This mass will be a celebration especially for the Reunion class of 1988.  There will be a reception after the Mass in the AQ Living Room.

Daily Mass will resume at AQ on Thursday June 20^th at 8 pm.  Friday Mass on June 21^st will be at 5 pm.  Sunday June 23rd the summer Sunday schedule will start with only one Mass at 4:30 pm.

The AQ summer schedule (starting Thursday, June 20^th) will be:

Daily Mass: Monday–Thursday at 8:00 pm and Friday at 5:00pm.

Sunday Mass: 4:30 pm only.

This is to accommodate the student schedule over the summer as well as that of the Friars.

Masses at Aquinas House will be offered at the following times this weekend:

Saturday June 8^th at 5:00 PM:

Solemn Graduation Mass & Reception

With Blessing of Graduates

Sunday June 9^th at 7:30 AM & 1:15PM after graduation: 

Congratulations & God’s Blessings on the Class of 2013!

]]> http://dartmouthcatholic.com/?feed=rss2&p=1379 0 http://dartmouthcatholic.com/?p=1374 http://dartmouthcatholic.com/?p=1374#comments Fri, 07 Jun 2013 14:16:31 +0000 admin http://dartmouthcatholic.com/?p=1374 Aquinas House has been blessed to have the support, example, and leadership of several ‘13’s Dartmouth athletics team captains, most of who will be graduating at the end of spring term this year.  Women’s Soccer Team Captain Kim Rose recalls her experience over the last four years, including how she has managed to live out her Catholic faith, both at AQ and on the soccer field.  Kim remembers initially being welcomed into AQ as a freshman by an outgoing and friendly Dartmouth ’10, who invited the 13’s to come to Mass with her.  Kim was touched by Fr. Jon’s homilies, saying that he had a gentle and personal way of speaking: “He really spoke to the students,” she said, recalling that: “he would use examples from the classroom and from pop culture, examples that we could relate to.”

Being raised in a Catholic family, Kim’s faith has always been an important part of her life.  Here at Dartmouth, she always wanted to go to Mass on Sundays, even if she was travelling with the soccer team.  Her faith grew during a difficult time period when she had to sit out for a season after tearing her ACL.  She remembers praying all night after the injury, devastated at the idea of having to sit out for the entirety of the season.  Her sister, who also was injured at the same time, saw how God was bringing the two closer together through their time being injured that year.

After the injury, when she could finally play again, Kim realized that playing soccer was a privilege, a way to give glory to God and a way to experience Him even more through nature.

Kim was able to exercise her leadership role as captain of the Women’s Soccer Team in a profound way when the idea for a dry season came to her over her Sophomore Summer, inspired by her participation in a Dartmouth Program called “LEAD.”  The Dartmouth program provided a forum for students to discuss issues related to alcohol and team policies.  Initially she was met with skepticism from team members when she suggested her team go dry for a season, in order to improve team performance; some thought the players would be resentful because going out together had always been a bonding experience for them as a team, especially for the freshmen.

When Kim was elected captain during her junior year, the two other captains and 13’s class went dry by choice, and the incoming freshman noticed their example. The following year, they sat down as a team and talked about the pros and cons of having a dry season and ultimately voted for a completely dry season for in the spring of 2012.  They had a wonderful season with fewer injuries and less sickness than ever before, and they really bonded as a team.  The climate in the locker room also changed a lot – talking about someone’s Saturday night hook-up was no longer a main conversation topic.

Kim recalls that the sophomores that year played a big role in helping the team find ways to have fun without drinking.  They even went out sober to the fraternities and brought the freshmen (also sober) with them.  ”Athletes have a big influence on campus,” she said, and her class will now be able to leave this legacy with them, a historic occurrence in the history of the Women’s Soccer Team at Dartmouth.

This year, starting in January 2013, Kim was looking for ways to live out her faith even more fully on campus. When Fr. Jon asked her to be an AQ ‘13’s Class Delegate, she felt that this was just the opportunity she had been looking for to find a way to serve God more fully on campus.  Kim recently decided to play soccer for a 5^th year, taking the winter term off, which has given her more time to spend at AQ as a role model and mentor for underclassmen, helping them to navigate the campus social dynamics and Greek culture.  Kim feels comfortable being at AQ, likes to study in the library and loves Monday night community dinners.  She’s really appreciated the spiritual support and genuine friendship of the community here in helping her live out her catholic faith and her desire to reach out to others and welcome them.

Sarah Rutter is a class of ’13 delegate here at AQ and is the Captain of the Women’s Crew Team at Dartmouth.  She recalls that living out her Catholic faith on campus has been a fruitful, although sometimes challenging experience.  Sarah recommitted to her Christian faith at Dartmouth, where she received the blessing of a more mature and intentional faith.  She was raised in a Catholic home, and that upbringing set the foundation for all that God has given her in her time at Dartmouth.  Throughout the years she has often been challenged in her faith by friends on the Crew team and on campus.  She’s met these challenges by praying a lot before and during practice.  Sarah describes the endless hours on the Erg machines, hours spent trying to get a better rowing time, as a “mental desert.”

This “desert”, however, provided her the opportunity to pray throughout the endless hours of indoor practice and reflect on the spiritual possibilities involved with her time as Captain of the Crew Team. She began to realize that instead of focusing on winning the race, and the anxiety and nervousness that inevitably was connected to this, she could focus on praying that God would teach her something new about Himself during each race, that she would learn something about Him through the physical exertion and excitement of racing.

Being a Christian at Dartmouth has helped her to grow tremendously in her understanding of what it means to serve and to love her neighbors.

Regardless of the faith of her peers, she’s learned the importance of striving to model Christ-like behavior and being open to discussing her faith with non-Christians.  God has blessed her with several opportunities to share His word on campus, and for that she is extremely thankful. And, she says:  “it’s exciting!”

“AQ has been such a blessing to me as a constant source of fellowship with the Lord and with other Christians.  I’ve been able to use the space here as a sanctuary and the community has been my light in difficult times.”

Lisa Masini, an active member of AQ as the Service Chair during her sophomore year, and the ‘13’s captain of the Women’s Field Hockey Team at Dartmouth, grew up in a Catholic Family in Michigan.

For her, faith and athletics have always been intertwined.  She was in a vibrant youth group during her high school years in Ann Arbor, Michigan, before coming to Dartmouth, and says that as a freshman, coming to Mass at AQ once a week with fellow ’13 Julia Danford really helped her to reflect on the week and to transition to college life at Dartmouth, both on and off the playing field.

Her faith also helped her through tough transitions on the team, such as getting a new coach.  She prays for her teammates’ safety and welfare before each game, and says she feels very privileged to play for Dartmouth and to play with her particular teammates.

Lisa recalls that her faith helped her through times when her role as Captain of the Field Hockey Team sometimes felt lonely or isolating, and she’s thankful for AQ as a place to go to live out her faith on campus.

For her, living out her faith on campus hasn’t proved to be a big challenge, because it’s always been an important part of her life.  She’s been able to live the Christian life despite the many temptations that come her way as part of the Dartmouth social scene.  Lisa especially likes going to the 10:30 Mass at Rollins on Campus and likes to study at AQ sometimes with friends.

Fr. Allan White, OP, Ph.D.

4 pm Friday May 3^rd – Rocky 001

Fr. Allan was born in London and, after studies at Oxford University, joined the Dominican Order.  He received a Ph.D. in sixteenth-century history at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.  As a member of the Black Friars, Fr. Allan has been engaged in university ministry and teaching at Oxford, Cambridge, London and Edinburgh.  He currently works as the director of the Catholic Center at New York University.

Sponsored by the Aquinas House Catholic Student Center.  Blitz Fr Jon for more info.

The Easter vigil is the holiest day of the year in the catholic church and it is common for many to enter the church on this blessed evening.  The night began with the lighting of the Easter fire – where the Paschal candle will be blessed and then lit.  This candle will be remain in the sanctuary throughout Easter and during the year for baptism’s and funerals reminding Catholics that Christ is “light and life.”

Since October, these candidates have been meeting weekly to discuss the essentials of the faith, using the Catechism, Sacred Scripture, and the teachings of St. Thomas Aquinas.

Tonight at 5:00 p.m., Aquinas House students and alumni welcome back Most Reverend Peter A. Libasci, Bishop of Manchester, as he will celebrate mass and five other RCIA candidates: Alberto Luis Sanabria Ojeda (San Juan, Puerto Rico) a Tuck Business School graduate student, Kelsey Byrd ‘13 (Campbell, CA), Theresa Smith ‘15 (Bradenton, FL), Susanna Kalaris (London, England), and Metztli Ruiz-Jaquez ‘16 (Denver, CO)  will receive the sacrament of Confirmation.

These candidates were baptized Catholic and received holy Communion, but were never confirmed.  “It has been a great joy to watch each of them grow and return to the faith and engage in a serious study of the teachings of the Church.” – Fr. Jonathan Kalisch, Aquinas House Chaplain

Immediately following the mass there will be a reception and dinner for Aquinas House alumni.  Please join us in congratulating and welcoming these candidates.

Congratulations on your acceptance to Dartmouth, and welcome to the Aquinas House Catholic Student Center!  We’re looking forward to meeting you and sharing our experiences with the Catholic community on campus.  In addition to appearing at the Activities Fair, AQ will also be hosting two Dimensions events:

THURSDAY 7pm Pizza and Q&A about being Catholic at Dartmouth

Join our student leaders for an informal conversation about faith at Dartmouth.  Pizza will be provided!

FRIDAY 6-8pm Cookout, Cornhole, and Frisbee

Swing by the Catholic Student Center for burgers, tours of the center, and games.  Come get to know current Catholic students and your fellow 17s!

If you won’t be able to attend the Dimensions events, please feel free to contact either of us to arrange a tour of AQ or to get more information about faith at Dartmouth.

Hope to see you soon,

Anne Ressler (Anne.E.Ressler.14@dartmouth.edu) and Chris Hauser (Christopher.M.Hauser.14@dartmouth.edu)

AQ Dimensions Coordinators 

HOLY THURSDAY, March 28^th 

8pm Mass of the Lord’s Supper followed by Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament

11pm  Last Supper Discourse & Compline

GOOD FRIDAY, March 29^th

2 pm Way of the Cross around Campus(starts at St. Denis)

5pm Solemn Liturgy of the Passion &  Death of Our Lord Jesus Christ Adoration of the Cross

HOLY SATURDAY, March 30^th  

8pm Solemn EASTER Vigil Mass &Celebration of the Resurrection (Easter Party follows)

EASTER SUNDAY, March 31^st  

11:00 am   Mass of the Resurrection

(Easter Brunch follows)

4:30pm Mass of the Resurrection

]]> http://dartmouthcatholic.com/?feed=rss2&p=1329 0 http://dartmouthcatholic.com/?p=1325 http://dartmouthcatholic.com/?p=1325#comments Fri, 29 Mar 2013 16:55:44 +0000 admin http://dartmouthcatholic.com/?p=1325 Below is the homily Pope Francis delivered at The Mass of the Lord’s Supper in St. Peter’s Basilica.

Dear Brothers and Sisters, This morning I have the joy of celebrating my first Chrism Mass as the Bishop of Rome. I greet all of you with affection, especially you, dear priests, who, like myself, today recall the day of your ordination.

The readings of our Mass speak of God’s “anointed ones”: the suffering Servant of Isaiah, King David and Jesus our Lord. All three have this in common: the anointing that they receive is meant in turn to anoint God’s faithful people, whose servants they are; they are anointed for the poor, for prisoners, for the oppressed… A fine image of this “being for” others can be found in the Psalm: “It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down upon the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down upon the collar of his robe” (Ps 133:2). The image of spreading oil, flowing down from the beard of Aaron upon the collar of his sacred robe, is an image of the priestly anointing which, through Christ, the Anointed One, reaches the ends of the earth, represented by the robe.

The sacred robes of the High Priest are rich in symbolism. One such symbol is that the names of the children of Israel were engraved on the onyx stones mounted on the shoulder-pieces of the ephod, the ancestor of our present-day chasuble: six on the stone of the right shoulder-piece and six on that of the left (cf. Ex 28:6-14). The names of the twelve tribes of Israel were also engraved on the breastplate (cf. Es 28:21). This means that the priest celebrates by carrying on his shoulders the people entrusted to his care and bearing their names written in his heart. When we put on our simple chasuble, it might well make us feel, upon our shoulders and in our hearts, the burdens and the faces of our faithful people, our saints and martyrs of whom there are many in these times…

From the beauty of all these liturgical things, which is not so much about trappings and fine fabrics than about the glory of our God resplendent in his people, alive and strengthened, we turn to a consideration of activity, action. The precious oil which anoints the head of Aaron does more than simply lend fragrance to his person; it overflows down to “the edges”. The Lord will say this clearly: his anointing is meant for the poor, prisoners and the sick, for those who are sorrowing and alone. The ointment is not intended just to make us fragrant, much less to be kept in a jar, for then it would become rancid … and the heart bitter.

A good priest can be recognized by the way his people are anointed. This is a clear test. When our people are anointed with the oil of gladness, it is obvious: for example, when they leave Mass looking as if they have heard good news. Our people like to hear the Gospel preached with “unction”, they like it when the Gospel we preach touches their daily lives, when it runs down like the oil of Aaron to the edges of reality, when it brings light to moments of extreme darkness, to the “outskirts” where people of faith are most exposed to the onslaught of those who want to tear down their faith. People thank us because they feel that we have prayed over the realities of their everyday lives, their troubles, their joys, their burdens and their hopes. And when they feel that the fragrance of the Anointed One, of Christ, has come to them through us, they feel encouraged to entrust to us everything they want to bring before the Lord: “Pray for me, Father, because I have this problem”, “Bless me”, “Pray for me” – these words are the sign that the anointing has flowed down to the edges of the robe, for it has turned into prayer. The prayers of the people of God. When we have this relationship with God and with his people, and grace passes through us, then we are priests, mediators between God and men. What I want to emphasize is that we need constantly to stir up God’s grace and perceive in every request, even those requests that are inconvenient and at times purely material or downright banal – but only apparently so – the desire of our people to be anointed with fragrant oil, since they know that we have it. To perceive and to sense, even as the Lord sensed the hope-filled anguish of the woman suffering from hemorrhages when she touched the hem of his garment. At that moment, Jesus, surrounded by people on every side, embodies all the beauty of Aaron vested in priestly raiment, with the oil running down upon his robes. It is a hidden beauty, one which shines forth only for those faith-filled eyes of the woman troubled with an issue of blood. But not even the disciples – future priests – see or understand: on the “existential outskirts”, they see only what is on the surface: the crowd pressing in on Jesus from all sides (cf. Lk 8:42). The Lord, on the other hand, feels the power of the divine anointing which runs down to the edge of his cloak.

We need to “go out,” then, in order to experience our own anointing, its power and its redemptive efficacy: to the “outskirts” where there is suffering, bloodshed, blindness that longs for sight, and prisoners in thrall to many evil masters. It is not in soul-searching or constant introspection that we encounter the Lord: self-help courses can be useful in life, but to live by going from one course to another, from one method to another, leads us to become pelagians and to minimize the power of grace, which comes alive and flourishes to the extent that we, in faith, go out and give ourselves and the Gospel to others, giving what little ointment we have to those who have nothing, nothing at all.

A priest who seldom goes out of himself, who anoints little – I won’t say “not at all” because, thank God, our people take our oil from us anyway – misses out on the best of our people, on what can stir the depths of his priestly heart. Those who do not go out of themselves, instead of being mediators, gradually become intermediaries, managers. We know the difference: the intermediary, the manager, “has already received his reward”, and since he doesn’t put his own skin and his own heart on the line, he never hears a warm, heartfelt word of thanks. This is precisely the reason why some priests grow dissatisfied, become sad priests, lose heart and become in some sense collectors of antiques or novelties – instead of being shepherds living with “the smell of the sheep”, shepherds in the midst of their flock, fishers of men. True enough, the so-called crisis of priestly identity threatens us all and adds to the broader cultural crisis; but if we can resist its onslaught, we will be able to put out in the name of the Lord and cast our nets. It is not a bad thing that reality itself forces us to “put out into the deep”, where what we are by grace is clearly seen as pure grace, out into the deep of the contemporary world, where the only thing that counts is “unction” – not function – and the nets which overflow with fish are those cast solely in the name of the One in whom we have put our trust: Jesus.

Dear lay faithful, be close to your priests with affection and with your prayers, that they may always be shepherds according to God’s heart.

Dear priests, may God the Father renew in us the Spirit of holiness with whom we have been anointed. May he renew his Spirit in our hearts, that this anointing may spread to everyone, even to those “outskirts” where our faithful people most look for it and most appreciate it. May our people sense that we are the Lord’s disciples; may they feel that their names are written upon our priestly vestments and that we seek no other identity; and may they receive through our words and deeds the oil of gladness which Jesus, the Anointed One, came to bring us. Amen.

“O Lord and Master of my life grant me not the spirit of sloth, despair, lust for power or idle talk. But grant on to me, Thy servant, a spirit of chastity, humility, patience and love. Yea, o Lord and King, grant me to see mine own fault and not to judge my brothers. For blessed art Thou unto ages of ages.”

In this final part of our series on St. Ephraim’s prayer we enter more fully into the mysterious nexus of prayer and almsgiving. Almsgiving is perhaps the most concrete form of charity that we can undertake. In today’s lexicon, charity is often used interchangeably with almsgiving to describe a frame of mind–a disposition–by which we give our possessions away. Moreover, it is a loving donation of self. More than mere self, charity is our self-emptying arising out of our participation in God’s loving activity.

Fr. Jean Corbon, a Melkite priest, describes the relations between the Trinity and humankind as kenosis. Kenosis is used by St. Paul to describe the self-emptying of Jesus Christ who, though of the same divine nature as the Father, became man and submitted himself to the cross (Phil. 2:6). Kenosis is inextricably linked to agape, the self-sacrificing love that seeks the good of the other in all things.

Our grace-elevated ability to love in this unselfish way, this way that manifests humility and patience, is fostered by the essential element of prayer.  When we prayerfully elevate our minds and hearts to God, charity amounts to nothing less than a bubbling over of God’s love by which we are empowered to reach out to others. Psalm 105:41 recalls the miraculous moment during the forty year journey to the Promised Land when Moses, by the power of God, struck a rock in the desert and water gushed out to quench the thirsty children of Israel. In a spiritual sense the rock in the desert symbolizes hardened hearts, which have grown indifferent to the suffering of others and the action of God in the world. When we pray with this in mind, we plead for our hearts to be struck by the Lord. We ask that our hearts of stone may be transformed into hearts that are real.

St. Ephraim’s prayer reminds us that the Lenten journey is a microcosm of the entire Christian life. That is to say Lent symbolizes our life-long journey as prodigal children en route to the homeland–Heaven. In Charity we walk an evermore-fulsome embrace of our true identities as Christ-like children of the Father with arms outstretched to others. As a Carthusian monk in Philip Groning’s award-winning film “Into Great Silence” states, Christian life is merely about finding the Father whose name we have forgotten:the Father of charity, the Father of lights, the Father of Jesus Christ.  Though our Lenten journey begins in the desert,a place of hardship where temptations sting like sandstorms and our trials can seem to be insurmountable massive sand dunes, the Lenten practices of prayer, fasting and almsgiving undertaken together by the power of God’s love amount to the sacred way that leads to Heaven.

Ryan Birjoo ’11 is an engineering major who is now a graduate student slated to graduate in June. He was confirmed at Aquinas House. He originally hails from Trinidad and Tobago.

“Can encourage, can give the joy amidst the sorrows of the world to those who do believe and also to engage the nonbelievers,” Kalisch said.

On this college campus it is easy to find nonbelievers. About 20 percent of the students are Catholic, but almost an equal number do not affiliate with any religion. A trend, according to research from Gallup and Pew, that is on the rise in the United States.

Watch the video of Father Jonathan Kalisch and Aquinas House