Monday, November 28, 2011

Advent Candlelight Mass & Mass Schedule



Please join us for our last Sunday liturgy of the fall semester, an Advent Candlelight Mass, this Sunday, December 4, at 7PM, in the McLean Chapel



(followed by our Sacramental Prep program for Baptism, Confirmation, and First Holy Communion, 8:10PM-9:30PM)






Our weekday, 5PM Masses (M-Th), will continue through the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary / Sisters' Renewal of Vows, on Thursday, December 8, at 5PM






Our regular Mass schedule will resume on Sunday, January 15, at 7PM


Our regular Mass schedule is

Sundays, 7PM

(5:30PM choir rehearsal, before Mass)


Monday-Thursday 5PM


in the McLean Chapel

Study Day: De-Stress Stations



Campus Ministry and the ALIVE Club Present
STUDY DAY DE-STRESS STATIONS

Pause,
Breathe,
and Grab a Tasty Snack
at the various DE-STRESS STATIONS
that will be set up around campus

“Write-a-Prayer” Station

“Cookie Decorating” Station

“A Thich Nhat Hanh Orange Meditation” Station

“Herbal Tea Bar” Station




When:

Monday, December 5, 2-5PM




Where:
Locations will be posted online and around campus (including in the Brennan Display Case)

Be kind to yourself during finals,
and recharge at any of our Stations!

Sisters' Renewal of Vows

Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Sisters' Renewal of Vows





You are invited to join the Sisters and Associates who will be renewing their vows on Thursday, December 8th, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, at the 5 p.m. Mass, in McLean Chapel.

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Autumn Reflection







Autumn…
arrives at a time in the calendar year that the Catholic Church designates as “Ordinary Time.” Ordinary Time is that period that stretches between Easter and Advent; then, again, between Christmas and Lent. But, is there really anything ordinary about this time of year? Certainly not! “Ordinary Time” is actually quite extraordinary! And the extraordinary nature of this time of year is reflected in many of the season’s sacred observances, celebrations, and customs.
Just as deciduous trees change color and drop their leaves, Muslims and Jews entered into a time of transformation and “casting off” themselves, with Ramadan, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur . Ramadan is not only about fasting from food but a time for purifying oneself through other forms of self-restraint as well as acting lovingly toward others. Similary, between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, or the days of “Awe” and “Atonement,” Jews ask for forgiveness from people they have wronged in the past year: a shedding or “casting off” of self so that new life may emerge. This new life is reflected in the joyous festival of Sukkot, which literally means “harvest homes,” a holiday which begins the fifth day after Yom Kippur, at the harvest moon. Sukkot has both historical and agricultural ties. Historically, it commemorates the forty-year period, during which the Israelites lived in temporary shelters as they wandered in the desert. Agriculturally, this “festival of ingathering” is based on a time when people worked such long hours harvesting their crops that, from their yield, they would have to construct makeshift tents in which they would sleep.




The Chinese Moon Festival, with its moon cakes and related history and legends, also arrives during this time of year, as do many holidays celebrating angels, spirits, and saints (e.g., Michaelmas, Feast of the Guardian Angels, Halloween, All Saints’ Day, All Souls’ Day, the Mexican “Day of the Dead”). It’s not surprising that so many related festivals should coincide: with the harvest moon and bountiful harvest also comes darkness and decay, which makes this time of year especially fitting for remembering those who have passed from this world and into the next. In fact, many cultures believe that during this season the veil between heaven and earth is especially thin. Food for the dead is left at gravesites and window ledges. The atmosphere is one of celebration, not gloom.

During this season Catholics commemorate, honor, and celebrate all saints, canonized and uncanonized, known and unknown, throughout the month of November, especially during All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days (Nov. 1 and Nov 2). The saints, Catholics believe, are our models on earth and our friends in heaven.

For the month of November, Campus Ministry has been be focusing on the theme "¡Presente! "
On the SOAW website, they explain: "¡Presente! literally means 'here' or 'present' in Spanish. There is a long tradition in Latin American movements for justice of invoking the memory of those who have lost their lives in the struggle. It is used in the ritual at the gates of Fort Benning, Georgia, when we remember those who suffered and were martyred by the graduates of the School of the Americas. We pronounce their names and bring their spirits and witness before us as we respond: ¡Presente! You are here with us, you are not forgotten, and we continue the struggle in your name." (For More information, visit:
http://www.soaw.org/presente/index.php?option=com_content&task=section&id=5&Itemid=69)



The Presente Altar and Book of Remembrance

We extend this theme of PRESENTE to the entire community of saints: with remembrances for all personal families and friends; for other heroes, saints, and role models; as well as for victims of torture, violence, hunger, homelessness, and other injustices. Throughout the month of November, Campus Ministry invites the community to bring names and (photocopies of) photographs of deceased loved ones to an altar in the entrance of the Chapel. We have also invited you to record the names of your deceased loved ones in our Book of Remembrance, which will remain in the Chapel through the month of Novemener. We will also have a similar display up in the Brennan display case.

Hunger and Homelessness Mass / SOA Sending Rite, with J.C. Orton






J.C. Orton will be speaking at our 7PM Mass, on Sunday, November 13.



J.C. Orton reaches out to the hungry, homeless, and marginalized, through the Dorothy Day House and Nights on the Streets, in Berkeley. In 2009, he won the Jefferson Award for Public Service. With the help of volunteers, he has served over 100,000 meals to the homeless since 1997. J.C. has also protested against violence and torture, such as at the SOA Watch and Ft. Huachuca.




J.C. will have more information about getting involved this Sunday! To learn more about the Catholic Worker in Berkeley and ways to get involved, please read on:


The two Catholic Worker Houses in Berkeley, Dorothy Day House and Night on the Streets, provide hospitality every day of the year for our family of homeless and poor.

Breakfast for 100-225 every morning of the year in three different locations.

Monday – Saturday breakfast is prepared @ 1932 Center Street starting at 6:30AM. It is then transported to 2362 Bancroft Way at 8:00 where it is served. Remnants and dirty pots/pans are returned to Center St. where clean up is done. Contact Richard Webber @ 781-985-0981 to sign up.

Sunday breakfast is prepared at 1630 Berkeley Way starting at 6AM. It is then transported to People’s Park where 40-60 are served. At 8:10, the meal is moved to Center Street between Milvia & MLK jr. Way and an additional 60-100 are served. This meal is served al fresco, with tents to provide shelter for the serving line when necessary. After the meal is served, there is always time to make it to the 9:30 Mass on time. Contact
J C Orton @ 510-684-1892 to sign up.

Dinner for 50 served at the Men’s shelter on Center St. every night.

Groups are need to purchase, prepare and serve meals for 50 men at the Men’s Shelter at 1932 Center St. every night of the year. Contact Richard Webber @ 781-985-0981 for more information. The need is especially great for those times when school is on break and during summer vacation….

Holiday dinners for 150-250 five times a year at the Newman Hall Parking lot.

On MLK Jr. Day, President’s Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day meal is served from 4-5PM. Servers are needed to serve this meal. Help with meal preparation earlier in the day at 1630 Berkeley Way is always helpful as well as clean up of the pots/pans used for the meal. Contact J C Orton @ 510-684-1892 to sign up.

Hot soup served thrice weekly on Shattuck Ave. & the Telegraph area each winter from Thanksgiving until Easter.

This effort began in 1997 as an extension of a Loaves & Fishes outreach effort. In addition to the food, we distribute sleeping bags, heavy ponchos, blankets and clothing to the homeless living on the streets.

Soup (10 gallons) is prepared earlier in the day by various groups and individuals (we need help with this). We depart at 7:PM on a fixed route through Berkeley stopping many times along the way to extend hospitality every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday nights. We need drivers, cooks, and agile workers able to provide this respite from the cold and wet nights to those most in need. Contact J C Orton @ 510-684-1892 to sign up.

A winter shelter for 50 located on Bancroft Way for our family of homeless folks.

The shelter at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church at 2300 Bancroft Way has been operated by the Catholic Worker for the past five winters. This shelter receives funding from the City of Berkeley provided to Dorothy Day House and has limited nights of availability. The shelter is open on those nights of inclement weather beginning the Monday after Thanksgiving through the Wednesday before Easter. Nightly opening times vary as well as the nights of operation as funding is limited.

We need people at opening time between 7-11 PM as well as closing time between 5:30 – 8AM to facilitate our efforts. Contact J C Orton @ 510-684-1892 to sign up.

Visitation of those in hospitals and mental wards throughout the area as well as
assistance with their return to independent living.

Daily direct contact with these “Ambassadors of God” extending and overextending ourselves to engage and genuinely love those considered by many as disposable and a burden to society. Please join us in our efforts.

J. C. Orton, Coordinator
P O Box 13468
Berkeley, Ca 94712

1630 Berkeley Way
Berkeley
510-684-1892
noscw@sbcglobal.net

Nonviolence and the Beloved Community

"The aftermath of violence is tragic bitterness, while the aftermath of nonviolence is the beloved community." – Martin Luther King, Jr.



Martin Luther King’s Six Principles of Nonviolence



1. Nonviolence is a way of life for courageous people.
2. Nonviolence seeks to win friendship and understanding.
3. Nonviolence seeks to defeat injustice, not people.
4. Nonviolence holds that suffering for a cause can educate and transform.
5. Nonviolence chooses love instead of hate.
6. Nonviolence holds that the universe is on the side of justice and that right will eventually prevail.

Martin Luther King’s Six Steps to Social Change

1. Information Gathering
2. Education
3. Personal Commitments
4. Negotiation
5. Direct Action
6. Reconciliation and Healing Process