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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 Oct 1. Therese of the Child Jesus Oct. 2. Guardian Angels Oct. 4. Francis of Assisi Oct. 7. Our Lady of the Rosary Oct. 15. Teresa of Avila

The 2008 U.S. Elections A Guide for Catholic Voters

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

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

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, 4600 Belle Terre Pkwy, Palm Coast, FL. Click here for Mass schedule

• St. Joseph Carmelite Monastery, 141 Carmelite Drive (off US 1 & S. Old Dixie Highway), Bunnell, FL. Outdoor Stations of the Cross, and Rosary Garden (20 Mysteries). Sunday, 5:00 PM; Mon.-Fri.: 7:30 & 9:00 AM (Polish on Thu.); Sat.: 9:00 AM (Latin).
• St. Mary's Catholic Church (Korona; served by the Carmelites Fathers), 89 St. Mary's Place, Bunnell, FL.  Click here for Mass schedule
• St. Anastasia Catholic Church, Anastasia, FL. Click here for Mass schedule

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