We Lovingly Offer our Prayers for You
The cloistered Carmelite Sisters of Rochester New York have adopted our parish.
Sisters of Life
St. Paul the Apostle Convent is home to a community of the Sisters of Life.
Full of Grace or Highly Favored?
12-05-2021Sometimes a question arises with respect to the translation of the Angel Gabriel’s words at the Annunciation: why do some Bibles say Rejoice O highly favored daughter instead of Hail full of grace in reporting the words of the angel Gabriel at the annunciation. A number of years ago, the New American Bible translation was revised and the current translation says Hail full of grace because it is a superior translation of the Greek word used in St. Luke’s Gospel.
READ MOREAnnouncements & Events
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Bible Study and more!
Go to stpaulyonkers.formed.org and register which gives you access to quality Catholic on line programs, movies, audios, and books.
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Christmas Flower Memorial
Poinsettia Plants on the Christmas altar memorialize our loved ones. Please donate $20 for a memorial plant. Envelopes can be found in the back of the church.
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Coat Drive
The St. Paul' Men's Club is sponsoring a coat drive from Dec 4-19. Please donate coats, gloves, and scarves. Leave all donations in the Church vestibule.
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Annual National Night of Prayer for Life
Add Wed, Dec 8 - Thu, Dec 9
begins at 9:00pm on Wed, Dec 8 to 1:00am on Thu, Dec 9
During the Hour of Unity, 12:00-1:00am EST, we will be united with churches across the country in prayer.
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Wed, Dec 8 - the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception - is a Holy Day of Obligation
Add Wed, Dec 8
Mass times: 6:45am, 9:00am, 12:00pm (Latin ), 7:30pm
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Silver Rose Prayer Service
Add Sun, Dec 12 @ 3:00 PM
The Knights of Columbus will be sponsoring a Silver Rose Prayer Service on Sun, Dec 12 at 3:00pm at our parish to honor Our Lady of Guadalupe and promote the dignity of all human life from conception to natural death.
The Cardinal's Annual Stewardship Appeal 2021
Our goal is $51,000. In these trouble times we are very grateful for your sacrifice and generosity. God bless all of you and keep you safe.
We have begun the 2021 Cardinal’s Annual Stewardship Appeal. For those of you who are loyal supporters of the Appeal, I thank you! Your generosity has supported ministries and apostolates across the archdiocese, through which so many people have come to know and love our Lord more deeply. Our goal is $51,000. We’re at $7,465 at this point, 14% of goal. In these trouble times we are very grateful for your sacrifice and generosity. Gifts can be made in the ordinary manner or online at cardinalsappeal.org God bless all of you and keep you safe.
Yours in Christ, Father Leonard F. Villa
The Virgin Mary Preparing for Final Victory
12-08-2021From the homily of Cardinal Ivan Dias, legate of the Holy Father for the opening of the celebrations of the beginning of the Jubilee of the 150th anniversary of the Apparitions of Blessed Virgin Mary at Lourdes, delivered (December 8, 2007):
... After her apparitions at Lourdes, the Holy Virgin has not ceased to manifest her great maternal concerns for the fate of mankind in her several apparitions worldwide.
READ MORERectitude of Intention
12-01-2021The life of the first Christians and their witness to the world make known to us their quality and their character. Their norm of conduct was not to take the easy way out, or opt for the more comfortable line or the more popular decision but rather did they seek to fulfill completely the will of God. They ignored the danger of death… they forgot how few they were, they never noticed how many were against them or the power or strength or wisdom of their enemies. Their power was greater than all of that: theirs was the power of him who had died on the Cross and risen again.[i] They had their gaze riveted on Christ, who gave his life for all men. They were not seeking their own personal glory, nor the applause of their fellow citizens. They always acted with a right intention, because they had their eyes fixed on the Lord. That is what allows St. Stephen to say at the moment of his martyrdom: Lord do not take their sin into account…[ii]
READ MOREThere’s Language ….And Then There’s Sacred Language
11-21-2021John Byron KuhnerThere was a recent article in Inside the Vatican September-October 2021 wherein the author John Byron Kuhner raises the question how does language operate in the liturgy? He then asks the provocative question: why wouldn’t we want our prayers and Mass in the mother tongue instead of Latin? In answering this question he raises the notion not simply of language but what’s called hieratic or sacred language. A couple of bullet points from his essay:
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St. Paul the Apostle Parish Mission
The Parish of Saint Paul Apostle under the guidance of the Holy Spirit informs the response of the believer to the presence of Jesus through conversion. In this process strengthened and maintained by prayer, worship and catholic action, individuals become Christ in this twenty first century.
At Sunday Eucharist all gather to hear God’s Word in the Scriptures. Gradually an understanding of life’s make-up deepens and the rich meaning of living through union with Jesus opens a fuller connection to His focal work at Calvary. Through God’s unfolding grace the purpose of faith is being fulfilled by our incorporation with Him in our Eucharistic – “this holy and perfect sacrifice: the bread of life and the cup of eternal salvation.” Conversion or being awakened to the mystery of His Death and Resurrection calls for the essential supports necessary to live out this process. Through prayer the Holy Spirit accommodates believers to the revelation of the Loving Father whom Jesus introduces. Worship offers depth of awe reflected in the love of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Catholic action flows from the desire to make God’s Love real to others in this life.
Our Patron Saint
Paul the Apostle commonly known as Saint Paul and also known by his Hebrew name Saul of Tarsus was an apostle (although not one of the Twelve Apostles) who taught the gospel of Christ to the first-century world. Paul is generally considered one of the most important figures of the Apostolic Age and from the mid-30s to the mid-50s AD he founded several Christian communities in Asia Minor and Europe. He took advantage of his status as both a Jew and a Roman citizen to minister to both Jewish and Roman audiences.
According to the New Testament book Acts of the Apostles (often simply called Acts), Paul persecuted some of the early disciples of Jesus, possibly Hellenised diaspora Jews converted to Christianity, in the area of Jerusalem prior to his conversion. In the narrative of Acts, Paul was traveling on the road from Jerusalem to Damascus on a mission to "arrest them and bring them back to Jerusalem" when the resurrected Jesus appeared to him in a great light. He was struck blind, but after three days his sight was restored by Ananias of Damascus and Paul began to preach that Jesus of Nazareth is the Jewish Messiah and the Son of God. Approximately half of the book of Acts deals with Paul's life and works.
In Catholic tradition whoever has St. Paul the Apostle as patron also has St. Peter the Apostle as patron as well. In the traditional liturgy on a feast or votive Mass of St. Paul a prayer to St. Peter is always added and vice versa.