Holy Redeemer Parish

09/06/2026

09/05/2026

Today we celebrate

Mother and Protector of the Poor (1910-1997) Foundress of the Missionaries of Charity

Saint Teresa of Kolkata

Her life:

+ Agnes Bojaxhiu was born in Albania and became a religious sister with the Sisters of Loreto in Ireland, receiving the religious name Teresa.

+ In 1928, Mother Teresa, as she was known (the Sisters of Loreto used the title “Mother” rather than “Sister”), was sent to her congregation’s mission in India. Moved by the poverty and suffering of the people of Calcutta (Kolkata), Mother Teresa received permission to begin working with the poor outside her community.

+ In 1950, she organized the Missionaries of Charity. By 1957, the Missionaries had added ministry to Hansen’s disease patients and disaster relief to their work.

+ The recipient of numerous awards, including the Nobel Peace Prize, Mother Teresa came to personify Christian charity throughout the world. Her simplicity and faith endeared her to Christians and non-Christians alike.

+ Prior to her death in 1997, Mother Teresa also founded a male branch of the Missionaries of Charity, a separate community of priest cooperators, and a lay affiliate program.

+ Beatified in 2003, she was canonized in 2016. In 2024, Pope Francis added her liturgical memorial to the Universal Calendar of the Church.

For prayer and reflection:

“The hunger for love is much more difficult to remove than the hunger for bread.”—Saint Teresa of Kolkata

09/03/2026

This black female Catholic doctor never let an obstacle get her down

published on 02/15/19| Larry Peterson ✍🏼

Meet Dr. Lena Frances Edwards, an advocate for women, the unborn, the poor, immigrants ... and above all, a mom and woman of faith.

Meet Dr. Lena Frances Edwards, an advocate for women, the unborn, the poor, immigrants … and above all, a mom and woman of faith.Lena Frances Edwards was born in Washington, D.C., on September 17, 1900. Her father, Thomas Edwards, was a dentist and an oral surgeon. Her mom, Marie Coakley Edwards, was a homemaker. They were African-Americans and devout Catholics.

Lena’s mom devoted her time to instilling the faith into her four children. Teaching them civic responsibility, developing personal self-worth, and a philosophy she called “Lift as you Climb,” Marie Edwards left no stone unturned in doing her best to raise well-rounded youngsters. In 1917, Lena graduated at the top of her class at Dunbar High School and was the valedictorian. Mom had taught her well.

Lena then attended Howard University and earned her baccalaureate in three years. She moved on to Howard University Medical School and graduated from there in 1924. While in medical school she and a fellow student, Keith Madison. They became a couple and upon graduation they married. Between 1925 and 1939 they would have six children.
Following her mom’s example, Lena raised them with their Catholic faith always at the forefront of all they did.

After completing their internships at Freedman’s Hospital in Washington, D.C., Lena and Keith moved to Jersey City, New Jersey, to establish their medical practices. During Lena’s early years of practice she had to work from home and delivered most of her patient’s babies from the small clinic she had set up there.

It was during this time that she also became a public speaker about women’s health issues and an advocate for natural childbirth. She was also a staunch defender of life, from conception and on. She spoke about public health and social issues at local churches and the YWCA. She helped organize the People’s Charitable League, which included a day-care center which she provided with ongoing medical visits.

Her career changed when she was granted admitting privileges to Margaret Hague Hospital in Jersey City. Unfortunately, because of her race and her gender, she was prevented from being given a residency in obstetrics and gynecology until 1945. When she finally decided to sit for the National Board Examinations, she had to fight to garner the necessary hospital endorsements. Obstacles to her advancement were always in front of her, and with prayer and grit, she always seemed to knock them down.

In 1954, Dr. Edwards returned to Washington, D.C. and took a position at Howard University teaching obstetrics. In due time she was offered the job as a department chair, but she rejected the offer because of her strong objections to abortion.

While in Jersey City, she had focused on treating the poor Eastern European immigrants. Now, in the nation’s capital, she turned her attention to working with poor African-Americans. She became part of the Urban League, the National Association of Colored Women’s Clubs, the Social Work Advisory Committee, and the Catholic International Council. She also served on boards for u***d mothers and local maternal welfare organizations.

In 1960, Lena moved to Hereford, Texas, to help in starting Our Lady of Guadalupe Maternity Clinic for poor Mexican migrant women. She served here until 1965 when a heart attack cut her career short. She went back to Washington and resumed work at the Office of Economic Opportunity and Project Head Start. She retired in 1970, her heart too weak to continue working.

During her life, Dr. Lena Edwards was foremost a devout and ardent Catholic woman. In 1947, she became a member of the Third Order of Saint Francis. Her son, Thomas, joined the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement and was ordained a priest in 1962. He was the first African-American priest to be ordained in the Society of the Atonement.

In 1964, Dr. Lena Frances Edwards was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the government’s highest peacetime honor, recognizing her lifetime of work and service for those in need. She continued to lobby against abortion and programs that she felt demeaned and hindered the progress of the poor.
Dr. Edwards, always fortified by her Catholic faith, overcame many obstacles of prejudice and discrimination that were so prevalent for the whole of her life. She passed away in Lakewood, New Jersey, on December 3, 1986.

08/28/2026

Funeral - Garfield Usher

08/28/2026

KOC Council 9476 will be holding a food drive Saturday October 17th 10 am to 1 pm in the parking lots of Holy Rosary Church, Our Lady of Fatima Church and St. Mary's Church East Bay, Marguarite Bourgeois Parish, St. Theresa's Parish and Holy Redeemer Parish. This is in support of Loves and Fishes and food banks. Please be aware of expiry dates and we take perishables.

08/24/2026

Monday 24 August

Today we celebrate: Patron Saint of Those with Neurological Disorders (First Century)

Saint Bartholomew the Apostle

His life:

+ What little we know of Saint Bartholomew comes to us from the Gospel of John and he is commonly identified with Nathaniel (1:45-51), a “man without guile” from Cana, where Jesus performed his first miracle.

+ According to tradition, following Pentecost, Bartholomew preached the Gospel in India and in Asia Minor (modern-day Turkey). According to the Church historian Eusebius of Caesarea, Saint Pantaenus traveled to India in the 3rd century and found a small group of believers and was shown a Hebrew copy of the Gospel of Matthew that was said to have been left there by Bartholomew.

+ Ancient tradition also tells us that Bartholomew was martyred in Armenia by being flayed alive and his supposed relics are kept in the Church of Saint Bartholomew on an island in the Tiber River in Rome.

+ Saint Bartholomew is honored as the patron saint of Armenia and of those suffering from neurological diseases. Because of the horrific way in which he died, he also remembered as the leather workers, book binders, and is invoked by those suffering from skin diseases.

08/19/2026

Pope Leo XIV: The musical heritage of the Church must be preserved

The pontiff’s Aug. 19 general audience focused on the role of sacred music in the liturgy.

By Ishmael Adibuah·Vatican Bureau ✍🏼
August 19, 2026 at 7:30 AM ET

VATICAN CITY — Pope Leo XIV has highlighted the importance of sacred music in the liturgy, calling for the Church’s musical heritage to be preserved while fostering healthy inculturation of local traditions.
“For this reason, the composer of sacred music is called to know and preserve the musical heritage of the Church, allowing it to inspire new compositions at the service of the liturgy, while respecting contemporary sensibilities and the different cultural traditions,” Leo said.

In his address during his general audience at the Vatican on Aug. 19, the pontiff continued his catechesis on the Second Vatican Council’s constitution on the liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium.
The general audience was his third of the month to be held inside St. Peter’s Basilica due to Rome’s high summer temperatures.

Sacred music — an integral part of the liturgy

Leo discussed the Second Vatican Councilʼs emphasis on the role of sacred music in the liturgy.
“The document states that ‘The musical tradition of the universal Church is a treasure of inestimable value, greater even than that of any other art,’” Leo explained.

He also explained that sacred music fosters both prayer and communion among the faithful. “Music, indeed, is part of the liturgical action and is not merely a decorative part of the celebration,” Leo said. “In particular, music expresses the affective dimension of prayer, as St. Augustine says: ‘Cantare amantis est,‘ that is, ‘singing belongs to those who love.’”

“Singing also fosters communion. It contributes to the unity of hearts, overcoming differences between people and bringing everyone together in praise of God through the symphony of voices,” he added.
Tradition, inculturation, and active participation

The pope went on to explain that, because sacred music is so important, the liturgy should be celebrated with dignity, with music that is both noble and simple. He also highlighted the role of Gregorian chant and the pipe organ in fostering devotion during the liturgy.

“The Council then attributes great value to Gregorian chant, without excluding other genres of sacred music from the celebration. Particular attention is also given to the pipe organ, while the use of other instruments is permitted ‘on condition that the instruments are suitable, or can be made suitable, for sacred use, accord with the dignity of the temple, and truly contribute to the edification of the faithful,’” Leo said.

Leo also discussed inculturation in Church music to incorporate diverse cultures.

“A theme close to the Council’s reform is that of inculturation, including in the field of sacred music. In particular, with regard to the musical traditions of different cultures, the Council emphasizes the importance of taking them seriously into consideration, as they form part of people’s religious and social life.”

The pope also encouraged the faithful to participate in singing parts of the Mass to reflect the sacred mysteries being celebrated.

“Sacrosanctum Concilium devotes considerable attention to the theme of the active participation of the faithful,” Leo said. “As for the concrete way in which this can be achieved through the specific role of sacred music, the Constitution offers a clear answer: ‘the people should be encouraged to take part by means of acclamations, responses, psalmody, antiphons, and songs’ and ‘reverent silence’ should be fostered.”