Week of November 27, 2016 First Sunday of Advent The Pastor s Musings The Week at a Glance Dear Family in the Lord, Advent invites us to sit with some great realities, to deepen our appreciation and understanding, and to become ever more ready to receive all that is entailed in welcoming the Lord more fully into our hearts, souls, our lives! The great realities take us back, open our eyes, ears, and minds more to the present, and bring us hope and perspective for balance as we look to the future. As the Season of Advent opens, we look to the truth that Christ will come again. We are meant for more than the here and now. He will come in glory and wants that to be what we share in for all eternity! So... we look at how much time we spend on what tends toward the eternity, or what passes in the temporary. We will, toward the end of Advent, prepare directly for the great Feast of Christmas, our annual celebration of His coming in history, the gift of the Word made flesh! We are reminded of the humility, simplicity, and awesome mystery that brought about our salvation. It helps us reset priorities, return to the heart of the matter of faith. And, we also seek to become more aware of how He comes, day in and day out, in the ordinary events of our lives and in mystery in the great sacramental moments of our life! It can be easy to anticipate Christmas and have it all running on HIGH before the Feast has even arrived! Overwhelmed with shopping, preparation of things, putting decorations up when leftovers of the Thanksgiving turkey are still in the fridge... then, December 25 arrives, and we can t wait for it to be over! I beg you discover Advent living and don t sell out to pre-christmas mania! Decorate in stages. Give gifts of your time and self with less attention on tons of stuff. Pray for those you write cards to. Make time for Evensong, a good confession, maybe a weekday Mass or two, a few minutes of prayer with your daily meditation booklet, a visit to Church. Christmas will come and you ll be able to embrace it fully and look forward to celebrating it all the way to Epiphany, because it will BEGIN, not END on December 25th. In Dr. Seuss account, the Grinch was completely awestruck that, even after he stole all the stuff, Christmas still came without packages, boxes, or bags! He began to ponder, as Dr. Seuss expressed it, that Maybe Christmas doesn't come from a store! Maybe, just maybe, it s a little bit more. I think we all know it, but, we can forget it or act as though we don t. I m not saying no cards, trees, lights, gifts... I m not trying to be Dickens Mr. Scrooge! I m just urging balance, thoughtful living, a little more embracing of Advent, which will make Christmas really all it can, and should be! With You on the Journey, Monday, November 28 CERS Group Meeting 7:00 PM (NH LL) Tuesday, November 29 Divine Mercy Study 9:00 AM (SJ H) Divine Mercy Study 6:30 PM (SJ H) Televised Parish Mass 7 PM, Channel 98 Wednesday, November 30 Return 9:30 AM (SJ H) Prayer Cenacle 2:00 PM (SC C) K of C Mtg 6:00 PM (IC H) Return 6:30 PM (SJ H) Thursday, December 1 Exposition/Adoration 8:30AM-6:30PM (SC) St. Patrick School Mass 9:30 AM (IC C) Christmas Festival Set Up 1:00 PM (SJ H) Televised Parish Mass 7 PM, Channel 98 Friday, December 2 Breakfast Group 8:30 AM (SC H) Christmas Festival Set Up 10:00 AM (SJ H) Italian Class 7:00 PM (EDPC LL) Saturday, December 3 Christmas Festival! 8:30AM-3:00PM (SJ H) Bad Girls of the Bible 9:00 AM (SC H) Baptism 10:00 AM (IC C) Rosary 3:30 PM (IC C) Lyricora Concert 7:30 PM (IC C) Sunday, December 4 Televised Parish Mass 10 AM, Channel 98 First Reconciliation Class 10:00 AM (SPS) RCIA Rite of Acceptance & Welcome 10:30AM RCIA 11:30 AM (NH) Music Ministry Rehearsal 11:45AM (IC C) Choir Practice Spanish Mass 12:30 PM (SC) Rosary 1:30 PM (SC C) Spanish Mass 2:00 PM (SC C) Bible Study in Spanish 3:30 PM (SC H) Talks for Families in Spanish 3-6PM (SC H) Evensong & Benediction 6:00 PM (IC C) The Choice Wine Program 6:30 PM (SC H) Traveling Vocation Icon This week, the LeBlanc Family will receive the Icon of Jesus Knocking at the Door into their home and intercede in a special way for Sr. Jacinta Pio, Joe, Mike, and all in formation, for those discerning, and for many vocations to rise up from our community.
Intentions For Holy Mass Monday NOV 28 Advent Feria (Advent weekday) 8:00AM SC Charles & Alice Watson, by Bill & Kay Wagner Tuesday NOV 29 Advent Feria 8:00AM SC Eugenia derochemont, by her Family 7:00PM IC Bruce Boehm, by AJ & Cathy Homicz Wednesday NOV 30 St. Andrew 8:00AM SC T J Bassett, by the Maloney Family Thursday DEC 1 Advent Feria 8:00AM SC Joseph Parmentola (2 nd anniversary), by his Wife & Family 9:30AM IC St. Patrick School Mass open to all 7:00PM IC Joann Faleski, by Kathryn Lien Friday DEC 2 Advent Feria 8:00AM SC Irenee Lebel (2 nd anniversary), by his Wife Saturday DEC 3 St. Francis Xavier 8:00AM SC Martha Lawrence (16th anniversary), by Conni & Charlie Lawrence Vigil 2 nd Sunday of Advent 4:00PM IC Helena Dowdell, by Frances Lebel Sunday DEC 4 2 nd Sunday of Advent 8:30AM IC Catherine Athanasiou, by her husband Odyssias 10:30AM IC Thomas Fogarty (10 th anniversary), by his Family 2:00PM SC in Spanish Celebrant s Intention 4:30PM IC Pro Populo (For our Parish Family) To schedule Mass intentions or for sacramental records, please see Marilyn Chavez at the Eileen Daly Pastoral Center, or call 436-4555. Morning Prayer All are invited to join the community gathered before the daily Mass, Monday through Saturday, as they pray Lauds (Morning Prayer) from the Liturgy of the Hours at 7:40 AM at our St. Catherine Church. Collection Report Delay Because of the Thanksgiving Holiday, our weekly financial report was not available when the bulletin went to press. It will appear in next week s issue. 20/20 WINNER$ $25 Winners ~ Week 12 # 25 Rosemary Kent # 230 Barbara Aloupis Advent Opportunities DAILY REFLECTION BOOKLETS are available at the church doors to help capture a few minutes of Advent focus daily and keep the pre-christmas rush tendency at bay! CANDLELIGHT HOLY MASS will be offered each Tuesday and Thursday at 7:00 PM in our Immaculate Conception Church, in addition to the 8:00 AM Mass that is offered at St. Catherine from Monday through Saturday. Hopefully, you can make some time to be enriched by the beautiful Liturgy of Advent. On Thursdays (except December 8 th ), the Mass will be the Rorate Mass which is celebrated using the traditional chant associated with this centuries-old tradition that watches and waits with Mary for the dawning of the Light. It has become a much beloved part of Advent prayer for more and more each year. It is offered in a completely dark church, ad orientem (at the high altar with priest/congregation turned toward the altar). ADVENT EVENSONG & BENEDICTION will be celebrated at 6:00 PM each Sunday night of Advent in our Immaculate Conception Church. It is a brief half hour of prayer, scripture, and the meditative anthems of the season, before the exposed Blessed Sacrament, and concludes with Benediction. (For those who wish to come early or linger after, the Blessed Sacrament will be exposed at 5:30 PM and then remain exposed after the devotion until 7:00 PM.) Confessions will be heard during these times as well. EUCHARISTIC ADORATION continues each Thursday from 8:30 AM until 6:30 PM in our St. Catherine Church, giving an opportunity for quiet oneon-one time! (Note that exposition ends a half hour earlier than usual, without closing service, due to the 7:00 PM Mass on Thursdays.) CONFESSIONS will be heard Monday through Saturday at 8:30 AM at SC, on Tuesday and Thursday nights at 6:30 PM at IC, on Saturdays at 3:00 PM and Sundays at 3:45 PM at IC, and before and after Sunday night Evensong. (Let this be your #1 item on your to do list of Christmas preparations preparing the soul to receive Him more fully!)
Parish News Next Weekend Saturday, December 3rd 8:30 AM 3 PM St. James Church Hall Something for Everyone: Food! Fun! Fellowship! Plus it s a major fundraiser for the parish! CA$H RAFFLE THE FESTIVAL CAFÉ BAKED GOODS PUNCH BOARDS THEME BASKETS JEWELRY TABLE LOBSTER RAFFLE FOR THE KIDS CHRISTMAS TABLE RELIGIOUS TABLE GAMES Scratch Ticket Tree Featuring: $2500 total in cash prizes! Great food all day! Cookies, cakes, breads, and more! Punch to win gift certificates! Take a chance on a wide variety! Choose from new & vintage pieces! Win 8, 6, or 4 lobsters! Christmas shopping! Visit Santa! Ornaments and decorations! Nativities, Plinko! Ball Game! You could win big! *If you volunteered to bring a prize, gift certificate, craft, or jewelry, please drop off to the parish office by Wednesday! Baked goods may be delivered Thursday afternoon or Friday morning. Haven t signed up to work yet? Call 436-4555 or come to St. James Hall Thursday afternoon or Friday morning. NEW! First Friday/Saturday Litany of the Sacred Heart follows Friday s 8:00 AM Mass, Rosary after Saturday s 8:00 AM Mass and at 3:30 PM at IC Special days each month to honor the Hearts of Jesus and Mary, which beat with profound love for us! NEW! Looking Ahead to the 8th The Holyday, a Titular Feast of our IC Church, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, patroness of our nation, is coming up on Thursday, December 8th. Holy Mass will be at 8:00 AM at St. Catherine and at 12:10 and 7:00 PM at Immaculate Conception. We invite you to join us in praying for our country in this time of transition through Mary s intercession. We will pray the Rosary together after all three Masses, gathering together after Mass in the side pews in front of Mary's shrine. NEW! Bring It Home! Core/Catechist Mtg Our next Core Team and Catechist Meeting for those teaching in the Bring It Home! program will be Tuesday, November 29th, from 6:30 to 7:30 PM in the Pastoral Center. NEW! Reconciliation Class Our third Reconciliation Class for 2nd graders preparing for the sacrament is on Sunday, December 4th, from 10:00 to 11:15 AM in St. Patrick School. NEW! Recently Baptized We warmly welcome Evelynne Hodge, who was given new life through water and the Holy Spirit in our Parish Community! To her parents and godparents we extend our congratulations and prayerful support as they live out the commitment they made to be the first teachers of these children in the ways of faith. In the words of the Rite, may they be the best of teachers, bearing witness to the faith in what they say and do. NEW! Called Home to the Lord We remember in prayer the repose of the souls of Cleanthy Pat Berounsky and Donald Parnham, whose Funeral Masses/services were recently celebrated in our parish. We also remember in prayer the repose of the soul of parishioner Virginia Martin, whose funeral was celebrated recently in Massachusetts. To their families we extend our heartfelt sympathy and prayerful support as well. NEW! Save The Date! April 4th, 2017... it will be Spring and we will be drawing closer to the Feast of Divine Mercy and an internationally-renowned dramatic presentation called FAUSTINA will be coming here to our parish! Fr. Wade spoke of this outstanding one woman show, which powerfully presents the life of this saint to whom Jesus entrusted the message of His Divine Mercy! (The day after Fr. Wade mentioned it at the Mission, we got a flyer telling us that the crew is coming to NH for a five-day window in April! Incredible!) We immediately made contact and the event is booked for 7:00 PM on Tuesday, April 4th, as a Lenten special. Save the date! Details to come!
NEW! Closing of the Holy Door A beautiful gallery of pictures of the Closing of the Holy Door is now available to view on our parish s website: www.corpuschristinh.org. There are links in three places, Home Page (under both Quick Links and Holy Door) and under Parish Life>Photo Gallery. Many thanks to parishioner Ginger St. Clair for capturing this special event in pictures! NEW! SPS in the Christmas Parade! The Portsmouth's 200 Years of Service Holiday Parade is Saturday evening, December 3rd. As in past years, St. Patrick School will have a float in the parade! The school is looking for donations of small candy cane for our students to hand out during the parade. Please send those in to the school or parish office. All SPS families are welcome to walk in the parade. Let s all cheer them on when they walk by! NEW! Bad Girls of the Bible Bad Girls of the Bible and What We Can Learn from Them, a mini-series sponsored by the Women s Ministry, continues on Saturday, December 3rd, from 9 to 11 AM in St. Catherine Church Hall. Join us for the last session! Session 4: JEZEBEL! Jezebel was the baddest bad girl of them all. strongwilled, domineering, critical, stubborn, sharp-tongued. Was there any redeeming quality in her personality? What made her the way she was? Do we have some of those same characteristics? If so, how can we spot them and change them? NEW! Concert Lyricora invites you to its 2016 Christmas Concert, On Earth This Night, to be presented Saturday, December 3rd, in our Immaculate Conception Church, at 7:30 PM. Tickets will be sold at the door. Lyricora is a Boston area ensemble dedicated to engaging, educating, and entertaining audiences through performances of the highest caliber. The ensemble strives to integrate New England s rich historical tradition of choral music with new directions in contemporary literature. Distribution of Communion We recently received a letter from the Bishop directing that we distribute Holy Communion only under the form of the consecrated host, instead of under the forms of both consecrated host and consecrated wine, beginning the First Sunday of Advent (November 27) until Holy Thursday (April 13) out of concern for cold and flu season issues around drinking from the common chalice. He also wants to use this time to underscore the teaching of our church regarding the presence of the whole Christ under either species, that is, that we are not receiving more or less depending on whether or not we receive under both species. We will pass that on as it comes to us from his office. (Those with gluten issues who currently receive only from the chalice should speak to Fr. Gary about provisions we can make for you with low gluten hosts). This directive is extended throughout the diocese. Each day be conscious of your duty to be a saint. A saint! And that does not mean doing strange things. It means a daily struggle in the interior life and heroically fulfilling your duty right through to the end. St. Josemaria Escriva The month of November has provided the high school youth with many opportunities to grow in their faith and to share the love of Christ with others. To start the month off, 10 youth and 3 adults worked with Seacoast Family Promise to provide dinner and dessert, as well as entertainment for the children, for the homeless families of the seacoast. We are looking forward to working with Seacoast Family Promise, hopefully making this opportunity to serve a recurring event. Last year, I invited NET Ministries back to Corpus Christi Parish after a few years hiatus. They joined us again this year to host another youth retreat focusing on relationships. Once again, the NET team delivered a powerful, Christ-centered day for the parish youth. Incredible, eye-opening, and lifechanging were just a few of the comments from the youth who participated. Finishing up the month, our youth gathered to AMP-up their faith life with Adoration, Music & Praise. It was a blessing to see new teens joining us for a relaxing but spiritually-filling evening. Please continue to pray for the youth of the parish as they grow as disciples of Christ. Brittany Molda, HS Youth Minister AMP Adoration Music Praise December 16 th ~ 5:30-7:30 PM, St. Patrick School March for Life: Join 30,000+ pro-life supporters in Washington, DC for the 42 nd annual March for Life. Corpus Christi teens will be joining Hampton and Exeter youth for the weekend s events. Dates: January 26-28 th, 2017 Steubenville East: Ever feel like you re the only Catholic in the room? Not here! Join over 2000 other Catholic youth from all over New England for a weekend of excellent speakers, great music, and Jesus. Dates: July 14-16, 2017 For more information or questions, contact Brittany at youthmin.ccnh@gmail.com. Sanctuary Lamps The sanctuary lamp at Immaculate Conception Church will burn in gratitude to Terry & John Sofarelli, Ann & Denis Hebert, and Mark Syracusa, for their help recently. At St. James, the sanctuary lamp will burn this week with Birthday Blessings for Richard Ward, and at St. Catherine, with Birthday Blessings for Maureen Boyd, in gratitude.
Looking to Christmas NEW! Christmas Masses On Christmas Eve we will offer Holy Mass at 4:00 and at 6:00 PM. The Youth Choir will lead us in song at the first Mass, which will include a Procession to the Manger. At Midnight we will have the Solemn Midnight Mass, preceded at 11:40 PM with Carols and anthems led by our Festive Choir. This Holy Mass will begin with candlelight Procession and Blessing of the Manger. On Christmas Day Holy Mass will be at 9:30 AM. All will be in our Immaculate Conception Church. (Spanish Mass will be at 2:00 PM in St. Catherine Church.) Please note that 4:00 PM tends to be overcrowded. We ask that there be no saving seats. We urge you to consider one of the other Masses, for greater comfort for you and enhancing the ability to really enter into the liturgical celebration. NEW! Christmas Extra Effort Each year we ask that you give special prayerful consideration to your Christmas gift to your parish via the collection on Christmas. As we continue to develop ministry in our parish, as well as to undertake necessary repairs and improvements, we count on your good will, according to your ability, in this special EXTRA effort appeal. Thanks in advance for the prayer and thought you give to this request! NEW! Greetings for Those in Formation We d encourage you to send messages of support along with your greetings for Christmas in cards and notes to our novice and seminarians. If you wish to offer them a gift within the card, it would be most gratefully received. Please note the addresses below, but, in the case of the seminarians, please realize that when exams are over they will be heading home, so, if you mail after December 14th, it s best to mail them here c/o Vianney House, 98 Summer St., Portsmouth, NH 03801. Your thoughtfulness means more than you can imagine! Thanks to all who are so thoughtful and supportive! NEW! Christmas Flower Fund We are once again planning to have a beautiful setting in our churches for the celebrations of our Saviour s birth. Your offerings are much appreciated! Envelopes are at the church doors. Please print clearly the names of your departed loved ones whom you would like to have remembered in our prayers and Masses this Christmas. We will print the names in the bulletins at Christmas for prayerful remembrance and they will be lifted up at Holy Masses offered in the Christmas Season. Please print very clearly and return the envelope via the collection basket no later than December 15 so the names can be included in publication before bulletin deadlines. Thank you in advance for whatever you can contribute! (Note: you may do this via our Online Giving program as well. Go to our website, www.corpuschristinh.org, or talk to Norm in our office for details on Online Giving, the option being chosen by more and more parishioners each month.) NEW! Christmas Choirs Our Youth Choir will be singing on Christmas Eve at the 4:00 PM Vigil Mass. Our Parish Adult Choir will sing at Solemn Midnight Mass at 12:00 AM. Rehearsals will soon be underway! This is a great time to plug in! All adults are welcome to the Parish Choir and children in grades 2-8 for the Youth Choir. Interested? See our Music Director Lisa after Mass or send her an email at musicdir.ccnh@gmail.com. You will be warmly welcomed! NEW! Giving Tree We are once again participating in a Giving Tree project, in cooperation with NH Catholic Charities, to provide parishioners with an opportunity to help needy people. Please take an angel tag, purchase the gift, attach the tag to the item (unwrapped), and bring it back to the tree no later than Sunday, December 11. If the angel tags are all gone, gift cards for gas or groceries are welcomed, and will be distributed by NHCC throughout the year. Gift cards, marked with an amount, should be left at the parish office or in the collection basket, not left under the tree, please! Your kindness and generosity will bring much joy to families in need! The Giving Tree will be up this weekend in the back of our IC Church. Thank you! NEW! Christmas Wafers With roots in Slavic tradition, these wafers provide a beautiful ritual for the Christmas dinner table prayer. Our Knights of Columbus have them available at the table where Christmas cards are available on weekends, or you can drop into the sacristy after Mass during the week. Information on the tradition and the prayer ritual can be found on the yellow sheets at the doors of the Church. This has become a beloved tradition in more and more homes each year! Unfamiliar to you? Take a flyer, read more about it, and, if interested, see the Knights after Mass! NEW! Keep Christ the Focus! We can all bemoan the secularization of Christmas, but, what s more important is that we all go out of our way to turn up the focus on Christ in our own practices. A great way is to send faith-based Christmas cards. Once again, our Knights of Columbus have ordered a variety of beautiful cards that will be on sale at very reasonable prices for you. All proceeds from sales benefit the parish. The Knights will have the cards displayed and for sale at weekend Masses this weekend through December 11, and also at the Christmas Fair next Saturday, December 3rd. Don t miss this opportunity!