Celebration of the Eucharist

Celebration of Eucharist

4:00 Saturday evening

7:00 am and 9:15 am (live streamed as well) and 11:15 am Sunday morning.

Daily Masses

Monday - 12:10 pm:

Tuesday - 7:30 am:

Wednesday - 12:10 pm;

Thursday - 12:10 pm;

Friday - 12:10 pm.

The Cathedral Office Hours

Sacred Heart Cathedral Office Hours...

Monday - Thursday, 9:00am - 3:00pm

Friday, 9:00 am - 12:00 noon

Celebration of Penance

Celebration of Penance

Fr. Van Lieshout will be available for confessions from 11:30am until noon before every 12:10 weekday Mass. The full confession schedule here at the Cathedral is as follows:

Monday: 11:30am until noon

Tuesday: No Confessions

Wednesday: 11:30am until noon

Thursday: 11:30am until noon

Friday: 11:30am until noon; 4:45pm until 5:30pm

Saturday: 2:30pm until 3:30pm

The Very Reverend Peter D. Van Lieshout

Sacred Heart Cathedral Rector, The Very Reverend Father Peter Van Lieshout

Praised be Jesus Christ!

One of the homilies that I remember best from my time as an undergraduate at Franciscan University of Steubenville, was on the topic of the importance of pursuing growth in “virtue” in the Christian life. You have to understand something about the context in which it was delivered. Franciscan University was and is known for having a robustly Catholic identity where your average student takes their Catholic faith seriously, prays daily, attends Mass even during the week, and goes to confession regularly - but also a place where students are subject to all of the standard temptations of the world and the struggles of growing into adulthood.

Instead of just giving a dry discourse on “virtue” in general, this priest kept it very concrete. He painted a fictious, but realistic, picture of a college student who is just lazy about getting up on time in the morning. He then traced the results: the student misses class, which leads to falling behind on assignments, which leads to being stressed out, which leads to a fight with the roommate over something trivial, which leads to all sorts of gossip with friends, and on and on to more and more serious situations and sins (...I’m not doing it justice here, but it was both humorous and compelling as he traced the way to some rather serious sins along a path that seemed relatable to us as college students).

The main point came loudly and boldly at the end. He said something to the effect of: “You wouldn’t be sliding into the confession line always on Mondays if you just decided to get up on time on the week before!” The students loved it and definitely got the message.

I sometimes think about that homily when I address the various “life issues” to which we call particular attention during Respect Life Month in October. None of them stand on their own. They are all part of what John Paul II called a “culture of death” where one sin leads to another, and where one moral distortion repeats itself in any number of analogous ways across a range of seemly disconnected social problems.

Take, for example, the pre-eminent life issue of abortion. The magnitude of the problem is absolutely staggering. In the United States alone there are, on average, at least 2,000 unborn children who are killed every day by means of abortion. (That estimate is deliberately low - the true number is likely closer to 3,000 or beyond). But to address an issue this big it is not enough just to call attention to the fact that human life begins at conception - although this is important. Abortion is also very much a symptom of a more fundamental societal rejection of the Church’s life-giving teaching on the proper use of human sexuality and the importance of the virtue of chastity. It is a symptom of the struggles that come with poverty, the collapse of the family, the devaluing of authentic feminity, and any number of other related topics.

The same is true of other Respect Life topics. A priest friend of mine recently opined that Catholic teaching on various bioethical issues will likely never be rightly understood and embraced by our increasingly secular society unless they are situated within a complete ecological vision of respect for creation and the environment, and a more larger vision of the full natural order. He’s probably correct. Or consider the various end-of-life issues. The Church’s response to the increasing threat of pro-euthanasia legislation depends on a vision of the role of “redemptive suffering” in God’s Divine plan that is often very underappreciated even by life-long Catholics.

My point here is not to say that we should never deal individually with particular threats against the dignity of all human life. I’m simply drawing attention to the fact that it really is the entire message of the Gospel, lived out in the Church and empowered by the life of prayer and the Sacraments, that provides God’s full plan for creating that “Culture of Life” and that society of “justice, love, and peace” for which the human heart yearns.

In the hearts of Jesus and Mary,

Father Peter Van Lieshout

October 24th, 2021 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Catholic Ministries Appeal (CMA)

The Cathedral Community’s Catholic Ministries Appeal Goal is $76,232.

The active phase of our parish CMA campaign continues. By now, past CMA donors have received a special letter in the mail with a personalized pledge card. Thank you to everyone who has responded with a gift or pledge. The CMA provides funding for important programs, services and ministries that strengthen our whole Church. Every gift to the CMA helps those in need, supports the mission of the Church and comes back to help our parish. Thank you, let us continue to pray for the success of our efforts.

Watch the CMA Video - click this link.... Catholic Ministries Appeal (CMA) Video

Donate... Make a Donation to the CMA Appeal

Thanksgiving Basket Gift Card Drive

2021 Thanksgiving Basket Gift Card Drive

There has been a long-standing tradition at Thanksgiving for the Cathedral Community to come together to provide the fixings for a Thanksgiving dinner to those in the Cathedral neighborhood who might otherwise be unable to afford to celebrate.

Last year, necessity became the mother of invention. Unable, because of COVID, to physically collect donations and to pack them up in baskets, parishioners donated gift cards from Aldi’s which were then distributed, according to the size of the family, enabling our neighbors to make the kind of Thanksgiving dinner most familiar, and near and dear to them.

Being that it is still unwise to bring large numbers of people together to pack baskets for distribution, we are requesting monetary donations again this year.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO HELP SOMEONE IN NEED THIS HOLIDAY, we invite you to participate in our Thanksgiving Gift Card Drive. There is no better way to give thanks than to give back! This is an opportunity to help those living in our community who are making difficult decisions between buying food and paying the rent.

We are asking for donations of Aldi’s gift cards in $5, $10, and $25 denominations. If you are unable to purchase the gift cards, please consider a contribution in the form of cash or a check (made payable to the Cathedral Community - with “Thanksgiving Baskets” in the memo section). We will purchase gift cards with your donation. Please place your donations in an envelope labeled “Thanksgiving Baskets”. Donations can be dropped into the collection boxes located in the church, mailed to the Cathedral or dropped off at the Cathedral during normal business hours Monday - Thursday 9:00am-3:00 pm and on Friday’s from 9:00 am - Noon.

Our goal this year is the same as last year, to provide Thanksgiving meals for 200 families in the Cathedral neighborhood. $10,000 in Aldi’s gift cards will enable us to achieve that goal. We would greatly appreciate receiving all donations by November 15th.

“If you can’t feed a hundred people, then feed just one.”...Mother Teresa

Faith Formation, Confirmation, RCIA

Faith Formation 2021 - 2022 I

I’m so grateful to Karen Stevens for helping me to piece together an “in-person” religious ed. program here at the Cathedral, after having an online only program last year due to COVID. Karen worked in this role here at the Cathedral several years ago, and she has been extremely helpful in getting us up and running again. We are still in the early stages of planning but we would like to begin taking signups. The program will start Sunday, September 19th and take place most Sundays from 10:15am until 11:15am. This will allow a family to have their child(ren) enrolled in the program and also attend either the 9:15am Mass (beforehand) or the 11:15am Mass (afterwards).

Signup forms are available in the Cathedral narthex, or can be downloaded here...

Faith Formation Registration (Download) 2021-2022

or Families can enroll online at the link to the Registration Form found in the Menu above under Faith Formation

The Sacrament of Confirmation is generally administered by Bishop Matano to 9th graders at the end of that second year of classes. Confirmation classes will also take place at the same time as Faith Formation: Sundays from 10:15am until 11:15am.

The RCIA program is an intellectual and spiritual journey for those individuals who have never been baptized, but are interested in exploring the teachings of the Catholic faith in view of potentially seeking baptism and entrance into the full life of the Church next spring. But I also find that RCIA classes can also serve as helpful formation for those nonCatholic Christians who are already baptized, but are considering “converting” to the Catholic faith by being received into full communion with the Catholic Church. Depending on interest, I am hoping to host these Wed. evening from 5:30 to 6:30 pm at the Cathedral starting Sept. 15th.

Men's Retreat

Men’s Retreat Weekend

October 29-31, 2021

“Finding God in Life’s Transitions” Notre Dame Retreat House Canandaigua, NY (585) 394-5700 or www.notredameretreat.org

Come and explore how to find God in the midst of Life’s graces and challenges. We all experience transitions throughout our lives. Especially within this past year and a half. How we cope with the unexpected; how we discern ‘what’s next’ and how we draw strength and wisdom from others will be the focus of the talks and prayer experiences throughout the retreat weekend. Give yourself the gift of retreat this year. To learn more about this retreat contact:

Jim Schell 880-6352

Chuck Murrman 944-3093

Don Taylor 727-7344

HOMILY SERIES... John, Chapter 6

Beginning July 25, 2021 (The 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time) , the Gospel readings were taken sequentially from Chapter 6 of St. John’s Gospel. This is Jesus’ great teaching on the Eucharist! And it is section of Scripture that all Catholics should know and be able to explain.

What follows is Fr. Van Lieshout’s homily series on this mystery which is the “source and summit” of the Christian life!

Week 1: Eucharistic Implications of the Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes (John 6: 1-15)

Week 2: The Manna from Heaven (John 6: 24-35)

Week 3: Jesus’ Identity and the Centrality of Faith (John 6: 41-51)

Week 4: The New Bread from Heaven (John 6: 51-58)

Week 5: “To Whom Shall We Go” (John 6: 60-69)

Thanksgiving Basket Gift Cards

Thanksgiving Gift Card

If you are a parishioner or live in the Maplewood Edgerton neighborhood and find yourself struggling to make ends meet this holiday season, we invite you to sign up for a Thanksgiving Gift Card. Due to the COVID pandemic, we cannot prepare the traditional Thanksgiving Baskets so we are offering gift cards instead.

Call the Joseph’s Place Food Pantry appointment line at (585) 505-7800, someone is available to take calls for appointments on the following times listed below:

Monday from 1:00-3:00 pm

Tuesday from 9:00-11:00 am

Saturday from 9:00-11:00 am

No appointments will be taken by the Cathedral office.

Please do not leave a message, you must speak to a Resource Minister to make the appointment. If you cannot get through to a Resource Minister, continue to call during these time frames to make your appointment. Requests for a Thanksgiving Gift Card will be taken until November 10th or until spots are taken. The distribution date for gift cards will be on the afternoon of November 22, 2020.

Trunk or Treat

Save The Date Trunk OR Treat and a Meal to Go Sunday, October 31, 2021

Come in Costume and go trunk to trunk to collect treats, bring a bag for candy! Pick up a meal to go too at the Cathedral Community’s Ridgeway parking lot. Please be respectful and wear a mask. If you would like to help, please contact the office at 254-3221 during normal office hours. Thank you.

Baby Shower for the Women's Care Center

A BABY SHOWER FOR THE WOMEN’S CARE CENTER

Directed by Catholic laity and supported by local churches, the WCC, a pregnancy help center, opened in 1990 to offer loving hospitality to new moms and women in unexpected pregnancies, providing free help and support with compassion, care and understanding. The Women’s Care Center is located at 3252 Lake Avenue.

We can assist these mothers who have decided to honor life and keep their babies. The Cathedral Social Ministry Committee will be collecting baby items before Mass on October 16 & 17 and October 23 & 24 in the Narthex.

The center is in need of the following baby items:

Diapers size newborn, 4, 5 & 6 and Baby wipes

Any kind of formula and any size bottles

Baby clothes newborn to 9 months such as sleepers, onesies, socks or booties, hats, snowsuits, sweater sets and bibs

Baby blankets, flannel blankets, crib sheets

Hooded bath towels and wash cloths

Baby shampoo, wash and lotion

Car seats and Pack & Play to sleep in

Thank you in advance for your donations given to help these mothers.

Support Joseph's Place

Support Joseph’s Place at the Grocery Run!

Please join us on the first weekend in November for the East Avenue Grocery Run 5k to benefit Joseph’s Place and other local food pantries!

When you register and join the Joseph’s Place team, your registration fee will go directly to Joseph’s Place! Joseph’s Place also receives a percentage of the overall proceeds based on the number of people we have on our team. Last year we received an additional $600 with only a handful of people signed up. Let’s see how many we can get on our team this year!

Click here to register: https://runsignup.com/Race/NY/Rochester/EastAvenueGroceryRun

The in=person 5K event is November 6th at 8:30 am. Participants will enjoy a fast, flat 5k down beautiful East Avenue, across the Genesee, along the Riverway Trail and back or chose the virtual option and run, walk, bike or stroll any distance, anywhere, anytime November 5-7! Either way, you’ll feel great knowing your registration fee will go directly to local food cupboards like Joseph’s Place.

For more information visit www.groceryrun.com Thanks for your support!

ONLINE GIVING OPTIONS

Regular Collection

Online Giving to the Cathedral Community

Please click on the link above for Regular Sunday Online Giving Options at the Cathedral Community!

Second Collections

World Mission Sunday (Fund Ending November 19, 2021)

Catholic University (Fund Ending December 10, 2021)

Joseph's Place (Fund Ending December 31, 2021)

Penny Fund (Fund Ending December 31, 2021)

Catholic Courier (Fund Ending December 31, 2021)

School Support (Fund Ending December 31, 2021)

Fuel Fund (Fund Ending December 31, 2021)

Please click on the link above for the Second Collection Online Giving Options at the Cathedral Community!

Thank you for your generosity!

LIVE STREAMED MASSES FROM THE CATHEDRAL COMMUNITY

The weekly live streamed Mass will be :

9:15 AM – Sunday

“ALL ARE WELCOME” to attend in person

Seating with NO SOCIAL DISTANCING REQUIRED and MASK WEARING IS OPTIONAL

(An area will be provided for Social Distanced, Mask Required seating)

We continue to make adjustments to our worship space as we receive guidance from the CDC, New York State and the Diocese of Rochester.

Masses and Prayer Services which are live streamed (and/or recorded) on Facebook and Youtube are available on our Facebook Page (www.facebook.com/CathedralCommunity) and on our YouTube channel. Click on the links below to view Live Streams for Masses and Services as they occur, and recorded versions after each.

YouTube Live Streams and Recordings

Facebook Live Streams and Recordings

Green Team

Choose Life by Choosing to Care for Creation

A JOINT MESSAGE FOR THE PROTECTION OF CREATION

Pope Francis, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, and Anglican Archbishop Justin Welby of Canterbury, England wrote a joint statement calling for Christians and all people of good will to change their ways. In a short statement they issue a prophetic call saying, "We must decide what kind of world we want to leave to future generations. God mandates: ‘Choose life, so that you and your children might live’ (Dt 30:19). We must choose to live differently; we must choose life."

To read the joint statement, please see the Green Team tab in the Menu above. (Go to the Green Team tab under the "Ministries" tab. then under the "Outreach Ministries" tab.

Our Mission Statement

The Cathedral Community is a Roman Catholic parish of the Dioceses of Rochester that gathers and worships at Sacred Heart Cathedral. We are an ethnically, racially, and economically diverse community with unique gifts and challenges within an urban neighborhood.

Our mission is to reach out with hope to all in our community, neighborhood, and beyond, to proclaim the Gospel with joy and enthusiasm, and to prepare disciples who will go forth to serve God and others, especially the poor, with mercy and compassion.

Cathedral Library and Cafe

Cathedral Library and Cafe Hours :

The Cathedral Library remains closed until further notice.

Pastoral Letter Against Racism

"As (United States) bishops, we unequivocally state that racism is a life issue. Accordingly, we will not cease to speak forcefully against and work toward ending racism." (Open Wide Our Hearts)

Please click here to view the Pastoral Letter AGAINST RACISM

Bishop Matano's Statement

Message from the Bishop

Letter to the Faithful from Bishop Matano regarding The Diocese of Rochester Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Filing,(September 14, 2020).

Message from Bishop Matano regarding Protecting our Children

Here's what we're doing to ensure that our children and vulnerable persons are safe:

DOR Creating A Safe Environment Information (click here)

Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester

1150 Buffalo Road

Rochester, New York 14624

Deadline for Bulletin and Church Announcements

Announcements and inserts/flyers for our weekly bulletin must be submitted to the Church Office by NOON on Monday. (Inserts and flyers must receive prior approval before submission). E-mail submissions must be sent to [email protected]

Please note : Articles may be edited due to space constraints & inserts/flyers must be approved by staff. Thank you for your consideration of these policies.

Sunday announcements must be submitted to the office by Thursday at NOON.