Parish Newsletter March/April 2014
Message From Father Ron Dear Parishioners: As the song goes, “Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.” The last few weeks with the snow, ice, and extreme cold temperatures have reminded us that God is in charge. As much as we plan and think we are in control of our daily routines, God sends us snow. It gives us a moment to reflect on our cooperation with God and His will for our lives. In the book of Daniel, King Nebuchadnezzar orders the three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to be thrown into the white fiery furnace. As they are thrown into the furnace they are not harmed and dance and praise God by singing His praises, “Cold and chill, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever. Ice and snow, bless the Lord; praise and exalt him above all forever.” (Daniel 9:67 & 70) We may not find comfort in their canticle, but we find a consoling image in the Prophet Isaiah, “Come now, let us set things right, says the Lord: Though your sins be like scarlet, they may become white as snow; though they be crimson red, they may become white as wool.” (Isaiah 1:18) With Isaiah’s image in mind, we prepare for the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday, March 5. As we prepare to begin our Lenten journey, Jesus calls us to a deeper commitment in our relationship with Him. We find it so easy to get caught up
in the world around us and its selfish and empty pursuits that do not bring true peace and joy in our lives. He is inviting us to examine our hearts in light of His teaching and what He has called each of us to do in our lives. This season of Lent gives us the opportunities to draw closer to the Lord by deepening our prayer life, experiencing the gift of solitude, experiencing the Lord’s forgiveness through Sacrament of Penance, fasting and abstinence, and acts of charity. May this season be a time of renewal in your life as the Lord Jesus calls you by name to draw closer to Him and experience more fully His life, mercy, compassion and peace. There are many opportunities during our Lenten season that will enable you to have a fruitful journey. I encourage you to attend daily Mass; spend time in adoration before the Blessed Sacrament during the week, Monday through Friday from 3:00-5:15 p.m.; participate in the Stations of the Cross on the Fridays of Lent at the conclusion of the 5:30 p.m. Mass; go to confession on Wednesday evenings during “The Light is ON for You”—confessions will be heard from 6:30-7:30 p.m.; or attend one of our parish retreats. Our Lenten Parish Mission will be directed by Father Scott Hurd beginning Tuesday, March 11, through Thursday, March 13, from 7:00-8:15 p.m.
Tuesday’s session—“What is Forgiveness?”—focuses on an exploration of what forgiveness is and, just as importantly, what forgiveness is not. Wednesday’s session—“How to Forgive”—focuses on action steps that can be taken to advance along the forgiveness journey. Both these sessions will take place in the church. Thursday’s session—“Signs of Progress”—focuses on identifying attitudes, actions, and feelings which indicate that we are nearing our goal. This session will be held in the school auditorium. Thank you for all you do for our parish. Please pray for candidates who are preparing to enter the Church at the Easter Vigil. Be assured of my daily prayers especially at the altar for you and your families as we prepare for our Lenten journey in order to celebrate Easter with our hearts and minds renewed. Peace,
Father Ron
“May this [Lenten] season be a time of renewal in your life . . . ”
On The Pages Of This Issue Three Blessed Sacrament Parishioners Honored 2 Leading Us In Reflection: Profiles of Three Lenten Speakers 3 Communication Workshop For Couples 4 John Navolio Named Parish Business Manager 4 Sixth Annual Rock Creek Extreme Cleanup 5
Artwork by Megan Pfohl Fourth Grade
Editor: Pat Watson
Three Blessed Sacrament Parishioners Honored Congratulations to Blessed Sacrament parishioners James and Ann Hoffman and Kathleen Curtin, who recently received the Manifesting the Kingdom Award from the Archdiocese of Washington. Cardinal Wuerl, Archbishop of Washington, conferred the award on January 5 at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on laywomen and laymen and consecrated women and men who demonstrate the presence of Jesus in their lives with exceptional service to the ministries they serve.
Kathleen Curtin, Executive Director of the Christ Child Society, received the award in recognition of her service to the organization over the last decade. Kathleen has been a parishioner of Blessed Sacrament for 17 years; her son is a Blessed Sacrament School graduate, and her daughter is a current Blessed Sacrament School student. As the leader of the Christ Child Society, Kathleen leads the organization to carry on the legacy and mission of the work of deceased, long-time Blessed Sacrament parishioner, Mary Virginia Merrick.
James and Ann Hoffman have been involved in Family Life Ministry since 1976. They have served in Worldwide Marriage Encounter, as Marriage Preparation Leaders, Archdiocesan Family Life Board Members, and as members of Blessed Sacrament’s Baptismal Preparation program.
Undaunted by severe physical disabilities, Ms. Merrick, with courage and persistence, created the Christ Child Society, an initiative for charitable programs serving the sick and the poor of Washington, DC. Today her founding chapter of the Society has expanded to 38 chapters nationally, providing a variety of services to fill local needs. In 2003 the Vatican declared Mary Virginia Merrick a Servant of God, a decree that places her on the path to canonization.
Currently Ann and Jim lead the Blessed Sacrament Couples Communication Workshops. (See article in this issue) Through this program, they have developed and produced a series of sessions that have resulted in couples’ improved communication skills which help resolve differences, solve problems and make decisions with a better understanding. The program works! For more information about the Couples Communication Workshop, contact Ann or Jim Hoffman at 202.362.4510 or 202.486.8291 or
[email protected].
For more information about the work of the Christ Child Society or about volunteering in their activities, contact Kathleen Curtin at
[email protected]; or call 202.966.9250, Ext. 109. Visit the website at www.christchilddc.org.
Layout: Delphine Clegg Parish Logo Designs: Ellen Smyth Artwork: Blessed Sacrament School students under the guidance of their art teacher, Judy Kearns 2
Ann and James Hoffman with Cardinal Wuerl
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Leading Us In Reflection Profiles of three Lenten speakers Father R. Scott Hurd
Andreas Widmear
Thomas Ryan, CSP
Reverend R. Scott Hurd, a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington, was baptized and raised in The Episcopal Church in which he began his ordained ministry as a married Episcopal priest. After Father Hurd entered the Catholic Church in 1996, he was ordained a Catholic priest in 2000. Father Hurd has served as Executive Director of the Archdiocese of Washington’s Office of the Permanent Diaconate and as Vicar General of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter. He and his wife Stephanie live in Virginia with their three children.
Andreas Widmer is Director of Entrepreneurship Programs at The Catholic University of America and President of The Carpenter’s Fund. Previously, he was cofounder of the SEVEN Fund, a philanthropic organization run by entrepreneurs who invest in original research, books, films, and websites to further enterprise solutions to poverty. He has worked closely with top entrepreneurs, investors, and faith leaders around the world to foster enterprise solutions to poverty and promote virtuous business practices, developing entrepreneurial initiatives at the intersection of business and faith.
Born and raised in southern Minnesota, Tom did his graduate studies in theology at the Washington (D.C.) Theological Union and the University of Geneva. He was ordained a Paulist priest in 1975, and served in campus ministry at the Ohio State University (Columbus) and at McGill University (Montreal, QC.), prior to directing the Montreal-based Canadian Centre for Ecumenism for 14 years. Perceiving the need for places where Christians of different traditions could gather to share faith and life with each other as well as with members of other religions, Father spearheaded the founding of Unitas in Montreal, an ecumenical center for spirituality and Christian meditation co-sponsored by eight different denominations. He served as its director for five years prior to answering the call of his community in January of 2000 to set up and develop in Washington, DC, the Paulist Office for Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations.
Photo: www.pauline.org
Father Hurd has written several books including the award-winning “Forgiveness: A Catholic Approach” in which he writes of the spiritual, psychological, physical, and social benefits of learning how to forgive and find peace. Whether we are uncertain what real forgiveness looks like, are tired of forgiving, or don’t know where to start, “Forgiveness: A Catholic Approach” offers spiritual considerations and practical guidance. Drawing from his pastoral experience, in twenty-four short chapters Father Hurd examines how human weakness affects such things as our ability to forgive and reconcile, our capacity to trust, and how we cope when a plea for forgiveness is rejected by a person we have wronged. An expression of God’s love and mercy, forgiveness is a deeply personal experience. With a focus on forgiveness and its many aspects, Father Hurd will conduct the Parish Lenten Retreat at Blessed Sacrament on March 11, 12 & 13, 7:00-8:30 p.m.
Photo: http://business.cua.edu
A seasoned business executive with experience in high-tech and international business strategy, consulting, and economic development, Andreas was an executive in residence at Highland Capital Partners, a venture capital firm. He served as CEO of the OTF Group (formerly part of the Monitor Group) and has worked extensively in the United States, Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America. Andres served as a Pontifical Swiss Guard from 1986-1988, protecting Pope John Paul II. A citizen of Switzerland and the United States, he holds two business degrees from Switzerland, a B.S. in International Business from Merrimack College and an M.A. in Ministry from St. John’s Seminary, Boston. Married and father of a son, Andres speaks English, German, Italian and French. Andreas will speak at the March 25 Faith on Tap event at Blessed Sacrament, 7:00-8:30 p.m.
Photo: www.tomryancsp.org
Father has written twelve books and was part of a writing team that produced Living the Eucharist, a program being offered at Blessed Sacrament every Sunday, March 2-March 30, 8:45-10:00 a.m. On March 26, Father Ryan will lead Bread, Book and Brethren’s annual retreat, open to all, at the Washington Retreat House, 8:30 a.m.-3:00 p.m. This retreat, “Savoring Life in Every Season,” will focus on how to become more fully alive in this season of Lent, as well as in the present season of our lives, and on how to cultivate in every season the core experience: growing communion with God. For more information about the retreat:
[email protected].
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Communication Workshop For Couples By James Hoffman For the fifth year, Blessed Sacrament is providing an opportunity for married and engaged couples to learn a specific and practical method to improve their communication skills. This method, called “Active Listening,” is designed to teach couples to express themselves in constructive ways to avoid arousing defensiveness or hostility in their partner. The leaders give couples general instructions and then pair couples with a trained facilitator in order to practice the skills taught. The key to a successful workshop is an openness to learn about oneself and be open to change. Even when couples come from two very different points of view, this method helps resolve differences, solve problems and make decisions with a better understanding of each other. Marital relationships go through many ups and downs; however, this program is NOT for couples who are experiencing severe difficulties which would require counseling. The past two workshop sessions drew a range of couples, from engaged to those with small children and those who have been married nearly 50 years. In addition to the fact that most couples would have liked more than four sessions, these are some of their comments: “The process helped us talk calmly and rationally about an issue, making sure we knew
and, “We found that using the Active Listening technique has improved not only our ability to communicate as a couple, but also our ability to communicate with our young children.” “It works with our teenager too.”
Artwork by Cybil Sternhell Kindergarten
what the other thought along the way”; “This taught me how to really listen”; “The facilitators were all wonderful and very helpful.” And after several months of practicing this technique, here are other comments: “Although we were a bit unsure what to expect from the workshop, we both are so pleased we enrolled. We were given extremely useful tools that have helped us connect and improve our daily communication”;
Artwork by Perry Lindstrom Fourth Grade
Communication permeates our daily life. Done well, it enriches us and makes us feel closer to our spouse. It helps us grow individually and as a couple. Done poorly, it creates silence, distance, misunderstandings, disillusion, and often leads to separation and divorce. As a married couple we are called to be a living sign—a sacrament—of God’s love. It is good to remember that our Sacrament of Matrimony needs to be nurtured and enriched. This Lenten workshop may just be the boost needed. The workshop will be held on four consecutive Tuesdays at the Duffy parish center: March 11, 18, 25 and April 1, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Each session builds on the other, so plan to attend all four sessions. Registration is on a first-come, first-served basis. We can only accommodate as many couples as we have facilitators. To register, send a $35.00 check made payable to Blessed Sacrament to Ann & Jim Hoffman, 6421 31st Place, NW, Washington, DC 20015 by March 3. Questions? Contact Jim & Ann Hoffman at 202.362.4510 or 202.486.8291 or
[email protected].
John Navolio Named Parish Business Manager John Navolio is no stranger to Blessed Sacrament. In fact, he taught CCD in the School of Religion for 13 of the 14 years he has been a Blessed Sacrament parishioner. A native of western Pennsylvania, John received a bachelor’s degree from Duquesne University. He holds an MA in Pastoral Studies and an MBA from the University of Maryland. John’s more than 20 years of experience working in the private sector, operating on the front lines in real estate, financial, and real property management prepared him well for the 4
role he is currently developing within the parish framework. John views his role as business manager as one that is supportive of the many ministries of Blessed Sacrament. He believes parishioners entrust their resources to the wise use and management by the pastor and staff, who act in a collaborative manner to maximize those resources. An excellent listener and democratic leader, John responded positively to a query about parishioner ideas and suggestions, “I take all people’s advice seriously.”
Applying the dynamics of business to parish matters, John is planning to develop short and long-term operational objectives, and to operate in a transparent manner. This will free the pastor and priests to focus on spiritual and pastoral matters without the constraints of temporal matters. Every pastor needs “a man named John,” making the gospel story come alive in the 21st century. Welcome to Blessed Sacrament, John. May you have great success in your work.
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Sixth Annual Rock Creek Extreme Cleanup
By Stephen Gormley The Blessed Sacrament Environmental Action Ministry (EAM) will be coordinating a parish group to partake in the Rock Creek Conservancy’s Sixth Annual Rock Creek Extreme Cleanup on Saturday, April 5th from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The Extreme Cleanup is part of the Alice Ferguson Foundation’s annual Potomac River Watershed Cleanup, which occurs in four states and the District of Columbia. The purpose of the cleanup is to eliminate environmentally harmful materials from Rock Creek and its tributaries which feed into the Potomac River. The Potomac River supplies roughly 90 percent of the DC metro area drinking water. Through cleanup efforts like this one, we are able to head off threatening toxins and chemicals that are carried by polluted storm water runoff into the Potomac River, thus helping to treat the same water that flows to our faucets. Removing harmful debris such as plastic bags and bottles as well as illegally dumped items such as furniture, tires, and discarded construction materials helps contribute to cleaner local waterways. The District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority regularly cleans and maintains more than 25,000 catch basins, removing 23 tons of debris every day. Catch basins are the traps that catch debris and litter before they can enter a storm drain. Through volunteer efforts such as our parish contribution, we help alleviate much of the unnecessary build-
Photos by Jon Foley
up of harmful waste from our shared water system. Water pollution is not limited to the borders of our local waterways. The actions we take locally have a global effect, and inaction has catastrophic results, not only for those of us in the present, but for future generations and the less fortunate of the world. An excerpt from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ An Invitation to Reflection and Action on Environment in Light of Catholic Social Teaching states: “The whole human race suffers as a result of environmental blight, and generations yet unborn will bear the cost for our failure to act today. But in most countries today, including our own, it is the poor and the powerless who most directly bear the burden of current environmental carelessness. Their lands and neighborhoods are more likely to be polluted or to host toxic waste dumps, their water to be undrinkable, their children to be harmed. Too often, the structure of sacrifice involved in environmental remedies seems to exact a high price from the poor and from workers.” This was written 23 years ago, but reads as if it were written today. For the past three years, our parish cleanup site has been the area of Rock Creek Park along 36th Street, NW starting at Broad Branch Road, NW and ending in the parking area behind Poli-
tics and Prose Bookstore on Connecticut Avenue, NW. The group also helps clean up along Broad Branch Road, NW as it winds into the city toward Beach Drive. The Environmental Action Ministry in past cleanups has attracted as many as 50 volunteers, and the ministry is hoping to break its record with this April’s cleanup. In the past five years, volunteers have collected a combined total of over 12,000 bags of litter, 60 tons of junk, 800 tires, and 35,000 plastic bags. Please save the date on your calendars; all are encouraged to volunteer. The cleanup is also a good opportunity for students to earn school required service hours. Please join us and be part of the solution. To participate in the cleanup, please contact Jon Foley at
[email protected]. The Blessed Sacrament Environmental Action Ministry sponsors speakers and articles on the Catholic perspective on the environment (Care for Creation, Care for the Poor), and offers parishioners hands-on opportunities to steward natural resources locally. In addition to the Rock Creek Extreme Clean Up described above, the EAM supports a community garden for the poor, composting demonstrations, and events with other parishes and churches. For more information, visit the EAM web page at: www.blessedsacramentdc.org/environmental-action-ministry.
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3630 Quesada Street, NW Washington, D.C. 20015 202.966.6575 www.blessedsacramentdc.org
