Welcome to Good Shepherd Parish Hopelawn, New Jersey 08861

Transcription

1 Welcome to Good Shepherd Parish Hopelawn, New Jersey MISSION STATEMENT We are called by Jesus as a community of faith to love God and love one another by our acts of worship, fellowship and stewardship. March 11, 2018 The Fourth Sunday of Lent Rev. Michael G. Krull, K.C.H.S. Deacon Sam Costantino Deacon Edward Rodes Deacon Albert Coppola Maria C. Arcelay Wayne Behr Pastor R.C.I.A. Parish Secretary/PCL/Cemetery Coordinator Director of Liturgical Music MASS SCHEDULE Saturday Vigil Mass Sunday Masses: Daily Mass Holy Days Confessions: Novenas: 4:30PM 8:30AM & 11:00AM Monday at 7:00PM Tuesday-Friday at 8:00AM as announced Saturday afternoon 3:30-4:00PM Miraculous Medal and St. Jude Novena following Monday 7:00PM Mass St. Anthony Novena Wednesday morning following 8:00AM Mass Eucharistic Adoration: Monday, 5:30-6:30PM THE PARISH CENTER Parish and Cemetery Offices 625 Florida Grove Rd., Hopelawn Phone: Fax: Website: Goodshepherd20@verizon.net Office Open Monday-Friday 9:00AM - 4:00PM Evenings by Appointment Only Closed Weekends and Federal Holidays PERTH AMBOY CATHOLIC SCHOOLS Holy Spirit Primary School Sr. Beverly Policastro S.C. (732) St. Stephen Upper School Sr. Rebecca Piatek CSSF (732) BLESSED SACRAMENT ORATORY Located in the Parish Center Open for Private Prayer during office hours

2 Sacramental Preparation Baptism: All Baptisms are celebrated on the first Sunday of the month at 9:45 AM. The preparation process should begin at least three months before the planned date of the Baptism. A Baptism Preparation Class is required for parents (godparents may attend if they wish). This class is offered on the fourth Sunday of each month at 9:45 AM. Please call the parish office to register. The date of the baptism is scheduled after attending the class. Parish membership and active worship is required for two months prior to preparation. Haven t Received Your Sacrament on Schedule? Families of children in grades three and up who have been baptized but have not yet received any formal religious education, as well as those who have not been baptized, should contact the Parish Office for information on how to proceed. Initiation of Adults and Older Children: This is an extended formation process for unbaptized or uncatechized adults or baptized Christians of other faith traditions who wish to become members of the Catholic Church, as well as for unbaptized or uncatechized school-aged children. Please contact the parish office for more information. Initiation is celebrated at the Easter Vigil after a formation period of one or two years. Adult Confirmation: This is a program for persons over the age of 18 who have received the Sacraments of Baptism and First Eucharist, but who never completed their initiation with the Sacrament of Confirmation. The program is a week program, with Confirmation being celebrated on the Solemnity of Pentecost. Please call the parish office for more details. Matrimony: Couples wishing to marry in Good Shepherd Parish are required to make initial arrangements at least one year in advance. Four sessions with the priest or deacon, as well as Pre-Cana or Engaged Encounter take place during this year. Parish registration and active worship for at least two months are required before a date may be scheduled. Anointing of the Sick: Anyone who is seriously ill or unable to come to church for a length of time should contact the parish office to arrange for the Anointing of the Sick. Eucharistic Ministers bring Holy Communion to homebound parishioners every Sunday, and one of the priests will visit on the First Friday of each month. Please call the parish office to make arrangements. The Diocese of Metuchen provides Catholic priests to serve at all local hospitals. Holy Orders: If you are interested in learning more about the priesthood or religious life, contact the Vocations Office of the Diocese of Metuchen at , ext or by at vocations@diometuchen.org or visit Parish Registration: We welcome you to the Good Shepherd Parish Community! Please register at the Parish Office as soon as you are able to do so, and the staff will be more than happy to inform you about our parish and the opportunities we offer. Parish registration is required for religious education, celebration of all Sacraments and certification as a sponsor for Baptism and Confirmation. Regular Sunday worship with us indicates a practicing Catholic, not just parish registration. An assurance of family practice and raising children in the faith they seek is necessary for the sacraments of initiation and certification of sponsorship. Please notify the parish office of any changes in phone number, address, address or when leaving the parish. 2 GOOD SHEPHERD PARISH FINANCIAL CORNER Collection Report 2/25/18 Weekly $4, A/C & Heating $2, Collection Report 3/4/18 Weekly $4, Monthly $3, Monthly Operating Income & Expense December 2017 Collection Income $ 46, Other Income $ 14, Total Income $ 61, Expenses $ 56, Month's Income/(Deficit) $ 4, Year-to-Date (Jul '17 - December 17) Income/(Deficit)* $ (3,452.00) Outstanding Diocesan Debt $ 54, Going on vacation, and you don t want to miss Mass? Log on to for a local Catholic Church in the area you are visiting. ORGANIZATIONS NAME DAY TIME Family Prayer Group 1st Friday 6:30PM Girl Scouts 1st & 3rd Thursday 5:00 PM Holy Name Society 2nd Thursday 7:00PM Ladies Guild 2nd Tuesday 7:00 PM Rosary Altar Society 2nd Sunday 9:30 AM Tuesday Seniors 2nd & 4th Tues. 12:30 PM Wednesday Seniors 1st & 3rd Wed. 12:30 PM Youth Ministries 3rd Sunday 5:00PM If you are interested in any of our above organizations/ministries, please contact the Parish Office for more information. MINISTRIES NAME CONTACT PHONE Chairperson-Finance Council Marty Joyce Music Ministry Parish Office Religious Education Maria C. Arcelay

3 A Letter FROM OUR PASTOR: The Fourth Sunday of Lent has traditionally been known as Laetare Sunday. It comes from the traditional Entrance Antiphon for today s Mass, taken from the Prophet Isaiah: ( Rejoice, Jerusalem, and be glad because of her, all you that love her ) It s a day when the rigors of Lent get a bit of a break. The rose vestments make their bi-annual appearance, and flowers are permitted on the altar for this one day. Yet, like the weather we ve been experiencing the past few weeks, liturgically speaking the storm clouds are starting to gather, as Lent begins to wind down and Holy Week approaches. Next Sunday is what we traditionally called Passion Sunday (although no account of the Passion was ever read at Mass that day). However, the atmosphere of the church will become more ominous later this week. On Friday, all the statues will be covered in purple cloths and will remain so until the morning of Holy Saturday. This tradition comes from the Gospel account of Jesus hiding Himself in the Temple when His adversaries tried to arrest Him (the gospel passage appointed for Mass this Saturday morning.) With that said, the pace of Lent is about to pick up considerably, so here goes: A WHOLE Lot Going On: Deanery Mission Week: Traditionally during the Fourth Week of Lent, the parishes of the Perth Amboy Deanery join together in prayer, with special events planned for all the parishes. As we ve done the past few years, we will be joining with Most Holy Name of Jesus Parish for these events. This Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday there will be an additional Mass at 12:00 noon at Holy Trinity Church. Then on Thursday, March 15 th, Colleen Kelly-Rayner will here with us for a Lenten Retreat Evening for all parishioners. As with her previous retreats here, From Couch Potato to Super Hero in Forty Days promises to be an entertaining and faith challenging evening for us all. On Friday, March 16 th, there will be a city-wide Mass at St. Stephen s Church at 7:00 PM. While the attendance from our parish has usually been quite light, I hope that more of you will take advantage of these activities this coming week. Have You Been to Confession Yet? On Monday, March 12 th and Monday, March 19 th, Confessions will be heard following the 7:00 PM Mass and Novena on Monday evening. On Saturday, March 17 th, Confessions will be heard from 3:30-4:00 PM. On Saturday, March 24 th, Confessions will ONLY be heard from 11:00-12:00 Noon there will be NO Confessions that day before the 4:30 PM Mass so that we can make our final preparations for the Palm Sunday Masses. So far, Confessions have been lighter than previous years hopefully if you re not getting here, you are going at another parish. Also a reminder that the last Confessions before Easter here will be on Saturday, March 24 th there are no Confessions on Holy Saturday. Don t Forget: This Tuesday, March 13 th, the Ladies Guild will have HGTV and QVC TV personality and writer Jamie Novak as their guest speaker who will give a lively and humorous presentation on Keep This-Toss That just in time for us to think about spring cleaning! Everyone - especially those of us who just can t seem to get rid of stuff - are invited to attend. It should be a fun evening for all of us and I expect it ll give me some food for thought for a homily somewhere! Next Sunday, March 18 th, the Holy Name Society will be sponsoring its annual Family Communion Breakfast after the 8:30 AM Mass. The food is always good, and I hope more of you will attend. Please buy your tickets NOW so we can give the caterer a head count at the beginning of this week. A Note About Easter Sunday: Last year, you may recall that we held an outdoor Son-Rise Mass on the church plaza on Easter Sunday morning. Sadly, we won t be having this Mass this year. Since I m now the only priest here and we won t be getting any additional assistance, I will be celebrating all the liturgies, and three Masses would really be pushing it for me, physically speaking. In addition to that, while I don t yet have the April schedule, I could potentially be on call at the hospital from 8:00 AM on Easter morning until 8:00 AM on the following Tuesday which, in addition to the possibility of getting called out on an emergency call between Masses, I d need to do rounds at the hospital after the 11:00 Mass was over, which adds another two hours to an already long weekend. While I know a lot of people liked this Mass last year and I enjoyed it, too this is an adjustment to our schedule that I need to make. Overall, everyone has been pretty understanding about these changes since Father Morley became ill last summer (it s eight months tomorrow that he had his initial stroke), and I hope you ll be understanding of this change, too. A Coming Addition to Our Parish Ministry: Every month, we are seeing an increasing number of parishioners who are requesting Spanish language services here in our parish. We are the only parish in the Perth Amboy Deanery that does not have a Spanish or bilingual Mass, and one of the things that we need to honestly face is that that day is coming. We already have a number of the liturgical books, such as the Rite of Marriage and Baptism in bilingual editions, and I ve also ordered a copy of the new Spanish language Roman Missal which is due to come out in the next few months. Since I ve been involved in hospital ministry, I have picked up for myself and have pretty well mastered the Rite of Anointing of the Sick in Spanish (I do more Anointings in Spanish than in English.) However, the one Sacrament that we get the most requests for in Spanish is the Sacrament of Baptism. After speaking to Deacon Mickey about this, in May we will begin offering the Sacrament of Baptism in Spanish upon the request of the family. Deacon Mickey has offered to celebrate these Baptisms, and once I get more comfortable with the words, I will also be able to officiate at them as well. There is a pastoral need for this here, and for us to ignore it is to jeopardize our future viability as a parish. Our regular Baptism preparation program and requirements will continue as is. We will just be making that Sacrament available to families who request the celebration in Spanish (I might add, we also have all the liturgical books in Italian and offer that to families as well and in the nearly nine years I ve been here we ve never received one request for any of the Sacraments!) Bulletin Information: During the months of March and April we will have a number of earlier than usual deadlines due to the Holy Week and Easter holidays, and also as our parish secretary Maria will be away on vacation the week following Easter. Please take note of these following deadlines: information for the March 18 th bulletin must be submitted no later than tomorrow, March 12 th; information for the March 25 th (Palm Sunday) bulletin must be submitted no later than this Friday, March 16 th ; information for the April 1 st (Easter Sunday) must be submitted no later than Friday, March 23 rd ; and information for the April 8 th bulletin must be submitted no later than Tuesday, March 27 th. Please note that no flyers will be inserted in the Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday bulletins I will be having last year s parish Financial Report in the Palm Sunday bulletin. Thanks in advance for your cooperation. Mass attendance on March 3/4 was 612. Please remember to pray for our catechumens and candidates as they prepare for the Easter Sacraments these next few weeks and please take advantage of the Mission Week offerings this coming week. Fr. Mike 3 For the month of March pray for our brave solders & their families, those in nursing homes, and the sick and home bound of our Parish family, especially: Carlos Bendrell, Noah Dahlberg, Pat Dunn, Rose Celecki, Andrea Costantino, Chuck F., Tommy Fitzpatrick, Mike Gaffney, Carol George, Richard Hajzer, Tommy Jones, Arleen Kopin, Carol Magyar, Fr. John Morley, Lynn Munoz, Dianne Petro-Duncan, Megan Ortega, JoAnn Magyar, Raymond Magyar, Maryanne Mateuszyzyk, Danny Parker, Judy Liik, Connie & Vince Montuoro, Mary Murray, Catherine Paone, Christopher Paone, Julia Possert, Stephen Pry, Caroline Pry, Allen Puleio, Ann Rapetti, Greg Rohrbacher, Kylie Silverio, Telofski Family, Dave & Louise Utter & Elsie Vega With respect to personal privacy only requests made by immediate family members will be taken. If you would like to add or continue to keep a name on our list: call the parish office at or Goodshepherd20@verizon.net. Please keep in mind that we pray for all the sick every day in the general intercessions of the Mass.

4 4:30PM 8:30AM 11:00AM 4:30PM 8:30AM 11:00AM 4:30PM 8:30AM 11:00AM Minister Schedule LECTOR Saturday, March 17th Brenda Rinaldi Sunday, March 18th Rose Lund Tyler Gonzales EUCHARISTIC MINISTERS Saturday, March 17th J. Blockus, Deacon Mickey Coppola, P. Hardish, B. Rinaldi & R. Yergeau Sunday, march 18th Deacon Sam Costantino, Claudia & Jose De Jesus, Mildred & Rudy Morales Deacon De Rodes, M. Arcelay, Volunteers Needed ALTAR SERVERS Saturday, March 17th M. Billig, J. Genao, Giannalise & Giselle Rodriguez Sunday, March 18th J. Collazo, L. Duane, L. Forgione & M. Yactayo Emanuel & Javier De Jesus, J. Gonzales & J. Sierra PRAY FOR HIM Please pray that our deceased loved one, John Montecalvo may know the joy and peace of eternal life. Pray that his family may be comforted. Lenten Confession Schedule Mondays 7:30 to 8pm (Except March 26th) & Saturdays 3:30pm to 4pm (Except March 24th, 11am to 11:30am, no Confessions will be heard on March 31st) For the Week of March 10-16th SANCTUARY CANDLE In Memory of Ida & Ed Aleskie (Church) Req Linda & Manny BREAD AND WINE In Memory of Eileen Gaissert & Mother Grace Req Jerry Stampiglia Attention Ministers Please submit any changes to the Ministry schedule that might impact your availability during the 2nd Qtr to Deacon Sam at or no later than Tuesday, March 13th. Thank-you for your continued support to the parish family of Good Shepherd. Deacon Sam 4 7:00PM 8:00AM 8:00AM 8:00AM 8:00AM 4:30PM 8:30AM 11:00AM MASS INTENTIONS MONDAY, March 12 : Lenten Weekday Francesco Maviglia Req wife Teresa, son Santo & daughter Anna TUESDAY, March 13 : Lenten Weekday Vera Lesko Req Pauline Mauro WEDNESDAY, March 14 : Lenten Weekday Joseph Onuska Req son Joe, & family THURSDAY, March 15 : Lenten Weekday The White family Req Larry & Pauline White FRIDAY, March 16 : Lenten Weekday Honorio Licad Req Licad & Felix families SATURDAY, March 17 : The Vigil of the Fifth Sunday of Lent All Deceased Souls Req Filomena Gianfrancesco SUNDAY, March 18 : The Fifth Sunday of Lent Major & Mary Spear Req daughter Gloria Spear Rosalina Signorelli Req Rosetta & Tom Fazio Welcome. The Parish Family of the Good Shepherd joyfully welcomed Alfonso Carmelo Fazzolari Celso Maciel Brianna Trinity Saanmoiyol Biam through the saving Waters of Baptism. Join us every Friday during Lent until March 23rd for a free Lenten Soup & Bread Dinner With your help we will continue to make a difference in the lives of those in need throughout the entire year. You can help by supporting our free will donation basket which will be available at all Friday evening Lenten Soup dinners (All proceeds benefit the CRS Rice Bowl Campaign). Or you may bring a non-perishable food item to any Friday s Dinner for the Good Shepherd Parish Food Pantry. For more information please call Stay each Friday evening for the Stations of the Cross at 7:00pm

5 RCIA/Adult Confirma on If you are an adult over 18 years of age who has not received the Sacrament of Baptism, First Communion or Confirmation, please contact our Parish Office for more information. Our 10th session will be held on Tuesday, March 20th at 7pm. We hope to see you then! R.C.I.A. This weekend, at the 11:00 am Sunday Mass, the second of three Scrutinies will be celebrated with the Elect of our parish, who will be baptized at the Easter Vigil Mass, Allison Carbajal -Pariona, Nevaeh Roman, Mia Sanchez, Lisette & Lisbeth Sessoms, Robert Silverio & Alex Thompson. The second scrutiny calls upon the elect, and the community to recognize how we choose blindness...blindness to good, blindness to truth and blindness to values. Next Sunday the third Scrutiny will be celebrated at the 11:00am Mass. SPIRITUAL SPONSORS: Please continue to keep in your prayers the Elect and the Candidates who will receive their sacraments at the Easter Vigil. If you have not already done so, we invite you to spiritually sponsor one of our Elect or Candidates. Simply, that means to offer up your prayers, sacrifices and good works during Lent for the intentions of one of our Elect or Candidates. Please take one of their prayer cards which are at the doorways of the Church. Send a card or a note of support, with their name c/o RCIA on the front of the envelope. You can deliver it to the rectory, or drop it in one of the collection baskets. INQUIRY SESSIONS: Isn't there someone in your life, one unbaptized or baptized into another Christian Denomination, or even one who has been baptized Catholic but has never received BOTH sacraments of Confirmation and Eucharist, who has been inquiring about God's love, or about Jesus, or about our Catholic Faith family. With the help of God's grace, invite them to an RCIA Inquiry Session. For more information call the Parish Office RELIGIOUS EDUCATION NEWS: Our next regular class will be March 17th at 8:45am in the Perth Amboy Catholic Primary Building (across the street from Holy Spirit Church) Special Session - March 24th, at 8:45am: Levels 2nd (1st Communion) will meet in Perth Amboy Catholic school Building If you forgot your Mass attendance sheet at home, you can use this week s bulletin. If you have any questions please call us at We d love to help! Yay.for Religious Education!! Bringing Up Gifts at Mass If you are interested in bringing up the gifts, please be sure to let one of our ushers know before the beginning of Mass. PERTH AMBOY CATHOLIC SCHOOL Open Enrollment AdvancED Accredited/NCA Primary: Pre-K 3&4, K, 1,2,3 at Carlock & Brace Ave Upper: 4,5,6,7,8 at 500 State Street or Call for an appointment and a personal tour! Support Perth Amboy Catholic Box Tops for Education has helped America s schools earn over $475 million since You can help Perth Amboy Catholic earn cash for the school by clipping Box Tops coupons from hundreds of participating products. Please place your collected coupon donations in the container provided. This is an on-going collection. Please let one of the ushers know if you are unable to walk up at Communion time. A Eucharistic Minister will gladly bring Communion to you. How to Report Sexual Abuse If you were sexually abused as a minor by a member of the clergy or anyone representing the Catholic Church within our Diocese, or you know someone who was, you are encouraged to report that abuse to law enforcement, through the diocesan website ( or by calling Lawrence Nagle, diocesan Office of Child and Youth Protection, CATHOLIC SCHOOL TUITION ASSISTANCE ONLINE APPLICATION PROCESS OPEN Families interested in applying for tuition assistance to attend an eligible Diocese of Metuchen Catholic elementary or high school may do so now. The application process is online through FACTS Grant & Aid Assessment. Online applications must be completed (including supporting documentation) no later than Saturday, March 31, Printed applications are available in English and Spanish in our Parish Office. Families that need assistance completing the online application, or need access to the technology to apply, may register for one of two Application Workshops, which will be held in two locations in January and February. Go to and follow the Workshops link.

6 Feeding the Homeless Monday, March 12th The Confirmation Candidates deliver and serve food to the homeless. We could use your help by: volunteering, or with a monetary donation, or even a simple meal. Please call Mildred at (732) Thank you in advance. ORGANIZATIONS Everyone is invited! New members are welcome! All meetings are held in Msgr. Gambino Hall Girl Scouts: Thursday, March 29th 5pm. Meetings are held twice a month. Rosary Altar Society: Sunday, March 11th, 9:30am. Meetings are held on the second Sunday of the month. Tuesday Seniors: Tuesday, March 13th at 12:30pm. Meetings this month will only be held on the above date. Wednesday Seniors: Wednesday, March 21st, at 12:30pm. Meetings are held twice a month. Youth Group: Sunday, March 18th, at 5:00pm. Meetings are held every third Sunday of the month. TRIPS Please join us!! All bus trips begin in our parking lot behind Most Holy Rosary Church. Renault Winery/Resorts Casino - Atlantic City Bus leaves 9:30am on Tuesday, April 3, 2018 Cost $75.00, you get $25 slot play. 2 hours at winery Italian family style lunch & wine tasting. Please contact Connie or Ronnie TRAVEL CLUB Shows for 2018 King Kong - Broadway Theatre Sunday, December 9th, at 3pm Cost : $ (Adult) $75 deposit required Last Chance to Reserve - April 5th Please call Phyllis Edwards (732) or Marie Acciani (732) for reservations or information. Call as soon as possible as tickets are limited. Rice Bowl Campaign We encounter Andrise, a teacher in Haiti, who knows the importance of forming young people who will give back to the community - and their country. Reflect on the role teachers have played on bringing you closer to God and your community. How can you support those, worldwide, who are forced to flee their homes to find safety or better opportunities? Visit crsricebowl.org for more information. We will also have a Free will donation basket at all Friday evening Lenten Soup dinners. Your participation in CRS Rice Bowl will continue to make a difference in the lives of those in need throughout the entire year. Thank you! 6 Last chance to join us All are invited to attend "Keep This Toss That" A program presented by organizing specialist Jamie Novak Tuesday, March 7pm in Msgr. Gambino Hall Sponsored by the Good Shepherd Ladies Guild To reserve your seat call Chris Greges at Family Communion Breakfast The Good Shepherd Parish Holy Name Society Parishioners mark your calendars for our annual Family Communion Breakfast to be held 3/18/2018 in Msgr. Gambino Hall after the 8:30 A.M. Mass. Adults are $10.00 and children under 12 are $5.00. Fliers are in this weeks bulletin. Tickets will be available at the Parish Office and from members of the Holy Name Society. UNBELIEVABLE!! This in one word describes the outpouring of support our family received last Sunday. The Breakfast Fundraiser for our daughter Jennifer at the Good Shepherd Parish was VERY well attended. There were so many old friends as well as more recent friends and family. We are so blessed to have been a part of this special event. We want to thank all those who made this day possible, Father Michael Krull, Maria Arcelay, The Criollos, all of those who worked the event, and everyone who attended and supported us. We are extremely grateful to you all!! God bless you all for your generosity and caring. Special thanks to our granddaughter Mya for her speech. Norberto Soltren #TeamJennifer Save the date!!! We re having a Chili Throwdown! Sunday, April 22 1pm in our Church Hall Sponsored by the Rosary Altar Society If you're interested in entering your Chili, joycesignorile@gmail.com or call , by March 25th. 1st, 2nd & 3rd prize winner will receive a gift card. More information will be in future bulletins. St. Anthony of Padua 20th Annual Easter Celebration Meal 436 Port Reading Ave. Port Reading NJ A meal of ham, kielbasa, and all the trimmings will be available for your enjoyment on Saturday, March 26th. To be picked up or delivered. (Deliveries to Woodbridge Twnsp., Carteret & Perth Amboy Only). There is no charge for the meal. All are welcome to partake. However a call is needed by Palm Sunday, March 20th by 3:00pm in order to plan properly. Please call , and leave your name and telephone number and we will contact you.

7 The Catholic Relief Services Collection (CRSC) Next week, our Parish will take up the Catholic Relief Services Collection. Funds from this collection help provide food to the hungry, support to displaced refugees, and bring Christ s love and mercy to all people here at home and abroad. Next week, please give generously to the CRSC, and help Jesus in disguise. Learn more about the collection at fñüxtw Çz à{x jéüw For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son - John 3:16 Of all the wonderful gifts that God has given to us, the gift of His own Son is truly the greatest. How can we ever thank God for a gift like that? God does not ask us to sacrifice our own precious firstborn, but He does ask that we are grateful and generous with our God-given gifts, that we nurture and develop them and return with increase. Chrism Mass Monday, March 26, 2018, at 7:30PM Cathedral of St. Frances of Assisi, Metuchen Bishop James F. Checchio will celebrate the Chrism Mass with the priests of the Diocese. At this Mass, the Bishop will bless the Holy Oils which each parish receives for the rites of anointing. Saint Ambrose [ ] began the custom which we now call the Chrism Mass in his Cathedral in Milan. These Holy Oils, which are used to sanctify the faithful, have been channels of holiness for centuries! The Oil of Catechumens is used to anoint infants and adults before their Baptism. The Oil of the Sick is used on the forehead and hands of the infirmed on the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick. And the Sacred Chrism is used to anoint the head of the newly baptized, the foreheads of the confirmandi, the hands of a priest at his ordination, the head of a Bishop at his ordination, and the altar and walls of new churches. At this Mass, all priests make a Renewal of Commitment to Priestly Service, recommitting themselves to their Bishop, to their ministry, and to God and His People. The Bishop and all Priests then ask the people for a pledge of their prayerful support. All are strongly encouraged to join in the ancient, grace-filled Chrism Mass at the Cathedral of St. Frances of Assisi in Metuchen at 7:30pm. PERTH AMBOY CATHOLIC CHURCHES COMMUNITY BLOOD DRIVE St. Stephen Church School Cafeteria Mechanic St. Entrance Sunday, March 11 9am-3pm Please bring ID with signature or photo. You can donate if you are between 17 and 75 years old and in general good health. 16 year olds can donate with parental consent form and those 76 and over can donate with a doctor s note. You must weigh at least 100 lbs. and meet other requirements. Most medications will not keep you from donating. People with diabetes and blood pressure controlled by medication can donate. Bring your donor card if you have one. For an appointment call Walk-ins Welcome!! Bishop s Annual Appeal Prayer Lighting a Fire in the Heart of Our World Eternal Father and faithful God, by breathing the first breath of life into us you kindled in our hearts a fire that burns within but does not consume us. Through Israel and her prophets you kept that flame burning in a darkened world. This light of your grace shown most clearly in Blessed Virgin Mary and was named Jesus, Christ s disciples felt the fire of the Spirit burn passionately within them as they encountered Him on the road to Emmaus. To bring the Church to birth your Spirit breathed over Peter and the disciples gathered in the upper room stirring into a new blaze the fuel Christ prepared in their hearts. We thank you for that fire that has spread over nations and centuries to reach us here in Metuchen. By your help may we tend the fire of your grace that we too may stir into flame the world around us that has become acrid from indifference. May the radiance of our charity give hope to our neighbors, our enthusiasm for the Gospel manifest in protection for the poor, and the light of our faith be a guide to our youth. Loving Father, touch our spirits to respond generously to the mission of the Church that spreading the encounter with Jesus, we renew that face of the earth. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. To date, the Development Office has received pledges totaling $14, and payments totaling $10, from 91 parishioners. This represents 59.1% of our $24, goal. Thank you for your efforts!!! Please respect the Sacred Silence Queenship of Mary 19 Dey Road, Plainsboro The Queenship of Mary St. Vincent de Paul Conference is hosting a speaker from Catholic Charities on the topic of immigration. The talk will be given on Monday, March 19 at 7:30 PM in the Church hall. We would like to extend an invitation for this talk to all SVDP Conferences and parish social ministry groups. If you and members of your ministry would like to attend, please Joe Quinlan at jq10953@aol.com to let him know so he can get a rough idea of how many will be attending.

8 INFORMATION SHEET (NEW ADDRESS AND PHONE NUMBER) CHURCH NAME AND ADDRESS : Good Shepherd Parish 625 Florida Grove Road, Hopelawn, NJ PHONE (732) CONTACT PERSON Maria Arcelay SOFTWARE Microsoft Publisher 2013 Adobe Acrobat 11 Standard Windows 10 PRINTER Brother NUMBER OF PAGES SENT 1 through 7 SUNDAY DATE OF PUBLICATION March 11, 2018 TRANSMISSION TIME: March 7, 2018 at 12:00 pm SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS None 8