Current Mass Times

Saturday: 5 p.m.

Sunday: 7:30 a.m., 9:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 2 p.m. (español), 5 p.m.

Monday-Friday: 9 a.m.

Monday-Wednesday-Friday: 12:10 p.m.

Watch a livestreamed or recorded Mass

Confession

Saturday: 10 a.m.-10:30 a.m. (English)

Sunday: 3 p.m.- 4 p.m. (español)

“It is not possible to sustain the present level of consumption in developed countries and wealthier sectors of society, wasting and discarding at unprecedented levels.” (L.S. 31)

According to the EPA, in 2018, the average person in the U.S. produced 4.9 pounds of trash per day. That comes to 147 pounds of trash per person per month, or 1,788.5 pounds per person per year. In response to Pope Francis’ exhortation in Laudato Si’, the Care for our Common Home Ministry suggests making your next get-together a Zero Waste Event, where 80 percent or more of the waste generated is diverted from the landfill or incineration. 

The invitation should inform guests of the objective to minimize the amount of trash generated at the event. Waste reduction is most easily achieved by the use of reusable dishes, drinkware, and flatware followed up by dishwashing and ensuring that food scraps are composted. When we purchase reusable items, or use what we already have, we save both time and money. Advance preparation includes having labeled bins to separate and deposit used items for washing and a collection bin for food scraps. At SJN events, we take the compost to the I-66 waste transfer station, where they accept more food waste, bones, and compostable ware than a backyard compost. Composting food waste and compostable materials keeps them out of the trash stream. 

Compostable dishes and utensils are the next best serving option, if dishwashing is not available. They must be properly collected and disposed of, not bagged up as trash. These items will break down completely to form a nutrient-rich soil amendment that, when applied to soil, allows plants to better retain moisture and require less fertilizer. Fertilizer application and runoff is a source of the potent greenhouse gas nitrous oxide which, pound for pound, warms the planet 300 times as much as carbon dioxide. Here is information on selecting compostable products and items.

Recyclable materials should be the third option, since only a small percentage of recyclable items are actually turned into raw materials and used to make new products. 

General Considerations:

• Ask food caterers/vendors about their sustainability practices.
• Serve food that is fair trade, local, or organic.
• Consider finger foods that can be taken with a napkin.
• Consider cold food options to reduce cooking and heating energy use.
• Buy food in bulk, as much as possible, to avoid excess packaging.
• Provide smaller plates so people do not take more food than they will eat.
• Opt for drinks in aluminum cans.
• Use bulk cream/creamer/sweetener for coffee.
• Choose reusable decorations, like non-date-specific banners.
• Decorate with potted plants that can be gifted or planted. 

Arrange for composting at your event. In addition to backyard composting of uncooked food scraps, cooked food scraps and compostable service ware can be collected either in a compostable/biodegradable bag or newspaper, which can then either be dropped off at the transfer station facility or picked up by a composting service.



A Zero Waste event increases awareness and encourages dialogue about trash issues. At SJN, we have a dishwashing ministry that helps out at a variety of parish events from hypothermia meals to funeral receptions.

“There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.” 

-Maya Angelou

According to Mayo Clinic, about 10% to 20% of pregnancies will end in miscarriage (defined as the sudden loss of pregnancy before the 20th week). In reality, that number is likely much higher, but many are lost prior to realization. Among women who know they are pregnant, it is estimated about 1 in 8 pregnancies will end in miscarriage. Additionally, 21,000 babies are stillborn every year in the United States. According to the Center for Disease Control, due to socioeconomic factors, health care disparities, and structural racism, non-Hispanic Black women and American Indian/Alaska Native women are twice as likely as other women to experience a stillbirth.

October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness month, a month of remembrance. Many people, even if they do not know the gender of the lost baby, find naming the baby to help with healing and processing the grief. While the sacrament of Baptism is only for the living, you can have a Mass said for your child, and you may request from a priest or deacon the “Blessing of Parents After a Miscarriage.” A baby lost at any age can also have a funeral Mass and burial if this helps bring comfort or closure. For more information on Catholic resources and options, please visit the Arlington Diocese webpage: https://www.arlingtondiocese.org/find-support/miscarriage-and-infant-loss/. Additionally, there are also several support groups in our area where you can connect with people who understand: https://dcmoms.com/pregnancy-postpartum/guide-to-pregnancy-and-infant-loss-resources-in-the-dmv/. Whether you lose your baby in the early stages of pregnancy or soon after birth, there is no right or wrong way to mourn this loss. Each mom or couple will grieve their own way.

I know what that roller coaster of emotion is like. Going almost instantly from the excitement and sweet hope of pregnancy to complete despair, unable to explain or even fully understand the emptiness. I was nearing the end of the first trimester with our third child and had not widely shared the news of our pregnancy, when I found myself wrestling with this loss. Honestly, it took me a long time to process the grief and contemplate how it changed my life. But that is how loss works, it is often unexpected; you don’t know in the morning how you could be profoundly changed for the rest of your life before the day ends. In my experience, I woke up from surgery to a grief counselor, and even though it was 17 years ago, I still recall how heavy and confusing it felt. Because a baby is not tangible before birth, it is hard to find the words to express the loss of this connection, this hope, this part of you. At times I struggled even with myself, unable to grasp the depth of what I felt. As Catholics, of course, we believe life is precious, each one valued from conception to natural death. Miscarriages and pregnancy loss are an often-unspoken pain, but not an uncommon pain. With an estimated one in four women affected, it is likely you have a friend, loved one, or it is you who knows this pain.

If you are the friend or family of someone who has lost a baby, don’t avoid it or try to downplay the loss with phrases like, “You can always try again” or “At least you have another child.” In a time of grief and loss, no one wants to hear, “Maybe it was for the best” or “It must have been God’s plan.” Compassion and validation of life are key. Check in with your friend or family member, listen to them or just accompany them on their healing journey. Consider a remembrance of the baby’s life, no matter how short, with a tree or flowers planted, an act of kindness in honor of the life, or charitable donation in memory of the baby. Thoughtful gestures help validate the magnitude of the loss.

Finally, whether you know someone personally or not, everyone can join in Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month Wave of Light in remembrance of all the losses. On October 15 at 7 p.m. light a candle and burn it for at least an hour in remembrance. Keeping it for an hour will carry the wave of light to the next time zone. For more information, on this month of remembrance and awareness visit: https://starlegacyfoundation.org/awareness-month/.

On October 18, the Church observes the feast day of St. Luke, evangelist. Luke is best known as the author of one of the three synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke are called the synoptic Gospels because they are similar, referencing many of the same miracles, teachings, and sayings, with differing audiences and portrayals of Jesus). Born in Antioch, the capital of Ancient Syria, in the first century, Luke was Greek and believed to be the only Gentile to have written books of the Bible. Luke has often been believed to be a physician by trade, which is supported by both the manner of his compassionate and knowledgeable writings and direct reference to him as “the beloved physician” by Paul in Colossians 4:14. Beyond these well-known traditions about Luke, there are many other fascinating details that are traditionally believed about St. Luke, including his traveling with St. Paul and writing the Acts of the Apostles, the attention he gave to writing about the role of the Virgin Mother, as well as the ancient symbolism of Luke as an ox.

Often when thinking of the New Testament, St. Paul is the writer who comes to mind, but, as the author of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles, Luke is believed to be the author of nearly one-quarter of the New Testament. While Matthew and John were two of the twelve Apostles, Mark and Luke were companions of St. Paul. Luke’s writings are strongly substantiated by scholars, and it is strongly believed that some events in Acts are Luke’s first-hand accounts. In Acts 1:1, Luke refers to “the first book” (his Gospel) and writes Acts somewhat as a continuation, documenting the glimpses into the early Church and evangelization either as told to him or experienced first-hand. The first sixteen chapters of Acts are written in third person; in Chapter 16 the writing changes to first-person perspective, and it is believed that, at this point, Luke had joined Paul at Toras in the year 51. Luke had abandoned his life, possibly family and his trade, to be one of St. Paul’s traveling companions, spreading the Good News, becoming an evangelist. It is certainly believed Luke was a close confidant of St. Paul’s; written late in Paul’s life from prison, in one of the “Pastoral Epistles,” Paul tells Timothy, “Luke is the only one with me.” (2 Timothy 4:11)

While some of the Acts of the Apostles can be attributed as first-hand accounts, the book of Luke is reported in his introduction as “delivered to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the word.” It is believed that Luke may have essentially “interviewed” many of those who personally experienced the details in his writing. For example, only the Gospels of Matthew and Luke include the infancy narrative of Jesus. The difference between the two is that Matthew’s account focuses on Joseph, while Luke’s concentration is on Mary. The sheer length and details of Luke’s account has led people to believe that he spoke first-hand with the Blessed Mother Mary. There are such personal details in his account that it is thought only Mary herself could have shared the recollections of her experiences and feelings. For instance, in Luke 2:19, the shepherds have just visited the holy family at the nativity, and Luke writes, “Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart.” He continues in 2:51 after the finding of Jesus in the Temple writing,

“…and his mother kept all these things in her heart.” Details of the Annunciation, of which only Mary would have known, are also in Luke supporting the belief that he had personally encountered and documented the testimony of Mary.

While it is evident that each book of the Gospel embraces a unique perspective, from the 5th century, Gospel writers have also been symbolized by different creatures. In traditional Christian iconography, Matthew is depicted as a human, Mark is a lion, John is an eagle, and Luke is an ox. The foretelling of this symbolism can be found in Ezekiel 1:10, “Their faces were like this: each of the four had the face of a man, but on the right side was the face of a lion, and on the left side the face of an ox, and finally each had the faces of an eagle.” In the New Testament, it is written, “In the center and around the throne, there were four living creatures covered with eyes in front and in back. The first creature resembled a lion, the second was like a calf, the third had a face like that of a human being, and the fourth looked like an eagle in flight.” (Revelation 4:6-7) The symbols are believed to embrace personal qualities of the evangelists. Luke is represented by an ox, a creature known for its strength and reliability and, in Jewish tradition, a sacrificial animal. Luke’s Gospel focuses on the sacrifice of Zechariah, father of John the Baptist, in temple; the sacrifice of Mary in God’s salvation plan, and of course, Jesus, who sacrificed Himself so that we may live. Luke ultimately sacrificed his life to be loyal to the early Church, to accompany St. Paul in his evangelization, and document for posterity.

Luke stayed with St. Paul until Paul’s martyrdom in the year 67. Luke’s life after that is less clear, but it is believed he continued to preach and possibly was martyred at the age of 84 in Thebes. His remains were later (around 338) taken to Constantinople and then moved to Padua, Italy, where they remain in the Basilica of Santa Giustina today. DNA analysis as recently as 2001 supports the legitimacy of this claim.

On October 18, celebrate St. Luke by reading the story of the Good Samaritan (his Gospel is the only one which includes this parable), reading his personal accounts in Acts, or by painting. In addition to his prolific writing, since the 8th century, legend has told that St. Luke painted the first Icons of the Virgin Mary and Jesus, although historical evidence of this does not exist. Regardless, St. Luke is the patron saint of artists, sculptors, stained glass makers, and lacemakers, and of course, patron of the medical profession.

PHOTO CAPTION: The tetramorph of the Book of Kells, 8th Century, depicting the four evangelists.