CDA Weekly Update

02-26-2021Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

I thank everyone who has participated in the Charity and Development Appeal (CDA) this year. The latest weekly update as of Wednesday last week, February 24, shows that 88 families have participated from our parish community so far with a total pledge of $33,419. This represents 39% of our total goal of $85,000. Our overall goal, beyond the financial goal, is to have up to 300 families participating in the Appeal this year. I encourage those who have not participated yet to consider sending their pledge or payment this week.

READ MORE

CDA Update

02-19-2021Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

During the week, I received an update for our parish participation in the Charity and Development Appeal (CDA). I was delighted to see that 73 families have already participated in the CDA from our parish community with a total pledge of $27,965. This represents 24% of our total goal of $85,000. I thank those who have already participated. I encourage those who have not participated yet to consider sending their pledge or payment this week.

READ MORE

Lenten Season

02-12-2021Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

Have you made plans for the Lenten season this year yet? Remember, Lent begins on Ash Wednesday. The most common way many people make plans for the season of Lent is by making Lenten promises. The tradition of making Lenten promises is a very good strategy that helps us to develop new ways to maintain personal disciplines and spiritual renewal. I encourage you to consider including the three pillars of Lent: prayer, fasting and almsgiving in your Lenten promises this year. When we include these three pillars of Lent in our Lenten promises, we will see that Lent will mean for us a period of “Giving up, taking up, and lifting up.” In fasting, we give up attachment to bodily needs like food and material things. By setting aside quality times for personal prayers, we take up new habits to strengthen our relationship with God. When we give alms, we are lifting up our brothers and sisters who are in need of our love, prayers and support. May God give us His grace and strengthen us to be able to carry out our Lenten promises faithfully to the end.

READ MORE

Lenten Bible Study

02-05-2021Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

The season of Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, February 17, 2021. A season of intense interior spiritual preparation for the solemn celebration of Easter (Suffering, Death and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ). DO YOU EVER WISH YOU COULD “GET MORE” OUT OF MASS? Every liturgical action is by its very nature steeped in sacred Scripture….all that we do in Mass receives inspiration and substance from Scripture. We have organized a six-week bible study with the theme: A BIBLICAL WALK THROUGH THE MASS to avail all parishioners of St. Benedict the opportunity to reap fruits of the Holy Mass.

READ MORE

Mental Health Resources

01-29-2021Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

It’s hard to believe that at this time last year, the news about Coronavirus did not get a lot of attention by many people around the world. The unbelievable rate at which the virus spread across the globe is a reminder of how much we are all connected as one human family and how much we depend on each other to survive. I thank God that we have not had an outbreak of the Coronavirus in our parish community through the year. However, I am aware that a number of our parish families have been affected directly by the virus in different ways. If you or anyone in your family tested positive for the virus, or if you lost a loved one to the virus, please know that you are in my prayers for healing. The mental stress and other indirect impact of the pandemic are equally devastating.

READ MORE

Time to Vote for the “Best of Ahwatukee”

01-15-2021Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

The annual vote for best places in Ahwatukee is here again. This year, our St. John Bosco Preschool and St. Benedict Parish are on the list. Please help our St. John Bosco School win “Best of Ahwatukee Preschool 2020” by casting your vote in the Ahwatukee Foothills News. You can also vote for your favorite preschool teacher and your “Best Place of Worship.” Here are the instructions:

NO registration is needed.

READ MORE

End of Christmas Season

01-08-2021Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you had a peaceful Christmas and New Year celebration. The Christmas Season ended this past weekend with the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord. We can now put away all of our Christmas decorations. We will begin the 1st Week in Ordinary Time, Year “B”, on January 11th. Ordinary Time lasts from this week until Ash Wednesday on February 17th. I thank everyone for their participation in the Christmastide this year. My special thanks to the Art and Environment Ministers and the Liturgy Ministry Leaders for their effective planning for the Christmas and New Year Liturgies. I also thank those who sent donations for the poinsettias and other gifts to the parish and staff during this time.

READ MORE

At the Threshold of Christmas

12-18-2020Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

Welcome to the final weekend of preparation for Christmas. If you are familiar with liturgical settings and official prayers of the Church, you will notice that prayer book settings are specifically different from December 17-23. This is because December 17 marks the beginning of the tradition of the “O Antiphons.” These are 7 antiphons that accompany the Magnificat canticle of Evening Prayer from December 17th-23rd, recalling the seven Messianic titles, based on the Old Testament prophecies about Christ. This tradition dates back to around the fourth century AD. You may incorporate the antiphons into your evening prayers up to December 23rd. Find out more here.

READ MORE

Annual Finance and Pastoral Reports

12-11-2020Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

This weekend, I will be presenting the parish Annual Finance and Pastoral Reports for the fiscal year 2019-20. This will include reports on finance, pastoral ministries, sacraments and parish charitable outreach from July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2020. We will include a finance report and other information from St. John Bosco school community for the first time this year. Please note! Our fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30. The Annual Report will be presented by the Presidents of the parish Pastoral and Finance Councils at the end of all Masses this weekend. A digital copy of the report will be posted on the parish website. A few copies will be printed and available at the Church vestibule for those who prefer hard copies.

READ MORE

Keeping Our Hopes High

12-04-2020Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

The Scripture readings during Mass this weekend are timely; they invite us to raise our heads above the tide and keep our hopes high as we await the coming of the Lord. With the news of the increasing rate of new cases of Coronavirus also comes the increasing hope that vaccines will be available soon. I understand there are mixed feelings about the vaccines. While some are hopeful that it will help, others are concerned about the ethical standard of the vaccines. I urge everyone to resist the temptation of spreading any unfounded rumors concerning the vaccines until we have clear evidence about their nature. For now, we have every reason to hope that the vaccines will help control the spread of the virus.

READ MORE

New Liturgical Year!

11-20-2020Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

Welcome to the new Liturgical year (cycle B) and also the beginning of the Advent season! The season of Advent is a four week period of preparation and hopeful anticipation for the birth of Jesus Christ on Christmas day. The Church urges us to take the beginning of the liturgical year as seriously as we take the new calendar year. Just as we do for the calendar year, we are encouraged to consider making new year resolutions at the beginning of Advent that help us stay awake to the coming of Christ. As a St. Benedict Catholic community, we are doing something new throughout the entire liturgical year by offering an additional day for Confessions every Friday between 5:00-6:00 pm. This is in addition to our usual Confessions between 3:30-4:30 pm on Saturdays.

READ MORE

Looking Ahead to Advent and Christmas

11-13-2020Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

Update. It’s hard to believe that we are already at the threshold of the holiday season. During the week, I had several meetings with the Staff, Liturgy Committee and the Diocese to review plans for the holiday season. We reviewed concerns from some parishioners as to whether or not we will need to scale down our Mass attendance as a result of the increasing rate of new coronavirus cases. I would like to let you know that our parish, in conjunction with the Diocese, is cautiously optimistic that we may not need to scale down during Thanksgiving and Christmas. We are paying attention to the news, and the guidelines from the Arizona Health Department. In spite of the rising number of new cases, we have seen that parishes like ours that have followed the precautionary safety measures, especially wearing facemasks and physical distancing, are doing well so far.

READ MORE

Post-Election Stress

11-06-2020Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

If you are feeling on edge right now with the post-election stress, please know that it is normal. Many others are feeling that way too. We are now overwhelmed with the accumulation of stressors from the global pandemic, increasing division and hostility leading to the election and post-election, the racial division within our cities, the unsteady economy and widespread wildfires. It is obvious that many people are experiencing having sleepless nights, especially as they anticipate the results of the election.

READ MORE

Praying for the Dead

11-02-2020Weekly Flocknote MessageFr. James Aboyi, V.C.

Welcome to the month of November. In the Church tradition, the month of November is a period dedicated to prayers for the dead. On All Saints Day, November 1, we honor our holy heroes in the faith who have successfully made it to heaven by living a life devoted to God. On November 2nd, we celebrate the memorial of All Souls when we pray for all the dead who are undergoing the period of purification in purgatory before they can be admitted into heaven.

READ MORE