Today we celebrate the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Jesus continues his introduction into ministry in the synagogue in Nazareth. After reading the passage from the prophet Isaiah that states the “Spirit of the Lord is upon me...” he then goes on to tell the people that the passage is being fulfilled in him. At first they marvel at his discourse, but then they begin to resent it. Immediately he tells them that they must change, and walk in a new direction. People didn’t like change then, and we still don’t like change now. But it is conversion and change that will save the world. Today we still struggle with facts and science that tell us what we are doing to our world. We don’t want to believe it, and so we “kick the can” down the road hoping someone else will handle it. Jesus reminds us today that the Spirit of the Lord is on us and we must take up the fight. Well we have made it through a week of snow and bone chilling cold. Since most of our furnaces were replaced a few weeks ago we didn’t have any problems. Work on the interior of the church should begin this week. We are canceling our school masses on Thursday for at least three weeks. Mr. Lungaro and Carl will (Continued on page 3) Fr. John’s Column “No prophet is accepted in his own native place.” I think I first heard this saying, adapted from today’s Gospel reading, from my dad as he jokingly lamented that his family didn’t appreciate his wisdom. Being a prophet certainly seems a nearly thankless task, one likely to get you threatened, imprisoned, maybe even killed. But as we see in today’s first reading, it has some perks as well. God promises Jeremiah something that many of us likely wish we had: invincibility. In the Book of Jeremiah, God says, “It is I this day who have made you a fortified city, a pillar of iron, a wall of brass, against the whole land. … They will fight against you but not prevail over you, for I am with you to deliver you” (1:18-19). Does this promise apply to us as well? We often hear the earlier part of this reading, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I dedicated you” (v. 5). It is called to our attention as a testimony to the sanctity of human life from its earliest moments, and to God’s loving care for each of us as individuals before we were even aware of it. When we hear the end of that same verse, “a prophet to the nations I appointed you,” do we sense an equally personal call that applies to each of us? Are we all appointed prophets? If we are, does that mean we are also invincible against those who might oppose us? We know that we aren’t shielded from all harm in this life, even when we are doing the right thing and even as we proclaim, as in today’s psalm, that God is our strength and salvation. But we also know that God is love and that, ultimately, love is the only thing that is invincible. Today’s reading from 1 Corinthians tells us that while it is good to strive for spiritual gifts like prophecy, speaking in tongues and faith, all of that is meaningless without love, and all will pass away. Even heroic acts such as giving away all possessions or handing over one’s body are useless if done out of pride (Continued on page 3) Alumni Mass—5 PM Saturday, February 9 Reunion Following...Details on Page 8 On the Inside... Love Never Fails Maria Benevento Sunday, February 3, 2019—Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time Calendar ....................Page 2 In Sympathy ..............Page 3 Women’s Retreat ......Page 4 Liturgy ……………...Page 5 School ………..……...Page 6/7 Reunion/Mass ............Page 8 Spaghetti Dinner .......Page 8 Kids………………….Page 9
Transcript
Today we celebrate the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time. Jesus continues his introduction into ministry in the synagogue in Nazareth. After reading the passage from the prophet Isaiah that states the “Spirit of the Lord is
upon me...” he then goes on to tell the people that the passage is being fulfilled in him. At first they marvel at his discourse, but then they begin to resent it. Immediately he tells them that they must change, and walk in a new direction. People didn’t like change then, and we still don’t like change now. But it is conversion and change that will save the world. Today we still struggle with facts and science that tell us what we are doing to our world. We don’t want to believe it, and so we “kick the can” down the road hoping someone else will handle it. Jesus reminds us today that the Spirit of the Lord is on us and we must take up the fight. Well we have made it through a week of snow and bone chilling cold. Since most of our furnaces were replaced a few weeks ago we didn’t have any problems. Work on the interior of the church should begin this week. We are canceling our school masses on Thursday for at least three weeks. Mr. Lungaro and Carl will
(Continued on page 3)
Fr. John’s Column
“No prophet is accepted in his own native place.” I think I first heard this saying, adapted from today’s Gospel reading, from my dad as he jokingly lamented that his family didn’t appreciate his wisdom. Being a prophet certainly seems a nearly thankless task, one likely to get you threatened, imprisoned, maybe even killed. But as we see in today’s first reading, it has some perks as well. God promises Jeremiah something that many of us likely wish we had: invincibility. In the Book of Jeremiah, God says, “It is I this day who have made you a fortified city, a
pillar of iron, a wall of brass, against the whole land. … They will fight against you but not prevail over you, for I am with you to deliver you” (1:18-19). Does this promise apply to us as well? We often hear the earlier part of this reading, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I dedicated you” (v. 5). It is called to our attention as a testimony to the sanctity of human life from its earliest moments, and to God’s loving care for each of us as individuals before we were even aware of it. When we hear the end of that same verse, “a prophet to the nations I appointed you,” do we sense an equally personal call that applies to each of us? Are we all appointed prophets? If we are, does that mean we are also invincible against those who might oppose us? We know that we aren’t shielded from all harm in this life, even when we are doing the right thing and even as we proclaim, as in today’s psalm, that God is our strength and salvation. But we also know that God is love and that, ultimately, love is the only thing that is invincible. Today’s reading from 1 Corinthians tells us that while it is good to strive for spiritual gifts like prophecy, speaking in tongues and faith, all of that is meaningless without love, and all will pass away. Even heroic acts such as giving away all possessions or handing over one’s body are useless if done out of pride
(Continued on page 3)
Alumni Mass—5 PM Saturday, February 9
Reunion Following...Details on Page 8
On the Inside...
Love Never Fails Maria Benevento
Sunday, February 3, 2019—Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Saint Agnes Parish and Catholic School Mission...to welcome, nurture, and serve the people and children of God— generation to generation, guiding souls and growing minds.
St. Agnes Parish Information
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 9 5:00 PM Phil Guzzo by Wife & Sons 5:00 PM Frances Melillo, Josephine “Pina” Costello & Mary Prendergast by Family 5:00 PM Anna Scarpa by Joe & Nancy Burgio & Family 5:00 PM Deceased Members of Saia & Marchigiani Families by Lois 5:00 PM Alumni of St. Agnes Catholic School SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10 7:30 AM Dr. Gilbert Towle by Family 7:30 AM Dave Zerante by Martin Kudra 7:30 AM Janice Ballard by Karen Zerante 9:00 AM Louis & Felecia Hrovat & Claudia Hrovat-Barber by Family 9:00 AM Elizabeth Fagan by Cady Family 11:00 AM Walter & Margaret Novak by Family 11:00 AM Jann Corradetti by Danny 11:00 AM David Balderas III by Family
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 4 Nothing Scheduled TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 5 3:00-3:45 PM Kid’s Choir 6:30 PM First Reconciliation 7:00 PM Ensemble WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 6 6:30-8 PM HERITAGE NIGHT POT LUCK/OPEN HOUSE 6:30-7:30 PM Religious Ed, High 7:00 PM Baptism Class 7:00 PM RCIA 7:00 PM Chancel Choir THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 7 11:30 AM School Dismissal/ Parent-Teacher Conferences
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 8 No School SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 9 5:00 Mass Kid’s Choir 5:00 Mass Alumni Mass...All Ages 6:30 PM-? ‘Pop Up’ School Reunion @ Chuck’s Tavern in Crete (21 and older) SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 10 12:30 PM Baptisms
BAPTISMS: 2nd & 4th Sundays of the month. Please call the Parish Office at least one month before the date of the Baptism to make arrangements. Must register to attend class which is held the first Wednesday of the month. MARRIAGES: Engaged couples should make arrangements with the pastor at least six months before the wedding date. No arrangements should be made before the desired date has been confirmed after an initial interview has taken place. ADORATION CHAPEL: The Adoration Chapel is opened seven days a week from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM. Please call Cecelia Leal-Camacho 254-3755 or Juan Rangel (Spanish) 362-4161 to sign up or for info.
PARISH: 1501Chicago Road Chicago Heights, IL 60411 Rev. John Siemianowski, Pastor Rev. Tom Kasputis, Associate Pastor Rev. William T. O’Mara, Resident Assistant PARISH OFFICE: Kay Ashby ……………...708-709-2694 Web Site……...www.saintagnes.us Email…………[email protected] DEACON: Dave & Carol Brothers….708-755-7252 DIRECTOR OF MUSIC & LITURGY: Carl R. Opat……………..708-709-2696 DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT: Karen Zerante…………... 708-709-2092
RCIA/MARRIAGE PREP: Carol Brothers ..................... 708-709-2699 RELIGIOUS EDUCATION: Teri Klopp…………………708-754-0713 MINISTRY OF CARE COORDINATOR: Call Parish Office ................ 708-709-2694 SCHOOL OFFICE: Matthew Lungaro, Principal Karen Hamilton ................... 708-756-2333 SCHEDULE OF MASSES: Sundays:………...7:30, 9:00 & 11:00 a.m. Saturdays ...................................5:00 p.m. Holy Days………As scheduled CONFESSIONS: Saturday ............................ 4:00-4:30 p.m.
Page 2 Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time February 3, 2019
Please note… Until further notice, there will not be an 8:15 a.m. School
Mass on Thursday mornings. (Renovations should be starting again!)
Please join Fr. John & Fr. Tom for 8:00 a.m. Mass, Tuesday thru Fridays at St. Kieran’s.
Fr. John’s Column Continued Continued
lead the school in prayer services during those weeks. As of today, we will still be scheduling funerals at St. Agnes with the understanding that the church may have scaffolding and such in it. The less interruptions we have will get the work done quicker. This is an exciting adventure. Pray for all of the workers and the success of the project. Next Saturday, February 9th, our 5:00 PM mass will be a Mass of Thanksgiving for St. Agnes School. We are celebrating the 111th year of the school. In spite of the weather we had a great Catholic School Celebration last week and now we want to celebrate our past and look to the future. After the mass there will be a reunion for everyone over 21 years old at Chuck’s Tavern on Main Street in Crete. It is open to all graduates and their families 21 and older. There will be normal bar food and drinks for sale. The women from the first Women’s Welcome Experience have been working hard to prepare for the next experience scheduled for March 9th and 10th. Fr. Tom has been part of their formation and it really has been a life changing experience for the women. I know the first thing everyone thinks is it is not for me... but please consider doing this for yourselves, your families and your parishes. As I began this article, Jesus calls us to change and then change the world. Ladies this is your chance! This week please keep our school and Religious Education students in your prayers as they make their First Reconciliation. As much as we all dislike the topic, forgiveness is a really important part of a good person’s life. We all need it. We need to recognize our sins and ask for forgiveness and we need to let people change and offer them forgiveness for hurts they may have committed. So as difficult as it is, this is one of the most important sacraments we have. Take a moment this week and consider letting go of a past hurt or slight. We will feel better after it is done. Finally, thanks to the John Spotora family and the Advanced Glass Family for the new frames for our next five years of St. Agnes graduates. The Spotoras have faithfully made up the frames for us as long as I have been here at St. Agnes. And everyone knows that is a long time! For people who come to the parish they are a fun sign of our parish family and the impact we have had on our community and world. We are now completing the 111th year and look forward to another 111. Thank you again, Spotora’s!
(Continued from page 1)
rather than love. So when we reflect on our call to prophecy, we must strive for it to be motivated by love if we want it to be worthwhile at all. Since it often involves denouncing wrongdoing, calling for change, and telling people what they don’t want to hear, prophecy isn’t the best way to win friends. In the Gospel reading, we see Jesus almost being killed after he tells people from his own native land that prophets were often sent to serve foreigners rather than their own people. While we shouldn’t judge our efforts to speak unpopular and uncomfortable truths by how well they are received, however, we do not have free reign to speak them as unpleasantly as possible, much less to start thinking that those who might oppose or disagree with us are hated enemies that we wish to defeat. Whether we are speaking to family, friends or co-workers; posting on social media; writing a letter to the editor; helping with a political campaign or participating in a protest, can we do so in a way that expresses patience, kindness and a willingness to hear others’ perspectives without taking disagreement as a personal slight? Can we forgive those who don’t extend the same courtesy to us? Can we ensure that we are not acting out of self-interest and endure through setbacks and disappointments? Whatever piece of the truth we possess, whatever prophetic message we have is partial and will eventually pass away. The only thing that will endure is love. “Love never fails” (1 Corinthians 13:8).
Stewardship of Treasure
February 3, 2019 Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time Page 3
In Sympathy
Fr. Tom’s Thoughts
...hmmmm
Fr. Tom thought it might be important for us to be aware of our Bishop’s and sometimes, other’s statements regarding some of our nation’s current issues. Look to this space in upcoming bulletins. Catholic schools can provide the children of immigrants with opportunities to adapt to American culture in a context permeated by the faith and in an atmosphere of hospitality to all cultures, and they can do much to promote cultural understanding and respect among parents and students alike. Welcoming the Stranger Among Us: Unity in Diversity, A Statement of the U.S. Catholic Bishops
Please pray for the repose of the soul of: David Gasbarro May he rest in peace.
Week of January 27, 2019
Budget: $10,000.00 Actual:
This information was not available on the (freezing!) transmittal day!
Page 4 Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time February 3, 2019
READINGS FOR THE WEEK Monday: Heb 11:32-40; Ps 31:20-24; Mk 5:1-20 Tuesday: Heb 12:1-4; Ps 22:26b-28, 30-32; Mk 5:21-43 Wednesday: Heb 12:4-7, 11-15; Ps 103:1-2, 13-14, 17-18a; Mk 6:1-6 Thursday: Heb 12:18-19, 21-24; Ps 48:2-4, 9-11; Mk 6:7-13 Friday: Heb 13:1-8; Ps 27:1, 3, 5, 8b-9; Mk 6:14-29 Saturday: Heb 13:15-17, 20-21; Ps 23:1-6; Mk 6:30-34 Sunday: Is 6:1-2a, 3-8; Ps 138:1-5, 7-8; 1 Cor 15:1-11 [3-8, 11]; Lk 5:1-11
With thanks for the little acts of kindness that make the days fly by… always thankful for our Resurrection Choir, but extra thanks to Tess, Deborah, Sandy and Dorothy who came out (in their snowshoes!) on Monday to sing at the funeral...to all who supported St. Agnes Night at Chipotle (also in showshoes!)...to our friends at Advance Glass for the new frame...to all for being flexible w/cancellations and rescheduling..and the list continues...
With Kind Thoughts
Are you homebound because of illness, disability, or age? Are you residing in a nursing home? We would like to keep you connected to the parish family by visiting you and bringing you the Eucharist. We are the Ministers of Care of St. Agnes parish, prepared and commis-sioned through an Archdiocesan program to serve you in these situations, be they temporary or long-term. But we cannot re-spond to your need unless you make us aware of it. Hospitals and nursing homes do not notify us about your admission or discharge. Privacy laws restrict them from doing so. So please let us know of your need, or the need of a family member, by calling the parish office.
Sick or Homebound?
St. Kieran Women’s Club Present:
Get Your Kicks on Route 66 Saturday, February 9 6:00 pm St. Kieran Church, Crawford Hall
Tiks at the door!
Info, RSVP 359-8504 Music, dancing, refreshments!
Be there...or be square!
Liturgy Corner & More
February 3, 2019 Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time Page 5
Discipleship
Saint Blaise Blessing… of throats after all Masses this weekend,
February 2 & 3.
Sickness and suffering are mysteries that confront most Christians at some time in
their lives. Believers cherish the stories of Jesus’ tender concern for the poor and
sick who sought to find relief and meaning in their struggles. The flesh-and-blood
example of a long line of Christian witnesses whose faith sustained them in time of
trial offers us hope when shadows darken our lives. Saint Blaise was such a person.
Blaise served as bishop of Armenia in the fourth century. Little is known about his
life, but tradition tells us that he saved a small boy from choking on a fish bone. Because of this, his help is sought
for those who are sick, especially those who are afflicted with illnesses of the throat. On February 3, the feast of
Saint Blaise, the church continues its ministry to the sick with the blessing of throats.
This blessing, which can take place either after the homily at Mass or as part of a liturgy of the word, invokes God’s
healing and protection. Two blessed candles, joined in the form of a cross, are placed around the throat of each per-
son seeking a blessing. The minister then prays, “Through the intercession of Saint Blaise, bishop and martyr, may
God deliver you from every disease of the throat and from every other illness: In the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” Humbled by physical weakness and human limitations, we acknowledge our faith in
God’s protective love for all who call upon God’s name.
Faith, hope, and love remain, these three; but the greatest of these is love. — 1 Corinthians 13:13
Page 6 Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time February 3, 2019
SCHOOL NEWS …..
PLANNING If you are planning for a year, sow rice. If you are planning for a decade, plant trees. If you are planning for a lifetime, educate a person. -Chinese Proverb
Let’s try it again!!!! HERITAGE NIGHT POT LUCK
SCHOOL OPEN HOUSE Wednesday, February 6
Isaiah Hall 6:30-8 PM
Come and share your favorite dish that represents your family’s heritage.
Bring along a friend or neighbor to tour St. Agnes Catholic School. Registration
for the 2019-20 school year will be starting soon. 756-2333 info
SAVE THE DATE! SPAGHETTI
DINNER Sunday, March 3
‘New ‘ (old!) location:
Right back here in Isaiah Hall!!
12 noon-4:30 pm
READERS ARE LEADERS! CONGRATS...MONTHLY READING PROGRAM WINNERS
KEYS TO SUCCESS!!
FEBRUARY 5 First Reconciliation 7 11:30 Dismissal Parent-Teacher Conferences 8 No School 9 St. Agnes Reunion Mass 5 pm Gathering (21y.o. +) Chuck’s, Crete 18 No School 21 H& S Hot Lunch 27 End of Trimester
February 3, 2019 Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time Page 7
ST. AGNES FEAST DAY SCHOOL MASS
Dr. Sundaram was here on Pajama Day (during Catholic Schools Week) to talk to the boys and girls about the importance of getting plenty of sleep and
rest. Thanks, Doctor!
Sister Mary Grace and friends at World Youth Day in Panama. Also (one of the highlights), Sr. Mary Grace
visiting a sloth. O happy day!
Page 8 Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time February 3, 2019
ST. AGNES SCHOOL 100 YEARS & GOING STRONG!
REUNION Saturday, February 9, 2019
This informal, ‘pop-up’ reunion will begin with a Mass of Thanksgiving at 5 o’clock.
Then we will get together at Chuck’s Tavern on Main St. in Crete
to visit & reminisce. (21 y.o. +)
IT’S BACK IN ISAIAH HALL!
St. Agnes Spaghetti Dinner
Sunday, March 3 12 noon—4:30 pm
Save the date...save your appetites!
February 3, 2019 Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time Page 9
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