MAY 2022
community of St. John & St. James Theology After Hours: Growing in Faith and Engaging in Fellowship
During Theology After Hours, parishioners gather to learn about the faith and grow in fellowship.
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ince it was started in April of 2019, Theology After Hours has held quarterly meetings, offering a new approach to learning about the faith by offering an opportunity to explore faith-related topics in a relaxed atmosphere. Justyna Creager helps coordinate and plan Theology After Hours and works to create a hospitable environment in which learning and growth can take place. “For me personally, Theology After Hours is also an excuse to get together, meet fellow parishioners and make new friends,” Justyna says. “At Theology, we get to visit, catch up, share a meal and build community. Then, later we have a speaker, we learn, we ask questions and have an open discussion.” Theology After Hours is open to all adults ages 21 and up. It could even be a wonderful opportunity for couples to have a date night out, as child care is provided for the event. You can come and participate in the discussion, or simply sit and listen. It is also a great event for bringing friends who are interested in the Catholic faith because they can ask questions in a more comfortable environment. The speakers usually consist of Catholics who share their faith journeys and stories. Some examples of past speakers and topics include David Niles and Adam Minihan from The Catholic Man Show who spoke on authentic friendship, Fr. Kerry Wakulich who spoke about living your faith every day, continued on page 5
Stewardship
B E CO M I N G F I S H E R S O F M E N W
hether you hold a high-profile position, such as parish council president, or have more of a behindthe-scenes role as a coordinator of a parish ministry, God has called you – as a parish leader – to help build His Church. This challenge is just as important as the call of any other Catholic leader, including the earliest disciples. When Jesus walked along the Sea of Galilee, He urged a group of fishermen, “Come follow me.” Jesus promised if they laid down their nets and followed Him, He would make them fishers of men. These men were among His original disciples, and they knew Christ’s call was so important that they left their secular occupations to follow Him. Just as He did with the fishermen, Jesus calls each of us today. He is not necessarily asking us to leave our secular careers, but He is asking us to put Him first in our lives and to share His message of love with others. God truly wants us to serve Him and to build His Church through the secular occupations we have chosen. It is through the Church that new disciples are born, and it is in the Church that disciples continue to mature. Forming disciples of Christ is the most important work that can be done on earth, and each of us has been called to play an active role in this work. So, how do we go about building the Church? Where do we find the plans? Some people mistakenly think that building the Church – in particular, building our own parish or diocese – is no different than building a successful business. Indeed, the purpose of building the Church is to change
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hearts – a goal that only God can accomplish. Secular society has not prepared us for this work. However, the Holy Spirit – sometimes referred to as the “Architect of the Church” – has the plan. In order to implement this plan, we must become good listeners. We must open ourselves to the workings of the Holy Spirit as He transforms us and guides us to carry out God’s work and to serve as His instruments on earth, building the Church together with Him. This is where spiritual exercises, such as retreats, come into play. A retreat offers the individual an opportunity to spend time alone with the Lord, allowing God to draw the person deeper into the mystery of who He is, who we are, and what He is doing in our lives. Stewardship retreats can offer parish leaders the opportunity each year to spend time with the Lord as He directs them in the ways of discipleship. As leaders, we must take time to meditate on the Scriptures and allow Jesus to open up His Word to us. Then, as we grow deeper in our understanding of what God wants of us, we can exclaim, just as the first disciples did on the road to Emmaus, “Our hearts are burning within us” (Lk 24:32). God has placed an extremely important call on the lives of all parish leaders, no matter how big or small the role. It is vital to understand how we, as parish leaders, can best answer His call. What, in particular, is the Lord calling each one of us to do? He most likely is not asking us to drop our nets, but to pick them up and become “fishers of men.” We must discern how we can most effectively cast our nets for Him.
A Letter From Our Pastor
The Month of Mary: A Time for Celebration and Joy Dear Parishioners,
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n the Catholic Church, we designate a particular devotion for each month — and May is when we honor our Blessed Mother Mary. Thus, this is a good time for us to think about and concentrate on our devotion to the Mother of God. Perhaps we can add a few more Marian prayers to our daily routine — the Rosary is a great choice! Of course, that assumes that daily prayer is part of our daily routine — which it should be. Our Blessed Mother is important to our faith and our Church. Her willingness to serve in a way that allowed the Lord to take human form made our salvation a possibility. Because of her complete trust in God, she lived her life free from sin, and after her life, she was assumed into heaven by the power of God and crowned Queen of Heaven and Earth. She is, of course, not divine. We worship only our Lord Jesus Christ, but we honor Mary as a saint, and also in many other ways. We honor God when we remember the role of Mary in our salvation. Devotion to Mary always leads to Jesus Christ Himself. Mary was joyous when she said “yes” to God. That is the kind of joy we need to seek — and we, too, must say “yes” to the Lord. Let us be grateful to Mary for bringing us her Son. This is why we crown her on our Catholic version of Mother’s Day. T h r o u g h Mary, we are given an invitation into the Catholic fold. Her feminine presence and the safety of her motherhood may help us grow. For most of us, this time of year is a month of growth in relation to nature. It is difficult not to have May as one of our favorite months for so many reasons. May is a beautiful time. We are called to make it even more beautiful, and we can do that as we serve and love one another. I am deeply blessed to be your pastor. I may say that often, but it is true. My priesthood has been a blessing and serving you all has made that blessing even more significant. I pray for you daily. Please pray for me. God bless you and keep you always. Sincerely yours in Christ,
Please join me as we celebrate the ordination to the priesthood of Dcn. Daniel Gormley. Fr. John O’Neill Pastor
May 26 — 6 p.m. Evening Vespers (Holy Family Cathedral) May 27 — 6 p.m. Ordination Mass (Holy Family Cathedral) May 28 — 5 p.m. Celebration of First Mass (St. John Before the Latin Gate) The Catholic Women will host a reception following all Masses on May 28 and 29. Let us keep Dcn. Gormley in our prayers as he prepares for his ordination. 3
The Spiritual Rea
A Valuable Opportunity to Learn a
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here is no better place to grow in your faith have someone else to bounce ideas off.” through fellowship, study, and some downThe Spiritual Reading Book Club reads to-earth discussion than the Spiritual Reading two books each year and the topics offer great Book Club. Meeting once a month, the club variety. Sometimes they read biographies of allows its participants to read at an unhurried saints or those on the way to becoming saints, pace, reflect, and gather to share insights about including Mother Teresa, Dorothy Day, and what they have read. Since its founding almost our own Blessed Stanley Rother. Other books 10 years ago, the Spiritual Reading Book Club have delved deep into an aspect of our faith, has been a joint effort of both St. James and St. such as the Eucharist. Other books address John. Rita Leland, a parishioner at St. James, practical ways to live our faith, like Thrift Store has been part of the Spiritual Reading Book Saints by Jane Knuth. Christian classics such Club since the very beginning. as Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis are included “The book club has made me think more and contemporary works like Learning to Pray deeply about many subjects, like the Eucharist,” by Fr. James Martin round out the list. St. James parishioner Rita Leland Rita says. “At the same time, I’m learning from Rita values the discussion that happens the examples of different Catholics and saints. I can read around each book. There is a lot to digest over the course something that’s a little different and deeper, and I have people of a reading. to talk to about it. I like the depth of scholarship and that I “You want to talk to someone about it and toss ideas back
Some of the books that the Spiritual Reading Book Club has read
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ading Book Club
and Share Insights About Our Faith and forth,” Rita says. “We try to read a variety of books and things that will help us grow in our faith.” Rita keeps an eye out for good recommendations from others or from online sources like the Catholic Book Club. While the book club meetings were interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, they’ve since returned to monthly meetings. Following a school year schedule, the club reads a book each semester. Parishioners who are interested are welcome to jump in even if the club is in the middle of a book. Meetings are on a Tuesday each month, but the schedule fluctuates. Two weeks before each meeting, announcements
are posted in the bulletin indicating what pages the club is reading, and the time and location for the next meeting. Rita appreciates that the books offer a lot of practical applications for her own life. The Spiritual Reading Book Club offers more than just theology or an academic approach to our faith. She often reflects on a moment that she witnessed in Mexico City. “Years ago, I was going to the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe,” Rita says. “There’s a huge plaza and I saw a grandmother crawling on her knees up the steps with a baby in her arms. That is faith, not knowing more theology than someone else.”
Be sure to check the bulletin for up-to-date information about the Spiritual Reading Book Club.
Theology After Hours
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Fr. Brian O’Brien who talked about the resurrection of Jesus, and Fr. John O’Neill who provided a question-and-answer setting with Ask the Pastor. The hope is that parishioners who attend can draw strength and inspiration from the speakers and their personal stories, as well as the theological topics that they present. “I feel these gatherings are important for those who want to be inspired in their faith, grow closer to God, and grow in fellowship with other Christians,” Justyna says. “It’s a fun way to engage in conversations about God and the Catholic Church. I enjoy seeing people learn more about their faith and getting excited about it.” In addition to being an engaging parish event, Theology After Hours also provides an opportunity for stewardship. Volunteers are always needed to help with food preparation, set-up and table decorating, serving of food and alcohol, and clean-up after the event. Our next Theology After Hours is scheduled for Tuesday, June 14 at 7:00 p.m. in Fr. Lynch Hall at St. John. Join us for “Clergy Vocation Stories” — our local clergy share their path to becoming a priest/deacon.
Volunteers from the parish help prepare dinner for Theology After Hours.
If you are interested in volunteering or would like more information about Theology After Hours, please contact Justyna Creager at 210-792-5282 or justynkao@yahoo.com. 5
The May Crowning Celebrating the Coronation of Mary
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or many Catholics, May Crownings of statues or icons of the Blessed Mother have become rites of spring. Like flowers blooming or Mother’s Day, this annual Marian devotion reminds us that the cold of winter is behind us, and it ushers in a month during which the Catholic Church pays special homage to Mary as the Queen of Heaven and Mother of God. Generally taking place during the first weekend of the month, May Crownings bring children — often, recent First Communicants — out in their Sunday best to participate in processions and adorn statues of the Blessed Mother with crowns of flowers or actual gold crowns. Additionally, the children often place roses at her feet, and Catholics carry out similar practices in their homes by placing roses around statues of the Blessed Virgin, or even adding ornamentation to images of Mary. But where did this practice come from, and how did it develop into the tradition that we currently know and love? The Coronation of Mary had been a popular subject in European art and literature for centuries, but the tradition of the May Crowning can be most accurately traced back to the late 16th century. Perhaps inspired by the practice of adding ornamentation to Marian icons that had been carried out by some Eastern churches, Pope Clement VIII added two crowns to the icon of Mary with the Infant Jesus in the St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome. The crowns were eventually lost, but were replaced by Gregory XVI in 1837 in a rite that was to become the standard practice for crowning. While the May Crowning is not an official liturgical celebration on the Church calendar, it is an important practice in honoring Mary as the Queen of the Universe, and its imagery is especially influential in the faith formation of children. As Liz Kelly writes in May Crowning, Mass, and Merton and Other Reasons I Love Being Catholic, “One of the defining aspects of being Catholic is devotion to Mary. I favor no Marian celebration more highly than May Crowning, the feast that recognizes Mary as queen of heaven and earth. To a person of any age, this is a mighty big title, but to a child of five or six or seven, it expands to enchanting, magical proportions. How many queens does one get a chance to meet in a lifetime, much less crown?” This year, make a special effort to honor the coronation of Mary through participation in a personal or public May Crowning devotion.
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Bring Flowers of the Rarest Bring flow’rs of the fairest, Bring flow’rs of the rarest, From garden and woodland And hillside and vale; Our full hearts are swelling, Our glad voices telling The praise of the loveliest Rose of the vale. O Mary! we crown thee with blossoms today, Queen of the Angels, Queen of the May, O Mary! we crown thee with blossoms today, Queen of the Angels, Queen of the May.
Meet the Valenzuela Family Planting the Seeds of Faith at St. John O
ne of the greatest blessings to the Bartlesville area is the growing presence of the Bartlesville Catholic Community and the wonderful people that make up our community. When the Valenzuela family moved to Bartlesville about three and a half years ago, Raquel Aramburo-Valenzuela immediately felt at home and welcomed by the community. “Our first weekend at St. John’s, I looked for Fr. John after Mass so he could bless our house,” Raquel says. “He immediately agreed and joined us for dinner even though we didn’t have our furniture yet. We laughed around a Walmart folding table and I recall him saying, ‘A house without a blessing is not a home.” Raquel and her husband, Eduardo, have two children and are friendly faces at the Sunday afternoon Spanish Mass at St. John. Isaac, their son, is 14 and loves to serve each month at Mass. Miriam, their 9-year-old daughter, attends St. John Catholic School and loves to sing. In fact, it was Miriam starting formation for First Communion that led to Raquel volunteering with the parish’s faith formation. “It was time for Miriam to begin preparing for her First Communion a few years ago and the parish needed volunteers,” Raquel says. “I started teaching classes then and I have continued ever since. Now, I am able to teach the children religion at St. John Catholic School, something that has been on my heart for a long time. I
The Valenzuela family enjoys a vacation.
used to play teacher as a kid and now I am fulfilling my calling to teach religion. It is my duty to prepare our students for their lives outside the walls of our parish and school by teaching them Who they need to hold onto during the best and worst parts of life — God.” Through participation in the life of the parish and the school, Raquel and her family have been able to
enjoy many aspects of the Englishspeaking and Spanish-speaking communities at St. John. The Valenzuelas love both Fr. Carlos and Fr. John and see what a blessing they are to the Bartlesville Catholic community. Our clergy’s dedication to all parishioners really drives home the importance of investing in your parish. “I want my children to learn from example — show your love for the
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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
Meet the Valenzuela Family continued from page 7 Church through your involvement,” Raquel says. “Since I started teaching religion at St. John, I have witnessed Miriam grow significantly in her faith. As her parents, we pray that by planting the seeds of faith, she will continue to know and love our Father and our wondrous Church. For anyone hoping to lead their children by example, I encourage you to offer your talents to our community. Ask our priests how you can be involved and see what fruits the Lord blesses you with over time.”
“For anyone hoping to lead their children by example, I encourage you to offer your talents to our community. Ask our priests how you can be involved and see what fruits the Lord blesses you with over time.” — RAQUEL ARAMBURO-VALENZUELA
The Valenzuela family celebrates Miriam’s First Communion at St. John Before the Latin Gate.
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.
