Special Request to please note President's Message.
President Sara VanderWerff notifies us of two opportunities to build relationships and support our mission. They are as follows:
1) As you know, the Fall Convocation of Priests took place this past week. They have requested our assistance, similar to what we have provided in the past, by way of sponsorship. Also, Sara and Weldon, now Director of Membership, will be attending the upcoming Red Mass and Dinner. Our goal is to raise $600 for the Fall Convocation and $200 for the Red Mass. Please let Pat Leikert know if you would like to contribute to one or both events and he will include the amount in you next dues statement. Pat can be reached at 616-459-2233 Extension 12 or pleikert@dolinkacpa.com. Thank you all for your participation in Serra and for your efforts to support our priests.
Calendar of Events
October 9, 2016. Spaghetti Dinner at Our Lady of Sorrows, 11:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m.. Call 243-0222 for tickets in advance.
October 10, 2016. Official Columbus Day and Dinner Meeting and Speaker, 5:30 p.m. at the University Club. Board Meeting begins at 4:30 p.m.
October 11-October 14, 2016. Holy Family Radio Fall Fund Drive, "Celebrating Five Years."
The new format will include live broadcast from Newmans Bookshoppe, Live broadcast from the studio on Wednesday/Friday, and Call-in Trivia Answers for prizes. Check the HFR website for a schedule of programming during the drive. Call 844-337-2346 to donate, or visit www.holyfamilyradio.net for the complete guest line-up or to donate online
October 18, 2016. St. Luke, Evangelist.
October 28. Ss. Simon and Jude, Apostles.
October 29, 2016. Serra International Rosary for Vocations, 8:00 a.m. CDT. Remember that on the last Saturday of every month, Serrans from all over the world are invited to join together in a recitation of the Rosary for Vocations. To join our rosary from your computer, tablet, or smartphone, go to https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/314315981. You can also dial in using your phone. Dial 616 and enter the access code 314-315-981. Let us use today's technology to unite us in our Serran mission through prayer. Humble prayer plants the see of all great things, including awareness, affirmation, support, and awakening to the call of vocations. Please join us! Mark November 26 and December 31 on your calendars as well as we close out the year.
October 30, 2016. Priesthood Sunday. See serraus.org for the link to ordering materials for preparation at your parish.
Looking Ahead....
November 24, 2016. Member-Guest Reception, 5:30 p.m. at the University Club. Please be working on your list of potential members to invite. Heavy hors d'oeuvres will be served.
News from Aid to the Church in Need. Refugee camp ordinations renew hope.
An ordination in a refugee camp in Erbil, northern Iraq, has given hope to displaced Christians--and more are planned.
Four young seminarians, who fled Qaraqosh on Iraq's Nineveh Plains when Daesh seized the city in August 2014, were ordained in Marcy 2016. Qaraqosh's St. Ephriam Seminary is now under the control of extremists, so the seminarians finished their studies in Lebanon.
Syriac Catholic Archbishop Botrous Moshe told ACN: "Such celebrations give the people hope. Despite the situation we live in, we can continue to live our faith." Archbishop Moshe of Musul--another city being held by Daesh--ordained the young men with concelebrants from other Catholic Churches. Bishops from Orthodox Churches also took part in the ceremony.
ACN is committed to supporting the training of seminarians in Iraq, Syria, and across the Middle East, providing Mass stipends for priests in the region. Telling ACN that First Holy Communions were also being carried out, Archbishop Moshe said, "Life goes on as usual despite displacement, and another ordination took place in late summer 2016. Please remember in your prayers those who offer their lives as priests for the glory of God and the service of their people, especially, those in greatest need."
Let us also remember in our prayers, Fr. Engelmar Unzeitig, who was beatified by Pope Francis on September 25, 2016.
Father Unzeitig was arrested by Nazis in 1941, at only 30 years old. He had been a priest for only two years, serving in Austria and Germany. His crime was preaching against the Third Reich and their treatment of the Jewish community. He continually encouraged the congregation to resist the Nazi regime and to keep their sights on the Lord, resulting in his incarceration in the concentration camp Dachau, known as the "largest monastery in the world" for its roughly 2,700 residents. The majority, 95 percent, of the men housed at Dachau, were Catholic priests from Poland.
While at the camp, Fr. Unzeitig learned Russian to help the prisoners coming from Eastern Europe, leading to his reputation as a holy man. He remained int he camp for several years, where he stayed relatively healthy, until typhoid fever made its way through the camp in 1945.
Twenty priests volunteered to minister to those who were struck down by the often fatal disease. Fr. Unzeitig cared for the sick until March 2, 1945, when he succumbed to the fever himself. Three weeks later, Dachau was liberated by American soldiers.
Fr. Unzeitig's heroic virtue was recognized by Benedict XVI in 2009, when he was declared "Venerable."
In January, 2016, Pope Francis acknowledged Fr. Unzeitig as a martyr, and this past Saturday, Pope Francis proclaimed him "Blessed."
Who Doesn't Know You're a Serran?
After a summer of vacation and traveling, autumn is the typical time that Serrans roll up their sleeves and get back to work for vocations. Does everyone at your parish, diocese and community know about Serra? If not, shouldn't they?
Celebrate your club's recommitent this autumn by vowing to become more visible in your community. Serrans are working mightily for vocations, and everyone should know it!
If you do not have a Serra pin, let Weldon know, or your may shop at the Serra e-store now. Order any pin or pendant from the Serra e-store during October and get 10% off.
A Message From Our President.
This past week the diocesan priests gathered for their convocation. They have requested our assistance, similar to what we have provided in the past, by way of sponsorship. Under his now full-time role as Director, Continuing Formation of Priests, Fr. Ron Hutchinson wishes to redevelop the relationship with the Serra Club and develop our role in providing for the continuing formation of priests as part of our support for the priesthood and religious life.
Additionally, the Catholic Lawyers of Western Michigan will be hosting the annual Red Mass on October 5 at St. Andrew's Cathedral and Cathedral Square. Our Membership Director, Weldon Schwartz, and I will both be in attendance and would like to support the Red Mass. Weldon is working on securing Serra Club prayer books from Bob Barrett, which we hope to make available at each of the tables at the dinner following the Red Mass. Because of the Catholic Lawyers' annual participation in the Red Mass, we feel this is a golden opportunity to spread the Serra word.
If you are so inclined, please let Pat Leikert know that you would like to donate to one or both events and he will include your contribution in your next dues statement. Our goal is to raise $600 for the Fall Convocation and $200 for the Red Mass. Pat can be reached at 616-459-2233 Extention 12 or pleikert@dolinkacpa.com. Thank you for your generous donations, thoughts and prayers. Always forward, never back!
Sara VanderWerff
Mary, Mother of Vocations, Pray for Us.
Let us also pray...
John Osterhart passed along a message from Greg Schweitz that Sean Yeo of the Singapore Serra Club has been very ill with a number of serious problems. He immediately preceded Dan Grady as President of Serra International. Let us keep him and his wife Lucy in our prayers.
On September 27, Greg Schweitz wrote:
"Mary Lynn and I visited Sean Yeo and Lucy in their home during a recent trip to Singapore. While the over two-hour visit was uplifting and warm, we must tell you than Sean is a very sick man, and Lucy, a truly devoted and caring wife. They need our prayers...
Overall, Sean appears to be alert, though mostly quiet, letting Lucy do most of the talking. He is bedridden. He says he remains tired and sleeps a lot, and in between physical therapy and meals, he reads and attends to some business, somehow. He has lost over 40 pounds since the discovery of his illness...
Sean is the oldest of four children. All of his siblings live in Singapore. Family members provide ongoing physical and psychological help. Local priests have celebrated mass in their home over the past months. As you can well imagine, their faith and devotion carry and sustain them through this difficult time. Our Lady of Fatima is invoked frequently.
So, our Brother Sean needs our prayers and support. He and Lucy are going through a very difficult time in their lives, and prayer and expressions of support are greatly needed. I recommend that you use Lucy's e-mail to send your notes at lucychew@singnet.com.sg, and if you wish to call or text, her cell phone is 65 9672 2938. To send a note, card, or token of affection, their Singapore address is Buona Lodge, 1 Zender Road, #03-04, Singapore, 117686.
Saint Junipero Serra, Pra for Sean and his family, for his recovery and for the strength to endure this trial.
John Osterhart forwarded this message from Greg.
What doth the Lord require of thee, but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God. Micah 6:8.
Mary, Mother of Vocations, Pray for Us.
