No matter your situation in life,

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1 Saint Peter Catholic Church Inside 2 The Assumption of Mary: A Time to Celebrate! 3 3rd Annual St. Peter Parish Picnic 4 Parishioner Shares Unique Talents with School Children 5 Study Group Prays Together, Stays Together Why Catholic Group 6 Marty Venvertloh: In Love with God and Open to His Call 7 Music Ministry Goes Beyond Song A Letter from Our Pastor Dear Parishioners, Much Will Be Required of the Person Entrusted with Much August 2013 No matter your situation in life, chances are there is someone out there who has more than you. Too often we may hesitate to follow stewardship as a way of life because we are waiting for someone more blessed than we are to show the way. You may be aware that the Scripture readings we hear at each Mass are part of a three-year cycle. In general, the Gospel passages in Cycle A are from Matthew; Cycle B is principally Mark; and Cycle C, the year we are now in, is primarily from Luke. John is mixed in, and is especially used during Lent and Easter. We are in what might be called a Luke year. During this month of August, as we hear the Gospels from Luke, we need to be acutely aware of the stewardship messages found there. Jesus uses a parable on the first Sunday to remind us of an important stewardship lesson. He precedes the parable by reminding us all, Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one s life does not consist of possessions (Luke 12:15). You and I both know that God does not judge us based upon what we may have accumulated during our lifetimes, but based upon how we lived those lives, and especially how we used those gifts those possessions. The parable focuses on a rich man who builds larger grain bins to store his abundant harvests. God calls the man a fool and reminds him that growing rich for himself is not as important as growing rich in the sight of God. The very next week (the 19 th Sunday in Ordinary Time) Luke again tells us how Jesus warns and cautions His Disciples. For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be (Luke 12:34). The Lord warns them that they do not know what day or what hour He will return, and summarizes it all with another important insight into what is expected of us: Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more (Luke 12:48). continued on back cover St. Peter Parish is a Catholic community of faith bringing the light of Christ to all by serving others

2 St. Peter Catholic Church The Assumption of Mary: A Time to Celebrate! Can a pile of bones really be that exciting? Every year, tens of thousands of pilgrims visit St. Peter s Basilica in Rome, eager to glimpse the spot in which the alleged bones of St. Peter, our first pope, remain to this day. The relics of saints have been venerated throughout the ages in every corner of the world, yet the bones of the very first Christian, the Mystical Rose, are nowhere to be found. Where are the remains of the Queen of all Saints? When it comes to the day, manner, or year of the Blessed Virgin Mary s death, nothing is certain. No account is given in Scripture. The Church turns instead to Tradition for an answer. Since the birth of the Church, no Marian relics have ever been venerated nor can they ever be, because her body was assumed, or taken up, into heaven. There exist, therefore, no remains of the Blessed Virgin s body on this earth. She lives, right now, body and soul, in heavenly glory. Although the particular dogma of the Assumption cannot be found in the writings of Scripture, if we look at many other writings by the early Christians, it is clear that the Church has always held this dogma to be true. Even more, though there is no statement of fact in the Bible itself that Mary was assumed body and soul, the truths that we do know about Mary from Scripture simply serve to back up the reality that she was assumed into heaven. She gave herself wholly to the Lord and followed His will for her life, perfectly, to the end. The Assumption of Mary reveals that the promises of the Lord including the resurrection of the body were fulfilled in Mary. She shared most intimately in the life, death, and resurrection of her son, and was free from original sin and its effects including corruption of the body at death. It was no surprise, therefore, in 1950 when Pope Pius XII declared infallibly the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary as a dogma of the Catholic faith with these words: The Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heaven. The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is observed on the liturgical calendar as a solemnity of higher importance than a feast. On August 15, this wonderful celebration is accompanied by great hope in the resurrection of the body and everlasting union with God in heaven. In the words of Pope Benedict XVI during his homily Mass on the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary in 2006: Mary is blessed because totally, in body and soul forever she became the Lord s dwelling place. If this is true, Mary does not merely invite our admiration and veneration, but she guides us, shows us the way of life, shows us how we can become blessed, and how to find the path of happiness. Alongside Catholics throughout the country, be sure to celebrate the Solemnity of the Assumption on Aug. 15. This is a declared Holy Day of Obligation in the Church and a great liturgical feast. Mark your calendars! 2

3 August 2013 Saturday, August 24, :00 pm 12:00 am after 4:00 pm Mass Save the date for 3rd Annual St. Peter Parish Picnic 2600 Maine Street Quincy, IL Behind the Church MAIN RAFFLE $4,500 in cash prizes 50/50, Silent Auction & Basket Raffle Live Entertainment Heidelberg Band 5:00-7:00 Eleven 7:30-12:00 Beer (Bud, Coors & Miller), Spirit Knob Winery, Soda, & more Food: Pork Tenderloin, Pulled Pork, Hamburgers, Brats, Hot Dogs, Onion Rings, & more Snacks: Nachos, Cotton Candy, Funnel Cakes, Walking Tacos, Popcorn, Shaved Ice, & more Games for all ages: Poker, I Dood It, TP Toss, Ring Toss, Hoopla, Baseball Throw and Kids Zone Plan to join us! 3

4 St. Peter Catholic Church Parishioner Shares Unique Talents with School Children Sometimes, we constrict our ideas of stewardship to parish ministry. In those terms, parishioner Alden Shipp is definitely a steward. He is an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion taking Holy Communion to the local hospitals regularly visits the Adoration chapel, and is a former choir member. He and his wife, Joyce, were Teens Encounter Christ leaders, and they both attended Cursillo. We lived in Kansas in the Diocese of Salina for five years, and while we were there we were active in getting a stewardship program started in our parish, Alden says. So when we came back to St. Peter s and they were doing it here, it was a very natural thing. The big thing is that stewardship is about more than giving your money it s also about time and talent. We both believe that very strongly and are active in our parish. Alden is also quick to point out that the constricted definition of stewardship falls short. Real stewardship means using all of our talents in whatever venue God calls us to. A former pilot, Alden flew for Moorman Manufacturing Company in Quincy for 30 years. When he retired in 1998, he stayed active in aeronautics, building model airplanes and continuing to learn about his craft. This past spring, he took those talents and shared them with the students at St. Peter Catholic School. I had wanted to do something with airplanes at the school for some time, so this year I went to Mrs. Bick to see if Longtime parishioner Alden Shipp shares his talents in the field of aviation with middle school students at our parish school. we could work something out, Alden says. I put together a program where the sixth through eighth-graders could come after school and build a model from a kit. We met four or five times, and the last few meetings they actually tested the planes in the gym and outside. While only three boys participated this year, Alden says that each of them had a great time and learned a great deal about the principles of flight. If we do it again next year and I would love to I think we ll try to do it a little earlier in the year, he says. We met in May, and during the springtime the kids have so much going on. But the boys that came did a great job. We flew the planes in both the gym and outside, and we had some 20 to 30-second flights! Hopefully, the boys interest will spark their classmates interest next year. Sharing his knowledge with the participants, Alden heeded the call to stewardship in a way that most of would have never thought to do. I have been building planes since I was 8 years old, and was blessed to do what I loved for a living all those years, Alden says. It is a pleasure to share that with others. 4

5 August 2013 Study Group Prays Together, Stays Together Why Catholic Group As Christ s disciples, it is important for us to know Him, so that we can follow His example in each of our respective faith journeys. Adult formation groups and Bible studies can play a major role in helping us continuously learn more about our faith. That is why our parish started a four-year Why Catholic program five years ago. The fruit is that you get a deeper strength for your faith, which was the initial point of the group, to grow in the Catholic faith, says Cindy Brink, a member of one of the original Why Catholic groups at St. Peter. And you re always going to get out of it what you put in. And that s what happened with this group and with the whole Why Catholic program. Cindy s group is one of several small groups that started when the Why Catholic program began at our parish. The group is led by Deb Druffel. When Deb was asked to lead a group, she chose 6:30 a.m. as the meeting time, thinking that only people who were really dedicated to the group would sign up for such an early time slot. That is exactly what happened, and the group is still together after five years. I signed up and I ve been there ever since, Cindy says. Our entire group has stayed together. We glued together and we all like that early morning time slot. Most people wouldn t, but we do. The group meets on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month. Although the Why Catholic program ran its course, the group continues to learn about our faith through study of Catholic literature, Scriptures and more. We started the group because we were in Why Catholic, and we still fall under that name, but we ve completed the Why Catholic books and programs, and so we have moved on Front row (from left), Mary Oakley, Cindy Brink Back row (from left), Deb Druffel, Gingie Holzgrafe, Barb Gregory, Gloria Mead to other studies, Cindy says. It s really kept the group together and given us good information. Through their study of and reflections on Sacred Scripture, small faith communities like this one foster a deeper knowledge and understanding of God and Catholicism, which in turn fosters a greater appreciation for Him. In a large parish like ours, these groups also help strengthen the sense of community for those involved. It s important because of bringing community to the church, Cindy says. Sometimes people want to get to know other members of the parish, but St. Peter s is a very large parish. This gave many people the opportunity to get involved in small groups. Our group fit together very well, so we ve been able to continue. Along with a deeper understanding of the Catholic faith, another component of the group is the strong bond that forms between its members. The goal is to come together in prayer and give each other support, Cindy says. If somebody is having a particularly hard time or an issue, the other members are there for them. It brings a lot of peace and a lot of joy. Anyone can get involved in a group like this one, either by joining an existing group or starting a group of their own. Cindy knows from experience that those who do can expect good things from their participation. They can expect friendship, she says. They can expect loyalty among the other members. It s a group of compassion and trust and faith. We talk, we share, we pray. It moves you emotionally and spiritually all at the same time. 5

6 St. Peter Catholic Church Marty Venvertloh: In Love with God and Open to His Call For Marty Venvertloh, serving as our parish nurse was far more than just a job. It was, in her heart of hearts, a divine call one that she cherished for 24 years, right up to her recent retirement. I loved being the parish nurse, Marty says. It is a beautiful ministry! I just felt I needed to do whatever the parish was calling me to do. Parish nursing was part of my stewardship commitment. It combined the profession that I love with the faith family that I love. When Marty first read about parish nursing in our diocesan newspaper back in the 1980s, she immediately felt a tug on her heart to meet this need. She was soon invited to become our parish nurse by Kathy Meckes, a parishioner and administrator at a local hospital who had been introducing parish nursing to Quincy. Interestingly, Marty was inspired to move forward by the story of a Lutheran minister named Granger Westberg. In the early 1980s, Granger was doing volunteer work in the Chicago area and he recognized that people coming into the hospitals were emotionally, spiritually and physically in need, but they were only being treated for the physical aspects of their problems. He was determined to put people in place that could speak the physical, emotional and spiritual languages of those in need, Marty says. He soon recruited registered nurses to work out of church buildings, cooperating with parish priests. Originally, the Church was the number one source of health care in the world, and Christ was seen Marty Venvertloh as the healer, and that is where parish nursing came in. As our parish nurse, Marty has performed numerous works of mercy. She has done much to promote current health programs, as well as CPR and AED training, and she has organized volunteers to meet the needs of the parishioners in body, mind and spirit. Marty has also worked directly with the community in numerous essential ways offering grief support sessions, checking blood pressures, promoting community blood drives, organizing home visits and bringing Holy Communion to the homebound, and making daily visits to the hospitalized. I loved visiting the dying with Fr. Leo, welcoming premature babies, and saying goodbye with the families of the deceased, Marty says. Parish nursing is truly a ministry, and I have been so blessed to be part of it. In order to obtain the strength to do it, I would go to daily Mass each morning. If you are going to go out and evangelize others and practice corporeal works of mercy, you need God s strength. You need to be firm in your faith; strong and convicted in knowing that your faith is what sustains you. Along the way, Marty touched many hearts, including those of our own parish staff. It was a joy to work with Marty as our parish nurse, says Human Resource and Business Manager Nancy Boone. She was wonderful, and she lived out stewardship with her work. Parish nursing, however, is certainly not the only way that Marty has lived out stewardship in her life. Most importantly, Marty has been faithfully married to her husband, Dale, for 41 years. Together, they have four married sons who live in Quincy, and their seventh grandchild will be born this fall. When her sons were young, Marty worked part-time as our parish nurse while they were in school. Now that she is retiring, she is very glad to have more time for her family. Lately, I have been able to babysit for my daughters-in-law so they can have a chance to help at the parish, Marty says. I am glad to have a great successor and am looking forward to spending more time ministering to my family. As we thank Marty wholeheartedly for her service, let us make sure to welcome our new Parish Nurse Kathy Harman with open arms! 6

7 August 2013 Music Ministry Goes Beyond Song by Scott Fitzgerald For this month s newsletter, I would like to focus on our Music Ministry here at St. Peter. At St. Peter s, we have four different music ensembles. The St. Peter Singers is a contemporary ensemble consisting of various instruments, from guitar and piano to the hammer dulcimer. The group performs the contemporary music of the Catholic liturgical repertoire, and sings at the 11 a.m. Sunday Mass. The Singers ensemble is led by Jan and Lawson Fahler. The Chorale is a vocal ensemble that performs contemporary and traditional Catholic music, mostly in four parts. The group is accompanied on organ, piano, or even guitar. Weekly rehearsals are held on Wednesday nights, and the ensemble sings at the 9:30 a.m. Sunday Mass, as well as on special days in the parish. On most Sundays, the Chorale sings a special prelude before Mass. This serves to set the tone for the entire liturgy. Our children s ensemble, the Jubilation Choir, sings during the school year at Wednesday school Masses, and roughly once a month at the Sunday 9:30 a.m. Mass. This group consists of school children in grades four through eight, with rehearsals held each week. Finally, we have the Resurrection Choir, which is a dropin choir that comes together to sing at funeral Masses in the parish. The music for all of the choirs aims to reflect the seasonal day in general, and the readings of the specific day being celebrated. Sometimes, the choirs will rehearse a specific piece for weeks before in will be heard on Sunday. During the Lenten season, the Chorale omits the prelude in order to reflect the more somber and introspective nature of Lent. You may have noticed that the Chorale occasionally wears robes, as do I. The choir robes are worn on all Solemnities during the year, and during the Christmas and Easter seasons. The stole of the choir robes has two sides. One side is green, matching the robe s color. The other side is off-white, and shows two keys lying against each other. The key design represents St. Peter as the first pope, our parish s patron. The key design was created by our own Chris Scholz. My robe is a bit different. Its design is in the Anglo- Catholic choir director tradition, including the slit sleeves. Music Ministry members (from left) Tamy Cassady and Judy Lawless. The raised collar represents my Benedictine upbringing and my commitment as a Benedictine Oblate. Finally, I wear a Benedictine medal to bring it all together. There are singers and instrumentalists in our music program that have sung or played at liturgies for over 20 years! We hope that all music ministers would see their ministry as a special vocation in the life of the church and its liturgy. Music ministry is sung prayer. As St. Augustine wrote, Those who sing well pray twice. The Music Ministry at St. Peter s is always looking for new members to participate. In the Chorale alone, we recently have had several members retire from the group as they have reached over 80 years in age, and can no longer keep the commitment to the ministry. We need you! Joining the choirs at St. Peter s requires no prior singing experience, and there is no audition we will teach you as you sing. I ask you to seriously consider joining one of the music groups you will find it rewarding, exhilarating, and fun! Please contact me at the parish office to let me know of your interest. May God continue to bless you as you consider lending your time and talent to all the parish ministries at St. Peter s. Peace! 7

8 St. Peter Catholic Church 2600 Maine Street Quincy, Illinois Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 105, Quincy, IL Mass & Reconciliation Schedule Sunday Masses Saturday: 5 p.m., Sunday: 8, 9:30 and 11 a.m. Weekday Masses Mon-Sat: 8:00 a.m., except for Wednesdays during the school year: 8:30 a.m. Reconciliation Saturday: 7:30-7:50 a.m., 3:30-4:30 p.m. or by appointment Much Will Be Required of the Person Entrusted with Much continued from front cover You see, we are not off the hook if someone else has more gifts but fails to use them well. Stewardship demands that each of us use our gifts, and each of us is gifted whether we want to admit it or not, to serve God and others. Luke s implied stewardship messages come full circle in the Gospel reading for the last Sunday of the month August 25. The last sentence we will hear during the Gospels for this month is, For behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last (Luke 13:30). That admonition from the Lord has always seemed a bit confusing. It more or less says that to be first, we need to be last; and if we are first, we may be last. I think perhaps all of these messages, including the first and last one, are cautions to us that we cannot be complacent and we cannot take salvation and holiness for granted. We need to work at them. We are not measured by our possessions; God indeed does expect a lot of us, no matter how small or extensive our gifts may be; and regardless how holy we may strive to be, it is God who will judge; it is by His grace that we will be saved. In the midst of all these magnificent stewardship messages, we celebrate the Assumption of our Blessed Mother on August 15, and Jesus prompts us again, Blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it (Luke 11:28). God bless you all! Rev. Msgr. Leo J. Enlow Pastor