Saint Mary of the Annunciation Catholic Church

Portsmouth, Ohio

e-Bulletin

 

December 30th, 2007

 Holy Family

______________________________________________

 

December 31 – January 6

                                   

 Mon.                                    NO NOON MASS

                      7:00 pm           New Years Eve Vigil

                                                Joan Thompson/Bill & Jean Glockner

 

                                                HOLY DAY

Tues           12:00 pm           Tom Stuart/Tim & Carolyn Paul

 

Wed           12:00 pm           Gilbert Bauer/Marguerite Russell & Vicki Reinhardt

                                                                                                               

Thur          12:00 pm            Communion        

                                               

Fri                4:00 pm            EUCHARISTIC ADORATION

                   5:30 pm              Andrew Bray/Kathy Moore

                                                                               

Sat                5:45 pm            Living & Deceased Members of The Parish

 

Sun              9:00 am            Mary Ott/Thomas & Angela Stuart & Family

                 11:30 am            Beth Deem/Kathy Moore

 

Confession:  Saturday, 4:30-5 PM or by appointment.

Wedding: Couple must see priest 4 months in advance.

Baptism: Call Pastor (353-3858) for appointment.                   ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

When the eight day came they gave Him the Jesus.

 

Today’s Readings:  Although the Church today celebrates the Feast of the Holy Family, our gospel reading tells us very little about life within the Holy Family, and it does not give us much guidance as to what family life today should entail. We are told only that Mary, Joseph, and Jesus settled in the town of Nazareth. Given the fact that Jesus was considered to be the Messiah by his disciples, we might question why we have no detailed information about him prior to his ministry. Perhaps this is so because the daily life of the Holy Family was not extraordinary. Rather, they were a typical Jewish family who quietly modeled faithfulness to the Word of God and to Jewish law and tradition. They observed the Law, they celebrated the feasts, and they kept Yahweh as the center of their lives.

           

OFFICE WILL BE CLOSED THIS MONDAY & TUESDAY, DEC. 31 AND JAN. 1.

 

May the Peace of the Holy Family

be with you always.

 

PRAYER FOR THE FEAST OF THE HOLY FAMILY

       

        Father, help us to live as the Holy Family, united in respect and love. Teach us the sanctity of human love, show us the value of family life, and help us to live in peace. We are united with Jesus, Mary and Joseph because in your great love for us you sent your son to live in this world and to share our human experience. Help us to love each other as you love us, and to be more aware of those families in the world who struggle with poverty, war and disease. Bring us all to the joy and peace of your eternal home.

                        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

PLEASE CONSIDER THE FOLLOWING:

      That we don’t see the world as it is – we see the world as we are. If we hold an inner idea about life’s grimness, hurt, and pain, that’s what we’ll find. If we hold an inner idea about life’s grace, benevolence, and joy, that, too, is what we’ll discover. Sometimes in order to make spiritual progress we need to let go of our old notions of how life is supposed to be, and instead see life with God’s eyes. What better time than the start of a New Year to align our inner sight with God’s, in order to discover joy, notice grace, and be open to life’s benevolence?

                                    Jack Shea, Theologian

 

30 ways to live a holier life…19th one.  Keep your faith visible. Add candles, Christian pictures and statues to your home. They serve as visual reminders of who is really the center of your life.

      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

PLEASE PRAY FOR: Ruth Emnett, Becky Miller, Courtney Clifford, Frank Balmert, Mary Grooms, Etta Ladd, Fr. Dwayne McNew and his Mother Ruth, Teresa Orlett, Renato Pasquinelli, Ann Miller, Alison Thompson. Eddie Holland, Mary Archangeli, Tim Dever, and please pray for those serving in our military.

 

STEWARDSHIP REPORT

    Early bulletin deadline. No totals.

Regular Collection................................................ $

Maintenance Fund................................................ $

Thank you for your generosity to St. Mary Parish.

 

 

From the Pastor’s Desk

Future Planning  No one knows what the future holds. Individuals plan for their homes, children, vacations, retirement, but unforeseen events can put their plans at risk. Same is true for the Church. I would like for St. Mary to begin an endowment to assist us with future planning. A fund would be set up with the Catholic Foundation. St. Mary would then be able to budget a set amount each year based on what we have in the endowment and the interest payment. Currently, we guess at what we may receive from gifts or wills…and try to plan the budget accordingly. People still may include the parish in their will, but they could also stipulate that the parish invest in this or another restricted endowment. We have one endowment now that is exclusively to be used for Liturgical needs…vestment, altar articles, etc. Some questions that came up in discussions were: Can the diocese use this for lawsuits? NO! In fact, in the endowment, it is protected even if someone chose to sue St. Mary Parish. Can we use the principal money if we have an emergency? Yes. Not a smart thing to do but we would be able to do that. Some see this as a wise move and other are not convinced. I personally feel this is needed for future security of the parish and am committed to donate $1,000 of my own money to this investment. We would need another $9,000 to start the endowment with the Foundation. Call Fr. Ted if you also feel the St. Mary of the Annunciation Endowment is something you would like to help get started.

 

DIOCESE OF COLUMBUS

Statement on the movie “The Golden compass”      

The upcoming movie version of “The Golden Compass” has led to questions about both the movie and the trilogy of books by Philip Pullman. The books have caused concern in Catholic circles because of the author’s professed atheism and the issue of the novels’ negative portrayal of organized religion and the Catholic Church. For people of faith, these concerns are legitimate and should be kept in mind if one is considering reading these books.

      In the movie, however, it appears that the first book’s explicit references to organized religion and church have been completely removed with the exception of the term Magisterium. That choice is troublesome because the term refers specifically to the Catholic Church’s teaching authority. As with the books, the Diocese of Columbus encourages people to keep these considerations in mind and educate themselves as they make decisions for themselves and their families about viewing the movie. Ultimately, it is the decision of each individual person whether or not to see the film or read the books, but those choices should be informed ones. It is also the role of parents to supervise and guide the reading and viewing of their children, and parents should do so in a carefully informed manner.

 

MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR MEN’S RETREAT at Milford, OH,  Jesuit Retreat House, February 1-3, 2008. Please contact Andy Glockner, at 354-1539 or 353-2161 for more information

 

YOUTH DOINGS

BOSCO BASH:  This year we will be having a Diocesan wide Junior High Rally. The theme of the day centers on Don Bosco, patron saint of students. The rally will be held at the Salesian Center in downtown Columbus. This event is open to all students in 6th-8th grades and will be held on Sunday, January 27th. Cost is $25/person (this includes dinner) and the deadline to register is January 10. Parents will be needed as drivers and chaperones. Come join hundreds of other junior high students in exploring and celebrating your faith.

Ministries Schedule

Saturday, Jan. 05 – 5:45 pm

 

 Reader I            Dolores Mantell

 Reader II          Wanda Dengel

 Host:                  Gerald Martin

 Cup 1                 Mary Martha Questel

 Cup 2                 Sue Welty

 Cup 3                 Deacon Chris

 Cup 4                 Laetitia Spiro

 Servers               Greg July

                             Courtney York

                             Ryan Lewis

Greeters              Dolores & Ed

                             Mantell

                                            

Sunday, Jan. 06 – 9:00 am

 

 Reader I            Charles Burke

 Reader II          Chas. Trivisonno

 Host                   Jean McHugh

 Cup 1                 Cheri Graf

 Cup 2                 Mike Trivisonno

 Cup 3                 Julie VanHoose

 Cup 4                 Richard Fugate

 Servers               John McHugh

                             Ashley Hill

                            

 Greeters             Dorothy Goodman

                             Trudy Brushart

 

Sunday, Jan. 06– 11:30 am

 

 Reader I            Karen Kielmar

 Reader II          Charles Maillet

 Host:                  Richard Orlett

 Cup 1                 Pete Saltsman

 Cup 2                 Richard Dilts

 Cup 3                 Deacon George

 Cup 4                 Kim Ward

 Servers               Marty Mohr

                             Ian Storey

                             Hannah Storey

Greeters              Cheryl Cooke

                             Susan Frasher

 Counters:          Benita Canter

                             Bill Glockner

 Cleaning:          Sue Welty

                             Mary Martha Questel

 

 

This week’s Sponsor

Compliments of

Southern Ohio Nephrology, Inc.

354-5393