Thank you from the Beyond Cornerstone Service Ministry

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During the summer we continue to meet the needs of the Sisters at the St. Augustine's soup kitchen.

Deni thanks everyone for responding to her request for water donations. It was our biggest donation of water yet. It was amazing!!! Please keep the water coming throughout this hot weather. We will definitely need to deliver water every one to two weeks.

Tiffany coordinated a Day of Summer Camp, held on July 15th, for approximately 40 children ages 6 to 14 at St Augustine’s Church. Eight volunteers, consisting of friends and parishioners from St Thomas the Apostle Church, lead an afternoon filled with a visit from Mike’s Ice Cream Truck, Arts & Crafts (Eucharist project & Bracelet Making), dinner, and a school supplies backpack give away donated by Covanta Essex. The children also enjoyed singing with the Sisters and play time outside. Thank you to everyone who donated their time, talent, or treasure to making this day an overwhelming success.

Joanne Hand continues to deliver supplies requested by the nuns as well as donated food containers and women's summer clothes. Joanne also spends time at the kitchen helping to serve meals.

In June, Joseph and Diana delivered food for 150 hearty meals. Joyce Cupoli will coordinate the meal delivery for August 28th.

As we express our sincere thank you for all your help, we also ask for your continued support in meeting the needs of those depending on the service of the soup kitchen.

Deacon Tom's Homily Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time

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IN OUR GOSPEL TODAY, WE SEE Martha, the perfect hostess, providing outstanding hospitality for Jesus, her guest. While her sister, Mary, sits at Jesus’ feet, listening intently to His Words, just as disciples for hundreds and hundreds of years before her, sat at their masters’ feet.

JESUS TELLS US TODAY THAT MARY has chosen the better part, letting us know, as His disciples, that we are to spend our days sitting at Jesus’ feet and listening intently to His Words. But, how are we to do this? We have responsibilities; we have a job!

WE DO THIS BY COMBINING OUR work and our prayer so that all day our hearts are joined to God.

ONE WAY TO ACCOMPLISH THIS IS BY briefly lifting up our heart to God dozens of times during the course of the day. Upon rising, for example, we can offer our whole day to God by saying something like: “O my God, I offer You this day/All that I shall think and do and say/Uniting it with what was done/On earth, by Jesus Christ Your Son.” Or, if that’s too long, we could simply say, “Dear God, I offer You this day.”

AT LUNCHTIME, WE CAN SAY, “I LOVE You, Lord Jesus; thank You for all Your Love.” And again, often throughout the day we can ask Jesus to help us and say to Him often, “Praise You, Lord Jesus.” We spend our whole day adoring the Lord and receiving His Blessings.

THE HOLY SPIRIT, DWELLING WITHIN us, will give us the words to say. He will help us to pray frequently.

THEN, WHETHER WE’RE GETTING washed and dressed to go to work, or whether we’re picking up the children after school, or simply putting a box of Cheerios into our ShopRite cart, we can possess Our Blessed Lord in as great tranquility as if we were on our knees in front of the Blessed Sacrament! We come to realize that we are never alone!

A FEW YEARS AGO, A MAN NAMED Dave was bedridden with terminal cancer. He had a chair moved right up next to his bed so he could picture Jesus sitting there next to him. Whenever Dave was alone, he would converse with Jesus, talking to Him, praying to Him, listening to Him.

WHEN DAVE DIED, HIS DAUGHTER called his best friend to tell him that Dave had just passed away. “When I was leaving the house around 2 o’clock,” she explained, “My father called me over to his beside and kissed me on the cheek. When I got back from the store about an hour later, I found him dead. But there was something strange. Apparently, just before Daddy died, for some reason, he leaned over and rested his head on the chair beside his bed.” JESUS HAS PROMISED US, “AND behold, I am with you always, until the end of the world.”

Donation to Toni’s Kitchen

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Many thanks to our CCD Summer Program children who collected and donated food to our St. Thomas Food Pantry. With the Summer CCD donation, balanced with food items already in our food pantry supplied by our parishioners, St. Thomas was able to make a sizable donation to Toni’s Kitchen in Montclair. Toni’s Kitchen provides food to neighbors in need, in ways that respect peoples dignity, improve health and foster independence. In the words of St. Mother Teresa, “Intense love does not measure, it just gives.”

Solemnity of St. Thomas 6.3.2022

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On July 3, 2022 the parish celebrated the Solemnity of St. Thomas. This day is a Sunday in Ordinary Time all around the world, however because the feast of our parish patron saint fell on this day we were able to celebrate it as a Solemnity.

The mass was offered with incense and parishioners were blessed with a relic of St. Thomas. The 10AM mass was followed with a reception hosted by our new parish council.

St. Thomas the Apostle is the patron saint of judges and architects. St. Thomas the Apostle, pray for us!

Donations Needed for Our Food Pantry

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St. Mother Teresa said, “God loves the world through you and me.”

Our food pantry is a channel for God to love the world. Thanks to you, the parishioners of St. Thomas, many hungry souls have been fed both within our parish and outside our parish. We understand that the price of food has risen dramatically, but still, the hungry remain with us. We ask you to please continue donating non-perishable food items to our food pantry, whatever you can afford.

You can see the best suitable items listed in our previous post here and below. Supermarket gift cards are also welcome. Thank you and God bless you!

  • Donated food should be left inside the "handicap accessible” doorway at the back south side of the Church. Be careful not to place bags or boxes in the path of foot traffic.

  • Only non-perishable food items are suitable for our Food Pantry (i.e., peanut butter, jelly, cereal, oatmeal, pancake mix, syrup, coffee, tea bags, canned tuna, boxed macaroni and cheese, canned vegetables, canned fruit, canned fruit juice, canned soups, canned stews, pasta sauce, pasta, bagged rice, canned or bagged beans, powdered potatoes, powdered milk, stuffing mix, cake mix, and baby food)

  • Supermarket Gift Cards are gladly accepted. Please drop them off at the parish center. Please contact the parish center if you wish to donate fresh/frozen beef or poultry (only current sell-by date).

LET US PRAY

O God, thank you for the abundance of life, relationships, health, comfort, and wealth you have provided.  Thank you that even in times of need, despair, and brokenness, you are there. And, Lord, guide us, so we can be your hands and feet, pursuing justice for the poor and upholding the cause of the needy. Amen.

Peace!

Your friend in Christ,

Deacon Brian

Statement of Cardinal Joseph Tobin on the United States Supreme Court ruling on Dobbs v. Jackson Matter

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Cardinal Tobin’s official statement can be viewed on the Archdiocese website here.

The United States Supreme Court’s ruling on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization to overturn the 1973 decision that legalized abortion nationwide recognizes that even the most helpless and dependent human beings have a right to life and possess inherent dignity and worth.

The Catholic Church teaches that all human life is sacred, from conception to natural death. We must oppose the many threats to human life and dignity evident in contemporary society, including abortion, euthanasia, assisted suicide, and capital punishment.

Abortion represents a failure to recognize the sanctity of human life and promotes a culture in which human life in its most vulnerable moment is perceived as disposable. It is telling that in the public debate, the unborn child frequently disappears from the moral calculus.

Furthermore, abortion is not healthcare. It is a disastrous attempt to create a false equivalency between the taking of innocent human life and the “reproductive health” of women in our society. It results in inhuman and lethal consequences.

We join with Pope Francis in noting that “it is troubling to see how simple and convenient it has become for some to deny the existence of a human life as a solution to problems that can and must be solved for both the mother and her unborn child” (Pope Francis, address to the United Nations, Sept. 25, 2020). Our Holy Father has repeatedly said that abortion is not a religious issue; it’s a human rights issue.

We recognize that a woman’s decision to have an abortion is often tragic and painful. A woman who takes this desperate action is often under great duress and is encouraged by social structures that are patently sinful. As people who care deeply for all women struggling with unplanned or unwanted pregnancies, we must ensure that life-giving options are available and our support does not end simply with the birth of a child.

We recognize that a significant number of our fellow citizens are angered by this decision of our nation’s highest Court. We hope that all Americans can discuss respectfully how best to support women who face crucial decisions while recognizing the dignity of the most vulnerable among us.

We agree with the analysis of Pope Francis, who has made it clear that if we fail to protect life, no other rights matter.