Fr. Kevin Dillon is the Pastor of St. Boniface Martyr Parish, Sea Cliff, Long Island, NY.

According to the online encyclopedia, Wikipedia, she was born Robyn Rihanna Fenty and she is known in most circles, especially music, simply as Rihanna. She is a Barbadian singer and song writer known for a number of hit songs like We Found Love, Diamonds, and Umbrella. I am sure that many of you have heard her songs at either parties, social gatherings, or just over the radio.

Some of the lyrics to her song Umbrella include, “You can stand under my umbrella- ella- ella-ehh- ehh-ehh….” In an interview, Rihanna was asked if this song had any particular meaning or was about proving protection to which she replied, “an umbrella is for protection; it protects us from the rain.” She then stated that in her case it was a metaphor for negativity and vulnerability. One could conclude that the song offers comfort and consolation to someone who might be going through rough times and how she will be a source of refuge and support in both good times and bad times.

I would like to add my own personal interpretation of the song that the umbrella could also be a source of inclusivity. As Catholics, we pray in the Creed that we belong to ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC AND APOSTOLIC CHURCH. The word Catholic means universal. In other words, it is worldwide and as such includes every race, language and culture around the globe. It also means that all Her members believe, embrace and hold as true all Her teachings; however, the Church would also teach that in unity, there is diversity. Some examples of this would include differing styles in liturgy and worship. For example, the Church in Nigeria (Fr. Azubuike’s homeland) uses liturgical dance in liturgies. Men and women in ornate and elaborate dress dance up the aisle during the Presentation of the Gifts, something we here in the United States (especially those of Western European ancestry) do not do during Mass. Another example would be the language and worship style of the various Rites that compose the Catholic Church. We here at St. Boniface Martyr are part of the ROMAN RITE which is the largest Rite of the Catholic Church; however there are other Rites (Byzantine, Syro-Malankara, etc that also belong to the Catholic Church. Their rituals (ways of celebrating mass) are quite different, but very beautiful. To all of us who belong to the Roman Rite, these other customs and traditions would appear “very foreign” but the Church encourages differing cultures and nationalities to incorporate their traditions into the Sacred Liturgy.

Holy Mother Church seeks to embrace, love and support all people UNDER HER UMBRELLA!
I am often puzzled and sometimes dismayed by what appear to be many faithful and good Catholics who for one reason or another tend to pass judgment on other Catholics who may embrace other more traditional forms of worship particularly pious devotions and prayers or more forward thinking ways of worship. Several parishes in our Diocese have a Rock Mass on Sunday evening. The music is ALWAYS CHRISTO-CENTRIC and LITURGICALLY PERMISSIBLE; however, the instruments are not quite so traditional, i.e. organ/piano. Rather Rock instruments are used such as drums, base and electric guitars and perhaps a keyboard. When I was assigned to St. Aidan we had a Rock Mass to draw in young and not so young who were looking for a more contemporary style of worship, while still reverencing all the rubrics and liturgical laws governing worship. One individual wrote the Pastor and me a letter complaining how I could celebrate such a mass because he deemed it irreverent. Worse yet he asked the Pastor how he could allow such a thing in Church!

The Church through the ages has encouraged differing styles of worship and prayer provided it IS NOT CONTRARY TO THE FAITH. In case you’re wondering how I responded to this person’s objection, I simply told him “THE UMBRELLA OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IS BIG ENOUGH FOR ALL TO FIT UNDER!”

Fr. Kevin’s letter appears each week in print and online in the St. Boniface Martyr Parish Bulletin.

Fr. Kevin Dillon is the Pastor of St. Boniface Martyr Parish, Sea Cliff, Long Island, NY.

People have many images for God, although no one particular image can fully describe or capture who God is. In his book, The Shack, William Young presents several unorthodox and non-traditional images about God. In this fictional novel the first and third persons of the Holy Trinity are certainly not portrayed in conventional ways.

When people think about God the Father the vast majority of individuals conjure up an image of an old man with the long grey beard, and the Holy Spirit is often portrayed in art depictions as a dove. Jesus, on the other hand, was a human being who entered into this world so images and pictures of him are more familiar and perhaps a bit more true to life, (long hair, beard, white tunic, olive/tan colored skin).

This I suppose is a little more historically accurate since Middle Eastern men do have beards, or at least some facial hair and their skin is dark. Young’s novel, however, depicts God the Father as a robust, smiling and heavy set black woman, while the Holy Spirit is portrayed as a young Asian woman with her hair blowing in the breeze. I am sure you will agree that these images are not the ordinary and run of the mill depictions were see in art work.  Jesus, on the other hand seems to fit the typical male Middle Eastern appearance.

The desire to know God is at the heart of every human being’s deepest wants and needs. We will never fully know God in this life because God is an infinite being and we are finite beings. This weekend we celebrate one of the central mysteries of Christianity, the Solemnity of the Holy Trinity. We express it in our creed, where we acknowledge ONE GOD, BUT THREE DISTINCT PERSONS. We refer to it as a Mystery because we can neither explain, nor fathom how this can be, but we ascent to it in FAITH.

Faith in the 21st century is a challenge with so much information at out finger tips. We can find out many things instantaneously and quickly. Just look at our Presidential primary races, by 8:00 or 9:00 PM on any give state’s primary day, television anchors are able to announce the projected winner. Rarely do we have to wait until morning to find out who the winner is and as a society, we are consumed by social media, instant snap chat, twitter, face book, skype etc. It seems that we are always searching for information, friendship, confirmation, “likes,” etc. Many people do not even answer their phones, especially younger people.

Large numbers of people today send simply TEXTS, especially those under 40. It seems things are more visible than audio. We are attached to our phones. Does GOD TEXT? How does God send messages? 2000 years ago, God sent His only Son into the world to show us what God is like and how much God loves us. Jesus sent us the Holy Spirit who is also sending us messages, some more subtle than others, but if we are attuned to God’s presence we will INDEED RECEIVE THESE COMMUNICATIONS FROM GOD! I propose that God does TEXT!

Let’s look around and see his text to us. How do we feel God’s presence and closeness, if we do not hear His voice? Two weeks ago we spent an entire week in gray, cold and rainy weather. Then on Saturday evening the sun came out and the sky was brilliant azure blue; people were refreshed and uplifted by this-God’s text of His warmth!

Iceland, Sweden and Finland beyond the Arctic Circle, the beauty of snow, ice and arctic Northern lights among the intense cold and darkness, yet one can still experience God’s beauty. A cool breeze, on an extremely warm day is a text that God is present. A kind and unexpected surprise from a friend, relative or neighbor could be a text of God’s mercy. The sacraments are a text of God’s grace and forgiveness.

The birth of a child is a text of God’s unconditional love and happy or joyful times are texts for the sign of eternal life. Last weekend we celebrated Pentecost, the Birthday of the Church. Perhaps the descent of the Holy Spirit was the first smart phone from God; faith is the wireless connection and maybe the celebration of this feast, the presence of the Holy Spirit alive and active in our world is God’s smart phone for us to feel the Holy Spirit through His texts.

Fr. Kevin’s letter appears each week in print and online in the St. Boniface Martyr Parish Bulletin.

Fr. Kevin Dillon is the Pastor of St. Boniface Martyr Parish, Sea Cliff, Long Island, NY.

Twice a year, the Diocese offers conferences and workshops for the priests who minister here in Rockville Centre.  While the Bishop does not make these days of professional development and renewal mandatory, it is his fervent hope that the priests avail themselves of such grace filled opportunities, and so, last Wednesday, I travel led to Huntington for an afternoon and evening of reflection of the MERCY OF GOD.  It was appropriate that the Diocese offer this to its priests since we are celebrating the Year of Mercy as proclaimed by our Holy Father Pope Francis.  Perhaps there are some that may say, “That’s all I have heard from Priests, Deacons, Bishops and even the Holy Father this year!”   Well, maybe that is because we need to keep hearing it so we can not only practice the virtue of mercy but also be very aware of how God is indeed, merciful to us!

The theme of the day was titled The Priest Recipient of God’s Mercy and Minister of God’s Mercy.  Notice, I purposely highlighted the word recipient and that it is mentioned first in the statement with the word minister being mentioned second.  There is a reason why recipient is not only highlighted, but in italics as well.  The speaker for the day was Bishop Gregory Mansour, Bishop of the St. Maron Eparchy of Brooklyn and he made great effort to explain why recipient was mentioned first in the topic of the conference.  Simply put, he said, “in order to be good ministers of mercy, we first must come to know that we have been the recipients of God’s mercy.”  That is certainly very true, and it does not just apply to the ordained clergy, but to all people.

All of you who live in this area are familiar with the intersection of Sea Cliff Avenue and Glen Cove Avenue by North Shore Farms.  It is a rather oddly positioned intersection, as one simply cannot drive straight across it; the driver must veer slightly to the right In order to pass straight over Glen Cove Avenue and so, the day after the conference, I was driving west along Sea Cliff Avenue and came to the traffic light by North Shore Farms; it was red and obviously I stopped.  Since I was travelling west, I pulled up in the right hand lane, and next to me an 18 wheeler truck pulled up to turn left; he even had his left signal direction blinking!  When the light turned green; he began to maneuver the truck to the right, and all of a sudden the rear end of the truck was millimeters from my Toyota Rav 4. When I say the rear part of his truck was literally alongside my rolled down window, I AM NOT KIDDING!  I honked my horn violently and thought he cannot see or hear me; I think I am in his blind spot.  Fortunately I was able to back up slightly and make clearance for him.  Then to my surprise he actually turned left, not right!

I must say I was rather angry, but then I became afraid, as after he turned right he pulled his truck over, and came rushing toward my car.  (The traffic light turned red again, before I could get out of there, but it was DIVINE PROVINCE that I wait for another green light).  The man was running towards me and I thought he is going to provoke an argument, but nothing of that sort ensued!  He asked me if I was the car honking at him, and I said, “YES.”  He wanted to know was I okay, and then explained about an oncoming truck moving straight toward him and how he was forced to veer slightly to the right.  Then he even thanked me for using my horn because he had no idea I was alongside of him.  I thanked him for his concern and told him that I was okay and he did not touch my car or me.

Upon my arrival back to the rectory I thought someone was watching over the both of us today.  That someone was the mercy of God.  That man could have screamed and yelled at me for being in his blind spot (and I realize I was, but that was because the traffic light changed to green; he had his right directional blinking and the car in front of me began moving, so I began moving), but the driver of the truck did not know that.  Truck drivers have great challenges driving here on Long Island and my uncle is a retired “big rig” truck driver, and so I know firsthand of the difficulties of handling them here in congested and narrow streets.  Believe it or not I was incredibly calm as well; I simply apologized and said I understood.

I thought about the Bishop’s talk the day before, and how God was there with that truck driver and me, and by God’s grace we were both okay; our vehicles were not damaged and most of all we both managed to understand the other’s point of view and position. In order to be merciful we first must realize we have been the beneficiaries of perfect mercy, DIVINE MERCY.

Fr. Kevin’s letter appears each week in print and online in the St. Boniface Martyr Parish Bulletin.

Fr. Kevin Dillon is the Pastor of St. Boniface Martyr Parish, Sea Cliff, Long Island, NY.

Their names are Ralph, and Yuri.  They are brothers and they treat all their customers as FAMILY!  They own a barber shop and jewelry store on Willis Avenue in Albertson.  They are hardworking, friendly and devout Jews.  They are my barbers and my friends as well.  One day when I walked in to have my hair cut Yuri was standing behind the counter wearing what appeared to be a prayer shawl and Yakama.  He was saying his morning prayers in Hebrew.  After he saw me walk in, he became a bit flustered and I dare say somewhat startled because I had arrived a few minutes before the store’s official opening time.  I affirmed him by telling him how impressed I was by his deep reverence and devotion to the prayers and customs of Judaism.  On more than one occasion, they have invited me to break bread with them and have lunch at their store.  Lunch is always delicious and the food they share with me is homemade, and kosher.  Eating kosher food is a tradition that is embraced by Conservative and Orthodox Jews.

We as Catholics have customs, devotions and practices as well.  We call it Tradition and unlike other religions, Catholicism is comprised of traditions with a capital (upper case) ”T” and lower case “t”. The fact that only men can be ordained priests is Tradition with an upper case “T”.  Tradition with an upper case to is the words and teachings of Jesus and the Apostles.  Remember, it was many years before Scripture was actually written down, so during the years immediately after the Resurrection, the Apostles communicated the message of Jesus’ resurrection and other articles of faith through what is known as Oral Tradition.  In other words, the tenets of the faith were communicated verbally.   The use of Latin, blessing ourselves with holy water and praying novenas such as the Miraculous Medal Novena that is prayed here on Saturday mornings is tradition with a lower case “t”.   Tradition with a lower case “t” is NOT official Church teaching or dogma.  Pious practices such as novenas, blessings, and the use of Latin are simply devout practices and customs which have evolved through the ages.  One is free to embrace or reject such pious practices.

Many of our devotions, however, are very beautiful and are an asset to deepening one’s spirituality.  In fact, being Catholic is sort of like being in a spiritual candy store or dessert shop.  We know that when we are in a candy store or ordering dessert or some other sweet indulgence we need to eat these treats in moderation or else they become bad for our health and weight, but the great treasury of devotions that the Church offers us, her, members can be feely indulged in as much as we want, and the benefits are beyond this world.  Devotions foster a deeper and richer relationship with God.

Part of our Catholic Tradition has been the use of Latin in the Church’s liturgies and songs.  While I am NOT in favor of celebrating mass in Latin, it is a part of our Tradition.  Personally, I prefer Mass in the vernacular, but some Catholics seem to be nourished more by praying the Mass in Latin, and that’s okay.  I am somewhat puzzled, however, by some Catholics who absolutely and positively want NO Latin what so ever.  Some of our beautiful hymns such as Tantum Ergo, Salve Regina, and

O Sanctissima to name a few are sung beautifully in Latin.  St. Thomas Aquinas has a beautiful saying for ancient practices, Beauty, Ever Ancient Ever New!  Believe it or not Latin is still the Official Language of the Church.  It is a part of our Catholic culture; it is a part of our heritage, and it is a part of our tradition (tradition with a small “t”).

Hebrew is used in many Synagogues and Temples and Arabic is used in Islamic Mosques because it is a part of their rituals and tradition.  We use Latin for the same reason.

While I am NOT in any way advocating for Mass to be celebrated here at St. Boniface in Latin, I do think that once in a while some hymns and chants could be sung in Latin, much like we did Holy Thursday with Mozart’s Ave Verum and St. Thomas Aquinas’ Pange Lingua.  From what most parishioners told me, the celebrations of Holy Week were beautiful, prayerful, reverent and inspiring.  Most of us have customs and traditions in our families; some have beautiful china and dinnerware which are only brought out on very special occasions.  I do not think if people had an heirloom that was handed down from one generation to the next; it would be discarded or thrown away!  The same is true for the devotions and practices of the Catholic Church including chanting or singing a song or mass part (Agnus Dei) for example in Latin.

Fr. Kevin’s letter appears each week in print and online in the St. Boniface Martyr Parish Bulletin.

Fr. Kevin Dillon is the Pastor of St. Boniface Martyr Parish, Sea Cliff, Long Island, NY.

Welcome to Nonna’s kitchen where good food, good stories and an Italian Catholic grandmother’s straight from the heart advice are available free of charge to all who wander in, especially her grandson, Vinny.  It was in Nonna’s kitchen that Vincent was fed physically, emotionally and spiritually.  His Nonna was NOT COLLEGE EDUCATED, did not possess fancy diplomas or certificates, but gave sound and practical advice to Vinny about God, the Church and life in general.  Coffee with Nonna: Stories of my Catholic Grandmother by Vincent Iezzi is a heartwarming collection of short stories about a young boy and his special relationship with his grandmother.  Each short story teaches an important life lesson. Vinny’s Nonna could be characterized as a shepherd figure, as it was she who guided and nurtured him as a young boy during World War II.

This Fourth Sunday of Easter the Church celebrates GOOD SHEPHERD SUNDAY.  In our Gospel reading this weekend, Jesus refers to himself as the GOOD SHEPHERD.  Jesus uses the image of a shepherd to show how he guides, and protects us the sheep.  Of course this is all figurative but it is an important reminder to us of Jesus’ deep care and concern for us, his flock.  Promoting vocations to the priesthood is a task that must be done year round; but this Sunday is an especially good time to promote vocations.

I hope all of us can recall at least one person who has been a shepherd to us, perhaps a parent, grandparent or other family member.  Maybe it was a good friend, mentor or coach that served us in this capacity.  Conversely, perhaps we have served as a shepherd to guide, instruct, nourish and protect others.

The Church has provided shepherds in the form of ordained clergy to guide and instruct her members.  Priests, in a special and unique way, serve as shepherds to God’s holy people, especially in the celebration of the sacraments, but they also teach, guide and instruct the faithful in matters of faith and morals.  It is no small accident that priests are also referred to as Pastors, whether it is in the formal role as Pastor of a Parish, or simply as Associate Pastor, chaplain or teacher.

The Catholic Church can always use more priests, but they do not come out of the sky!  Young men need to be encouraged to consider this as a life choice.  Many young men simply need an invitation or words of encouragement to consider this calling.  As for me, I wanted to be a priest from a very young age, but it took me a while to discern and be absolutely certain this calling was from God, and was for me.  It’s a life where no two days are the same!  It’s a life where a man who is a priest can walk in to a family or person’s circumstances as a mere stranger, but walk out as family!  It’s a life of adventure and fun, but also courage and challenge; it’s a life unlike any other!  A priest steps into another’s life in persona Christi (in the person of Christ).  NO OTHER PROFESSION ON EARTH CAN SAY THIS.

A priest, by virtue of his ordination, has the power to call down the Holy Spirit on mere bread and wine and transform these simple elements of the earth into the Body and Blood of Christ.  A priest has the power to forgive sins, and help people achieve entrance into heaven.  When an individual is dying it is the priest who prepares the soul to depart this world AND MEET GOD FACE TO FACE!

Pray that young men might consider so worthy and noble a calling which is a sublime gift from God.  Encourage those you might think have the attributes to be priests.  A candidate simply needs average intelligence, psychological stability and of course, a love for Jesus Christ and His Church.  If any young man has questions or wants to know more about this marvelous vocation, please feel free to call or email me.  I would be only too happy to talk to you about this!  May Christ the Good Shepherd and High Priest send many laborers into His vineyard, for the laborers are few and the harvest is plentiful!

Fr. Kevin’s letter appears each week in print and online in the St. Boniface Martyr Parish Bulletin.

Fr. Kevin Dillon is the Pastor of St. Boniface Martyr Parish, Sea Cliff, Long Island, NY.

She was born Rita Rizzo in Canton Ohio, and entered Religious life in the 1940’s; after entering the convent; she founded a Religious Order called the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration, a monastic order located in Birmingham AL, and became known to the world as Mother Mary Angelica of the Annunciation.  Mother Angelica founded the television station EWTN and was a pioneer in bringing the Gospel through the medium of television and radio.  She was a staunch believer in Catholic values and morals and even debated with a number of US Bishops, including Rodger Cardinal Mahoney of Los Angeles, CA.  Mother Angelica died Easter Sunday at her monastery in Hanceville, AL.

She was born Muriel Rose Connolly in Brooklyn, NY in 1920 to the parents of John and Margaret Connolly.  In 1938 she entered the Sisters of St. Joseph Noviate in Brentwood, Long Island.   From then on Muriel Connolly was known as Sister Margaret Andre, CSJ.  Her first assignment was St. Mary’s Nativity in Flushing where she taught 8^th grade English; she was also principal of many Catholic Elementary Schools including St. Malachy’s in East New York and St. Agnes Seminary in Flatbush Brooklyn, where she also was the Superior in the convent.  To my family, she was known as Aunt Muriel, but to everyone else she was Sister Margaret Andre.  Aunt Muriel was my mother’s blood sister.

Both these women were addressed as SISTER, but were both NUNS?  Mother Angelica lived in a monastery that was cloistered, meaning she and the other nuns did NOT GO OUT INTO THE WORLD.  Once entering a monastic cloistered Order a woman stayed there for the remainder of her earthly life. Only in rare or extreme circumstances like sickness, does a woman who is a NUN leave the cloister, and conversely, visitors do not come into the cloister.  Visitors like family members speak to their loved one behind a grill.  Priests and doctors,  may with permission,  go into the monastery to tend to a sick or dying NUN.  My aunt, Sister Margaret Andre, however, left the convent daily and went into the classroom of the parish school.

So is there a difference between a Sister and a Nun?

As a rule, all women in Religious Life, also known as the Consecrated Life make vows of poverty, chastity and obedience and live a life in common. (Code of Canon Law, 607.2)  Their houses,  either convents or monasteries,  must be established with the approval of the Diocesan Bishop (these congregations are called Diocesan Congregations like the Sisters of St. Joseph of Brentwood or Sisters of St. Dominic, Amityville) or by the Pope himself (these congregations are called Pontifical such as the Ursuline Sisters of Tildonk, Belgium.)   While all women religious share this in common, their similarities end there.  Many Sisters are teachers, health care professionals and social workers; still others works in parishes as Coordinators of Liturgy and Music, or in prisons as chaplains but no matter what they are doing they are all involved in active ministry in the world.

Very different is the life of women religious who embrace a life of contemplation!   Certain Religious Orders were founded so that their members spend their entire lives removed from the world engaged in prayer for the needs of the Church, and indeed, the whole world!  These women make permanent vows voluntarily agreeing to spend the rest of their lives shut in behind a cloister.  They freely agree to NEVER SET FOOT OUTSIDE THE CLOISTERED ENCLOSURE.  Their entire life is a life of prayer; these types of women religious are called contemplatives. Only in serious illness to perhaps visit a hospital would these type of women religious leave the cloister. Families may visit these sisters, but they would NOT SEE THEM, they would speak to them from behind a grill or screen.

Mother Mary Angelica of the Annunciation had some famous one liners that endeared her to many Catholics.  Last week on EWTN, Raymond Arroyo the host and anchor for The World Over a television show on EWTN recounted a heartwarming and somewhat humorous incident with Mother Angelica. Raymond was leaving the chapel one day after spending some time praying and Mother Angelica asked him, “What are you doing in here at this time of day?”  Apparently it was late in the day and I suppose she felt he should be home with his family.  He told her, “praying.”  Mother responded “leave the life of contemplation and prayer for me…YOU GO OUT AND MAKE THE LORD KNOWN TO YOUR FAMILY AND THE WORLD.”   Mother Angelica and her Religious Order Perpetual Adorers of the Holy Eucharist were a contemplative order, and MOTHER ANGELICA WAS A NUN.

My aunt, Muriel, (Sr. Margaret Andre) taught countless numbers of young people and had many young women enter the convent.  In her later years, she ran prayer groups in the parishes in which she lived, and interacted and impacted the lives of many Catholics in Brooklyn and Rockville Centre.  Sister Margaret Andre was a SISTER.

While both were called Sister, each had a different calling and ministry in the Church, but BOTH WERE BRIDES OF CHRIST WHO SOUGHT TO LEAD SOULS TO THE HEART OF JESUS CHRIST.

Fr. Kevin’s letter appears each week in print and online in the St. Boniface Martyr Parish Bulletin.

Fr. Kevin Dillon is the Pastor of St. Boniface Martyr Parish, Sea Cliff, Long Island, NY.

Billboards are a common phenomenon along the Interstates and Freeways of America; in fact, some local streets also place billboards along the side of the road in an effort to advertise a product or raise awareness about a prominent social, political or economic issue. In a certain sense, this too, is a form of advertising. Right here in our own parish boundaries, there is a billboard. It is located on Sea Cliff Avenue right next to the Sea Cliff Long Island Railroad Station. It features a tiger saying, “I don’t need to be a rug on your living room floor.” I think most people can figure out what the tiger is implying!

On a much lighter and more optimistic note, a billboard located in the Pacific Northwest area of the United States simply reads “SMILE.” Smiling is contagious and it leads to happiness, not just in us, but it can be good and healthy for others as well. This type of messaging, however, is not limited to just one billboard.

The Joy Team is a not for profit organization, based in Vancouver, Washington whose sole purpose is to put positivity out into the world. According to founder, Michele McKeag, the Joy Team’s mission is build community, by spreading, joy, optimism and inspiration. Among some of the billboards’ sayings are HAPPINESS IS CONTAGIOUS; SMILE, START AN EPIDEMIC; ENJOY THE MOMENT; and BE EXCELLENT TO EACH ANOTHER!

This Fourth Sunday in Lent we as Catholics have good reason to SMILE! Traditionally, this day is called LAETARE SUNDAY, which comes from the Latin. The English translation is simply REJOICE! Our Responsorial Psalm for today has overtones of joy and optimism in it. In fact, the Psalmist exhorts us in his own words, “Look to Him [God] that you may be radiant with joy,” and the Entrance Antiphon (which is used at masses without singing) also reminds us to Rejoice; “Rejoice O Jerusalem; your sorrow has ended.” Laetare Sunday marks the midpoint of our Lenten journey. Today, the Church relaxes some of the somber and penitential underpinnings of Lent. We take a break from the heavy and dark color of purple, to a more festive rose (pink) color, a joyful and happy reminder that the glory of Easter is not far away.

Our Holy Father, Pope Francis has some poignant and thought provoking one line statements. One of my favorite ones is “THERE ARE MANY CHRISTIANS WHOSE LIVES ARE LIKE LENT WITHOUT EASTER! For us as Christians, every day should be a joyful and positive experience, despite worries, anxieties, fears and preoccupations that we all live with because we are the recipients of God’s overwhelming love, grace and mercy. Even the horrors and blood of the cross, give us great peace, and dare I say something to rejoice and be happy about. The cross helps us make sense of our own sufferings, pain and failures. We unite all our hardships and pain with those of Jesus Christ’s act of suffering on the cross. We live with the knowledge and certitude that the cross ultimately leads to newer, fuller, and richer life; ETERNAL LIFE with JESUS CHRIST. Now that’s something to smile about!

Fr. Kevin Dillon is the Pastor of St. Boniface Martyr Parish, Sea Cliff, Long Island, NY.

Sharpened number two pencils with a pencil case of course, two ball point pens in blue or black ink only, a penmanship writing book, polished black dress shoes, and a crisply pressed uniform with the letters SAS emblazoned on the plaid tie that complimented the uniform pants and shirt, these are just a few of the memories I cherish having had the privilege of attending St. Aidan’s Elementary School in Williston Park. The eight years I attended St. Aidan’s School were a happy and enjoyable time for me. I started first grade in September 1967, and my teacher’s name was Sr. Ann Elizabeth, S.C. St. Aidan’s was unique in many ways; it is one of the FEW, if NOT the ONLY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL in our Diocese with two buildings. From its opening in 1950 until 1966 girls and boys were separated and so the building on the east side of Willis Avenue was known as “The Boys’ School,” staffed by the Franciscan Brothers of Brooklyn and the west campus was the “Girls’ School,” staffed by the Sisters of Charity from Halifax, Nova Scotia. Upon my arrival the school was already coed and so the west campus became the Lower School for grades one through four and the east campus was known as the Upper School which housed students in grades five through eight. The Lower School Principal was always a Sister of Charity and the Upper School Principal was always a Franciscan Brother. Since Vatican II had already taken place, the school also had a number of laymen and women upon my arrival, but there were still a decent number of Religious Sisters and Brothers on the faculty during my tenure there and I was lucky to have several, including my eighth grade teacher, Sr. Maureen Murphy, a dynamic Math and Religion teacher, who had a beautiful gift for singing! My sisters were a part of the Girls Glee Club that Sister moderated.

Unlike other Catholic elementary schools, St. Aidan had a full service cafeteria with hot and cold foods four days a week. Thursday’s were release time, so we went home at 12:15, and Public School Children used the buildings for C.C.D. We also had a fully functioning Science Lab with Bunsen Burners. Classes were rigorous and the teachers were demanding, but this helped the students achieve entrance into some of the finest Catholic High Schools, including Chaminade, Sacred Heart Academy, St. Pius X, Prep Seminary, St. Francis Prep and Maria Regina to name a few.

It was TRULY DIFFERENT in terms of the Catholic values and morals as well as some Catholic practices that were taught. We had First Friday Masses with Exposition of The Blessed Sacrament; classes all started with prayers, some teachers, including one very religious lay teacher even taught us the Angelus and Memorare. Several dozen young men and women entered Religious Life or were ordained priests because of the firm spiritual foundation provided by St. Aidan. Hundreds of other Catholic schools in our nation have done the same. With the decline of Priests, Sisters and Brothers, most Catholic schools are staffed by dedicated lay men and women who still seek to teach Gospel centered values to young people.

We here at St. Boniface no longer have a parish school, but we are fortunate to be part of a Regional School, ALL SAINTS in Glen Cove. Unlike other Catholic Elementary schools in our Diocese, we are indeed, fortunate to have Religious Priests (Augustinian Canons) and Diocesan Priests who teach in All Saints, as well as dedicated lay women and men. Spiritual values and academic rigor are the philosophy and underpinning of the school. Students attend Mass and Confession once a month at All Saints and participate in a number of other faith centered activities, including daily meditations. Please support through prayer and finances the mission of our Regional Catholic School. Catholic schools have served countless generations of young people; may they continue to prosper and flourish in so many ways, including BEING DIFFERENT, WHERE IT COUNTS!