From the Pastor December 6/7

Pope Leo is already a very well-traveled man. Even before being elected pope, he had visited fifty or more countries in his role as Superior of the Augustinian Order. Tuesday Pope Leo returned from the first overseas trip of his papacy. He spent six days visiting Turkey and Lebanon. 

The theme of his trip was “One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism” and it has already been named as one of the most significant Papal trips in recent memory. He started his visit to Turkey by meeting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and other members of the Turkish Government. Turkey’s population is overwhelmingly Muslim but styles itself a secular state. Only about 1% of the population is Christian and the Catholic population is only about 35,000.

Yet, the area plays a disproportionate role in Christian history. Known as Asia Minor in those days, it was the birthplace of St. Paul and the area where he spent his early days as an Apostle. It was heavily evangelized by other Christians and in the early days of the Church very influential. 

The purpose of his time in Turkey was to join Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, other Orthodox Church leaders and those of twenty-six other Christian denominations to celebrate the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea begun in 325AD. This was the Ecumenical Council responsible for drafting the Nicene Creed, the fundamental statement of our Christian faith recited by most Christians during their weekly worship and at the midpoint of the Catholic Mass. 

This meeting was originally planned for May 20, the actual anniversary of the convening of the council but had to be postponed because of Pope Francis’ death on April 21. Last week’s meeting was held to coincide with the Feast of St. Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother and the Apostle credited with founding the Church in Constantinople. 

Pope Leo and other Church leaders met at a meeting and Ecumenical Prayer Service hosted by Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, considered first among equals of the Patriarchs of the Orthodox Churches. It was held among the ruins of the Basilica of St. Nephite in Iznik a small city outside Istanbul on the original site of Nicaea. 

Pope Leo and Patriarch Bartholomew both addressed the meeting on the topic of Christian unity. In his address Pope Leo called for reconciliation among all Christians. He said our world is crying out for reconciliation. “The more we are reconciled, the more we Christians can bear critical witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which is the proclamation of hope for all” Leo said. 

Just before leaving on his trip Pope Leo released a letter on the topic of the importance of the Nicene Creed. He suggested that all Christians should be prompted to use the Creed as an examination of conscience to reflect on what it means to be a Christian. Leo says in his letter that the Council of Nicaea was held at a critical point in Church history when it had to evaluate the threat of division over the answer to Jesus’ question to his apostles at Caesarea Philippi, “Who do you say that I am?”

The last half of Leo’s journey was to Lebanon. Lebanon has the largest Christian population of any Middle Eastern country with an estimated 30-35% of the population. That is a significant drop from the over 51% of the population when the country was founded in 1938. 

The emphasis of Pope Leo’s tour of Lebanon was to encourage that country’s Christian community. Lebanon has been the victim of years of civil war, violence, and corruption. Even during his visit their were almost daily attacks from Israel against Hezbollah and other Palestinian forces in the country’s south. Leo spent most of his tour visiting several of the county’s important shrines and religious sites, with the country’s clergy and religious, and celebrating a large outdoor Mass for the faithful.

Marian Award for Marilyn Whelden

The Marian Medal is the Diocese of Fall River’s service award. Each year it is awarded to a worthy parishioner from each of the parishes of the diocese. This year’s Holy Redeemer recipient is Marilyn Whelden. Marilyn is a lifelong Holy Redeemer parishioner. She was born, brought up, and raised a family with her husband Howard here in the parish. Her’s has been a lifetime of participation in and leadership at our church. In the past she sang in the choir and as a young mother was active in youth activities. In recent years she hasn’t stopped contributing to the parish. She is the driving force behind our Bereavement and Funeral Hospitality ministries. She is a Eucharistic Minister and Hospitality Minister too. Dedicated parishioners like Marilyn play such an important role in making our parish great. Parishioners get the chance to congratulate Marilyn at this weekend’s monthly Coffee and Donuts. Stop by, congratulate Marilyn, and share some fellowship with other parishioners. 

Immaculate Conception Holy Day Reminder

Monday, December 8, is the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of Mary. It is a Holy Day of Obligation for all Catholics. Masses for the Holy Day will be celebrated at 8 am, 12:05 and 4 pm. 

Advent Reconciliation

Holy Redeemer is a great parish but I feel it has one serious fault. It is poor participation in the use of the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I’m in the Reconciliation Room every Saturday afternoon from 3-3:45 pm and many times I have no one come to receive the Sacrament. We’ve had seasonal Reconciliation Services and few people attend.

I’m going to try something different this Advent. The new Order of Penance instituted in 2023 allows for the Reconciliation of Several Penitents with General Confession and Absolution. That means the parish can have a Reconciliation Service where parishioners can come and confess Venial Sins and receive the priest absolution from them without going to individual confession. This is not general absolution for all sins, only venial ones. If a penitent becomes aware of committing grave or mortal sin, they still must seek absolution for that sin in a confession made directly to a priest. 

We’ll be doing this in a hope to reach out to people who have not celebrated the Sacrament for years. I hope that by coming and examining their conscience they might recognize where they have fallen into sin, overcome any fears they have about confronting their sins, and receive a sense of being unburdened of any guilt they feel.

The Reconciliation Service will be held next Sunday, December 14, at 3 pm. The service should last about a half hour. Come and be open to receiving God’s mercy and compassion.