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Each year on Holy Saturday during the Easter Vigil, thousands of are baptized into the Catholic Church in the United States. Parishes welcome these new Catholics through the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). Listed below are some questions and answers about RCIA.

See the Church of the Holy Family, the Church of Cana, the Basilica of the Annunciation. See the outer doors, and the very place where the Word became flesh and the Yes of the Blessed Mother to God. The above image is from the interior of the Basilica of the Annunciation. It is reported to be the very spot where the Angel Gabriel appeared to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Go on a virtual pilgrimage with Fr. Sorgie and 39 parishioners who flew last night to Tel Aviv! What is a Pilgrimage? A journey you make to holy places to draw closer to God. During the Holy Year of Mercy we celebrated two Parish Pilgrimages to Old St. Patrick's and St. Patrick's Cathedral on Fifth Avenue. We walked through the Holy Doors, prayed for the Pope, celebrated Mass and on our own received the Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession.) You can go on pilgrimage too without leaving your house!

Discover all the best Catholic content in one place. Entertaining movies, enlightening programs, inspiring talks, and a great selection of popular ebooks— all just a click away! Take advantage of your FREE subscription to FORMED. Here is how easy it is: 1. Go to formed.org 2. Click on Register. 3. Enter your Parish Code W8YK28 4. Create your FREE account by entering your email address.

May the Lord grant you a deep awareness of His love and His Presence and His desire for your love, my dear brothers and sisters in the Lord! Our Divine Lord, in response to someone’s question, “Lord, will only a few people be saved?” said to him and thus all of us, “…enter through the narrow gate, for many, I tell you will try to enter and not be strong enough.” ( Luke 13:23-24) Our Lord also added, perhaps on another occasion, “… for the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction and those who enter by it are many; but the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life and those who find it are few.” ( Matthew 7:12-14) Wow! What a contrast to the present mentality where lots of people think they are going to heaven no matter what! It seems that whether they have made Christ the Lord of their lives or not, whether they worship Him at Mass or not, whether they live lives in accordance with His commandments or not, whether they confess their sins and are trying to lead holy lives or not, it’s all okay, because they say, “God understands,” as if He were just a cosmic marshmallow. Some say things like, “Well I received my sacraments at ICS,” or “I used to be an altar boy, so I’m Catholic,” but yet they no longer attend Mass or pray and they party away with no thought to the present state of their soul. Click title for full article.

Give one of the priests or Sr. Cora a call at 914-961-3643. Ask to meet with them to share your story and how you hear God leading you to consider becoming Catholic.

HEAR JESUS INVITE YOU? Your decision to look into the Catholic Church is your response to Jesus’ invitation to come to know him through this community. Jesus is inviting you into a personal relationship with him.

3 Steps: 1) Read the Mercy Minute with your family; then have another family member read it. 2) Talk about the question with each other. 3) Ask: What did we learn about Mercy? Sunday, Jesus Christ is the face of the Father’s mercy. These words…sum up the mystery of the Christian faith. How does Jesus show you the face of God the Father’s mercy? Click the title for the Mercy Minute for today.

On Saturday November 7th, the men in Fourth Theology at St. Joseph’s seminary were ordained deacons. These were men who completed three years of Graduate studies in Theology at Dunwoodie from the Archdiocese of New York, Diocese of Brooklyn and the Diocese of Rockville Center. They will be ordained to the Order of the Priesthood in May 2016.

Genuflection is the placing of your right knee on the floor while keeping your back straight. This Roman custom was a sign of reverence and humility toward the Lord or Emperor. Since there is only one LORD Jesus Christ, Catholics use this practice when in the presence of the Eucharist or facing the Tabernacle. When you enter a Catholic Church you should always face the Tabernacle and genuflect whether you are passing the Altar or entering your pew.

Commit to asking Jesus for vocations to priestly and consecrated life. How? Sign up at the Invisible Monastery What is the Invisible Monastery? It is a group of people who agree to pray for vocations. Together they make up the Invisible Monastery!

Is RCIA Right for You? Is the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults right for you? I have never been baptized and want to learn more about the Catholic faith. I was baptized in another Christian religion and now wish to become Catholic. I was baptized Catholic, but have not received any other sacraments and little if any religious instruction. I am married to a Catholic and attend Mass and would like to receive the sacraments. My kids are old enough to ask questions and I want to be able to practice what I preach and be a good role model. Recognize yourself in any of these statements? The RCIA journey just might be for you! Print and Mail to Fr. Sorgie: 53 Winter Hill Road, Tuckahoe, NY 10707 or call him at 961-3643 for more information. RCIA: Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults Parish of Immaculate Conception & Assumption of Our Lady

Father Eric Raaser Saint Margaret Church 115 West Central Ave. Pearl River NY 10965 Phone: 845-735-4746

A glance can express and communicate many things. Did you ever wonder what it was like when Our Lord looked at a person, glanced at him or her? What was it like when His glance was felt to penetrate the deepest recesses of a person’s heart? His glance was often quite inviting and tender; but it could also be strong and quite challenging. One glance from our Lord and St. Matthew, the tax collector, was moved to leave everything behind and follow Him. Click title to continue.

“The family is a place of discernment, where we learn to recognize God’s plan for our lives and to embrace it with trust,” the Pope said. “It is a place of gratuitousness, of discreet fraternal presence and solidarity, a place where we learn to step out of ourselves and accept others, to forgive and to be forgiven.” “Every family is always a light, however faint, amid the darkness of this world.” Vatican City, Oct 3, 2015 – Pope Francis Speaking the night before the opening of the Synod on the Family, he called on Synod participants – many of whom were present – to “acknowledge, esteem, and proclaim all that is beautiful, good and holy” in the family, and “embrace situations of vulnerability and hardship: war, illness, grief, wounded relationships and brokenness, which create distress, resentment and separation.”

St. Junipero Serra (1713-1784) Part the Second Last week I gave you a brief biography of St. Junipero Serra, the “Father of California” and Franciscan Missionary from Spain. Born in 1713 and died at his California Mission San Carlos in 1784. He founded nine missions in California that protected, taught and catechized Native Americans up and down what would become the State of California. You can still visit all of them and they are a national treasure.

On September 23rd, 2015, Pope Francis will celebrate Mass on the east portico of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington D.C. During Mass, Pope Francis will be canonizing Blessed Junipero Serra, a Spanish-born Franciscan Friar known for starting nine Spanish missions in California in the 1700’s. Born at Petra, Majorca, Spain, November 24, 1713, Junípero Serra was baptized on the same day

On August 1, 2015 my letter of appointment from Timothy Cardinal Dolan made me the first Pastor of a new parish in the Archdiocese of New York. Merging the two historically rich and important parishes of Immaculate Conception and Assumption into a single family in Tuckahoe and Eastchester, NY would form the parish. Throughout the Archdiocese of New York the two-year project of Making All Things New concluded with the merger and I want to thank Deacon Anthony Viola and the members of the parishes that joined the cluster to assist Cardinal Dolan in this monumental effort.

Was it just on July 1st, 2005, Father Raaser became pastor of the Churches of Immaculate Conception and Assumption? Has it really been ten years that Fr. Raaser has ministered among us: baptizing our children, witnessing our marriages, anointing our sick, burying our dead, celebrating God's forgiveness of our sins and celebrating the Eucharist? It is ten years! Ten years of selfgiving love.