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 DECEMBER 11, THE THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT MASS INTENTIONS READINGS FOR THE WEEK NOV. DEC , 2016 Sat., Dec Vigil of the 3rd Sunday of Advent 4:00PM + Larie Timko Sunday, December 11 -The 3rd Sunday of Advent 8:00AM + Elvera Hensley, Alice & James Turner 10:30AM + Larie Timko & Don Dekat Monday, December 12 - Our Lady of Guadalupe 8:30AM COMMUNION SERVICE Tuesday, December 13 - St. Lucy 8:30AM Special Birthday Intention Wednesday, December 14 - St. John of the Cross 8:30AM + Larie Timko Thurs., Dec. 15 8:300AM Nativity of Mary School Friday, December 16 8:30AM + Gary Enyart Sat., Dec Vigil of the 4th Sunday of Advent 4:00PM + Frank Baker & Margaret Heckman Sunday, Dec The 4th Sunday of Advent 8:00AM + Thelma Bruehl & Marie Pott 10:30AM + Helen Vitt & Josephine Huffman PLEASE PRAY FOR: Vern/Margaret Ault Bernadette Greufe Dan Rottinghaus Rex Bartley Phillip Heavelow Mike Rooney Helen Burkhart Matthew Johnson Barbara Sarro Jimmy Butler Cynthia/Dennis Jones Sylvia Simone Pam Casper Paula Kienberger Bernice/Norm Steffen Steve Christensen Lucas Locascio Janet Swanson John Clarke George Lambros George Timko, Jr. Kelly Cook Betty Mascal Annette Torbert Melissa Costello Juan/Mary Perez Margaret Trigg Florence Dawson Carlos/Eva Pinon Daniel Wheeler Willie DeJesus Gary Reese Ayden Wright Monday: Zec 2:14-17 or Rv 11:19a; 12:1-6a, 10ab; Jdt 13:18bcde, 19; Lk 1:26-38 or Lk 1:39-47, or any readings from the Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary, nos Tuesday: Zep 3:1-2, 9-13; Ps 34:2-3, 6-7, 17-19, 23; Mt 21:28-32 Wednesday: Is 45: 6b-8, 18, 21b-25; Ps 85:9ab, 10-14; Lk 7:18b-23 Thursday: Is 54:1-10; Ps 30:2, 4-6, 11-12a, 13b; Lk 7:24-30 Friday: Is 56:1-3a, 6-8; Ps 67:2-3, 5, 7-8; Jn 5:33-36 Saturday: Gn 49:2, 8-10; Ps 72:1-4ab, 7-8, 17; Mt 1:1-17 Sunday: Is 7:10-14; Ps 24:1-6; Rom 1:1-7; Mt 1:18-24 TREASURES FROM OUR TRADITION When the ties of affection and authority that bound Europe's Catholics unraveled in the sixteenth century, many cultures lost time-honored customs of faith. Some customs proved to be especially difficult for the reformers to wrest away from the people, especially those celebrated in the home. This week in Sweden, a country where the Catholic Church was disestablished four hundred years ago, a Catholic martyr from Sicily is the most beloved figure. St. Lucia, Lucy, is celebrated on December 13. The long-story-short is that Lucy was a Christian whose father wanted to marry her off to a pagan fellow, and she rejected her father's authority. To make an example of her, her father had her killed. In the course of the brutal martyrdom, Lucy lost her beautiful eyes, but her vision was miraculously restored. The candles worn today by the eldest daughter of the family are tokens of the fire that refused to harm the saint. So this patroness of light and clear vision is revered on the shortest, darkest days of the Nordic winter. Before the reform of the Gregorian calendar in the sixteenth century, December 13 was the winter solstice. Today, young girls appear in the morning wearing lighted candles on their crowned heads (battery-operated now after many mishaps), and serve sweet rolls and coffee to everyone in the house. For the Swedes, who are not churchgoers, the "Lucias" are the official heralds of the holiday season and a sign of everyone's yearning for more light in this world. Europe once abounded with customs like this; the survival of this custom in Scandinavia is a sign of God's grace, and how fertile the soil is to receive the true message of Advent. --Rev. James Field, Copyright (c) J. S. Paluch Co.

3 DECEMBER 11, PARISH NEWS Did You Know Cinnamon Bread and Raisin Bread will be baked this Saturday, December 17th. Stop by the school cafeteria to get your homemade bread. The bread makes wonderful Christmas gifts and freezes great. Don t forget to buy a few extra loaves to enjoy through the holidays. DIOCESAN ANNUAL CATHOLIC APPEAL UPDATE Total number of Diocesan pledges 4,734 Diocesan Total $1,358, (75% of 2017 diocesan goal of $1,800,000) Total number of Nativity pledges 41 (7% of our parishioners) Total pledged by Nativity parishioners $13,146 (82% of 2017 Nativity goal of $16,000) The Over 55 Luncheon is this Monday, December 12th, from to 2:00 p.m. Lunch will be hosted by the Nativity 8th grade class. No need to bring anything. Just come enjoy lunch, fellowship, and bingo. NATIVITY OF MARY CONTRIBUTION REPORT NOVEMBER 26 & 27, 2016 Envelopes $ 5, Plate $ Worship Space $ 1, Pisces Fund $ Utility Fund $ EFT $ - Credit Card $ - Online Giving $ - Poor Box $ Total $ 8, Tuition & Registration Fees $ 1, Thank you for supporting our Parish Community and Catholic Education! Altar Society Champagne Brunch at V s Sunday, December 11, 2016, at Join us for a delicious Brunch and Fellowship. We will be drawing for this year s lovely Nativity statue. All are invited. Hope to see you there. Hospitality Ministry (Ushers) Sign Up We want to thank those who signed up to help with the Hospitality Ministry. We are still short for all masses, especially the 10:30 a.m. Sunday mass. Ministry schedules are made up quarterly so I need 36 Hospitality Ministers to cover each quarter (4 for each of the 3 masses x 3 months). With the new people I now have 27 people on the list. If you took a form and have not returned it you can put it in the collection basket or give it to one of the Ushers. There are also blank forms on the kiosk in the back of church if you would like to sign up. We will have an orientation meeting sometime in January and will start scheduling the new people in February. Christmas Flowers If you would like to donate towards the purchase of Christmas flowers in memory of a loved one or if you would just like to donate, there are envelopes in the pews. You can drop the envelope in the collection basket or give it to an usher. If you have questions please call the Ministry Center. Your donations are greatly appreciated.

4 CALENDAR 2016 Sunday 11 8:00AM Mass 10:30AM Mass Advent Penance Service and First Reconciliation 3:00 p.m. Monday 12 Communion Serv. - 2:00 p.m. Served by Nativity 8th grade Tuesday 13 9AM - Quilters Wednesday 14 1:30PM - School Penance Service 5:30PM - Finance Council Mtg. 7PM - Theology On Tap Thursday 15 Friday 16 Saturday 17 3:00PM Confession 4:00PM Mass 8:00AM Mass 10:30AM Mass 18 1PM-Youth Group 19 Communion Serv. 9AM - Quilters Closed :00PM Christmas Eve Mass 12:00AM Midnight Mass 25 10:00AM Mass Merry Christmas 26 Communion Serv. 9AM - Quilters :00PM Confession 4:00PM Mass 31 Closed

5 DECEMBER 11, SCHOOL REMINDER There is a recycling bin and disabled American Veterans bin behind the school. Your donations directly help the school and our Boy Scout troop. Thank you. Please continue to collect Box Tops for Education labels for the school. You can turn them in to the school office, the Ministry Center, or leave them in the hospitality room at church. THE LOOK OF LOVE What does love look like? It has feet to go to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of others. --St. Augustine To say the Chromebooks have been a blessing to the middle school would be an understatement. With this technological update to our hallway, we have been able to incorporate technology into our lessons in new ways. The Chromebooks are faster and more reliable, so we are able to do interactive, web-based projects on sites like Thinglink and Prezi. Google Classroom, Google Docs, and Google Drive are now seamlessly used without hassle. Mini research projects covering saints are being included in Religion, and in Math students are able to use Khan Acadamy to challenge themselves further. In English, students are creating performance poetry by hosting a digital poetry slam. In Social Studies students are able to research, and virtually "tour", historical worlds. These Chromebooks have elevated Nativity of Mary's academics and made our curriculum more engaging and modern for students.

6 DECEMBER 11, THE THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT Today is Gaudete Sunday, which means "rejoice." For three weeks now we have been preparing for Christmas and, one hopes, enjoying some peace to pray and anticipate the coming of the Lord, not just as a baby two thousand years ago, but also in the end-times, the parousia, when the Lord will come again in glory. This is the Sunday when the rejoicing begins. Advent, unlike Lent, is not a penitential time, but a time of waiting and anticipation for the fulfillment of God's promises. "[We] will see the glory of the LORD, / the splendor of our God" (Isaiah 35:2). So, "Be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord... Make your hearts firm, because the coming of the Lord is at hand" (James 5:7, 8). THE ONE WHO IS TO COME John the Baptist, wanting to confirm that Jesus is the Christ, sends his disciples to inquire about him. Jesus responds, echoing the words of the prophet Isaiah, "Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them" (Matthew 11:4-5). By this reply, Jesus knows that John will recognize that he is the Messiah, the one who is to come, and rejoice. MORE THAN A PROPHET Jesus then turns to the crowds, and teaches them, and us, about John the Baptist. John must have been quite a sight, and quite a forceful preacher. He drew great crowds, including Pharisees and Sadducees, who came out to see and hear him, and many were baptized. John has spent years baptizing with a baptism of repentance in preparation for the One who is to come. Jesus in turn pays tribute to his kinsman, and at the same time reveals his own mission as the Anointed, the One who will come to bring salvation to all who believe. He praises John, and reveals that John is the prophet who has come to proclaim the coming of the Reign of God in Christ. Jesus says, "This is the one about whom it is written, / Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you; / he will prepare your way before you" (Matthew 11:10). So, as James tells us in the second reading, we must not complain about one another so that we will not be judged in those final days. We can rejoice in the coming of the Reign of God. We must be patient. We celebrate Christmas not only as the secular holiday with Santa and the reindeer, the Christmas tree, the gifts, the parties, and all the glitz, but as the Incarnation and the joyful coming of the Lord our God. Copyright (c) J. S. Paluch Company From the loneliness of his prison cell John the Baptist asks of Jesus: Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another? The weeks before Christmas offer much to be joyous about, celebrating with family and friends, the glitter of seasonal decorations, the excitement of gift giving and re-ceiving. But in our midst there are the lonely and neglected, the poor, the hospitalized, the wayward, the shut-ins. There are those seemingly without hope. To whom should they look? Discipleship in the Lord includes being good stewards of others. Are there those in our family, our neighborhood, our community to whom we can reach out to show them a sign of Christ s presence in their midst? Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance. St. John the Baptist 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 Reflection As a young child, I spent many nights watching my mother embroider a crewel tapestry of the Peaceable Kingdom. Slowly, a few tufts of yarn became an owl, a sheep, or an ox. I was in awe as I watched it develop. Like any good crafter, Mother carried her bag of tools with her wherever she went, and she might get in a few stitches while watching TV, or during her coffee break at work, or even while visiting friends. When it was finally finished, she hung it over the couch in my family home, helping my brothers and me be a somewhat peaceable kingdom. Isaiah s vision may seem unrealistic, something that could never happen. In a time when our nation is in a period of political unrest, it seems especially surreal to imagine how opposites will ever be able to live and play nice side by side. But that tapestry, which now hangs in my office, reminds me of lessons my mother taught me in her crafting: We have to start from scratch with a blank canvas; we must be open to God working within us. We cannot be afraid to rip out our mistakes and rework them. We cannot use the same stitch to heal everything; we must use the proper stitch at the proper time. We must pay close attention and put love and thoughtfulness behind each stitch. We must put it down and walk away at times, so as to come back with a fresh perspective tomorrow. We must be patient and have faith; it all takes time. We must remember it will not always be easy or fun. We must not give up. Many tire along the way and never bring their tasks to completion. We must always keep the end in mind. We must realize that things don t always go exactly as planned. Many times the slight imperfections are the things that create the life and beauty. Prayer Crafter of the universe, in this season of Advent, let me find time to sit with you as you shape me and change me, bit by bit. Help me to do my part to tear down divisions, to build bridges of love. Let me place my hope and faith in the coming Christ, knowing that he will bring all good works to completion. Jill Maria Murdy Saint Frances Cabrini Parish West Bend, Wisconsin