APRIL 2022
community of St. John & St. James I
Home-Cooked Meals for the Homeless: An Act of Service and Love
t all started with a kitchen renovation at St. James. The former pastor, Fr. Archie Fernandez, asked some of the ladies of the parish to put this beautiful kitchen to good use. So they reached out to Lighthouse Outreach Center and started providing a meal once a month to the people who are staying at the center. This group of ladies spearheaded the service within the parish for two years before Nita Swan took over. Nita then asked her friend and fellow parishioner, Eva (From left) Nita Swan and Eva Boatwright, to assist her in this Boatwright appreciate the opportunity to provide a ministry. home-cooked meal for those in need. Lighthouse Outreach Center is a local Christian-based resource center for those in need. It provides shelter, assistance finding a job, and help with life skills. On the first Monday of each month, they prepare a meal for the 60-70 people staying at the shelter. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Nita and Eva cooked these delicious homemade meals in the kitchen at St. James — but at the onset of the pandemic, they started cooking it in Eva’s home. For Nita and Eva, this is truly a labor of love. “Whenever you feed someone, you are feeding Jesus,” Eva says. “Giving is the way that Jesus wants you to live your life. And for us, sharing these meals is really showing love in a special way.” Many different organizations will provide monthly meals for Lighthouse Outreach Center. Many of them will order pizza or other meals, which is a huge help for the center. Nita and Eva focus on the love and effort that is put into providing a home-cooked meal. continued on back cover
Steadfast in Faith and Devotion: St. Catherine of Siena
On April 29, we celebrate the feast day of a doctor of the Church — one who remained absolutely devoted to living her life for Christ, even in the face of familial misunderstanding in her youth, and through societal opposition and turmoil during her later years. As stewards in our fast-paced, highly technical — and often fractured — world, we can always look to the life and example of St. Catherine of Siena, and strive to remain steadfast in our faith while facing our own modern-day challenges.
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orn in mid-14th-century Italy to a large family, and in the midst of a plague outbreak, St. Catherine of Siena was her parents’ 25th child, although half of her siblings did not survive through childhood. Young Catherine resisted her family’s desire for her to marry — she even went so far as to begin fasting and cutting her hair short in protest. Her parents eventually relented, as Catherine strived to humbly serve her own family, treating her own father as Jesus, her mother as Mary, and her brothers as the apostles. Such was Catherine’s desire to remain in service to her own family that instead of entering a convent, she joined the Third Order of St. Dominic at age 18. This enabled her to continue serving her family at home, even as she was part of a religious society. In time, she learned to read and began giving her family’s own possessions to those in need — even though her parents didn’t necessarily approve of her entirely altruistic approach to service. Continuing with her faithful devotion as part of the Third Order of St. Dominic, Catherine developed a following of her own, as she wrote letters offering spiritual encouragement and instruction. Controversy would ensue, as her writings began to comment on public matters through her firm lens of faith. In the midst of these spiritual developments, at age 21, Catherine underwent a profound change, as she experienced what she called her “mystical marriage to Christ.” Through this experience, she was directed to help the poor and the sick. Catherine began serving those in need in hospitals and homes, which inspired followers to assist in these important missions of service, love and mercy. Furthermore, she continued to comment on public matters, petitioning for peace in the midst of political fracture and strife. This
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continued through the Great Schism, beginning in 1378, as Catherine spent two years — the last years of her life — in Rome, praying and pleading for unity in the Church, and for the cause of Pope Urban VI. By January 1380, Catherine was gravely ill, unable to eat or drink — shortly thereafter, she lost the use of her legs. At only 33 years old, she would pass away on April 29, 1380. She was canonized nearly a century later, in 1461. Despite her short life, St. Catherine of Siena made a profound impact on the Church through her spiritually direct writings, her work serving those in need, and in preserving the unity of the Church in the face of great societal upheavals — all while being singularly devoted to living a life for Christ. Her status led her to be declared a co-patron of Italy (alongside St. Francis of Assisi) in 1939. And in 1970, Pope Paul VI declared St. Catherine of Siena a doctor of the Church.
A Letter From Our Pastor
Dear Parishioners,
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All Things and All People Are Made New
his month, our Lenten journey ends and we begin the Easter season. We associate the Easter season with springtime — a time of new life and new beginnings — and Holy Scripture addresses this idea of newness many times. The Lord declares, “Behold, I make all things new” (Rev. 21:5). This idea of being “new” is important to us as Catholics, and it is important to our community. We need to strive to do this on a regular basis — even on a daily basis. As we prepare for the Easter season, we need to retain that idea of being “new.” And being “new” means conversion, and conversion is at the heart of a life of stewardship. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church puts it, “The Paschal mystery has two aspects: by his death, Christ liberates us from sin; by his Resurrection, he opens for us the way to a new life” (654). In other words, Christ’s Resurrection is the source of our new life — our own future resurrection. St. Paul wrote about it to the Romans (Rom 6:5) — “For if we have grown into union with him through a death like his, we shall also be united with him in the resurrection.” Hope for a new life beginning now and extending on into heaven is the result of Jesus’ Resurrection. What greater grounds for thanksgiving can there be than this Easter hope? We should sing with joy about God’s promise to us, “Behold, I make all things new” (Rev 21:5).
St. Paul also wrote (Col 3:1-2), “If then you were raised with Christ, seek what is above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Think of what is above, not of what is on earth.” Jesus’ Resurrection and His promise of a new life for us mean that we need to live in conformity with our status as adopted children of God. How do we show our joy and our gratitude to God for this amazing gift He has given us? We join in worship and praise God by word and song. We share the Good News of Jesus’ victory over death with our family, friends, and neighbors. And we offer back to the Lord a portion of the time, talent, and treasure He has entrusted to us. Yes, the Easter message that we share in the benefits of Christ’s Resurrection indeed makes all things new — the ultimate foundation for all Christian stewardship. In these last moments of our Lenten season, let us strive to prepare our hearts for this glorious Easter message. Sincerely yours in Christ,
Fr. John O’Neill Pastor
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The Divine Mercy Group
Embracing the Message of Mercy to Heal a Broken World
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s Catholics, we are encouraged to reflect upon the message that Jesus shared with St. Faustina about Divine Mercy. It is important because it reveals the merciful heart of Jesus who desires to heal us. Embracing this devotion, the Divine Mercy Group for the Catholic Community of Bartlesville was started a little over 13 years ago. They meet every Wednesday beginning at 10 a.m. in the Marian Chapel at St. John. Members begin by praying the Rosary and Chaplet of Divine Mercy. Following this time of prayer, they gather in Conference Room 2 for the Divine Mercy formation class. Sandy Pickett, the facilitator for the group, is inspired by the message of mercy found in the Diary of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska. “I believe the message of Divine Mercy that Our Lord gave to St. Faustina is so important because we’re living in a broken world that seems to be moving further away from God and is in such great need of God’s mercy,” Sandy says. “Jesus told St. Faustina, ‘I do not want to punish aching mankind; I desire to heal it, pressing it to My Merciful Heart’ (Diary, 1588). Now is the time of God’s mercy.” In addition to prayer, group members read passages from the Diary of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska for the lesson that they are studying. They also read
Parishioners of the Catholic Community of Bartlesville join together to learn about God’s Divine Mercy.
Scripture passages and entries from the Catechism of the Catholic Church and then spend time discussing and sharing about what they have read. Another important aspect of being part of this group is praying for those who are dying. Whenever Fr. John or Fr. Carlos go to anoint someone who is near death, the group is asked to pray a Chaplet of Divine Mercy specifically for the person. An important day for this group is the Feast of Divine Mercy. Divine Mercy Sunday always falls on the Sunday after Easter — this year, it will be on April 24. Leading up to this day, the group will pray the Divine Mercy Novena to prepare for the feast day. Beginning on Good Friday, after the Stations of the Cross at 3 p.m., the
group will meet to begin the novena. Anyone who wishes to join may come and participate. The group will continue meeting daily at the parish at 3 p.m. for the remaining eight days of the novena. Our Lord asked St. Faustina to pray for certain intentions, so each day of the novena will focus on one of those intentions. These include all sinners, souls of priests and religious, all devout and faithful souls, those who do not believe in God, etc. If you are unable to participate in the Novena with the group at 3 p.m. each day, you are welcome to join in spiritually by visiting the Marian Chapel to pray the novena or on your own at home. The prayers for the novena may be found online.
If you are interested in getting involved or would like more information, please contact Sandy Pickett at skpickett@yahoo.com. 4
Highlights of Our 2022 Stewardship Renewal
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arlier this year, our Catholic community conducted the 2022 Stewardship Renewal. The Stewardship Renewal gave each of us the opportunity to discern how we are using our gifts of time, talent, and treasure in service to our Catholic community and in return to God. This month, we are happy to share with you some of the highlights of the 2022 Stewardship Renewal. • • •
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There were 145 commitment cards received from 19 percent of parish households. There were 1,284 prayer commitments, with 139 households making prayer commitments. There were 657 ministry commitments — the stewardship of talent. Of these, 189 were new ministry commitments, while 468 were re-commitments to parish ministries. There were 113 offertory commitments — the stewardship of treasure — and the average pledge was $3,988.
We thank all those who participated in our 2022 Stewardship Renewal. If you did not have the opportunity to fill out and return a commitment card, we invite you to consider the ways you may share your gifts of time, talent, and treasure with God and our Catholic community!
Holy Week Schedule Holy Thursday 7 p.m. at St. James Spanish Service — 7 p.m. at St. John Good Friday Stations of the Cross at 3 p.m., at both St. James and St. John Good Friday Services — 7 p.m. at St. James Spanish Service — 7 p.m. at St. John
Holy Saturday Confessions at 4 p.m. at St. John Easter Vigil Bilingual Service begins at 8:30 p.m. at St. John Easter Sunday Normal schedule
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Responding to the Glory of Christ’s
Dying, He
“He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell. On the third day He rose again from the dead” – APOSTLES’ CREED
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s we prepare to come to the end of our Lenten journey toward Easter, let us take a moment to meditate on three pivotal lines from the ancient creed, which comprise the central events of our redemption. Far from being a mere myth or legend, in Jerusalem around the year 30 A.D., Jesus Christ — the Son of God made man — was tortured at the hands of the Romans. He was flogged, beaten, spit upon, and crowned with thorns. He was made to carry the cross through the crowded streets to Golgotha and, once there, He was crucified — He was nailed to a cross and died. Just as someday we will each be laid in our graves, Jesus was laid in His. The most obvious question that confronts the observer of this horrific reality is “why?” Luckily, Christ made the impetus for His self-sacrifice quite clear: “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life” (Jn 3:14-15). The reasons Christ died on the cross are twofold, one negative and one positive. The negative cause is sin. Only in witnessing the cost of redemption — the death of the Son of God — can we begin to comprehend the profound magnitude of sin: “You have been purchased at a price,” says St. Paul (1 Cor 6:20). Conversely, Christ willingly accepted the cross
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because of love. St. John famously says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life” (Jn 3:16). Uniting these two causes, St. Paul says, “God proves His love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us” (Rom 5:8). In His limitless compassion, Christ entered into the fullness of human suffering — physical torment, emotional agony and utter isolation — so that He might share complete solidarity with mankind. Accordingly, His passion and death not only accomplished our redemption, but by the cross, He also showed us the way to true discipleship. For Christ taught His disciples long before His crucifixion, “if anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Lk 9:23). Christ’s is the final and perfect covenant between God and man, and it is a covenant of love, with Christ Himself as its high priest. Nevertheless, this covenant is not based on love as popular culture conceives of it, but love as Christ displayed it: “The way we came to know love was that He laid down His life for us” (1 John 3:16). Joined with the passion, Christ’s Resurrection is the key to the entire Gospel — for in rising from the dead, Jesus proved true His bold promises. He had prophesied to the apostles, “No one takes
Resurrection at Easter
Destroyed Our Death; Rising, He Restored Our Life it from me, but I lay it down on my own. I have power to lay it down, and power to take it up again” (Jn 10:18). The Resurrection vindicates this promise and validates His teaching and miracles. Furthermore, Christ, “the firstborn from the dead,” opened the door to eternal life and to new creation (Col 1:18). Out of the darkness of despair, the scattered and frightened disciples saw the risen Christ and were renewed and transformed. Filled with faith in the crucified and resurrected Savior, they evangelized the known world. St. Paul summarizes the centrality of the redemptive power of the Easter Triduum with his characteristic zeal: “If Christ has not been raised, then empty (too) is our preaching; empty, too, your faith. Then we are also false witnesses to God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, neither has Christ been raised, and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is vain; you are still in your sins” (1 Cor 15:14-17). This Easter, let us respond to the glory of Christ’s Resurrection by exclaiming, as St. Thomas the Apostle did, “My Lord and my God!” And may each of us be filled with faith in God of our salvation, hope in the rewards He has won for us, and love for Him who has deigned to bestow them on us.
This Easter, let us respond to the glory of Christ’s Resurrection by exclaiming, as St. Thomas the Apostle did, “My Lord and my God!” And may each of us be filled with faith in God of our salvation, hope in the rewards He has won for us, and love for Him who has deigned to bestow them on us. 7
Saint John Before the Latin Gate 715 S. Johnstone Ave. Bartlesville, OK 74003 (918) 336-4353 www.stjohn-bartlesville.org Saint James Catholic Church 5500 Douglas Ln. Bartlesville, OK 74006 (918) 335-0844 www.saintjamescatholicparish.org
Home-Cooked Meals for the Homeless “We enjoy preparing a menu that will give them different types of meals,” Nita says. “We are both Filipino so at least once a year we will do a whole meal with Filipino food. They really seem to enjoy that!” Once the menu is set, the ladies will reach out to parishioners to provide the ingredients for the meal. They have a list of names and numbers of people to contact and they will request specific ingredients from each person. Some parishioners will provide dessert, salads, or bread to accompany the main dishes as well. In addition, donations to buy any additional ingredients for the meals are always
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welcome. Prior to COVID-19, there was a sign-up sheet of ingredients needed and ways that people could volunteer, whether that was cooking, serving, or delivering food. Now it’s done by phone, and people are asked to provide the ingredients. “Before the pandemic, we used to serve the meals, as well,” Eva says. “But now we just drop off the food. It was so wonderful to see the people we were serving.” “We are sharing our gifts and resources with others,” Nita adds. “It is so gratifying to be able to fill the needs of others in the community.”
If you would like to sign up to help provide ingredients or dishes for these monthly meals, please call Nita Swan at 918-766-2661.
MASS & CONFESSION TIMES ST. JOHN: Masses: Saturday: 5 p.m. | Sunday: 8 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m. (en Español) | Tuesday: 7 a.m. | Wednesday: 5:15 p.m. Thursday: 7 a.m., 7 p.m. (en Español) | Friday: 8:15 a.m. (School Mass) Reconciliation: Saturday: 4-4:45 p.m. | Sunday: 12:30-1:15 p.m. ST. JAMES: Masses: Saturday: 5:30 p.m. | Sunday: 9:30 a.m. | Tuesday: 8:30 a.m. | Thursday: 8:30 a.m. | Saturday: 8:30 a.m. Reconciliation: Saturday: 4:30-5:15 p.m.
