Church of Saint Veronica

Pastor’s Corner – May 12, 2013 -First martyrdom for the Church

admin — Fri, 10 May 2013 02:30:03 +0000

Today’s reading from the Acts of the Apostles recalls the first martyrdom for the Church. The deacon Stephen is arrested by members of the Synagogue of Freedmen. These members were probably descendants of Jews carried off to Rome by Pompey in 63 BC where they were sold into slavery. Synagogue of Freedmen is like a catch name, like Catholics for a Free Choice. You would think they would be sensitive to the rights of other people because of their background. Stephen has a vision of the glory of God. Many saints who have reached spiritual perfection in this life are actually given the Beatific Vision in some degree. It seems to help them in their sanctity and their example to us on how to follow Christ particularly as they experience adversity. In Stephen’s vision, he sees Jesus standing at the right hand of God. Notice that Jesus is not regally siting at the right hand of God. Jesus is up from his throne looking down with tenderness and love on Stephen who is imitating Jesus’ Passion. This is the last thing his persecutors want to hear because they are filled with hate for this holy man. As they take their clothes off so they can throw the stones at him, Saul, the future St. Paul, watches them and is pleased with the lynching. Stephen makes two profound remarks as he is dying. “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit” indicating a total trust in his resurrection at the end of time and “Lord, do not hold this sin against them” showing his love for his enemies and his hope that they will reform before they die. The very expressions of Jesus as he undergoes his passion. The Fathers of the Church have claimed that the fruit of St. Stephen’s death was the conversion of St. Paul. The Scriptures indicate that Stephen does not die, but rather “falls asleep.” Stephen’s brutal murder ends up in such a peaceful grace.

On April 22, Syrian Orthodox Metropolitan Mar Gregorios Yohanna Ibrahim and Greek-Orthodox Bishop Boulos al-Yazigi were kidnaped by unknown abductors during a humanitarian mission. At the time of this writing, there is no news on the fate of these bishops nor the certain identity of the kidnappers. Please pray for their safety or their eternal reward for dying for Christ.

I thank all those responsible for preparing our children for their First Communions. The children had a profound experience of the love of God and it is a credit to their teachers who made them sensitive to it.

This Wednesday our eight graders will be receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation. Please pray for them so that they too can have that same profound joy which our second graders had.

Yesterday Gino Esposito was ordained a deacon. We have a great team of deacons who do so many good works in our parish. I hope that Deacon Gino will have a productive and deeply spiritual future sowing the seeds of the faith in our parish.

I have made arrangements to have a parish mission next Lent from Sunday, March 30th to April 1st. Fr. Richard Ho Lung from the Missionaries of the Poor will conduct it. You might recall seeing him many times on EWTN. I hope you can plan to attend it. He will be assisted by another priest and a musician.

I would like to thank all the volunteers who have mowed our lawns. They are saving us lots of money. I hope that more of you might volunteer to help out. We have a lot of grounds to cover.

The project of fixing the 52 church pews is progressing. I am grateful to all those who have made earmarked contributions to pay for the $28,000 project. Please remember to write “Pews” on the memo on your check.

The 50/50 Raffle is progressing. We have sold about 300 of the 2000 tickets already. I do hope we can reach the 2000 mark. Remember there is at least a three in two thousand chance of winning!

You may have noticed that I put in an announcement about a pilgrimage that I am conducting in the fall. I have been leading similar pilgrimages for about twenty years with this family tour group. Deacon Tom is also leading a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. I hope that many of you can take advantage of these trips to enrich your faith.

Fr. Vincent Euk

3rd Friday Community General Gathering May 17, 2013

admin — Fri, 10 May 2013 02:16:16 +0000

St. Veronica 3rd Friday Community General Gathering – May 17, 2013

admin — Thu, 09 May 2013 02:11:17 +0000

Click here for details

Pastor’s Corner – May 5, 2013 – Keep Holy the Lord’s Day

admin — Wed, 01 May 2013 02:05:30 +0000

The Church norm of Sunday Mass attendance is based on the divine norm of “Keep holy the Lord’s day”. But for Catholics the Mass is a mysterious recollection of the event that has saved us from sin. It is mysterious in that we are not really recollecting the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, but actually witnessing it. God is not caught up in time like us and He is willing to share this Mystery with us in a very intimate way. In a world of distractions, many people do not take the time to develop this sensitivity. Sometimes God chooses not to grant a recognizable feeling of this intimacy. Even for those who do experience it, they do not get this feeling every time they go to Mass.

Because the experience of God in the Mass is at times hidden to us, the Church, which is guided by the Holy Spirit, finds it necessary to make a law keep us close to the love of God. The Sunday obligation protects God’s mandate of keeping holy the Lord’s day. It also keeps the presence of the mystery of salvation in our hearts.

Mass attendance is a serious obligation — even to the point of possibly incurring a mortal sin. Thus excusing reasons are not to be taken lightly. In principle one can miss Sunday Mass without committing a mortal sin if one has a grave reason. For example, for the sake of charity if one must take care of someone who is sick and there is no one to relieve that person from this duty, then no sin would be incurred in missing Sunday Mass. One is obliged to do whatever one can to change their situation so that they can attend Sunday Mass. Generally hotels and motels keep a list of Mass schedules for the local churches at the front desk. To answer the more direct question of whether or not one incurs a mortal sin if one misses Sunday Mass, it is best to examine the problem on a case by case basis with a priest in confession.

Fr. Vincent Euk

Pastor’s Corner -April 29, 2013 – First Holly Communion

admin — Wed, 01 May 2013 01:57:09 +0000

This weekend and next our parish will be having First Communions. It is a joyful time especially for the children who for the first time are receiving this Sacrament which is the center of our faith. It is even more mysterious to see how they react to their first reception. Sometimes we adults often take the Sacraments for granted and sometimes see it as an entitlement whereby we make little effort to appreciate its power. As you recall there are some criteria that we Catholics must follow in order to receive it. The first, and probably the most important, is that we be free of unconfessed mortal sin. Otherwise we commit the sin of sacrilege (CCC 2120). The wickedness of this sin is that it can condition us to think it is alright to take Communion because, after awhile, we start to feel no remorse for being guilty of the death of Jesus (1Cor 11:27). We are also required not to eat any food for an hour before taking Communion, unless there are serious health reasons, so as to make a distinction that what we are receiving is no ordinary food.

It is also important for us to be careful in who receives Holy Communion. It would be remiss on our part to tell non-Catholics to receive Holy Communion because this trivializes important distinctions between the Catholic faith and others. Remember many other Christian faiths allow for the sins that St. Paul specifically told us will exclude us from the Kingdom of God (1 Cor 6:9-10; Gal 5:19-21; Eph 5:5-6).

The fruits of the Eucharist are not automatic. It must be received with intense faith in the Real Presence. To believe this takes great faith because it means that the recipient must accept the full truth revealed by Jesus Christ because it is the complete Christ who is received in the Eucharist. The complete truth means that it includes all that the Church proposes as revealed including herself. This means not just accepting a specific knowledge intellectually, but a conforming of our life to that knowledge (“intense faith”). Thus the conditions for receiving the Eucharist require not just accepting rules, but an integral understanding of the Sacrament as taught by the Church. The Eucharist joins us in ecclesial communion, while at the same time exacting it as a prerequisite. Eucharistic Communion causes ecclesial communion signifying it simultaneously.

While the desire to receive Communion is both profoundly personal and spiritual, it is never private because we do not personally own it. Not respecting this is to deny a personal and an ecclesial contradiction.

The Catholic Church will permit non-Catholics to receive Holy Communion only if a person is in danger of death or a grave necessity provided that the person has no access to a minister of his own communion, the person spontaneously asks a Catholic priest for the Sacraments, the person manifests a faith in these sacraments in harmony with that of the Catholic Church and the person is properly disposed.

Corporal pain indicates a bodily problem. Taking the pain away does not solve the problem which could make us not seek medical treatment and more serious problems. Not to have intercommunion is painful at times. The intense desire to want it does not make reception appropriate.

The elimination of pain without solving the divisions makes things worse. The prohibition against intercommunion is not the cause of division, but its consequence. The causes are discovered and removed through the dialogue of truth: a process that is certainly longer and more exhausting, but which carried out with patience and perseverance promises real Christian unity.

Fr. Vincent Euk

First Holy Communions

admin — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 18:11:28 +0000

This weekend and next our parish will be having First Communions. It is a joyful time especially for the children who for the first time are receiving this Sacrament which is the center of our faith. It is even more mysterious to see how they react to their first reception. Sometimes we adults often take the Sacraments for granted and sometimes see it as an entitlement whereby we make little effort to appreciate its power. As you recall there are some criteria that we Catholics must follow in order to receive it. The first, and probably the most important, is that we be free of unconfessed mortal sin. Otherwise we commit the sin of sacrilege (CCC 2120). The wickedness of this sin is that it can condition us to think it is alright to take Communion because, after awhile, we start to feel no remorse for being guilty of the death of Jesus (1Cor 11:27). We are also required not to eat any food for an hour before taking Communion, unless there are serious health reasons, so as to make a distinction that what we are receiving is no ordinary food.

It is also important for us to be careful in who receives Holy Communion. It would be remiss on our part to tell non-Catholics to receive Holy Communion because this trivializes important distinctions between the Catholic faith and others. Remember many other Christian faiths allow for the sins that St. Paul specifically told us will exclude us from the Kingdom of God (1 Cor 6:9-10; Gal 5:19-21; Eph 5:5-6).

The fruits of the Eucharist are not automatic. It must be received with intense faith in the Real Presence. To believe this takes great faith because it means that the recipient must accept the full truth revealed by Jesus Christ because it is the complete Christ who is received in the Eucharist. The complete truth means that it includes all that the Church proposes as revealed including herself. This means not just accepting a specific knowledge intellectually, but a conforming of our life to that knowledge (“intense faith”). Thus the conditions for receiving the Eucharist require not just accepting rules, but an integral understanding of the Sacrament as taught by the Church. The Eucharist joins us in ecclesial communion, while at the same time exacting it as a prerequisite. Eucharistic Communion causes ecclesial communion signifying it simultaneously.

While the desire to receive Communion is both profoundly personal and spiritual, it is never private because we do not personally own it. Not respecting this is to deny a personal and an ecclesial contradiction.

The Catholic Church will permit non-Catholics to receive Holy Communion only if a person is in danger of death or a grave necessity provided that he person has no access to a minister of his own communion, the person spontaneously asks a Catholic priest for the Sacraments, the person manifests a faith in these sacraments in harmony with that of the Catholic Church and the person is properly disposed.

Corporal pain indicates a bodily problem. Taking the pain away does not solve the problem which could make us not seek medical treatment and more serious problems. Not to have intercommunion is painful at times. The intense desire to want it does not make reception appropriate. The elimination of pain without solving the divisions makes things worse. The prohibition against intercommunion is not the cause of division, but its consequence. The causes are discovered and removed through the dialogue of truth: a process that is certainly longer and more exhausting, but which carried out with patience and perseverance promises real Christian unity.

Under Development

admin — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 17:21:26 +0000

Pastor’s Corner – April 21, 2013 -True Moral Viture

admin — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 22:08:06 +0000

Several years ago one of our more famous tele-evangelists announced that God was going to do something very bad to him if his people would not donate several million dollars to his corporation. Well, I don’t know if he really reached his goal, but I think he is still alive. Last week I was watching another famous, and usually good tele-evangelist, and he was talking about tithing. Interestingly he quoted a text from the prophet Malachi 3:3-12. Now every pastor would love it if his parishioners tithed and I believe the biblical recommendation is ten percent. But Jesus made a radical transformation of our obligations to support his Church. St. Justin, who probably knew the Apostles personally, said this, “The wealthy, if they wish, may make a contribution, and they themselves decide the amount. The collection is placed in the custody of the president, who uses it to help the orphans and widows and all who for any reason are in distress, whether because they are sick, in prison, or away from home. In a word, he takes care of all who are in need.” As you can see, the goal of tithing is much different for Catholic Christians than for other faiths. Times have changed even now and most of us, even the unemployed, are not really living in poverty when we compare ourselves to the developing counties that I have visited. Some very demanding people come to the rectory and want money for various reasons. Ironically, they seem to drive up in nice shinny cars to make their demands. It makes me wonder what is really going on. In past assignments, I have seen people not paying their tuition, yet they still go to Disney World for vacations even during school time! However, there are some realistic realities that we must face. Whether you are running a parish or a private home, it is getting harder to pay the bills. Yet there are people who have enormous credit card debts because they, like our government whom they criticize for overspending, are no different from the politicians. Perhaps it is time to start giving up some of our luxuries. I have not seen a child who does not have some kind of electronic device which not only cost them for the product, but also for an on going bill to give them access to all sorts of things both good and immoral. Have you ever noticed how much we are controlled by these devices. I even see them seeping into our Church during Mass. We see our children locked into these devices even to the point of their not doing the chores. Many people complain about big government and how it is expanding and taking away our freedoms. But are our children free? Are we free using these devices? I remember coming back from working at Ground Zero the day of the attack. My rectory, nine blocks away, had limited power and I was able to pick up a UHF New Jersey station where the announcers were constantly talking about what had happened. I realized that they did not have a clue as to what was going on, but they seemed to speak with authority. They showed pictures of men doing things that had nothing to do with the reality of the day. Of course for fillers there was a constant flow of watching the planes hitting the towers to keep us glued to the screen. I often wonder are we simply being controlled by the media? Is it good for us to see the parents of the Newtown shooting almost every night on TV? Is it good for them? Is there any law that is going to preserve us from these incidents? We have not solved the problems associated with racial prejudice in this country, but we have developed a legal system to allow some of us to mask it by political correctness. We have allowed for a double standard of legal pornography for adults, but it is illegal for children under guise of freedom of speech. Child pornography is governed by Homeland Security. It is only a matter of time for equal protection under the law for this gap to be eliminated. It will probably come about with sexting because as more and more children are doing it and we will not have the space in our prisons to accommodate them. I see a politician caught in sexting is now considering running again for public office. How do you think he is going to vote on “laws” against sexting? So what is the solution to all these problems? Perhaps we should take another look at one of the most underfunded institutions – the Catholic Church. Personally, I think it was a mistake to take any government funds for moral purposes simply because eventually the government will assume “moral responsibility.” God does have laws that we will be held accountable for even though it might be legal. Can you ever imagine Jesus saying it is ok to kill a child? Many Christian religions have sanctioned this practice. We can kill in the womb, but we cannot kill in schools. I do hope that you will continue to support the Bishops Appeal and your parish. I remember reading somewhere that those who attended Catholic schools were less prejudice than the average American citizen. I also recall that Moslems frequently attend Catholic universities because they are welcomed there. Maybe a little more money sent to Christ’s Church might counter all this nonsense. It will only be by teaching and practicing true moral virtue that all of our spiritual ailments can be cured. After I wrote these notes, the explosions in Boston happened. Let us keep the victims and their families in our prayers.

Fr. Vincent Euk

admin — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 00:14:31 +0000

Saint Veronica’s Parish Mega 50/50 Cash Raffle

to Benefit Parish Programs

$50.00 per ticket

(only 2000 tickets printed)

Three winners will split 50% (25%, 15% and 10%) of gross receipts

Up to $25,000, $15,000 and $10,000

Winner need not be present

Drawing Saturday, June 29, 2013

at a Pasta Dinner (6:00-8:30PM) to be held in Saint Veronica’s Cafeteria

4215 Route 9, Howell, NJ 07731

(tickets for Pasta Dinner will be sold separately)

Click below for details and form

Raffle Ticket Announcement – Request

admin — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 01:49:27 +0000

Church of Saint Veronica

Pastor’s Corner – May 12, 2013 -First martyrdom for the Church

I thank all those responsible for preparing our children for their First Communions. The children had a profound experience of the love of God and it is a credit to their teachers who made them sensitive to it.

This Wednesday our eight graders will be receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation. Please pray for them so that they too can have that same profound joy which our second graders had.

Yesterday Gino Esposito was ordained a deacon. We have a great team of deacons who do so many good works in our parish. I hope that Deacon Gino will have a productive and deeply spiritual future sowing the seeds of the faith in our parish.

I would like to thank all the volunteers who have mowed our lawns. They are saving us lots of money. I hope that more of you might volunteer to help out. We have a lot of grounds to cover.

The project of fixing the 52 church pews is progressing. I am grateful to all those who have made earmarked contributions to pay for the $28,000 project. Please remember to write “Pews” on the memo on your check.

The 50/50 Raffle is progressing. We have sold about 300 of the 2000 tickets already. I do hope we can reach the 2000 mark. Remember there is at least a three in two thousand chance of winning!

Fr. Vincent Euk

3rd Friday Community General Gathering May 17, 2013

St. Veronica 3rd Friday Community General Gathering – May 17, 2013

Click here for details

Pastor’s Corner – May 5, 2013 – Keep Holy the Lord’s Day

Fr. Vincent Euk

Pastor’s Corner -April 29, 2013 – First Holly Communion

While the desire to receive Communion is both profoundly personal and spiritual, it is never private because we do not personally own it. Not respecting this is to deny a personal and an ecclesial contradiction.

Corporal pain indicates a bodily problem. Taking the pain away does not solve the problem which could make us not seek medical treatment and more serious problems. Not to have intercommunion is painful at times. The intense desire to want it does not make reception appropriate.

Fr. Vincent Euk

First Holy Communions

Under Development

Pastor’s Corner – April 21, 2013 -True Moral Viture

Fr. Vincent Euk

Saint Veronica’s Parish Mega 50/50 Cash Raffle

to Benefit Parish Programs

$50.00 per ticket

(only 2000 tickets printed)

Three winners will split 50% (25%, 15% and 10%) of gross receipts

Up to $25,000, $15,000 and $10,000

Winner need not be present

Drawing Saturday, June 29, 2013

at a Pasta Dinner (6:00-8:30PM) to be held in Saint Veronica’s Cafeteria

4215 Route 9, Howell, NJ 07731

(tickets for Pasta Dinner will be sold separately)

Details & Registration Form

CKC_youth_volunteer Form

CKC_adult_volunteer Form