WELCOME! Bulletin Deadline: Monday at 10:00 a.m. Pastor The Reverend Michael Whyte,

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1 A Parish of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hartford Mass/Liturgy Schedule: Saturday Vigil at 5:00 p.m. Sunday Masses at 8:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. (Memorial Day Weekend through Labor Day Weekend, NO 5:00 p.m. Sunday Mass) Daily Mass at 8:30 a.m., Monday through Wednesday, and Friday. (Yearly) Sacrament of Reconciliation: Saturday from 4:00 p.m. until 4:30 p.m. Monday from 6:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Baptisms and Baptismal Preparation: Please call the parish office at Sacrament of Holy Matrimony: Please call the parish office at at least 6 months in advance Choir Practices: Adult Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m. Youth Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. Contemporary Music Group Sundays at 4:00 p.m. Bulletin Deadline: Monday at 10:00 a.m. Fourth Sunday of Easter 7 May 2017 Pastor The Reverend Michael Whyte, PARISH STAFF Administrative Assistant-Parish Office Mrs. Lisa Cerchia or stcathy@comcast.net Director of Religious Education Mrs. Kathi Bonner or kathidre@aol.com Director of Youth Ministry Mrs. Judy Pluta or judyplutaym@gmail.com Director of Music Ministry Mrs. Susan Zybert or susanzybert@comcast.net Facilities Manager Mr. Michael Grappone, Website News: to: Parish Council President Mr. Jim Peters or jpetersjjr@gmail.com 265 Stratton Brook Road, Box 184, West Simsbury, Connecticut Tel: /Fax: stcathy@comcast.net Website: Facebook Page: Finance Council Chairman Mr. Scott Muryasz StCatherineWebMaster@Comcast.net St.Catherine of Siena Parish-West Simsbury CT WELCOME! We welcome all visitors who are celebrating with us today. As is our custom at St. Catherine of Siena, please remain in your pew for the singing of the first and last verses of the recessional hymn. Parish Office Hours: Monday-Friday 9:00 a.m. through 2:00 p.m. The St. Catherine Parish Legacy Fund is committed to ensuring the long-term stability of our parish and its ministries. Please consider a gift in lieu of flowers upon a loved one's passing as a way to ensure our community will thrive well into the future. Parish Legacy Fund Chairman Mr. Peter Pabich, Parish Lay Trustees Mrs. Anne Hoffman, Mr. Steven Moretta, Thanks for worshiping with us. If you would like to join our parish family, fill out a yellow membership form found in the vestibule or atrium and mail it to us, drop it in the collection basket or call us at We Welcome You to Our Family of Faith!

2 WEEKLY MASS INTENTIONS Saturday, May 5:00 p.m. Mass for Lucia Brancato, requested by her family; Sunday, May 8:00 am Mass for Ray Rooney, birthday remembrance, requested by his family; Sunday, May 11:00 am Mass for Ann Comstock, requested by her family; and, Sunday, May 5:00 p.m. Mass for Agnes Hark, requested by the Sieber Family; Monday, May 8:30 a.m. Mass for Dr. Francis Curis, requested by Lyons Family; Tuesday, May 8:30 am Mass Arlene Yates, requested by the Hark Family; Wednesday, May 8:30 a.m. Mass for Special Intention; Friday, May 8:30 a.m. Mass for Susan Caldwell, requested by the St. Denis Family; Saturday, May 5:00 p.m. Mass for All Mothers; Sunday, May 8:00 am Mass for All Mothers; Sunday, May 10:00 am Mass for All Mothers; and, Sunday, May 5:00 p.m. Mass for All Mothers. Offertory Collection Weekly Collection: $8, Loose Cash/Checks $1, Envelopes $7, Cathedraticum* -$ School Tax* -$ *Parish taxes (5.5%) paid to the Archdiocese for services to the parish. Easter.....$1,035.00(additional) Repair & Refurbishment..$1, (additional) Pantry Partners.$ (additional) Online Donation: donations/ This week s second collection is for Repair & Refurbishment. St. Gerard's Center for Life is very grateful to be welcomed into St. Catherine of Siena Parish next weekend, May 13 th & 14th. Rosemarie Mahan, a volunteer from St. Gerard's Pregnancy Center will once again launch the annual Baby Bottle Drive. Pledge cards or bottles will be distributed after all weekend Masses (next weekend) and collected after the weekend of May 27 th & 28th. Thank you for your generosity as we partner together to keep this pro-life mission alive in the greater Hartford area! Religious Education News Congratulations to our newly Confirmed teens! Our parish had 88 teens confirmed by Archbishop Emeritus Daniel Cronin last Saturday in two beautiful liturgies: Trey Anthony Albani, Payton Bernadette Arsenault, Kurt Vincent Bedson, Mark Michael Bedson, Connor Alexander Benton, Camilla Rose Berckemeyer, Andrew Andre Bessette, Natalie Therese Bielat, William Richard Bonnell, Joshua Paul Boswell, Nathaniel Michael Bouchard, Catherine Quiteria Cantelmo, Scott Francis Capozzoli, Claire Julia Carew, Ryan Sebastian Caulfield, Michael Sebastian Cavanaugh, Olivia Elizabeth Chappano, John Bernard Cody, Elaina Margaret Comia, Luke Augustine Connal, Grace Teresa Cummings, William William Dempsey, Teagan Sarah Dillon, Grace Cecila Domashinski, Samantha Jude Dording, Griffin Albert Dorman, Caroline Maura Egan, Bernard Thomas Gaffney, Corey Patrick Gallagher, Emily Gianna Giglio, Christina AngelaGrasso, James Brendan Hammel, Abigail Josephine Hammel, Christopher John Harvill, William Sebastian Henry, Amanda Rosalia Hepburn, Cole Sebastian Hermsen, Brian Luke Hoffman, Devin Theresa Hoffman, Michael Sebastion James, Rebecca Teresa Jano, Kaitlyn Mary Kruszewski, Izabella Cecelia Kuczorski, Alex Francis Kulicki, Ella Anne Kulicki, Anthony Luke Lantiere, Matthew Andrew Loftus, Grace Irene Majka, Amanda Anne Marecki, Colleen Margaret McDermott, Ellen Bernadette Meyer, Emily Anne Moretta, Kara Ceceila Mortimer, Aidan Patrick MurphyZink, Halie Elizabeth Nascimbeni, Kate Lidwina Nedorostek, Ethan Andrew Nigro, Grace Blaise O Bryan, Andrew Expeditus Obrzut, Emma Cecelia Ouellette, Michael Ignatius Paolella, Peter Francis Phillips, Clare Cecilia Porter, Alexander Thomas Pringle, Carina Teresa Putnum, Kyle Michael Raimundi,Matthew Peter Reese, John Francis Rhodes, James George Rhodes, Connor Cormac Richard, Zachary Sebastian Rohre, Anthony Vincent Romanelli, Nathan John Rybczyk, Andrew Anthony Savarese, Amanda Veronica Segar, Anna Marianne Sennott, Kieran Florian Shanley, Zoe Mary Magdalen Shapiro, Meghan Angela Sisk, Cal Joseph Skwara, Nola Francis Smith, Grace Teresa Stewart, Charlotte Teresa Tagliatela, Faith Jude Tanski, Henri Longinus Toscano, James Albertus Vetro, Brooke Bridget Witkin A special thank you to their catechists: Mrs. Kelli Hermsen, Miss Addie Obrzut, Mrs. Becky Obrzut, Mr. Michael Lantiere and Mr. Tom Tanski. FIRST HOLY COMMUNION was celebrated yesterday with 41 beautiful and Holy girls and boys and their families and friends. MAY PROCESSION is today immediately following the 11 AM Mass. Our First Communicants will lead the procession to the Mary Garden where Elizabeth Maggiore will crown Mary, our Blessed Mother in a beautiful and brief ceremony. All are invited to join the procession! Re-registration and New Registrations for the Religious Education program will begin on May 17th. Families already registered will receive an online invitation to re-register. New registrations are done in person, with the blue form found in the back of the church. Siblings who are new to our program must be done on the blue form and not added to the online form! For more information, please contact our DRE, Kathi Bonner, or Kathidre@aol.com. YOUTH MINISTRY NEWS Registration Forms for the year will be available soon!!!

3 FROM FATHER MICHAEL... Why God Gave the Little Children First Holy Communion: It seems that when one talks about First Holy Communion the images that come to many minds are holy little children in procession to receive the Eucharist for the first time with their hands folded, eyes wide open, and little girls in white dresses and heads covered in veils and young boys with dress shirts and white ties slightly askew around their necks. It is the image of Catholicism that warms everyone s heart. And that s wonderful--and it is true. But there is a more powerful image that we might want to hold onto--even when we are much older and may feel a wee-bit less holy...it is the image of God With Us as we travel our own roads to Emmaus. The image of God our Father with us should not be a foreign image for us, nor should Christ always close to us be a distant or unreal image in our Catholic life, or the Holy Spirit guiding us and leading us to All Truth be considered strange or novel to us. You see, the greatest Gift of All given by God to human kind is the Gift of the Incarnation: God made man. It is the Incarnation which leads to the Eucharist and thus Salvation. What we are talking about here is the Real Presence of God in our lives. And that s what your children experienced this weekend at First Holy Communion: the Gift of Christ. There are many other gifts that God gives us in this life (and many of them I spoke about to the children at First Holy Communion: The gifts of our parents who represent God s Love in our human lives, the gift of the Catholic Church which illustrates God s Love to us through His Word, His Sacraments, and His family of Believers, and the gift of Faith--or rather our desire to want to come to know and love God in this world so that we might live with Him forever in the world to come. For many young and older adults, the gift of faith and the gift of His Catholic Church seem to lose their luster as we grow up. Recent trends and statistics (some of which you will hear about at Mass this weekend) illustrate that fewer and fewer families are like yours: they don t come to Mass, they don t practice the Sacraments and the lived-faith that God has decided we need. In many ways, those of us who have (or had) parents who took us to church and taught us, both by word and example, that church, Mass and God are important and are also His great gifts. In His Divine Wisdom, God has granted us loving parents to lead us by example to Him. That s a pretty awesome and powerful gift, and one that is eternal and directly impacts our immortal souls (well done, mom and dad!) The reason why God has determined that we need Him in our human lives is because He loves us. And His love means that He does not want to lose any of us but rather that we all live with Him forever. Love is a short but awfully important word in our lives, and its meaning should be understood as God s desire to be with us in this earthly life so that He may walk with us sharing in our sorrows and joys, holding on to us when sadness overcomes us, and correcting us when we are heading in the wrong direction--even though He does not stop loving us--for God s desire to correct us is meant only to lead us to become the most excellent people we can be. Sounds like a parent s true role, doesn't it? When we not only understand the desire of God s love but also the meaning of His Love, then we can see why this powerful God who created the heavens and the earth and all that they contain would give us His Son in the Eucharist. Then maybe, just maybe, we wont become so complacent about the Eucharist and continue to receive it with reverence, love and joy- -knowing that is exactly what it is and why God gave it to us. The next time you are in our church I would like you to take a look at the 9th and 12th Stations of the Cross (Jesus Falls the Third Time and His Death on the Cross, respectively) and look at the clouds and see God s face as He is revealed there with Jesus in very difficult times--in trial and tribulation--yet God does not abandon Jesus and nor will He leave us. You see, while God s love may indeed mean you will have to say you are sorry, it never means you are alone. `Happy and Blessed First-and Continuous- Holy Communion! Men s & Women s Club Ministries announce THE ANNUAL HANDS OF CHRIST AWARD(S). Attention All Parishioners:Applications for the annual Hands of Christ Service Award(s) are available at (under Documents on the home page) and in the Atrium. Application deadline is June 1st. Recipients are NOT limited to post-secondary education, but for all ages, service projects, gap year assistance or notfor-profit causes more broadly defined. Questions? Contact Rosemary Clarke (rchad.clarke@gmail.com) or Steve Cerchia (scerchia@comcast.net)

4 Get involved: you don t have to do everything... but everyone should do something! Upcoming Meetings/Events MAY -Sun, 7th Crowning of Mary, Mary Garden, 12 noon. -Sun, 7th Contemporary Choir, MR, 4 p.m. -Mon, 8th Confession, Church, 6 p.m. -Tues, 9th Adult Choir, MR, 7:30 p.m. -Wed, 10th Men s Club Meeting, RH, 6:30 p.m. -Thurs, 11th Girl Scouts, RH, 7 p.m. -Fri, 12th Ministry Head Workshop/Reception, RH, 6:30 p.m. -Sun, 14th Children s Liturgy of the Word, RH, 11 a.m. -Sun, 14th Coffee & Donuts, RH, 9 a.m. & 12 Noon -Sun, 14th Contemporary Choir, MR, 4 p.m. -Mon, 15th Mass at McLean Home, 11 am. -Mon, 15th Confession, Church, 6 p.m. -Mon, 15th Prayer Shawl, RH, 7 p.m. -Tues, 16th Adult Choir, MR, 7:30 p.m. -Sat, 20th Pantry Partners, Vestibule, 9:00 a.m. -Sat, 20th Feed the Hungry -Sun, 21st St. Elizabeth House, parking lot, 3:45 p.m. -Sun, 21st Contemporary Choir, MR, 4 p.m. -Mon, 22nd Confession, Church, 6 p.m. -Tues, 23rd Adult Choir, MR, 7:30 p.m. Social Outreach Pantry Partners May 20 is the next distribution date for SCPP. We have a volunteer opportunity to deliver food for two homebound clients in Simsbury. If you are interested please contact Karen Willis at SCPP2013@gmail.com. Thank you for your support. St. Elizabeth House next service date is May 21st. Food needs to be ready to serve (casseroles hot, salad pre-cut) and at the church by 3:45 p.m. Please sign up in the atrium. Questions? Please contact Leila Bruno at (860) Thank you! Please join-n and come to a meeting of your choice. WOMEN S CLUB-UPCOMING EVENTS Deadline: Hands of Christ Award applications, June 1, Application available at and in the Atrium. Sunday, June 4, 11a.m. Mass please join us as we pray for the intentions of our Women's Club Ministry. Our Annual Banquet, NEW DATE -- Wednesday, June 7th, 6:30 pm, upstairs at Abigail's Grille. Details and sign-ups to follow soon. Men s Club Coming Events: -Golf Outing-June 2nd, Simsbury Farms. Come join in on the fun of our charity golf outing and be with family and friends while you help the St. Catherine community feed the hungry, shelter the homeless and support Simsbury neighbors in need. Cave Quest (VBS) is coming (June 26th-30th from 9:15-Noon) and Registration is open till May 31st! Register online, (check your for the info) or you may use the paper registration forms which can be found in the church atrium. Any questions? Want to volunteer? Contact Colleen Tighe, (860) ALMOST SOLD OUT, just a few tickets left! Designer Bag Bingo, June 2nd in Russell Hall. Doors open at 5 p.m. BYOB and bring your own food, snacks, etc. Bingo begins at 7 p.m. Raffles & Prizes too! All proceeds benefit the Children's Organ Transplant Association (COTA) in honor of Sophia Jakubowski. COTA helps children and young adults who need a life-saving transplant by providing fundraising assistance and family support. 501(c)3 status. Tax deductions are available to contributors. 10 games of Bingo for a ticket of $ To purchase, contact: CotaForSophiaJ@gmail.com. Scholarship Forms, for post-secondary education, are available by contacting Richard Farrell, WANT TO GET RID OF SOME MAGAZINES?...Youth Ministry will be collecting magazines to use for our programs. We are specifically looking for magazines related to nature, travel and such magazines as National Graphic. No fashion magazines please. A bin for collection will be in the atrium. Youth Ministry thanks you.!!!!!!!!!!!!

5 End of Bulletin Information on this page is not printed Church: City: St. Catherine of Siena West Simsbury, Connecticut Account # Run # Routing Code: O Phone: Fax: Contact: Lisa Cerchia