| St. Elizabeth Seton Parish | Bedford, NH |
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Established in 1966 to serve the 400 families residing in the then rural As you “page” through the web site, I believe that you will gain an understanding of a large, living, and vibrant parish, striving through our spiritual and varied programs and activities to make the Lord’s Mission our own.
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St. Elizabeth Seton Mission
St. Elizabeth Seton St. Elizabeth Seton Parish is a loving, welcoming community of worshipers in the Catholic tradition. Our mission is to share the good news of Christ through the celebration of sacraments, liturgy and unconditional service to all. Our Pastoral Council has developed this Mission Statement. This is the guiding document for the Parish’s Ministry. The Mission Statement expresses our understanding of who we are and what we are about as a Parish. From the Mission Statement, the Council shall develop goals and objectives to guide the Parish in its decisions about ministry, programs and activities. Recent Photos
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Liturgical Reflection
Thank you all for your questions. Please keep them coming!
Diane sent me a question regarding "the Sabbath Day." She asks why the Sabbath Day is not celebrated today like that, in the days of the Gospels.
(I hope I understood the question correctly)
Anyway, ...well the "Sabbath" means "cessation" or "rest." So we keep the Old Testament commandment, "keep the Sabbath" by resting on Sunday, the Lord's Day. As Catholics, we don't celebrate the Sabbath as Old Testament Israelites nor as practitioners of the post-Temple religion known as "Judaism." Judaism keeps Friday night/Saturday days holy. We also don't keep Kosher, and we don't worry about putting a turkey in the oven, or worry about flicking a light switch on/off on the Sabbath. We aren't under the Mosaic Law. We are New Testament Israel, bound to obey the two great commandments--to love God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves. So, we, like the Apostles, do celebrate the Sabbath, also known as the Lord's Day, on Sunday. This is because it was on a Sunday that Jesus Resurrected from the dead and therefore proved He has fulfilled the Law.
Keeping the Lord's Day, means we are obliged to go to Mass every weekend in order to fulfill our "Sunday duty" by participating in the Sacrifice. In addition to going to Mass, we are called to focus our day on God and refrain from working. Refrain from working is a bit subjective. Some work may be considered relaxing to some and not so for others. For instance, removing snow in a driveway may be work for a snow-plow driver, but sheer joy for a "snow-bird" type person. Poor example, sorry. Here's another...instead, dealing with Spring. Tilling soil may be work to a farmer, but recreation to a gardener. There, better. Anyway, charity always trumps the law. So Catholics must do their best in refraining from work on Sundays, but the Church understands each individual has their own set of circumstances and different types of jobs.
So, the Lord's Day is a day geared toward God and lived based on resting. I recall when young, my family would go to morning Mass together, then visit relatives. Sometimes share a big meal. Later in the evening, I would shuffle off to CCD class. For me, this was a pleasant way of celebrating the Lord's Day; Mass, Family, Food, Fun, CCD.
Hmm... I do wonder if attending CCD classes as a high school student on Sunday, was considered working? Hmm... I guess we can all introspect a little on what it means to keep the Lord's Day holy.
Thanks for the question Diane! God Bless!
Fr. David
-- Fr. Kneeland --Under The Mercy |
