By TAMI QUIGLEY Staff writer
“I’m so grateful to be with you this morning with the home school community, in the joy of Easter and the beautiful month of May dedicated to the Blessed Mother,” said Bishop Alfred Schlert, principal celebrant and homilist of the Homeschool Mass May 10 at the Cathedral of St. Catharine of Siena, Allentown.
Father Christopher Butera, Diocesan director of seminarian formation and administrator of Sacred Heart, Bath, concelebrated the morning liturgy. Father Keith Mathur, assistant in the Diocesan Curia and director of the Diocesan Office for Divine Worship, was episcopal master of ceremonies.
In his homily, Bishop Schlert said the homeschool community is a place where “the Catholic faith, arts and the sciences are passed on, and by your good example, hopefully we’ll have more vocations to the priesthood and religious life.
“The homeschool community is nurturing the Catholic way, fulfilling the Church’s mission of parents being the first educators.”
“Think of the New Testament – the Old Testament too – but especially in the New Testament, how privileged a place the home is. It’s the nucleus of society, the first building block of the Church,” Bishop Schlert said, adding that the Second Vatican Council called the home the “domestic Church.”
Bishop Schlert said when we think of the home and family we see in the New Testament, it’s easy to think of the Holy Family, in which Jesus was lovingly reared by Mary and Joseph. But there are other examples too, such as the Annunciation, which occurred in Mary’s home.
“The very beginning of salvation, of God becoming man, began in a home where Mary lived out the beginning of her vocation as the mother of God,” he said.
The Bishop said Mary then visited her sister Elizabeth in her home, “and John the Baptist leaps for joy in the womb. The home is a place of joy.”
“And there’s St. Paul’s conversion in today’s Gospel,” Bishop Schlert said. The conversion didn’t happen in the home, but it was in the home he realized Jesus is the Messiah, the scales fell off his eyes and where he was told Jesus is the savior.”
The home, Bishop Schlert said, is a place of healing, and noted St. Peter’s mother-in-law was healed in the home. It’s also a place of forgiveness, as the home is where Jesus ate with Zacchaeus after he fell from the tree, and St. Matthew the tax collector changed his life after eating with Jesus.
“The home is a place of miracles,” Bishop Schlert said, noting the Last Supper – where Jesus gave us the Holy Eucharist – was held in a home. And it was in a home that the Holy Spirit descended on Mary and the apostles.
“The home is a place to encounter God, receive answers to prayers, sometimes suffer and say yes to God’s will. It’s a place of healing among families,” the Bishop said.
“You are a vibrant part of the Diocese and Church, not just in academics but the transmission of faith.
“I encourage you in your good work, and give thanks to God for this jewel, this gem in our Diocese.”
The Bishop announced his intention to assign a priest as chaplain to the homeschool community “to interact with families and provide spiritual experiences.” This priest will also act as St. John Vianney Ministry of the Confessional, going throughout the Diocese offering confessions at times when they are not typically offered.
“I really feel our homeschool community needs the presence of a priest, and hopefully he will be a good resource for you.”
Bishop Schlert later appointed Father William Seifert to St. John Vianney Confessional Ministry, chaplain of the Diocesan Homeschool Community and chaplain, Deaf Apostolate, with residence at Holy Family Villa, Bethlehem, effective June 18.
Bishop Schlert said he sees the homeschool community “as a way to evangelize, pass on the faith.”
Kevin Damitz and his wife Susie organized the Mass with Mary Wert, parishioner of St. Ignatius Loyola, Sinking Spring.
Kolbe Eidle, brother of seminarian Keaton Eidle, coordinated the hymns, played the organ and was cantor. Elisabeth Laskowski and her family, parishioners of St. Catharine of Siena, Reading, presented the offertory gifts.
A time of fellowship ensued in the Parish Activity Center. Just over 100 people attended the Mass and reception.
