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Year of St. Paul
(2000th anniversary)
June 29, 2008-June 29, 2009
Santa Maria del Mar Catholic Church
Diocese of St. Augustine
915 North Central Avenue, Flagler Beach, Florida 32136 (Map & directions)
See current parish Bulletin in PDF format
for the most up-to-date announcements and events

Fr. Alberto Esposito, Pastor
Installation of Fr. Alberto Esposito as Pastor
Welcoming party
Biographical sketch
e-mail Fr. Al
Special October web resources
October is the month of the Rosary

Also, view these special web pages

Installation of Fr. Alberto Esposito as Pastor
by the Very Reverend Victor Galeone, Bishop of St. Augustine
September 21, 2008
Pictures by Chau Phan
Good News from the Pastor's Desk:
Good News from the Pastor's Desk: "Conversion is Salvation!"

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Last week's Gospel challenged us to make a distinction between our "outer yes" to God and our "inner yes" to God.  Even though the tax collectors and prostitutes looked like a mess from the outside, they understood that Jesus was the only way to healing and peace.  In stark contrast, the religious leaders of the day--even though they looked great from the outside--were stubbornly resistent to the Jesus' call to conversion.  Catholicism without a desire for ongoing conversion would quickly become socially irrrelevant and spiritually superficial.

During the the first weekend of October, the Church asks us to celebrate Respect Life Sunday, a graced opportunity to reaffirm our parish's commitment to the dignity of all human life, from conception to natural death.  The heart of Respect Life Sunday is the call to conversion.  Even if the law of the land were to change (and, please God, someday it will), the external change would still have to be united to a profound conversion experience.  The Greek term for conversion is metanoia, which means a change of mind, a re-orientation, a fundamental transforma­tion of our vision of the world and of ourselves, and a new way of loving others and God.  "Metanoia," says Basil the Great, "is salva­tion, but lack of understanding is the death of metanoia."

To help us on this journey of conversion, I would like to propose John Paul the Second as our spiritual guide.  Each week's bulletin will have an excerpt from his important encyclical letter, Evangelium Vitae, which translates as The Gospel of Life.  In the following passage, John Paul emphasizes that the most important dimensions of our human experience are relational, religious and spiritual:

The eclipse of the sense of God and of man inevitably leads to a practical materialism, which breeds individualism, utilitarianism and hedonism. Here too we see the permanent validity of the words of the Apostle: "And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a base mind and to improper conduct" (Rom 1:28). The values of being are replaced by those of having. The only goal which counts is the pursuit of one's own material well-being. The so-called "quality of life" is interpreted primarily or exclusively as economic efficiency, inordinate consumerism, physical beauty and pleasure, to the neglect of the more profound dimensions-interpersonal, spiritual and religious-of existence.  (Paragraph 23, Evangelium Vitae)

Basil the Great has taught us that the lack of understanding is the death of conversion.  As we celebrate Respect Life Sunday, let's commit ourselves to understanding more fully the great gift of life, courageously and wisely uniting our outer yes to our inner yes!

Peace and Joy in the Risen Christ,

Father Al Esposito


Installation ceremony by Bishop Victor Galeone

With Bishop Victor Galeone after the intallation Mass
Faith Formation (Religious Education): Schedule for Fall 2008
As the new school year begins: Prayers for use by students, parents and teachers
Preparing for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, January 18-25, 2009
Fr. Al asks you to read: Stewardship: The four pillars of hospitality, prayer, formation and service (Diocese of Wichita, in PDF format; needs Adobe Reader)
SOS: To help storm victims
For victims inside the USA
Catholic Charities USA, 2008 Hurricane Fund 
PO Box 17141, Baltimore, MD 21297-1141
1-800-919-9338     http://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org

For victims outside the USA: Catholic Relief Services
228 W. Lexington St. Baltimore, Maryland 21201-3413
1-888-277-7575     http://crs.org/
Beware of unknown organizations
which solicit you by phone or e-mail. 
 
Liturgical Schedule
Masses
Saturday: 5:00 p.m.
Sunday: 9:00, 11:30 a.m.
Youth Mass: Sunday 5:00 p.m.
Weekdays Masses (in chapel):
(No Monday Mass). Tue., 6 p.m.
Wed. through Friday: 9:00 a.m.


Adoration
Mon.-Fri., 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
First Friday: 24 Hour Adoration begins after 9 AM Mass, ends after First Saturday 9 AM Mass.
Confession
Saturday: 4-4:45 p.m. & by appointment


Our Lady of the Sea
by Bill Stead
(retouched by Wil Stead)
Staff
Pastor: Father Alberto Esposito
Deacon Mike Moody
Parish Manager: Cindy Ser
Dir. of Religious Education: Nigel Powell
Bulletin: Cindy Ser & Megan Gallup

Office Hours
Tuesday through Friday: 9:00 - 3:00
Church/Office.: (386) 439-2791
Fax: (386) 439-1362
Fr. O'Flaherty Hall: (386) 439-0079
Emergency
When the Pastor cannot be reached, please
call the Carmelite Fathers at (386) 437-2910

Please kindly report all broken links and corrections to web minister by clicking here
 
About Santa Maria del Mar parish
Parish Ministries

Religious Education

Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA)

Catholics Returning Home

Youth Group
Special web resources
 Preparing for The Year of St. Paul,
June 2008-June 2009
Relief Organizations you can trust

Prayers & Readings
Daily Mass readings
Selected prayers
Prayers for Peace
Inspirational Thoughts
Catholic magazines, journals on the web
Selected Catholic Resources on the Internet
Internet Resources for Catholic Women

Daily Masses in the vicinity (click on church name for map)

  • St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, 4600 Belle Terre Pkwy, Palm Coast, FL. Click here for Mass schedule
  • About Chau T. Phan, web minister
    A prayer before logging onto the internet
    Almighty and eternal God, who created us in Your image and taught us to seek after all that is good, true and beautiful, especially in the divine person of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, grant, we ask You, that during our journeys through the internet, we will direct our hands and eyes only to that which is pleasing to You and treat with charity and patience all those souls whom we encounter. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. 
    Pope John Paul II and "Internet: A New Forum for Proclaiming the Gospel"  (May 12, 2002)
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