2024 Sacred Heart of Jesus Korean Catholic Parish Pastoral Plan
A happy and enjoyable community with neighbors
“ Rejoice and be glad . ” ( Matthew 5:12)
Praise Jesus !
I pray that grace and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ will fill the homes of all our believers. The season of Lent in 2024 has begun. As we smeared ashes on our foreheads on Ash Wednesday, we meditated on the fact that we must return to the earth. This reminds us that we must always be humble in our lives. Humility is nothing else but an attitude of controlling one's human greed and having a heart of great love for God. I hope that this year's Lent will be a time to reflect and review the milestones in our lives, rather than simply living through another routine annual event. If we do that, we will be able to welcome resurrection more joyfully than ever before.
Our community is trying to leap forward with the goal of becoming a “happy and joyful community.” When I talked about my pastoral goals for last year, I explained the English word “JOY” and said that I would like to cultivate three joys together with the believers in Connecticut during my term. In alphabetical order, the first joy is “JESUS FIRST," the second joy is “OTHERS NEXT,” and the third joy is “ YOURSELF LAST.” I want to remind you that in 2023 the pastoral goal was “ JESUS FIRST, ” or “the joy of being with the Lord.”
So, as a result of our efforts together over the past year, the number of people attending Sunday Mass has increased, and Wednesday Mass and Holy Hour have also been established. It was also a year in which we experienced oneness in the Lord as we prayed the Lord's Prayer together at 9 o'clock every evening in our respective places. Especially over the past year, God has seen our efforts and given us great grace.
First, He relieved us of our worries about setting up a temple where we could gather, pray, and hold mass. Now this church is truly our church. Therefore, we need to take better care of it and preserve it. The second was reconciliation with the early community, which was a major task in the history of our parish. The early believers who started the Korean Catholic Community of Connecticut in the New Haven area offered up their various difficulties to God, and declared that we are one in Christ through the Mass last Christmas. All of this is a grace in God’s great plan. And these achievements were the result of all of our prayers and efforts .
Now, the second joy of our community’s pastoral plan that we propose to you for this year 2024, is “OTHERS NEXT,” that is, “the joy of being with our neighbors. ”
When the angel Gabriel announced to the Virgin Mary that she was pregnant by the Holy Spirit, he said that Jesus would be called Emmanuel. Emmanuel means God is with us. In other words, it is Jesus who came to live with us in the form of a human being because God loved us so much. And this Jesus was always with those who needed him. He was always with children, the sick, the poor, and those in need, allowing them to live God's love and joy. We who believe in and follow Jesus must also live with love and joy with our neighbors. It is the grace of God that we can be joyful with others. We become true Christians when, rather than being selfish and only looking after ourselves, we do not ignore those who need help and do our best to help them.
First, let's be happy with the members of our parish community.
We must always be thankful to God for giving us the strong fence of the Korean family in Connecticut. In order to do this, we believers who pray and fellowship together must be able to understand and love each other. First, let us greet each other warmly when we meet on Sunday. Greetings are given, not received. Let's say hello first. Greeting face never omits a smile and joy. I hope that our greetings will all be the same whether we are greeting those who are visiting for the first time, those who haven't been to church in a long time, and those who we see often. And if there is any misunderstanding or distrust that has arisen within us, let us understand and reconcile before God. We cannot proclaim the gospel without practicing God’s love and forgiveness.
Second , let’s actively participate in small group meetings.
Our community is a community that gathers from all over Connecticut. It is comprised of eight small groups according to each person's living area. The small group is a small church, a small Sacred Heart of Jesus Korean Catholic Parish community. We meet together once a month to share the gospel and have fellowship. Our lives are complex and busy, but I hope that you value this time not just for yourself, but because it is a precious time to experience the joy of being with your neighbors. Also, let us happily participate in serving the parish during fellowship when organized by your small group. Your efforts and hard work in serving your neighbors are a valuable offering to God, not to mention a treasure of sharing joy with those who wait and enjoy the time of fellowship.
Third , let us continue to practice daily prayer time as a parish community.
We would like to continue the 9 p.m. prayer time that we have practiced for the past year. Please pray the Lord's Prayer together throughout Connecticut by setting an alarm on your cell phone, whether at work, at home, while driving, or at a company dinner. I will also pray at that time and give you blessings from my location. Although we are all scattered, we become one through prayer. The power of prayer is truly special. Each and every prayer of believers will become the starting point of joy with our neighbors .
When I think of the graces God has bestowed upon me since I took office at the Sacred Heart of Jesus Korean Catholic Parish, I always think of your joyful smiles and laughter. I pray that this year, that joy can be filled with the neighbors around you. Our lives are meaningful when we are happy, we gain strength when we are happy, and we move forward when we are happy. Thank you.
Patriarch of our church, Sacred Heart of Jesus, hear our prayer .
Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph, who are always with the Lord, pray for us .
Korean martyred saints who wore the laurel wreath of joy for the Lord, pray for us .
On the first week of Lent, 2024
Sacred Heart of Jesus Korean Catholic Parish
Chief priest Lee Sang-sun Joseph