Installation of Fr. Kevin B. Walsh as Pastor of St. Anthony of Padua

At the 11 am Mass on Sunday, September 12, 2010, the Reverend Robert J. Rippy, V.F., Dean of Deanery I and representing Bishop Paul S. Loverde, officiated at the installation of Fr. Kevin as Pastor of St. Anthony of Padua parish.  (Pictures below thanks to Scott Engdahl.)

A Prayerful Celebration of the Blessed Virgin Mary's Birthday

The Knights of Columbus teamed with the Legion of Mary at St. Anthony of Padua and others around the
world to pray the Rosary of Guadalupan Love on September 8, the birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The event was organized by the Supreme Council of the Knights of Columbus in honor of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Corpus Christi Procession: First Altar

Corpus Christi Procession: Second Altar

Corpus Christi Procession: Third Altar

Fr. Tuck's Mothers' Day Homily

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xw6ftGc4htk

Una fe solidaria en Virginia (El Tiempo Latino 2 de abril de 2010)

A LAS 9 AM. Ubaldo Cisneros revisa los alimentos.

 A LAS 10 AM. Voluntarias llenan bolsas con frijoles frescos.

A LAS 11 AM. Voluntarios organizan los productos en cajas.










 

A LA 1 PM. Karla Méndez recibe su caja en la iglesia.












En la Iglesia San Antonio de Padua, en Falls Church, voluntarios reparten alimentos a muchos hispanos necesitados
 

Por Ana Cubías
El Tiempo Latino


La tarea empieza muy temprano con una oración, y termina muy tarde. Pero la disposición de servir de la red de voluntarios de la iglesia San Antonio de Padua, en Falls Church, siempre está allí para los que la necesitan. Su misión: conseguir comida, llenar cajas y repartirlas entre las personas que llegan puntuales todos los días a la 1 pm al dispensario de la iglesia.

“Todo lo hacemos fundados en el evangelio y la alegría más grande para mí es ver el rostro de un niño cuando recibe galletas”, dijo a El Tiempo Latino Ubaldo Cisneros, administrador del banco de alimentos de la iglesia.


Cisneros, de 61 años y originario de Michoacán, México, tiene 16 sirviendo en la parroquia y hace tres comenzó a repartir comida para los más necesitados, la mayoría hispanos desempleados. Hoy, cuenta con una red de cerca de 100 voluntarios, desde los que recogen donativos en restaurantes hasta los que ayudan a organizar las cajas.


Además, reciben donaciones de restaurantes y empresas como Cheesecake Factory, Panera Bread, Edén Market y Río Grande. También compran alimentos con el dinero que recolectan en la iglesia.

Según Cisneros, se entregan un promedio de 150 canastas diarias que contienen: frijoles, arroz, pollo, verduras frescas y enlatadas, frutas, galletas y pan. “A veces me siento cansado, pero cuando veo a toda esta gente que esa noche tendrá que comer siento que estoy recibiendo más de lo que di”, expresó con una sonrisa mientras organizaba víveres en una caja. 


La salvadoreña Sara Estrada, de 61 años, es el brazo derecho de Cisneros, organizando la entrega de cajas. Según Estrada, quien asiste a la iglesia desde 1969 y desde hace tres es voluntaria, cuando empezó tenían un promedio de 30 personas al día. Hoy, sólo en la semana del 22 de marzo entregaron 579 cajas. “Aquí estamos haciendo una obra de Dios”, señaló Estrada, mientras ponía frijoles en una bolsa.

Cisneros está satisfecho con su trabajo, pero dice que aún tiene tres deseos por cumplir: tener un refrigerador, un congelador y un lugar más grande para almacenar los alimentos.

Pictures from the Via Crucis 2010

Fr. Tuck's Easter Homily

To view, please click on the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-kcOkvs4vc

Construction of Las Alfombras--Good Friday 2010 & Completed Alfombras

Las Alfombras means “the carpets” in Spanish. However, within the Catholic Church, it is a special carpet made of colored materials like sawdust, rice, fruit, or flower petals depicting scenes from the life of Jesus and particularly of Holy Week. For those who meticulously work to create it, it is a form of prayer and veneration, with each scene depicted the special responsibility and privilege for the individual/s who work on it.


The idea of creating Las Alfombras started in Spain and was inspired by Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. That custom was brought to Guatemala by Spanish Franciscan missionaries where it became and has remained part of the culture of the people of Guatemala. This gift has now been brought to the United States and especially to Saint Anthony of Padua parish thanks to the Guatemalan community of Northern Virginia.
Las Alfombras is an ephemeral work of art, being removed after the procession of the Via Crucis on Good Friday enters the Church.

Las Alfombras is recognized throughout the world as demonstrating the faith and devotion of Catholic people and being a blessing for all who come to see it.

Pictures from the Palm Sunday Procession

St. Patrick's Day Dinner at St. Anthony of Padua

On March 13, 2010 hundreds of parishioners gathered to celebrate St. Patrick's Day (a wee bit early) with a wonderful evening of entertainment, food and refreshments, and merriment hosted by the Knights of Columbus.  Profits from the evening go to support Mary's House, the parish's residence for expectant mothers who have no other place to go.

Click below and then click on Slideshow to see some pictures from the evening!

http://picasaweb.google.com/fred.stanthonyofpadua3/IrishPlus?feat=directlink

Stations of the Cross & Soup Kitchen on Fridays

Come join with your fellow parishioners for stations of the Cross on Fridays (at 8:30 am, 11:30 am, and 7:00 pm) in the Church and then enjoy a Lenten meal of soup and bread in the Cafeteria of the School hosted by the Knights of Columbus.

Rite of Election, February 20, 2010

The Rite of Election for catechumens and candidates was held last Saturday evening at the Cathedral of St. Thomas More with Bishop Paul Loverde celebrating the rite.  Catechumens and Candidates had attended the evening Mass at St. Anthony of Pauda and, after a reception, went to the Cathedral for the rite.  Pictured below are a few (of Sarah Taylor, Tim Paper, Mary Wille, Marnie Crane, Philip Nimoh and Nhung Thi Vo) those who attended.

Encuentro Catolica Mission to Uruguay

Each year, the Saint Anthony of Padua group of young parishioners, Encuentro Católica (in English Catholic Encounter), sponsors a celebration of our faith held at the D.C. Armory.  Each year thousands of Hispanic-American Catholics from all over the East Coast and beyond attend this two-day event.

Funds that are raised during this event from ticket and food sales then are used to fund a mission and aid trip by members of the group to a poor area of a randomly selected country in Latin America.  The faith, hope, and charity of those our young travelers meet in these villages always provides much more than they ever give.

This past year, Uruguay was selected as the country and our own former Youth Minister and now Capuchin seminarian, Manuel Avilés, was one of the travelers along with Norma Chavarria, Carla Medina, and Marta Rivera.  


The narrative below is from his email and pictures sent to his brother Capuchins describing the trip.

Dear Brothers,

I want to thank you for your prayers and support during my mission to Uruguay. Attached are some pictures that transmit a bit of the grace-filled experiences I lived during the trip.

The mission was in the Dioceses of Melo located in the northeast part of the country next to Brazil. Melo is one of the poorest dioceses in the country, but fortunate to have hosted Pope John Paul II in 1988, which inspired the Academy Award movie The Pope's Toilet.

During the mission, I had the privilege of working with three other missionaries from St. Anthony of Padua...Since our arrival and until our departure we were welcomed and accompanied by Bishop Heriberto Bodeant, Bishop of Melo, and by a religious community of woman (MJVV) from Peru. The mission consisted in bringing food, clothing and the word of God to four villages and three towns where the religious community serves. Within these towns and villages, we visited an orphanage and a house of rehabilitation for drug addicts.

The Bishop has also posted pictures and a day-by-day report of the mission in his blog:

http://dar-y-comunicar.blogspot.com

Enjoy,

Manuel Avilés, OFM Cap

Farewell Breakfast for Fr. Jorge Acho

The Ministerio de Bienvenida and Sr. Agustina hosted a farewell breakfast for Fr. Jorge Sunday, January 10th.  Fr. Grinnell and members of some of the groups that serve at the Masses on Sunday also enjoyed a delicious meal of American and Hispanic treats.

Parish Town Hall 2010 Selects Hopes for the Parish

Completing a process that started several months ago with each parishioner at Mass being asked to write down their personal hopes for the parish over the next several years, all parishioners were invited to attend a Parish Town Hall meeting last Saturday, January 9th. 

The goal was to review the top 10 hopes as voted by the parish community at Mass and select the top 3. 

As part of the event, we were provided wonderful breakfast treats and coffee...

and had some wonderful musical entertainment by the Jesus My Friend Choir and the Ghana Community Choir...

Then we got down to business under the direction of Fr. Grinnell and Scott Engdahl, Chairman of the Pastoral Council, which is responsible for this process and for tracking our success in implementing our hopes over the next several years.

After prayer and discussion of each of the 10 hopes voted by the Parish community, each attendee was given 3 dots to place on their own top 3 hopes.

A tally of these votes revealed that the top 3 (each by a substantial vote) were:

1. Have everyone work for the passage of a comprehensive immigration reform bill.

2. Support youth access to, and pursuit of, higher education.

3. Develop unity among cultures and groups (i.e., united in ministry, prayer, and evangelization).

If you would like to work in support of any of these hopes, please call the Carol Poplin at 703-820-7111 ext. 121 or email her at office@stanthonyparish.org.