ST. JOSEPH CATHOLIC CHURCH

Transcription

1 TODAY S READINGS First Reading Moses said, Would that all the people of the Lord were prophets! (Numbers 11:25-29). Psalm The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart (Psalm 19) Second Reading Come now, you rich. The wages you withheld from the workers who harvested your fields are crying aloud (Jason 5:1-6). Gospel Whoever is not against us is for us (Mark 9:38-43, 45, 47-48). ST. JOSEPH CATHOLIC CHURCH Pastor: Rev. Msgr. Dennis R. Schaefer Address: 802 Middle Street Prairie du Rocher, IL Phone: sjospdr@htc.net Website: Diocese website: LIKE US ON FACEBOOK Secretary: Jill Whelan Parish Council President: James Popejoy Finance Council President: Roger Henry St. Joseph Cemetery: Jack Laurent St. Leo Cemetery: Steve Gonzalez Pastor: Rev. Msgr. Dennis Schaefer Pastor Emeritus: Rev. Msgr. Daniel J. Jurek WEEKEND MASSES AT ST. JOSEPH: Saturdays: 6:00 pm (odd months) Sundays: 8:00 am (even months) Ruma Convent: Sunday at 11am Daily Mass varies at both locations Confessions at St. Joseph: Saturday 5-5:40 pm & Sundays 7:15 7:45 am Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time September 30, 2018 The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul; the decree of the Lord is trustworthy, giving wisdom to the simple. Psalm 19:8 NOT AGAINST US Like Moses before him, Jesus corrects his disciples misunderstanding of the gift of the Spirit. They saw people who were not of their company casting out demons and doing other works such as Jesus had done. Jesus points out that no one who does a good deed in his name can be opposed to him at the same time. He goes on to point out the importance of the little ones, : the poor, simple people, children, the meek ones who are not important in the world. It is to them that he was sent, not to the wealthy and the self-righteous. He underscores the importance of small works done in faith, as well as big works like driving out demons. Anyone who gives you a cup of water... because you belong to Christ... will surely not lose his reward (Mark 9:41). God builds the coming reign little by little in our actions, however small and unassuming, when they are done out of love of God and neighbor. TREASURES FROM OUR TRADITION From its earliest days, the Church has had an interest in the education of young people. In ancient Rome, teachers of boys had to resign their posts in order to become catechumens, since the education of boys was so keyed to the lore and worship of the gods. In other ages, public education has been so attuned to other values that creative solutions have arisen. In late eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century Ireland, government schools had a goal of Anglicizing the Irish in culture and religion. Most Irish Catholics opted out in favor of hedge schools. In these largely secret schools, meeting not just in the shadow of hedges but also in cottages and barns throughout Ireland, schoolmasters provided eager students with a classical education grounded in Greek and Latin, Irish literature, the banned Gaelic language, and the catechism of the Church. The so-called penal laws forbade Catholics from teaching young people publicly or privately, and civil disobedience ruled the day. In 1826, a British government study showed that of half a million Irish

2 children enrolled in schools, 403,000 were in hedge schools! A woman named Nano Nagle defied the law by opening schools for the poor. Eventually her companions became the Presentation Sisters. A layman named Edmund Rice, inspired by her courage, founded the Irish Christian Brothers for the same purpose. By 1820, the situation eased, since Irish Catholics had shown that they would defy any law that diminished their love of learning and threatened their faith. Oct. 1 Oct. 3 Oct. 7 Tom & Annette Steibel Neal & Stephanie Wetzler Jeff & Diane Corzine May God continue to bless you and your marriage for many more years! SEPT. 29 th THROUGH OCT. 7 TH Sat. 6pm (J) Mary Werner Sun. 11am (C) S. Bertha Fischer Mon. 8:15am (C) Clara & Ed Schilling Tues 4pm(C) S. Emma Goeckner Wed. 8:15am(C) S. Gemma Hellmann Thurs. 8am (J) Intentions of Catholic Extension donors Thurs. 4pm(C) Leta Rae & Gib Bauer Fri. 8:15am Stanley & Claudia Jurek Sun. 8am (J) Wayne Klein Sun. 11am (C) S. Virginia Walsh Alan Zeiger Rev. Joe Rascher Whitney Whelan Our Homebound Tony Melliere Neil Mudd Jackie Prange Rev. Ken Schaefer Nursing Home Residents All names of the prayer list will be left on for 4 weeks. Please call the rectory if you would like them to remain on the list. Sept. 29 Envelopes (47) $1, Loose $76.00 Total $1, (Weekly goal) $1, Retired Priest (5) Catholic Relief $ $10.00 Sept. 24 Julia Steibel Sept. 29 Cassie Roy Sept. 30 Bill Wiegard & Lane Cowell Oct. 1 Oct. 3 Nancy Proctor Julie Carle & Rachel Steibel Oct. 6 Nicole Gibson & Denise Rodenberg May your day be filled with Good Wishes, Birthday Greetings and God s Blessings Sat. Sept. 29 th 6pm Sun. Oct. 7 th 8am B Paulette A. B Lynn G C Steve & Audrey C Nate & Vince L Kim L James S Volunteers S Katie & Zach G PSR students G Chad Deterding fam Chalice & Paten: Steve Deterding Fam. Chalice & Paten: John Mathews Fam From the Desk of Fr. Dennis "If your eye causes you to sin," Jesus says, pluck it out." What startling, troubling words! We know from the Gospels and from our own life experience that Jesus brings only healing. We must seek Jesus' meaning, therefore, on a metaphorical level. Often he makes use of hyperbole - wild exaggeration - to make a point. In this case, that point centers on ATTACHMENT. Jesus exhorts us: Is there anything, or anyone, in our lives we are more attached to than to God? Take a moment to examine your own daily actions, at home, at work or wherever you may go. Ask yourself: Am I bringing about the Kingdom of God? What should I be "plucking

3 out" of my life to demonstrate that I am living a Kingdom-oriented life? On Monday we begin the month of October, dedicated to Mary. I urge you to make time to pray the rosary with your family for peace in the world, and for healing for the abuse that has taken place in the Church. I also invite you to come and pray on Tuesday morning at 7:30am in church with the St. Joseph PSR students who will be saying the Rosary in living form. On Friday at St. John's during our afternoon of ADORATION from 1-4 p.m. Come and spend as much time as you want in prayer before the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. Our Church, Our World is in need of healing. Come and find peace in the presence of the Lord. Have ablest first week of October. Remember, don't worry so much, and know that you are loved! Fr. Dennis DID YOU REMEMBER Please contact Lynne Gonzalez at if you or a fellow parishioner are suffering from an injury, illness, or grief and would like a visit. The Prayer chain is in place. If you know of someone who is in need of emergency prayers please call Jeanelle Dinan or the HAPPENINGS THIS WEEK Sat. 6pm St. Joseph Tues. PSR 7:15am, Living Rosary by PSR students R&R 10:30am Wed. Quilting 9am-9pm Sun. Blessing of the Pets Blessing of the pets Oct 7 All pets must be on a leash or in a carrier. If you can t bring your pet, bring a picture. We will have pet sitters available during Mass. PARTNERSHIP MASS FOR OCTOBER IS: St. Patrick: 6pm Saturday St. Joseph: 8am Sunday ON THE LIGHTER SIDE Two donkeys were walking in Jerusalem, when one donkey said to the other, Just yesterday I was here carrying Jesus and the people were singing and shouting and throwing down their clothes for me to walk on, and today they don t even recognize me. The other donkey replied, that s how it is my friend Without JESUS you are nothing! THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK Nothing lies beyond the reach of prayer except that which lies outside the will of God. Change of plans The living rosary will be held Oct. 2 nd at 7:30am in Church Open to all students from 7 th grade through senior year in high school. Luke 18 retreat St. Joseph, Freeburg along with St. Agatha, New Athens is sponsoring a LUKE 18 the weekend of Oct 19, 20, and 21. This will be for 7 th & 8 th graders only. High school students are asked to volunteer as guardians. If you have any confirmation students that would like to attend or if you have any questions about the weekend please call Denise at More details to follow! Quest Retreat for Freshman & Sophomores Dec. 1-2 St. Mary s, Carlyle Maryknoll ministries is sponsoring an essay contest. Please see the flyer in church. Winning essays will receive cash. RESPECT LIFE CORNER Killing the Pain, Not the Patient: Palliative Care vs. Assisted Suicide; Read the full version at usccb.org/killing-the-pain.

4 Assisted suicide is in the news and on lawmakers agendas. Supporters call it aid in dying & claim it s just another option for end-of-life care. But it s radically different from the practice of palliative care, the healing art of relieving pain and other distressing symptoms for patients who are seriously ill. Palliative care intends to comfort a patient, addressing physical, psychological, emotional, and spiritual needs. Assisted suicide, by contrast, directly intends the patient s death. It ignores any underlying problems, and instead abandons and eliminates the patient who has the problems. As a society and as individuals, we must dedicate ourselves to providing genuinely compassionate care that protects God s gift of life. This is a summary of a USCCB Respect Life Program article by the same name and is reprinted with permission. 2018, USCCB, Washington, D.C. All rights reserved. Damiansville All are invited to the Diocesan Fall Blessing of the Harvest, which will be held on Wednesday, October 10, 2018, at 1:00 P.M. at the Jansen Dairy Farm located at 5500 Fall Road, Damiansville, Illinois UPCOMING EVENTS: Prairie du Rocher Chamber Bingo Beginning Sept. 5 th Every 1 st & 3 rd Wednesday Doors open at 5:30pm Early bird begins at 6:30pm Regular play 7pm Annual Fried Chicken Dinner St. John's Lutheran Church in Ruma Sunday, October 7, serving from 11am to 2pm. We look forward to serving you! DIOCESAN HAPPENINGS: Initial Child Protection Training Anyone interested in helping with any of our children s programs must take an initial child protection class. These are offered at varies dates & locations throughout our diocese. Oh yeah, and they are FREE. This information can be found on the calendar on left side of the front page. If you are not tech savvy call the rectory and Jill can help you find a date and location that works for you. Red Bud Sun. Sept. 30 th St. John s Catholic Quilt & Cash Bingo & fried chicken and pork sausage dinner. Meals from 11 am-2 pm Bingo begins at 2 pm in the social center. Take Me Out to the BINGO! Baseball Themed Bingo Fri., Oct. 12 th, St. John the Baptist Parish Center, Red Bud Doors open: 6 p.m.; bingo: 7 p.m. $20 per guest (payable at the door); includes 12 bingo games, 1 dauber, 2 drinks from the bar, light baseball themed snacks Additional raffles and games offered; basket raffle Special appearance by Fred Bird! Max of 12 players per table Call for reservations FROM PARISH COUNCIL: OCTOBER COUNT During the month of October the ushers will be counting the number of folks that come into our parish for Mass. TRI-CENTENNIAL PLANS As many of you know our 300 th anniversary is fast approaching. If anyone in the parish is will to help plan or has ideas about how to carry out the celebration please call the rectory. Let your talents be seen. Prairie du Rocher Chamber next meeting is at Lisa s on Oct. 8 6pm. We will begin to collect pictures in January of the old and new church for the memory book that will be displayed. All pictures will scanned and returned to the owners within one week. Also, if anyone has the names of the first families with in the church I will need them as well. Thanks in advance. Projects for the fall/winter: more permanent fix to the a/c units in the rectory and at church. DON T FORGET The suggestion box in the back of church is for any and all issues. Parish council will address any and all concerns at each meeting. P.S. it can be anonymous. QUILTING: The quilters are always accepting donations of supplies or completed embroidered blocks and of course always CASH.

5 FUNDRAISING NEWS We had many generous donations for Mason Jars but there are still some items we need a lot of to help offset the cost of this fundraiser. Please donate if possible: Lids and rings Self-Rising & All Purpose Flour Milk chocolate chips White chocolate chips Holiday M&M s (red & green) There will be a fundraising committee meeting on Oct. 16 th at 7pm for the fall and winter seasons. This meeting is open to anyone. More info to come. - Holy hour and confessions - Socials on Friday and Saturday night The event is open to young adults from ages Except for Sunday brunch, the event is FREE to participants (other than travel costs to the region). To find out more or receive a registration, please write Bryan Kirchoff at bryankirchoff@att.net." Please don t be afraid to step outside your comfort zone. Jesus certainly wasn t! Sometimes changes is good! Blessing of the Pets Sunday, October 7 th after 8am Mass If you can t bring your pet, bring their picture. All pets must stay outside and be on a leash (fish included) FYI the totals for the Diocesan tax, Insurance and Subsidies (Gibault and St. John s) and our total for FY 2018/2019 is 38, Please donate generously. FAITH FORMATION In the past you filled out a survey on Faith Formation with several requests for more opportunities for speakers, retreats, and bible studies. Chris Stefanik is a fantastic real life Catholic he will Be speaking at Mascoutah High School on Oct. 24 th from 7-9:30pm. Cost of the tickets are $15. Chirs has spoken at NCYC 2017 and left a lasting impression on many teens. His talks are for all age groups, not just teens and young adults. If you would like to see a video of Chris we have them. ALSO The Society of St. Vincent De Paul is hosting its firstever nationwide young adult pilgrimage and retreat in St. Louis, from the evening of November 2 to the afternoon of November 4. The weekend will include: - Tours of the oldest continuous parish in the United States and the 83,000 sq. ft. of mosaics in the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis - Reflections and talks at St. Vincent De Paul Parish on the history of the Vincentian saints and the work of the Society - Mass at the Old Cathedral, the first cathedral west of the Mississippi