SIXTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2019

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1 SIXTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 17, Rev. Thomas J. Whitman, Pastor Director of Religious Ed: Sr. Sandy Pedone, H.M. Parish Secretary: Lori Vasconi Financial Secretary: Carol Koch Maintenance: Brad Goodall Music Director: Mary Messina Office Hours Monday - Friday, 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM (closed 12:30-1:30 PM) Schedule Saturday Vigil - 5:15 PM Sunday - 8:30 & 11:00 AM Weekday: M, T, Th, Fri - 8:00 AM Wed. - 12:10 PM (Check weekly bulletin for changes.) Confessions Saturday: 4:00-4:30 PM or by request. Religious Education Program Sundays, 9:30 AM - 10:45 AM CCD Grades K-10 at Case Avenue Elem. School, Grade 11 in the church annex. Our Lady of Perpetual Help Every Wednesday after the 12:10 PM in the Mother s Chapel. Shenango Valley Catholic School System Mr. William Lyon, Principal, Kennedy Catholic Middle and High Schools: Mr. Joshua Testa, Principal St. John Paul II: PARISHIONER PRE-REGISTRATION FORM NAME STREET CITY & ZIP PHONE Place completed form in today s collection basket or drop it off in the church office. New Member Address Change Update Info Baptism: Please contact the parish office to schedule a time and date. A pre-baptism class is required. No baptisms during Advent and Lent. Matrimony: By appointment six months in advance. Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA): Please call the church office at Prayer Line: For intentions, please call

2 PASTOR S COLUMN ASH WEDNESDAY CHANGE: The liturgy committee evaluates what we do for each season of the year. In our discussion about Ash Wednesday we decided to continue the Ash Wednesday es at 12:10 and 7:00pm. The early morning was not well attended for various reasons. This year we are planning to have a 7:00am prayer service, (not a ) on Ash Wednesday. This will consist of a prayer, scripture reading, brief homily, and the distribution of ashes. We hope that those who wish to start their day with prayer and ashes can do so and make it to work. This service will conclude as you receive ashes and you can be on your way to work before 7:30am. Ash Wednesday is March 6. FIRST FRIDAY CALLS: I am often surprised by the number of people who do not know about this service that our parish provides. On the First Friday of every month it has been tradition in most parishes to take communion to those who are shut-in to their homes. Who might be a shut-in? Those people who are physically unable to come to church on Sunday, those who are home recovering from an illness, those who are on hospice, or for some serious reason are not able to come to church on Sunday would be considered shut-ins. In addition to bringing communion to those on our First Friday List, I will give the Anointing of the Sick to those whom I visit. Some months one of our Eucharistic Ministers will bring communion and other months I will bring communion and give the Anointing of the Sick. Currently we are visiting over 30 people on First Friday. This is also a way for people to be anointed so that if something should happen they have already been anointed. Please call the parish office for more information and to sign up. CATHOLIC SERVICES APPEAL: Commitment Sunday for this year s Catholic Services Appeal will be March 2 and 3. Pledge envelopes will be in the bulletin the weekend of February 23 and 24. Our parish goal this year is $66,000. PARISH MARDI GRAS: Our parish Mardi Gras celebration will be Monday, March 4, beginning with dinner at 6:00. Sign up sheets are at all the entrances today. REFLECTIONS ON THE READINGS: Our readings this week remind us of how often we think of this world and heaven being two very different places. Luke reminds us this week of the very real connection between those two worlds. In the first reading, Jeremiah divides the world into those who trust in the things of the world and those who trust in God. He says that those who trust in the things of this world are really barren, lifeless. But those who trust in God will come to find a fullness of life that lasts forever. In the second reading Paul points out that resurrection is real. If it is not, Jesus has not risen from the dead. Our faith pivots around this incredible reality. If there is no resurrection, Paul says, then we are still in sin. In the Gospel, Luke gives us his version of the beatitudes which are quite different from the ones we find in Matthew s Gospel (Matthew 5:1-12). Luke s beatitudes are spoken on the level plain, while Matthew s are spoken on the mountain. Luke s beatitudes are rooted in real response to human need, and Matthew s are more spiritual or heavenly. Luke s beatitudes are a challenge to meet the needs of people who are poor, hungry, weeping, hated, excluded and insulted. Luke challenges us to reach out to these people in the here and now, on this earthly planet, in our lives today. These beatitudes become the heart of the church s teaching that we should have a preferential option for the poor as Jesus did. What does that term mean? Does it mean that the poor are the only people Jesus cares about? That being rich means we cannot be saved? Those are often the misinterpretations of this teaching. Gustavo Gutierrez, a liberation theologian says, God has a preferential love for the poor not because they are necessarily better than others, morally or religiously, but simply because they are living in an inhuman situation that is contrary to God s will. The ultimate basis for the privileged position of the poor is not in the poor themselves but in God, in the graciousness and universality of God s agapeic love (the unconditional love God has for us). Gutierrez sees this preferential option for the poor as God s relentless care for those who are experiencing injustice in any form. God sees people suffering unjustly and extends his loving hand

3 Reflection on the Readings continued to them. In the U.S. Bishops Pastoral Letter, Economic Justice for All, they state it this way, Decisions for the poor must be judged in the light of what they do for the poor, what they do to the poor, and what they enable the poor to do for themselves. Our option for the poor is to be preferential not exclusive, respectful not denigrating, enabling not patronizing. I think of the ways in which we do this as a parish our support for and work in our parish food pantry, our support for and work at the Prince of Peace Center, our funeral dinners, All Souls Service, and the ways in which people reach out to those who have lost loved ones, our Eucharistic ministers who take communion to the sick, to those in nursing homes, and those shut in to their homes, and our support and participation in the West Hill After School program here at St. Joseph. In all these ways, and in so many more, we are trying to live out this preferential option for the poor. PLEASE PRAY FOR: Ed Thomas, Bill Lasche, Lorraine Penhos, Lillian Fabrey, Grover McKnight, Ed Benedict, Donna Fraley, Tess McCallen and Toni Ryan. WOMEN S GUILD MONTHLY MEETING The Guild s February meeting is on Tuesday, February 19 at 1:00pm in the Guild Hall. All women of the parish are welcome to join and all current members are encouraged to come! Hope to see everyone there! MERCER COUNTY CATHOLIC WOMEN S RETREAT LEAGUE is hosting a Day of Recollection on Sunday, March 17 at St. Joseph Church in Sharon, PA. Fr. Ian McElrath is the retreat leader. Doors open at 12:30pm, with dinner beginning at 1:00pm and closing with at 4:00pm. Tickets are available until March 10 for $12. Tickets will not be sold at the door. For more information or to purchase a ticket, contact Mary Beth Jones at ST. ANTHONY/ST. STANISLAUS- LENTEN BIBLE STUDY Join us for Revelation: The Kingdom Yet to Come at St. Stanislaus Church Hall, in Sharon, PA. beginning Tuesday, February 26 at 6:30pm and continuing every Tuesday for 11 weeks. For more information or to register for the study, call Mary Ann at St. Anthony Parish Office or themustardseed3@yahoo.com. WEEKEND COLLECTION - February 11, Number of Adult envelopes sent Number of Adult envelopes used. 228 Number of unused envelopes Sunday Offertory......$ 9,072 Budgeted Offertory....$10,650 Deficit ($ 1,578) Other Collections: Catholic Communications/ Faith Magazine...$ 20 Chili Fest.$ 20 FEATURED FOOD PANTRY ITEM Next week s featured item - Pancake Mix Please place your donation in the shopping cart located in the Gathering Space and thanks for checking the expiration date! UPCOMING FEATURED ITEMS Jelly - Paper Towels - Toilet Tissue The Food Pantry is in need of volunteers! Distribution days are the 1st and 3rd Fridays of each month. If you d like to volunteer for one or both sessions, please report to the church s lower level at 8:00am on our next distribution days, Friday, March 1 and 15. 1:38 WOMEN S CONFERENCE Be a part of it! The name 1:38 Women is based on the theme of Luke 1:38: Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word. This year the theme of the conference is Live JOY-fully!, relating to Nehemiah 8:10: The joy of the Lord is my strength. The conference will be on Saturday, March 30, from 9:00am to 3:00pm at Our Lady of Peace Parish in Erie, with check-in beginning at 8:00am. Registration is $40 per person, $35 for senior citizens or groups of 8, $25 for college students, $10 for high school students, and free for religious sisters, and this does include lunch and free parking. This event will feature many great speakers throughout the day and will conclude with offered by Bishop Lawrence Persico. For more information about the event s guest speakers and to register, please log on to or call Altar flowers are donated in thanksgiving to God and in memory of Helen Headley by John and Liz Headley

4 Intentions +Indicates Time Monday, February 18 Gn 4:1-15, 25 / Mk 8: :00 Mildred Bosela (Lita Gresley) *6:00 Parish Council-choir room Tuesday, February 19 Gn 6: 5-8; 7: 1-5, 10 / Mk 8: :00 Carmine Trenga, Sr. (Margaret Schneider) *1:00 Women s Guild Meeting-Guild Hall Wednesday, February 20-Gn 8: 6-13, / Mk 8: :10 Joyce Reardon (Rose Marie Haines) *2:30 West Hill Ministries *7:00 Scripture Class Thursday, February 21 Gn 9: 1-13 / Mk 8: :00 Nellie Vasconi (Ann Tibolet) *2:30 West Hill Ministries *6:00 RCIA-choir room Friday, February 22-1 Pt 5: 1-4 / Mt 16: :00 Christopher Pass (Joe and Mary Ann Walsh) Saturday, February 23-1 Sm 26: 2, 7-9, 12-13, / 1 Cor 15: / Lk 6: SEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME *9:00 First Penance Retreat-Guild Hall +5:15 Bob Wiesen (Family) Sunday, February 24 1 Sm 26: 2, 7-9, 12-13, / 1 Cor 15: / Lk 6: SEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME +8:30 Deceased Members of the Parish +11:00 Sam Negrea (Jackie Negrea) Saturday, 23, Vigil 5:15 PM Ministry Schedule for February 23/24 M. Norman T. H. Cole, S. Messina, D. Dach, P. Dach, F. Smeraglia, Volunteer x 2 N. Alexander, D. Eller, A. Jordan GS: J. & K. Scanga Fr: F. Giroski Sunday, 24, 8:30 AM Sunday, 24, 11:00 AM S. Cleary K. Anglin, M. Orchard, C. Necastro, L. Vasconi, P. Miller, J. Walsh, S. Delp M. Bundrant, V. Haroldson, S. Pass GS: P. Emery J. Bonomo L. Dach, D. Ranelli, M. B. Jones, G. Smith, U. Goda, M. Goodwin, J. Sherbine, D. Yao, Dr. D Amore, D. D Amore, Volunteer A. Anzevino, C. Duffy, H. Duffy, C. McKnight GS: G. & O. Pacsi CL: Volunteer Fr: R. & T. Rookey WEEKDAY-HOSPITAL February P. Radasevich SRMC - G. Smith 20 - P. Emery Nugent - P. Dach 21 - P. Heldorfer Clepper - F. Smeraglia

5 FEBRUARY- TODAY- 17 at 9:30am, 7/8 Grade Retreat-Buhl Park 23 at 9:00am, First Penance Retreat-Guild Hall 24 at 9:40am, 3-10 Grade, Stations of the Cross-Church UPCOMING PARISH LENTEN SCHEDULE/EVENTS Mardi Gras - Ash Wednesday es - Stations of the Cross - Sign-up Sheets MARDI GRAS We are preparing for the Mardi Gras Celebration which takes place on Monday, March 4 in the Guild Hall. Doors open at 5:30pm and dinner is served at 6:00pm. It s one of the best meals we have around here! Please sign your family s name and number attending only once on one of the sign up sheets located at each of the entrances. St. Joseph will provide the entrée and dessert and below is an assigned dish based on the family s first letter of their last name. Please be sure to bring your assigned dish that will serve at least eight people in a disposable container. A-G Veggie Dish / H-N Tossed Salad or Potato Dish O-Z Pasta Dish We really hope to see everyone there! ASH WEDNESDAY 7:00am: Service with Distribution of Ashes. 12:10pm: with Distribution of Ashes. 7:00pm: with Distribution of Ashes. TO ALL, AND S: If you know which /Service you ll be attending and can serve, please sign your name on the sign-up sheet located in the Gathering Space. All ministry positions are available and need to be filled. STATIONS OF THE CROSS Each Wednesday during Lent at 6:00pm you are invited to join us as we follow the footsteps of Christ s journey to the cross. Immediately following Stations of the Cross, everyone is welcome to join us for fellowship and soup in the choir room. PARISH COUNCIL The February Parish Council meeting is Monday, February 18 at 6:00pm in the choir room.