Last weekend, we joined with our Sister Parish in Dar es Salaam in celebrating the Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist, their Patron Saint. Thanks to John and Mary Sudol for their presentation at all the Masses. The slide show was great. Fr. Emmanuel McHopa pastor of Saint John the Baptist will be with us on the weekend of July 14/15. Please try to be here for that. We will have hospitality after all the Masses.

As of this writing (Wednesday June 27) the Air Conditioning fund is at $26,739. Thank you.

Once again, I am including here in this space an announcement from a newly formed group of parishioners which speaks of their vitally important work for the future life of our parish. Please support them in this work in any way possible.

The current total for the Catholic Appeal is $44,947. You are doing great! If you have not yet participated please consider doing so this weekend. Remember if we go over our goal, we receive 25% back to the parish. You may send your contribution directly to the Appeal office or drop it at the Parish Office. There are Appeal envelopes in the vestibule.

As in the past couple of years we will gather for 2 casual cookouts just to connect with one another during the summer months when many are away on the weekends. Here are this year’s dates for your calendar:

Please RSVP to Irene if you plan to attend by 4:00 pm this coming Friday July 6

For the second year we will hold it on our second cookout Wednesday August 15 – the Feast of the Assumption and a holy day of obligation. The evening Mass on this day will be at 5:30 followed by the second cookout.

Have a great week,

Pray and work for Peace,

Fr. Rick

Imagine being part of an organization that fills your heart and your mind with the joy of giving to others and the feeling that comes with making a difference. Knights are Catholic men, 18 years of age and older, who are committed to making their community a better place, while supporting their Church. Being a Knight is more than camaraderie; it is being involved with your community; it is supporting your local Catholic Church, while enhancing your own faith and setting a good faith example; it is about protecting and enhancing your family life.  You can volunteer as much as you like or as little and on your own schedule. If you want to find out more, contact John Perigaut (978-975-8015) or Mike Carman (617-240-0005) or visit the website at www.kofc.org.

July Meeting: there will be one meeting only in July, which will be held on Wednesday, July 18th, at 7:30 PM in Driscoll Hall.

A good steward learns the difference between what we own and what owns us. Jesus reminds us that many things can own us, demanding so much of our time and energy that we have no time left for God. Yet, when we decide to follow Jesus we must not look back at the many things we might leave behind.

On Sunday, July 15th, we will prepare the meal for the Bread and Roses hospitality house in Lawrence to be served on Monday, July 16th, the third Monday of the month. PLEASE NOTE THERE ARE FIVE WEEKENDS IN JULY. The third weekend is July 15th, not the 22nd.

We plan to prepare BEEF TACOS with a tossed salad and dessert. Food items needed are: cooked ground beef, soft tacos (large size please), packages of shredded cheese, packages of taco seasoning, jars of salsa, lettuce, tomato, cucumbers, large cans of fruit salad, cookies or brownies. Please use the sign up sheet on the clipboard in the church lobby.

Many of our parishioners who regularly donate to this effort will be on vacation during July and August. Please consider contributing some needed food item if you will be here during these months. Any donation would be very much appreciated.

Kitchen helpers meet on Sunday at 9:30 AM. All food donations should be received by 10:30 AM. Call Betty Bufano at 978-851-5682 or Lisa Lattari at 978-749-3736 for further information.

Buying fair trade coffee is a tangible way we can put the values of our faith into action. It provides hope for small-scale farmers who have been trapped in poverty by international market forces over which they have no control. It guarantees prices that enable producers to cover their costs of production and provide a decent standard of living for their families. It reminds us there are people behind all the things we consume.

St. Roberts participates in the CRS Fair Trade Coffee Program by committing to the use of fair trade coffee for parish functions and by making it available for purchase to the parish community. Our coffee comes from Dean’s Beans, a company that supports the welfare of small-scale farmers and the CRS Fair Trade Coffee Program by donating a percentage of your purchase to the CRS Fair Trade Fund to support CRS’s work with disadvantaged coffee farmers overseas.

Bring your values to the marketplace – bring Dean’s Beans Fair Trade Coffee into your homes! This month, coffee will be available for purchase in the Seton Room after all Masses next weekend, July 7 and 8.

Sunday: 1 Kgs 19:16b, 19-21/Gal 5:1, 13-18/Lk 9:51-62

Monday: Gn 18:16-33/Mt 8:18-22

Tuesday: Eph 2:19-22/Jn 20:24-29

Wednesday: Gn 21:5, 8-20a/Mt 8:28-34

Thursday: Gn 22:1b-19/Mt 9:1-8

Friday: Gn 23:1-4, 19; 24:1-8, 62-67/Mt 9:9-13

Saturday: Gn 27:1-5, 15-29/Mt 9:14-17

Evangelization is "the Vocation of the Church, her deepest identity." Since 1885, the Black and Native American Collection has helped the evangelization mission of the Church in many parts of the United States where God’s word otherwise would not be proclaimed. Please try to help support United States Black, Indian, Eskimo, and Aleute missions during the second collection at all Masses on the weekend of July 7 and 8. What began more than a century ago, and has been a tremendous success, needs your support today as well.

Sometimes we are like the people in the Gospel and have many excuses for why we cannot follow Jesus. Name a time this past week that you followed Jesus even though you had many excuses.

The people in the story had lots of reasons why they couldn’t follow Jesus. What makes it hard to be a disciple of Jesus? Why do you make the choice to follow Jesus even though it is hard?

To follow Jesus means to do what is right. Name a time this past week when you followed Jesus by doing the right thing you were asked to do, the first time, without an excuse.

Cheryl Corbett writes to thank the St. Roberts community for all of the prayer support for loved ones in her family. Jim Roy, her sister’s brother-in-law, who was critically injured in a car accident on July 11^th last year, has recovered and resumed a normal life. Marjorie Field, her mother’s friend, died peacefully last month.

Summer vacation has arrived! Have fun and be safe! Here’s a helpful list of things to remember as you get ready to pack and go:

1. Stop the newspaper

2. Stop the mail

3. Take pets to the kennel

4. Lock all the windows and doors

5. SEND YOUR WEEKLY CONTRIBUTION TO ST. ROBERTS

Please remember our expenses do not stop during the summer months. Please consider sending your summer contribution before you leave for vacation. Or consider signing up for the ParishPay automated giving program (see below for more information).

Now you can have your donations automatically transferred from either your checking or savings account each month or, if you prefer, you may use your credit card. The program is easy and convenient. Simply enroll once and your donations will safely arrive at our parish each month. No more checks to write or envelopes to fuss with and, best of all, it’s free to enroll. There are three easy ways to enroll:

If you have questions or need more information, contact Irene Bonner at 978-683-8922 or ibonner@comcast.net.

Our first summer cookout will be held on Tuesday, July 10, at 6:00 PM. Looking forward to seeing you there! Please RSVP to Irene at 978-683-8922 or ibonner@comcast.net  by 4:00 PM on Friday, July 6, if you plan to attend.

The Academy of Notre Dame is a private, Catholic co-educational elementary school and an all-girls preparatory high school sponsored by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, located in Tyngsboro, MA. The school is currently accepting applications for the following grades:

(High School Preparatory Middle School)

(College Preparatory High School)

For more information, please contact Barbara Aldrich-Clougherty, Director of Admissions, at 978-649-7611 x327 or visit their website at www.ndatyngsboro.org.

A few openings remain in the 2007-2008 Nursery, Pre-K, and Kindergarten classes at St. Augustine School in Andover. To apply, contact Ann Daly at 978-475-2414 or go online for an application at www.staugustineandover.org.

"At St. Augustine’s we work to enable all our students to reach their full potential spiritually, emotionally, socially, and academically. Our strong and diverse Catholic community is rich with opportunity – from foreign language studies and arts to extracurricular activities and faith outreach programs."

Maj. Kurt O’Rourke Mark DuPont, USCC, Kevin Grace, USA, Lyle Shackelford, Jaime Ray Seluk, USN, Pvt. Alexander Sabu, USA, Lt. Col. Paul Severance, USAF, Gen’l. R. Steve Whitcomb, USA, Lt. Col. Brian P. Bedell, USA, Capt. Lauren Whitcomb, USA, Col. Patrick J. Donahue, USA, Col. Brian P. Donahue, USA, Michael McGaffigan, USA, Beth Carriere, Nurse, USA, Steve Comstock, Pilot, USN, Lt. Jesse Salisbury, USAF, Sgt. Maureen Galvin, USA,SpOps, Lt.J.G. Kevin B. O’Brien, USN, Miko Belonia, Maj. Tony Hoffman, USA, Maj. Ross Coffman, USA, Maj. Garth Howe, USA, USA, Chief Warrant Officer II, Michael Morris, Captain Matthew Mancini, USA, Sgt. Ellen Barnes O’Connor, USA, Pvt. Adam James Mazza, USA, Pvt. Joseph D. Gagnon, USM, Col. Joseph Albanese, USA, Cpt. Eric Eckberg, USA

A reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah 66:10-14c

Thus says the LORD: Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad because of her, all you who love her; exult, exult with her, all you who were mourning over her! Oh, that you may suck fully of the milk of her comfort, that you may nurse with delight at her abundant breasts!

For thus says the LORD: Lo, I will spread prosperity over Jerusalem like a river, and the wealth of the nations like an overflowing torrent. As nurslings, you shall be carried in her arms, and fondled in her lap; as a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you; in Jerusalem you shall find your comfort. When you see this, your heart shall rejoice and your bodies flourish like the grass; the LORD's power shall be known to his servants.

A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Galatians 6:14-18

Brothers and sisters: May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither does circumcision mean anything, nor does uncircumcision, but only a new creation. Peace and mercy be to all who follow this rule and to the Israel of God.

From now on, let no one make troubles for me; for I bear the marks of Jesus on my body.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers and sisters. Amen.

+ A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 10:1-12, 17-20

At that time the Lord appointed seventy-two others whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit. He said to them, "The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest. Go on your way; behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves. Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals; and greet no one along the way. Into whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this household.’ If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you, for the laborer deserves his payment. Do not move about from one house to another. Whatever town you enter and they welcome you, eat what is set before you, cure the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God is at hand for you.’ Whatever town you enter and they do not receive you, go out into the streets and say, ‘The dust of your town that clings to our feet, even that we shake off against you.’ Yet know this: the kingdom of God is at hand. I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom on that day than for that town."

The seventy-two returned rejoicing, and said, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us because of your name." Jesus said, "I have observed Satan fall like lightning from the sky. Behold, I have given you the power to ‘tread upon serpents’ and scorpions and upon the full force of the enemy and nothing will harm you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice because the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice because your names are written in heaven."