Saint Mary of the Assumption & Saint Boniface
DECEMBER 25, 2016 THE NATIVITY OF THE LORD
OUR SINCERE WELCOME TO ALL WHO ENTER OUR DOORS. WE ARE COMMITTED
TO GROW CLOSER TO GOD THROUGH LITURGY, FAMILY LIFE, RELIGIOUS EDUCATION, YOUTH MINISTRY, OUTREACH
TO THE INACTIVE AND A AWARENESS OF SOCIAL JUSTICE.
Eucharistic Adoration Friday (WP) 8:00 am-5:00 pm. Confessions Saturday (WP) 4:00-4:30 pm and as announced. Baptisms /Weddings Call St. Mary’s Parish Office Forms on Parish Website (319) 837-6808 to make an appt. Sick Calls: Contact the Parish Office if you or a family member are unable to attend Mass and receive the Sacraments due to illness or age. Please notify the Parish Office if you go into the hospital, we would like to visit you.
St. Mary Parish Office 119 4th Street • P.O. Box 68
West Point, IA 52656 Phone ..............................................(319) 837-6808 Email ..................... [email protected] Website ...................... www.westpointstmary.org Parish Council President ............. Dennis Menke Trustee ........................................ Anthony Schulte Trustee ..................................... Roger Fullenkamp
Saint Boniface Parish Office 609 Washington Street • P.O. Box 247
Farmington, IA 52626 Phone .............................................(319) 878-3736 Parish Council President ............. Gavin Burgess Trustee ........................................... Todd Herdrich Trustee ................................ Richard Breckenridge
Parish Prayer Lines St. Mary .........Eleanor Menke @(319) 837-6895 St. Boniface .................(319) 835-5520/592-3238
Pastoral Staff Pastor Rev. Dennis Hoffman .................(319) 837-8120 Office Phone ................................(319) 837-6808 E-Mail .............................. [email protected] Rectory Address………………603 Bel Air Dr Fr. Dennis’ Office Hours: Tuesday ...............................10:30 am to Noon Wednesday ....................... 9:30 am to 11:30 am
Parish Coordinator Rebecca Hannum .........................(319) 837-6808 E-Mail .............. [email protected] Rebecca’s Office Hours Monday-Friday………....8:00 am to 4:00 pm
Secretary Deb Fullenkamp ...........................(319) 837-6808 Deb’s Office Hours Monday-Thursday ................. 8:00 am to Noon Every other Friday ................ 8:00 am to Noon
Director of Religious Education Dixie Booten .................................(319) 837-8905 Cell .................................................(319) 371-5043 Email .............. [email protected]
Coordinator of Youth Ministry Mike Linnenbrink .........................(319) 316-2115 Email .............. [email protected] Bulletin Deadline: Monday noon.
EXPERIENCE LOVE & ACCEPTANCE BY COMING HOME TO THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.
There’s an old saying that goes, “Once a Catholic, always a Catholic.” Maybe you have been away from the Church for a little while or for quite some time, but now you feel a tug at your heart calling you back to the Catholic Church. Listen to that tug. It’s your Heavenly Father reaching his arms out to you, the Holy Spirit whispering in your ear, hoping to draw you home. We hope you accept this as your invitation to rediscover the truth, wonder and mystery of the Catholic faith. As your brothers and sisters in our worldwide Catholic family, we want you back. We’ve missed you, and our Church is not the same without you. Regardless of why you left or got out of the habit of going to Mass, you can always come home and return to the practice of the sacraments and the fullness of relationship with Jesus Christ and the Church he founded. We are Catholic. Welcome home. Your Father in heaven wants you to come home, and so do we, your fellow members of Christ’s body, the Church. The longing you have in your heart can be fulfilled through Jesus and his Catholic Church. You are not alone. Countless of your own brothers and sisters in Christ have returned home, have come back to Confession and to Mass, and have experienced the joy of a renewed relationship with the God who loves them and accepts them unconditionally. Now, you can too.
HOW CAN I FEEL WELCOMED IN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH AGAIN AFTER EXPERIENCING HURT AT THE HANDS OF PEOPLE
IN THE CHURCH?
It can be difficult when we feel like our fellow Christians aren't acting very Christian toward us or toward others. The Church is indeed made up of sinful, imperfect people, who often disappoint. But rather than distancing yourself from the Holy Eucharist and the Catholic Church that Christ founded, consider clinging to Jesus all the more, since he never disappoints. It is helpful, in times of trial and hurt, to remember why you are Catholic—not because all Catholics always represent the mercy and love of Jesus perfectly well, but because the Catholic Church was founded by Jesus, administers the sacraments, and contains the fullness of Truth, helping all of us to draw closer to God and grow in holiness. Do not allow the actions of some to cause you to lose faith in the Church as a whole. Discuss your frustrations with a priest or deacon at your local parish, and start your journey back to a welcoming home. Above all, do not lose heart. People may disappoint, but God never leaves us, and He is always present in the Catholic Church he founded.
There will be a Youth Ministry Open House on Wednesday, Dec 28th at the West Point Ossenbrink Center. We will start at 2 pm and go until 6 pm. All Junior High, Senior High and college students are welcomed. We will be
talking about the several mission and service trips scheduled for this upcoming year. Call Mike if you have questions. The monthly Knights of Columbus meeting will be held on Tuesday, December 27th at the Ossenbrink Center. The evening will begin at 6 pm with a first degree installation, followed by a service for the Holy Family Icon at 6:30. The meeting will begin at 7:30. All Knights are invited to attend. The parish is invited to attend the Icon service starting at 6:30. Questions, contact Mike at 316-2115
The Afterschool Program met on Wednesday, December 14th. We had two girls participate. While painting two picnic tables for our HTC ECC Center in Ft. Madison Mike talked with the girls about advent and the twelve days of Christmas that follows. He explained the hidden messages in the song and what it really means. We want to thank Mary Hellige and Jenna DiPrima for their help with this project.
Jesus is born but have we found Him yet?
Many of us may remember the once popular Advent hymn, "Oh Come Divine Messiah" whose lyrics go like this:
Oh come divine Messiah The world in silence waits the day When hope shall sing of triumph
And sadness flees away
Dear Savior, haste! Come, come to earth. Dispel the night and show your face,
And bid us hail the dawn of grace. O come, Divine Messiah,
The world in silence waits the day When hope shall sing its triumph,
And sadness flee away.
Those days life was very simple as we waited in silence and full of hope that soon good will triumph over evil thereby ridding our lives of sadness.
Those words were so meaningful and bring back pleasant memories of Christmas of yesteryear.
Christmas is a commemoration of God's coming into the world. He came for all of us - believers and non-believers alike. His birth should bring us hope and triumph which will dispel the sadness from our lives. But after years of celebrating Christmas after Christmas many of us are yet to see that triumph in our lives and our hopes may be giving way to despair. Has the Messiah really come? If He has where is He? Why doesn't He bring the triumph that dispels the sadness of man?
The real problem today is that we are waiting for God to literally come to us. We celebrate His birth just like that of any one of us - offering prayers, eating, drinking and making merry. We celebrate his coming into the world but we do not welcome Him into our hearts and lives.
Yes, He has come into the world and is very much in our midst but unfortunately we refuse to recognize Him therefore fail to welcome Him.
By being born to poor parents, in an environment of extreme poverty, Jesus is telling us where He dwells - not in places of majesty and glamour but among the poor and the down-trodden, the sick and dying, the hungry, the oppressed and in those we love and even in those we hate. In short He is among the masses.
Amidst our celebrations this Christmas, let us pause a while to look around us to recognize that Jesus who was born into the world two thousand years ago. He is among us in every person and in every trial and tribulation we encounter in our lives. Let us take a moment to look around to recognize Him in those who do not have joy and peace in their lives.
Let us do the little things within our means to alleviate the pain and misery in their lives. Let us do whatever we can to give them the hope that triumph will one day wipe out the sadness in the hearts.
We too, like Jesus, must have the humility to come down from our positions of comfort and power to meet Him in the people around us. If we isolate ourselves from the masses by building a fortress around us with all our wealth and power together with greed, selfishness and pride, then we can keep waiting for Jesus all our lives but it will only be in vain.
To us then His birth into this world, that is Christmas, will be just another day to celebrate, eat, drink and make merry. It will never become the day when hope shall sing of triumph and sadness flees away. ~By Dr. Chris Anthony Butterworth
Dear Parishioners, The Feast of Christmas offers convincing proof of God's infinite love for us. For Jesus is God's Greatest gift to all humankind in a long line of precious blessings bestowed on each of us. We do have much to
be thankful for even in difficult times. Thank you for kind cooperation in all our parish activities, and
your loyalty and generosity. May God repay your graciousness and good will by blessing your Christmas and the New Year with an
abundance of spiritual and material joys. If you are with Christ on Christmas, you shall be happy and blessed wherever you are.
My family thanks all who sent flowers, cards, and attended my dad's funeral.
~ Sincerely in Christ, Father Dennis Hoffman
St. Mary Mass Schedule
Weekend Saturday (WP) 5:30 pm Sunday (WP) 8:00 am, (FA) 10:30 am Weekday Monday NO MASS Tuesday (FA) 9:00 am Wednesday (WP) 8:45 am 1st & 3rd Thursday (WPCC) 10:00 am Other Thursdays (WP) 7:30 am 1st Friday (DNCC) 10:00 am, (WP) 5:30 pm Other Fridays (WP) 7:30 am
Mass Intentions
The parishioners of St. Mary’s and St. Boniface pray the rosary for world peace before every Mass. Everyone
is welcome to join us.
Holy Trinity Catholic Schools Website .................. www.holytrinityschools.org
School Office Hours: ECC, FM .............................7:00 am to 5:00 pm ECC, SP ........8:00 am to 12:00 noon (M-W-F) Elementary, WP ............ 7:30 am to 3.30 (M-F) Jr/Sr High, FM ....... 7:30 am to 3:30 pm (M-F)
High School (Grades 7-12) 2600 Avenue A • Fort Madison, IA 52627 CAO: Michael Sheerin • (319) 372-2486 School Board President:: Brad Box School Board Vice President: Amy Merschman West Point Representative: Terri Delaney
Elementary (Grades K-6) 413 Avenue C • West Point, IA 52656 (319) 837-6131
Early Childhood Center 2040 Locust Street • St. Paul, IA 52657 / 2213 Avenue J • Fort Madison, IA 52627 Phone (319) 372-6428
St. Mary Liturgical Roles
Saturday, (December 31) at 5:30 pm Lead Rosary Marilyn Watznauer Ushers Matthew & Jill Garmoe Mike Salata & Vic Conrad Greeters Gary & Joan Harmeyer Servers Kadin Medland, Jack & Claire Medland Lector JoAnn Lampe Giftbearers Rebecca Hannum Family E. Ministers Gary Peitz, Cheryl Wellman Mary Kay Lampe Bulletins Bob & Jackie Schierbrock Lorene Fedler, Sue Vandenberg Scrip Deb Fullenkamp & Sue Fedler
Sunday, (January 1) at 8:00 am Lead Rosary Kate Menke Ushers Don Pollpeter, Ron Fedler Paul Walker & Mel Sanders Greeters Dave & Vicki Kokjohn Servers Taylor & Emily Boeding, Carter Nelson Lector Marvin Menke Giftbearers Dave & Vicki Kokjohn E. Ministers Tom Boeding, Hannah Kieler Volunteer Bulletins Brad Box Family Scrip Nancy Sanders & Jan Steffensmeier Counters Ben & Leah Link, Jeanne Vantiger
St. Boniface Liturgical Roles
Sunday, (January 1) at 10:30 am Greeters Mark & Ellen Meek Lector Mary Witting Servers Anna & Clay Neeley Gifts Ted Wenke Family E. Ministers Dave & Rita Smith, Bette Burke Counters Katie Burgess & Sarah Kruse
Readings for the Week December 18, 2016 Sunday: Is 7:10-14/Ps 24/Rom 1:1-7/Mt 1:18-24 Monday: Jgs 13:2-7, 24-25a/Ps 71/Lk 1:5-25 Tuesday: Is 7:10-14/Ps 24/Lk 1:26-38 Wednesday: Sg 2:8-14 or Zep 3:14-18a/Ps 33/Lk 1:39-45 Thursday: 1 Sm 1:24-28/1 Sm 2/Lk 1:46-56 Friday: Mal 3:1-4, 23-24/Ps 25/Lk 1:57-66 Saturday: 2 Sm 7:1-5, 8b-12, 14a, 16/Ps 89/Lk 1:67-79 Sunday: Vigil: Is 62:1-5/Ps 89/Acts 13:16-17, 22-25/ Mt 1:1-25 or 1:18-25 Night: Is 9:1-6/Ps 96/Ti 2:11-14/Lk 2:1-14 Dawn: Is 62:11-12/Ps 97/Ti 3:4-7/Lk 2:15-20 Day: Is 52:7-10/Ps 98/Heb 1:1-6/Jn 1:1-18 or 1:1-5, 9-14
Tuesday, December 27 Robert Jorae
Wednesday, December 28 Al & Gertrude Brune
Thursday, December 29 Jim Merschman
Friday, December 30 Jeanne Steffensmeier
Saturday, December 31 Richard Peitz & Myranda Gruener
Sunday, January 1 Parishioners Delmar Meierotto
