Parish Staff. New Parishioners If you are new to our parish and would like more information please contact the Parish Office.

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1 Nativity of Mary Church and School E 36th Terrace Independence, MO Parish: (816) School: (816) Web: My attitude must be Christ s. - Philippians 2:5 Parish Staff Rev. Robert Stone, Pastor Mrs. Mary Parrish, Principal Melissa Clancy, Business Manager New Parishioners If you are new to our parish and would like more information please contact the Parish Office. Pastoral Care Sacraments for the Sick and Homebound and Pastoral visits to the Homebound and Hospitals. Fr. Bob Stone Mass Schedule Monday: 8:30 a.m. Communion Service Weekday: 8:30 a.m. Tuesday - Friday Saturday: 4:00 p.m. Sunday: 8:00 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Holy Day: 8:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. Confessions Saturday: 3:00 p.m. or by Appointment Emergency Assistance Contact St. Mary s Food Pantry and Clothes Closet Youth Ministry Debbie Page, Parish Office School School, Early Childhood and Extended Care Carmen Wolfgeher, school office Sacrament Preparation Baptism, First Reconciliation, First Eucharist, Confirmation, Adult Initiation (RCIA), and Matrimony Contact the parish office for information Music Ministry Maria Milazzo, parish office Parish Ministry Council Sue Reiser - Chair Diocesan Victim s Advocate Kathleen Chastain or chastain@diocesekcsj.org Ombudsman Jenifer Valenti, or JeniferValenti@att.net

2 FEBRUARY 19, THE SEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME MASS INTENTIONS READINGS FOR FEBRUARY 20-26, 2017 Sat., Feb Vigil of 7th Sunday in Ordinary Time 4:00PM + Willard Nafus Sunday, Feb The 7th Sunday in Ordinary Time 8:30AM + Toni Thornton 10:00AM + Vincent Trioolo & Joslynne Mae Clark Monday, February 20 8:30AM COMMUNION SERVICE Tuesday, February 21 - St. Peter Damian 8:30AM Intentions of Margie Chaney Wed., Feb The Chair of St. Peter the Apostle 8:30AM + Mary Flowers Thursday, February 23 - St. Polycarp 8:30AM Intentions of Bill King Friday, February 24 8:30AM + Helen Fetters Sat., Feb Vigil of the 8th Sunday in Ordinary Time 4:00PM + Johnson & Nolke Families Sunday, February 26 -The 8th Sunday in Ordinary Time 8:00AM + Virginia McMenamy & Bob Ibarra 10:30AM + Joe Giangrosso & John Pirog PLEASE PRAY FOR: Vern/Margaret Ault Bernadette Greufe Carlos/Eva Pinon Rex Bartley Mike Guthrie Gary Reese Maxine Breunig Phillip Heavelow Mike Rooney Judy Brown Matthew Johnson Barbara Sarro Helen Burkhart Cynthia/Dennis Jones Sylvia Simone Jimmy Butler Paula Kienberger Charlaine Smith Pam Casper Bill King Bernice/Norm Steffen Steve Christensen Clarence Kinney George Timko, Jr. John Clarke Lucas Locascio Annette Torbert Kelly Cook George Lambros Margaret Trigg Melissa Costello Betty Mascal John Tuccillo Florence Dawson Antonio/Maria Milazzo Daniel Wheeler Willie DeJesus Peggy Mynatt Ayden Wright Erica Gonzales Juan/Mary Perez Monday: Sir 1:1-10; Ps 93:1-2, 5; Mk 9:14-29 Tuesday: Sir 2:1-11; Ps 37:3-4, 18-19, 27-28, 39-40; Mk 9:30-37 Wednesday: 1 Pt 5:1-4; Ps 23:1-3a, 4-6; Mt 16:13-19 Thursday: Sir 5:1-8; Ps 1:1-4, 6; Mk 9:41-50 Friday: Sir 6:5-17; Ps 119:12, 16, 18, 27, 34, 35; Mk 10:1-12 Saturday: Sir 17:1-15; Ps 103:13-18; Mk 10:13-16 Sunday: Is 49:14-15; Ps 62:2-3, 6-9; 1 Cor 4:1-5; Mt 6:24-34 TREASURES FROM OUR TRADITION In brushing up for "Catholic Jeopardy," it might help to know that there is only one feast on the calendar for a thing, rather than a person or mystery. It's for a chair: Saint Peter's chair in fact. After the Resurrection, there can be no doubt that the disciples reserved a special place for Simon Peter in the upper room. Later, Peter became the bishop of Antioch in today's Syria, the place where we were first called "Christians." From there, he went to Rome, the center of the Empire, where it is said that Peter sat in a chair in the house of Priscilla and Aquila to instruct his flock. Jesus, in entrusting the keys of the Kingdom to Peter and his successors, entrusted his compassion and mercy to them, and charged them with pointing to the Kingdom of God. Compassion and mercy are to resonate through their teaching. Since the ancient sign of a teacher is the chair ("disciple" literally means one who sits at the feet of a teacher), Peter's chair has long been treasured. Today there is a symbolic shrine of Peter's chair above the main altar of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. This monument is the last work of Bernini, a huge bronze throne supported by four doctors of the Church: Augustine and Ambrose from the Western Church, and Chrysostom and Athanasius from the East. High above it is the alabaster window of the descent of the Holy Spirit. --Rev. James Field, Copyright (c) J. S. Paluch Co. Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless. Mother Teresa

3 FEBRURARY 19, PARISH NEWS DID YOU KNOW... This past Tuesday, David Townley, a former business manager of our parish, pled guilty to the charges against him. Sentencing will be in 2 to 3 months. ATTENTION! SPREAD THE WORD! Nativity has a cooler/refrigerator with two sliding glass doors for sale! Four adjustable shelves included. It is 54 wide, 76 tall, 29 deep, on castors. Perfect for a florist or perhaps a restaurant or maybe even a wine lover. Come on, get creative! Best offer considered. Contact the parish office for more information. SAVE THE DATE The musical dramaturgy STATIONS will be performed at Nativity of Mary on Sunday, April 2,2017 at 6:00 p.m. All are invited to attend and be a part of a unique Lenten worship experience. STATIONS is presented by THEATRE AT VIS, a ministry of Visitation Church. The theatre group has toured the show throughout the diocese and regionally for many years and has received wide acceptance and acclaim. STA- TIONS was written by Paul Novosel and Father Robert Murphy, a Kansas City/St. Joseph diocesan priest. Admission is free and all ages are encouraged to attend. Doors will open 30 minutes prior to the performance. NATIVITY OF MARY CONTRIBUTION REPORT 1/28/2017 & 1/29/2017 Envelopes $ 8, Plate $ Worship Space $ 34, Pisces Fund $ Utility Fund $ EFT $ - Credit Card $ - Online Giving $ Poor Box $ Total $ 46, Tuition & Registration Fees $ 12, St. Joseph s Table and Spaghetti Dinner March 5, 2017 Table will be blessed following the 10:30 a.m. mass & remain open until 4:00 p.m. Nativity of Mary Parish Hall Spaghetti Dinner Menu includes spaghetti with the choice of Milanese or plain tomato sauce, a mixed salad, bread, dessert, and refreshments. (Gluten free pasta will be available.) A minimum donation of $5 per person suggested. Tickets will be sold after weekend masses. Tickets will also be sold at the door. All Dinner Proceeds will assist in eliminating our church debt. Items from the Table will be available for sale during the dinner. Donations Needed We are in need of desserts for the table. We ask that cakes and pies remain whole, but desserts like brownies and cookies come pre-portioned and ready to sell. Please clearly mark anything that may be peanut-free, gluten free, etc. We are also in need of monetary donations! These donations will be used to buy material and food needed for the table. Donation Drop Off Donations may be brought to the school or ministry center offices on Friday, March 3rd and/or dropped off in the Parish Hall the morning of Saturday, March 4th. On Saturday, please ring the doorbell at the 40 Hwy. entrance to the Parish Hall upon arrival. All Table Proceeds will benefit the St. Mary s food pantry to help those in need. Maria Milazzo at mmilazzo@nativityofmary.org with any questions.

4 CALENDAR :00AM Mass 10:30AM Mass 19 1PM-Confirmation All candidates meet in the Ministry Center Basement 20 8:30AM Communion Serv. No School Presidents Day 9AM - Quilters :30PM - School performance of Little Mermaid Jr. 3:00PM Confession 4:00PM Mass 25 7:30PM - School performance of Little Mermaid Jr. 8:00AM Mass 10:30AM Mass 26 7PM-Confirmation All groups at their host family house 27 8:30AM Communion Serv. 9AM - Quilters 28 March 1 6:30PM Mass 7PM - Altar Society Meeting 2 5:30-7:30pm Fish Fry 3 3:00PM Confession 4:00PM Mass 4 5 8:00AM Mass 10:30AM Mass 11:30am-4:00pm St. Joseph Table 8:30AM Communion Serv. 6 9AM - Quilters :30-7:30pm Fish Fry 10 3:00PM Confession 4:00PM Mass 11 9:00am - 6:00pm Antique/ Collectibles/ Serendipity Market Dining to Donate With the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet Jasper s Restaurant is once again sponsoring Dining to Donate for the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet. It will be held Wednesday, March 22nd. Jasper s will donate 20% of all lunch and dinner sales to benefit the good works of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet. Enjoy a delicious meal at Jasper s with your friends and family and help the Sisters at the same time. If you would like to make reservations for Dining to Donate, contact Jasper s at: , or jasperskc.com. Grazie! Together...we are more. Devotional candles are kept in the kiosk. If you would like to light one just ask an usher for assistance. There is a slot and envelopes available in the kiosk to place your $5 donation. If you have a suggestion, concern, or comment you would like the Parish Ministry Council to address there are cards on the kiosk you to fill out and drop in the slot. Gluten-free hosts are available. Talk to Fr. Bob before Mass. Spirituality and the Moral Life Presented by: Jean deblois, CSJ Saturday, April 1, 2017 St. Teresa s Academy, Windmoor Center Today, we find ourselves confronted by daunting moral issues made particularly challenging by the divisive climate in our society. Issues of immigration reform climate change, respect for the rule of law, the right to life and health care, gun legislation are just a few of the concerns that we must grapple with as citizens. In addition, issues in our private lives can be just as daunting and cause what has been called moral distress. In this presentation we will look at the intersection between personal spirituality and the moral life asking how attention to deepening our own spirituality can help us grapple effectively with the many moral decisions each of us faces on a daily basis. Doors open at 8:30 a.m. Program 9-11am. $15 per session, breakfast included. Register online - or call We have 2 wheelchairs and hearing assist devices available for your use during mass. Please contact an usher.

5 FEBRUARY 19, SCHOOL OPEN HOUSE AND KINDERGARTEN ROUND-UP Please help us spread the word about our wonderful school by talking to your friends and neighbors about our annual Open House and Kindergarten Round-up that will be taking place at the beginning of March. Word of mouth is an excellent opportunity to let people know who we are! Open House Thursday, March 2nd 2:00 pm 6:00 pm Kindergarten Round-up Thursday, March 2nd 6:00 pm 7:30 pm Nativity of Mary School PTO Annual Auction La Bella Vita April 1st at 5:00 p.m. Mark you calendar and plan on attending to help support our parish school. Last Friday students from kindergarten, 1st grade and 5th grade delivered supplies the school collected to Mother's Refuge. During Catholic School's Week we collected 1,872 diapers, 10 baby blankets, 7 boxes of Kleenex, 9 rolls of paper towels, 25 packs of wipes and 12 rolls of toilet paper. Thank you for help in serving our neighbor. Thanks to everyone who helped make the Book Fair a success. We had 18 volunteers. A special thank you to Sarah Gonterman for doing the online sign up page, Mr. and Mrs. George for helping with the setup on Thursday morning and our teachers for encouraging reading! We sold $4,234 worth of books. Several families bought books for their child's classroom and we used some profit to buy some more. Over $580 worth of books went directly to our classrooms. The Book Fair buys Scholastic News for students preschool through fifth grade and supplies are purchased from the Warehouse and their catalog for all the classrooms. Mark your Calendars! Nativity of Mary theatre presents Disney s THE LITTLE MERMAID JR. on February 24-25, 2017 Performances are at 7:30pm on both Friday and Saturday in the Parish Hall Tickets are $5. Students get in free. For non-nativity students, please make sure to bring a valid student ID. To reserve tickets prior to performance weekend, please Katia Milazzo at kmilazzonds@gmail.com. THE LITTLE MERMAID JR. takes place in a magical kingdom beneath the sea, where a beautiful young mermaid named Ariel longs to leave her ocean home to live in the world above. But first, she ll have to defy her father, the king of the sea, escape the clutches of an evil sea witch and convince a prince that she s the girl with the perfect voice. The Nativity of Mary cast and crew will be made up of 50+ students, teachers, and parent volunteers under the direction of Katia and Maria Milazzo. We look forward to a fabulous production!

6 FEBRUARY 19, THE SEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME Our readings today are a summons to holiness, and a description of what it means to be holy. In Leviticus, we read that holiness begins with God, the Holy One, who called the people of Israel to be like God. Holiness takes the form of love: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Saint Paul claims that the Christian community in Corinth, with all its flaws and petty rivalries, is in fact holy. It is holy because it is God's temple, the place where God dwells. And in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus describes what holiness looks like: breaking cycles of violence and negativity through forgiveness and generosity. When we bring forgiveness to the table of our lives, especially when anger and bitterness threaten to overwhelm our relationship with others, we reflect the Holy One who dwells within us. NOT ASKING THE IMPOSSIBLE The final line in today's Gospel can seem confusing: "be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect." "Perfect" is sometimes imagined as "flawless," as in a flawless diamond. But the Greek word used here, as used elsewhere in the New Testament, means something different: to become mature, whole, or healthy. Jesus is not asking us to be flawless, nor does he want us to say, "Well, that's impossible, why bother then?" He is inviting us to grow into full Christian maturity. For most of us, Jesus' words in today's Gospel are very challenging. We need to resist the temptation to dodge his challenge by calling it impossible. RESISTING EVIL Jesus' teaching in the first verses of today's Gospel has also been puzzling to many. Some interpret Jesus to say that we should not resist evil, but instead be completely passive. However, the Law of Moses called Israel to vigorously resist evil. Within this section of the Sermon on the Mount, we can see how Jesus interpreted the Law, "not to abolish but to fulfill" (Matthew 5:17). Jesus taught that violent resistance to the oppressor tends to sustain and expand the pattern of hatred and evil. Violence spawns new violence. But those who turn the cheek, hand over the cloak, and go the second mile, resist evil by exposing it within the evildoer's heart. Jesus was not naïve about evil and violence. In fact, he experienced these fully in his death. On the cross, Jesus radically resisted evil and exposed its powerlessness. On the cross, he loved his enemies and prayed for those who persecuted him. As Jesus forgave his enemies, he witnessed to the Good News he preached, that God loves and forgives all of us. When we forgive and love our enemies, we are liberated from hatred in our own hearts. Then evil's power diminishes, and a path opens toward ending its patterns of violence and oppression. Copyright (c) J. S. Paluch Company In another passage from his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus continues to turn his disciples way of thinking upside-down. One of the lessons for the Christian steward in today s Gospel is that if we have a chance to help someone in need, we should be generous and give more than is expected of us. Jesus went the extra mile for us. Can we be more like Jesus and go the extra mile for others? THE CURE The only known cure for fear is faith. --Lena K. Sadler The Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph is committed to combating sexual abuse in the Church. If you are a victim of sexual abuse, or if you observe or suspect sexual abuse: 1. Call the Missouri Child Abuse Hotline at (if the victim is currently under the age of 18), and 2. Contact your local law enforcement agency or call 911, and 3. After reporting to these civil and law enforcement authorities, report suspected sexual abuse of a minor or vulnerable adult to the Diocesan Ombudsman, Jenifer Valenti, at or JeniferValenti@att.net, if the abuse involves a priest, deacon, employee or volunteer of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph. The Diocese has a sincere commitment to providing care and healing resources to victims of sexual abuse and their families. Please contact Victim Advocate, Kathleen Chastain, at or chastain@diocesekcsj.org for more information.

7 SCOUT TROOP 178 FISH FRY First 4 Fridays of Lent March 3rd, 10th, 17th, & 24th 5:00-7:30 p.m. Nativity of Mary School Cafeteria (enter thru north entrance of school) Dinner Selection Includes: Fried Catfish Nuggets, 1/2 lb. Boiled Shrimp Baked Cod, Tavern Battered Cod Fish Tacos $10 for adults & $5 for children 6-11 Children under 5 are free A combo dinner of cod, catfish and shrimp will be available for $13 Dinners include hush puppies, beverage and choice of two sides: seasoned green beans, corn, mac & cheese, cole slaw or French fries. Desserts sold separately for $1.00 Antique/Collectibles/Serendipity Market Nativity of Mary Parish Hall E. 36 th Terr. (40 Hwy. Entrance), Independence, MO March 11, :00 AM- 6:00 PM We ve searched our attics, basements & closets & gathered our treasures for The Big Sale. Items available include QUILTS (new & old; big & small) with one military eagle quilt, quilted table runners, TOOLS, silver, dishes, FURNITURE, glassware, crystal, JEWELRY, political buttons, pictures, home décor, LINENS, Precious Moments, walking sticks, kerosene lamp, 45 records, religious articles, Seraphim Classics Angels, some business vendors (Mary Kay, Thirty-One, LuLaRoe etc.) & much more. Come join us & browse, shop & enjoy a treat from our concession. We ll appreciate your support to help us reduce our Worship Space debt! Nativity Altar Society