Welcome to the Catholic Community of SAINT MARK THE EVANGELIST A Catholic Community of Caring Since 1981 Serving Londonderry, Hudson & Windham - New Hampshire Fr. Mike Zgonc Deacon Tom Lavallee Brandon Sargent Claudia Dominguez Hollis Dunlop Lisa Olsen Allan Fernald Artie Carew Richard Dussault Church and Parish Center (603) 432-8711 One South Road, Londonderry, NH 03053 Pastor Permanent Deacon Director of Evangelization Family Faith Formation Youth Minister Office Manager Music Director Music Director Custodian MASS SCHEDULE Saturday @ 5:00 PM Sunday @ 8:00 AM 9:30 AM and 11:00 AM Monday through Thursday @ 9:00 AM Welcome Home! We, as a Parish Family, are so glad you are here! As sharers of the one baptism & the one Spirit of the Risen Christ, we come together as the Parish Community of St. Mark the Evangelist to proclaim our identity as the People of God. The Eucharist is the center of our life and work together. Through the one bread, we become the one body of Christ, a living sacrifice of praise. In our worship of God, the Author of life and holiness, we proclaim our hope in the life of Christ s Resurrection; we open our hearts and minds to the Spirit of God dwelling in our midst. In our work, together, we seek to enable our children to grow in the wisdom and knowledge of God; to accompany our young sons and daughters on their journeys of discovery toward adulthood; to deepen our faith commitment through prayer & study; to be present to one another in the joys and sufferings, the victories and struggles of life; to give witness to the Gospel of justice and compassion to our hurting world. We welcome to our parish family all who share our Catholic faith & traditions & our search for God in all things. -Parish Mission Statement Facebook: stmarkslondonderry Twitter: @stmarksnh Website: www.stmarksnh.org
From Your Parish Evangelist As I have mentioned before, I am continually humbled on a regular basis by the positive responses to my Evangelist Messages and my Adult Faith Formation presentations. Thank you all for your encouragement and feedback! It is truly a blessing to be able to share and participate in ongoing dialogue about our Faith! One of the more common comments I receive is, How do you know all this stuff?, to which I normally smirk and reply, I Googled it. Honestly, that tongue-in-cheek response is not far from the truth. I decide on (or am suggested) a topic, I assess any rudimentary inklings that I may have, and then I do some research. I do my best to organize the info, craft it into a brief, concise, and hopefully engaging presentation - and there you go! Theology has always been an interest of mine, even a hobby, you might say, but I am certainly by no means a Trivial Pursuit of all things Catholic! Like each of us, I m always progressing through the stages of human enlightenment: ignorance, knowledge, and understanding. This is the lifelong, ever-expanding quest that we all navigate in whatever field of interest we choose. Especially concerning spiritual realities that reside mostly outside our empirical senses, we all begin in the darkness of ignorance. Grasping at concepts with the aid of intellect and Divine Revelation, we can then come to a knowledge of Truth - an admission that we understand something to be unchangeable and intelligible. Then comes the hard part we all echo the insatiable repeating words of every learning toddler: Why? This is the realm of understanding. Through knowledge and experience we begin to perceive the light of Wisdom - to understand not merely truth as we know it, but truth as God created it. On this Third Sunday of Easter, our Readings take us through these three stages of enlightenment. In fact, we witness the process unfold in many of the post-resurrection accounts that we are familiar with: the disciples on the road to Emmaus, or the story of doubting Thomas, for example. Our first Reading from Acts greet us with some stern words from St. Peter he is condemning the people (and us) for the events of Good Friday. Yet the Divine Mercy that we commemorated last week is omnipresent, Now, I know, brothers, that you acted out of ignorance Repent, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away. Our ignorance is forgiven, if only we willingly accept the Gospel proclaimed to us. St. John in his First Letter expands on the concept. When we sin, we can be assured that the Cross has won forgiveness for our failings. However, simple knowledge of that fact is not enough. The knowledge of the Gospel requires response - it requires action! Those who say, I know him, but do not keep his commandments are liars, and the truth is not in them. But whoever keeps his word, the love of God is truly perfected in him. The perfection St. John is referring to is the final goal: understanding. Our Gospel today shows our Blessed Lord leading His disciples to this Seat of Wisdom. Even in their years traveling with Jesus, they remained incredulous in the darkness, failing to perceive the Truth in the Master s teachings and miracles. Even as they look upon His glorified, resurrected Self, they are startled and amazed. They are no longer ignorant, they clearly have the knowledge that Jesus is risen from the dead, yet they stand there dumbfounded asking, Why?, How? Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. Through God s Creation and Revelation, we are able to step out from the shadows, to recognize truth, and we are given the opportunity to transcend to the understanding of God s wondrous Plan for us. We are all clearly shown a path this week. No matter our particular interests, we are all challenged to put our feet upon the way of enlightenment. Especially in a world consumed in relativism and willful ignorance, it is our responsibility to delve deeper into the Truth - to grapple with it, embrace it with contemplation and action, and to seek understanding. From there we are called to joyfully proclaim the fantastic life-giving Truth to all the nations! How do I know all this stuff? The same way you know it! Join me in my hobby, and we can lift each other up and change the world! He is risen! Brandon Sargent
Celebration of Life! Join us next Sunday, April 15, following the 9:30 Mass in the Church Hall as we celebrate the families who have welcomed members into the Church through the waters of Baptism this past year! Growing Catholic families are a living witness to the positive values of family life! Won t you come down and share the joy of welcoming our newest members to our flock? Baptisms are celebrated frequently here at St. Mark s, yet they often go unnoticed by the community. This is a great way for our parish family to join together in joy and recognition of God s amazing gift of life! Join us for cake and fellowship with our newly baptized! Come and Care for Our Common Home!! Earth Day All-Parish Outdoor Clean Up Please join our High School Youth Group on April 22nd from 12:30-3:30PM to live out our call to be stewards of creation and to beautify our parish grounds! We are looking for anyone who would like to volunteered their time, talent and tools! Please speak to to Hollis or send her an email at hollis@stmarksnh.org if you or your family are interested in being involved! Pre-Summer Beach Bash Beach sandals, beach balls, Beach Boys and YOU. The PRE-SUMMER BEACH BASH is May 5 from 6-10 PM in the Parish Center. Join other engaged and married couples for fun, fun, fun, before summer arrives in June. Register before April 29th. Cash, check and credit cards accepted. $40 per couple for dinner. Bring your own beverage and Marriage Ministry will provide fun activities and music! 2nd Annual Wine Tasting Event Mark your calendar Saturday, June 2, 2018 from 6 to 10 PM is the place you ll want to be!! Dinner and delicious wine samples with a side of great raffle prizes! Reserve your seat TODAY! Seats are $40 each, or you may purchase a table of 8 for $280 ($35 per person). We are currently looking for sponsors could this be you? Contact Diana LaMothe at FUN.stmarks@gmail.com. Spring is Here! Want to get your garden on? We are seeking some enthusiastic and interested seasoned and novice gardeners to start planning a community garden here at St. Mark's within the coming weeks! Any and all parishioners who are interested in getting involved please contact Hollis at the office or at hollis@stmarksnh.org ASAP. Car Raffle Fundraiser Have you seen the sleek ride parked on the sidewalk in front of the church? It can be YOURS!! Tickets are ONLY $20 each! This 2006 Nissan Sentra with only 55,000 miles is ready to be in your driveway!! Stop by the Welcome Center after mass or the Parish Office during business hours to get your ticket! Men of St. Joseph News Calling all Men! If you re looking for a great way to kick off your weekend, here s the answer. It starts early, 7:00am. It s hard hitting, like going to the gym. It s breakfast and a cup of coffee you didn t have to make. It s fellowship with guys who support and challenge each other to take on the challenges of being a 21st century Catholic man. There are no sign-ups, no projects, no dues. Just show up here at 7:00 AM next Saturday morning, April 21, for fellowship, food and prayer. We guarantee to have you headed out by 9am sharp so you can get to your weekend projects. Come and check us out - you won t be disappointed. For more information on our Men of St. Joseph ministry here at St. Marks, contact Bill Donroe at 432-6066. This Week @ St. Mark s!! Sunday, April 15: 9:30 AM Respect Life Mass/Baptism Reception Tuesday, April 17: 6AM-11PM Eucharistic Adoration (Chapel) Friday, April 20: 6:00 PM Scout Meeting Saturday, April 21: 6:00 AM Men of St. Joseph (Hall/Kitchen) 9:30 PM Al Anon (Room 209)
Sacrificial Giving (Apr. 7 & 8) Operating Funds Offertory Envelopes (165) $4,282.00 Loose Cash & Checks $2,003.00 Electronic Giving (5) $355.00 WeShare $5,510.99 Flowers $50.00 Social $70.00 General Donations $582.56 Religious Ed $1,535.00 Mass Donations $100.00 Donations $200.00 Total $14,688.55 Designated Funds Capital Development (17) $330.00 Charitable (16) $350.00 Special/Holy Day (11) $365.00 Diocesan $40.00 Total $1,085.00 Grand Total $15,773.55 Mass Intentions for April 14 - April 22 4/14 Saturday, 5 PM: James P. Emerson by Dan and Ann Emerson 4/15 Sunday, 8 AM: Alfred & Jacqueline Fortier & family by the Barlett family 4/15 Sunday, 9:30 AM: Sister Vivian Pichette by Denise Demers 4/15 Sunday, 11 AM: Frank Belmonte by his children 4/16 Monday 9 AM: Frederick Tracy by Stan & Sheila Swiderek 4/17 Tuesday, 9 AM: Peter A. Sohm by the Sohm Family 4/18 Wednesday, 9 AM: Thomas A. Lynch by Mary Y. Lynch & family 4/19 Thursday, 9 AM: Lori Sutera by Rod & Bernice Granese 4/21 Saturday, 5 PM: Camille L. Lynch by Mary Y. Lynch & family 4/22 Sunday, 8 AM: John Conner by the Pirog family 4/22 Sunday, 9:30 AM: Catherine Ganley by Allan & Terry Fernald 4/22 Sunday, 11 AM: Richard Roth by Sam & Mary Ann Boldeia Parish Contact Information Parish Office (603) 432-8711 Parish Email info@stmarksnh.org Web Page stmarksnh.org Office Hours Mon-Thurs 9:30AM- 4 PM Fr. Mike Deacon Tom Claudia Dominguez Hollis Dunlop Lisa Olsen Brandon Sargent Allan Fernald Artie Carew frmike@stmarksnh.org dctom@stmarksnh.org claudia@stmarksnh.org hollis@stmarksnh.org info@stmarksnh.org brandon@stmarksnh.org allan@stmarksnh.org artie@stmarksnh.org Pastoral Council Justin Paré Finance Council Kevin Cronin Music Allan Fernald (603) 434-9101 Artie Carew (603) 546-5503 Outreach Dianne Zdankiewicz (603) 434-7991 Knights of Columbus Brian Roche (603) 889-3284 Men of St Joseph Bill Donroe (603) 432-6066 Prayer Line (603) 432-7425 Safe Environment Claudia Dominguez (603) 432-8711 Al-Anon Saturdays, 9:30-11 AM Birthright (603) 434-3000 NH Catholic Charities, Windham (603) 893-1971 Sacrament of Baptism Parents are asked to participate in the baptismal catechesis program prior to their child s baptism. Sacrament of Reconciliation Saturday 3:30-4:30 PM or by appointment Sacrament of Marriage Couples should contact the parish office at least six months in advance and before making any other wedding arrangements. Sacrament of the Sick Please call us to request the Sacrament of the Sick or to receive communion in the home. Eucharistic Adoration Tuesdays, 6:00 AM-11PM / First Fridays 8 PM-12 AM