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President's Message- November 2021
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November is a packed month for us all. It a month of remembrance of all the saints, our deceased friends and family members and the celebration and thanksgiving for friends and family on the 25th .
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The grandchildren and teens look forward to Halloween parties and going door to door to “Trick or Treat”. We also remember gratefully all the Veterans who proudly served our country.
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This year, the first day of Advent is on November 28th and the first day of Hanukkah is the 29th of November.
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Our Men’s Club retreat will be held on the 19th through 21st of November at the St. Francis Retreat Center, look for an e-mail from Dennis Dubro and an announcement in the Parish Bulletin for more information and details.
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Our Club General meeting will be held on Tuesday 2nd November utilizing ZOOM at 7:00PM. The meeting will feature a dynamic presentation on Dementia from Stanford Alzheimer's Disease Research Center clinical outreach and education coordinator Jessica Huckabay. Login instructions can be found in another article in this newsletter and the announcement in our Parish bulletin.
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The city of Fremont has recently opened a new Senior Age well center (55+ years) in South Fremont which host numerous activities and lunch options. The center opened in September and is just getting off the ground (check out the article in this newsletter).
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The club will hold election for new board members at our December meeting, there are still vacant positions available for you to contribute your time and talent to our club and Parish, contact Ashley Weerpass at 510-509-6057 (Club phone number, leave message if no one answers).
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That’s all for now, Happy, and blessed Thanksgiving to all of you.
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VP for Spirituality November Message
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This is the fourth installment (excerpted from https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saint-andrew-dung-lac-and-companions) of my series explaining some history of the five saints portrayed down the left-hand side of the church.
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Andrew Dung-Lac, a Catholic convert ordained to the priesthood, was one of 117 people martyred in Vietnam between 1820 and 1862. Members of the companions group gave their lives for Christ in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, and received beatification during four different occasions between 1900 and 1951. All were canonized during the papacy of Saint John Paul II. His memorial is 24 November.
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Christianity came to Vietnam through the Portuguese. Jesuits opened the first permanent mission at Da Nang in 1615. They ministered to Japanese Catholics who had been driven from Japan. Severe persecutions were launched at least three times in the 19th century. In 1832, Emperor Minh-Mang banned all foreign missionaries, and tried to make all Vietnamese deny their faith by trampling on a crucifix.
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Persecution broke out again in 1847, when the emperor suspected foreign missionaries and Vietnamese Christians of sympathizing with a rebellion led by of one of his sons. The last of the martyrs were 17 laypersons, one of them a 9-year-old, executed in 1862. That year a treaty with France guaranteed religious freedom to Catholics, but it did not stop all persecution.
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By 1954, there were over a million Catholics—about seven percent of the population—in the north. Buddhists represented about 60 percent. Persistent persecution forced some 670,000 Catholics to abandon lands, homes and possessions and flee to the south. In 1964, there were still 833,000 Catholics in the north, but many were in prison. In the south, Catholics were enjoying the first decade of religious freedom in centuries, their numbers swelled by refugees. During the Vietnamese war, Catholics again suffered in the north, and again moved to the south in great numbers. Now reunited, the entire country is under Communist rule.
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In keeping with my usual custom, I am asking that you pray for our clergy and the following seminarians for our diocese -- John Paul Rabago, Aidan Cameron-Smith, Alvaro Santamaria.
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One of my favorite movies is Chariots of Fire. As much as I love my Catholic Faith and submit that it is the only true and full Faith, and that we (Catholic or not) only get to Heaven on the merits of the Jesus Christ through His Catholic Church, I have to admire what so many Protestants and others do and have given up for their faith. So many Protestant denominations outweigh the Church in their social programs and witness to the poor. Of course, sometimes that is all they have to offer to those who have left the Church over reasons of moral teaching, poor catechesis or scandal. We have, most importantly, a priesthood and sacraments to remedy our moral infractions. Chariots of Fire is the story of Eric Liddell, the Scottish runner who attended the 1924 Olympics, but refused to run his heats for the 100-metre race which were scheduled on a Sunday, the Lord’s Day. The Olympic team swapped runners and he was able to compete in the 400-metre race run on a weekday and won Gold. The movie ends, as he returns home and then sets out to do missionary work in China. Watching more TV during the pandemic, I just recently ran across the movie On Wings of Eagles which documents the rest of his life. During World War II, the Japanese invaded China and put foreigners into cruel concentration camps which were often denied food and medicine, which were in short supply. Although given the chance of repatriation, Eric refused to leave his flock in the camp, where he eventually contracted brain cancer and died. He is buried there in China, although memorials have been erected to him in Scotland. The world is plagued with the fragmentation of Christ’s mission to our fallen nature, but I think it is important to admire the courage of all people of faith who have chosen a more difficult path and inspire us to “man up” and do more to live our Faith more heroically.
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Men's Club General Meeting -November
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The club will hold its November General Meeting on 2nd November at 7:00PM remotely using Zoom. The meeting is announced in the Parish Bulletin and is open to all.
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Our speaker is, Stanford Alzheimer's Disease Research Center clinical outreach and education coordinator Jessica Huckabay who will speak on Dementia, a topic of interest to many of us.
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Meeting ID: 723 651 7968
Passcode: 708108
One tap mobile
+16699006833,,7236517968# US (San Jose)
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Men's Club in Person Retreat - November 2021
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Our annual Men’s Club retreat is on – in person. As usual, it is the weekend before Thanksgiving, November 19 to 21, 2021, at St Francis Retreat in San Juan Bautista. Our retreatmaster is Fr Ken Laverone, OFM. All people in attendance must be fully vaccinated. Following the incidence of Covid-19, all rooms are private and cost $310. One night is half-price and a Saturday only cost is $70. We are opening the retreat up to the men of the parish with the bulletin next weekend, October 30-31, so to hold your place, please email me back immediately and send a deposit of $50 (or the full amount) to me at 3984 Washington Blvd, #217, Fremont. CA 94538. Since we did not have a fundraiser this year, our finances are on the low end. We cannot pay the retreat house out of our bank account. Full payment must be received, mailed to me, by the Friday before the retreat, November 12.
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The theme of the retreat is “Wrestling With God”. Fr Laverone says at one time, people looked to the Church for a road map. But, today, there is a certain distrust of the Church. This is part of our current reality. Without a road map, it’s very easy to get lost and go in circles. Faith is not a set of answers; but something which leaves us in mystery, in longing; a desire to open ourselves to something bigger. On the retreat, we will explore our relationship with God, asking if it is bold enough to wrestle with him in the dust of our lives, trusting that the life-giving, loving, merciful, and prodigal God welcomes our encounter with him in life’s struggle at this time of our lives.
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Age Well Centers in Fremont
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Fremont now has two Age well Centers for 55+ seniors, one at Lake Elizabeth and one at Mission Falls (South Fremont). These centers are a great resource and many activities are free, and some are for pay. Membership is optional.
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South Fremont- Mission Falls
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47111 Mission Falls Court
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The centers both have numerous activities for recreation and education and lunch programs with delicious and affordable food for $5-$7. There is also a frozen lunch program for take home orders at Lake Elizabeth.
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The activities include - Ballroom dancing, Zumba, inter-folk dancing, Bocce Ball (S. Fremont), line dancing, Yoga, Tai chi, mahjong, ping pong, Meditation, gardening give back music, ESL, smart phone training (Android and ios). Check out the center in person and its website at http://bit.ly/AgeWellClasses
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Look for flyers at back of church in November in Men’s Club Box (on wall).
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City of Fremont is conducting a Broadband availability study
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City of Fremont Broadband Survey
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The city of Fremont is conducting a Broadband Availability Study to understand broadband coverage throughout the community. This study will help the city determine where it can strategically deploy resources to provide higher quality + lower cost broadband for residents and businesses.
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Our city needs to hear from a diverse array of businesses and residents across Fremont to understand what their needs are and what are their biggest pain points with accessing broadband (cost, speed, reliability, etc.).
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Access to reliable internet is a necessity for most individuals, households, and local businesses in our city. To better serve the community, Fremont is conducting a study around internet availability and needs your feedback!
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Your responses will be valuable in developing the City’s future broadband initiatives. To have your voice included….
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www.Fremont.gov/BroadbandSurvey
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To respond to the survey*, participants must have internet services for their home or work organization location already set-up.
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If you do not have access to a computer, you may obtain a printed version of the survey by:
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•Visiting Fremont City Hall, 3300 Capitol Ave., Building A
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•Calling 510-284-4000 to have one mailed to you.
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* Information collected in this survey is confidential and will be used only for the purpose of the City of Fremont's broadband planning. No personally identifiable information will be reported publicly.
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*Survey will close December 3, 2021.
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Year at a Glance
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Here is a link to our "Year at a Glance" calendar:
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