St. Bernard Congregation. The St. Bernard MESSENGER. Be sure to pick up a free copy of the book Rediscover

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1 Advent 2016 Volume 9 St. Bernard Congregation The St. Bernard MESSENGER Welcoming the Spirit of Advent in Quiet By: Father Mark Vander Steeg, Pastor Advent Book Giveaway! Rediscover Jesus By Matthew Kelly At All Masses 11/ st Sunday of Advent. Very Simple Advent Read. Try it out! Inside this Issue: Emmanuel- God with Us St Bernard Monthly Holy Hour Feast of Immaculate Conception 3 Did Catholics Add Seven Books to the Old Testament? Preparation Love Begins Here Service Camp: Neighbors First! St. Bernard School- Mission Statement Holiday Mass Schedule Help Us Grow Be sure to pick up a free copy of the book Rediscover Jesus for Advent. It is a simple 40 chapter book designed to be read each day for a few pages. It reteaches the basics on Christianity while providing some good prayer material for each day. It does not need to be finished by Christmas. It is a great piece to carry you through the holidays. Why not pick it up and see what you think? Advent can teach us many things, and one of the great lessons is the need to wait. Mary had to wait Joseph had to wait and then listen...listen for God. Never easy. But if we want God s direction, we have to listen. The Parish Council and I wondered how we as a parish could create an environment that aids not only worship and song, but also listening. Pope Francis has urged us to do more listening. The directives on how to celebrate Mass in a parish offered me some guidance. It advocates more quiet and silent moments. We are encouraged to take a little more time at key points for parishioners to communicate with and listen for God. We are going to be incorporating them at our Masses. The first is during what is called the Penitential Rite. At the start of Mass the priest has us call to mind our sins so as to better enter and celebrate the Sacred Mysteries. Too often, we jump right into Lord have mercy without really giving persons time to reflect. I am now going to pause a bit longer and have the deacons do the same. It is an important start to Mass. The recitation of the Confiteor is extremely helpful in this (I confess to Almighty God and to you my brothers and sisters that I have sinned.. but not always the best Sunday choice. So be prepared for the pause. Secondly, we are going to pause after the Homily for about 30 seconds to help receive any insights or inspirations from God. A simple pause like this helps in remembering and later putting into practice what may have struck us. The silence may be a bit uncomfortable at first. I promise to not add more time onto Mass. The third and last introduction of a moment of quiet will be after Holy Communion. Our current practice is to return to our seat and keep singing, which is very good, but we also need just a little bit of time to unite ourselves with the Lord whom we have just received and to give thanks for his presence. Some parishes sing a little song or recite a prayer of thanks or adoration after Communion. We will start with some quiet and see what God does with that. Be prepared.

2 Page 2 Emmanuel - God with Us By: Callie Kowalski, Coordinator of Confirmation & Youth Ministry During the Advent season, Jesus is often referred to as Emmanuel. For the longest time and early on in my conversion, I was intrigued as to why we use that title of Jesus and why it s only used during Advent. Advent is a season of waiting not necessarily for the day of Christmas but for the reason behind Christmas, which is the coming of the Savior of the world, Jesus Christ. We recognize this season because our fallen world desperately needed and still needs a Savior; so we relive this waiting period every year to signify this great need. Emmanuel comes from the Hebrew word which means, God with us. The first reference in the Bible to this title of a Savior is found in the book of Isaiah as part of a prophecy for God s protection upon his people: Look, the virgin is with child and shall bear a son, and you shall name him Immanuel. It shows up later in the Gospel of Matthew when the Lord speaks to Joseph in a dream explaining to him that Mary would bear a child and this child would fulfill this prophecy. Our God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, wants nothing more than to be in relationship with his creation; with us. God became man to be with us; to live among us, to teach us, and to die for us. During the Advent season, re- flect on Jesus as Emmanuel. Jesus is God with us. He is more than just a teacher or a historical figure. He is our sacrifice of love so that we can experience God among us. During the Advent season, there is a song by the band Jars of Clay that I always listen to because it highlights the importance of Jesus as Emmanuel. It s called Benediction. I challenge you to find it and listen to it this Advent season and discover Jesus as Emmanuel. Benediction by Jars of Clay Go into the world showing how much He loves you Walk in the world in merciful ways, He loves you He loves you Emmanuel on Earth Yours is the body, the hands and the feet And Yours are the eyes to look compassionately To bless you and me Bless you and me He will bless you and me Go into the world showing how much He loves you Walk in the world in meaningful ways, He loves you He loves you St. Bernard Monthly Holy Hour Each 1st Tuesday of the month, St. Bernard Parish provides a special Holy Hour. The Holy Hour follows a full day of Adoration in the Chapel after which the Holy Eucharist is moved to the main Altar in the Church at 6:30 pm. The Holy Hour concludes at 7:30 pm with Benediction and Eucharistic Blessing. Everyone is invited to participate in this special time with our Lord in our Parish. For more information, contact Deacon Larry Mastalish at

3 Page 3 Feast of the Immaculate Conception-December 8 Holy Day of Obligation By: Joanne Griesbach, Adult Faith Formation Why Does It Matter? Ask many Catholics today what the term Immaculate Conception means and they will tell you that it refers to Jesus conception in the womb of his mother, Mary. This is a common misunderstanding. We are all familiar with the words that the Angel Gabriel used when he came to ask for Mary s cooperation in God s plan of salvation. "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!" (Luke 1: 28) Notice that when he addressed Mary, he did not use her name. Instead, he gave her a title - Full of Grace. Like Mary the Church has long kept these words in her heart and considered what this title means (see Luke 1: 29 and Luke 2:52), Only a person who does not have the slightest amount of sin can be said to be full of grace, that is, completely filled with God s own life and love. From her earliest days the Church has taught that Mary was free from original sin from the moment of her conception, and remained free from sin throughout her life. This long held belief is what is meant by the Immaculate Conception and is an official dogma of the Church. Why is this doctrine important? We must first remember that nothing the Church says and believes about Mary is for her sake alone. All Marian doctrines underscore and protect the truths about our faith and our relationship with God. So what truth(s) does this doctrine teach? One reason this doctrine is essential is because of what it tells us about Jesus humanity. Jesus was not a being who just materialized here on earth directly from heaven. His human nature came down to him through Mary, from a long line of human ancestors. He is fully connected, biologically and genetically, to the human family. But the humanity Jesus received from Mary Immaculate was perfect and untainted by Original Sin. Because of this, He is the perfect representative of all humanity and our perfect sacrificial offering to the Father for our salvation. What this doctrine does not mean is that Mary did not need to be saved. She did. Mary was saved by her own Son s passion and death on the cross. She received the benefit of Jesus sacrifice as a unique gift from God at the first moment of her existence so that she would be especially suited to her vocation to be the Mother of God. If we meditate on Mary as the Immaculate Conception, we find in her the model of the human person who is saved by Jesus cross and his resurrection: Mary gave herself fully and completely to the will of God. (Luke 1:38). Mary s yes to God s invitation is a reminder to us all that we are also called to say yes to God. From all eternity we are each given a unique role in God s plan of salvation of the world and our real job here on earth is to fulfill that role. In her hymn of praise known as the Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55), Mary models for us the attitude of praise for all that she owes to God. She knows that she is completely dependent on Him, and that all she is and has is an undeserved gift. Because of her authentic humility, the love and life of God that dwells in her is magnified for the entire world to see. When Mary instructs the servers at the marriage feast of Cana to Do whatever he tells you (John 2: 1-11), she is modelling complete trust in Jesus power and desire to respond to our prayers and take care of our needs. And finally, she prays for the needs of the Church, most especially for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Church (Acts 1:14). She continues to cooperate with the Holy Spirit so that her Son s saving mission will be carried on in us, who, because of our baptism, are members of his body. Mary is the perfect image of saved humanity and the model for how a saved person lives as a disciple of Christ. This is why the Church places so much importance on this dogma and why she commemorates it with a special feast.

4 Page 4 Did Catholics Add Seven Books to the Old Testament? By: Adam Horn, Director of Religious Education Nope. The end. But if you want a further explanation, here we go! First we need to talk about what is called the Septuagint. In the centuries leading up to the Incarnation, more and more Jewish people spoke and read Greek and no longer spoke Hebrew. So the Hebrew Bible was translated into Greek. This is called the Septuagint. At the same time, there were seven books written in Greek by the Jewish people which became part of the Septuagint. These books are Sirach, Tobit, Wisdom, Judith, 1 and 2 Maccabees, and Baruch. The Septuagint grew to be read more frequently than the Hebrew text, and was also considered by the Jewish people to be inspired by God (most notably by Josephus, famous Jewish historian, and Philo of Alexandria, a Jewish philosopher). Jump ahead to the first century AD. As the evangelists, Paul, and others began writing about the life, death, and Resurrection of Christ, they wanted to show how Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament Law and Prophets. In the 27 books that would eventually make up our New Testament there are 340 references made to the Old Testament. Of these 340 references only 33 come from the Hebrew Scriptures, while the remaining 303 come from the Greek Septuagint. This shows that the New Testament authors, like their Jewish contemporaries, considered the Septuagint to be divinely inspired. For the first few centuries of Christianity there were many questions about which books should be included in what would later be developed into the Bible, both in the Old and New Testaments. Throughout this time different people held different lists of what they thought the Biblical Canon (list) should be. By the end of the fourth century after a handful of local councils and synods, the Church, guided by the Holy Spirit, decided on the 73 books that we still have today, including the seven Greek books from the Septuagint. Finally, in the 16 th Century, Martin Luther looked back to the Hebrew Scriptures not the Septuagint that the New Testament authors used and found that those seven Greek books were not in Hebrew. So he removed them. Interestingly, some of those books strongly support Catholic teachings which he rejected, such as Saints praying for us, praying for the dead, and purgatory. Stay tuned for an exciting new opportunity entitled Friends in Faith that will kick-off in the New Year. Friends in Faith will celebrate, connect, and build relationships among all members of the St. Bernard Community! We are thrilled to introduce this opportunity for young and old alike!

5 Page 5 Preparation By: Ann Kaufmann Parish Nurse Advent, deriving from the Latin word meaning coming, is a season of anticipation and celebration. Jesus is coming! It also may be a beautiful opportunity for us to prepare for another time, when we meet God face to face. In the midst of holiday shopping and decorations, we might think preparing for our departure of this life might be difficult or not appropriate. On the contrary, what a beautiful and important gift it would be, for ourselves and our family members, to ensure that our wishes are known and respected. Help Us Grow! By: Ginny Gigot, Business Manager An advance directive is a legal document in which an individual designates a specific individual to make health care decisions should he/she become unable to do so. Not only is it important for our aging parents to have their affairs in order, but it is also extremely important that we legally have a voice should something happen to our adult child or spouse. With HIPAA laws, being family is not enough. Being part of the St. Bernard family, we would like to support you on this journey. Death comes to us all. As a people of God, we face it strengthened by our faith in Christ and His resurrection. We face it with the strength gained from the love and concern of our family and friends. We face it with the skilled health care professionals who put those skills at the service of God and neighbor. We face it, above all, with the strength of our own prayers and the prayers of the Church. (1) Not knowing when we must face it, we encourage you to not put off this important task. Advance directive forms are available at the parish office. Please contact Ann Kaufmann for more in- 1) Now and at the Hour of Our Death A Pastoral Letter from the Roman Catholic Bishops of Wisconsin on End of Life Decisions. Electronic Giving is a convenient, consistent way to help our church grow. Consider scheduling a recurring electronic contribution today. It is easy! St Bernard Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) process allows the transfer of money from one account to another. For Joyful Giving, the funds are simply transferred once a month on the 15th from your checking or savings, to St. Bernard s account. The EFT process is secure, and saves time and money. Even when travel, illness or other circumstances prevent you from attending services, your contributions will continue to be received on an uninterrupted basis. We do all the work! For an authorization form please contact the parish office at or visit our website at Scrip Gift Cards Great Christmas Gifts Scrip is an easy way to raise funds for the parish while you shop, and you won t have to sell anything. Last year the parish received $17,000 in profit from the program. Scrip gift cards are the same gift cards you would normally purchase from a retailer in your local retail stores, and they work the same way. You ll find cards you can purchase for Pick n Save, Festival Foods, Shell, Kwik Trip, Kohl s, Shopko, Walgreen s, Walmart, Culver s and many other vendors. There is an order form on the parish website Scrip is available at the Parish Office M-Th 8:00-4:00 and Friday 8:00-11:30 and on weekends Saturday after 4:00 pm Mass, Sunday after 8:00 am Mass and before 10:00 am Mass, and at 6:30 pm Mass.

6 Page 6 St. Bernard School-Mission Statement By: Crystal Blahnik, School Principal As many of you know, last year we spent a great deal of time working on our new logo. This new image is intended to be a timeless representation of the heart and soul of our school community. In conjunction with this effort, we have been working on a new mission statement. A mission statement is typically a sentence or two that defines the nature of the organization and its goals. In education, we like our mission statements to be short enough for kids and community members to remember and recite. While there is nothing fundamentally wrong with the mission statement in the school s more recent history, it is no longer a complete reflection of the vibrant school community of today. Please help us gently part with the following mission statement: Saint Bernard Catholic School is committed to the teaching mission of Jesus. We seek to provide a faith filled learning environment, challenging each student to grow into new SPACES. Spiritually, Physically, Academically, Creatively, Emotionally, Socially With the help of the faculty, staff, and a core group of students and parents, we are pleased to present the newly drafted St. Bernard Catholic School Mission Statement: St. Bernard Catholic School is rooted in the life and works of Jesus Christ and our patron saint, providing a peaceful, prayerful community while inspiring each student to become a lifelong learner. Along with this, our tag line which was unveiled with the new logo last January, will also have a prominent place in our school s identity. That tag line is: Peace, Pray, Learn An important piece of the logo, mission and tagline is the roots that our school has in the story of St. Bernard himself as a man faithful to both the Benedictines as well as to the Virgin Mary. The Benedictines followed the Benedictine rule which stated: Peace, Pray, Work. To make this applicable to our modern day Catholic School we changed work to learn. We look forward to sharing our beautiful community with you at this year s Open House Event on Sunday, January 29, from 11:00 am -2:00 pm. Please join us for demonstrations from our robotics, music and gym programs as well as lots of other engaging events throughout the building. This event is meant for prospective families EC3-8th grade as well as our current families and St. Bernard parishioners. Please come into our school building and see what makes our school so special!

7 Page 7 Holiday Mass Schedule, 2016 Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 24 8:45 a.m. Parish Mass Immaculate Conception of Mary, December 8th, Holy Day 5:30pm Parish Mass (Vigil) December 7th 8:45 a.m. Parish Mass 10:15 a.m. School Mass 5:30 p.m. Parish Mass Christmas Eve, Saturday, December 24 4:00 p.m. In Church 4:00 p.m. In Haessly Activity Center 6:00 p.m. In Church Christmas Day, Sunday, December 25 8:00 a.m. Parish Mass 10:00 a.m. Parish Mass New Year s Eve, Saturday, December 31 4:00 p.m. Parish Vigil Mass New Year s Day, Sunday, January 1, Holy Day ( Mary the Holy Mother of God ) 8:00 a.m. Parish Mass 10:00 a.m. Parish Mass Parish Office Hours: Wednesday, November 23- Open 8:00 am-12:00 p.m. Thursday, November 24-Thanksgiving-Closed Friday, November 25-Closed Friday, December 23-Closed Monday, December 26-Closed December 27-30, Open 8:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. January 2-Closed

8 St. Bernard Congregation 2040 Hillside Lane Green Bay, WI MISSION STATEMENT We, the people of St. Bernard Catholic Church are called by God and empowered by the Holy Spirit to give witness to the life and love of Jesus Christ! Nonprofit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Green Bay, WI PERMIT No. 115 Parish Office: Religious Education Office: St. Bernard School: We desire to build a community based on forgiveness, caring, reaching out to one another, personal prayer and sacramental worship. We re on the Web and Facebook! Love Begins Here Service Camp: Neighbors First! By: Callie Kowalski, Coordinator of Confirmation & Youth Ministry Warm days, sunshine, blue skys I know it might be difficult to start thinking about the summer months, but we must! I wanted to share with you more details surrounding our summer service opportunity for high school and middle school students called: Love Begins Here. LBH is a localized mission trip experience offered by the Diocese of Green Bay which allows students to have the experience of a summer service trip, but in their own backyards. We need your backyard! We are offering 2 camps this summer: a middle school camp which will take place right here at St. Bernard Parish and a high school camp which will take place on the west side of Green Bay. Both camps provide the youth with an opportunity to encounter Jesus Christ in a life changing way through a week-long, local mission trip where the students live in Catholic community and continue Jesus work on earth through service. We are inviting our parishioners to take part in LBH, particularly through the middle school camp during June 11-15, The main mission of LBH is to serve our neighbors first so we are in need of work sites! Deacon Bernie Terrien will be heading up the task of contacting parishioners to see if they have work for our students. Feel free to contact us if you could use our help. Otherwise, feel free to check out the website for more information.