ST MARGARET MARY CATHOLIC COMMUNITY 620 DIVISION STREET NEENAH, WI 54956 DECEMBER 21, 2014 4RD SUNDAY OF ADVENT
ST MARGARET MARY NEENAH Mass Intentions Monday, December 22 6:30 AM Liturgy of the Word with Communion Tuesday, December 23: St John of Kanty 5:15 PM Gerald Engeldinger Wednesday, December 24: Christmas Eve 4:30/5:00 PM Eileen & Dennis Long, Sr & Cathy Bogan 9:00 PM Kristle Snyder Thursday, December 25: The Nativity of the Lord 7:30 AM Richard Kraus 9:30 AM Joe Fuchs Family Friday, December 26: St Stephen No Service Saturday, December 27: St John 4:00 PM Reconciliation 5:00 PM Robert Hamilton Sunday, December 28: The Holy Family 7:30 AM Our Parish Community 9:30 AM Ss Jolene and Marlene Holiday Mass Schedule Christmas Eve (December 24) St Gabriel 4:30 PM, 6:30 PM & 11:00 PM St Mary/St John 4:00 PM at St Mary & St John, 10:00 PM at St Mary St Margaret Mary 4:30/5:00 PM & 9:00 PM (for 5:00 PM Service, doors will open at 3:30 PM and Mass will start whenever church is full) St Patrick's 4:30 PM (Children's Mass) & 7:00 PM Christmas Day (December 25) St Gabriel 10:00 AM St Mary/St John 8:00 AM at St John, 10:00 AM at St Mary St Margaret Mary 7:30 AM & 9:30 AM St Patrick's 9:00 AM New Year s Eve St Gabriel 4:30 PM St Mary/St John 4:00 PM @ St John Mary Mother of God (January 1) St Gabriel 9:00 AM St Mary 8:10 AM St Margaret Mary 9:00 AM St Patrick s 9:00 AM CHRISTMAS TV MASS Christmas Mass on TV will bring the joyful celebration of our Lord's Nativity into homes, healthcare settings, and other places Please invite homebound loved ones to join in the Heart of the Nation Catholic TV Mass on Christmas Day at 6:00 am on WACY channel 32 The Christmas Scripture readings, traditional hymns, and the inspiring surroundings of an 1800's chapel will give TV Mass viewers the gift of rejoicing in the meaning and blessings of Christmas Formation in Prayer and Holiness - Become A Friend Of Jesus - Make a Holy Hour in the Adoration Chapel at SMM 1-2-3-5-4 gets you in the door While at Mass offer a prayer for the person to your left and/or right Go to Confession during Advent Offer a prayer at the beginning and end of all parish meetings/gatherings/activities Pray at the start, middle and end of the day before and after all meals REMEMBER: BE MORE INTENTIONAL IN OUR PURSUIT OF PRAYER AND OUR CALL TO HOLINESS Weekly Collection Report Donations received in the parish office or postmarked on or before December 31, 2014 will qualify for a 2014 charitable contribution deduction and will be included on your 2014 giving record Contributions received or postmarked January 1, 2015 or later will be posted to your 2015 giving record Just a reminder this office closes at Noon on December 31st Retirement Fund for Religious Thank you! We can certainly call you friends because of the way you care for our retired members, writes a religious brother Your gift to last week s collection for the Retirement Fund for Religious benefits some 35,000 senior sisters, brothers, and religious order priests May God bless you for your generosity! Christmas Giving Tree Project Thank you to all who supported and assisted in any way with the Giving Tree Project We were able to help 34 parish families with a total $5,935 in SCRIP and 274 gifts There were 45 gifts for group home residents, 30 presents for nursing home residents, and 48 gifts given to Brigade and 65 gifts to Winnebago There were numerous handmade hats, gloves, scarves, and other items that found a family in need Your generosity has allowed others to experience the joy of Christmas May God bless you and your families during the Christmas Season
4th Sunday of Advent December 21, 2014 21 4th Sun of Advent 6:55 Rosary 7:30 Mass 9:30 Mass, CLW & RF Pre-K, K, 1 10:45 Youth Choir 5:00 IMAJN Mass, Snack, & RF Gr 6-10 22 6:30 AM Liturgy 9-10:30 Playgroup Parish Nurse 23 5:15 PM Mass No RCIA 24 Christmas Eve 11:00 Youth Choir 4:30/5:00 PM Mass 9:00 PM Mass 25 Christmas Day 7:30 AM Mass 9:30 AM Mass 26 No Service Today Offices Closed 27 4:00 Reconciliation 5:00 Mass 28 The Holy Family 6:55 Rosary 7:30 Mass 9:30 Mass 29 6:30 AM Liturgy Parish Nurse 30 NO Service Today No RCIA Tonite 31 6:30 AM Mass Parish Nurse 1 9:00 AM Mass 2 NO Service Today 3 4:00 Reconciliation 5:00 Mass Respect Life Baby Bottles Here s what s happening at your TCCES schools: SMC: The SMC Band hosted their annual Christmas concert on Sunday, December 14 th Arrangements were played by the concert and Jazz bands Seton: In addition to improving keyboarding accuracy skills with lessons and monthly assessments, Seton students are refining Microsoft Office skills The 8 th graders also recently began working with computer programming on Khan Academy, which is proving to be exciting for many One student said, "I learned so much through Khan Academy, and now I'm doing things with a computer that I never knew were possible I especially enjoyed the "Brown Bear Eyes" challenge in "Intro to JS: Drawing and Animation" that helped us understand how to use variables St Mary Elementary: On Tuesday, November 25th the Fifth grade students, from Saint Mary Elementary, visited the Paine Art Center and Gardens in Oshkosh They had the opportunity to tour and view their Christmas themed, The Nutcracker in the Castle and explore the Family Discovery Gallery In the Family Discovery Gallery the students went to various hands on exhibits, the gallery encourages children to look, touch, and create in new and fun ways The Fifth Graders had a wonderful time and many would like to go back this holiday season with their families St Margaret Mary: Many of our second and third grade students celebrated the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the first time last week Advent is an appropriate time to ask for God s mercy and forgiveness A beautiful prayer service was followed by time for each child to celebrate individually Later in the week, Fr Mike also celebrated this sacrament of healing with the fourth and fifth graders We will provide opportunities for children to celebrate the sacrament in Advent and Lent each year St Gabriel: The first grade students have been practicing recognizing and extending patterns They created a pattern with different colored blocks Then they asked a friend to extend the pattern These budding scientists discovered the phases of the moon are also a pattern They made a model of the phases of the moon using OREO cookies What a yummy science lesson! The Week Ahead: December 21 --- Religious Formation for Grades P, K, and Grade 1 during the 9:30am liturgy ---Children s Liturgy of the Word during the 9:30am liturgy ---IMAJN Mass 5:00pm ---Religious Formation for Grades 6-10 December 22 & 24 ---NO RELIGIOUS FORMATION FOR ANY GRADE On behalf of the Religious Formation Department, we wish you a very Merry Christmas! Looking Ahead: Religious Formation December 29 & 31 ---No Religious Formation for any Grade A HUGE THANKS!!!!!!! Thank you to all the Religious Formation families who donated money to the Hymnal fund We collected enough money for 5 hymnals Pre, K, and Grade 1 Christmas Program December 21 st Join us in the school gym for the Pre, K, and Grade 1 Christmas Program after the 9:30am Mass today, Sunday, December 21 It will be an opportunity to see how hard our youngest believers have been working to bring to life the story of Christmas Children s Liturgy of the Word Will No Longer Be Offered Children s Liturgy of the Word will be ending as of December 21, 2014 Many conversations were had with various people including Fr Mike, Mrs Healy the SMM School Principal, and the Religious Formation Board in regard to discontinuing CLW There were several factors that went into making this difficult decision to end Children s Liturgy of the Word including lack of volunteers, children s behavior during CLW, and the ages of the children for whom it was offered
Special Thanks to St Margaret Mary Youth Advisory Team and Youth Group Members SMM YAT (Youth Advisory Team) planned and carried out a fun and festive Advent/Christmas Service Party held in our parish youth room on Sunday, December 14th Youth and their families socialized, prayed, shared snacks, sipped hot cocoa, played video games, and put together much-appreciated care packages of treat, homemade cards and ornaments for the parish elderly (who we raked for this past October) What a blessing and gift our young believers are to this parish community! Thank you Blessings of Gratitude, Mrs Kyles-Werth (Coordinator of Youth Ministry & Religious Formation) Fox Cities Youth Unity Worship - Radisson Paper Valley; Wednesday, February 4 th, 2015 Youth (Grades 6-12) are invited to join youth from across the Fox Valley on Wednesday, February 4 th, 2015 for an evening of ecumenical worship celebrating unity in Christ with a mix of lively and reflective worship music, scripture and reflection, an offering (benefiting the Emergency Shelter of the Fox Valley), and prayer! We will be celebrating worship at the Radisson Paper Valley in downtown Appleton Registrations for the event are $5/person The bus will leave St Margaret Mary Elementary School Parking Lot at 5:45pm and r etur n by 8:45pm Please make checks payable to St Margaret Mary (Memo: Youth Unity Worship), and return it with a completed liability form (website) to Mrs Cindy Kyles-Werth by Sunday, January 04, 2015 Faith Enrichment Committee Collecting Gently Used Religious DVDs/CDs If you have gently used DVDs and/or CDs with a religious theme that you/your family no longer uses, please donate them to our parish library Please place them in the specially-marked basket in the parish library, located between the gathering space and adoration chapel New Year s Retreat Dec 31, 2014-Jan 1, 2015: This popular St Anthony s tradition is the perfect way to thank God for the year that has passed and dedicate the year to come to His glory! Join old and new friends to ring in 2015 with prayer and joy Begins with evening meal on New Year s Eve and ends with a noon brunch on New Year s Day Offering: $90 Contact: (715) 443-2236, info@sarcentercom Go to wwwsarcentercom to register for an upcoming event OUT OF THE MOUTHS OF BABES The Nativity Scene A 7-year-old child was drawing a picture of the Nativity The picture was very good, including Mary, Joseph and, of course, baby Jesus However, there was also a fat man standing in the corner of the stable When the child was asked about it, she replied, Oh, That s Round John Virgin
Taken from the Pasture THUS SAYS THE LORD: IT WAS I WHO TOOK YOU FROM THE PASTURE AND FROM THE CARE OF THE FLOCK TO BE COMMANDER OF MY PEOPLE ISRAEL (2 SAMUEL 7:8) King David has a nice idea: build a suitable house for the Ark of the Covenant But the Lord has other even greater ideas: God will build of David s lineage an eternal house, a kingdom that through Jesus will last forever Growing Our Endowment The St Margaret Mary Endowment Fund is like this tree In order for it to grow it must be constantly nourished with water That watering comes from the generous gifts and bequests made by parishioners That is why the Fund Trustees has selected this tree as a symbol of the Endowment Fund Please consider making the Fund a beneficiary in your estate plans, memorial donations, and in your annual gifts so as to provide for the perpetual support of the Parish In the course of this exchange of plans between David and God, there is a lesson for all of us: no matter how grand our schemes for what we will do for God, God is the one who took us out of the pasture God gave us whatever talents or opportunities have come our way Even more: God has a destiny I mind for us that is far greater than anything we could imagine for ourselves Who among us, after all, could have scripted this story: a baby born in a stable grows up to be a wondering preacher and healer who is brutally put to death and, being the Son of God, is raised from the dead, there by making it possible for us to have a share in divine life? Lord of Hosts, for all that you offer us, we give you thanks Mark Neilsen ST MARGARET MARY PARISH CENTER & OFFICES OPEN 8-4 Monday thru Thursday and 8-Noon Friday 439 Washington Ave, Neenah Parish Website: smmneenahorg SACRAMENTAL PREPARATION Baptism Two months in advance Marriage Four to six months in advance Sacrament of the Sick Call to schedule Reconciliation 4:00 PM Sat or by Appt PASTORAL STAFF (920) 729-4560 REV MICHAEL INGOLD PASTOR, Ext 102 Daniel Laurent Deacon Joan Bartman Pastoral Associate, Ext 106 Juanita HarderDirector of Business Affairs & Operations, Ext 107 Justin Krueger Director of Liturgy & Worship, Ext 108 Sheila Scanlan Parish Nurse, Ext 109 Sally Bellile Parish Secretary, Ext 101 RELIGIOUS FORMATION STAFF (920) 729-4562 Amy Matz Director, Ext 112 Doreen Benedict Coordinator Tina Peirick Coordinator, Ext 116 Cindy Kyles-Werth Coordinator of Youth Ministry & RF, Ext 113 Marcie Howard Administrative Assistant, Ext 111 TWIN CITY CATHOLIC EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM St Margaret Mary Elementary Campus (920) 729-4565 Mrs Eleanor Healy, Principal Ext 120 Mrs Mary Jo Sajdak, Secretary Ext 121 Seton Middle School (920) 727-0279 Sandy Ehlers, Principal St Mary Central High School (920) 722-7796 Mr Patrick Batey, Principal MEMBERSHIP Registration of adults over 18; Address changes appreciated ST VINCENT DE PAUL HELP LINE please call 729-4571 PARISH PASTORAL COUNCIL MEMBERS Kyle Barriger kmbarriger@gmailcom Peter Geniesse pjgeniesse@aolcom Jay Marti jmarti@newrrcom Kristina Nelson aknelson614@gmailcom Jesse Ostrom jesserostrom@hotmailcom Ron Schreier schreierr@yahoocom Michele Sliwicki msliwicki@newrrcom Cindy Sypek casypek7@gmailcom Evelyn Zimmermanzimmerman1810@newrrcom PARISH TRUSTEES Howard Healy hhealy@direnzolawcom Margie Weiss margie@weisshealthgroupcom