1 Christmas Mass Schedule Christmas Eve 4:00 pm Family Mass with Pageant 6:00 PM Vigil Mass Midnight Mass Christmas Carols begin at 11:30pm Christmas Day 7:30am 9:00am (Italian Mass) 10:30am & 12:00 noon Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God December 31, 2017 5pm (Sunday) January 1, 2018 9am and 12 noon Merry Christmas! Wishing you a blessed holiday as we celebrate the birth of Jesus.
2 December 24, 2017 SAT. 12/23 5:00 Rocco Migliorelli SUN. 12/24 4th Week in Advent 7:30 Fiorentino Family 9:00 Angela & Calogero Chiarelli Domenico & Giovanna Brucculeri Charles Piccolo Carmelo Giardina People of the Parish 10:30 Giuseppina & Antonio Guccione & Graziella Valenza 12:00 The Costello Family Christmas Eve Mass 4:00 Umberto & Maria Martelli 6:00 Christmas Novena Midnight People of the Parish MON. 12/25 Christmas Day Mass 7:30 Christmas Novena 9:00 Regina & Benjamin Kowalski Anna & Angelo Graci Angelina & Giuseppe Chiarelli Giuseppe D Amico Christmas Novena 10:30 Frances Logins & Theodore Chesnick 12:00 Giovanni Angela Messina & Giuseppina Anna Sferrazza TUES. 12/26 9:00 Christmas Novena WED. 12/27 7:00 Christmas Novena 9:00 Maria Rosa Lopresti THURS. 12/28 7:00 Nora Holmes 9:00 Christmas Novena FRI. 12/29 7:00 Christmas Novena 9:00 Frank Rappa SAT. 12/30 9:00 Christmas Novena 5:00 Marino Foschi SUN. 12/31 7:30 Kyle Sauer 9:00 Domenica Saracini Anna & Angelo Graci & Americo Chima The Santini & Ticchiarelli Families Christmas Novena People of the Parish 10:30 Thomas Fabbricante 12:00 Donald Mancuso SUN. 12/31 Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God 5:00pm People of the Parish MON 1/1 9:00 George Cavanagh 12:00 Giuseppina Guccione & Graziella Valenza Altar Bread and Wine This week the Altar Bread and Wine are donated in Loving Memory of the Deceased Members of the Boneta & Ljubicic Families. Given by Renata Ljubicic & Family Altar Candle This week the Altar Candles are donated In Memory of Helen Donnelly. Given by the Zaput Family Sanctuary Candle This week the Sanctuary Candle is donated in Memory of Lino, Romano, Celestina, and Sister Pia Flaim. Given by the Magagna Family In your prayers... Father of goodness and love, hear our prayers for the sick members of our community and for all who are in need. Amen. We pray for all those who are sick, especially: Joseph D Angelo, Joelle Lehocky, Rose Robinson, Ester Batara, Jesus Batara, Ann Gorga, Angela Isernia, Joan Buzzi, Lisa Sperrazza, Kaitlin Lam, Kathy Allen, Katherine Lizul, Manuel Leites, Maria Scopa, Maureen Friss, Joseph Perricelli, Ellen Marie Krochak, Edmund Giugliano, Domenica Audia, Tony Rubinich, Matt Z., Marie J. Smith, Joy Magliano, and Alexa Roberto Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen. We pray for the deceased members of our parish family who recently died especially, John Hartel And Francesca LoBono
3 COME IN AND PRAY Our Church is open each day for private prayer until 3:00 pm. We encourage you to stop by for a quiet prayer, light a candle, or just spend time with our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament FIRST FRIDAY DEVOTIONS Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament following the 9:00 AM Mass Visits to the Blessed Sacrament all day on First Friday Adoration Society Prayers at 2:30pm Benediction at 3:30 pm AVAILABLE MEMORIALS Deacon Vestments: The recent ordination or our new deacon necessitated the purchase of Dalmatics (deacon vestments). The vestments are worn at Mass each Sunday and you will notice that they are different than the vestments worn by the priest. Each vestment will have a memorial sewn inside the vestment in memory of your loved one. Red: $600 Purple (Lent): $600 (Sold) Purple (Advent): $600 (Sold) White: $600 (Sold) Green: $600 (Sold) Festive White: $1200 (Sold) St. Mel s Memorial Candles Remember Your Loved Ones An Annual Memorial Candle can brighten your intentions all year long. Purchasing an Annual Memorial Candle to Honor a loved one or a special intention is a wonderful way to express our sentiments. When we go, leaving the burning candle behind, we are reminded that our prayers and intentions burn before the Lord unceasingly. You can have a perpetual memorial for about.50 cents per day. The annual offering for each candle is $200, which supports our parish. If you would like to reserve a memorial candle, please fill out the form below and return it along with payment to the Rectory. For more questions, please contact the office at (718) 886-0201.. ORDER FORM PLEASE PRINT CLEARLY Name Address Phone Please print your intention (example-in Memory of, Devoted Husband and Father, Always in our prayers, In Thanksgiving, In Memory of, For the living and deceased members of, etc. St. Ann Please place my memorial in front of (Please Circle) Our Lady of Fatima St. Jude Infant of Prague Our Lady of Lourdes St. Francis of Assisi Padre Pio St. Rita Our Lady of Romitello St. Theresa Little Flower St. Elizabeth Seton St. Mel St. John Neumann St. Patrick St. Joseph St. Anthony Blessed Mother-Limited Space
4 CHRISTMAS PLANTS Bishop DiMarzio s Prayer for Vocation Lord of the Harvest, we petition you as you have instructed us to ask for more laborers to serve in the vineyard of Your Church. You have told us that the harvest is rich and laborers are few and we experience this great need in the face of the challenge of the New Evangelization. We ask the Holy Spirit to inspire young men and women to seriously consider vocations to the priesthood and religious life. Help all of us to be effective instruments to encourage and support those whom you are calling to serve and lead the Church of Brooklyn and Queens in the future. Lord, you told the Apostles to put out into the deep. We ask for the grace and courage to accept your call as we pray and work for an increase in vocations to the priesthood, diaconate, and religious life. We ask this in the Name of Jesus Christ the Great High Priest, Amen. The Christmas plants decorating the exterior of the church are donated in Loving Memory of Frank Colucci and Eugene Colucci by the Mecir Family. 2017-2018 Rosary Society Calendar March 5, 2018 - Meeting April 9, 2018 - Meeting May 7, 2018 - Meeting (Bridge to Life Shower) June 7, 2018 - Mass & Year End Dinner 6pm/7pm St. Mel s Italian American Association Newly Enrolled in the Purgatorial Society November, 2017 Orquidia Rincon Dennis Raptis It is therefore a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from sins." The Purgatorial Mass is offered on the First Friday of each month at 7:00am. Enrollment in the Purgatorial Society is for the period of one year. SAVE THE DATE CASTAGNATA Sunday, January 7th, 2018 2PM O Malley Hall $60.00 per person Full dinner from antipasto to dessert, chestnuts, wine, and music for dancing. Raffles and 50/50. All are Welcome! Call Josephine for tickets and further information (718) 886-2090. No tickets sold at door.
5 Little Hats For Big Hearts We are participating in Little Hats Big Hearts of the American Heart Association for our Girl Scout silver project. If you knit or crochet, you can help us make and donate Red Hats These hats will be for babies that are born in the month of February. Babies will be wearing Red hats to raise awareness for women's heart health month and babies born with heart disease. The hats must be red and must be an appropriate size that will fit babies anywhere from premie size to toddlers. These donations will be highly appreciated and can be dropped off at our school. Thank you very much! Mrs. Julie Mansour St. Mel s Catholic Academy 718-539-8211 Cenacles, Prayer and Devotion Advent awaiting the birth of Jesus Christ. What a beautiful time, full of joy and promise. A culture of life is the message the newborn King will bring us. As we decorate, entertain, buy presents for our loved ones we must also pray. Jesus, in his Mothers womb, what a wonderful Miracle of Life. From Conception to Natural Death is the law of God the Father. In prayers of the rosary and Cenacle devotion, to our Blessed Mother, we ask for her intercession to help the world restore a Culture of Life and Respect for the unborn and elderly. We need your devotion to achieve this miracle. The Cenacles of Life verses a Culture of Death Come pray with us one hour every Wednesday in St.Mel s Church at 11:00 Julia Chitos, Respect Life Joint Parish Committee Pia Baldo coordinator and devout participant 718-359-6734 Rachael s Helpers St. Mel s Choir Please see Rudy our Music Minister if you are interested in joining. There is hope after abortion. Are you burdened with memories of your abortion? Take this opportunity to experience a beautiful plan of healing by sharing with others in a very sensitive manner with prayer and scripture reflections. This will help foster the joy of healing in the mercy of Christ. Your experience is completely confidential. Please call 347-702-2352 (all calls are confidential) Empire Casino Wednesday, January 10, 2018 $25pp PU: 9:15am Call: Nancy (718) 886-2326 Edda (718) 747-5379
6 Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a blessed and Happy New Year. From all of us at St. Mel s Catholic Academy For to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord Luke 2:11
7 OFFICE OF FAITH FORMATION RCIA RITE OF CHRISTIAN INITIATION OF ADULTS or OLDER CHILDREN Are you interested in the Catholic faith? Maybe, you have been coming to church for a while but are not Catholic. Have you been baptized Catholic or validly baptized in another Christian denomination and wish to be fully initiated into the Catholic faith through the Sacraments of Confirmation and Communion? If you answered yes, to any of these questions, we invite you to look deeper into the Catholic faith through a process called the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults or RCIA. It is also adapted for older children seeking full initiation into the Catholic Church and is sometimes referred to as the Rite of Christian Initiation for Children ( RCIC ). Our parish offers a set of RCIA and RCIC sessions to share with others the truths of the Catholic faith and the fellowship of our church family. We invite you to learn what Catholics believe in an open welcoming environment. These sessions are also an opportunity for you to ask those perplexing and difficult questions you have about the Catholic faith. If you are interested in joining this special journey of faith, contact the Office of Faith Formation at stmelsdderosa@gmail.com or call the Office of Faith Formation at 718-461-9840. SCHOOL OF RELIGION Classes for children attending public schools are held on Wednesdays from September through May from 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm for grades 1 to 5; and from 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm for grades 6 to 8. The last day of classes for 2017 was December 13. Classes resume after the Christmas recess on January 10. Children s Liturgy/Family Mass: Children s Liturgy- Sunday, December 31 at the 10:30 am mass. Family Mass Sunday, December 17 at the 10:30 am mass for children in grade 4 attending St. Mel s Academy and the School of Religion. Christmas Eve Pageant: The annual St. Mel s Christmas Pageant will take place at the 4p.m. Christmas Eve Mass on December 24th. Children in the first through sixth grade participate during the Gospel reading all dressed up in costumes depicting the Christmas Nativity. Children in St. Mel's Academy and the School of Religion who are interested in participating in the pageant should return the "Cast Call" application to your child s teacher/catechist or drop off in the Office of Faith Formation mailbox in the school. If you did not receive the application that was distributed to the families of our first through sixth graders, contact the Office of Faith Formation at stmelfaithformation@gmail.com. Children participating in the pageant must attend the rehearsals on Wednesday, December 20th and Thursday, December 21st at 3:30 pm in St. Mel s church.
8 A Diocesan Lenten Pilgrimage To Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mexico Father Jorge Ortiz Spiritual Director March 2 8, 2018 For a Brochure call Regina Tours Lucille 1-800-Catholic x 208 Lucille@groupist.com Diocesan Pilgrimage to Ireland And attendance at the 9 th World Meeting of Families --------------------- August 19-27, 2018 ----------------- Sponsored by: The Pilgrimage Office, and the Office of Family Life School of Evangelization ---------- Bishop Massa Spiritual Director and Mass with our Holy Father Pope Francis For a Brochure call Peters Way Travel 516-605-1551 Bereavement Support Groups Our next Bundle Saturday will take place on January 27, 2018 from 9am to 12 noon in St. Mel s Parking Lot. Good used clothing is needed. For each car, truck or van, running or not, The Society of St. Vincent de Paul will give back to our church $50/$100 per vehicle. Call SVDP at 718-491-2525. The Bridge to Life is a crisis pregnancy center in Queens that supplies thousands of families in the NYC area with their necessary supplies. Bridge is in need of the following items: cribs (no drop-down), pack and plays, strollers, car seats, and clothing sizes 2t-8. We accept gently used and new. Thank you and God Bless. The stages of grief; bereavement after the loss of a loved one Sacred Heart Church, Bayside, First Tuesday of every month from 7:30-9:30pm. Call Sr. Kathleen Masterson at (718) 224-5695. And St. Luke Bereavement Support Group at St. Luke s Pastoral Center 16-34 Clintonville St., Whitestone, NY 11357 Meets on the 1st Tuesday of each month at 7:30 PM. Please contact Sister Theresa Agliardi, RSM, (718) 746-8531 for additional information or if you are interested in participating.
9 FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT December 24, 2017 Gospel: (Luke 1:26-38) The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin s name was Mary. He said, Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and shall name him Jesus And Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age for nothing is impossible for God. Mary said, Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word. Reflection: Joseph receives little attention these days, even in Advent, but Joseph stands right beside Mary at the center of the stage. Joseph stands, with eager expectation, at the threshold of transcendence. From the darkness of his own limited understanding, he is continually peering into the mystery of God. Surely he cannot fathom the virginal conception of Jesus that the angel announces, but with loving compassion he bows in reverence to God s incomprehensible ways. Surely he does not understand how this child, who seems like any other, could be God with us, but he abandons himself, in faith, to the task of loving the child and educating him. There is something very beautiful about Joseph s contact with the transcendent mystery of God. He was a carpenter and in the midst of his daily manual labor and family life, Joseph was surrounded by the mystery of God and he penetrated it with faith. He trusted in God s daily providence. Words of Father Robert Maloney, C.M. Imagine how Joseph felt as the birth of his mysterious son approached: puzzled, excited, awed. Deep faith was his light in the darkness. It enabled him to see the presence of God even where suffering, privation, and violence appeared to reign. Joseph knew the pain and embarrassment of poverty when there was no room in the inn. He witnessed violence when Herod unleashed his wrath against the children in Bethlehem. He felt persecution when he fled to Egypt. Yet he believed. He believed that God walked with him, that God is faithful to promises, that God is alive, and we can find God not only in the light but also in the darkness. He lived on the edge of mystery and was not afraid to gaze into it with courage in order to find God. How does Joseph speak to you this Advent? Closing Prayer: As we prepare for Christmas we pray for the grace to be like Joseph, so that: For those who live in doubt, -our lives will be a sign of faith. For those who live in fear and oppression, -our lives will be a sign of hope. For those who do not experience God s love, -our lives will be a sign of charity. Amen
10 Christmas Mass Schedule
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