July 5, 2020 ♥ FOURTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

St. Gregory the Great

224 Brooklyn Ave.

Brooklyn, NY 11213

Tel 718- 773-0100

Fax 718- 773-4198

Email: faithcommstgreg@aol.com

Mass Schedule:

Mon.– Fri 8:30am; Sat.Vigil-5pm

Sunday 10:00am

Saturday: Reconciliation-4:00 pm

Office Staff

Secretary: Rosanne Barber Ext.100

D.R.E: Monica Flemmings

Office Hours:

Monday - Friday: 8:00am-4:00pm

Saint Gregory the Great

Catholic Academy

Spiritual & Academic Excellence

Principal: Mr. Lawrence Cooke

2520 Church Ave.

Brooklyn N.Y.11226

Tel 718-282-2770;

Fax 718-774-3332

St. Matthew

1123 Eastern Pkwy.,

Brooklyn, NY 11213

Tel 718- 774-6747

Fax 718- 953-4895

Email: stmatthew1123@aol.com

Mass Schedule:

Monday-Friday 7:30am & 9:00am

Saturday 8:00am & 8:00pm

Saturday: Reconciliation-7:30 pm

or by appointment

Sunday:

English-7:30am & 11:30am

Spanish 9:30am; Kreyol 1:30pm

Office Staff

Secretary: Sharon Andrews

D.R.E.: Gloria Gonzaga

Office Hours:

Monday:9:30am-4:00pm

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday &

Friday: 9:30am-7:00pm

Saturday: 10:00am-7:00pm

Sunday: 9:00am-4:00pm

Our Lady Of Charity

1669 Dean St.,

Brooklyn, NY 11213

Tel 718- 774-5100

Fax 718- 778-3335

Email: OlcharityRC@aol.com

Mass Schedule:

Sunday: Rosary 9:00am

9:30am-Praise & Worship

10am-Mass

Office Staff:

Secretary: Patricia Romain

D.R.E.: Ethel Andoh-Menson

Office Hours:

Monday-Friday:10am-6pm

Catholic Cemeteries–

80-01 Metropolitan Ave.

Middle Village, NY 11379

Tel:718 – 894-4888

Pastoral Staff Pastor

Fr. Frank Black

In Residence Bishop Guy Sansaricq

Priests

Fr. Jean–Augustin

Francois

Fr. Thaddeus J. Abraham

Fr. Apollinaris Anyomi

Deacons

Roy George

Nickie Colon

Website: www.stmatthewrc.org

St. Matthew Parish

The 14th Sunday of Ordinary Time: On Yokes & Burdens

Today’s Gospel tells us about the Heart of Jesus. It gives us these words of comfort: “Come to me all you who labor and are burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am meek and humble of heart and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is

easy and my burden light.”

What do these words tell us about the Lord? What do they mean for us?

They tell us something about the image of God that is very different from the images of God we might have. Many of our images are of the Almighty Awesome Creator of the Universe. We think of the great frescos on the ceiling of

the Sistine Chapel as Michelangelo portrayed God creating the universe with a dazzling display of power. We think of the image of creation of Adam, and God’s powerful hand

touching the limp finger of the first man, giving him life. Or we think of some of the wonders of nature we may have experienced: the summits of the Rocky Mountains, the

great canyons of Arizona, or the fire red skies of a Tampa Bay Sunset. And we remember that God is the Awesome

Creator.

But He is more than this.

We also have images of Jesus the Son of God as the Judge of the living and dead. He is the One we will have to come before and present the work of our lives, not just the individual things we have done, but how well we have al-lowed His love to permeate the world. There is reward or punishment waiting, there is mercy and compassion, and there is justice. Again, going back to the Sistine Chapel,

Michelangelo depicts the scene of the Last Judgment showing the joy of the saved and the grief of the con-

demned. Jesus is the Just and Merciful Judge.

But He is more than this.

Jesus is meek and humble of heart. The prophet Zecha-riah prophesied that this is how our King would come to us. This was in today’s first reading from Zechariah 9:9. And

this is how Jesus presents himself in the Gospel, meek and humble of heart.

What does it mean to be meek? To be meek is to be pa-tient and gentle. This is not the surrender of rights or some

form of cowardice, but the opposite of sudden anger, of malice and of long harbored vengeance. Jesus is

meek. He is not waiting for the right time to strike us down for what we have done to Him, how we have attacked His Holiness with our sins, how we have attacked those whom He loves, or how we have attempted to thrust Him out of our lives. He is gentle. He is patient with us. Many of the parents of Teenagers are meek in just this way. They are patient with their Teens and not concerned with what their

children have said to them or even done to them.

When we say the Lord is meek, we do not mean that He is submissive. We mean that He is so full of love that He is willing to be patient. Perhaps some of the murderers will

have the opportunity to join the eternal family of the martyrs they created and themselves give witness to Christ.

What does all this mean to us? It means that we need to

give Jesus our burdens. This is more than the difficulties of life, sickness, marriage or family problems, etc. Yes, we give these to the Lord, but there is more than this that He

wants. He wants us to give Him all that is keeping us from Him. Perhaps there are sinful hidden closets in our

lives. We are ashamed. Perhaps there is some form of substance abuse. Perhaps there is some form of sexual

immorality. Perhaps we have difficulty forgiving those who have hurt us. Maybe we have committed serious sins. We had an abortion or we convinced another to have an abor-tion. Often we are afraid that God is never going to forgive us. We have attacked Him, willingly and knowingly. How can we seek forgiveness? So, we think that we are con-demned to go through life carrying these burdens only to

wait for everlasting punishment after we die.

“No,” the Lord says, “Give me your burdens, come to me for I am meek and humble of heart.” He is saying, “I am not so offended that I am shutting off mercy and compas-sion. I am not concerned about myself. I am concerned about you. I suffered on the cross for you. Give me your burdens. I want them, no matter how ugly, how messy

they may be.”

And then the Lord says, “And you will find rest for your-selves, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” The burden of being a Christian is light next to the burden of carrying our sins to the grave and beyond. Following the

way of holiness, being separate from what others consider everyday life, is a lighter burden than carrying the weight of guilt that results from choosing to be part of the crowd that exalts in its immorality. Holiness is being different from the immoral crowd. Holiness is accepting the way of the Lord.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI told young people: “The world offers you comfort. But you were not made for com-fort. You were made for greatness.” Every one of us was created for greatness. To achieve this greatness means that there are times that we have to reject the comfort of

the world. There are times that we have to be uncomfort-able. But we were not created for comfort. We were not

created to be part of the crowd. We were created for great-ness. That is the burden, that is the yoke, that Jesus calls

us to accept in today’s Gospel.

But is that burden, the burden of living moral lives, really so difficult? Not when it is compared to the burden of car-rying sin. It is so much easier to carry the burden of the Lord. The burden the Lord puts on us brings us joy. It

brings us peace with ourselves in this life and total union with Him in the next life.

It is easy for us to sin. It is difficult to live with our sins. It can be a challenge to avoid sin, even a burden. But it is a joy to live free of sin. It is a joy to join those who sing with

their lives, “All is well, all is well with my soul.”

“Come to me all you who labor and are burdened and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me

for I am meek and humble of heart and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy and my burden light.”

BREAD & WINE, CANDLE, BLESSINGS MASS INTENTIONS

ST. MATTHEW: MASS INTENTIONS

Saturday July 4

8:00pm– Wedding anniversary blessings for Simone & Anthony Lambert by Cita Ferguson

Sunday July 5

7:30am– Members of the Altar Rosary Society

9:30am—Thanksgiving to the Sacred Heart of Jesus by Raquel George

11:30am– Birthday blessings in heaven Elizabeth Augustin by Augusta Williams

1:30pm–Healing for all who are sick with Covid19

Monday July 6

St. Maria Goretti

7:30am - Healing & blessings for clergy & community of St. Matthew by Althea Pierre

9:00am – To St. Michael & the Holy Spirit by Carmen Edouard

Tuesday July 7

7:30am – For an end to the Corona virus epidemic

9:00am – Birthday blessings Euril Bartholomew

Wednesday July 8

7:30am– Birthday blessings Arlene Hook, God’s blessings & guidance by mom, Floe Patrick

9:00am– God’s healing blood on Keetha

Thursday July 9

7:30am– Peace in our country & the world

9:00am– That Mary’s blue mantle will surround & comfort those who are mourning

Friday July 10

7:30am– Healing for Fr. Andy

9:00am– Healing for Lydia

Saturday July 11

8:00am– Anniversary blessings for Sylvain Chireau by family

WEEKLY READINGS

Sun July 5 Zec 9:9-10;Rom 8:9,11-13; Mt11:25-30

Mon July 6 Hos 2:16,17-18,21-22; Mt 9:18-26

Tue July 7 Hos 8:4-7,11-13; Mt 9:32-38

Wed July 8 Hos 10:1-3,7-8,12; Mt 10:1-7

Thu July 9 Hos 11:1-4,8-9; Mt 10:7-15

Fri July 10 Hos 14:2-10; Mt 10:16-23

Sat July 11 Is 6: 1-8; Mt 10: 24-33

St. Gregory Mass Intentions

Sanctuary Candle July 5-July 11

Blessings & guidance for Pierre Andre Edouard requested by

Carmen Edouard

Parish update due to covid19

Please check our Parish website at stmatthew-brooklyn.org and our Face Book Page for updates regarding the opening of the churches

and for additional pertinent information.

Announcements will be made at the 5 PM Vigil Mass and the Sunday Masses at 10 AM in the

church. (note that we are back with our Sunday Summer Mass Schedule starting on Sunday, July 5

th until

the end of August, 2020.)

All masses will be in the church as we are practicing social distancing.

We need volunteers to clean after each mass

starting Saturday, July 4th

2020. Please call the Rectory office and leave your name and your

contact information and your availability. Thanking you in advance for your continued support and patience during this pandemic.

UPCOMING MEETINGS & EVENTS @ ST.GREGORY

First Satur-

day,

July 4th

5 PM Mass for Stephen Jack, In Thanksgiving for Life,

Requested by The Family

Sunday

July 5th

10 AM Mass for Brent Leonce, R.I.P., Requested by The Leonce Family

Saturday,

July 11th

5 PM Mass for Elton J. Hurley, R.I.P., Requested by

The Family

WEEKLY MEETINGS - St. Matthew REMEMBER IN OUR PRAYERS

For the homebound, hospitalized and sick

Komi Adjakey, Carmen Allen, Armelle Amilcar, Fr. Andy, Marie Augustin, Monica Belfon, Patricia

Bowen, Silvestre Brathwaite, Ismay Brewster, Yolande Cadet, Vilma Carter, Delcia Charles, Jemma Christian, Enide Clarke, Cecilia Clovie, Nelia Collins,

Virginia Cox, Maurice Earl Cunningham, Mother Veronica Dale, Angelia Daniels, Shirley Daniels,

Calvert Davis, Dorothy Edwards, Stella Emmanuel, Mother Carrie Frasier, Cynthia Gairy, John Gale, Nelida Gavrilon, Muriel Gomez, Trina Gonzalez,

Gwendolyn Harding, Elreta Hinds, Pierre Hinds, Joan Hudson, Danielle Huie, Enid Huntley, Kerlyne

Hyppolite, Serge Jabouin, Marie Rose Jabouin, Fernando James, Roberto Jennings, Judith Joseph, Elfreda Kedroe, Albert Kirton, Peter Kirton, Deacon James Lacy, Kanelle Lang, Percival Lewis, Rhoda

Lewis, Sampson Lewis, Barbara Manuel, Luis Manuel Lorenzo, Madelin Lorenzo, Norberto Lovell, Yvonne Lovell, Jean Lubin, Barbara Manuel, Mother Virginia Marcellin, Judith Matthew, Mother Pearl Matthews,

Leticia McDowell, Vernita McDowell, Kerry Mills, Isai Munoz, Marta Munoz, Nelson Munoz, Suzanna Neil,

Mother Dolores Olff, Ronaldo Nano Paul, Chung Peters, Marie Pierre, Sonia Prescot, Ryan

Ramsroop, Dorothy Irons Reid, Catherine Richards, Carl Roberts, Carlos Rudas, Elizabeth Sampson, Lidia Saunders, Rachel Saunders, Lisa Scott, Carl

Serrette, Pearl Shaw, Frances Smith, Pamela Smith, Pema Smith, John Spellman Sr., Lisa Scott Spencer, Kevin St. Clare, Angela Thomas, Edris Thomas, Ethel

Thompson, Mother Margaret Thompson, Lyonette Tribie, Janet Throne, Carmen Valentine, Martel

Vendryes, Yvonne Warner, Leandro Wilson, Elodia Zuniga, Vilma Zuniga

SPECIAL PRAYERS FOR : Roberta Jennings, Dorothy Briggs, Dean Jackson,

Pauline Marcelle, Yolande, Taveri & Logan Cadore, Gwendolyn White, Kerry Mills, Damien Thomas,

Shennel Noel, Nickell Best, Perry Pierre, Sheldon Brathwaite, Maura Chisam, Daphne Critchlow, John

Spellman Sr., Brandon Williams, Lisa Scott/ Spencer, Walter Edward Smith Sr., Sharon Gabriel, Hezekiah Jackson, The Mc Nabb, Griffith, Douglas families,

All students, teachers and principals, President

Donald Trump & family, our Government, prayers and petitions in our prayer basket, for the all Priest

especially those who serve here at Charity, Religious Vocations, and an increase in Religious Vocations, all men and women serving our country, the elders,

all who are incarcerated, and unexpressed prayers, for immigrants, the DACA program, the mentally sick,

and for world peace,

We pray to the Lord.

St. Matthew and Our Lady of Charity weekly meet-

ings are all postponed until further notice.

Please check our website for further updates.

Stay safe.

WEEK OF SUNDAY 07/05/20 @ ST. GREGORY

+ Sunday School Classes Cancelled

+ Marcus Garvey Manor Postponed until further notice

+ Senior Choir Rehearsal – Cancelled

+ 10 AM Mass Resumed – Church

+ CREDIT UNION CLOSED

+ GIFT SHOP CLOSED

MONDAY 07/06/20

+ 8:30 AM Mass – Church

+ Rehearsal Senior & Vigil Choirs- Cancelled

TUESDAY 07/07/20

+ 8:30 AM Mass - Church

+ Bible Study with Bishop Sansaricq -Cancelled

WEDNESDAY 07/08/20

+ 8:30 AM Mass - Church

+ School Mass – Holy Cross- Cancelled

THURSDAY 07/09/20

+ 8:30 AM Mass- Church

+ Senior Bible Study & OPEN ARISE English Speak-

ing Prayer Group with Dolores Sykes – Cancelled

FRIDAY 07/10/20

+ 8:30 AM Mass – Church

SATURDAY 07/11/20

+ Private Confessions – OPEN and will be conducted

outside the Churches. PLEASE WEAR A MASK.

+Vigil Choir Rehearsal-Cancelled

+ 5 PM Vigil Mass – Church

+ Light Fest Prayer Group – Postponed until further

notice

WEEKLY MEETINGS—St. Gregory

UPCOMING PARISH EVENTS

St. Gregory the Great Catholic Academy aligned with

the parishes of: Holy Cross, St. Matthew, St. Joseph

/St. Teresa offers a quality nationally accredited

academic education with Christian values in a Roman

Catholic environment for Grades PreK-3 through

Grade 8 and Pre K For ALL (KALL). Scholarships

available; application deadline: April1st.

Located: 2520 Church Ave. between Rogers

& Bedford Aves.

Convenient to: B41, B44, B44Select Bus, B35, B49, IRT

#2 & #5. Ongoing registration and tours: Please call

718-774-3330

ST. GREGORY THE GREAT ACADEMY

VERY IMPORTANT INFORMATION We have now reopened and have regular Mass

schedule but we are still live streaming for those who

are unable to attend Mass

@ https://stmatthew-brooklyn.org

Monday through Sunday.

The rectory is now open and you can stop by to

schedule your Mass intentions. The new Rectory

hours are Monday from 10 AM to 4PM;

Tuesday - Saturday from 10 AM to 6PM and

Sunday 9AM—4 PM.

To see a priest you can schedule an

appointment @718.774.6747

I would also ask, your circumstances permitting, that you consider continuing your financial support of our parish. With the suspension of our regular offertory

collections, costs associated with managing the par-ish, such as heat, insurance, electricity, and skeletal

staff continue to grow. I would ask that you prayerfully consider making your regular offertory commitment

(please enclose checks not cash). For those who are able, please go to the internet contact Faith Direct,

https:membership.faithdirect.net/NY970 or go

our webpage at https://stmatthew-brooklyn.org to donate to the parish that way. It can be one time or a regular donation, anything is appreciated. Re-

member, now more than ever, without you there is no parish.

You can also visit our Facebook page for updates at St. Matthew Roman Catholic Church- Brooklyn N Y.

Thank you for all that you do for our parish. We will, as a community of faith, emerge from these chal-lenges provide that we as the apostles did on the

Sea of Galilee, place our hope and trust in our Heav-enly Father.

ST. MATTHEW

The Church is now open for the celebration of Daily Mass and Sunday Mass. The capacity is limited to 25%. In St. Matthew that means 131 people, in St.

Gregory 104 and in Our Lady of Charity 52.

Attendance is based on a first come basis and you must wear a mask and adhere to the social distanc-

ing.( six feet) Please follow the instructions of the ushers in order

for everyone to be safe.

Mass is still being celebrated via our streaming

services. We are streaming the mass daily on our website. You can also visit the Net on your cable

channel to see mass daily. Please join us as we cele-brate Mass together via the web or TV.

We have some updated information on our

website regarding opening the church for:

Private Prayer and Devotion, Funerals, Weddings Baptisms

Mass & Church Opening

SCHOOL OF RELIGION @ ST. MATTHEW

SACRAMENTS & REGISTRATION

PARISH REGISTRATION

We urge everyone to register in the parish. Any letter concerning sponsorship for the sacraments or testi-monial letters will only be issued to registered pa-rishioners of 6+ months. Please register @ the rec-tory, you can fill out the form on the left and bring to

the rectory

BAPTISM: .

To have your child baptized in St. Matthew, you must

pick up a list of requirements in the rectory

MARRIAGE:

Marriage sacrament requires a time of spiritual

preparation. Therefore, couples should make ar-

rangements six months to a year before the planned

date, by making an appointment with the parish priest

ANOINTING OF THE SICK:

If you or a loved one is near death or very ill and need

a priest , we encourage you to call the chaplain of the

hospital or call our rectory

PASTORAL CARE MINISTRY

If anyone is interested in joining the Pastoral Care Homebound Ministry please leave your name and

telephone number in the rectory.

RCIA

RCIA stands for RITE OF CHRISTIAN INITIATION

OF ADULTS and is composed of a series of sessions

bringing people together to experience the prayer life

of the church as well as learn about its doctrines and

teachings. Using the readings from the Bible which

we hear daily at Mass, the Sacred Liturgy as well as

the Catechism of the Catholic Church, teens and

adults who have not yet done so prepare themselves

to receive the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation &

Holy Eucharist.

RCIA is offered in Spanish, Kreyol & English and

is for people who:

Were baptized in the Catholic Church but have

not received the sacrament of Confirmation,

First Holy Communion or First Confession

Were baptized in another Christian denomination

and wish to join the Catholic Church

Were never baptized & wish to fully worship in the

Catholic Church

Wants to know more about what it means to be

Catholic?

The sessions begin in October. If you are interested

in knowing more, please contact the rectory.

School of Religion @ Our Lady of Charity

Registration for school of religion is now CLOSED.

School of Religion @ St. Gregory

Registration for Sacrament classes is now CLOSED.

However, there will be ongoing

registration for all Non-Sacramental classes

School of Religion @ St. Matthew

Registration is now CLOSED.

Full Name

______________________

Address 1

_______________________

Address 2

_______________________

Telephone Number _________________

Email Address ______________________

Were you registered before ____________

If yes, registration # __________

Today’s Date____________________

PARISH REGISTRATION

Pope Francis, Urbi et Orbi address, March 27, 2020

Feeding America is a nonprofit organization dedicated to

feeding our country’s hungry and raising engagement in

the fight to end hunger.

Today, Feeding America is the nation’s largest domestic

hunger relief program. Feeding America provides aid to

40 million Americans at risk of hunger that includes 7

million seniors and 12 million children. More Americans

need food due to the Corona Virus and with the main

resource, grocery stores, unable to provide to banks at

the same rate due to the effects of the virus, it is our

sense of humanity and community that calls us to take

action.

You can donate by visiting feedingamerica.org.

Join us in the fight against hunger. Remember, no dona-

tion is too small! Every dollar helps; even $1 can provide

10 meals through the feeding America network of food

banks.

Similarly, the Robin hood foundation also offers to fight

against hunger in NYC. For over thirty years, they’ve

been finding, fueling and creating the most impactful and

scalable solutions to lift families out of poverty in New

York City.

The Robin Hood Foundation partners with over 250 non-

profits to support food, housing, education, legal ser-

vices, workforce development, and more to New Yorkers

living in poverty across all five boroughs

Their BOARD COVERS 100% OF ALL OVERHEAD

SO EVERY DOLLAR YOU DONATE GOES TO

HELP NEW YORKERS IN NEED

To donate to help NYC in the fight against hunger,

please visit their website :Robin Hood Foundation

St. Matthew Food pantry located at 1342 Lincoln Place has now reopened on Tuesdays between the

hours of 9 AM to 12 Noon. If there are 5 Tuesdays in the month the pantry is

closed on the 5th Tuesday.

Food Insecurity in the midst of Corona

God of Our Longing

God of our longing, we "are in these very days writing the decisive events of our time," and yet, what we feel is heavy: Heavy with the suffering with which we are surrounded.

Heavy with the weight of responsibility that we hold.

Heavy with the sense that while we work to protect those we are charged with healing we put at risk those whom we love the most.

God of our longing, we "are in these very days writing the decisive events of our time," and yet, what we feel is exhausted: Exhausted by the physical pain of our bodies at work.

Exhausted by our pleas for protection.

Exhausted by the ignorance of so many as they fail to hear our plea.

God of our longing, we "are in these very days writing the decisive events of our time," and yet, what we feel is salvation: Saved by an offering of bread and wine from friends and neighbors, sitting on our doorstep at the end of a long day.

Saved by a glance of gratitude from a patient gasp-ing for breath as they are hooked up to the oxygen they require for survival.

Saved by the community of coworkers beside, be-hind, below and above, who are working together to ensure we make it through. God of our longing, we "are in these very days writing the decisive events of our time," and yet, what we feel is You: Walking with us.

Breathing life into our tired hands and hearts.

Demonstrating daily how we all might be brought to redemption in the weaving together of our lives.

ST. MATTHEW FOOD PANTRY REOPENING