Be With Us in Caring

Be With Us in Caring

Be With Us in Caring

This parish-wide initiative lines up beautifully with the worldwide work of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits).

In a recent letter to all Jesuits, Arturo Sosa, Superior General of the Jesuits quoted the most recent General Congregation – or GC36 –  (the highest governing body in the Jesuits – there have been 36 since the order’s founding in 1540). Both documents describe a transforming encounter with the mercy of God as being at the heart of Ignatian spirituality This encounter with the mercy of God moves us to a generous personal response. “The experience of the merciful gaze of God on our weakness and sinfulness humbles us and fills us with gratitude, helping us to become compassionate ministers to all. Filled with the fire of Christ’s mercy, we can inflame those we meet.” (GC 36, Degree 1, paragraph 19).

As with all ministries of the Society of Jesus, Our Lady of Hope Parish seeks to be a place where everyone can encounter the profound mercy of God and where all will be moved to act with compassion in the world.

How do we show this care and compassion?

We do so by “Living the Eucharist, and Becoming a Beacon of Hope.” In the brochure that we recently sent out, we describe three activities that help us to show this care and compassion:
1. Coming to Know Jesus as a Friend
2. Celebrating God’s Love For Us
3. Feeding, Connecting, Healing.

In inviting others to come to know Jesus as a friend or to deepen that friendship, we hope to invite everyone to a transformative encounter with God’s mercy. We celebrate that transformative encounter throughout our lives – from 39 baptisms to over 80 services for those who have died. The twenty-seven ministries, close to 100 liturgical ministers, the many donations to charity and the service provided through organizations like the Knights of Columbus give evidence that the encounter with the merciful love of God has elicited a generous response from many in our parish. In the Society of Jesus we often describe these ministries as cura personalis – translated care of the whole person.

On the fourth page on the inside of that brochure we include information on income and expenses. Very often people think that issues like dollars and sense are secondary to the work of cura personalis. In the Society of Jesus, this fourth page is a part of what we call cura apostolica – translated care of the organization or apostolate. The Jesuits see Our Lady of Hope Parish as an apostolate.

Care for Mission: People, Communities, and Organizations

In 2020, Arturo Sosa, SJ, the Superior General of the Society of Jesus, wrote a letter to the whole Society entitled “Care in the governance of the life-mission of the Society in this era of change.” In this letter, Fr. Sosa emphasized the need for unity between cura personalis and cura apostolica. Fr. Sosa traces both our care for one another and our founding institutions to that transformational encounter with God’s mercy described in the GC36. From the very founding of the Society of Jesus by Ignatius Loyola, we have had one single cura that is care for our mission. This care for mission focuses on persons, communities, and works. Care for the whole person and care of the organization must be united for us to carry out the mission.

We invite you to be with us in encountering the merciful love of God. We invite you to be with us in a generous response to that encounter. We invite you to be with us in living the Eucharist and becoming a beacon of hope. We invite you to join us in caring for one another (cura personalis) and caring for Our Lady of Hope Parish that helps to facilitate this encounter and to make this encounter available to all (cura apostolica).

Fr. Brian Conley, S.J.

Prayerful Concerns of Our Parish Community – 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Prayerful Concerns of Our Parish Community – 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Prayerful Concerns of Our Parish Community – 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time

We share these Prayers of the Faithful for the 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Sept 16-17, 2023) to serve as reflection points throughout the week.

 God of mercy, you ask us to forgive, over and over, not because we are good enough but because you have loved us enough so we can. We call upon your love today as we pray.

We pray for your church and our parish, that it and we be your face and your heart, extending forgiveness, welcome, and tenderness and not legalism or judgement. We pray to the Lord.

We pray each of us has the experience of being truly loved by you. Out of this love and gratitude may we love our neighbors. We pray to the Lord.

We pray for safety for us in the stormy weather of this weekend, for recovery when the storm has passed and for our brothers and sisters elsewhere who have been at the mercy of floods, fires and earthquakes this summer season. We pray to the Lord.

It is estimated that there are 700 homeless people in Portland, one for about every 84 of the rest of us who have homes here. Help us, help our city and State find ways to care for our brothers and sisters. We pray to the Lord.

We pray that the members of our parish respond to the call to “be with us” sharing their lives, their talents and their financial resources so that all you hope, and dream may happen here. We pray to the Lord.

We believe that at the time of our deaths, you wash us in your love, freeing us from all that has harmed us. Today we entrust to your care those we name here:

4:30 PM  William Morrison by the Family

7:30 AM  The People of the Parish both Living & Deceased

9:30 AM Peter Kelly by Stephen & Cindy Rendall

5:00 PM Marjorie Lenois by Natalie Baltos

We pray to the Lord.

God of grace, you call us to live by grace: teach us how to do so, God of love, you call us to be loving: teach us how to be so, in our personal lives, in our community, in the wider word. Through our mutual love, sow freedom. We make these prayers through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Be With Us in Caring

Living the Eucharist, Becoming a Beacon of Hope

Living the Eucharist, Becoming a Beacon of Hope

Registered members of the parish recently received a brochure in the mail that highlights the good works that are going on throughout Our Lady of Hope – and beyond – into the greater Portland community. Through this brochure we seek to tell the story “by the numbers” and the ministries behind those numbers. These ministries extend our welcome, to have people feel a true sense of belonging.

We are inviting you to “Be with Us” – in prayer, service, financial support – building our parish community together.

Beyond sharing our story, this brochure is designed to invite you to prayerfully consider your participation in parish life. You might be able to serve in a ministry that:
– helps to reduce hunger (both physical and spiritual), feeding body and soul
– helps to build connection for people who are lonely or excluded so that they are less isolated
– helps to offer healing

Let us know how you’d like to be involved by mailing the “Be with Us” reply card or dropping it in the collection basket at Mass. If you’d like to give a gift online, you can do that through WeShare here.

Thank you for all you do!

 

 

Prayerful Concerns of Our Parish Community – 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Prayerful Concerns of Our Parish Community – 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Prayerful Concerns of Our Parish Community – 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

We share these Prayers of the Faithful from the weekend, which was the  23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Sept 10-11, 2023) so that they might be helpful to you this week for further reflection.

God, your Son Jesus calls us to be a people, and you keep us through hard questions with no easy answers, through failing where we hoped to succeed and making an impact when we thought we were useless, through disagreements and conflicts with one another, you call us through the patience and encouragement and the love of others, you call is in the Holy Spirit. In that Spirit we now pray.

Jesus commanded us to love one another. Sometimes we fail in that. In today’s Gospel Jesus gives us wisdom in what to do when conflicts arise. Help us to listen to one another, help us to set people free from what binds them. Help us to recognize that you are present whenever two or three of us are gathered in your name. We pray to the Lord

For those people with whom we are at odds, and people who are bearing the pain of hurtful words or actions. For healing and reconciliation, we pray to the Lord.

Lord this week we are inviting our people to “be with us” and look at the good things being done in your name in this parish. We invite them to see how they are part of this goodness and in what ways you are calling them in the months and years ahead. Bless the gifts we are to one another. Bless the skills, love and resources that are given to your works here. We pray to the Lord.

For our homeless brothers and sisters. Neither encampments nor the removal of encampments is your answer to this reality. Help us to seek and find your way to care for these people. We pray to the Lord.

Today we place in your hands our family members, friends and those known only to you, who are living with chronic and disabling diseases, for their families and all who care for them. We pray to the Lord

For college and university students, now returned to campus and to their studies. Guide this year in ways of goodness. Be present in times of challenge. May our student neighbors know we welcome them and desire to accompany them on their journeys. We pray to the Lord.

For all our loved ones who have died. At this liturgy we especially remember:

4:30 PM Janet Shannon by Maureen

7:30 AM Raymond Thibodeau, Sr. by Jean & Family

9:30 AM Marcus DeSanctis by the Millers

5:00 PM  All the Parishioners both Living & Deceased

We pray to the Lord.

We set these people and needs before you today. God. There will be more needs and more people. Open to us the beauty of the earth so that we may become its servants. Open us to the wonder of life that we may recognize an angel at every corner. Open to us the storehouse of your grace and we will be made new for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

Prayerful Concerns of Our Parish Community – 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Prayerful Concerns of Our Parish Community – 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Prayerful Concerns of Our Parish Community – 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

We share these Prayers of the Faithful from the 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Sept 2-3, 2023) knowing that we offered these prayers together as a community, yet we may also find them helpful during our quiet times of personal reflection this week:

God, you created our world for beauty and you created us for companionship and love. Sometimes our world becomes a place of suffering and injustice, and powerful people abuse their influence and misuse their position. We pray for those who suffer injustice. We also pray for the powerful people. And sometimes that might mean praying for ourselves.

God of mercy, bless our brothers and sisters suffering from hurricanes, floods, and fires, natural events that are worsened by what we humans have done to our earth. Inspire good people to reach out and help them. We pray to the Lord.

Guide Pope Francis in his courageous and compassionate leadership of our church. He has spoken truth about our Church, and some will not accept his words. Protect him from harm. Open hearts which are set against him. We pray to the Lord.

Our calendar calls Monday “Labor Day.” In the midst of end-of-summer events, let us remember those who work in unsafe conditions and those who are not paid justly. Guide us so that we do not blame workers in other countries for the problems here. Rather unite us in thought, word, and deed, to the betterment of all peoples. We pray to the Lord.

Many voices surround us and claim to be speaking truth. Open our minds and hearts to search for what is really true: in our relationships, our communities, church, and politics. We pray to the Lord.

For those who suffer because they have spoken the truth and acted against evil in their families, and communities, we pray to the Lord.

Our faith affirms the words and example of Jesus. At our death life is not ended but changed. We pray for all who have died that they now experience that change. At this liturgy we especially place in your heart:

4:30 PM  Peter Kelly by Ken & Mary Pinkham

7:30 AM The People of the Parish both Living & Deceased

9:30 AM  Benedetto Lancia by Stephen & Cindy Rendall

5:00 PM  John (Jack) Lee by Family

We pray to the Lord.

Today we offer you these prayers. We acknowledge that you did not promise us life would always be easy. In fact, you want us to join you in responding to cruelty and inequality and greed by speaking truth and acting with compassion. You promise always to be with us, especially when life is difficult. We make these prayers through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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