PNCC

Blessing of Easter Baskets

Community Events, Liturgical, Parish Life, PNCC /

All are welcome — as always! Bring your eggs, cooked foods, uncooked foods, baskets or not, covered with a white linen cloth (or not)… Father Andrew will bless your Easter foods in a short, cheerful service on Saturday, April 19th at 1 pm.

This service is a token of gratitude to God for all his gifts of both nature and grace. A reminder that the Lord is part of our daily life and is always among us! Please bring a family member or a friend; help make this old but significant tradition new again!

Download this flyer [pdf] for information on preparing a traditional Easter basket.

blessing of baskets flyer 2014

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Lent, Holy Week, and Easter in East Meadow

Community Events, Liturgical, Parish Life, PNCC /

We invite you to journey with us through Lent and Holy Week, and celebrate with us on Easter at St. Francis in East Meadow.

Lenten Holy Mass and Stations of the Cross every Sunday

After each 9 a.m. Holy Mass during Lent we will observe Stations of the Cross followed by Breakfast in the Parish Hall.

Palm Sunday

Procession & Holy Mass on Sunday, April 13th at 9 am

Palm Sunday marks the beginning of “Holy Week.” On this day we com­ memorate the last triumph of Our Lord Jesus Christ on earth. On this day we celebrate the triumphant entry of our Lord into Jerusalem; when the multitudes, going before and following after Him, cut off branches from the trees and strewed them in His way, shouting, “Hosanna, to the Son of David. Blessed is He that comes in the name of the Lord.” This Palm Sunday triumph of our Lord only led to His death. But we know that this death was not a failure. It was through His passion and death that He conquered the world and entered into His Kingdom. So the faithful join in this triumphant celebration in an act of homage and gratitude to Christ our King!

Paschal Triduum

  • Maundy Thursday Holy Mass on Thursday, April 17th at 7 pm
  • Good Friday Mass of the Presactified on Friday, April 18th at 7 pm
  • Blessing of the Baskets, Saturday, April 19th at 1 pm. All are welcome! Bring your eggs, cooked foods, uncooked foods, baskets or not, covered with a white linen cloth (or not)… Fr. Andrew will bless your Easter foods in a short, cheerful service.

For Christians the Paschal Triduum (“Three Days”) is the focal point of the entire year. During these days, covering the period from the evening of Holy Thursday through the evening of Easter Sunday, we celebrate our faith in the paschal mystery of Christ with the greatest fervor and intensity. In the liturgy we commemorate the passion, death and resurrection of Christ as the means of our salvation. Through our baptism, we share in the death of Christ and so hope to share in his resurrection. The liturgy of the Paschal Triduum then invites us to reflect on where we are in our own Paschal journey in Christ.

Maundy Thursday – The name Maundy comes from the Latin word which means ‘command.’ It refers to the new command Jesus gave his disciples on the Thursday be­ fore he was crucified. On that night, long ago, he served the “Last Supper” of bread and wine, washed his disciples’ feet and said, “A new command I give you; Love one another.” —John 13:13. Church bells fall silent on this day and are not heard again until Easter morn­ ing. Instead of tinkling altar bells, wooden clappers are used during divine services. The altar will be stripped at the end of the service to symbolize Christ being stripped of his power. The holy sacrifice is interrupted and will not be offered again until Holy Saturday.

Good Friday – Good Friday used to called God’s Friday because it was the day Jesus was crucified. This is the most solemn day of the year, as we recall the suffer­ ings and death of Jesus. We take this time to journey the ‘Stations of the Cross,’ Christ’s road to Calvary. The Bible says that when Jesus hung on the cross, the sky became dark from noon until 3:00 p.m.. During those hours, traditionally, the faithful may meditate on the sufferings of Our Lord on the cross and remember the words He spoke on the Cross…Take time to remember, read the Passion, read a psalm, meditate, say a prayer. We share now in sorrow, grief and pain.

Holy Saturday – Holy Saturday is liturgically a day of deepest mourning, a day which the Church spends at our Lord’s sepulchre, meditating on his sacred Passion and death. There is no mass and the altar is bare. As we end the Lenten penitential period in pious preparation for a festive Paschal season. We have the Blessing of our Easter Foods on Saturday, April 23rd at 1:00 p.m., a token of gratitude to God for all his gifts of both nature and grace. A reminder that the Lord is part of our daily life and is always among us! Please bring a family member or a friend; help make this old but significant tradition new again!

Solemnity of the Resurrection – Easter

Procession & Resurrection Holy Mass on Sunday, April 20th at 9 am followed by our famous Easter Breakfast.

Come, you are invited, family and friends of St. Francis Parish, to attend our traditional “Easter Celebration Breakfast” held in the Parish Hall, after Easter Sunday Mass. Come, let us REJOICE together!

lent & easter 2014

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Blessing Of The Animals

Community Events, Liturgical, Parish Life, PNCC /

St. Francis’ Annual Blessing Of The Animals will be held on Saturday, October 5th at 1:00 p.m.

Bring your dogs, cats, hamsters, gerbils, birds, fish, ferrets, turtles, lizards, for a special St. Francis blessing…

Blessing For All Animals

Blessed are you, Lord God, Maker of all living creatures, On the fifth and sixth days of creation you called forth fish in the sea, birds in the air and animals on the land. You inspired St. Francis to call all animals his brothers and sisters. We ask you to bless this animal. By the power of your love enable it to live according to your plan. May we always praise you for all your beauty in creation. Blessed are you, Lord our God, in all your creatures! Amen.

St. Francis PNC Church – 81 years in East Meadow – 1932-2013

Directions: Take Southern State Parkway to exit 25N (RT-106 N) toward EAST MEADOW for about a half mile. Turn LEFT onto E. MEADOW AVE for approx. 1 mile. Turn LEFT onto HARTON AVE. HARTON AVE. is off EAST MEADOW AVE between Pietro’s Pizzeria and Chinese Take-Out.

blessing of animals flyer 2013 (1)

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Reflection for Ash Wednesday – Lent 2013

From the Pastor, PNCC /

My brothers and sisters in Christ, today we enter a new liturgical Season. Together, we have gathered here on this evening to celebrate “Ash Wednesday,” the first of forty days of the Lenten Season that precedes Easter.

At the beginning of Lent, on Ash Wednesday, ashes are blessed during Holy Mass, after the homily. The blessed ashes are then “imposed” on the faithful as a sign of conversion, penance, fasting and human mortality. The liturgical Rite of Ash Wednesday gives two formulae for the imposition of Ashes:

One is: “Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return”.

It is a reminder of the fragility of human life. It reminds us that we entered life without things and that we will leave life without things. So, we are challenged to reflect on what our life means, and what it means to be truly human.

The other formula is “Repent and believe the Gospel”.

It is about a change in life, a turning round. Repentance is also about returning to what is essential in human life. The first reading calls us to: “Come back to [God] with all your heart.” The Prophet Joel urges us to return to the Father “with your whole heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning… For he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, rich in kindness, and relenting in punishment.” To practice sincere repentance, the Lord God tells us to change our hearts. We are called to examine our most inner self, our hearts, souls, our whole life and turn away from our sins and to walk in God`s righteous ways.

During today’s Second Reading from the Second Letter to the Corinthians, we heard St. Paul appealing to us on behalf of Jesus to be reconciled to God. God the Father sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to die for us on the cross. He who was without sin took our place and was treated as a sinner, so we might become righteous in the eyes of God. Now is the time for us to show our appreciation to the Lord God by walking in His righteousness so we may inherit the salvation that we have asked of Him and which He is granting to us through His infinite love and mercy.

How do we walk in righteousness?

Jesus answered that question during today’s Reading from the Gospel of Matthew. Jesus warns us against hypocrisy, those who are pious so they may be seen by others. They have received their rewards through those who admired and praised them for it. For them, there is no reward from God the Father in Heaven.

During the Lenten Season, our piety must manifest private time between the Lord God and ourselves. Lenten season is a time to reflect on our lives and on the faith into which we were baptized. We must walk with Christ in our lives every minute of the day, from the time we rise in the morning until the time we go to bed at night.

Be reconciled to God!

These are the guidelines that the Church has received from God so the faithful may experience true repentance in order to receive Divine mercy and forgiveness. As we enter the Lenten Season, let us remember these words every day! Practice them! And I assure you that God shall reward us!

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Reflection for the Solemnity of the Humble Shepherds

From the Pastor, PNCC /

My dear sisters and brothers in Christ, today we celebrate the first Sunday after Christmas –The Solemnity of the Humble Shepherds.

When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.’

When the shepherds heard the Word of the Lord through the angels, how did they respond? Did they go and pray about what they had heard to see what they should do next? Did they go and talk to the priests and Pharisees to make sure they had it right? What was their reaction?

Their reaction was spontaneous, they didn’t think, they didn’t pray, they just reacted with excitement. We have to remember these shepherds likely did not receive a kind word from anyone. But they received — Good News — not just from anyone on earth, but from God Himself who made the greatest event ever known first to them.

They couldn’t wait.

They went in haste and found Mary and Joseph and the baby lying in the manger; once they saw, they understood what had been told them concerning this Child. All who heard of it were astonished at the report given them by the shepherds. Mary treasured all these things and reflected on them in her heart.

While Mary was treasuring all that God was accomplishing before her, what did the shepherds do?

The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, in accord with what had been told them. The shepherds returned home.

This was the beginning of the good news of Jesus` coming into the world. The shepherds went to the manger and presented their respect worshipping the newborn savior of the world. They left praising God for the great fortune of humanity and they participated in the great event by telling everyone they could. They were the first witnesses of the great News that Jesus is Savior of the world and salvation is here.

Jesus came to save what was lost, to enlighten the world with his teaching and to save and sanctify with His Grace. Jesus came to change hearts of stone to convert them into hearts of flesh, full of love and compassion. He came to assume full responsibility for our sins with His death on the cross to participate his salvation if we repent and amend ours ways.

Jesus is the bridge between heaven and earth. He invites us to walk with him into everlasting glory. We have to humble ourselves like the shepherds did, come and pay homage to our savior every day of our life, rejoice in our salvation and share the good news to all people on earth.

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Anniversary Mass for Thomas and Lorraine Kompa

Parish Life, PNCC /

Parishioners of St. Francis Church, Thomas and Lorraine Kompa, celebrated their 25th Wedding Anniversary (October 18th). They renewed their marriage vows, in the celebration of Sunday Holy Mass, on October 28, 2012.

St. Francis Church perfected the atmosphere for such a celebration and was filled with family and friends. The renewal vows were beautifully inter-twined through the prayer of St. Francis’s parishioners and all attending. St. Francis pastor, Fr. Andrzej Koterba, celebrated the Holy Mass and bestowed a marriage blessing upon Thomas and Lorraine.

Holy Mass was followed by a breakfast hosted by the couple in the parish hall. God`s blessings to all for many more years of love and happiness.

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