WHISTLEBLOWER'S POLICY - 2012

HOW TO REPORT CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE

 Little Flower Parish Strategic Planning

REORIENTATION OF THE UPPER CHURCH - Click the picture for answers to the most frequently asked questions, including an update from the pastor. 

  Click here for pictures of the Reorientation of the Upper Church.

  The beatification of Pope John Paul II was celebrated on May 1, 2011 at the Vatican and throughout the world.  The beloved pope died on April 2, 2005 - a pontificate that spanned 26 years, five months and 17 days.  Click the picture for further information.

  THE ENGLISH SPEAKING CATHOLIC CHURCH IN THE USA BEGAN USING THE THIRD EDITION OF THE NEW ROMAN MISSAL ON NOVEMBER 27, 2011.  Click the picture for a series of Questions and Answers on this topic.

"Ask and you shall receive, seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened to you. For whoever asks, receives; whoever seeks, finds; whoever knocks, is admitted."

Church of the Little Flower
LECTOR WORKSHOP
November, 2008

Overview of the Ministry of Lector:
Proclaiming God’s Word versus reading God’s Word!

Any educated person can read the Scriptures out loud.
Proclaiming the Word of God is much more than just reading.  It can be a powerfully prayerful experience for you – one that you share with the entire assembly gathered for Mass.  The key to effective proclamation lies in understanding the meaning of the lesson and words you are about to read. One question might be: What is God attempting to say to me in these readings? What is required more than anything is your faith shining through your proclamation of the Word. This requires advance preparation!  This requires time. An appropriate amount of time to spend in preparation is a minimum of two hours per week.

All lectors should have a current year copy of Workbook for Lectors and Gospel Readers.  In addition to the readings, it is important to periodically read the Introduction notes at the front of the Workbook.

Prayer, preparation and practice are the keys to your being an effective proclaimer of God’s Word.  Spend time in prayer and contemplation during the week before you will be reading.  Familiarize yourself with all three readings, so that you understand the tone and flow of the entire Liturgy of the Word for that Sunday.  Review the commentaries in your Workbook which will help you understand something about the purpose of the author and the historical setting out of which the passage arises.

Read through the readings several times aloud.  With the Workbook as your guide, follow the suggestions for where pauses can be made, where inflection of voice can be made. If there is emphasis on a phrase or sentence, e.g. Paul’s letter to the Philippians 2:11: “and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, ⁹ to the glory of God the Father,”  it is more than appropriate to proclaim this louder and with emphasis.
Review any words that you find difficult to pronounce or the meaning of which you do not understand.  The Pronunciation Key in the Workbook and/or a dictionary can be very helpful.  Become very familiar with the readings; this will let you feel comfortable enough to make eye contact with the congregation.

Please be aware that lectors and other liturgical ministers set an example for those attending Mass.  Your respect for your ministry should be reflected in your appearance and your attire.  Always dress modestly and appropriately.

Even though there is a microphone at the lectern, you should project your voice.  Take your time reading…read slowly and loudly.

Each lector is responsible for serving when scheduled.  Contact a substitute or switch with another lector when you have a schedule conflict.  If, after trying, you cannot find a substitute, contact Fr. Marek  (frmarek@lfbhnj.org  or 464-1585).

A liturgical minister may perform only one liturgical ministry at any one Mass.  Thus, if you are a lector at a Mass, you may not be a music minister, an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion or an usher at the same Mass.

Before Mass:

Arrive at least fifteen minutes before Mass begins.

Check the lectionary to be sure that it is marked to the correct readings.
Check with the Cantor/leader of song to see if he/she will be leading the psalm from the pulpit. If the cantor is going to lead from the pulpit, please move to the center before the altar and, with the cantor, bow together, before heading back to your seat. This would be duplicated after the conclusion of the psalm.

If there is no deacon assigned for the Mass, review the General Intercessions (Prayer of the Faithful).  Be sure that you are aware of how to pronounce any names to be mentioned.  If you have any questions about pronunciation, consult the presider before Mass.  (Those who compose the Prayer of the Faithful will try to spell out names phonetically whenever possible.)

Read over any oral announcements.

During Mass:

The lector takes part in the entrance procession as long as a deacon is not present.  If a deacon is present, please take your place in the assembly. The order of procession is:  altar servers, lector or deacon, presider.

The deacon or the lector (if no deacon is present) carries the Book of Gospels.  If the lector is carrying the Book of Gospels, he/she proceeds directly to the altar (no bow) and places the Book of Gospels in the center of the altar, then goes to his/her seat in the assembly. 

After the Opening Prayer, and as people are sitting, the lector approaches, bows reverently to the altar and goes to the pulpit. 

Beginning in Advent, the presider will read a short introduction to both the first and second readings while the lector is approaching the pulpit.

Before the reading, look at the congregation for eye contact.  Proclaim the introductory line, “A reading from …”  while looking at the congregation.  (Please pronounce the “A reading…” with the “uh” sound.)

At the end of the reading, look at the congregation, pause before saying (silently count 1,2,3),  “The Word of the Lord.”  In order to enable the assembly to ponder and reflect on the Word proclaimed, at the end of the first and second readings, the lector should bow his/her head and stand in prayerful silence for about a 20 second pause (about the time it takes to say a “Hail Mary”) before leaving the pulpit.

After the second reading, prayerfully pause for 20 seconds, then place the lectionary on the shelf in the pulpit, in preparation for the presider or deacon who will bring the Book of Gospels to the pulpit.

At the conclusion of the Creed, the lector will read the General Intercessions if there is no deacon present.

The lector will read any announcements at the end of Mass.

**The lector remains in the assembly and DOES NOT take part in the recessional. The role of the lector in procession is to carry the Book of the Gospels. It is always about the prominence of the Word of God.

After Mass:

If there is another Mass, the lector should take the lectionary from the shelf and place it on the lectern. 

The lector should take the Book of Gospels back to the sacristy.

Notes:

The same general procedures apply to the Upper Church and the Little Church and for weekday and funeral Masses.

For Sunday and weekday Masses in the Little Church, the lector also reads the responsorial psalm.  Note: Especially at a Mass with no music, it is important to remember to have the times of silence. If the responsorial psalm is recited, the lector should begin with the antiphon.  It is not necessary to announce, “the responsorial psalm is …”

There is no workbook for daily Mass readings.  Please arrive early for daily Mass in order to allow time to review the readings.  Publications like  Magnificat contain the daily Mass readings and might be a useful resource for you.

Lectors are needed for Holy Days of Obligation for the 7:00 PM (Vigil Mass), 6:45 a.m., 9:00 a.m. Masses.  Please inform Fr. Marek if you would be available to be a lector for Holy Days.

Dignitas Personae and the Right to Life
Brian Clowes, PhD

NOTE: this is the first of a two-part series on the new instruction from the Vatican on bioethics. Dr. Brian Clowes has been an HLI missionary for twelve years and offers this first reflection of 2009 for the Spirit and Life® audience.

There are two causes of most of the human misery that afflicts the world today. The first is lack of respect for the transmission of life within the marital union, which leads to destructive practices such as contraception, sterilization, abortion, homosexual adoption and "gay marriage." The second is a lack of respect for the born human person, which has given us murder, genocide, racism, slavery, rape and many other evils.

On December 12 of last year, the highest doctrinal agency in the Catholic Church, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF), released its first comprehensive instruction on bioethics since Donum Vitae in 1987. This document, Dignitas Personae ["The Dignity of a Person"], is an "instruction," and therefore does not proclaim an infallibly defined dogma. However, it was carefully reviewed and approved by Pope Benedict XVI and thus carries his full authority. It is therefore an integral part of the universal ordinary Magisterium, with which Catholics must inform their consciences and adhere to with religious assent.

In Dignitas Personae, the Church applies timeless moral principles to new issues and situations that have arisen from biotechnology over the past two decades. This document is based on a foundation of consistency of respect for the human person at all stages of life. We have seen that, when we begin to make exceptions to the universal dignity of the human person for whatever reason, even if it is to promote the welfare of other human beings, we inevitably veer away from the natural law and flounder in the swamp of moral relativism.

Those who read Dignitas Personae in a cursory or superficial manner might believe it to be a mere laundry list of prohibitions. However, from the very first paragraph, the document affirms the fundamental dignity of every human person, from conception to natural death, regardless of race, sex or disability. To be created in the image and likeness of Almighty God is the highest calling, and Dignitas Personae vigorously defends this status.

Far from being a negative document, Dignitas Personae is very positive in tone, showing us how to live a life free of the oppressive worries and guilt suffered by those who even partially embrace the Culture of Death. It frequently refers to the dignity of marriage and the human person, in addition to the positive results of scientific research and therapy used to overcome infertility and disease.

The document does not shout "STOP!" at the progress of science, but instead guides it towards being truly at the service of life and not of death or the manipulation of human persons. As it so eloquently says, "Behind every 'no' in the difficult task of discerning between good and evil, there shines a great 'yes' to the recognition of the dignity and inalienable value of every single and unique human being called into existence" [37].

Dignitas Personae favors the weak. If we lose sight of the weak or exploit them, we also lose sight of our very humanity. In such a world, the strong rule without regard to the small and helpless, not only in the laboratory but also over entire continents.

Just because the Church renders negative judgments about some biotechnologies, or cautions about possible pitfalls, does not mean that it is anti-technological. Dignitas Personae says that, in using these new technologies, man "participates in the creative power of God" and is "the steward of the value and intrinsic beauty of creation" [36]. History has shown us that any new major technology can be used to enhance human dignity or to oppress, destroy and exploit entire populations. Science needs a firm and clear ethical framework precisely because it has such great potential for doing either good or evil.

The potential of the new biosciences seems to be limited only by man's imagination. Since it is sometimes difficult to find our way in a confusing and complex world, Dignitas Personae offers welcome guidance. It draws a straight and clear line between activities that treat human beings as a commodity to be produced -- or as God's greatest gift.

Dignitas Personae and the Right to Life Part II
Brian Clowes, PhD

NOTE: this is the second installment of a two-part series on the document Dignitas Personae. Author Brian Clowes has been an HLI missionary for twelve years and offers this reflection on the practical aspects of the document for the Spirit and Life audience.

As we saw last week, the primary purpose of the new Vatican instruction on bioethics, Dignitas Personae, is to clarify Church teachings on biotechnologies that have become prominent since Donum Vitae was published in 1987. Dignitas Personae draws a bright line between scientific activities that treat human beings as a commodity to be produced - or as God's greatest gift.

One of the primary topics addressed by Dignitas Personae is assisted reproductive technologies, or ARTs. Some people think that the authentic pro-lifer should welcome any means taken to bring children into this world, but such thinking reflects an improper understanding of human dignity.

The Catholic Church has always taught that a child should be the fruit of total self-giving between a man and woman who are committed to each other through marriage. Technologies that assist the marital union in conceiving a child through natural means respect the dignity of the child. One example would be the surgical repair of damaged Fallopian tubes. However, those that replace it through brute-force technology, such as in-vitro fertilization, do not respect this inherent dignity and inevitably lead to terrible abuses.

For example, if a child can be conceived in a Petri dish, why should we not then check to ensure that this "product" is free of defects? Why not freeze, experiment on, or discard embryos that are defective or that nobody wants? Why not use gametes from people who have desirable genetic characteristics? Why not rent a third party's uterus to perform the arduous task of childbearing, thereby pushing pregnancy into the province of the poor?

Dignitas Personae is very helpful in that it clearly shows how certain common medical procedures may be either licit or illicit, depending on their objective or usage;

• the freezing of oocytes is illicit, although the freezing of ovaries may be permissible if a woman with cancer or some other disease of the ovaries desires to have children in the future;
• pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), which "weeds out" those embryos deemed to be inferior is not allowable because it is a eugenic procedure, although prenatal diagnosis is permissible if its intent is to prepare medical teams and parents to properly care for a sick infant;
• embryonic stem cell research (ESCR) is impermissible, since it invariably leads to the death of the embryo, although adult stem cell research is licit; and
• using gene therapy to enhance the human race is considered the ultimate in the condemned pseudoscience of positive eugenics, although the same type of therapy used to cure disease in a single subject's non-reproductive cells would be permissible. In other words, correcting a specific defect in one person's cells is called "somatic cell" gene therapy and is acceptable. But "germ line" gene therapy, which would affect all of a person's cells, is not, since it requires manipulation of embryos in a laboratory.

Since Donum Vitae in 1987, rapidly advancing biological technology has raised many completely new issues. One of these is "altered nuclear transfer," or human cloning that produces embryonic stem cells but not an embryo. This procedure needs more study to ensure that a new human being is never created and then destroyed before it can be declared licit. By contrast, reprogramming adult cells into what are called "induced pluripotent stem cells" is allowable since it can never result in the creation of a human person.

Pro-lifers will perhaps find the most controversial segment of Dignitas Personae to be the one dealing with the "prenatal adoption" of frozen embryos, leading to the birth of "snowflake babies." The desire to adopt these "orphan" embryos is certainly well intentioned and understandable, but leads to a number of problems, the primary of which is the perpetuation of the system that leads to the perceived necessity for such adoptions in the first place. The closest parallel might be Christian organizations which recently "bought back" slaves in Sudan, which implicitly implied that human beings may be bought and sold, and also encouraged slave-taking for profit. Dignitas Personae warns of the many ethical and practical problems associated with it.

Another subject that pro-lifers have been debating for years is vaccines made from the cell lines of aborted preborn babies. For the first time, the Church definitively addresses this topic in Dignitas Personae. The document states that parents may legitimately use such vaccines if there are no alternatives, since they have no say in how the vaccines are made. However, the parents should always ask their health care systems to make other vaccines available.

Dignitas Personae represents a welcome clarification regarding many medical and scientific procedures in the increasingly complex area of human reproduction, and will answer many questions that have, until now, not been dealt with authoritatively.

We urge all of our readers to go directly to the document and study it if they have any questions.