The finale for the school year is on Pentecost!  (5 PM on May 19.) Students will have an opportunity to “travel” to various countries and enjoy a different activity and taste at each one.  Our 3rd-5th Graders are the targeted liturgical helpers for this Mass. Parents, please mark your new calendars now and plan to join in the celebrations! We need adult help too! What a great way to plant seeds that will blossom into eternity!

Click here to sign up to help or to make your dinner reservation! (Cost $10 per household, cash or check at door.)

Please support our Garden of Giving –which is located on our grounds in the Pastoral Center courtyard – and provides vegetables to the homeless in the summer & fall by:

Shopping at Telly’s Greenhouse @

Throughout his Sunday and daily Mass homilies, our Holy Father Pope Francis has been constantly reminding us of the reality that, “…we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” (Eph 6:10).  The pope makes it very clear that Satan, who is damned for eternity to Hell for his disobedience to God: “And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more…” (Rev. 20: 2-3), hates us and attempts to pull us away from God any way he possibly can.

On Saturday, May 4^th, while he was celebrating daily Mass for the Pontifical Swiss Guard, the Holy Father made it clear that this is part of the Christian life: to be hated by the devil, who is the “prince of this world,” and thus to be hated also by the “spirit of this world.”  Pope Francis said, “The way of the Christians is the way of Jesus.  If we want to be followers of Jesus, there is no other way: none other than that, which He indicated to us – and one of the consequences of this is hatred – it is the hatred of the world, and also the prince of this world. The world would love that which belongs to it. [But Jesus tells us], ‘I have chosen you, from the world’: it was precisely He, who rescued us from the world, who chose us – pure grace! With His death, His resurrection, He redeemed us from the power of the world, from the power of the devil, from the power of the prince of this world. The origin of the hate [we experience], then is this: that we are saved. It is that prince who does not want that we should have been saved, who hates.” (Pope Francis, http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-francis-at-mass-fighting-evil-with-meekness-a)

The Holy Father continued, “There can be no dialogue with the prince of this world: let this be clear! Today, dialogue is necessary among us humans, it is necessary for peace. Dialogue is a habit, it is an attitude that we must have among us to feel and understand each other…and that [dialogue] must be maintained forever. Dialogue comes from charity, from love. But with that prince, it is impossible to dialogue: one can only respond with the Word of God who defends us, for the world hates us – and just as he did with Jesus, so will he do with us. ‘Only look,’ he will say, ‘just do this one small little scam…it is a small matter, nothing really – and so he begins to lead us on a road that is slightly off. This is a pious lie: ‘Do it, do it, do it: there is no problem,’ and it begins little by little, always, no? Then [he says]: ‘But … you’re good, you’re a good person: You [get away with] it.’ It is flattering – and he softens us by flattery: and then, we fall into the trap.”  But Pope Francis gives us an answer to this problem, “You may ask the question, ‘Father, what is the weapon to defend against these seductions, from these blandishments, these enticements that the prince of this world offers?’. The weapon is the same weapon of Jesus, the Word of God – not dialogue – but always the Word of God, and then humility and meekness. We think of Jesus, when they give that slap: what humility! What meekness! He could have insulted him, no? One question, meek and humble. We think of Jesus in His Passion. His Prophet says: ‘As a sheep going to the slaughter.’ He does not cry out, not at all: humility. Humility and meekness. These are the weapons that the prince and spirit of this world does not tolerate, for his proposals are proposals for worldly power, proposals of vanity, proposals for ill-gotten riches.”

“Today,” continued Pope Francis, “Jesus reminds us of this hatred that the world has against us, against the followers of Jesus.” The world hates us, he said, “because He has saved us, redeemed us.”  The Holy Father mentioned that in order to defend ourselves we must remain sheep, “because sheep are meek and humble, [and when we are sheep] we have a shepherd.” The Pope concluded his homily by asking the Virgin Mary, “to help us become meek and humble in the way of Jesus.”  Pope Francis is showing us that the devil and the world hate us because we belong to Christ.  But Jesus will always protect us as a good shepherd protects his sheep, as long as we meekly and humbly remain His sheep.  God bless you!

In Christ through Mary,
Fr. Eric Fedewa

Several times throughout the weekend and many times since the event, I said to folks that I really think the Lord was glorified even more than the 2011 show.   No less than 20 times through the weekend artists approached me and expressed their gratitude for the chance to display their work in such a “classy” environment and for such a worthy purpose.  One of the Patrons (of the Vatican Museum) said that she was amazed at how welcoming you made her feel and how she felt so at home here.  The juror, from the Detroit Institute of Arts, feels that she has made some lifelong friends.  Our staff was great!!! God was with us at every step of the way in our “creating” this experience.  True community was experienced and built.  One of the artists, Alexander Zorin, who had created a beautiful icon of the Blessed Mother, asked if we would be willing to utilize it here at St. Anastasia.  He thought that the honor which should be given to Our Lady would be hindered if it sat in his studio.  It now rests in our Mary Shrine in the church, along with an image of her “annunciation” and the statue of her created by Fr. Davidson’s sister.

So if you played music, if you served food or drink, if you acted as a docent, cleaned up, carried art, planned, stuffed envelopes, attended, bought, prayed, or helped accomplish one or many of the 1001 tasks which help this year’s show: THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

We have not yet decided if AFGS will happen again, so pray that we listen to the Holy Spirit and do what it is that the Lord wants.  If you have any suggestions or compliments, please email us at artf...@gmail.com

God Bless,
Fr. J.J.

For more information email Elizabeth or call ext. 106.

Please bring the Altar Server Training Manual and READ it ahead of time, which will save us some time.

If you cannot make it to the training, then make sure you READ the training manual and feel free to ask me any questions you may have.

See you then!!

“Heavenly Treasures: The three tiny parables of Matthew 13:44-50”

Enjoy a Continental Breakfast too!

RSVP by May 17 by emailing Kim or calling her on extension 121.

Saturday, August 3, 2013

Boulan Park

3671 Crooks Rd.- Troy

8:00 a.m.: Check-In

9:00 a.m.: Start Runners and Walkers

10:00 a.m.: Awards Ceremony

10:30 a.m.: Fun Run for the Kids

Register by filling out the attached form or visit www.bethany.org/raceforhome

Fee for Runners: $25 (Early Bird Special: $19 if received by June 28, 2013).

High School Student:

$15 per runner, for a group of 5 or more, if received by June 28, 2013.

Fund-Raising Letter

A fund-raising letter is available to download and send to friends and family members online at www.bethany.org/raceforhome

T-shirts are guaranteed for runners and walkers who register at least 14 days in advance.

ART MAKES YOU FEEL GOOD.
It’s often easy to use an admission price as an excuse to stay at home. However, a recent study conducted by Harris Interactive finds that people are happier when they spend money on experiences rather than material purchases. According to Leaf Van Boven, an Assistant Professor of Psychology at CU-Boulder, “experiences are shown to create more happiness than material goods because they provide positive personal reinterpretations over time.” Experiences, such as visiting Art for God’s Sake, can become a meaningful part of one’s identity and contribute to successful social relationships in a manner that material items cannot. Personal connections can be made with the art and also with family members during your visit. Plus, if you were to buy an art piece, it will reinforce that positive memory. Personal memories created at museums do not expire.

ART MAKES YOU SMARTER
There is no doubt that a primary role of a museum is to engage and educate the community. Museum exhibits inspire interest in an area of study, item, time period, or an idea. What richer topic could there be, than our Faith? It is nearly impossible to exit a museum without having gained any information or insight during your visit. You will get to know our God better.

ART EXPERIENCES ARE COMMUNITY BUILDERS
Museums are a lot more than collections of artifacts; they allow you to meet with neighbors, discuss thoughts and opinions, and become an active part of the community (in this case, The Body of Christ). Museums provide a great excuse to spend time with friends and family in a positive way.  After AFGS 2011 people returned to the Faith and joined our parish.

ART HELPS BRING CHANGE AND DEVELOPMENT TO COMMUNITIES
Research has uncovered that creating community involvement is more about location than the activity at hand, and this kind of location-based learning (like the kind utilized in AFGS) is a trigger for change and development within the community. AFGS’s purpose is to function like a community center in providing access to our Faith without the pressure.  Art experiences have proven to be hot-spots for civic engagement.  With AFGS, even children are actively asked to take part in their community. The promotion of education and the conversion that takes place at AFGS can shape and strengthen a person.

AFGS INSPIRES, IS CLOSE BY, AND BUILDS PRIDE
The 2011 AFGS event exceeded our expectations. 1000’s of people attended, and over 300 pieces of art were submitted from 5 countries. It received glowing reviews from Archbishop Allen Vigneron, the Detroit art community, and local media outlets. To our surprise, we even received a congratulatory email from the Vatican on its success. All profits went to support Christian Service ministries and an inner city warming shelter for the homeless. Most importantly, God was glorified. The 2013 AFGS is going to be even better. Don’t miss out.

God bless,
Fr. J.J.