Find a Furry Friend At The Sacred Hearts & St. Stephen Church Pet Adoption Event This Sunday

Not only is Sacred Hearts & St. Stephen Church hosting a Community Health Fair in its rectory hall at 125 Summit Street this coming Sunday, April 15th, but the church is also hosting a pet adoption event on the same day. 

The Animal Care Centers of New York City will be sending its adoption truck to the church, so stop on by if you have been thinking of adding a furry friend to your family.

ACC Shelter Pet Adoption Truck 

At Sacred Hearts & St. Stephen

Sunday,April 15th.

0:30 am - 2:00 pm

Animal Care Centers of NYC will be at Sacred Hearts & St. Stephen Church with Great Shelter Dogs and Cats available for adoption! Animal Care Centers of NYC adoptions include vaccinations, spay/neuter, a pre-registered microchip, an identification tag, a collar and a certificate for a free initial exam at a participating veterinarian.Come find your forever friend!

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Honoring Maria SS Addolorata: The Annual 'Our Lady of Sorrows' Procession Through Carroll Gardens Took Place Yesterday

photo credit: Chance Bliss

As in years past, the congregation of Sacred Hearts and St. Stephen R.C. Church in Carroll Gardens and the people of Mola Di Bari, Italy honored their hometown patron saint, Maria SS. Addolorata with a procession through the streets of Carroll Gardens.

On Sunday afternoon at around 4 pm,  the faithful carried the statue of Our Lady of Sorrows on their shoulders, stopping along the way for food and drinks.  Upon their return to Sacred Hearts - St. Stephen Church on Summit Street near Hicks Street,  mass was celebrated in Italian by by Bishop
Raymond Chappetto followed by a fireworks display.

According to a  special web site on Maria Addolorata,

"the congregation of Maria SS Addolorata was established in 1948 in Brooklyn, New York, by the Italian immigrants from the town of Mola in Bari, Italy. Longing to continue the traditions of their faith and culture the congregation was formed in their new neighborhood of South Brooklyn at the Parish of Sacred Hearts - St. Stephen. At that time a replica of the statue of their hometown patroness, Our Lady of Sorrows, was commissioned and shipped by boat across the Atlantic from Mola to Brooklyn. 

Since that time the statue has been the inspiration of great devotion and faith. The statue is carried on the shoulders of men twice a year through the neighborhood of Carroll Gardens in South Brooklyn. These occasions are Good Friday and the Feast of Addolorata on the second Sunday in September. On these occasions devotees from the tri-state area and beyond gather back at the old neighborhood to walk in the footsteps of generations past that came to this great country with hope and dreams of a new life guided by their faith and the intersession of the Blessed Mother under the title of Addolorata."

I would like to thank fellow Carroll Gardener Chance Bliss for allowing me to use his photos of yesterday's procession.  Thanks, Chance!

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Reader Question Of The Day: What's The Pattern Of Chiming Bells At Sacred Hearts On Summit?

I love the chiming of church bells around the neighborhood, not for any religious reason, but for the way they remind me of my childhood in Europe. I have noticed though, that I have never been able to figure out the pattern of the chiming. Neither has reader Brooke, who writes:

"I'm not sure if you answer questions like this, but was wondering if you had any idea about the church bell at Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Marry Church on Summit Street between Henry and Hicks. I was wondering if you knew the pattern behind when and for how long they decide to chime the church bells. I was always under the impression they chimed every hour on the hour to note what time it was, (8 chimes for 8am etc) and then again to note when mass was starting.

That doesn't seem to be the case with this church, the bells chime at random times throughout the day. I counted 62 bell chimes yesterday [Friday] morning starting at 8:19am."

This being Easter time, there definitely is bound to be more chiming. If you had any insight, Brooke and I would be interested to hear.

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A Moment Back In Time: Frankie's Parents Got Married 63 Years Ago Today

THE REAL BROOKLYN

6/29/47

This is for you, Frankie!

Life long Carroll Gardens resident and reader Frankie sent me this sweet photo of his parents' wedding day, taken exactly 63 years ago today, on June 29, 1947.

Frankie writes:

"Don't mind me for asking, but how wonderful if you placed this on your website.

It is my mom and dad's wedding, taken in front of St. Stephen. I can't help but say, over the years, everyone had a cup of tea or coffee at my parents' kitchen. It was so full of love.

You know, the picture tells a story how a few people, joined together, and, not intentionally, just by doing good things, working, raising a family, etc., well,...that was Brooklyn.

Now, you get a few hobos standing on the corner with a "Brooklyn" T-shirt."

I am happy to oblige by posting the photo, Frankie. Thanks for sharing it with everyone.

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Maria SS. Addolorata Procession In Carroll Gardens

Photo credit: Andy Schocken

The procession and feast of Maria SS. Addolorata, the patron saint of Mola Di Bari, is a tradition here in Carroll Gardens. Every second Sunday in September, the Catholic Parish of Sacred Hearts/St. Stephen holds mass and members of the congregation carry the statue of Our Lady Of Sorrows around the streets of Carroll Gardens.

I did not get a chance to see the procession myself this year. Luckily, Andy Schocken, a new neighborhood resident, took these terrific photos and was kind enough to allow me to post them here.

Thanks, Andy, and welcome to the hood.

For Home Page, click Pardon Me For Asking

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