Saint Michael the Archangel Parish Second Sunday of Lent March 16, 2014 Rev. Fr. Dale A. Branson

Transcription

1 Saint Michael the Archangel Parish Second Sunday of Lent March 16, 2014 Rev. Fr. Dale A. Branson TREASURES FROM OUR TRADITION For if this endeavor or this activity is of human origin, it will destroy itself. But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy it; you may even find yourselves fighting against God. Acts 5:38b-39b Weekend Mass Schedule Saturday Vigil - 4pm Sunday - 8 am & 10:30 am Copper Basin K-8 School N. Main Street San Tan Valley, AZ Daily Mass Schedule Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday & Saturday - 8:30am at the Parish Office/Rectory Confessions before Mass or upon request Mailing Address 270 E. Hunt Hwy Ste. 16 #328 San Tan Valley, AZ Parish Office N. Poseidon Rd. Florence, AZ Phone: (520) Fax: (520) Parish Office Hours 9:00 am 4:00 pm Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday Centuries ago, these Lenten days were a me of intense final prepara on for the candidates for bap sm. By now, they had already been numbered among the elect for Easter bap sm, and were daily challenged to excel in prayer, in fas ng, and in works of charity. As is true today, at a certain point in the weekly assembly for Eucharist, the nonbap zed were dismissed from the assembly for their own learning and prayer. While they might have had impressions about the Eucharist, they had no direct experience. The rites of the church were secret and its worship places off-limits. For the Easter Vigil, those to be bap zed arrived very hungry from long fas ng, and perhaps very apprehensive as to how ini a on was to be accomplished. A long night of vigil and storytelling, a shimmering pool of bap sm, the anoin ng with oil and clothing with white robes came as something of a surprise. At the end of a long, life changing night of embrace by Christ and the community, as the eucharis c feast ended, a final surprise was brought forward. To address the deep hunger of the newly bap zed, the church offered a bowl of milk and honey, sign of promises fulfilled, sign of community, prosperity, and peace, and yet another foretaste of heaven s banquet. Rev. James Field, Copyright J. S. Paluch Co. Are you new to St. Michael the Archangel Church? We welcome you and we ask that you please take a few moments to register. Registration forms are located at the Greeters Table or can now be found and submitted online. Visit our website and click on the link, Parish Registration Form, found at the bottom of the home page and follow the instructions. Do you have a new address, phone number or ? You can also update your information by using the online form.

2 Sacramental Policies ANOINTING OF THE SICK At the 8:30am Mass on the first Friday of each month. BAPTISM Parents will need to provide a copy of the child s birth certificate and participate in a class. Baptismal Classes are held on the 2nd Saturday of the month at 11 am in the Church office. Parents must call the church office to register for the class. Godparents must be practicing Catholics who are confirmed and married in the Church, if married. CONFESSION Confessions are offered one-half hour before all Masses, or anytime upon request. CONFIRMATION Confirmation will be given students in 8 th grade or above. They must have completed the 8 th grade religious education class and optimally the 7 th as well. Sponsors must be practicing Catholics who are already confirmed and married in the Church, if married. Parents should not be sponsors for their own children. For information on Confirmation preparation for adults please contact the pastor. FIRST HOLY COMMUNION First Holy Communion will be offered to children in Grade 2. Children must attend CCD regularly throughout Grade 2 in order to receive the Sacrament in May of that year. Students will also be prepared for the Sacrament of Reconciliation in Grade 2. MARRIAGE Both parties are expected to participate in the preparation program. Parties must notify the pastor at least one year prior to their proposed marriage date. Please meet with the pastor for a fuller explanation and to make arrangements. CCD Schedule March 30th April 6th, 13th & 27th May 4th & 11th Class begins at 9:15 am Readings for the Week Monday: Dn 9:4b-10; Ps 79:8, 9, 11, 13; Lk 6:36-38 Tuesday: Is 1:10, 16-20; Ps 50:8-9, 16bc-17, 21, 23; Mt 23:1-12 Wednesday: 2 Sm 7:4-5a, 12-14a, 16; Ps 89:2-5, 27, 29; Mt 1:16, 18-21, 24a or Lk 2:41-51a Thursday: Jer 17:5-10; Ps 1:1-4, 6; Lk 16:19-31 Friday: Gn 37:3-4, 12-13a; 17b-28a; Ps 105:16-21; Mt 21:33-43, Saturday: Mi 7:14-15, 18-20; Ps 103:1-4, 9-12; Lk 15:1-3, Sunday: Ex 17:3-7; Ps 95:1-2, 6-9; Rom 5:1-2, 5-8; Jn 4:5-42 [5-15, 19b-26, 39a, 40-42] Prayer Requests Please visit the Greeters Table or contact Virginia. All requests are private. Virginia Bombolino Phone: ginbaby2003@aol.com Mass Intentions March 16 10:30 am Pro Populo March 22 4:00 am Pro Populo March 25 8:30 am David Medina Pro Populo - La n: for the people Deceased Contact the Parish Office to place a Mass Inten on ST. MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL MINISTRIES & COMMITTEES ALTAR SERVERS Bert Pampanin, BertandPat@AOL.com, (480) BULLETIN bulle n@stmichaels77.org or (520) CCD Jenny Rudko, jennyinaz@msn.com, (480) COMPLIANCE OFFICER Jan Trbovich, dalerussel@msn.com, (520) EUCHARISTIC MINISTERS Virginia Bombolino, ginbaby2003@aol.com, (480) GREETERS Pat Mick, Gypsey67@aol.com, (480) HOSPITALITY Lisa Green, hospitality@stmichaels77.org, (480) LECTORS Suzanne Bai nger, lectors@stmichaels77.org (480) LIFE TEEN Andy Ramirez youthgroup@stmichaels77.org (480) MUSIC Diana Albert, Dialbert2@aol.com, (480) PARISH SECRETARY/NOTARY PUBLIC Sandra Ramirez, Sandra@stmichaels77.org (520) PASTOR Rev. Fr. Dale A. Branson, pastor@stmichaels77.org, (520) PRAYER CHAIN Virginia Bombolino, ginbaby2003@aol.com (480) RCIA Bob Butchko, Bob.butchko@centurylink.net (480) RED HAT MICHAELETTES Sue Bai nger, redhats@stmichaels77.org; (480) SACRISTANS Polly Von Esse, pvonesse@aol.com (520) (includes Set Up/Take Down) USHERS Darrell Stonerook, sstonerook@live.com (602) WEBMASTER Craig Rudko webmaster@stmichaels77.org (480) P P C : Diana Albert, Sue Bai nger, Virginia Bombolino, Lisa Green, Bert Pampanin, Sandra Ramirez, Craig Rudko, Jenny Rudko, Darrell Stonerook, Mary Teese & Polly Von Esse Pastoral Council mee ngs are held on the 2nd Tuesday of each month & all are welcome to a end.

3 St. Michael the Archangel Financial Report Church Building Fund Expenses March 9, 2014 City of Mesa $70.86 Fuel $ Phone & Internet $ Living Faith Q2 $94.91 Altar Wine $ Chancery Assess. $1, Salary Subsidy Assess. $ PAC Asses. $1, Total $ % of our collec on contribu ons go toward the Church Building Fund. Contributions March 9, 2014 Parish Offertory $4, Building Fund $ Total $4, Contributions March 5, 2014 Ash Wednesday Parish Offertory $ Total $ $113, Parish Debt Obligations $242, Debt on the House $524, Debt on the Land $500, Pre-Construc on Loan $1,266, Total Current Debt Online Contributions Feb Parish Offertory $1, Building Fund $ Poor $10.00 Total $1, Online Giving...If you would like to give online please visit our website, and select the Online Giving tab. MASS ATTENDANCE people attended mass the weekend of March 8th & 9th Tuesday, April 1st Wednesday, April 2nd Thursday, April 3rd Friday, April 4th Wednesday, April 9th Thursday, April 10th Friday, April 11th Lenten Penance Services St. James the Apostle Coolidge St. Michael the Archangel - San Tan Valley St. George Apache Junc on Assump on of the Blessed Virgin Mary Our Lady of Grace Maricopa St. Anthony of Padua Casa Grande St. Helen of the Cross Eloy 8:30 am, 4:00 pm 4:00 pm & HELP WANTED The Greeters Table is looking for some men or teenage boys who would be willing to stay a er 10:30 Mass to help the ladies at the Greeters Table put away Missals and other supplies. It should take approximately 10 minutes. If enough men are interested in helping, you would only need to help once a month. Please contact Pat Mick at (480) for more informa on. ANNUAL CATHOLIC APPEAL St. Michael the Archangel Church has a goal of $7,640 Number of Donors who have pledged = 45 Total Amount Pledged = $5,680 Percentage to Goal = 74% Amount fulfilled to date = $4,955 Percentage of Pledge fulfilled = 87% HOSPITALITY PLANNING MEETING Hospitality will hold it s next planning mee ng on Saturday, March 22, following the 4:00 pm Mass. We will be planning for Pot Luck Dinners through the summer months. Bring your ideas! Mee ng is open to new volunteers as well as present members. If you have ques ons, please contact Lisa Green by at hospitality@stmichaels77.org or by phone (480)

4 If we were: Knives, Lent would be a time to sharpen our cutting edges Cars, Lent would be a time for an oil change and tune-up Swimming Pools, Lent would be a time to filter the dirt out of our water Gardens, Lent would be a time to fertilize our soil and dig out our weeds Carpets, Lent would be a time to get power-cleaned VCRs, Lent would be a time to clean our heads and adjust our tracking Highways, Lent would be a time to repair our cracks and fill our chuckholes TV sets, Lent would be a time to adjust our focus and our fine-tuning Silverware, Lent would be a time to clean away our tarnish Batteries, Lent would be a time to be recharged Seeds, Lent would be a time to germinate and reach for the sun But we are none of those things. We are people who sometimes do wrong things; we need to atone for them. Sometimes get spiritually lazy; we need to get back into shape Sometimes become shellfish; we need to stretch out of our narrowness and begin giving again. Sometimes we lose sight of our own purpose on earth and the immense promise within us; we need to regain our vision And because we are also people who sometimes tend to put those things off, we need a special sort of official time to concentrate on doing them. So we have Lent. The Easter candy will taste sweeter, the Easter flowers will bloom more brightly, the Easter Sunday sun will shine more warmly if we are a better people and all because of how we spend these next forty days. Christ Jesus...destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. 2 Timothy 1:10b

5 Transfiguration Manifestation It may seem odd to hear the Gospel of the Transfiguration of Jesus during Lent. Wouldn't it fit better after Easter? After all, the disciples who witnessed it did not tell anyone else about it until after the Resurrection (Matthew 17:9). An answer is found a few verses after our Gospel selection. Jesus tells the disciples that he will suffer (Matthew 17:12). The vision of Jesus' glory shared by Peter, James, and John was meant to help them not to become discouraged by Jesus' death on the cross. The story encourages us during the long season of Lent to be faithful to our prayers, our Lenten sacrifices, and our charity because we have seen a glimpse of the glory that is coming. Some of the details in the Gospel can help us understand. First, we hear about Jesus' appearance, that "his face shone like the sun" (Matthew 17:2). Just as we can't look directly at the sun, so people thought that if they looked at the face of God they would die. If the disciples didn't believe that Jesus was the Son of God before, they surely did now. For us this can be a reminder that God is with us during this season of Lent, helping our faith to grow. Next, the three disciples see Moses and Elijah, who were signs that Jesus fulfills the law and the prophets. But when Peter tries to keep them around by offering to set up tents for them, the voice of God interrupts. God tells them that now they should listen to Jesus. The Gospel tells us to keep our eyes on Jesus throughout Lent. Do I grumble about Lent, seeing it is as another set of laws to be obeyed? Perhaps I'm forgetting that Lent is not about how much I do for God, but a time to reflect on what God has done for me. The last line of the Gospel has Jesus admonishing the three not to tell anyone about their vision until after his resurrection. Maybe the disciples were tempted to brag that they were better than the other followers of Jesus. This reminds us that the sacrifices of Lent don't just make us look holy; they lead us to the new life of Easter. The LORD said to Abram: All the families of the earth shall find blessing in you Genesis 12:1-4a Pray to Build Our Church As we know the prayer is a powerful and important part of our lives as Catholics. We have begun our campaign, Filled With The Spirit to raise funds for our new Parish Center. We are asking for volunteers to serve as Prayer Champions to pray for the success of the campaign. If you are willing to do so, please contact the parish office to register and we will send you the campaign prayer and a schedule of important dates on which your prayers will be needed. We look forward to hearing from you!