Go Steelers

As the Summer home of the Pittsburgh Steelers for over 40 years we are proud of this year's AFC Championship team. Here is a video about Steelers training camp at St. Vincent Archabbey and College. Go Steelers and bring a 7th Super Bowl Victory back to Pittsburgh!!!

Conversion of St. Paul

From: saintvincentarchabbey.org

"You nations glorify him!"

Saul was trying to destroy this new Way; soon he poured himself out to proclaim Christ, the Way, Truth, and Life. Certainly he was not a convert in the sense that he ceased being a Jew to become a Christian. Rather, Saint Paul always saw himself as a Jew. After his encounter with the Risen Christ, he saw himself as a truly faith filled and obedient Jew. Saint Paul knew in his heart of hearts that the LORD is faithful and kind toward his people. He also knew that the People of God are a people of purpose, God's purpose. From the beginning the LORD called a people to himself so that all peoples could hear the Good News and come to praise and glorify his Name. The LORD did not destroy his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in order to establish a new covenant with the Church. The LORD fulfills his covenant with our ancestors in the faith by offering us a new covenant in the Blood of the Lamb. This is the truth that Saint Paul suffered to preach to the ends of the earth. In the first reading we hear of a disciple named Ananias who approached Saint Paul while he was still blind and gave him new sight. Then, he began to proclaim Jesus the Lord of every person and all the nations. As Saint Paul had been commanded, so too, all the apostles were commanded in today's gospel to preach the Gospel and baptize all the nations. This, too, is our heritage and our mission. We cannot sit back on our laurels and ignore the fact that most people have not heard the good news. What will it take to awaken us? Do we have to fall to the ground or see a blinding light?

It is the zeal of the Apostle Paul that could be blinding in today's celebration. We are not very comfortable with religious zealots. We hear of them in the media, and they are roundly mocked and flatly condemned. Those who are a little too excited about God or God's Word are often shown in news clips as wide-eyed and dangerous. Not someone you would want your children to meet and befriend. Saul was zealous for God and the Law of God. It was just this zeal that moved him to seek letters of certification so that he could put followers of Christ into chains and punish them for turning away from the ancient ways. Any zeal that affirms violence is a deadly zeal. This kind of zeal is deadly, and it is this kind of zeal that was converted in the heart of Saul. Saint Paul went from death dealing zeal to life giving zeal. Such a miracle could only happen when he saw the Righteous One, and heard his voice. Note well, the Acts of the Apostles does not say that Saint Paul saw the face of the Risen Christ. It says that, "...about noon a great light from the sky suddenly shone around me. I fell to the ground and heard a voice..." To see a great light and hear a thunderous voice is enough to conclude that the Lord Jesus appeared to Saint Paul, only if we listen closely to the dialogue. Saint Paul was blinded by the overwhelming light; a light of truth that he heard during this conversation with the Lord Jesus. From the voice of the Master, the Apostle learned that the Body of Christ is composed of many members. What one member feels the whole body feels. This blazing truth would be repeated in Saint Paul's preaching throughout his apostolic ministry. This great mystery, hidden from ages past, is now to be preached to the ends of the earth. It is the very longing of The Father for his family to be one in Christ, The Son, that transforms Saul’s murderous threats into Saint Paul’s good news. Such is the influence and impact of the Holy Spirit upon this religious zealot, and if we are honest, this is the very transformation that most threatens us. No one wants to be labeled a dangerous zealot by the media or by those we love most.

In the blinding light of Easter the Lord Jesus appeared to the Eleven and commanded them to "Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature" Only in the light of the risen Christ can one hear and trust such a command. This is an impossible task. Without the commission of Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit no one could fulfill such a command. Only gradually did the Eleven come to understand and fulfill the Lord's instruction. These Eleven who were so commissioned were in the previous verses reprimanded for their lack of belief in the resurrection. The very ones who were most hesitant to believe are called to spread the Good News. Saint Paul, too, was slow to believe that the Lord Jesus is the fulfillment of all the hopes of Israel. Saint Paul was more than hesitant; he was violently opposed to this proclamation. Yet, after the brilliant light and the strong voice of the Lord Jesus, Saul became Saint Paul. Not only will the Eleven and Saint Paul proclaim the truth of the Gospel, they will also work signs and wonders like the Master did to reveal the power and compassion of the Father whose Kingdom is Near. Those who hear and repent, who listen and believe, these will be saved in baptism. However, if they do not believe, they will be condemned. Those who do not want to be saved, those who do not want to be forgiven, those who do not want to be healed, will not be. No one, not even God, will force us to believe. Our faith comes from a heart delighted with the voice and the brightness of the Lord Jesus. It is this joy that moves us into a lifetime of faithful response. This is the conversion of Saint Paul that must become our apostolic witness.

Friend of SVA named Bishop of Altoona-Johnstown

HOLLIDAYSBURG, Pennsylvania, JAN. 14, 2011 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI appointed Monsignor Mark Bartchak, 56, of the Diocese of Erie, Pennsylvania, as bishop of Altoona-Johnstown.

The Vatican today announced that Bishop-elect Bartchak will succeed Bishop Joseph Adamec, 75, who retired for reasons of age.

Bishop-elect Bartchak, in a press conference today, noted, "I have been a priest of the Diocese of Erie for nearly 30 years and during that time I have been blessed by the fraternity of priests with whom I have served and by the coworkers in the various assignments that I have been given, especially in the Office of the Tribunal."

He added, "I look forward with anticipation and excitement to meeting and getting to know my new family in the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown."

"I know that above all, a bishop is to be a pastor," Bishop-elect Bartchak affirmed. "To be a good pastor, a diocesan bishop especially needs the help of the priests who are so closely connected with God's people in our parishes and schools."

He continued: "I want the priests of the Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown to know that I understand the blessings and the challenges of the ministry and life to which you have dedicated yourselves since the time of your ordination. I will do my best to help you and support you in that ministry and life we share."

At the press conference, Bishop Adamec noted that his successor is "very well versed in Canon (that is, Church) Law," yet "he is very much a people-person and has a pastoral heart."

The prelate affirmed, "I know that he considers his priesthood to be one that serves God's people in their journey into the Lord's Kingdom."

Bishop-elect Bartchak has served on the Pennsylvania Catholic Conference, as a consultant to the U.S. Catholic Bishops' Conference Committee on Canonical Affairs and Church Governance, and as a judge for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

He has been a confessor and spiritual director for Project Rachel, a chaplain for the St. Thomas More Society, and has actively worked in prison ministry as well as the care of refugees including Chaldean Catholics from Iraq who resettled in Erie.

The Altoona-Johnstown Diocese has 107,000 Catholics served by 201 priests, 29 permanent deacons and 154 religious.

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Please keep Bishop-elect Bartchak and the people of Altoona-Johnstown in your prayers during this joyful and exciting time in the history of their diocese.

JPII to be beatified

VATICAN CITY, JAN. 14, 2011 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI is planning to preside over the beatification rite for John Paul II on May 1, Divine Mercy Sunday, in the Vatican.

A communiqué from the Congregation for Saints' Causes announced that today the Pope, in an audience with the congregation's prefect, Cardinal Angelo Amato, "authorized the dicastery to promulgate the decree of the miracle attributed to the intercession of Venerable Servant of God John Paul II (Karol Wojtyla)."

This was the final step in the process preceding the beatification rite, which will be celebrated on Divine Mercy Sunday, a feast day instituted by John Paul II.

The communiqué noted: "It is well known that, by pontifical dispensation, his cause began before the end of the five-year period which the current norms stipulate must pass following the death of a Servant of God.

"This provision was solicited by the great fame of sanctity which Pope John Paul II enjoyed during his life, in his death and after his death.

"In all other ways, the normal canonical dispositions concerning causes of beatification and canonization were observed in full."

The diocesan investigation into the cause for beatification of the Pontiff took place between June 2005 and April 2007. On Dec. 19, 2009, Benedict XVI authorized the promulgation of the decree on his predecessor's heroic virtue.

Miracle

The congregation then examined the report of a miraculous healing through the intercession of John Paul II: the cure from Parkinson's disease of Sister Marie Simon Pierre Normand of the Little Sisters of Catholic Motherhood.

The reports of medical and legal experts on the French nun's healing were submitted to the dicastery for scientific examination last Oct. 21.

The congregation noted that its experts, "having studied the depositions and the entire documentation with their customary scrupulousness, expressed their agreement concerning the scientifically inexplicable nature of the healing."

Thus, on Dec. 14, the theological consulters began an evaluation of the case, and "unanimously recognized the unicity, antecedence and choral nature of the invocation made to Servant of God John Paul II, whose intercession was effective in this prodigious healing."

On Tuesday, during the ordinary session of the congregation, the members expressed their "unanimous approval."

The prelates expressed belief in the miraculous nature of the recovery of Sister Marie Simon Pierre, "having been achieved by God in a scientifically inexplicable manner following the intercession of the Supreme Pontiff John Paul II, trustingly invoked both by Sister Simon herself and by many other faithful." The conclusions were then submitted to Benedict XVI for approval.

Catholic Undergroud 2011

Come see St. Vincent College Senior Diana Petrovich perform this Saturday, January 15th, 2010 at St. Matthew's Parish in Lawrenceville (Pittsburgh Neighborhood). Program begins at 8 PM. MAPQUEST: Saint Matthew's Parish 5322 Carnegie Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15201

Epiphany 2011