Grand Rapids Serra Club Newsletter, October 2012

October is the Month of the Most Holy Rosary.
October Dates to Remember.
October 7, 2012.  Respect Life Sunday.  St. Mary Parish in Lowell (Pastor is our moderator, Msgr. Ed) is hosting Lowell Life Chain on Sunday, October 7 to be held along Main Street from 2:30-3:30 p.m.  "We will stand silently and peacefully and pray for life.  Those attending may park at St. Mary Church and walk two blocks to the Little Caesar's parking lot or park on the street behind Little Caesar's on Main Street.  A note to the diocese regarding Respect Life Sunday will appear below.
October 8, 2012.  Luncheon and Speaker, 12:00 Noon at the University Club.  Father John Gainey will speak on the New Evangelization.
October 12, 2012.  Columbus Day.
October 14, 2012.  Spaghetti Dinner, Our Lady of Sorrows Church,  11:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.  Tickets are $8 for adults and $3 for children in advance or $9 at the door).  Call 243-0222.
October 15, 2012.  Board Meeting, 12:00 Noon at Sacred Heart of Jesus.
October 21, 2012.  Priesthood Sunday.
October 22, 2012.  Prayer Service and Luncheon, 12:00 Noon at Sacred Heart of Jesus.
October 27, 2012.  Ordination of Deacon Darrel C. Kempf and Michael G. Hodges, 10:00 a.m. at the Cathedral of St. Andrew.  Serrans who are assisting Hospitality Team should arrive at 9:00.  All are welcome.  Right now we have no priests' anniversaries for October,  but next year we look forward to observing the October 27 anniversary date.
October Saints' Days.  Two very significant October Saints' days are October  4, St. Francis of Assisi, and October 7 (Our Lady of the Rosary).

Let us keep them in our prayers.
Please pray for Bob and Hazel Paul and their family.

Respect Life Sunday.  
His Excellency Bishop Walter Hurley sends this message:
My dear friends in Christ,
On October 7 we celebrate Respect Life Sunday, which marks the start of the Respect Life Program for the coming year.  Respect Life Sunday provides an opportunity for us to reflect on our commitment as Catholics to promote and cherish a culture of life for all people from conception to natural death.  For the Church, there is no distinction between defending human life and promoting the dignity of the human person.
The right to life is the most fundamental principle of human rights that leads us to work for a world of greater respect for human life and an increased commitment to justice and peace.  In a special way I wish to thank those who work so tirelessly to accomplish this and I ask for your prayers that we may continue to be God's faithful people working every day to provide public witness for justice and mercy in our world.
Sincerely yours in the Lord,
Bishop Walter Hurley
Note:  Resources for Respect Life Sunday and the Respect Life Program may be found on the home page may be found on the homepage of the Diocese of Grand Rapids website, www.dioceseofgrandrapids.org in the News and Current Events section.  Connect with the Diocese on Facebook (Search Diocese of Grand Rapids), and Twitter (@GRDiocese). 

Welcome to our newest member.  At our September 24 meeting at Sacred Heart of Jesus, our guest was Kenneth Baldwin, Director of Institutional Advancement at West Catholic High School.  He joined our club this past week.  Ken spoke briefly of West Catholic's significant accomplishments in providing a setting which nurtures and fosters discernment.  Ken noted that many of the 17 men in seminary from our diocese are graduates of West Catholic.  We thank him for his membership in our club and his enthusiasm for our club's mission.
In keeping with his visit to our club, he has invited West Catholic's Campus Minister, Phil Dolci, to write as follows:
Dear Serrans:
We want to thank you for your continual prayers and support for priestly vocations.  We believe that West Catholic has a special role to play in helping foster future vocations in the Diocese of Grand Rapids.  We are committed to helping our students get to know Jesus and their Catholic Faith in a deeper way, and of course one outcome of these efforts should be an increase in vocations.
When I started as campus minister I wanted especially to provide an environment in which young men could discern their possible vocation to the priesthood as brothers.  I experienced firsthand the joys and struggles of discerning to the priesthood personally.  I felt at one point that I had a possible vocation to the priesthood and entered the seminary.  During my time at the seminary I was able better to understand and discern my vocation.  Surrounding myself with a group of men who had the same heart for the Lord and were willing to give up so much to answer Christ's call to a special mission was such a blessing and gift.  I eventually discerned that the Lord wasn't calling me to the priesthood, but it was through that experience that our Priestly Discernment Program was born.  If a young man is called to the priesthood, it was so easy in our society for that vocation to fade away.  At West Catholic we want to water that vocational seed that God has planted.  Our vocations group helps our high school men experience, in part, the fellowship of brothers that are discerning the same call as well to water their possible priestly vocational seed that God has planted. Our vocations group helps our high school men experience, in part, the fellowship of brothers who are discerning the same call, as well as to water their possible priestly vocation.
When we started our discernment program, we started right away with a handful of guys because of the seeds that had already been planted.  Our Religion Department head, Pat Nugent, had been collecting the names of students he knew might be interested in the priesthood, as well as bringing current Grand Rapids seminarians into our school once a year to talk to our students in the hope of inflaming the possibility of a vocation into their hearts in a more real way.  This past spring we brought eleven young men to the Grand Rapids Diocese's college seminary--St. John Vianney.
We are still in the infancy of this program, but the fruit being borne already is so exciting!  One of the students who tossed around the idea of being a priest for a number of years.  After the witness of his grandmother, he is now actively pursuing this vocation.  Before our program was available, it was something he had thought about, but could never act on.  I believe this program is really going to benefit young men like this student.  Before, it was something he thought about, but never really did anything with.  We have at least one student who is pretty confident that God is calling him to be a priest, so this group is going to be helpful in solidifying and strengthening God's plan for his life.  All our young men have been able to connect with our Diocesan Priestly Vocation Director, meet and hear local priests' vocation stories, and have the opportunity to come together and pray.  Again this is only the beginning stages of this group, but exciting things are already happening.
Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we celebrate our 50th anniversary.  Our school continues to serve the Diocese by helping form our next generation of God's Holy Priests.
Gratefully yours,
Phil Dolci.
Note:  We congratulate West Catholic High School, recently named to Catholic High School Honor Roll by the Cardinal Newman Society.  More on West Catholic High School will appear in the November newsletter, and we are tentatively planning on holding one of our meetings there.

The Catholic Awards Dinner.  The 2013 Planning Committee has named Ralph Hauenstein as the honorary chairman of the dinner.  More to follow.

2013 Conference.  The Committee has received a letter from Archbishop Lori of Baltimore confirming that he will be our keynote speaker.

Serra's 'That We May be One' 54-Day Rosary Novena.
Dear fellow Serrans,
We would like to thank all of you who have prayed with us in the "Serra's 'ThatWeMay be ONE' 54-Day Rosary Novena" from 16 July 2012 to 7 September 2012.  With the intercession of Our Lady, "Queen of the Most Holy Rosary," we know the Lord hs heard our prayers said in unity for a common intention.  May our Lord continue to bless you abundantly for your love and generosity.
Mary, Mother of Vocations, pray for us!
Yours in Christ,
John "Tomi" Asenuga, President, and
Sean Yeo, President-Elect.
Source:  Serra Connects, September-October 2012

Treasures From our Tradition.
(A Special Message for October).
Did you ever notice how often the angels are referred to during Mass?  We commonly meet them in the Confiteor ("I ask blessed Mary, ever virgin, and all the angels and saints"), prefaces ("with angels and archangels and the whole company of heaven"), the Roman Canon ("we pray that your angel may take this sacrifice"), and Eucharistic Prayer IV ("countless hosts of angels stand before you to do your will").  Last week and this week angels abound as we celebrated Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael on Saturday, September 29, and we will honor the Guardian Angels in October.
September 29 was originally the feast day for Michael alone.  Gabriel and Raphael joined him in the 1969 reform of the Church calendar.  The celebration of the Guardian Angels has been observed since the sixteenth century in Spain.  Pope Clement X assigned the feast to the first free day after St. Michal's in 1670, and there it has remained.  Take some time this week to reflect on these, God's messengers and our protectors.
Source:  Our Lady of Sorrows Bulletin, September 30, 2012.

A Message from our President.  
Dear Serrans,
Lots of material to digest here.  Keep praying for vocations and the leaders of SI and USAC.
Thank you to those who agreed to usher at the Ordination Mass on Saturday, October 27.  Report time is 9:00 for the 10:00 Mass. \\
Mary, Mother of Vocations, Pray for Us!
Tim Hile, CIC, CWCA.

Grand Rapids Serra Club Newsletter, September, 2012

Calendar of Events.
September 10, 2012.  Luncheon meeting and speaker, 12:00 noon at the University Club.
Our speaker will be Sharon Lowery, a volunteer with HELP Pregnancy Center.  She has graciously agreed to talk about a project she has initiated (with the help of a birthday present, the lot adjacent to the HELP Center,  from her husband).  Sharon envisions a Rosary Garden for this location.  Larry Mulligan believes all who are able to attend will be interested in the project.  Lee Sullivan will introduce the speaker on that day because Larry plans to be in Haiti.
September 17, 2012.  Serra Board meeting, 12:00 noon at Sacred Heart of Jesus.
September 24, 2012.  Prayer service and luncheon meeting, 12:00 noon at Sacred Heart of Jesus.
September 28-30, 2012.  Serra District 85 Regional Conference, Cleveland, Ohio.  If you're an e-mail recipient of this newsletter, go to the website www.serradistrict85.org for the schedule, the list of events and speakers, and the registration information.  There is a registration form to print out and mail to the designated destination.  If yhou are a paper copy recipient of the newsletter, call me at 616-662-4569 and I will send you a registration form.  Remit form and payment ($125 per person) by September 20, 2012.  The reservation for the block of rooms at the Hilton Garden Inn at 700 Beta Drive in Mayfield Village expired on September 1, but a phone call today indicated that 15+ rooms are still available at $109 plus tax.  Call 440-646-1777 for room reservations, and please, do it soon if you're interested in attending.  We especially encourage those who are serving on our 2013 Conference Committee to attend.
October 11, 2012.  Beginning the Year of Faith, first announced with a celebrating Mass October 16, 2011 with participants in a Vatican conference on new evangelization. More to follow. 
October 27, 2012.  Put this date on your calendar.  Ordination of two priests, Deacon Darrell Kempf and Deacon Michael Hodges at 10:00 a.m. at St. Andrew's Cathedral.  Fr. Tom Tavolta has asked Tim Hile if our Serra Club could provide 4-5 ushers for the event.  Please R. S. V. P. to Tim if you are able to help in this way.  Ushers are asked to arrive at the Cathedral at 9:00 a.m.
November 24, 2013. 300th anniversary of the birth of Blessed Junipero Serra.  Watch in subsequent newsletters for information about our club's observance of the birthday.

Priests' Anniversaries for September.   Fr. Loc Trinh, 9/19/1992 and Fr. Ron Hutchinson, 9/24/1994.

Remember them in your prayers.  A note from John Osterhart announces the passing of Janet Ruger, wife of Bill Ruger, past Saginaw Serra Club President, on August 29, 2012 at the Cartwright Hospice Residence in Saginaw.  John asks the Michigan Serra Clubs and those who knew Bill and Janet to remember Bill and his family in their prayers and to send their expressions of sympathy.  Friends may call at the Snow Funeral Home from 2:00-8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, September 4.  Funeral Liturgy will take place on Wednesday, September 5, 2012 at St. Stephen Catholic Church.  Those planning an expression of sympathy may wish to consider memorials to St. Stephen Catholic Church, Saginaw Serra Club, or Nouvel Catholic Central High School.  Call Snow Funeral Home at 989-791-4515, or visit the web site at www.snowfuneralhome.net/fh/obituaries for a direct link to the memorial sites.

Year of Faith.  Pope Benedict XVI announced a special Year of Faith to help Catholics appreciate the gift of faith, deepen their relationship with God,and strengthen their commitment to sharing faith with others.  Celebrating Mass October 16, 2011 with participants in a Vatican conference on new evangelization,  the Pope said the Year of Faith would give "renewed energy to the mission of the whole church to lead men and women out of the desert they often are in and toward the place of life:  friendship with Christ, who gives us fullness of life."
The Pope said the observance would begin October 11, 2012--the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council--and conclude November 24, 2013, the Feast of Christ the King.
Says Pope Benedict, "What the world is in particular need of today is the credible witness of people enlightened in mind and heart by the word of the Lord, and capable of opening the hearts and minds of many to the desire for God and for true life, life without end," he wrote.
The papal Mass and announcement of the Year of Faith followed a daylong conference October 15, sponsored by the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization. Cardinal Donald W. Wuerl of Washington told that gathering that catechesis is essential for any program of new evangelization in order to give evangelists the confidence to express their faith and to invite others into the experience of faith.
"We have spoken a great deal today about this very secular world in which we live," he said, "but we also need to recognize that among many, many of our young people there is an enormous openness to hearing about Christ.  Many of them are seekers."  More information to follow in the October newsletter.
Editor's Note:  It's a sign of the times that the social media and the Internet will play a significant role in giving information about the Year of Faith and the birthday anniversary of Blessed Junipero Serra. 

Thank you for your Prayers.  Bob and Hazel Paul have expressed their thanks for your prayers on their behalf.  Hazel is making a good recovery at this time.

Another Thank-you.  This past weekend I was talking with Father Pedro Garcia, a retired priest of the Diocese of Grand Rapids, who fills in for various priests wherever he is needed and spends his winters in prison ministries in Western Texas.  He said that he had been needed as a substitute quite a bit in recent months, and when I mentioned that I belonged to the Serra Club, he asked me to pass along his appreciation for the club and its prayers of encouragement (and the anniversary cards) for priests. In his homily this past weekend, Fr. Garcia mentioned a special fondness for the books Amos and James.  I plan to include them in my Scripture reading over the next few days.

Readings from the Book of James.  The second reading for September 2, 2012 begins a five-week series of selections from James, a letter that is classified among the so-called "catholic" (or univesal) epistles because they are addressed to a general audience rather than to once particular community.  The September 1 text offers important advice fro Christians of every generation.  God is first cited as the author of all gifts, and in particular, reference is made to the gift of baptism by which we have been made the "first fruits" of the new creation.
What follows is advice based on a very Jewish understanding of the "word" as an active force, operative in the world.  We are reminded that unless we, too, become "doers" of the word, our claim to faith is empty.  Today and in subsequent weeks the author reminds us that it is equally important to do "works" of love, for example, by caring for the "orphans and widows in their affliction."
Source:  Our Lady of Sorrows Bulletin, September 1, 2012.

Art and Religion.  Lee Sullivan alerts us to this message from the Catholic Information Center Newsletter:  The Cathedral Square Center will showcase over 40 artists during Artprize.  Artprize is September 19-October 7.  In addition, the Catholic Information Center is offering special "Art and Religion" programs during Artprize.  Check out the website for more information:  catholicinformationcenter.org.
Note:  The 2013 Conference Committee plans to incorporate Artprize into the suggested activities for our visitors next year. 

A Message from our President.
Dear Serrans:
Thank you to all who took additional time to come to the meeting that we hosted for other Serra Clubs to meet with Serra International President Tomi Asuenga  and Executive  Director John Woodward.  Tomi made an opening statement asking all to be humble and continue to do God's an Serra's work.  Others, then, were able to pose questions to Tomi.  There was a respectful dialog amongst all who attended.  Not sure that we solved the issues between SI and USAC, but it is good for SI's leaders to hear what we, the rank and file, have to say and express how we feel about the ongoing dispute between the parent organization, Serra International, and its subsidiary, USAC.

I have not heard back from Louis Benton as to whether they will reopen for lunch on Mondays in October.  So, I have started the process with the University Club and am attempting to get parking included or so many parking passes.  Will advise on updates later this month.

Please do attend the Serra Regional Conference in Cleveland September 28-30.  For more information you can go to www.serradistrict85.org.  You can make reservations and pay your conference fees all from the website.  We highly encourage as many folks as possible to attend, since we are hosting the next Regional Conference in September of 2013.

On that same note I would like to officially announce on behalf of your Regional Conference Committee that we have secured the commitment of Archbishop Lori to be the keynote speaker for the dinner on Saturday evening.  Thank you, Monsignor!  This occasion gives us many opportunities
to expand the dinner outside the Serra community as the Archbishop was appointed to the USCCB's Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty and is the Supreme Chaplain of the Knights of Columbus.

We will get through and survive the dispute between Serra International and the USAC.  We need to continue to communicate and resolve to follow the mission of Serra.

Have a wonderful day and weekend!

Mary, Mother of Vocations, Pray for Us!
Tim Hile

For what great nation has a god so near to it as the Lord our God is whenever we call to him?  And what othyer great nation has statutes and ordinances as just as this entire law that I am setting before you today?  Deuteronomy 4:7,8.  The Catholic Youth Bible