Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign.
[00:00:10] Speaker B: Welcome to a new edition of our diocesan podcast, Big City Catholics, with Bishop
[00:00:15] Speaker A: Robert Brennan, the Diocesan Bishop of Brooklyn and Queens, myself, Father Christopher Henry, here at St. Joan of Arc Parish.
[00:00:21] Speaker B: It's a bit of a catch up podcast with Bishop and chat a little bit about the season of Lent as it progresses. We enter nearing the third Sunday of Lent. Also just to hear about what's going
[00:00:33] Speaker A: on in our DAs and pilgrimage and other things in our Bishop's calendar of recent events.
[00:00:38] Speaker B: But before we jump into all of
[00:00:40] Speaker A: that, let's begin in prayer. In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
[00:00:44] Speaker C: Amen.
[00:00:45] Speaker B: Asking always our Blessed Mother's intercession upon
[00:00:47] Speaker A: us and our parishioners and those whom we are called to minister. And to the people of the Diocese of Brooklyn, we pray. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
[00:01:00] Speaker C: Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
[00:01:05] Speaker A: Amen. In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
[00:01:08] Speaker B: Bishop? Yeah, I just wanted this to be a bit of a catch up podcast with you just to see how things are progressing in this season of Lent. How has this season been for you
[00:01:18] Speaker A: this far and what's been on your calendar and agenda?
[00:01:21] Speaker C: It's been a pretty, pretty busy, happily busy Lent. So we've started off on our Lenten pilgrimage. I've been to a number of parishes in the last week or so. We're kind of getting out of the snow. In fact, I'm hoping by the time this podcast airs, we're seeing signs of spring on the horizon. We turned the clocks back this weekend. The weather's getting just a little bit warmer. The snow is starting to melt and we're getting around to all the churches. We've been having good crowds. A lot of the parish are new parishes, a couple of repeat parishes, but a lot of them are new parishes and people seem to be very happy to be hosting. And those are days of prayer for the parish itself. I was in your parish last week. In fact, we recorded from there. Tell me about the day.
[00:02:12] Speaker B: That's right. And as we recorded, Bishop re recorded at the very beginning of the day, almost at the outset of the day. And I'll tell you that just before Mass. Exactly. And a great honor to have you and many of those who listen every week they were writing me and messaging that they were was very lucky that we were able to record here on site. But it was a blessed day. I Mean, we did also see some really good crowds. We had Eucharistic Adoration throughout the day. The school children participated in the Mass. They really enjoyed your visit in the morning and at the Mass and just throughout the day. We had time for Stations of the Cross and the Divine Mercy Chaplet at 3pm Confessions in the evening before our evening Mass. It just was a really, really nice day. So I believe that if that was what we saw here, that excitement is
[00:02:58] Speaker A: probably palpable all throughout. And so you're getting a great chance
[00:03:02] Speaker B: to see that you're not always visiting just for Mass. Sometimes your calendar just permits you to come and just make a visit to the Eucharist as well.
[00:03:10] Speaker C: Right, exactly. So there'll be times I can just pop in and say a prayer. There are times when I'll come at the end of the day for the benediction and the closing after Bishop Manuel Rodriguez's ord, my flight home got me home just in time to stop in that visitation parish. So I think I was probably there for the last five minutes of prayer and then to do the benediction. So there are different opportunities. And even Mass, it's really nice to go to the parishes during the week. Sometimes it's nice. You go to parish with the school and you have a school Mass and it's similar to a Sunday Mass and you have the music and the procession in. Sometimes it's the regular weekday Mass. And you know, as a bishop who travels around and doesn't have that stable connection, it's nice to celebrate a regular parish weekday Mass.
[00:04:04] Speaker B: Sure. The simplicity of it, but the beauty of it. You're absolutely right.
[00:04:08] Speaker A: There is something very relaxing and prayerful about that experience as well, I'm sure.
[00:04:14] Speaker B: Especially when it seems as it probably as a bishop going around almost every Mass is like a Sunday Mass as you equate it to. So it's nice to.
To experience.
That's right.
[00:04:25] Speaker C: You know, at the Coke Cathedral, there's a little bit of a blend. I mean, it has the simplicity of daily Mass, but of course, because of the television broadcasting, we have music and all that.
[00:04:35] Speaker B: Every Mass. Yeah, I remember it well.
It is. It's definitely a blessing. And Bishop, you know, some parishes throughout the season of Lent have opportunities to have retreats. I know that is podcast releases on Friday. On Saturday, we are hosting a retreat director and some praise and worship music
[00:04:58] Speaker A: here at the parish.
[00:04:59] Speaker B: I understand you've had a chance to participate in some retreats too.
[00:05:03] Speaker C: I was actually invited to do a parish mission in a parish back in Nassau County, Malvern, which is next door to the place where I lived. Actually, it's next door to two different places where I lived. It's very near to Rockville center, where I lived for a number of years, and very near, right on the border with Lynbrook, Our lady of Peace.
[00:05:21] Speaker A: So.
[00:05:22] Speaker C: So this was a chance to go back to old grounds and reconnect and be in a different place with new people. I. It was the traditional kind of parish retreat. I couldn't do the Sunday Masses. Very often you have the retreat speak come speech at all the Sunday Masses. I couldn't do that. Did a Sunday night, Monday night and Tuesday night. And it was a good experience. It was a chance for me to reflect. The theme was discipleship, and I used a couple of scriptural stories to bring out the elements of discipleship. It was fun. It was fun being with people and going through that exercise. But it's not exactly something I can do very often. I'll tell you that.
[00:06:00] Speaker B: I would imagine. I would imagine to be able to have those consecutive days and that ability for each evening to be free, that probably is not something that ever really
[00:06:10] Speaker A: happens in your calendar.
[00:06:12] Speaker C: A number of things aligned that made it possible for this year.
[00:06:15] Speaker B: A great blessing then for that parish community, too, to be able to have you there. And bishop, just even, you know, with the snow. We reflected a little bit about the large snowstorm was what prevented our diocesan right of election. So parishes were able to have those celebrations on their own. We did have a call to continued conversion ceremony within the diocese with Father Trebino. But now we're entering into the season of Lent where we deal with the scrutinies. No. And right.
[00:06:45] Speaker C: So the season of Lent is. This goes to the heart of the origins of. Of the season of Lent. It's the intense time of preparation for those who will be baptized at Easter. And this goes back to the ancient days of the church. But it's an invitation for all of us to reconnect with that great gift of baptism which many of us experienced soon after we were born.
[00:07:09] Speaker B: Sure.
[00:07:10] Speaker C: So what people are making a conscious decision to do, we're asked, in a sense, to renew and to reflect on our own baptism and of course, to celebrate that with the newly baptized at Easter time. So the third, fourth and fifth weeks of Lent are focused on the scrutinies. And this here is cycle A. It's the cycle that reads a lot from the Gospel of Matthew. But through these three Sundays, the readings are very much focused in on the scrutinies and in fact, on the other years, you go back to these cycle A readings for the scrutinies, because they're so connected. So it's the story of Jesus encountering the woman at the well. He thirsts for her faith. He thirsts for her faith. He calls it out of her. Then there's the man born blind and the restoration of his sight. And then, of course, the raising of Lazarus. And these are all elements that. That bring us back to baptism, the theme of water and of Jesus drawing faith from us.
The theme of baptism gives us a new way of seeing the world, new sight.
And then, of course, baptism gives us new life, eternal life.
[00:08:30] Speaker A: That's right.
[00:08:31] Speaker B: And as we bring those members of our OCIA team, you know, through these process processes, it's also a great reminder to the crowds, as you said, to those who are coming, the faithful who are coming, to promise to pr. Pray, continue to pray for them, but also to reflect on the great gifts of our. Of our faith. I like to do those scrutinies at different masses each week so that, you know, there's generally the people that come to the same mass all the time, so maybe they might not get that
[00:09:01] Speaker A: chance to witness those scrutinies in the meantime.
[00:09:04] Speaker B: So it's a nice opportunity for us
[00:09:06] Speaker A: and for our parish communities as well.
[00:09:08] Speaker B: And even the right of election and doing that on a local level this year was special in its own way. It's certainly more. Ideally more special. And they're all there with you. Right. But it was nice that our people, also the faithful, got to see as
[00:09:24] Speaker A: well in this particular stage of the process as well. So that's enjoyable.
[00:09:30] Speaker B: Now, Bishop, we also just changing topics and changing gears for a moment. Our alma mater beat Georgetown yesterday in basketball game. Basketball's.
[00:09:39] Speaker C: And that's after beating Villanova.
[00:09:42] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:09:43] Speaker C: I wondered if. I wondered if the Holy Father was watching that game.
[00:09:47] Speaker B: He may have a little cartoon in the tablet this week. You know, they have the cartoon on the centerfold, and there's a person watching tv, and it was like, January Madness, February Madness. And it's just the madness of the world. No. And then it's. You think that it should be March Madness, but it says March Sanity. Please, God. March Sanity. But we are coming into that basketball theme in our world, and. But even in our local church in CYO and our high schools, they're doing their playoffs and championships. You had a chance to visit some of those and participate.
[00:10:22] Speaker C: I did. I did. So I got to the boys basketball game with Holy Cross and Christ the King. It was a close game throughout most of the game and Christ the King won that championship. And then in another division, Cathedral Prep was playing against Kennedy Catholic from Staten Island. And what was nice about that game is I didn't have to be impartial.
I could root for the Brooklyn.
[00:10:53] Speaker A: That's right, that's right, that's right.
[00:10:54] Speaker B: And Cathedral Prep one again.
[00:10:57] Speaker C: Oh boy, that was a nail bit. They won in overtime.
[00:10:59] Speaker A: Wow.
[00:11:00] Speaker C: You know, so that was exciting. Unfortunately, just the way the schedule worked, I couldn't make any of the girls championship games. So I kind of owe that in the future. And in fact I said to one of the high school athletic directors, I gotta get to the softball games, the girls softball. I have to make make sure I'm doing that this season.
[00:11:17] Speaker B: That'd be great to that.
[00:11:18] Speaker C: Absolutely.
[00:11:19] Speaker A: They'll enjoy your presence there as well.
[00:11:21] Speaker B: Bishop, as we come to a close of this week's podcast. It's this weekend. I look forward to welcoming you to our deanery here, this area of Elmhurst, Jackson Heights and Corona where we're hosting a project Andrew for teenagers who are discerning a vocation to the priesthood. We'll be at St. Bartholomew's on Sunday for 5pm Mass with you and we'll get a chance to meet with you after and then I think the week after Bishop, you have a retreat for
[00:11:46] Speaker C: the Bishop's Retreat for Vocations. And I'm looking forward and that's already over subscribed. So we have a wish waiting list for that. Isn't it amazing?
[00:11:53] Speaker A: That's fantastic. That's a great gift to have.
[00:11:56] Speaker B: Well, we're certainly united in prayer, aren't we?
[00:11:58] Speaker A: We're certainly united in prayer and you
[00:12:00] Speaker C: know, we've had some light hearted conversation today. But we also know that we're living in very, very serious times. We're praying for peace, praying for peace in the Middle East. I pray fervently for all those men and women who stand in the way of harm and for their safety and well being in the hopes that we can see an end to the violence and a new age of peace and reconciliation. We desperately, desperately need that.
So maybe that's part of our Lenten prayer, is asking the Lord to help us to bring peace and reconciliation and respect for our life into our world.
[00:12:43] Speaker A: We're with you 100%, Bishop.
[00:12:44] Speaker B: I think too even we celebrating this
[00:12:47] Speaker A: jubilee year of Saint Francis of Assisi and you know, an instrument of peace
[00:12:52] Speaker C: us to peace to be instruments of peace. That's right, exactly.
[00:12:56] Speaker B: Well, Bishop, on that topic of prayer and uniting for vocations, uniting in prayer for peace.
[00:13:01] Speaker A: Perhaps you could lead us in a closing prayer.
[00:13:04] Speaker C: And I'm going to use a prayer of St. Francis. And as I often do during Lent, I'll use The prayer that St. Francis prayed before the crucifix of San Damiano. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
[00:13:17] Speaker A: Amen.
[00:13:19] Speaker C: Almost high and glorious God, enlighten the darkness of my heart.
Give me right faith, certain hope, perfect love and deep humility.
Lord, give me sense and discernment in order to carry out your true and holy will. Amen.
[00:13:41] Speaker A: Amen.
[00:13:42] Speaker C: And may Almighty God bless you. The Father, Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
[00:13:47] Speaker B: Amen. Thank you, Bishop. Always great to join with you. And thanks to all who join in with us each and every week. God bless.
