maryann Abrose, CSJ, Karen Intintoli, Josephine Oliga, Peter Sun Woo, Christine Grochocki Myrin, Flavia Langan, John Garone, Kenneth Leger, Edward McCrory, Marge Miller, Robert Schlegel, Daniel Joseph, David Harrison, Maritza Arroyo, Aida Cuin, Dasan Broadnax, Anne M. Thompson, Andrew Quinn, Angel Rosa, Luna Victoria Pena, John Hurtado, Estella Chan, Ann Gucwa, Joe Guzman, Dominick Votto, Sylvia Garland, Olga Matinsen, & those in Hospitals, Nursing Homes and Rehabilitation facilities.
And for all those who have entered eternal rest, especially Neil Napolitan May they rest in peace. | | SECOND COLLECTIONS APRIL | Maintenance Fund donations: Can be added to any collection throughout the month.
Each week, our individual sacrifice is gathered during the collection at Mass. The first collection helps with the costs associated with the operation of Saint Augustine-Saint Francis Xavier. Second collections are usually to share our sacrifice with other announced needs extending our generosity.
April 7 2024: Maintenance Fund Donations April 28, 2024: Catholic Home Missions April 28, 2024: Mother’s Day Mass Remembrance
Thank you for your generosity with the maintenance fund collections and all other collections throughout the month. We appreciate your continued support. | | | Catholic Home Missions AppealThe Appeal primarily supports home mission dioceses, that is, those dioceses in the United States that are unable to offer their people the basic pastoral ministries of word, worship, and service without outside help. It may also give grants to other dioceses in the U.S. for particular projects, and to organizations and religious communities engaged in missionary work.
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| | Catholic Home Missions AppealThe Appeal primarily supports home mission dioceses, that is, those dioceses in the United States that are unable to offer their people the basic pastoral ministries of word, worship, and service without outside help. It may also give grants to other dioceses in the U.S. for particular projects, and to organizations and religious communities engaged in missionary work.
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| | | Mother’s Day Mass Remembrance
As our nation honors the contribution & sacrifice of those who love us with a Mother’s generous love, we invite all to remember our mothers, grandmothers, godmothers—indeed all who love us with Masses for all mother’s May 13-16th. Please enter the name(s) in the box above.
All envelopes and donations must be turned in no later than Saturday May 4, 2024. | |
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| | Mother’s Day Mass Remembrance
As our nation honors the contribution & sacrifice of those who love us with a Mother’s generous love, we invite all to remember our mothers, grandmothers, godmothers—indeed all who love us with Masses for all mother’s May 13-16th. Please enter the name(s) in the box above.
All envelopes and donations must be turned in no later than Saturday May 4, 2024. | |
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| | | Maintenance fundThis collection helps Saint Francis Xavier parish meet the high cost of maintaining a comfortable and safe environment for prayer at Mass and in the parish buildings.
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| | Maintenance fundThis collection helps Saint Augustine parish meet the high cost of maintaining a comfortable and safe environment for prayer at Mass and in the parish buildings.
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| Maintenance fund: This collection helps Saint Augustine-Saint Francis Xavier parish meet the high cost of maintaining a comfortable and safe environment for prayer at Mass and in the parish buildings. *These envelopes can be put in any collection during the month. | |  | | What is a Mass Intention/Memorial Intention? | When a priest celebrates Mass each day, he offers each celebration of the Eucharist for a particular person, or intention. By doing so he applies special graces from God upon that person or intention.
Similar to how we are able to intercede for others by our personal prayers, the Church is able to intercede for us through the celebration of the Mass. However, since the Eucharist is the “source and summit of the Christian life” the Mass possess a power that our personal prayers do not.
The practice of offering Mass for particular intentions is an ancient one, dating back to the early Church. | The 2024 Mass book for Saint Augustine –Saint Francis Xavier is open for Mass Intentions and Memorials.
The dates are scheduled on a first come basis. Saturdays and Sundays will continue to list several intentions, while we will limit weekday masses with only one name, to the best of our ability.
Due to construction the office is closed to outside visitors, therefore you can either place the payment and a list of desired mass intentions or memorials in an envelope. Put Attn: Mona on the envelope. Place envelope in collections on the weekend. Email info@sasfx.org Subject line “Mass Intentions or Memorials” and pay online. Once I confirm the dates I will send you the link to pay online. Mass cards for your intentions are available by calling the office and setting a time to come and pick them up.
We will do our best to accommodate your requests. Please understand that we may have to schedule other dates if the date that you want is not available. We will call you to discuss if this happens. | | JOIN ONE OF OUR BOOK CLUBS | | BROWNSTONE BROOKLYN & BEYOND
Genesis by Marilynne Robinson
The Brooklyn Brownstone and Beyond Book Group meets on Thursday evenings from 7-8PM via Zoom. We meet weekly and focus our discussion on about 40 pages of text each week.
Our next selection is Reading Genesis by Marilynne Robinson. From the publisher’s website: “One of our greatest novelists and thinkers presents a radiant, thrilling interpretation of the book of Genesis. … Reading Genesis, which includes the full text of the King James Version of the book, is a powerful consideration of the profound meanings and promise of God’s enduring covenant with humanity. This magisterial book radiates gratitude for the constancy and benevolence of God’s abiding faith in Creation.” We will begin our discussion of this book on Thursday, April 4. The link to join in the discussion is: stcharlesbklyn.org/zoom (The meeting ID is: 849 0802 1688 and the password is: 1584). Please join us!
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|  |  | In addition, we all got so much out of our March book, The Mystery of Faith, by Michael J. Himes, that we decided to set aside a few minutes at the beginning of our April group to finish our discussion. We had so much to say and not enough time to say it. (We highly recommend it!) But we'll have plenty of time as well for Father Judge. |
| SASFX BOOK CLUB
Mychal Judge: Take Me Where You Want to Go, by Francis Debernardo.
Please join us for our next St. Augustine/St. Francis Xavier Book Group on Sunday April 14th at 10:45 am (right after the 9:30 am Mass) when we will talk about Mychal Judge: Take Me Where You Want to Go, by Francis Debernardo.
This biography gives us a look at the life of a person who touched so many other lives, the priest and firefighter chaplain Mychal Judge, who died on September 11th, 2001.
In Mychal Judge, Francis DeBernardo offers a spiritual biography that will move and fascinate readers. It details the personal history and experiences—including his Irish-American upbringing, his struggles with alcoholism, his care for the marginalized, and his ministry to firefighters—that formed the man who ultimately died running into the North Tower to try to save and minister to the terrified and the dying. Whether meeting him in these pages for the first time or getting to know him better, readers will encounter in Fr. Judge a figure they will not soon forget.
Please join us in the Faith Formation office at St. Francis Xavier, which can be accessed through the church (walk through the chapel, the sacristy, and down a short passage to the office). Please remember that our garden gate is locked indefinitely so please arrive while the church is still open after the 9:30 Mass. Please contact me ahead of time, though, if you might be late and I can come rescue you.
For more information, feel free to email me or text me at 917-753-2500.
Looking forward to seeing you then!
Ellen Shea
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| | | | Brooklyn Bible Explorers
We are starting another session of Bible study next Sunday, January 28. Fr. Bill Smith will join us to present an overview of the Gospel of Mark, which we will hear in church this year. The discussion in the following weeks will be guided by Angels in the Bible, which is available from Little Rock Scripture Study. Join us on Sundays at 5 PM via Zoom (stcharlesbklyn.org/zoom or Meeting ID 849 0802 1688 followed by password 1584) starting on January 28 |
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| |  | | | St. Vincent dePaul |  |  | To make a donation please click the link below. | |
| The work of the St. Vincent de Paul Society is the Gospel message in action: I was hungry, I was thirsty, I was a stranger, I was naked, I was sick - and you cared. Our St Vincent de Paul ministry here at Saint Augustine-Saint Francis Xavier has been ongoing at Saint Francis Xavier since 1892. Over those many years, parishioners have responded to the needs of the poor in our community through two World Wars, the Spanish Flu epidemic, and the Great Depression. We have helped people with issues such as paying rent, finding an apartment, dealing with legal matters, completing applications for assistance, assisting with funeral costs, and assisting with holiday gifts through the annual Christmas Giving Tree. The distribution of food to those who need it is probably the most visible function to parishioners, as they generously provide donations for the pantry. The people who come to us know that their needs and requests will be kept confidential. Please contact us if you need help or have questions. svdp@sasfx.org
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| |  | |  | BECOMING CATHOLIC — OCIA (FORMERLY RCIA) ORDER OF CHRISTIAN INITIATION OF ADULTS
The Order of Christian Initiation of Adults (OCIA) is the process for adults who desire to join the Catholic faith and for those seeking more information on the Catholic Church. OCIA can also be a method for Catholics to complete their reception of the initiation sacraments.
WHO IS OCIA FOR? Non-Catholics who want to find out more about the Catholic Faith Those who want to join the Catholic Church through Baptism, or Profession of Faith Those who were baptized Catholic as infants but never received religious education, Confirmation, or First Eucharist.
Registration for Adult Faith Formation (OCIA) is always open. Please contact Ms. Parra at 718-857-2903. | | SAINT AUGUSTINE CHURCH TOURS | Do you have family visiting? Curious about this beautiful church in Park Slope? No appointment needed. Just show up!
Saint Augustine Roman Catholic Church Tours are available each Saturday at 3:00pm! It is so important for us to have the support of our community. Please share this with your family and friends.
Beautiful Historic Gothic Revival Church was built in 1888. For more information about our parish visit our website at sasfx.org. |  | | | DIOCESAN NEWS | | | | | | | The Sacrament of Holy Matrimony | | | | | DIOCESE OF BROOKLYN |  |  | |  | The Eucharist is the heart of the Church. Where Eucharistic life flourishes, there the life of the Church will blossom. St. John Paul II | | | | SISTERS OF SAINT JOSEPH |  | | | Meditations on Laudato Si: An Evening with Elizabeth Johnson, CSJ Tuesday, April 23, 2024, 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm Virtual gathering via Zoom
Elizabeth Johnson will share some meditations from her recently published book, Come, Have Breakfast, Meditations on God and the Earth. In a series of 30 meditations, this book views planet Earth, its beauty and threatened state, in relation to God.
The book is now available for purchase! The Zoom link will be sent to all those who register 24 hours before the start of the evening.
|  | | |  | | Here’s how to get more involved in the parish! | | Can you crochet or knit?
Members of our Prayer Shawl Ministry knit/crochet shawls, lap blankets, and baptismal shawls, and pray for the person who will be the recipient. Prayer shawls can be given for all occasions: birthdays, holidays, as a comfort after a loss or in times of stress, or while undergoing medical treatment. Members can work at home and/or join other members at a monthly meeting. Currently we work at home, but we will soon be offering a monthly Zoom meeting until in person is safer to do. Please note: The ministry can provide knitting needles, crochet hooks, yarn, and patterns for anyone who would like to participate.
For more information you can email Marge at: prayershawls@sasfx.org
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| | MAILING ADDRESS | Although the consolidation to one Parish is still not complete —it is critical to continue the mission of these historic Catholic Parishes in Park Slope. Parish Office Address The Parish Office for Saint Augustine~Saint Francis Xavier is located at 225 6th Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. Since there are no longer two staffed offices, please do not leave envelopes, offerings or donations of any kind at Saint Augustine Rectory. Weekly Offering While we rely on the generous weekly sacrifice of those who call Saint Augustine~Saint Francis Xavier their spiritual home, please remember that until the consolidation into one parish is complete, donations in check form, as well as online, need to be made to either Saint Augustine or Saint Francis Xavier Church. Diocesan Collections In order to facilitate the transfer of funds collected in the 2nd collection for various collections of the U.S. Bishops or the Diocese of Brooklyn—those using checks are reminded to make the check payable to Saint Augustine OR Saint Francis NOT the collection taken (as in The Bishop’s Overseas Aid Appeal). Thank you for your patience while we work out all of the details of building maintenance and repairing damage to our buildings.
| |  | | Catholic Mass Times for Travel
Will you and your family be traveling? Don’t miss mass. Click on the link below and enter your location to find a mass while you are on vacation.
Please visit masstimes.org to find local and international mass times when you are away from home. Phone app is also available. |  | | | |
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