“We do not want a Church that moves with the world.
We want a Church that will move the world.” ~G. K. Chesterton
A Letter from Our Parish:
Dear Parishioners,
The bulletin for this Sunday, February 5, is available on our bulletin page. Father Bernard will return on February 25. Please note the following announcements regarding collections for next weekend, February 12:
The Catholic Courier—Please Support the Parish:
Each parish in the Diocese of Rochester is required to financially support the publication of The Catholic Courier. Our parish bill amounts to $4,908, and every year we ask for help in paying this bill.
Next weekend, February 12, baskets will be placed in the back of the church for your donation. The offertory envelope boxes have a recommended donation of $11.00, and you can also donate with our online giving, WeShare. Whatever help you can give will be appreciated greatly. Thank you.
“Souper Bowl” Sunday—February 12:
Next Sunday is Super Bowl Sunday. When you come to Mass next week, if you are able, please bring non-perishable food staples for our local food pantries. Super Bowl Sunday is one day when the awareness of food insecurity is being brought to the forefront in many communities across this country.
After Mass there will be a basket where monetary donation can be made; any checks should be made out to our parish, Mary, Mother of Mercy, with the notation Food Pantry in the memo line. Financial gifts may also be made online with WeShare. All food and monetary donations will go to our local food pantries in Interlaken, Ovid, and Trumansburg. Thank you from the Witness Committee.
Warm regards,
Susan Guydosh
Secretary
P.S.
- There are no confessions from January 20 through February 24 at St. Francis Solanus while Father is away. Friday confessions will resume on March 3, 2023.
- This weekend’s bulletin is available here.
- Thank you for visiting the parish web site where there are many helpful links here and on our weekly bulletin page. We are also increasing our activity on our Facebook and Instagram pages. Visiting and “liking” the parish’s posts on these social media platforms helps us to engage and reach new parishioners.
Gospel Meditation—Encourage Deeper Understanding of Scripture
Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time ~ February 5, 2023
I recently decided to learn to cook. As I sit at the feet of various YouTube cooking masters, I notice how much of cooking is adding ingredients that don’t provide any more nourishment, like herbs and other seasonings. But man! They make all the difference because they make the meal delightful to eat and share.
Jesus calls his disciples “salt of the world.” No one eats just salt. So, Christians are not meant to replace or do away with the world. They are meant to be agents of preservation and glorification. Notice how often these days the Church seeks to preserve what is threatened: the goodness of marital and family love, the desires of young people for greatness, the value of honest work, healthy economics, and altruistic political engagement, the dignity of the poor and vulnerable. Over and over, we say to a world who wants to throw things out, “It’s worth saving! We’ll preserve it! We’ll show you it’s wonderful.” If we can’t engage the world like that, Jesus says we are the ones who get thrown out, because salt alone is worthless.
Jesus only asks us to do for others what he does for us. He is the “salt” of everything in our lives. Is there something in your life starting to rot a bit? Something tasting bland and boring? Let Jesus salt it and see if you like it better.
~Father John Muir
©LPi
Welcome Our Return to Ordinary Time:
Ordinary time is a great time to recognize the extraordinary power of God! This edition of the Family Zone focuses on transformation and miracles large and small, placed before us by God and helping us to grow deeper in faith and possibly changing the trajectory of our lives!
Live the Eucharist: “Transubstantiation” is defined by the Catechism as “the change of the whole substance of bread into the substance of the Body of Christ and of the whole substance of wine into the substance of his Blood. This change is brought about in the Eucharistic prayer through the efficacy of the word of Christ and by the action of the Holy Spirit. However, the outward characteristics of bread and wine, that is the “eucharistic species,” remain unaltered” (CCC 283).
Similarly, when we participate in the Eucharist, we are transformed! Our outward characteristics might remain the same, but our substance is changed by the love of Christ and we become more like Christ at work in the world! Live the Eucharist this week by being his hands and feet in all settings!
Lourdes: Pilgrimage of Healing
Be Well: An average of 25,000 people gather daily in the tiny town of Lourdes, France to be healed. The once quiet village is the place where St. Bernadette saw visions of the Virgin Mary and the site, now surrounded by churches and chapels, remains there for people to seek healing from the waters of Lourdes. Each day, a procession in honor of Mary takes place at 9 PM. Thousands, many ill, walk 90 minutes praying and singing by candlelight to receive a blessing from a priest, hoping to be its 71st miracle to date. Prayer can be a strong force against our suffering and an important part of living well: physically, mentally, and spiritually.
Teachable Moment to Help Your Child Transform Negative Behavior: “Your child’s feelings are separate from you, so allow them to have those feelings without futurizing and personalizing and getting entangled with your child. Don’t let your own anxiety about your child interfere with your child. Listen without criticism. Stand next to your child, not joined to them. Only then will they stop being compelled to use their energy to fight you or defend themselves from your criticism. With your acceptance, your child will be free to begin thinking about how they want to change and grow.” Read the full article on how to deal with a complaining child or teen through a link on the Family Zone webpage.
Play: The Family Zone page has a link to a game that will get the entire family involved in reading about the miracles Jesus performed. Make it fun by inviting the participant (or team) who draws the card to read the scripture passage quietly and then act out what is happening through charades (no words allowed)! The cards could also be used to play a Draw and Guess game! You will need a Bible or can search the passages on the web!
Wonder: Here are some questions to get kids talking about transformation:
- Who does God want me to be?
- Could my attitude about something use changing?
- Am I happy with the way I respond to my friends? my parents? my siblings?
- What do I like best about new parts of my personality?
- How am I growing and changing?
- Am I sad about any changes in me or my life?
Go visit the Family Zone web page where you will find more about the above and other items of interest for you and your family. There are numerous links to lessons to help you talk about the miracles of Jesus or to help children better understand the nature of a miracle. There is a link to a beautiful prayer about personal and worldly transformation from Catholic Relief Services. There are links to some videos about the miracles connected to some of our saints: St. Bernadette of Soubirous, St. Dominic, and St. Philomena.
You can also follow a link to the readings that you will hear at the Sunday Mass for the coming two weeks. This will give you a chance to prepare your heart and mind for full and active participation in Mass this weekend! All this and more are available for you on the Zone web page.
The Family Zone is a newsletter for families to bring the faith alive at home and is brought to you by the Diocesan Office of Evangelization and Catechesis. It is an online newsletter designed to help you prepare for full and active participation in the liturgy as well as formation within your families. It is an interactive newsletter that “takes parents directly to online sites they can use, themselves, to be the primary formators of their children’s faith.” To stay up to date with opportunities around the diocese, sign up for the Family Zone newsletter on their web page.
“Christ is Always with Us”
The National Eucharistic Revival is a three-year movement to “renew the Church by enkindling a living relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist.” (Mission Statement for the National Eucharistic Revival, The Secretariat of Evangelization & Catechesis USCCB)
Go here to find out more about what our diocese is doing to participate in this important movement.
Will you join us?
Experience the Joy of the Eucharist
Join us at Mass on Sunday and experience the unique gift of Jesus in Word and Eucharist. Come and be one of the People of God, united in community and love, together witnessing the joy of the Eucharist, a most extraordinary event during ordinary times. We saved you a seat!
“It is in knowing and in loving the Jesus of the Eucharist that you will have the means to understand life, to find security, to be a people with roots. It is Christ who sustains and supports us in the many trials, struggles, challenges, transitions and happenings of our human existence,” wrote our Bishop wrote in his pastoral letter on the Eucharist. “Join us in sharing the light of Christ!”
With the Coronavirus restrictions in New York State lifted, our parish’s church buildings can now be filled to full capacity. People who have not been vaccinated are asked to continue to wear masks. The reception of Holy Communion will be under one form: the Sacred Host. The exchange of the sign of peace (which is always optional) is will be done without shaking hands and all holy water fonts are to remain empty.
Those who cannot attend Mass in person are encouraged to check out the diocese’s list of Masses that are available online. Additionally, the diocese provides a variety of virtual events for “prayer, worship, and faith sharing.”
We look forward to seeing you Mass at Holy Cross, St. Francis, and St. James!
Our Parish
Welcome to the web page for the parish of Mary, Mother of Mercy. This parish has three churches:
- Holy Cross in Ovid, New York;
- St. Francis Solanus in Interlaken, New York; and
- St. James the Apostle in Trumansburg, New York.
The pastor is Fr. Bernard Maloney, OFM Cap. The parish office is located at the Parish Center: 3660 Orchard St., Interlaken, New York.
To join the parish community or to celebrate the sacraments of baptism, confirmation, anointing of the sick, or marriage, please phone the parish office (607 294–0064) or email: [email protected] to make arrangements.
The parish depends on the support and generosity of its members in order to fulfill its mission of sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ. The easiest way to contribute to the parish is by using WeShare Online Giving. There are many benefits to you and the parish by using this service. Thank you for whatever you can give in support of the Parish of Mary, Mother of Mercy.
There are no confessions from January 20 through February 24 at St. Francis Solanus while Father is away. Friday confessions will resume on March 3, 2023, when Father Bernard will again be available for confessions at St. Francis church in Interlaken every Friday from 6:30–7:30 p.m. (social distancing will be respected).
You may also phone the parish office (607 294–0064) to make an appointment to receive the sacrament of reconciliation with a priest.
Also in residence at St. Fidelis Friary in Interlaken and part of our faith community:
- Fr. Richard Crawley, OFM Cap., chaplain at Cayuga Correctional Facility, Moravia, N.Y.
The title Mother of Mercy is thought to have been first given to Blessed Virgin Mary by St. Odo (d.942), Abbot of Cluny. It is a fitting title of Our Lady both because she brought forth for us Jesus, the Christ, the visible manifestation of the mercy of the invisible God, and because she is the spiritual mother of the faithful, full of grace and mercy. In recognizing Mary as a mother of mercy, it is easy to approach her in prayer with confidence and joy. Please join us in faith and in prayer at any of our three churches which are open each day for private devotions.
Mass Intentions at St. James the Apostle in Trumansburg, Holy Cross in Ovid, and St. Francis Solanus in Interlaken for the week of February 4, 2023–February 12, 2023
| Saturday, February 4 | St. Francis, 4:00 p.m. | Parishioners and benefactors |
| Sunday, February 5 | St. James, 9:00 a.m. |
Special intention |
| Holy Cross, 10:30 a.m. | Margaret J. Malone from Beverly Prather |
|
| Monday, February 6 | St. James, 9:00 a.m. | Communion service |
| Tuesday, February 7 | St. Francis, 8:30 a.m. | Special intention |
| Wednesday, February 8 | St. James, 9:00 a.m. | Communion service |
| Thursday, February 9 | St. Francis, 8:30 a.m. | Special intention |
| Friday, February 10 |
St. James, 9:00 a.m. | Communion service |
| Saturday, February 11 | St. Francis, 4:00 p.m. |
Parishioners and benefactors |
| Sunday, February 12 |
St. James, 9:00 a.m. | Special intention |
| Holy Cross, 10:30 a.m. | Paul M. Cafolla from Marilynn and Gerald Frank |
Mass intentions: Those wishing to have someone remembered at a Mass on a particular day and time and place may phone the parish office (607-294-0064) expressing their request. You may also print out the Mass Intentions Request form, fill it out, and mail it to the parish office. All of the Mass intentions presently scheduled can be seen on the parish calendar.
Sanctuary Lamp Intentions:
A donation may be made to the parish for a sanctuary lamp to be lit for your intention in any one of our three churches. Contact the parish office to make your request known.
Hail Holy Queen
Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy,
our life, our sweetness and our hope.
To you do we cry,
poor banished children of Eve.
To you do we send up our sighs,
mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.
Turn then, most gracious advocate,
your eyes of mercy toward us,
and after this exile show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving,
O sweet Virgin Mary.
Amen
