Blessed Sacrament/St. Vincent De Paul Churches Syracuse

05/30/2026

Please see Father Severine’s reflection for Holy Trinity Sunday:

First Reading: Exodus 34:4b-6, 8-9 Responsorial Psalm: Daniel 3:52, 53, 54, 55 Second Reading: 2 Corinthians 13:11-13 Gospel Reading: John 3:16-18

Reflection: Today’s Responsorial Psalms reads, “Glory and praise for ever.” Yes, the glory and praise are given to God as the Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. In this solemnity we are invited to acknowledge and profess our faith in One God who has manifested himself into three persons throughout the history of salvation: the persons of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. These three persons of God are not three G(g)ods but rather one God. In today’s First Reading, Moses bows down to the ground in worship as he experiences the presence of God who has just descended in a cloud before Moses. In seeing God not only Moses worship Him, he also prays to him on behalf of his people and pleads God mercy upon the wickedness of his people. Moses worships one almighty God. In today’s Second Reading, Paul writes to the Corinthians with acknowledgement of one God who is the God of love and peace. Paul uses the Trinitarian formula to describe the God he shares with them as he writes: “The grace of the Lord Jesus (God the Son) and the love of God (God the Father) and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you.” This greeting has remained through the centuries to be the profound tradition of the Church. In today’s Gospel Reading, John cements the teaching of one God who manifested himself into the world through his Son. Everyone who believes in the Son will not perish but will have eternal life. In our Catholic faith, the teaching of the Holy Trinity is very central and operates in all seven sacraments of the church. The sign of the cross, which is very visible to the Catholics, is made in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. All solemn and non-solemn blessings are made in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. All Catholics are taught to always praise the Holy Trinity in a very special prayer of praise, “Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.” So today on this Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, Catholics worldwide put their faith in a summary form that our faith is build up on the foundation of one God who has manifested himself in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Yes! Amen! Fr. Severine.

05/23/2026

Please see Father Severine’s reflection for Pentecost Sunday:

First Reading: Acts of the Apostles 2:1-11 Responsorial Psalm: 104:1, 24, 29-30, 31, 34 Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:3b-7, 12-13 or Galatians 5:16-25 Gospel Reading: John 20:19-23 or 15:26-27; 16:12-15

Reflection: For nine days after the ascension of Jesus into heaven, the Church has been praying the Great Novena for the coming of the Holy Spirit. The Church has joined the first cenacle of the apostles and other disciples and never ceased to pray, “Come Holy Spirit come.” The Holy Spirit is the third person of one God. When Jesus was about to ascend into heaven, He promised his disciples to send them the Holy Spirit. “While meeting with them, he enjoined them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for “the promise of the Father about which you have heard me speak; for John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit,” (Acts 1:4-5). He continued, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth,” (Acts 1:8). The Holy Spirit is the gift of God the Father and God the Son to the disciples. The Holy Spirit is coming into the world to comfort the disciples and to accompany them in their new ministry as they proclaim the Gospel of Christ to the ends of earth. The Holy Spirit is coming into the world to set the disciples into the fire of the Gospel. This reality is well expressed on the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples as well narrated in today’s First Reading, “And suddenly there came from the sky a noise like a strong driving wind, and it filled the entire house in which they were. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.” The coming of the Holy Spirit extinguished all the fears the disciples had. It gave them courage to stand up and share the Gospel with all boldness. It gave them the power of language to communicate the Gospel to people of all languages and cultures. The Holy Spirit created awe among the people who listened to the Apostles, “Are not all these people who are speaking Galileans? Then how does each of us hear them in his native language?” The coming of the Holy Spirit into the world is the renewal of the face of the earth as today’s Responsorial Psalm states, “Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.” It is through the work of the Holy Spirit that the Church has been able to navigate through all kinds of terrains in history whether they were times of great darkness and persecutions or times of peace and prosperity. The Church has kept on motion to our own times. We never cease praying, “Come Holy Spirit Come!” Yes! Amen, Alleluia! Fr. Severine.

05/19/2026

05/16/2026

05/16/2026

Please see Father Severine’s reflection for the Seventh Sunday of Easter;

First Reading: Acts of the Apostles 1:12-14 Responsorial Psalm: 27:1, 4, 7-8 Second Reading: 1 Peter 4:13-16 Gospel Reading: John:17:1-11

Reflection: We are in the Easter Season as the Church continues to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. This past Thursday was the Solemnity of Ascension, the day, which marked the 40th day after the resurrection of Jesus, the day when he ascended into heaven. Jesus spent 40 days after his resurrection to strengthen the faith of his disciples and as he consistently reminded them of all what he taught them during his public ministry. For 40 days Jesus reassured them that he is to be found among the living and not among the dead and that all what happened to him was the fulfillment of the Holy Scriptures. As Jesus ascends into heaven, he commands his disciples to return to Jerusalem and remain together in prayer waiting for the coming of the Holy Spirit. The Church embraces nine days prior to the Pentecost Sunday to pray the Novena of the Holy Spirit as she joins the first cenacle of Jesus’ disciples in Jerusalem. This year the Novena of the Holy Spirit started this Friday May 15th and it will conclude on Saturday May 23rd. During this novena we all pray, “Come Holy Spirit Come.” In our Catholic tradition we have a simple and powerful prayer, which reads, “Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And you shall renew the face of the earth. O God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy his consolation, through the same Christ Our Lord. Amen.” This is the prayer of renewal recognizing the power of God the Holy Spirit in creating new things in the life of the church. In today’s Gospel Reading, we encounter the first part of Jesus’ prayer for his disciples, the classic prayer which is known as the prayer of “Jesus, the high priest.” In this prayer, Jesus expresses his intimacy with his Father and with his disciples here on earth. In this prayer Jesus honors his Father as the source of his ministry. In this prayer, Jesus entrusts his disciples to the protection of his Father. The Prayer of Jesus, the High Priest continues to inform us that prayer to God is the integral part of individual Christians as well as Christian communities throughout the world. As Jesus always prayed for his disciples, we are called to always pray without ceasing. We embrace this novena prayer of the Holy Spirit to pray for the renewal of the face of the earth. We need our lives renewed so that we may carry the true hope in the hopeless world. We need our lives renewed so that we may have the power to surrender in God’s will as we abandon ours. As we live in prayer, we will be able to join today’s psalmist who prays: “I believe that I shall see the good things of the Lord in the land of the living.” Yes! Amen! Alleluia! Fr. Severine.

05/16/2026

AFRICAN JUBILEE MASS

On Sunday June 21st, 2026 at 2:00PM, Fr. Severine Yagaza will join Fr. Innocent Onyenagubho (The Hospital Chaplain at UpState Medical Hospital) and Msgr. Francis Osei-Nyarko (The administrator at Pulaski and Mexico) to celebrate the African Mass (with African music and cultures) to mark their 40th Year of Ordination to priesthood. Following the Mass, there will be an African cuisine dinner for all the attendants. Let’s come together in the spirit of gratitude to God, to celebrate the gift of priesthood. The Mass will be at Blessed Sacrament Church and dinner at Blessed Sacrament School cafeteria.

05/14/2026

PANCAKE BREAKFAST !

Sunday, May 31st
9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
St. Vincent’s Parish Hall
Pancakes, eggs, sausage links, coffee, and juice.
Pricing:

- Adults: $10.00

- Children (under 12): $5.00

Tickets:
Advance tickets will be sold after all Masses. Tickets

will also be available for purchase at the door.

05/14/2026

WELCOME TO AN OPEN MEETING

As we prepare ourselves for this transition at Blessed Sacrament School, I would like to invite all Blessed Sacrament family to an open meeting to discuss the upcoming leadership transition, answer questions, and gather your feedback. We need to work together to build up the future of our school. The meeting will take place on Wednesday, May 20, 2026, at 7:00 pm in the Blessed Sacrament school cafeteria. Fr. Severine.