LITURGY IN FOCUS

PREPARING FOR NEXT WEEK

33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time Reflection: God is there when things look devastating By SISTER MARY McGLONE For Luke’s community, it was the Jerusalem Temple. Perhaps for us it’s the twin towers or COVID-19. Jesus warned people who were enthralled with the Temple’s majesty: “The days are coming when there will not be left a […]

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Our Catholic Heritage: New saint blessed our parish in 1901

ABOVE: Bishop Giovanni Battista Scalabrini blesses the cornerstone of St. Mary of Mount Carmel Church on Sept. 15, 1901. Utica in recent years has been blessed with connections to two local saints: Kateri Tekakwitha from nearby Auriesville, and Marianne Cope, who was a parishioner across town at then-St. Joseph Church. Both were canonized on Oct. […]

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Where Are They Now? Maria Panuccio finds happiness in the big city

ABOVE: Maria Panuccio and her fiance, Pat Hartnett, are on top of the world in New York City. When “More Good News” profiled Maria Panuccio in October 2013, she was working at Nicky Doodles before starting her freshman year at SUNY Cortland planning to become a teacher. She had a plan. So far, it’s working […]

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Parish Volunteers: For Patrick Morrissey, it’s a wonderful life

ABOVE: Patrick Morrissey with his wife, Rosemary, and their grandchildren. Patrick Morrissey loves his life. He volunteers in our parish and in the community. He loves his faith and his family. Works hard. What more can one ask for? Family is very important to you. You come from a gang of eight children, have five […]

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Celebration of life: Why it’s important to honor loved ones with funeral Masses

By FRAN PERRTANO When her Uncle Tom Averson died at age 74 this summer, Cynthia Zainchowski knew what kind of memorial he would want. “It was important for our family that he had a funeral Mass because he was a very devout Catholic,” said Cynthia, who helped plan the funeral. “Going to weekly Sunday Mass was […]

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Pastor’s Perspective: Dispelling some myths about death and grief

The fall issue of “More Good News” explores the topic of funerals in our Catholic tradition. I’d like to add some thoughts about common myths that sometimes accompany death. When someone says, “When are you going to get over it, the loss?” — they’re really saying your pain makes them feel uncomfortable. The myth that […]

PARISH NEWS

Gallery: Faith Formation children celebrate All Saints Day

The children in our Faith Fomation program celebrated All Saints Day at the 10:30 a.m. Mass Sunday, Oct. 30, by dressing up as some of the most popular saints, including three saints associated with Central New York: St. Marianne Cope, St. Kateri Tekakwitha and St. John Baptist Scalabrini.

LITURGY IN FOCUS

CALL TO WORSHIP & CENTERING PRAYERS

Call to worship 31st Sunday of Ordinary Time Today, we celebrate an interlude of mercy, that divine moment when we see God who has chosen, forgiven and saved us. We recognize how much Jesus wants to come close to us, touch us and save us — no matter who we are, no matter what we […]

LITURGY IN FOCUS

THE WORD OF GOD THIS WEEK

31st Sunday in Ordinary Time Reflection: Many themes, lots of hope By SISTER CAROL DEMPSEY Climate crisis, royalty, embodiment and marginality. What a strange combination of themes that emerge from this Sunday’s readings that challenge our ways of thinking, our traditional beliefs, our self-understanding, and our position in life. These themes, though disconcerting, can be […]