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WEEKLY BULLETIN September 9, 2007
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FROM FATHER RICK
PARISH FEAST DAY SCHEDULE OF EVENT
Friday, September 14 6:30 PM – Weekend Opening: Combined Choir Concert Refreshments in the "New York Jewish Deli Style" in the Gathering Space
Saturday, September 15 4:00 PM – Feast day Mass Italian Fiesta with Entertainment immediately following Mass
Sunday, September 16 7:30 AM – Feast day Mass 8:30 AM – Euro Breakfast 9:00 AM – Feast day Mass 10:00 AM – Euro Breakfast 11:00 AM – Solemn Feast day Mass 12:00 PM – International Food Festival
GENERATIONS OF FAITH Registration continues this weekend in Driscoll Hall.
Have a great week,
If you want peace – work for justice (Pope Paul VI),
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 Jim McKain at 978-475-7931 or visit the website at www.kofc.org.
Next Meeting: Wed., Sept. 19, 7:30 PM in Driscoll Hall.
Money Matters On the weekend of September 1/2 Weekly donations $2,317.00 Monthly donations $1,190.00 Catholic Appeal Goal $39,500.00 Catholic Appeal to Date $54,430.00
Stewardship Reflection "Who can know God’s counsel, or who can conceive what the Lord intends?" Wisdom 9:13 It’s difficult to know what God has planned for us. That’s why it is easier to put our trust in money and possessions than it is to put our trust in God. The problem is that we become addicted to constantly wanting more wealth and more things. To conquer this materialism and share our gifts as God intended we must trust that God has a plan for us and it is good.
Bread and Roses On Sunday, September 16th, we will prepare the meal for the Bread and Roses hospitality house in Lawrence to be served on Monday, September 17th.
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.
Kitchen helpers meet on Sunday at 10:00 AM. All food donations should be received by 10:50 AM. Call Betty Bufano at 978-851-5682 or Lisa Lattari at 978-749-3736 for further information.
Special Collection this Weekend--Diocesan Collection for the Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. is unique as the national university of the Catholic Church and the only higher education institution founded by the U.S. bishops and chartered by the Vatican. As such, it has a special responsibility to educate future leaders for our Church and for our nation. In this sense, The Catholic University of America belongs to all of us in the Church, regardless of where we live.
The financial sacrifices required of Catholic parents today to provide a truly Catholic college education are enormous. All of the funds received through the collection help defray these costs in the form of financial aid. Your contributions directly benefit students from all over the United States, including our own diocese, by funding scholarships for those who would not otherwise be able to attend.
The students receive personalized attention in a wide range of programs, combining an excellent liberal arts curriculum with courses in their major fields of study. Grounded in the philosophy of Catholic intellectual tradition, these students are well prepared for success in life and ready to make a difference in today’s world.
Mass Schedule and Intentions
Saturday, September 8, Vigil, 23rd Ordinary Sunday 4:00 pm: Robert DeRosa
Sunday, September 9, 23rd Ordinary Sunday 8:00 am: Henry Chemaly 10:30 am: Mass of the Holy Spirit for Opening of School Year
Thursday, September 13, John Chrysostom 12:10 pm: Deceased Members of the Marcoux Family
Friday, September 14, Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross 12:10 pm: Henry Chemaly
Saturday, September 15, Vigil, 24th Ordinary Sunday 4:00 pm: People of the Parish
Sunday, September 16, 24th Ordinary Sunday 7:30 am 9:00 am 11:00 am
Readings for the Week of September 9, 2007 Sunday: Wis 9:13-18b/Phlm 9-10, 12-17/Lk 14:25-33 Monday: Col 1:24-2:3/Lk 6:6-11 Tuesday: Col 2:6-15/Lk 6:12-19 Wednesday: Col 3:1-11/Lk 6:20-26 Thursday: Col 3:12-17/Lk 6:27-38 Friday: Nm 21:4b-9/Phil 2:6-11/Jn 3:13-17 Saturday: 1 Tm 1:15-17/Jn 19:25-27 or Lk 2:33-35 Next Sunday: Ex 32:7-11, 13-14/1 Tm 1:12-17/Lk 15:1-32 or 15:1-10
Choir Practice Reminder: All choirs will be gathering for practice in the church at 5:30 PM on Thursday, September 13, in preparation for the feast day weekend concert.
In Service 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, Cpt. 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
Question of the Week--Twenty-Third Ordinary Sunday
Question for Adults: Today’s Gospel is demanding. How do you as a modern man or woman "denounce your possessions?" What does this mean for you?
Question for Youth: Jesus tells his disciples that they must renounce "their possessions" in order to be his disciple. What does this mean for you as a young person, just starting out in life? What do you think God is asking of you in today’s Gospel?
Question for Children: Jesus says that in order to be one of his followers, we must be close to him. When do you feel closest to Jesus?
Generations of Faith Registration Registration for the parish faith formation program (Generations of Faith)—including sacramental preparation—will take place on the following dates:
Saturday, September 8, after the 4 PM Mass
Sunday, September 9, after the 8 and 10:30 AM Masses
Wednesday, September 12, from 4-8 PM
Registration will take place in Driscoll Hall and must be done in person.
The regular Mass Schedule (Saturday 4:00 PM; Sunday 7:30, 9:00, & 11:00 AM) begins next weekend, September 15/16.
Fair Trade Coffee--Bring your values to the marketplace! Buying fair trade coffee is a tangible way we can put the values of our faith into action. It reminds us there are people behind all the things we consume. To learn more about the CRS Fair Trade Program, go to: www.crsfairtrade.org. Coffee will be available for purchase in the Gathering Space after all Masses this weekend, September 8 and 9.
Weekend Retreat--"Contemplating God in a New England Fall" The Franciscan Center is offering a weekend retreat on September 28 to 30, to savor the beauty of God’s creation. Come and gift God and yourself with a time to be, to relax, and to contemplate God’s gifts. The facilitator for this retreat is Sr. Maureen Casey, SND, a spiritual director and retreat facilitator previously on staff at St. Stephen’s Priory in Dover and is currently co-director of the Spiritual Director Internship Program in the Boston area. The cost for the weekend is $150. Please call the Center at 978-851-3391 for further details or to register.
Protecting God’s Children This course is a one time only awareness training program that is a requirement for all volunteers working with children within any parish in the Archdiocese of Boston. There is a session upcoming at St. Augustine’s in Andover on Tuesday, September 18, at 7:00 PM, at the Center for Education and Ministry. To register, please call Clara in the St. Augustine’s Parish Office at 978-475-0050.
"God, Country, and the War in Iraq" The Center for the Study of Jewish-Christian Relations at Merrimack College presents a lecture by James Carroll, on Tuesday, September 18, from 7:00-8:30 PM in Cascia Hall at Merrimack College. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, call 978-837-5428 or visit www.merrimack.edu/JCR.
Pastoral Care to the Sick and Homebound A six-week workshop will be offered at St. Athanasius Parish in Reading from 7:00 to 9:00 PM, beginning Thursday, September 20. Classes will be held in the Parish Activity Center.
The workshop will include communication skills, the basics of pastoral visitation, key illness issues, spiritual needs and concerns, grief, loss, and dying, and care giving issues.
Eucharistic ministers, pastoral visitors, parish nurses, and others are encouraged to attend. The fee is $40. For more information or to register, contact the Office of Parish Outreach Ministries, Health Care Ministry, at joanne_gaffney@rcab.org or 617-746-5843. Please pre-register by September 17.
School Clothing Needed Neighbors In Need is looking for school clothing in all sizes, particularly clothing that meets the Lawrence Public School uniform code:
For elementary and middle school students: navy pants and skirts and white polo shirts.
For high school students: plain, belted chino pants, skirts and jumpers. Also, polo or oxford shirts in hunter green, charcoal gray, light blue, dark brown, burgundy or white.
You can drop clothing off anytime between 8:00 AM and 12:00 PM at their office at 95 East Haverhill Street in Lawrence. You can reach the office at 978 685-8321. There is also a Mapquest link for directions to the office on the website at www.neighborsinneed.ne t—look under Contact Us, and click on Map.
Golf Tournament Presentation of Mary Academy is holding their First Annual Golf Tournament on Friday, September 21, 2007, at the Far Corners Golf Course, 5 Parker Road, Boxford, MA. $125 entry fee per person; $500 for foursome. Fee includes 18 holes, including carts; coffee and refreshments before the tournament; and choice of meal after. Raffle and prizes throughout the day. Hole sponsorship opportunities also available. To enter or for more information, contact PMA's Advancement Office at 978-682-9391 x116.
SCRIPTURE READINGS FOR NEXT WEEK–TWENTY-FOURTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
A reading from the Book of Exodus 32:7-11, 13-14 The LORD said to Moses, "Go down at once to your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt, for they have become depraved. They have soon turned aside from the way I pointed out to them, making for themselves a molten calf and worshiping it, sacrificing to it and crying out, ‘This is your God, O Israel, who brought you out of the land of Egypt!’ I see how stiff-necked this people is," continued the LORD to Moses. "Let me alone, then, that my wrath may blaze up against them to consume them. Then I will make of you a great nation."
But Moses implored the LORD, his God, saying, "Why, O LORD, should your wrath blaze up against your own people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with such great power and with so strong a hand? Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, and how you swore to them by your own self, saying, ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky; and all this land that I promised, I will give your descendants as their perpetual heritage.’" So the LORD relented in the punishment he had threatened to inflict on his people.
A reading from the first Letter of Saint Paul to Timothy 1:12-17 Beloved: I am grateful to him who has strengthened me, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he considered me trustworthy in appointing me to the ministry. I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and arrogant, but I have been mercifully treated because I acted out of ignorance in my unbelief. Indeed, the grace of our Lord has been abundant, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. This saying is trustworthy and deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. Of these I am the foremost. But for that reason I was mercifully treated, so that in me, as the foremost, Christ Jesus might display all his patience as an example for those who would come to believe in him for everlasting life. To the king of ages, incorruptible, invisible, the only God, honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.
+ A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke 15:1-32 Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus, but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying, "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them." So to them he addressed this parable. "What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it? And when he does find it, he sets it on his shoulders with great joy and, upon his arrival home, he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance."
"Or what woman having ten coins and losing one would not light a lamp and sweep the house, searching carefully until she finds it? And when she does find it, she calls together her friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found the coin that I lost.’ In just the same way, I tell you, there will be rejoicing among the angels of God over one sinner who repents."
Then he said, "A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father, ‘Father give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them. After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings and set off to a distant country where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation. When he had freely spent everything, a severe famine struck that country, and he found himself in dire need. So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens who sent him to his farm to tend the swine. And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed, but nobody gave him any. Coming to his senses he thought, ‘How many of my father's hired workers have more than enough food to eat, but here am I, dying from hunger. I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him, "Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I no longer deserve to be called your son; treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers."’ So he got up and went back to his father. While he was still a long way off, his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion. He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him. His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you; I no longer deserve to be called your son.’ But his father ordered his servants, ‘Quickly bring the finest robe and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Take the fattened calf and slaughter it. Then let us celebrate with a feast, because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.’ Then the celebration began. Now the older son had been out in the field and, on his way back, as he neared the house, he heard the sound of music and dancing. He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean. The servant said to him, ‘Your brother has returned and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ He became angry, and when he refused to enter the house, his father came out and pleaded with him. He said to his father in reply, ‘Look, all these years I served you and not once did I disobey your orders; yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends. But when your son returns, who swallowed up your property with prostitutes, for him you slaughter the fattened calf.’ He said to him, ‘My son, you are here with me always; everything I have is yours. But now we must celebrate and rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.’"
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