St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church 2414 Seventeenth Street, Gulfport, Mississippi 39501

Telephone (228) 864-2272 Fax (228) 864-2273 Email: stjohnthee@cableone.net Website: stjohngulfport.org

Father Ryan McCoy, Pastor

Deacon David Allen,

Pastoral Associate

Deacon Rick Conason, Pastoral Associate

Sr. Mary Kealy, PBVM,

Pastoral Associate

Teri Patton, Parish Secretary

Worship Schedule Saturday Vigil: 5:00pm

Sunday Masses: 8:00 & 10:30 am and 5:00pm

Spanish Mass: 2:00pm Weekday Masses: 7:00am

Holy Days: Vigil Mass 6pm, 7:00am and 12:00pm

Confession: Before and after each Mass and by appointment

Catholic Education

CCD Sunday: 9:00am-10:15am

RCIA

Monday at 6:30pm

St. James Elementary 603 West Av. Gulfport, MS 39507

Principal: Jennifer Broadus For admission information call:

TN: 228 896-6631

St. Vincent De Paul Elementary

4321 Espy Av, Long Beach MS 39560

Principal: Carol Church For admission information call:

228 222-6000

St. Patrick High School 18300 St. Patrick Rd., Biloxi, MS

39532 Principal: Matt Buckley

For admission information call: 228 702-0500

Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time January 29, 2017

WHAT ARE BEATITUDES?

What is Jesus offering us today? They are called the “Beatitudes”—but what do they mean? There are no easy answers. Some say they are unattainable ideals, put before us as challenges. Others say they are only for a spiritual elite: the saints. Others would “translate” them into political slogans. One popular television personality called them the “Be Attitudes,” subtly presenting them as optimistic, vaguely New-Age ideas.

Was Jesus a “wimp”? Is he asking us in the Beatitudes to be weak? Is this a program for so-called “losers”? We must admit that our conceptions of “meek” and “gentle” rarely serve as ideals toward which many of us care to strive.

Jesus does not burden his disciples with a system that counsels us to grit our teeth and endure. Instead, he places us in the midst of the real world and its conflicts, and he promises us a reward. Righteousness will be satisfied and merciful action will result in mercy extended toward us. As with Zephaniah, Jesus links justice and humil-ity. We must be pure in order to direct ourselves and help others.

A WAY OF LIFE, NOT A PROGRAM

Most modern ideologies promise peace and justice and happiness. Many also require violence against the so-called “enemies” of justice and peace. They must use force and violence, of course, only in order to “make” people good.

Those are not the teachings of Jesus. This New Law is promulgated on a peaceful hillside in Galilee, not on the slopes of a pulsing volcano in the desert. How surprisingly God works, calling the weak to be heroic, calling us to acknowledge our shame in order to overcome our willfulness and pride. He asks us not to tame the uni-verse, but to tame ourselves. History and our own experience have shown this to be a much more difficult task. Copyright © 2007, World Library Publications. All rights reserved.

Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time January 29, 2017

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

— Matthew 5:3

C.C.D. (Grades K-12) ................ Sundays, 9:00-10:15 A.M. Knights of Columbus ...... 1st & 3rd Wednesday, 7:00 P.M. K C Ladies Auxiliary ..................... 3rd Tuesday, 6:30 P.M. R.C.I.A. ................................................ Mondays, 6:30 P.M. St. Vincent de Paul ................... 2nd Wednesday, 9:00 A.M. Young At Heart ............................... 4th Thursday, 12 Noon

Happy birthday wishes to: Fabiola Lambert celebrates Jan. 28; George Burkhardt, Sr, Kaleb Fredericks, Johnny Nguyen & Bo Roberson celebrates Jan. 29; Dixon Massengill celebrates Jan. 30; Thomas Hewes celebrates Jan. 31;

Linda Comstock & Howard McNeill celebrates Feb. 1; Linda Howze celebrates Feb 2; David Ladner, Rachel Ladner & Kaleel Salloum celebrate Feb 3. May God Bless them with many more Happy Birthdays!

We would like to welcome new parishioners Larry & Cherie Ramsey.

Welcome to St. John the Evangelist Parish!

If you are new to the parish and have not yet

registered, please fill out one of the registration forms on the back table or go to our website, stjohngulfport.org and click on the “New Parishioner” tab.

THE CHOSEN REMNANT Zephaniah is one of the least-known of the Old Tes-tament prophets. He speaks in today’s first reading of impending judgment. But the Lord will leave a “remnant” in Israel. This image of a remnant, or remain-der, was to become vital to both Judaism and Christiani-ty. Paul’s letter to Corinth makes obvious his deep con-cern for the Christians there. They are too self-confident, he says, too sure of themselves. He admonishes them to remember that Christ has given them all they have. Today’s Gospel comprises the opening of Jesus’ “Great Sermon.” As God gave Moses the law on Sinai, so now Jesus gathers his disciples on a hillside to teach them the new law. Each of these Beatitudes contrasts the hu-miliation of the present with the glory of the future: pov-erty vs. the riches of God’s kingdom, hunger for holiness vs. fulfillment in the Spirit, persecution vs. the reign of God. Jesus is here speaking to God’s chosen “remnant.”

Copyright © J. S. Paluch Co., Inc.

The Episcopal Ordination and Installation of Bishop Louis Kihneman III as the Fourth Bishop of Biloxi will take place on Friday, February 17, at 2:30 p.m. in Nativity BVM Cathedral. Due to limited seating, the Mass will only BE accessible by ticket. Overflow seating will be provided in the Sacred Heart Center, located directly be-hind the cathedral. The Mass will also be televised live by WLOX and the Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN). The Mass will be re-aired by EWTN on Febru-ary 18 at 1:30 a.m. The Mass will also be live streamed at www.wlox.com and www.ewtn.com. Following the Mass, all are invited to a reception honor-ing Bishop Kihneman at the Croatian American Cultural Center (Slavonian Lodge), 159, Maple Street, Biloxi.

St. Blaise Feast Day is Friday February 3rd! The Blessing of the Throats will be at the 7am Mass on Friday. Two candles are blessed, held slightly open, and pressed against the throat as the blessing is said. Saint Blaise's protection of those with throat troubles apparent-ly comes from a legend that a boy was brought to him who had a fishbone stuck in his throat. The boy was about to die when Saint Blaise healed him.

We extend our deepest sympathy to Kevin and Lea Johnson in the loss of Kevin’s mother Ramona Allen. May God reward Ramona with Eternal Rest, Light and Peace and may He comfort her family in their sorrow.

First Friday Adoration is February 3- Adoration is 8:00am until 5:00pm, ending with Benediction. The sign up sheet is on the center table. We would like to see at least 2 people per hour. Please sign up to spend an hour with Jesus. First Saturday Devotion is February 4- The schedule is 8:30am Confession; 9:00am Mass, Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, Rosary, Meditation and Benediction.

Congratulations to the following parishioners celebrating wedding anniversaries this week.

Gerald & Sandra Cooper celebrate their 42nd anniversary on Feb. 1 Guy & Cleo Dossett celebrate their 20th anniversary on Feb. 1. May God bless them with many more happy years togeth-er

Formed.org FORMED is a tool to help you grow in your Catholic Faith. Our parish paid to make this tool available to all our parishioners. There are several programs like Symbolon and Bishop Robert Baron’s Catholicism available, along with many movies, audio cd’s and books. Formed.org can be accessed with a desktop, a lap-top, a tablet or smart phone. Go to FORMED.org to register and enter our Parish Code ZQXK2X. It will ask you for personal information to establish a user name and password.

You will NOT be billed anything.

Training Sessions for new Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion and for new Lectors. We are deeply grateful to the many wonderful men and women who serve in our Parish Ministries. But we are always in need of more helpers, so we invite all those parishioners who are interested in serving as an Extraor-dinary Minister of Holy Communion or as a Lector (Proclaimer of the Word) in St. John Church to attend training at the following times. Lector: Thursday Feb 9 at 6pm in the church. Eucharistic Minister: Thursday February 16 and Feb. 23 at 6pm in the church. If you have any questions please call the parish office.

The beautiful flowers on the altar this week were donated by Carl and Mary Ann Necaise

In loving memory of Mary Ann & Wesley Ranson

To commemorate their birthdays and wedding anniversary.

Thank You!

Seek Justice, Seek Humility Zephaniah 2:3; 3:12-13 People who have had a close encounter with death often feel like God has saved them for some reason. They can-not explain it. They do not know what that reason might be. Whether they were preserved from an accident, aggres-sive violence, or a near-fatal illness, they believe that God has some future purpose for them. The experience often makes them appreciate every day. It makes them humble. The prophet Zephaniah spoke to people who had had that kind of experience. He spoke not just to individuals who felt they had been spared. He spoke to a people who felt that way. They had survived a war. They had endured perse-cution. They had lived through exile. These people had a name for themselves. They called themselves “the remnant.” The experience deepened their faith. It kept them humble. When Jesus blessed “the poor in spirit” (Mt 5:3) he addressed the descendants of the people who had escaped this danger. They formed a remnant who had remained faithful after years of persecution and waiting. They were humble. What calamity has your community survived? How has God protected you? Has it made a difference in your life? Has it kept you humble? God’s Choices 1 Corinthians 1:26-31 Jesus did not choose the best. He chose disciples who were dense, who fought with each other, who jockeyed for leadership, who asked stupid questions, and who ran away while he hung dying. They were not the best. They had no experience in public speaking, anger management, catechesis, team building, or chairing committees. And yet the church survived. One of the proofs that Christianity is divinely inspired is that our founders did not know what they were doing, and still the faith spread far and wide. St. Paul told the Corinthians that God chose “the foolish of the world to shame the wise,” “the weak … to shame the strong,” “those who count for nothing, to reduce to nothing those who are something.” He was not talking about the apostles. He was talking about the Corinthians. God chose them, even though they were not the best. God did this so that people would not trust in their own strengths, but would trust in God. God can use people no matter how lim-ited their gifts are. All around us are people God has chosen for ministry. They may not be the best at what they do, but they do it because God wants it done. God does not always choose the best. But God chooses people anyway. God wants you for something too. Have you ever said no because you thought you could not do it? Might it be that God will do it, once you say yes? Written by Paul Turner. Copyright © 2010, Resource Publications, Inc., 888-273-7782, www.rpinet.com. All rights reserved. Reprinted with permission from Lectionary Bulletin Inserts, Year A: First and Second Readings.

World Day for Consecrated Life will be celebrated in the Church on Thursday, Feb-ruary 2, 2017 and in parishes on the week-end of February 4-5, 2017. Please pray for all those who have made commitments in the consecrated life, and be sure to thank

them on their special day. May they continue to be in-spired by Jesus Christ and respond generously to God's gift of their vocation.

MASS INTENTIONS FOR THE WEEK Saturday: +Anthony Davis; +David Gannon Sunday: 8:00am: +Rhonda Cospelich; +Johnny & Betty Fayard 1030am: +Charlotte Smith 6:00pm: People of the Parish Monday: +Raymond Elizabeth Casper Tuesday: +Matthew & Thelma Serpa Wednesday: +Mackie Fayard Thursday +Matthew & Thelma Serpa Friday + Jenny Lizana

Augie Alfonso Gil Bailey Katherine E. Bailey David Bell Jr. Mary Ann Bishop Melissa Bowles Carol Campbell Nunzio Caranna Nanette Carpenter Buddy Cospelich Kendall Dedeaux James Doles Gerald Ellis JonViolet Flickinger Mary Kay Gaspard Dan & Lorraine Goad Gee Gee Grandis Oren Haddock Ardeth Hessell Celeste Hewes Alibe Hinton Jordan Hoang. Annie Hosli Loyce & Nick Hire

Roy Jones Margaret Jowers Mary Kealy Florence Keppner Norbert Keppner Les Knighton Gary Lacy Tommy LeTard Joann Liner Carol Loftin Patty Loftin S J Marengo Jace Mathews Tanya McClellan Celeste McInnis Cherie Mennis Msgr Mercier Helen Nilges Margaret Northrup Sophia Nuchereno Gus Pique, Jr. Jay & Sheila Poolson Gary Reeves

Roland Riel Stephanie Rosetti Peggy Ryland Gaynelle Saucier Wayne Saucier Ken Saxon Aimee Seichshnaydre Austin Seymour Harry Smith Jason Sneed Charlie Underwood Felecia Vann Vanessa Vincent Liza Alfonso Wall Leigh Wetzel James Williams Mandy Woods Ginger Worth Doan The Xinh

Please Remember in Your Prayers

Prayer is the door through which all God’s Graces comes to us -St. Theresa of Avila

The second collection at all Masses this weekend is for church hospitality The second collection next weekend is for church mainte-nance.

We really appreciate those who donate toward the flowers for our church. If you would like to have flowers placed in church, please contact the parish office at 228 864-2272.

TODAY’S READINGS First Reading — You humble of the land, seek justice and humility, and the Lord will be your protection (Zephaniah 2:3; 3:12-13). Psalm — Blessed are the poor in spirit; the kingdom of heaven is theirs! (Psalm 146). Second Reading — God chose the weak of the world, those who count for nothing, so that whoever boasts should boast in the Lord (1 Corinthians 1:26-31). Gospel — Jesus taught from the mountain: Blessed are the poor in spirit (Matthew 5:1-12a). The English translation of the Psalm Responses from Lectionary for Mass © 1969, 1981, 1997, Interna-tional Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. All rights reserved.

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: Mal 3:1-4; Ps 24:7-10; Heb 2:14-18; Lk 2:22-40 [22-32] 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 58:7-10; Ps 112:4-9; 1 Cor 2:1-5; Mt 5:13-16

SAINTS AND SPECIAL OBSERVANCES Sunday: Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time; Catholic Schools Week Tuesday: St. John Bosco Thursday: The Presentation of the Lord; Groundhog Day Friday: St. Blase; St. Ansgar; First Friday; Blessing of throats Saturday: Blessed Virgin Mary; First Saturday

Collections January 21-22 Identifiable: $3057 Unidentifiable: $793ACH: $20 2nd Collection-Saltillo Mission: $443 Children’s Collection: $12

Thank you for your generosity!

TREASURES FROM OUR TRADITION Until very recent decades “Holy Thursday” and “Good Friday” were centered on personal pious devo-tions, not public liturgy. In urban America, at least in cit-ies with a significant Catholic population, Holy Thursday was about veneration of the Blessed Sacrament. People were encouraged to walk to seven churches for a “visit” to each parish’s repository, a kind of temporary tabernacle on a side altar, closer in proximity to the faithful than the usual tabernacle on the distant high altar. On Good Fri-day, the most popular form of devotion was the Stations of the Cross, or a three-hour program of word and preach-ing beginning at noon. The Holy Thursday seven-church hike was a way of participating in a custom of the city of Rome. Traditional-ly, each day in Lent was assigned to a particular parish church or basilica in the city. Each week of Lent thus had seven churches, and pious people tried to get to each one of them. The pilgrimage was a symbol of unity and also the journey of faith. Originally, the pope would go to each place for a liturgy, but political strife removed the pope from Rome in 1305. With the papacy relocated in France, the custom ceased until Pope Leo XIII expressed interest in restoring it in 1900, and Blessed John XXIII fully re-stored the custom in 1959. By the time Pope Leo began to revive the custom, many American cities had enough par-ishes and monasteries that the faithful could vicariously participate in the revived tradition of stational liturgies by a very long walk! —Rev. James Field, Copyright © J. S. Paluch Co.

Please support our Bulletin Advertisers! Please take a bulletin home with you and look at all our advertisers. We deeply appreciate their generosity and their support of our parish. When you patronize them, please thank them for their support of our parish.

XLT Adoration Every Tuesday, at 7pm. Come enjoy some one-on-one time with Jesus for an hour He wants to hear your trou-bles, your needs, your joys, your prayers...come and ADORE Him! If you've never been, let this be your invitation. Adoration with live worship music. Confessions will be available. Everyone is welcome!!

If you or anyone in your family is ill at home or in the hospital and would like us to visit you-please call the parish office at 864-2272.

Calendar of Events Feb 3 Feast of St. Blaise, Blessing of Throats 11 First Reconciliation, 9:00am 11/12 World Marriage Day Celebration 17 Ordination of Msgr. Louis Kihneman, the Fourth Bishop of Biloxi, 2:30pm at Nativity BVM Cathedral 23 Anointing of the Sick, 11:15am

Prayer Groups We have a prayer group that meets every Thursday af-ternoon from 5:15-6:15pm. Everyone is invited to join us. For more information call the Parish office, 864-2272. Weekly prayer group Thursday’s at 10:00am. Call An-nette Seymour 326-0851.

Arts Under the Dome OPEN THE DOOR FOR THREE Saturday, February 11, 2017 at 7 PM Open the Door for Three is a road-tested, high-octane trio of Irish musicians who mine song books, collections, and recordings for tunes and songs both old and new. Adding to their discoveries are fiddler Liz Knowles’ harmonies, arrangements and compositions, piper Kieran O’Hare’s encyclopedic knowledge of Irish tunes and the uilleann piping tradition, and the rhythmic bedrock bouzouki and world-class singing of Dublin-born Pat Broaders. Band members are veterans and mainstays of the Irish music scene around the world and have played with Riverdance, Cherish the Ladies, the New York Pops, Bonnie Raitt, Josh Groban, and at venues including Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center.

Tickets and concert information are available at www.arts.fumc-gulfport.org. Season tickets are $50 indi-viduals or $100 families (same household only). Individ-ual concert tickets are $15 adults, $10 students. Tickets may be purchased at the door. For more information call 228 229-6851.