First Sunday of Advent December 2 & 3, 2017

Transcription

1 First Sunday of Advent December 2 & 3, 2017 This Sunday we move to a new Gospel cycle and will hear from Mark in the coming liturgical year. In the hospitality area, there are blue-colored sheets of paper that will give you an overview of reading and listening to the Gospel of Mark. Thank you to those who have returned your Covenant Commitment Card and to those responding to enter intentionally and more fully into prayer, service, and generosity this liturgical year. Cards can be returned in the offering at any Mass. The Advent Wreath is a circular garland of evergreen branches representing eternity. One candle on the wreath is lit each Sunday. Light the first candle this Sunday which represents HOPE. We have hope because God is faithful and will keep the promises made to us. Where can you show Hope this week? 4th Sunday of Advent Mass Schedule Saturday, December 23, 4:15 p.m. Sunday, December 24, 10:30 a.m. What will you do to prepare your heart to celebrate the joy of Christmas? seas@seasgb.org St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish 2771 Oakwood Drive Green Bay, WI Office Hours Monday-Thursday 8am to 4:30pm Friday 8am to noon

2 Saturday, December 2 Blessed Virgin Mary Dn 7:15-27; Lk 21: :00pm Sacrament of Reconciliation 4:15pm Mass Mike & Linda Stoller and Ann Woyak Sunday, December 3 Is 63:16-17, 19; 64:2-7; Ps 80:2-3, 15-19; 1 Cor 1:3-9; Mk 13: :00am Rosary 8:30am Mass Bill, Ronald & Genevieve White 9:35am 1 st Reconciliation Activity for Faith Formation Students 10:30am Mass Deceased Family Members of Steve & Rose Janus and Sisto Herrera 10:30am Little Church Monday, December 4 St. John Damascene Is 2:1-5; Ps 122:1-9; Mt 8:5-11 6:00pm Alpha 6:00pm Acts Bible Study Tuesday, December 5 Is 11:1-10; Ps 72:1-2, 7-8, 12-13, 17; Lk 10: :00am Eugene Randerson 8:30am Holy Family School 5th Grade Retreat 1-3pm Prayer Shawl Ministry 5:30pm Worship Committee Meeting 6:00pm Rosary in Trinity Chapel 7:00pm Choir Practice Wednesday, December 6 St. Nicholas Is 25:6-10a; Ps 23:1-6; Mt 15: :00am Mass Beverly Ridgley Mass for the spinal surgery of a parishioner s daughter 8:30am Acts Bible Study 6:30pm Advent Reconciliation Service Thursday, December 7 St. Ambrose Is 26:1-6; Ps 118:1, 8-9, 19-21, 25-27a; Mt 7:21, :00am Mass Paul Bowman 1:30pm Faith Sharing Group 6:00pm Covenant Committee Meeting 6:30pm Dignity of Life Committee Meeting Gn 3:9-15, 20; Ps 98:1-4; Eph 1:3-6, 11-12; Lk 1: :00am Mass Jim Roffers 10:00am Christmas Sponsorship Program Assembling Food Baskets 6:30pm Mass for Mary Mefford s 95th Birthday Saturday, December 9 St. Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin Is 30:19-21, 23-26; Ps 147:1-6; Mt 9:35-10:1, 5a, 6-8 1:00pm Advent Tea 3:00pm Sacrament of Reconciliation 4:15pm Mass Ed Richards Mass Intentions and Calendar Events Sunday, December 10 Is 40:1-5, 9-11; Ps 85:9-14; 2 Pt 3:8-14; Mk 1:1-8 8:00am Rosary 8:30am Mass Richard Angst 9:00am Confirmation Class 10:30am Mass Gene Randerson 10:30am Smudging Rite at Mass & Little Church 11:30am Sponsorship Program Load Truck Welcome Sacrament of Baptism Celebrated within our weekend worship service at any of the Masses. Contact the parish office two months before anticipated date of Baptism. Sacrament of Reconciliation Saturdays from 3-4pm. Sacrament of Marriage Contact the parish office at least six months prior to the date of marriage. Ministry of the Sick Contact the parish office when members of your family are seriously ill, shut in, or hospitalized. Become A Member or Questions We welcome and register new members the second weekend of every month. In addition, a member of the parish staff is present at weekend Masses and is available for you. You may also contact the parish office. Parish Contacts Sr. Marla Clercx, Pastoral Leader, x108, mclercx@seasgb.org Fr. Jim Feely, Priest Celebrant Deacon Steve Meyer, steve.meyer@etkg.com Deacon Mark Mullins, m.g.mullins@sbcglobal.net Gloria Nolan, Pastoral Minister, x109, gnolan@seasgb.org Kate Ruth, Evangelization & Faith Form. Coord., x111, kruth@seasgb.org John Popke, Liturgical Music Dir., x104, jpopke@seasgb.org Jeremy Borchardt, Business Manager, x112, jborchardt@seasgb.org Marlene Malzahn, Bookkeeper, x102, mmalzahn@seasgb.org John Gillis, Facility Coordinator, x113, jgillis@seasgb.org Shelly Vann, Communications Coord., x106, svann@seasgb.org Kathy Vandersteen, Receptionist, x101, kvandersteen@seasgb.org Enroll online at using code WI571 or scan QR Reader. Online, automatic, electronic giving is the best way to make financial contributions to our parish family.

3 Dear Advent Seekers, At the closing of the Lord s Prayer, the priest adds the following, Deliver us, Lord, from every evil and grant us peace in our day. In your mercy keep us free from sin and protect us from all anxiety as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ! In some form or other, this addition at the end of the Lord s Prayer dates back to the first centuries. It is without a doubt a beautiful message and the image of waiting in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ is especially fitting for the Advent Season. Many of us do not particularly like waiting. There are the small waits, such as the check-out line at the grocery store, or a visit to the dentist. There are the medium waits which might be the selling of a home or that hoped for acceptance to college. Then, there are the immense waits for cancer-free remissions or the inevitable death of a loved one. The joyful waits are a no-brainer. We wait with great delight for the birth of a child, a wedding celebration or a much-anticipated vacation. Our very lives are filled each day with some form of waiting. The Advent message is one of great hope, anticipation and comfort as we once more celebrate our greatest gift, Jesus Christ, who God sent to live among us. God sent us a Savior and a promise of what is to come when Christ comes again. Then He sent the Holy Spirit to make a home in each human heart to remind us of who we belong to. Such gifts are too priceless to measure! Many people of good will do their best to love God and neighbor, understanding that the kingdom of God is not just after life on this earth, but that Christ is in our midst at all times, in all ways, in all people. There are those who now wait, abandoned and often neglected, and sometimes we do not see them as clearly as we could or should. For the multitudes who go unnoticed, when Christ comes again, the wait will be over. The forgotten will be remembered. The homeless will have a forever home. The hungry will be fed. The despairing will find joy. The discarded, disregarded and disabled will be welcomed, included and strengthened. For all those who felt inadequate on earth, for all those who went unknown in the world, Christ will recognize them as His own and they will be worthy in heaven. No more waiting no more pain. How close will you let Christ come to you this Advent? We need only look to our Advent stories to understand. Jesus became like us so we could become like him. Christ s first home was in the womb of a young girl. You can t get much more intimate or closer to another human being. Mary s invitation is meant for each one of us. Jesus speaks to our waiting hearts, If you let me, I ll move in. Are we an Inn complete with all the comfortable amenities, filled up with so much contentment that there is no room at the Inn for Christ? Or, are we a stable humble, open, unlocked and accessible, ready to welcome Christ into our hearts and lives? May we all be blessed with an unpretentious, unoccupied heart to welcome Jesus in this Advent season and in all the seasons of our lives. After all, good things come to those who wait. Advent Blessings, Gloria Nolan

4 Tuesdays at 6pm December 5, 12, 19 Trinity Chapel Lead by our Covenant Committee. Wednesday December 6 at 6:30pm The Sacrament of Reconciliation is a Sacrament of healing. When I go to confession, it is in order to be healed, to heal my soul, to heal my heart and to be healed of some wrongdoing, Pope Francis. (General Audience Feb. 2014) Holy Day of Obligation Friday December 8 Masses 9am and 6:30pm 2nd Friday for at Nativity of our Lord 2270 S. Oneida St., Green Bay 9am Mass 9:30am Continental Breakfast 10am Program Free program. All are invited. (You do not have to be a senior.) Please RSVP by December 5 by calling (920) We need a count for the meal. Women s Guild in our downstairs social hall All women are invited. Theme is A Miracle in the Neighborhood featuring a program on the Shrine of Our Lady of Good Help. Lots of sweet and savory treats to enjoy. No cost; free-will offering for Love Life Ministry. Also collecting hats, socks, scarves, and mittens for St. Pat s Pantry. RSVP to Mary Hinton ( ) or Barb Dix ( ). If you leave a voice mail message, please include all names of those who plan to attend and a contact phone number. Thank you to all those who are helping with our annual Christmas Sponsorship Program! All gifts must be returned by 10:30am this Sunday, December 3. Cash donations are appreciated which will help cover the costs of the items for the food baskets for those families we are sponsoring. Food will be sorted this Friday, December 8, at 10am by any of you who can come and help. The support of our parish has been wonderful. The recipients of our gifts are so grateful. Next weekend residents from Neopit and Keshena will join us at the 10:30am Mass and will perform a Smudging Ceremony as a way of thanking us for our contributions. (cont d next column) EUCHARISTIC HOLY HOUR Wednesday December 13, 7-8pm here at SEAS in our Trinity Chapel You re invited to join us! What is this love in which we must believe? It is the love of Jesus Christ; the love which He manifests to us in the Eucharist, a love that is Himself, a living and infinite love Jesus tells us that He loves us, that He instituted His Sacrament only out of love for us Our Lord sends neither Angels nor ministers to assure us of His love; He comes in person. Love will have no go-between. ~St. Peter Julian Eymard O Come, Let Us Adore Him! (cont d previous column) After that Mass those who are available and able will help load the truck that was donated by Schneider Trucking with our gifts and the food baskets. Please join us in celebration and help make our neighbors from Neopit and Keshena feel and. Thank you! If you have any questions, contact Mary Jo Ross at maryjoross456@yahoo.com.

5 Christmas flower donations and decorations in memory of, or in honor of, family and friends are being accepted through for publication in the December 23/24 bulletin. Name: Your Name: (Your name will not be published.) Place this form in a blank envelope, along with your donation, in the collection basket or bring to the parish office. Thank you! It is not enough to discover Christ you must bring Him to others! ~St. John Paul II Hi friends! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! Oops...I mean Happy Liturgical New Year!!! Okay, okay...happy Advent?! We ve just entered Advent, and are eagerly awaiting the birth of Christ. We begin this journey keeping hope, love, joy and peace in our hearts. And, we too will be intentional in working towards bringing happiness to others. We are trimming trees, writing Christmas Cards, hanging lights, and scurrying through the stores or online looking for the perfect gift for others. During this time of year, we work so hard preparing for Christmas that sometimes we forget to be intentionally observant of the weeks preparing us for Christmas Advent. So what can we do to STOP and be INTENTIONAL this Advent? CST I, CST, have done a couple of things in the past to make Advent more intentional as I prepared for Christmas. Some of the things I have done include reading a daily Advent devotion. I also like to make an Advent Calendar by doing an Intentional Act of Kindness each day of Advent and recording it on the Advent Calendar. I enjoy taking some intentional time in prayer whether that s going to adoration, making time to sit in front of the Tabernacle, or simply praying the Rosary. All of these things help me prepare my mind and heart for Christmas. And, it centers me in a way where I am able to be more patient and giving. So, how might you be intentional this Advent? How will you journey in prayer, peace, and with others? Happy Advent! May it be as intentionally peaceful and filled with love as it can be. 1. Express your commonalities with the person. 2. Share how you encounter(ed) Jesus, God, the Holy Spirit in your life. How has faith made a difference in your life? How is the Holy Spirit guiding you? Describe those moments. 3. Encourage the person to follow Jesus and strive for deeper spirituality and holiness with concrete examples such as joining an Alpha group, using a daily devotion book for reading/ reflection, reading the Bible and praying, going to Mass/joining the Church, joining a small faith group, etc. An Alpha follow-up group called Wisdom will be starting here at SEAS on January 15 from 6:30 to 7:45pm. This is for anyone who has completed the original Alpha series. Register on our website or call (920) x 111.

6 When necessary, we will try our best to post CANCELLA- TIONS in a timely manner on TV Channel 5, our website, our Facebook page, and via text message. Religious Retirement Annual Collection Consider the gift of education in your year-end charitable giving. Your gift to the GRACE Annual Appeal will offer the blessing for any families who desire a Catholic education for their children. Many of us in our parish communities have been blessed with the gifts of Catholic education, and can carry on what we have learned and witnessed in our faith in giving back to our GRACE Catholic schools. Donations can be mailed to GRACE Annual Appeal, 1087 Kellogg Street, Green Bay, WI or made online at Thank you for your prayerful consideration to GRACE as a priority in your year-end charitable giving. In thanksgiving for all they have sacrificed and given for us, please consider making a gift to women and men religious and our senior diocesan priests. Next weekend is our Diocese s Annual Collection. For your convenience, an envelope is enclosed. Thank you Calendars are available for the taking in the hospitality area. Compliments of Blaney Funeral Home. Text SEASGB to with your smartphone to sign up to receive text messages from us. *Text STOP to to stop text notifications at any time. Text HELP for help. There is no charge for this service, but your carrier s message and data rates may apply. View privacy policy and terms at flocknote.com/txt. Bishop Ricken asked that all parishes include The Compass in the Bulletin in our bulletins once a month. It s included with this bulletin edition S. Fisk Street Green Bay, WI What We Collect here at SEAS for Holy Family School Used ink cartridges, box tops, soda tabs. There s a designated collection basket on the floor in the hospitality area. We no longer collect milk caps, Campbell s soup labels, or egg cartons. Also, periodically Scrip is sold after all Masses. We are looking for a Scrip Coordinator. If interested, please contact Allison Moseng, HFS Principal, (920) or Curt Moore, St. Agnes Business Manager/Accountant at (920) or send to stagnesacct@netnet.net. December 8: Mass at 8:45am at St. Agnes. The Liturgy Planners are Grade 5, St. John Paul II Classical School. December 11: Christmas Choir Concert 6:30pm at St. Agnes Church. All are welcome. December 12: Penance Service for grades 3-8 from 1-2pm at St. Agnes Church. Band Concert at 6:30pm in HFS Gym. December 15: Mass at 8:45am at St. Agnes with Bishop Ricken officiating. The Liturgy Planners are Grades 3/4, St. John Paul II Classical School. December 21: Mass at 8:45am at St. Agnes. The Liturgy Planners are Grades 1/2, St. John Paul II Classical School. December 22: All School Rosary at St. Agnes Church at 8:45am. Early dismissal today! Semester exams are December Maryhill Drive Green Bay, WI (920) Last school year, our students completed 16,520 community service hours. That s 2,000 more than the year previous.

7 Advent Programs at Norbertine Center for Spirituality, 1016 N. Broadway, De Pere. Registration appreciated at or Free-will offering (suggested donation $5). Advent Centering Prayer, Thursdays, December 7, 14, 21 from 5:30-6:20pm. Voices from the Wilderness, December 9, 9:15-10:15am, presented by Sr. Marla Clercx. Shepherds, Angels, and Mangers: Deciphering the Infancy Narratives, December 14 from 6:30-8pm. Matthew 1-2 and Luke 1-2, the infancy narratives. Explore the deeper meaning of Christmas. Presented by John Craghan, Ph.D. Hear God s Voice in the Deserts of Our Lives, December 16, 9:15-10:15am, presented by Fr. Michael Brennan. All Souls Remembrance Program, December 9 at 11am with Bishop David Ricken at Allouez Catholic Cemetery. A freeof-charge opportunity for anyone who has cremated remains at home or is considering scattering, to inter them in a communal All Souls Remembrance Crypt with a special celebration of the Rite of Committal at the Chapel Mausoleum. Those wishing to take part in this program need to contact the Allouez Catholic Cemetery at to RSVP and to request the necessary Interment Authorization Form. This form needs to be completed and submitted by Thursday, December 7. (The Allouez Catholic Cemetery office will be closed on Friday, December 8, in observance of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.) St. Philip s Christmas Bake Sale, December 9, 11am to 4pm, 312 Victoria St., Verbeten Hall, Green Bay. Cookies, other goodies, crafts, ornaments, bucket raffles. Breakfast with Santa, December 10, 8am to 12noon, at St. Jude, 1420 Division St., Green Bay. Sponsored by the Knights of Columbus Council Pancakes, eggs, porkies, etc. Free-will offering. Santa will take Christmas wish lists of attendees. Amanda Vernon Concert Keynote Featuring Franki Moscato, December 10 at 7pm, St. Bernard Church, 1617 W. Pine St., Appleton. Free event, open to the public. Children s Christmas Shop, December 16 from 10am to 2pm at From Above Gathering Place and Bakery, 1599 Western Ave., Green Bay. Children ages 4-11 are invited to buy gifts for family members. Gifts $4 or less. Marriage Preparation: Re-Opening the Doors to Marriage, January 27, 9am to 3pm, at St. John the Baptist, 2597 Glendale Ave., Green Bay. Presented by the Diocese of Green Bay. Cost $110 per couple. For couples who plan to marry in the Catholic Church after an annulment, the death of a spouse, or who are currently civilly married and now seeking the Sacrament of Marriage. To register or for more info, visit Serving Dairy Farms Since 1997 INTENSIVE DAIRY CARE Mike Biese Nutrition Consultant Parish Member (920) Grow Your Business, Advertise Here. Support Your Church & Bulletin. Free professional ad design & my help! muehlfeltj@jspaluch.com Call Joanne Muehlfelt BLINDAUER S WHY IS IT A man wakes up after sleeping under an ADVERTISED blanket on an ADVERTISED mattress and pulls off ADVERTISED pajamas bathes in an ADVERTISED shower shaves with an ADVERTISED razor brushes his teeth with ADVERTISED toothpaste washes with ADVERTISED soap puts on ADVERTISED clothes drinks a cup of ADVERTISED coffee drives to work in an ADVERTISED car and then.... refuses to ADVERTISE believing it doesn t pay. Later if business is poor he ADVERTISES it for sale. WHY IS IT? St Elizabeth Ann Seton Church (B) Be Kos We Care About Our Residents, Our Communities... and Our Future. Paul Kosmoski Parish Member Pre-Planning: Save Your Family From Difficult Decisions in the Future ALL CHRISTIAN FAITHS WELCOME Medical Alert System $29.95/Mo. billed quarterly One Free Month No Long-Term Contract Price Guarantee Easy Self Installation Call Today! Toll Free Sheet Metal - Roofing Dean Englebert 1227 S. Broadway TERRY J. GERBERS Parishioner Holmgren Way, Suite A Estate Planning. Real Estate Law. Business The Most Complete Online National Directory of Catholic Parishes CHECK IT OUT TODAY! For Ads: J.S. Paluch Co., Inc

8 Parishioners PAT & JERRY BLINDAUER Mike Thomson Parishioner Heating & Air Conditioning A.J. Thomson Mark D. Olejniczak (920) Sara Olejniczak (920) Laura Olejniczak (920) Dave Peot (920) (920) University Ave. Green Bay, WI LOOKING FOR MEN Interested call Tim Gilbert MOTEL AND FAMILY RESTAURANT Sales Service Installation Residential Commercial 2223 Woodale Ave. Green Bay, WI New Location Wery Lane, Green Bay, WI A Catholic Senior Living Residence 212 Iroquois Ave (920) Grow in your faith, find a Mass, and connect with your Catholic Community with OneParish! (920) Free Wireless Internet SALES, SERVICE INSTALLATION Download Our Free App or Visit MY.ONEPARISH.COM Concrete Delivery Concrete Pumping BRIAN SKIP KOWALKOWSKI Allied Street Green Bay, WI Fax Appleton Kisser Ct. Parishioner Jim Beining* Parishioner Wisconsin Financial Wealth Management S. Military Ave. jbeining@wisconsinfinancial.com *Securities offered through registered representatives of The O.N.Equity Sales Company. Member of FINRA/SIPC. One Financial Way, Cincinnati, Ohio (513) Deluxe Motor Coaches Mini-Coach Buses Trolleys School Buses Limousines Brian or Sally, coordinators CST an Official Travel Agency of Apostleship of the Sea-USA Ask About Our Executive & Limousine Coaches Ask for a FREE Tour Catalog From the WLP Vault comes the Bible Story of Christmas featuring 8 Classic Christmas Carols and a reading of the Gospel of Luke 2: 4-20 by Bing Crosby! Also available on vinyl Photo Courtesy of Bing Crosby Enterprises Visit WLPmusic.com to purchase your copy - CD $10.00 If you own a business or know of a local business that might like to support your local Catholic parish by advertising in its parish bulletin, please contact J.S. Paluch. Grow your business by advertising in the church bulletin and create strong connections with your target audience. Benefits include: WHY ADVERTISE IN YOUR LOCAL CHURCH BULLETIN? J.S. Paluch will create, produce and print your ad for less than you d spend elsewhere.they help you reach consumers at extremely affordable rates and offer options to advertise effectively and keep pace with market change. GREAT COVERAGE - 97% of all households attending church take at least one church bulletin home every Sunday. GREAT VALUE - 70% of all households are aware of and look at the advertising in the church bulletin and 68% of households surveyed when making a choice between businesses are inclined to choose the one who advertised in the church bulletin. GREAT LOYALTY - 41% of households do business with a company specifically because they are advertising in the church bulletin. GREAT PRODUCT - 62% of households keep the church bulletin the entire week as reference. Learn More About Advertising In Your Parish Bulletin Call us at sales@jspaluch.com St Elizabeth Ann Seton Church (A) For Ads: J.S. Paluch Co., Inc

9 December 2017 IN THE BY SAM LUCERO THE COMPASS ALLOUEZ What began as an effort by two members of St. Willebrord Parish to help family and friends affected by Hurricane Maria has mushroomed into a major relief project organized by parish and diocesan leaders. The project, Breaking Bread with Puerto Rico: Home for Christmas, included a fundraiser on Friday, Nov. 17, at St. Willebrord Church. It continues with a trip to Puerto Rico in December to serve Christmas meals to parish families. Like the hurricane that hit the island of Puerto Rico on Sept. 20, the Breaking Bread with Puerto Rico fundraiser quickly picked up momentum after Maria Garcia and Griselle Montalvo, Puerto Rican natives and members of St. Willebrord Parish, began looking for ways to assist families and friends on the Caribbean island. In the beginning, when everyone was trying to contribute or do something for Puerto Rico, we really had a lot of closed doors Parish, diocese team up for Puerto Rico benefi t SAM LUCERO THE COMPASS Griselle Montalvo, left, and Maria Garcia, members of St. Willebrord Parish in Green Bay and Puerto Rican natives, helped organize a fundraising event for Puerto Rico. because we couldn t ship anything, said Garcia. A lot of the items actually making it to Puerto Rico were not being distributed to other areas than the north, so we were concerned about our families in the southern part. Montalvo is from Ponce and Garcia is from Juana Diaz, both neighboring cities in the south. The logistics of reaching the southern communities posed an immediate challenge, so Garcia and Montalvo chose another idea. We were trying to fi gure out if we did gather some money from the parish what we would do, so we thought about Christmas, said Garcia. Our full story appears in the Nov. 17 issue. FRANKLY, FRANCIS Dear Brothers and Sisters, In this new series of catecheses on the Eucharist, we begin by refl ecting on the fact that the Mass is fi rst and foremost a prayer, indeed the prayer par excellence. For at every Mass we encounter God in his word and in the body and blood of Christ. Made in God s image and likeness, we were made to know him, to love and to serve him. In prayer, we experience God s closeness and love; we speak to him, but we also learn to listen to his voice speaking in our hearts. Jesus himself teaches us, as he did his disciples, how to pray. From him we learn to call God our Father, to trust in his love, and to be constantly surprised by the signs of that love. When Jesus speaks of our need to be reborn (cf. Jn 3:15), he is in fact inviting us to accept his gift of new life in the Spirit. + Pope Francis, Nov. 15, Follow Him On Customized rosary commemorates mother church of Green Bay Diocese BY PATRICIA KASTEN THE COMPASS GREEN BAY Many people cherish special rosaries, such as family heirlooms or rosaries from a specific place or shrine. Now, people in the Diocese of Green Bay can have a rosary that commemorates the mother church of the diocese: St. Francis Xavier Cathedral. The customized rosary believed to be the fi rst commemorative rosary designed in the diocese was made by the Italian fi rm, Ghirelli Rosaries. The rosary contains elements unique to the 1881 cathedral, such as the church s crucifi xion mural and choir loft rose window. The rosary s design was approved by Cathedral Book and Gifts seven-member governing board. Fr. Joseph Dorner, cathedral rector, and Ann Kieltyka, the store s manager, serve on the board and worked directly with Ghirelli. Kieltyka had met the Ghirelli s sales representative at the Catholic Marketing Network s religious goods trade show held in Schaumburg, Ill., in Since the cathedral was slated for major renovations this year and the diocesan 150th jubilee takes place in 2018, it just seemed that the pieces came together, Kieltyka said. Our full story appears in the Nov. 3 issue.

10 Subscribe: Save $ 5 NOW! 5 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW Advent PATRICIA KASTEN THE COMPASS 1 Advent comes from the Latin word adventus which referred to an arrival. For ancient Romans, an adventus welcomed the emperor or the statue of a deity. 2 Advent has four Sundays. This year, the Fourth Sunday of Advent falls on Dec. 24, making this year s the shortest Advent season possible. 3 Advent can last up to 28 days, or be short as 22 days. 4 Advent begins on the Sunday after the feast of St. Andrew (Nov. 30). Andrew is called the Protocletus ( fi rst called of the Apostles ) in Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic churches. 5 In the early Middle Ages, Advent lasted more than 40 days. It was called St. Martin s Fast, since it began on Nov. 11, the feast of Martin of Tours. Please mail $23 payment to: P.O. Box 8474 Carol Stream, IL For faster service, call: or Toll-free , Ext compasscirc@gbdioc.org Name Address City State ZIP Phone Parish New Subscribers Only You have heard me speak out in the past against what appears to be a culture of death in our society. This culture is sinister, often lurking beneath the surface, hiding in the darkness, so that many do not see it coming. To overcome this culture, then, we must shed light on these dark places. Today, I want to shed the light of Christ onto the opioid epidemic that has taken hold in our society, bringing darkness and death that we BISHOP S CORNER Bishop David Ricken must all recognize and stand together in solidarity to overcome. In Wisconsin, we are not immune to this epidemic. According to civil authorities in our state, the number of deaths in Wisconsin due to drug overdose now exceeds the number of those that die from automobile accidents, suicide, or fi rearms. Authorities and experts in the study of this epidemic tell us that this addiction is not a result of individual weaknesses or desires of the fl esh. Their studies show that the majority of those addicted to heroin have also abused and have an addiction to prescribed opioid-based painkillers. This addiction crosses all age ranges, genders, ethnic categories, faiths and socioeconomic classes. We cannot judge those who fi nd themselves addicted, and if you, yourself struggle with addictions, please do not judge yourself. Opioid addiction Parish SNAPSHOT It is so very important that we as Catholics pray and work together to address this epidemic, as addiction strips not only the dignity of life from our brothers and sisters, but it is robbing them of life itself. As missionary disciples, it is so important that we stand alongside the families of those who are dealing with the effects of a loved one s addiction, as they, too, are in deep pain. The impact of addiction robs the individual and family of so much. We must assure our families that they do not walk alone and that God s love is always present. We must support and accompany them as best we can through this darkness. When we encounter diffi cult situations, Christ reminds us to be not afraid. While addiction can be scary, we are called to overcome that fear and shed Christ s light into the darkness. We can do this by discussing this issue more openly as a church, by recognizing the reality of this need, and helping our brothers and sisters through it. If someone you know is struggling with addiction or you are concerned about your own addictions, do not fear sharing your concerns with your pastor. If this is something you fi nd diffi cult to do, I ask that you call our Catholic Charities Department of the Diocese of Green Bay. We must remember there is no shame in seeking help, but rather as crossing the threshold to God s healing light. The entire column appears in our Oct. 27 issue. SUBMITTED PHOTO FOR THE COMPASS A Marian prayer wall was created at St. Anthony School in Oconto Falls this fall. St. Anthony parishioner Ron Barlament created the wall as a memorial to his wife, Marjorie, who passed away last year. Barlament and Chester Konitzer designed and performed the work of building a niche for the statue of Mary with Jesus. Parishioners Sue Malingowski and Karen Knoerzer painted the scrolls that feature the Angelus and Regina Caeli prayers. Students recite the Angelus every day following lunch.