In this weekend’s gospel, Jesus compares the Kingdom to God to three images: a treasure buried in afield, a pearl of great price, and a net thrown into the sea. What do you consider to be your ultimatetreasure or your pearl of great price? Are you willing to do whatever it takes to possess it?  In anotherpart of Matthew’s gospel, he also writes: “for where your treasure is, there your heart will also be”.

A few weeks ago, I shared in one of my homilies about my conversation with a very good friend ofmine.  He called me up to say hello and to check in as to how things were going. Steve and I are veryclose friends, and we can be brutally honest to one another. I asked him if he and his family havealready signed up for Mass at their parish in SE. There was a long pause, and he said, “No, I refuse tosign up because they are requiring us to wear masks! And I don’t believe in that”. I said, “Steve, are youwilling to give up the opportunity to participate in THE most important act of faith on earth and themost important gift that God has for us, the Eucharist, all because of your political views? I thought itwas clear to you that the Eucharist is our greatest treasure here on earth.   I don’t care about yourpolitics, just go to Mass my friend. Don’t cheapen the Eucharist. If you are in one of the at riskcategories, I would understand your hesitation. Our political views on many things take a backseatonce the Eucharist is the subject.” His wife told me a few days later that he signed up for Mass thefollowing week.

Yes, eternal life is our greatest treasure, the pearl of great price!  But, while we are still here on earth,it is the Eucharist that is the closest that we can have for heaven! Let’s not trade it for ANYTHING!– Fr. Cary

ST. CECILIA CHURCHD I G I T A L N E W S L E T T E R

J U L Y 2 6 , 2 0 2 0 | 1 7 T H S U N D A Y O R D I N A R Y T I M E | I S S U E 1 8

5105 SW FRANKL IN AVE , BEAVERTON, OREGON 97005

(503) 644 - 26 19STCECILIACHURCH.ORG

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Sunday:9:00 am English10:45 am English2:30 pm Spanish

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What Is Your Pearl Of Great Price?

PASTOR'S LETTER

SUNDAY READINGSEnglish readings HERE Spanish readings HERE

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Donations can be delivered to the food pantrybetween the hours of 9 and 11 am. Thank you foryour generosity!

ST. VINCENT DE PAUL

PARISH GUIDELINES ON THEREOPENING OF MASSES

Parishioners can sign up to attend Mass byemailing massreg@stceciliachurch.org  with thefollowing information: name/s of the attendees,phone number and preferred Mass time. Whenyou sign up, please indicate if it is only forSunday (or the vigil) Mass, or if it is only for aweekday Mass, or for both. Anyone attendingMass does so at his or her own risk. Vulnerable,at-risk and otherwise concerned personsshould remain home. Anyone who has even theslightest symptoms or feelings of sickness mustremain home. For the complete parishguidelines on the parish re-opening,  pleaseclick this document.

Bill & Janet Motter, July 1, 15 yearsJerald Paulraj & Arockia Henishia, July 4, 15 yearsSean & Melanie Nygaard, July 9, 14 yearsJim & Anne Galbraith, July 10, 44 yearsIan & Mary Gamble, July 11, 22 yearsGeenthana & Agnita Kattar, July 11, 12 yearsSteve & Tania Rhein, July 12, 17 yearsRaymond & Bonnie Dibb, July 14, 30 yearsSam & Florence Inouye, July 16, 54 yearsDave & Nancy Andresen, July 19, 62 yearsDave & Peggy Brown, July 21, 58 yearsCurt & Angela Fingel, July 22, 15 yearsOscar & Ana Badillo, July 23, 26 yearsRick & Colette Evers, July 31, 39 yearsMatt & Chrissy Horne, July 31, 27 yearsAndy & Jenise Van Pelt, July 31, 16 years

JULY ANNIVERSARIES

MASS INTENTIONSSunday, July 267:30 AM - People of St. Cecilia9:00 AM - + Maria Pham10:45 AM - + Shannon Hanon-Hagler12:30 PM - Deacon Bill & Margarita Richardson2:30 PM - + Romulo Ancheta

Monday, July 278:00 AM - + Dennis Nye

Tuesday, July 288:00 AM - David & Fran Moen

Wednesday, July 298:00 AM - + Helen Clow

Thursday, July 308:00 AM - + Diana Skokan

Friday, July 318:00 AM - + Edwin Fackler

Saturday, August 18:00 AM - Cira Hernandez, Ruperto Herrera5:00 PM  - + Antonio Piscitelli7:00 PM - + Robert & Ruth Ann Saul

S T C E C I L I A C H U R C H . O R G 2

STEWARDSHIP

You can tithe directly to our parish by

visiting our website at:

 stceciliachurch.org/donate

NEW $300 TAX DEDUCTION FOR CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTIONS

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and EconomicSecurity (CARES) Act passed earlier this yearincludes one small, but key change, related todonations to charity. Among its many provisions,the CARES Act created an “above‐the‐line”charitable deduction starting in 2020 of up to$300 for charitable contributions made in cash. In other words, those taxpayers who take thestandard deduction (instead of itemizing) can nowreceive a $300 tax deduction for donating toeligible non‐ profit organizations.

22

INTERVIEW WITH FR. PETER JULIA,

PAROCHIAL VICAR (CONTINUED)

BY JIM CASSINELLI (RETIRED IN SOME WAYS)

S T C E C I L I A C H U R C H . O R G 3

Q: When did you enter the seminary?A: 2011/2012 somewhere around there. I always lose track.Q: When did you become a priest?A: June 15th of last year.Q: Are you open about being married/divorced?A: O yeah, very open about it. In my experience that has been something that has been very helpful for people toknow, and I think it's better for people to know that upfront. It was a big turning point in my life. I got theannulment probably two years before I ever entered seminary when I moved here for that job. For some reasonthere was something, I still to this day, still feel like a prompting of the Holy Spirit because I didn’t have any reasonto rush on it, but there was something telling me that I should just do this now, don’t wait; I did it, and I’m glad that Idid.Q: Since 2011/2012, you’ve been in Rome most of the time?A: Well, I went to Mt. Angel for their pre-theology program, same thing that Fr. Brent actually did. I had a degreefrom Baylor, but I had not studied any philosophy - it's required to study two years of philosophy before studyingtheology. Then I got sent to Rome.Q: You were in Rome for five years. What were you doing? A: We do theology for three years in Rome. I have a bachelors in theology from St. Thomas Aquinas in Romewhich is like the pontifical college of St. Thomas Aquinas. When you go to Rome, you get an additional degree, theLicentia, that’s another two years. In the European system that degree falls between a masters and a doctorate. Igot my license in spiritual theology. It sounds really broad, but I guess if you were to summarize it, it’s kind of like, Iwould say, our ascent to perfection, the individual path to holiness, when somebody kind of turns from theirnormal life towards God in that path, so of course you use the models of the lives of the saints.Q: You and Fr. Brent, did you go in about the same time? You are good friends?A: Yeah, he was actually a year ahead of me but, interestingly, we met in February at the discernment retreat withthe Archbishop. Fr. Brent decided to join that year, but I worked for an additional year and entered the followingyear. We had a good rapport at that retreat, and we kind of hit it off. The joke is that Fr. Brent is a far more quietguy in speech and how he lives his life. I’m far more the chatty person compared to him, kind of like when youmeet married couples and one is talkative. We used to go on walks and pray the Rosary together, and I had theopportunity to go down to visit his family in Applegate a couple times. I got him into rock climbing a little bit.Q: What’s the Saint you both talk about a lot?A: Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati.Q: What drew you to him, and Fr. Brent said he got into him too?A: It was funny. Just as we introduce one another to friends sometimes, the same thing happens with Saints. Fr. Brent and I have a close mutual friend, Fr. Cody Ross, who is a priest with the Archdiocese of Seattle. He’s thefirst one that told me about Blessed Pier Giorgio. I introduced Brent to him. We all kind of have a really strongdevotion to him. He kind of spoke to us. The three of us used to go adventuring, climb Mt. Hood, or go on a hike, and that was very near to Pier Giorgio’s heart. He kind of had a unique upbringing and combined those things sowell. I had a very unique opportunity of going over to Pier Giorgio’s niece’s home in Rome. I had dinner at herhome on a few different occasions, and she generally is the one in charge of the cause of his beatification. There isthis continuity of visiting with her, and she really loved that I was a real genuine climber. She thought that was thecoolest thing in the world.Q: So he was an outdoorsy guy?A: Yeah, he was a mountaineer, a skier and everything like that. Probably the most famous picture of him is on thetop of the peak holding an ice axe, and he has a pipe sticking out of the corner of his mouth.Q: Is there some particular passion you have with different age groups?A: I’ve always been a jack of all trades. I don’t really feel specifically specializing in one area or another per se.