February 10, 2019 (Pastor’s Corner)

From Fr. Sinoj Pynadath HGN, Parochial Vicar

Dear Friends in Christ,

I am very glad to reach you all once again through the bulletin. I thank God for all of you and for the abundance of His blessings upon us as a parish family. I am really happy and encouraged to see a good percentage of us, parishioners, participate in the activities of the parish. We had a good crowd for the presentation on “Vibrant Faith” from Dr. Edward Sri. Thanks to all who made this possible! Thanks to all of you for all you do in the life of the parish. May our spirit of communion flourish day by day.

An eye that sees.  The Gospel this weekend presents to us the call of the first disciples according to Luke. Simon Peter and friends after having worked all night and having caught no fish, might have felt silly when Jesus told them to cast the net into the deep. Jesus could see the abundance of fish in the sea. We need the eye that really sees. We should try to see the abundance of opportunities and blessings that we come across in our life. Many people saw steam raise the lid of a kettle; only James Watt went on to think of a steam engine. Many people saw apples fall; only Isaac Newton went on to think out the law of gravity. Our world is full of miracles for us. All what we need is the eye that sees. 

Tidings from India: Fr. Jerry is gathering valuable memories from India, the land of diversity, color, and tradition. February 10th is his birthday. He celebrates his landmark Birthday in the land of one of the ancient civilizations in the world. Let us remember him in our prayers. He conveys to all of you his greetings and gratitude for prayers. I am sure he will have lots of stories to tell. Let us patiently wait to hear from him about his trip. 

Beautiful chairs for our choir: The new set of chairs adds beauty to our Church. They come to us through the generosity of a family who didn’t want to publicize their favor. When the mother of the family passed away, a good amount of money was left as a bequest to the Church, and when Fr. Jerry asked them what they would like it to be used, they suggested to see new chairs for the choir and the altar. Truly it is a great gesture of generosity and belongingness. I would like to thank and appreciate the family in the name of Fr. Jerry and our St. Stephen Cathedral family. 

Saint Valentine, officially known as Saint Valentine of Rome, is a third-century Roman saint widely celebrated on February 14 and commonly associated with “courtly love.” Although not much of St. Valentine’s life, it is highly agreed that St. Valentine was martyred and then buried on the Via Flaminia to the north of Rome. In 1969, the Roman Catholic Church removed St. Valentine from the General Roman Calendar, because so little is known about him. St. Valentine is the Patron Saint of affianced couples, bee keepers, engaged couples, epilepsy, fainting, greetings, happy marriages, love, lovers, plague, travelers, and young people. He is represented in pictures with birds and roses and his feast day is celebrated on February 14.