By Lois Rogers | Correspondent

The Easter Season in Sacred Heart Parish, Bay Head, drew to a close May 17 when the parish held its annual Communion Breakfast and recognized religious education students in a special way.

Click here to see photo gallery on this story.

The breakfast is hosted by the parish Holy Name and Rosary Altar Societies. It is one of a series of fund raising events the parish holds for a variety of causes, including three scholarships to Catholic grade and high schools for religious education students and the Downey Side Adoption Agency, which specializes in finding permanent homes for foster children in New Jersey.

A highlight of the breakfast was a speech by Immaculate Heart of Mary Sister Mary Agnes Ryan, who captivated all with her presentation on keeping Jesus at the heart of the home all year, not just at Easter.

In her presentation, Sister Mary Agnes, diocesan director of the Department of Evangelization and Catechesis, spoke of her affection for the Sacred Heart of Jesus which began when she was growing up in a parish of the same name. The name of the Bay Head parish caught her eye when she first arrived in the Diocese and was getting acquainted with its landscape.

“I have an affinity to Sacred Heart parishes,” said Sister Mary Agnes, who would urge families to keep Jesus in the heart of the family, “in our lives throughout the year.” She urged all the generations present in the social hall to focus on “Jesus throughout the year; to ask yourself what difference does the Death and Resurrection of Jesus make in your lives throughout the year,” not just at Easter.

Encouraging everyone to be open to putting faith in action throughout the year and to keep their ears, eyes and hearts open to messages of faith, she spoke of how the Blessed Virgin Mary was the perfect model of someone who reacted when God called. The announcement from the Angel Gabriel, she said, “was not something she expected. It was a shocking message. But Mary paid attention. She listened to what the angel asked her to do: to change direction.”

Sister Mary Agnes asked the gathering to ask themselves “are we as attentive as Mary? Are we listening, paying attention? Mary was listening and she reframed her life.”

With celebration of Pentecost on the near horizon, Sister Mary Agnes exhorted her audience to be mindful of the presence of the Holy Spirit in their lives. “Are we available to change direction, to act on God’s direction,” as Mary had done? Sister Mary Agnes queried.

“She got up and went to see Elizabeth. She took action.”

Sister Mary Agnes offered some inspiration on how a person, no matter their age, should make faith in action a lifetime goal. One inspiration was to choose a personal motto, and she offered several, all drawn from the military, including “Semper Fidelis,” the Marine motto, and “Semper Paratus,” the Coast Guard motto, and how they – translate as “Always Faithful” and “Always Prepared.”

“Always be prepared when God moves us,” she said. “Create a motto of your life, focus on the Word of God, become familiar with it...” she said.

She also recommended making the presence of God strong in the home.

“Create a space in the most lived in room of the home,” she said and have a place for a Bible, statues and holy pictures in that room.

Her advice was taken to the heart by the Kuhn family whose son, Brendan, received Confirmation this year.

He was among the 39 parishioners ages eight to 80 recognized at the breakfast. The students included those in the parish religious education program who had received either their First Holy Communion or were confirmed as well as those who completed their Sacraments of Initiation at the Easter Vigil through the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults.

Brendan’s mother Nancy linked Sister Mary Agnes’ message to the gifts bestowed upon all of the students.

“They were exactly what the sister was talking about,” she said. “The kids got a book called, ‘Come Holy Spirit,’ a journal to put their reflections in and an individual framed Confirmation Day photo with their sponsor and the priests.”

Nancy  Kuhn said she plans to take Sister Mary Agnes’ suggestion and “act” with it, setting aside a space in the house where the family can gather “for family meetings” and prayer.

She noted that the breakfast was made even more meaningful by the fact that Downey Side has benefited from a bake sale fundraiser run by the Altar Rosary Society and the religious education program. “That’s another reason the day had so much meaning,” she said noting that she and husband, Daniel, have adopted three of their five children from Downey Side.

Her reaction is just what John Paglione, coordinator of religious education and president of the Holy Name Society, was hoping for.

“One of the things we can do for families and children is to give this kind of recognition and bring everyone together for a family-type celebration,” he said.