April 23, 2019
Easter Monday 2019


Carissimi:
OK, this is exactly what I said last year, but it’s just as true this year. So, here goes:

I’m writing this on Easter Monday, in my business, a day to rest after the exertions of Lent and Holy Week, a day to make notes about Holy Week next year—before my little gray head forgets—and above all, a day of quiet gratitude for all of you.

So many of you commit yourselves —with Loaves and Fishes and other ministries to the poor, in advocating for social change, with hospitality, religious education at all levels, care for the sick, the ministry of the Spiritual Exercises, and liturgical service.

Some of you are retired. Some of you work behind the scenes, counting collections, keeping up the database, and filling in wherever needed in a steady stream of quiet generosity and kindness.

You made Lent and Easter this year a real joy, helping with our Wednesday night suppers and programs, decorating the church, and preparing wonderful receptions for Easter Eve and Day.

I am especially grateful to our young singles and young families. You are at a time in your lives in which your finances and busy schedules rightly limit your participation, yet you are here and are generous in so many ways.

God love you all; you’re the joy of my life [just sayin’].
Additionally...
The Easter Bombings in Sri Lanka
On Easter Sunday a serial bomb in Sri Lanka took the lives of 290 people and injured more than 500 people. As followers of Christ we condemn these terrorist and inhuman acts that are never justifiable. We join with Cardinal Charles Bo of Myanmar in his words of sympathy:

“Allow us to express our sincere anguish at this tragedy that has taken the toll on scores of innocent human lives on the very day when we celebrate the victory of life and goodness over death and evil.”

We ask the Lord Jesus to bring comfort and intervene with His peace and presence.
Have we got a weekend planned for you!
God said, “Let the earth bring forth vegetation: every kind of plant that bears seed and every kind of fruit tree on earth that bears fruit with its seed in it.” And so it happened: the earth brought forth every kind of plant that bears seed and every kind of fruit tree on earth that bears fruit with its seed in it. God saw how good it was.” - Genesis 1:11-12
Join us in Celebrating Earth Day This Next Weekend!

  • Masses will be focused on God’s Creation

  • Plan to join us for fellowship in Ignatian Hall will be after every Mass this Saturday (4:30 PM Vigil Mass) and Sunday 8, 9, 10:30 and 6 PM) to celebrate Earth Day.There will be locally sourced and organic food to snack on. Sponsored by the Justice & Peace Environmental Justice Subcommittee.
  • Win a raffle for a home composter! Enter after each Mass, winners will be drawn at 10:30am and 6pm Fellowship.

  • New videos in Ignatian Hall and fun updates to the Green Library!

  • Sign up to plant trees in area neighborhoods in May!
From the Economic Justice Subcommittee
In Baltimore, wages for people working in the service sector have been steadily decreasing for several years. This leaves thousands and thousands of workers with low wages, few, if any benefits, and no job security. Many of our sisters and brothers in our city face a grave struggle to provide for themselves and their families, pay their bills, and keep a roof over their heads.

In the past, the dominant industry in Baltimore was steel and the workers, represented by the United Steelworkers, were paid wages that supported middle-class families with health insurance, pensions, and job security. Now, the service industry in our city is primarily health care, and while Baltimore is home to some of the most prestigious institutions in the country, wages for many workers are low. READ MORE
Upcoming Events

Tuesday, April 23 - 7 PM
Embracing God's Gifts
Click here  for complete information



Thursday, April 25 - 6:30 PM
Interfaith/Ecumenical Committee Meeting
Click here  for complete information



Friday, April 26 - 11 AM - 5 PM
Best of Maryland Arts Education Festival
See information box below for complete information




Sunday, April 28
Earth Day Sunday
See box above for complete information


Sunday, April 28 - 9:45 AM
Respect for Life
Click here for complete information

Sunday, April 28 - 12 PM
Piano Concert by SERGIO MILITELLO
See information box below


Sunday, April 28 - 3 PM
Anne & Emmett - A One Act Play
See information box below


Tuesday, April 30 - 5:30 PM
Bishop Madden's Prayer Walk for Peace in the City
Click here for complete information.

This Friday..

Best of Maryland Arts Education
Statewide Student Exhibition for Music-Dance-Theatre-Visual Arts-Media Arts-Creative Writing-Poetry
The  2nd Annual Best of Maryland Arts Education Festival  will be held on Friday, April 26 and St. Ignatius Church is one of the beautiful venues!

It is sure to be an exciting day, with over 300 student performances, exhibitions, and masterclasses given by some of Maryland's top student artists, and a visit by Maryland's First Lady and brilliant artist, Yumi Hogan!

Performances will take place from 12:00-3:30 throughout Mt. Vernon. Here’s the information:

WHO?
Select Maryland secondary student solo artists and small ensembles from throughout Maryland. 

WHEN?
Friday, April 26, 2019
from 11 AM - 5 PM

SCHEDULE
11 AM. OPENING CEREMONY
The Opening Ceremony takes place at the centerpiece of Mount Vernon, the Washington Monument.

Noon - 4 PM ROTATING PERFORMANCES
Rotating student performances, masterclasses and portfolio reviews in all arts disciplines will be presented allowing performers and the public to create their own pathway through the day. Venues include the Walters, Peabody, Mt. Vernon United Methodist, Center Stage and  St. Ignatius Church !

4 PM. CLOSING CEREMONY
The Closing Ceremony takes place at the centerpiece of Mount Vernon, the Washington Monument.

Free & Open to the Public
This Sunday!
“The Art of the Improvisation”
Piano Concert by Sergio Militello

SERGIO MILITELLO (born 1968), is one of the most fascinating Italian musicians and one of the international concert performers known for his musicianship and interpretative ability. He is a composer, choir conductor, concert performer (organ, piano and harpsichord) and teacher of master classes. Sergio will perform at St. Ignatius on Sunday, April 28 at 12 PM. For complete information about his background and career, click here.
Theater with a Purpose
Join the Justice & Peace Racial Justice Subcommittee on Sunday, April 28th at 3 PM on an outing to the Murphy Fine Arts Center of the Morgan State University to see “Anne & Emmett” by Janet Langheart Cohen. 

“Anne & Emmett” is a one-act play that imagines a conversation between Anne Frank and Emmett Till, both victims of racial intolerance and hatred. Frank is the 13-year-old Jewish girl whose Diary provided a gripping perspective of the Holocaust. Till is the 14-year-old African-American boy whose brutal murder in Mississippi sparked the Modern American Civil Rights Movement.

The play places Anne and Emmett meeting in Memory, a place that isolates them from the cruelty they experienced during their lives. Their beyond-the-grave encounter draws startling similarities between the two youths’ harrowing experiences at the hands of societies that couldn't protect them.

If you are interested in seeing this play with the Justice & Peace Racial Justice subcommittee, please contact Joseph Hillery . Tickets are $20 for general admission or $15 for groups of 15 or more and seniors. We hope you can join us for an afternoon of theatre, history, and reflection. 
Mark Your Calendar!
Please join us to hear Jaqueline Sofia speak about her experiences at the Jerash Refugee Camp and helping to build Sitti Soap as an enterprise committed to educating, employing, and empowering women and girls. For complete information, click here .
Worship with Offerings, Liturgy and Prayers for Others
POOR BOX 
This week's Poor Box support goes to support
Blue Water Baltimore.

MASS MUSIC   
Attached is the listing for the music selections at next Sunday's 9:00 and
10:30 Masses.
 
PRAYERS OF PETITION
Attached are the Prayers of
Petition for this week.

In the Media
What the Sacking of Rome Has to Teach Us About the Fire at Notre Dame

Like millions of people around the world on Monday, my chest tightened as I watched Notre Dame Cathedral  in Paris as its roof was consumed by flames. I have never had the opportunity to take a pilgrimage there, but I had dreamed that, one day, I would get a chance to visit one of the most beautiful places in the world. It seems that the destruction has been limited, so my dream might still become a reality.

Watching the news, I thought of the burning of the city of Rome by Alaric, king of the Goths, in 410 A.D. This, too, was deeply traumatic for Christians at the time. What could it mean, they wondered, that Rome burned just one generation after  Christianity became the official religion of the Empire  in 380 during the reign of Theodosius I? Wasn’t God supposed to defend and protect the Empire now that the pagans had been defeated? Why would God allow such a violation? READ MORE
Faith Experts Respond to Sri Lanka: ‘When It’s Time to Defend the Minority, We Haven’t Always Done So’

Sri Lanka, site of the Easter morning terrorist attacks this past Sunday, is a Buddhist-majority country. The death toll of the Easter bombings has risen above 300 as of Tuesday, and experts of religious trends and violence say the attacks could put a strain on Christian-Muslim tensions not just in Sri Lanka, but worldwide.

The Easter bombings come amid a fragile period for inter-faith relations. Last month 50 people were killed in a shooting at a mosque in Christchurch, New Zealand, and this past October saw 11 killed at a shooting in a Pittsburgh synagogue. Sri Lankan officials say the Sunday attacks were carried out by a local Islamist militant group called the National Thowheed Jamaath. There is suspected international assistance as well. READ MORE