Mass Times: Saturdays at 5:00 pm;
Sundays at 8:00 am and 10:30 am.
Mon, Tues, Wed* (*Communion service),
and Fri at 8:15 am;
Thurs at 6:00 pm.
St. Rita Roman Catholic Church
1008 Maple Dr., Webster, NY 14580
585-671-1100
 

The Parish Office is open from 9 am to noon, Monday through Friday.  Stop by or give us a call at 671-1100.

Pastoral Messages

Together We Bring Hope

As Francis of Assisi grew in his faith but was not yet fully converted, he suffered from an extreme disgust of those who suffered from the disease of leprosy. Even seeing a leper at a distance would cause him to double over with nausea.

He would go well out of his way to avoid the places where they lived.

One day, while riding home on his horse, there was suddenly a leper in his path. The leper stood there with his hand out and with pleading in his eyes, begging for alms. Francis, made stronger than himself, got down from his horse and not only gave the man alms, but also kissed the open sores on his hands.

Francis turned and got back on his horse and when he turned back to the path, the leper had vanished.

This is my favorite story of my favorite saint. I have always loved how the Grace of God transformed Francis’ heart and made him “stronger than himself”.

Another way that God helps us to be stronger than ourselves is when we come together as a faith community.

Joyfully living the Gospel of Jesus, we can do so much more when we journey through life together. We do this as St. Rita Parish and as the Diocese of Rochester. When we realize our unity as a diocese, we are literally made stronger than ourselves. The work and love extend so much further and bear so much more fruit than we could ever hope to accomplish on our own.

Please support our parish and our diocese. Please give generously and early to the Catholic Ministries Appeal.

For six straight years, we have finished before Christmas. The CMA is important and deserves our attention and energy. But we also have other important things that God is calling us to do. So, let’s do the CMA well, complete our responsibility before Christmas, and move into the new year able to devote ourselves to other ministries.

And also, if at all possible, please increase your ongoing regular contributions to St. Rita. In your envelopes, or even better, online, support all the ministries that St. Rita is involved in. There is so much more happening and being accomplished than any of us could hope to do on our own. But it all does happen. It happens by the grace of God and because together we are made stronger than we are on our own.

Thank you for all that you do. I am so proud of the people of our parish.

Yours in Christ,
~Fr. Tim


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Scripture

An Introduction to Sunday's Scripture Readings - October 26, 2025

“O Lord, Be Merciful To Me, A Sinner”

For the third Sunday in a row, our readings focus on prayer. Two Sundays ago, we focused on prayers of praise and thanksgiving. Last Sunday's readings focused on the need for trust and persistence in prayer. This Sunday, the focus is on coming to God with a humble and contrite heart. God listens especially to the poor, the oppressed and the humble sinner asking for mercy.

In our first reading (Sirach 35:12-14, 16-18), we hear that God is an equal opportunity giver of mercy. “Though not unduly partial toward the weak, yet He hears the cry of the oppressed.” God has particular concern for the lowly and sufferers of injustice. God is ever the just judge, attentive to those in need of His mercy and to those who “serve God willingly.”

In our Epistle reading (2 Timothy 4:6-8. 16-18), St. Paul continues his letter from prison to his protégé Timothy, as he contemplates his impending execution and martyrdom. At its heart, it is a prayer of praise and glory to God for allowing Paul the gift of his ministry to the Gentiles in total service to God. Even though his friends deserted him, his trust in God is what sustained him. Paul wrote, “The Lord will rescue me from every evil threat and will bring me safe to His heavenly kingdom.”

In our Gospel reading (Luke 18:9-14), Jesus addressed this parable to those whose pride and conceit blinded them to God’s mercy. He contrasted a boastful Pharisee with a humble and contrite tax collector whose shame and remorse was painfully evident. The Pharisee, it seems, was praying more to himself than to God and seemed to take all the credit for his life of good works. The Pharisee boasted of his station in life while despising everyone else. And yet the tax collector simply begged for mercy and forgiveness.

The Pharisee in today’s Gospel did everything right; he followed every prescribed law, but his pride overshadowed and negated his good works. Pride is the opposite of “poor in spirit”; it isolates us from God’s mercy. If we were to emulate one ethic in today's readings, it might be the tax collector's humility and true repentance for his sins, not judging others or feeling in any way better than others. Like the poor widow and orphan in today’s first reading, we can simply take our sorrow and our troubles and lay them at the foot of the cross.

And then go and do justice to others.

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/102625.cfm


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© 2014 St. Rita Roman Catholic Church - Last updated 2022-09-13 21:11:10
Mass Times: Saturdays at 5:00 pm;
Sundays at 8:00 am and 10:30 am.
Mon, Tues, Wed* (*Communion service),
and Fri at 8:15 am;
Thurs at 6:00 pm.