40 Brattle Street Worcester, MA 01606 Parish Office: 508-853-0183 www.saintgeorgesparish.org Office Hours: Monday & Wednesday 9:00AM to 5:00PM Tuesday & Thursday 9:00AM to 4:00PM Parish Staff: It is our privilege to serve you. Rev. Edward D. Niccolls Pastor Ext. 12 Rev. Charles P.O. Omolo, Associate Pastor Ext.24 Annie Doyle, Pastoral Outreach annie@saintgeorgesparish.org Ext. 11 Joan Koppenal, Parish Secretary stgeooffice@gmail.com Ext.10 Fax 508-854-0864 St. George Catholic Church For information regarding Pastoral Care of the Sick, Marriage Preparation, Confirmation, and Ministry Involvement, we invite you to call the Parish Office. Baptism Information: Please contact Susan Pacek at 508-856-9960 or email: st.geobaptism@gmail.com Eucharist Celebrated: First Saturday Mass: 8:00 AM - Chapel Saturday Vigil: 4:00 PM Sunday: 7:30, 9:00, 11:00 AM Monday through Friday at 8:00 AM Parish Mission Statement We, the parish community of St George, celebrate the welcoming presence of Christ in our lives. Together with the universal Church, we are nourished and sustained through the Mystery of the Holy Eucharist, and we are inspired by the proclamation of the Word, guided by the Holy Spirit. We continually seek to grow in a deeper understanding of our faith, to respect the sanctity of human life, and respond to what Jesus asks of us in our time by sharing our gifts and participating in parish activities and outreach to others. Sacrament of Reconciliation: Saturday 3:00 to 3:30 PM and by appointment A Community of Ministries, December 31, 2017 Page 1
Mass Intentions Saturday, December 30: Vigil 4:00 PM 10th Anniversary for Beatrice Pedone by Jim & Susan Pedone & sons Richard & Matt Sunday, December 31: Feast of the Holy Family 7:30 AM For Peace in the New Year 9:00 AM For Peace in the New Year 11:00 AM For Peace in the New Year Monday, January 1: Solemnity of Mary 8:00 AM For the Community of St. George Tuesday, January 2: St. Basil The Great 8:00 AM In memory of Carolyn & Fred Moriarty Wednesday, January 3: Holy Name of Jesus 8:00 AM In memory of Bob Morris Thursday, January 4: St. Elizabeth Seton 8:00 AM In memory of Mary & John Williams Friday, January 5: St. John Neumann 8:00 AM For the souls in purgatory Saturday, January 6: Vigil 4:00 PM In memory of George Butler Sunday, January 7: Epiphany Of The Lord 7:30 AM Memorial for Sarah Marie Paldino by family 9:00 AM Memorial for Richard Wilson by the Parker family 11:00 AM For those who are homeless Weekend of Bulletin Deadlines Due to parish January 14 Wednesday, Jan. 4 January 21 Wednesday, Jan.10 January 28 Wednesday, Jan. 17 Items must be submitted by 5:00 PM on the due date. Email items to stgeooffice@gmail.com, or fax to the Rectory. Altar Ministries We are thankful to the Altar Servers and Ministers of Holy Communion from TEAM C who will serve at our Masses next weekend. Attention Parents of Young Children The Church building is open to all. We ask that parents of young children to please accompany them at all times. Thank you. Parish Calendar Rectory Open House After Every Sunday Mass On December 31st Everyone Is Invited! Saturday, December 30: 8:00 PM AA Hall Sunday, December 31: 9:00 AM Children s Liturgy St. George Rm 9:00 AM Toddler Liturgy Confr Rm Monday, January: 1 Happy New Year! Tuesday, January 2: 6:30 PM Women s Day of Spirituality Planning Meeting Confr Rm 7:00 PM Religious Ed Board Meeting Rectory Wednesday, January 3: 7:00 PM Faith Sharing Group Confr Rm Thursday, January 4: 6:30 PM Family Prayer Church Friday, January 5: 10:00 AM Faith Sharing Group Center Saturday, January 6: 8:00 PM AA Hall Sunday, January 7: 8:00 AM Coffee Shop Hall 9:00 AM Children s Liturgy St. George Rm 9:00 AM Toddler Liturgy Confr Rm 6:00 PM Religious Ed. Gr. 6-9 Church/Center Eucharist and Prayers for the Sick Please: Call to let us know if a family member or neighbor is hospitalized, homebound or ill. We can arrange to visit and bring Eucharist. Remember that due to HIPAA regulations, unless you allow the hospital or health care institution to release information and list St. George s as your religious affiliation, we are not told that you are a patient. We call the area hospitals each week to see if any of our parishioners are hospitalized. Thank you for your understanding in this matter. Second Collection Next weekend, the collection for the Catholic University of America will be taken up at all Masses. Please see Bishop McManus letter on page 5 for information about this important collection. Diocesan Daily Mass on TV Daily Mass is LIVE each weekday morning on Charter TV3 (Ch193), delay Broadcast on Shrewsbury TV28 at 4:30 pm and Clinton Cable TV8 at 4:30 pm. Page 2 Why not dedicate the first hour of your families' work week to God?
From Your Pastor St. George Rectory Open House All are invited to the parish rectory We extend to you & your loved ones our prayerful best wishes for a Happy New Year! This year our holiday open house at the rectory will take place after the 7:30, 9:00 & 11:00 A.M. Masses this Sunday, December 31 st. You are most welcome to attend. I also want to take this opportunity to thank you for your many cards, gifts (and treats which will come in handily at the holiday open house this morning as well as being shared with the parish staff). Your overwhelming generosity at this time of the year is gratefully appreciated. Thank you!!! Several additional thank-you s are also in order this week: THANK YOU to those who helped in decorating the church for the Christmas season. Many comments were shared with me as to how nice and festive the church looked. THANK YOU to our Music Ministry for the spiritually uplifting music you provided to make these special days of Advent and Christmas so festive. Your service was very much appreciated, as always. THANK YOU to those of you who volunteered as Altar Servers, Lectors, Communion Ministers and Greeters for the Masses at Christmas. Your service, too, was very much appreciated. Year 2018 Calendars are available for anyone who wants one. Because the Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God is one of those holydays that is not observed as a Mass obligation when it falls on a Monday, only one Mass will be offered on Monday, January 1st, at 8:00 A.M. in the church. Fr. Niccolls This Sunday, December 31, 2017 After all Sunday Masses 7:30, 9:00 and 11:00 AM Free refreshments will be provided Coffee Shop Captain January 7, 2018 Robert Gray: 508-755-1268 There will be no Coffee Shop today. Please join us for the Open House at the Rectory. Coffee Shop will resume next Sunday, January 7. All men and women are invited to join the St. George Coffee Shop Teams to serve once every 9 weeks. Please contact Jim Sanford at 508-852-0293 for more information. Note: Team Listings and Schedule of Teams can be found on our parish website. A Christian Steward receives God s gifts gratefully, cherishes and tends them in a responsible and accountable manner, shares them in justice and love with all, and returns them with increase to the Lord. Holy Father s Prayer Intentions for December During the month of December, Pope Francis has asked that the elderly, sustained by families and Christian communities, may apply their wisdom and experience to spreading the faith and forming the new generations. This Week Pray for the poor, that through the generous love of their brother and sisters in Christ, their material and spiritual needs will be met. Page 3
Religious Education Growing Together in Faith Sarah Kelly, Administrator - 508-852-1784 Email : sarah.kelly@saintgeorgesparish.org Kevin.brown@saintgeorgesparish.org Religious Education Merry Christmas to all of our religious education families! Classes will resume on Monday, January, 8, 2018. Important Dates for Grade Two This is a very exciting year for our religious education students in grade two. They will have the opportunity to receive TWO sacraments. First Reconciliation will take place in January and First Communion will take place in April. There will be a retreat for the students and their parents to help prepare for each of these sacraments. 1st Reconciliation First Reconciliation Retreat- Saturday, January 20, 2018 2:30-4:00pm (Families will have the opportunity to choose 1 of the 2 First Communion dates at this retreat) First Reconciliation Ceremony- Saturday, January 27, 2018 10:00am 1st Communion First Communion Retreat and Potluck dinner- Saturday, April 7, 2018 2:30-6:00pm First Communion #1 Sunday, April 22, 2018 1:00pm First Communion #2 Saturday, April 28, 201810:00am Online Giving Raffle Join Us! Win A $50 Gift Card Have you considered online giving as a way of making your contributions systematically and without envelopes? For anyone who joins Online Giving during the period of November 15-January 31, your name will be entered into a raffle for a $50 Target Gift Card. Online Giving is a simple and secure method of fulfilling your stewardship even when you cannot attend Mass. Your contribution is debited automatically from your checking, savings, or credit card account on a monthly basis. You determine the day of the month. Giving electronically helps the church save money on printing and processing of envelopes. It saves you from writing checks or having cash available for envelopes. It s easy log into www.saintgeorgesparish.org and get started. Directions are also printed and available in the church at the entrances. Weekend of December 24, 2017 Total Weekly Ordinary: $5,843.00 December 25, 2017 Christmas: $5,659.00 Thank you for your support! St. George Confirmation Confirmation classes are well under way! The candidates have had three classes, covering social justice, prayer and the global church. All 25 candidates have attended a retreat at Assumption College led by college students. The first weekend in January the student's Confirmation sponsors will join us for class to find out more about their important role in the lives of the candidates. Eucharistic Adoration Lord Jesus Christ, you gave us the Eucharist as the memorial of your suffering and death. May our worship of this sacrament of your Body and Blood help us to experience the salvation you won for us and the peace of the kingdom where you live with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen. Chapel Hours Open 4:00 AM to 9:00 PM Closed - Sunday from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM Closed - Monday & Tuesday from 3:30 PM to 5:30 PM This Weekend s Stewardship Thought Whatever you do, says St. Paul to the Colossians,...do it in the name of the Lord Jesus. Give thanks to God the Father through Him. And so it is that we offer our gifts in the Eucharist through Him, with Him, and in Him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit. Worldwide Marriage Encounter The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me. Let your spirits be augmented by attending a Worldwide Marriage Encounter Weekend. The next Weekends are Jan 19-21, 2018 in South Kingstown, RI and Mar 9-11, 2018 in Duxbury, MA. For more information, call Stephen & Michelle O'Leary at 800-710-9963 or visit them at https://wwmema.org/. Page 4
A Letter from Bishop McManus My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, The Catholic University of America, founded in 1887 by the U.S. Catholic bishops with the support of Pope Leo XIII, is the national university of the Catholic Church in the United States. Catholic University serves the Church by engaging its students to discover knowledge and truth through excellence in teaching and research. The University continues to expand its academic and research offerings, with faculty who bring world-class research and teaching talents to the classrooms and laboratories for almost 7,000 students. Catholic University trains the leaders of the Church. It is the only American university with ecclesiastical faculties granting canonical degrees in three disciplines (canon law, philosophy, and theology). Through its national seminary, the university provides graduate degrees for seminarians sponsored by numerous Catholic dioceses in the U.S. More than one-third of all the active and emeritus bishops and archbishops in the country are Catholic University alumni, including five of the six sitting cardinal archbishops. The University s business and theology schools offer a unique Management as Ministry program to provide seminarians and newly ordained priests with a foundational understanding of business best practices, including the essentials of finance, management and accounting centered on virtue and ministry. All of your contributions directly benefit students at CUA from all over the country by funding scholarships for those who would not otherwise be able to attend. Through the parish scholarship program, nearly 500 Catholic parishes have had the opportunity to nominate 1,500 academically qualified annual students for scholarships which were valued at $4.5 million last year. I encourage you to be generous in the special collection for The Catholic University of America, to be taken at the Lord s Day Masses in all the parishes throughout the Diocese of Worcester next weekend, January 6 and 7. With prayerful best wishes, I remain Sincerely yours in Christ, Most Reverend Robert J. McManus Bishop of Worcester Many Thanks for Giving Tree Generosity Once again the joy of the season came to life through the generosity of gift giving and service. Hundreds of gifts were donated, sorted, bagged, and delivered to: Crescent Manor Nursing Home St. Francis Home The Mustard Seed Winter Hill Rest Home Miranda House The Bridge of Central Mass Aides Project Worcester St. Mary s Nursing Home The Spirit of the season was very evident when a parishioner found a Giving Tree Tag on the ground in the parking lot. Concerned that the recipient might be missing a gift, the thoughtful parishioner went out and bought the items, wrapped the gift and brought it for special delivery on Monday Morning! Many Thanks for: Hours and hours of your time; buying, carrying, loading, lifting, and delivering Armfuls of coats and jackets for the homeless Gloves and winter hats Bags full of hotel hygiene samples Colorful hand sown fleece hats and scarves Gifts galore! New clothes for people who rarely have anything new Hundreds of pairs of socks for children who come to after school programs with bear feet in worn sneakers The gift of listening to the hopes, fears, worries and joys of all you serve Piles of blankets, sheets, towels and pillowcases for a special delivery recently to aid a family who experienced a house fire Incredibly generous monitory gifts and grocery cards that help prevent homelessness The Great Gift of the Eucharist which you bring to our sick and homebound community members As I have said previously, lists do not do justice to the kindness, effort, creativity, time, and sacrifice that accompanies the gifts that you give. This list is included here so that you will know that you are part of a great community effort that brings Christ to life in the lives of thousands of people in need. Annie Doyle, Parish Outreach Page 5
A Community of Ministries PARISH OUTREACH Annie Doyle - 508-853-0183 Ext.11 Office hours Mon-Tue-Wed 9-5 annie@saintgeorgesparish.org Dear Friends, On the first Sunday of Advent one candle was lit &: Our parish website was full of the good news of the season Purple Bows and ribbons appeared Giving Tree tags disappeared in a flash Elves on Shelves were seen and stories of their travels told at Toddler Liturgy of the Word St Nicholas came to breakfast Reindeer Bags were packed The Christmas Food Drive filled 2 food pantries The Manger appeared on the Rectory lawn On the Second Sunday of Advent the second candle was lit and: The first snow fell Giving Tree gifts returned brightly wrapped, overflowing and were gratefully received Children sang Joy to the World for proud parents and grandparents Religious Ed families donated so many socks for the needy On the third Sunday of Advent the pink candle was lit: The lights shine brightly on the Giving Tree Christmas Parties were enjoyed And a Winter Wedding was celebrated here! Candles and music blessed us on The Quiet Evening On the Fourth Sunday of Advent, all four candles will be it on our Advent wreath and we will celebrate Sunday Mass together..then suddenly, later that day, it will be Christmas Eve and the Christmas Season will begin! Unto Us a Savior is born! Welcome home to all who are here to share these days with us. Safe travels to all who are traveling to homes far away. Thank you all for your amazing kindness. The loving presence of Christ shines brightly every day of the year because of you. May you and those you love be filled with great joy, Annie Doyle Page 6 THE FAMILY CONNECTION Today is Holy Family Sunday which is celebrated on the Sunday between Christmas and New Year s Day. It is an opportunity to celebrate your own holy family. Plan a family activity, whether a visit to other family members, a game, a family movie, or something else your family particularly enjoys. Take time to explain to your children that this is a family day in your house because it is the day when the church celebrates the family of Jesus and all our families. Make it a traditional fun day, one the whole family will anticipate each year. Please email Ruth Viens (ruthviens@charter.net) with an attached family photo if you wish to have it posted on our parish Facebook page in celebration of Holy Family Sunday. No names will be used. 2018 ALTAR LINEN SCHEDULES are available from Annie Doyle. Many thanks to the teams of ladies on a rotating schedule who, behind the scenes in their own homes, reverently launder and care for the purificators and corporals used on the altar at Mass. Be not anxious about what you have, but about what you are. St. Gregory the Great
welcome all, build connections to Christ and one another, and live our faith as true disciples of Jesus. Our Parish Vision: To welcome Faith Into Action Ministry Spiritual Growth Ministry Faith Into Action Ministry continues to work to prevent family homelessness every weekend! Please visit the home page of our parish website to see the inspiring story of our parishioner Matt Ryan who began the Hope for Housing project! We invite you to begin today to join this effort. Use Hope for Housing Cards to buy your weekly groceries or prescriptions at CVS. Give a Dunkin Donut or Panera Bread Gift Card as a birthday gift to a friend. You receive the full face value of the card in the amount you choose. The stores - CVS, Panera Bread, Dunkin Donuts and local grocery stores - donate up to 5% of that amount to Hope For Housing to assist the most vulnerable; children with families in crisis. See Sue or Dave Genereux after Mass or contact them at 508-829-5776 or emailwaysideatq@aol.com for more information. They are happy to explain more about how Hope for Housing Cards help families on the brink of homelessness. Baptism Preparation This Sacrament welcomes everyone. For registration and information about selection of Godparents, please contact Susan Pacek at 508-856-9960 or Email: st.geobaptism@gmail.com. Baptisms are usually held monthly following the preparation sessions and completion of paperwork. Dates for upcoming classes are February 4 (snow date make up class March 4), and May 20, 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM in the Conference Room. Before Mass talk to God... During Mass let God talk to you After Mass talk about God to everyone... Page 7 God With Us On Christmas, God became man, In Him, the endless sea of love that is God became touchable, approachable and real. This Christmas, Remember how easy it has become to approach God in Jesus. Amidst the wonder of Christmas Keep reminding yourself that God is with us in us among us. Thank You To All Who Continue To Exemplify God With Us God In Us.God Among Us In our Faith Sharing Groups, we are richly blessed by our facilitators and participants. In sharing your faith and participating in these weekly small groups, we continue to learn the importance of developing a deeper relationship with God and recognizing, in concrete ways, God s presence in our lives, even in difficult situations and loss. To all in our Parish Community: we thank you for your generous support of our spiritual programs, events, Sacramental opportunities and community enrichment opportunities which draw us closer to God. We are so very grateful for your support, wisdom and generosity as we grow in relationship with one another, build up our Parish Community, become more deeply rooted in our faith and witness in countless ways that Emmanuel, God With Us is indeed in us, with us and among us each day. May God abundantly bless you at Christmas and in the New Year. Young At Heart Women s Evening Of Gathering And Reflection Thursday : January 25, 2018 6:00-9:00 PM Speaker: Jamie Stuart Wolfe Topic: Work-Life Balance If you have not registered, please call Sarah Kelly @ 508-852-1784 or JoAnn Nally @ 508-527-6973. It is important that you do so by January 1, 2018 so that we can better plan for dinner etc. Come and enjoy an evening of gathering with friends, making new friends, enjoying some quiet time to relax, learning how to better balance your work- life responsibilities, continue to grow in your faith and deepen your awareness of God s presence in your life.
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