Weekly Update from Fr. van Dooren 3.20.26
Dear members and friends of our parish,
We continue our Lenten devotions of the Stations of the Cross and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament tonight at 6:30pm, and how blessed these Fridays of Lent have been! Both devotions are prayed within the frame of an hour, and it is a sacred hour, indeed! Please join us.
Our final Lenten devotion of Stations of the Cross and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament will be held next Friday, March 27 at 6:30pm. We will have a special musical offering of the Pergolesi Stabat Mater sung between each station's devotion featuring Berit Johnson, soprano, Christine Browne-Munz, mezzo-soprano, Early Instrument Chamber Ensemble, and Claudia Dumschat, harpsichord. For a beautiful explanation of the Stabat Mater written by Christina Hutten, click here.
Click here to see our service schedule for Holy Week and Easter.
This upcoming Fifth Sunday in Lent begins what used to be called “Passiontide,” the last two weeks of Lent inclusive of Holy Week. It is the most reflective time of the year, and this Sunday presents us with the famous stories of the Valley of Dry Bones from the Old Testament (Ezekiel 37:1-14) and the story of the Rising of Lazarus in the Gospel (John 11:1-45). Raising Lazarus from the dead was the last miracle Jesus performed before his entrance into Jerusalem and his arrest. The miracle foreshadowed our Lord’s Resurrection and set into motion the events of the Passion Narrative that we commemorate during Holy Week.
In the sermon, I hope to honor these stories and offer a review of the sacred days of Holy Week.
During Lent, our Adult Education Committee is leading a discussion of The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis on Thursday evenings at 7:00-8:00 PM on Zoom. We will conclude our discussions on Thursday, March 26. Please email Grace Kobryn (gkobryn@littlechurch.org) to receive the Zoom link. We recommend the modern translation by Peter Northcutt.
Each Easter, our church is filled with beautiful flowers and with special music. Many members of our parish generously help cover the costs. If you are able and wish to contribute, please use the envelopes in the back of the church or write "Music" or "Flowers" in the memo line of your check. You can also use our e-giving sites here or you can also text 914-685-9200 with any amount and the keywords of “flowers” or “music” to give to either/both funds via Breeze. (i.e. $20 flowers or $20 music). If the gift is in memoriam, please write the name(s) legibly on the envelope, in the comment box online or send the name(s) via email to Grace (gkobryn@littlechurch.org) in the parish office by Palm Sunday, March 29 in order to be included in the Easter bulletins. Please note that the bulletins will be going to our entire email list, so please edit your names as you would prefer to see them displayed.
The Holy Rosary will be prayed in the Family chapel at 9:30am this Sunday. We will pray the Sorrowful mysteries throughout the season of Lent.
We continue to live-stream each Sunday’s mass at 11:00am, and a link is sent out each Sunday morning at 8:00am. We live-stream on Facebook and YouTube. Please email the parish office (parishoffice@littlechurch.org) if you would like to pray the morning and evening offices with us by Zoom.
Thank you for your continued faith, support, and love for the parish.
Fides Opera
With loving wishes,
Fr. van Dooren