december 1, 2019 · 2020-04-26 · council will be hosting their breakfast buffet on sunday,...
TRANSCRIPT
2314 Third Avenue, Scottsbluff, Nebraska 69361 (308)632-2541
Mailing address: PO Box 349, Scottsbluff, NE 69363-0349 Fax: 308-632-2146 Website: www.st-agnes-church.com
Parish Office Hours: Tuesday-Friday, 9am - Noon & 1pm - 4pm
Rev. Vincent L. Parsons
Pastor
Sr. Vera Meis, C.S.J. Pastoral Minister
Mass Schedule:
(October - May) Saturday: 4:00 pm
Sunday: 8:00 & 10:30 am (June - September) Saturday 6:00 pm
Sunday: 8:00 & 10:00 am Mon, Tues, Wed, Friday 7 am
Sacrament of Reconciliation Saturdays one hour prior to evening Mass or by appointment (632-2541)
Sacrament of Baptism Please call the Parish Office
December 1, 2019
They shall beat their
swords into plowshares and their
spears into pruning hooks;
one nation shall not raise the sword against another.
Isaiah 2:4
Page 2 Year C December 1, 2019
First Sunday of Advent
A s we enter into the season of ADVENT, this story might animate us to what we are expecting for this season:
In a center of unwed mothers, a young woman said, “I am pregnant. Although, my boyfriend left me, I would like to have this baby. No matter what society tells me, no matter what rejection I received, no matter what insults I encounter, no matter what difficulties I face, I would like to give life to this baby. No matter what it takes, I can wait for nine months.”
For the young woman, WAITING for her is an excitement: it gives her HOPE, it brings her LIFE. This is the image of ADVENT. It is a season of welcoming God’s indwelling in our hearts: it is the season of finding HOPE in times of crises; it is the season of discovering the power of LOVE when frustration comes; it is uncovering the spirit of COMPASSION when sadness suffocates us; it is the season of experiencing Jesus’ PRESENCE when we are alone and separated from the world. ADVENT excitement is like the thrilling sensation you have when you are waiting for your newborn baby, like the young lady in our story; or when you are a day away from your 50th wedding anniversary or birthday. The excitement animates you to celebrate new life! Therefore, during this DVENT SEASON, let us take the time to reflect, to ground ourselves in silence. Let this time of reflection and grounding take place in our hearts. Let our hearts be renewed. Remember that the heart is a sacred place “where God comes to dwell with us and bring us the divine gifts of trust, hope and love… where time touches eternity, where earth and heaven meet, where God’s WORD becomes human flesh.” As we immerse ourselves in the thrilling SEASON OF ADVENT, let us do the following spiritual exercise of the heart:
LOOK BACK and THANK God; LOOK FORWARD and TRUST God; LOOK AROUND and SERVE God;
LOOK WITHIN and FIND God.
S a i n t A g n e s
C a t h o l i c C h u r c h
Today’s Readings 2 Samuel 5:1-3
Psalm 122 Colossians 1:12-20
Luke 23:35-43
Parish Administration
(308) 632-2541 / (308) 632-2146 (Fax) [email protected]
www.st-agnes-church.com
Pastor Rev. Vincent L. Parsons (ext. 2)
Church Office Manager Theresa Trevino (ext. 3)
Pastoral Minister Sr. Vera Meis (ext. 4)
Director of Religious Education Mrs. Terri Calvert (ext.5) [email protected]
School Head Teacher Mrs. Julie Brown (632-6918) [email protected]
School Office Manager Teresa Johnson (632-6918)
Prayer Chain Coordinator Jean Ahrens - (308-672-4632)
Monday: Is 4:2-6; Ps 122:1-9; Mt 8:5-11 Tuesday: Is 11:1-10; Ps 72:1-2, 7- 8, 12-13, 17; Lk 10:21- 24 Wednesday: Is 25:6-10a; Ps 23:1- 6; Mt 15:29-37 Thursday: Is 26:1-6; Ps 118:1, 8-9, 19-21, 25-27a; Mt 7:21, 24-27 Friday: Is 29:17-24; Ps 27:1, 4, 13-14; Mt 9:27-31 Saturday: Is 30:19-21, 23-26; Ps 147:1-6; Mt 9:35 -10:1 Sunday: Is 11:1-10; Ps 72:1-2, 7- 8, 12-13, 17; Rom 15:4- 9; Mt 3:1-12
This Week’s Readings
Advent Communal Reconciliation Services
Sunday, December 15 3 pm -St. Agnes Church
6 pm -Christ the King Church
Individual Reconciliation Saturday, December 21 - 3pm
Monday, December 23 - Noon & 6pm
Holiday Mass Schedule Christmas Eve
4pm, 8pm* & 11pm *choir sings 30 minutes prior to Mass
Christmas Day
9am
New Year’s Eve 4pm New Year’s Day 9am
December Schedule
Page 3 December 1, 2019
Monday, December 2, 2019 Daily Mass (7:00am) Intention: All Priests & Religious Life by Eileen Young Communal Rosary (4:45pm) Liturgy of the Hours (5:10 pm) Tuesday, December 3, 2019 Daily Mass (7:00am) Intention: †Larry Meis by Sr. Vera Meis Tuesday Discussion Group (8-9 am) Liturgy of the Hours (5:30 pm) Wednesday, December 4, 2019 Daily Mass (8:15am) Intention: †Mary Cook by Eileen Young Liturgy of the Hours (5:30pm) Contemplative Prayer Group (6:00pm)
Thursday, December 5, 2019 Daily Mass (10:00am) at the Residency Liturgy of the Hours (5:30pm) Friday, December 6, 2019 Daily Mass (7:00am) Intention: †Raymond Gieselman by Lucille Koenig Liturgy of the Hours (5:30pm) Saturday, December 7, 2019 Weekend Mass (4:00pm) Intention: For the Parish Sunday, December 8, 2019 Weekend Mass (8:00am) Intention: †Alan & †Earl Langel by Jim & Nancy Kerr Weekend Mass (10:30am) Intention: †Don Overman by Eileen Young
This Week’s Schedule
Advent Series
All sessions are on Monday evenings at 7:00 pm in the Garden Room . They
are free and open for everyone. Session Six-
Monday, December 2 --Immediate Preparation for
Christmas
Finance Corner Sunday Collections
& ATW Giving
November Totals Actual $29849.57 ATW $8778.00 Budget $27000.00 Surplus (Deficit) $11627.57
Next weekend’s 2nd collection is for Christmas Flowers
Thank you for your continued
giving! The Journey of Grief
Sundays Nov. 3, 10, 17, 24,
Dec. 1, 8 5:00 to 6:30 p.m. St Agnes Church 2314 Third Avenue
Scottsbluff, NE 69361 (Come in the South Door—Proceed to
Garden Level) Everyone is Welcome
Important Dates To Remember In 2019
Dec 1 First Sunday of Advent Dec 15 Communal Penance Service 3pm @ St. Agnes 6pm @ Christ the King Dec 23 Individual Confessions Noon & 6pm Dec 24 Christmas Eve Masses -4pm, 8pm, 11pm Dec 25 Christmas Day Mass -9am
First Friday Eucharistic Adoration - will be on December 6 following the 7 am Mass. Please take time and pray for our priests, our Church, and our country.
All are invited to attend.
GIVE YOUR SPOUSE A SPECIAL GIFT THIS CHRISTMAS:
Sign up now for the next
Worldwide Marriage Encounter weekend
and receive the gift of a great marriage. Making a weekend will help you put a little Christmas in your
marriage every day! For more information call Pat & Janelle
Benson (308) 940-1105 Or visit WWME.org
Upcoming dates:
February 7-9: Ramada Inn Kearney, NE
August 28-30: Quality Inn Ogallala, NE
October 2-4: Immaculate Monastery Norfolk, NE
*Deadline to register is 1 month prior to
the date of the weekend*
Server Schedule Dec 7 4pm Elliette Verbeck Jacob Mark Dec 8 8am Isaac Blanco Matthew Hafner 10:30am Jose Julian Franco Gavin Mikoloyck
Lector Schedule Dec 7 & 14 4pm Jean Ahrens Dec 8 & 15 8am Bridget Peck 10:30am Chuck Schwartz
Young at Heart Young at Heart meets Tuesday, December 10th at noon in the Garden Room. Everyone of retirement age is invited to attend. Please bring a dish to share.
The Knights of Columbus St. Agnes Council will be hosting their breakfast buffet on Sunday, December 1st at the Knights Hall. Doors will open at
8:00 am and will close at noon. Breakfast includes pancakes, french toast, sausage, eggs, biscuits and gravy, and much more. Adults are $8.00 per person and children are $4.00 each. Everyone is welcomed to attend. Proceeds from the breakfasts go to help several charities in the valley including Camp Scott, Buckboard Riding Academy, local Veterans groups, St. Agnes School and many others.
Page 4 First Sunday of Advent
Page 5 December 1, 2019
Reflecting on God’s Word
How do you prepare a heart for Christmas? It is not all that different from how we prepare any room for the season. We move some things out and bring others in: lights, candles, and appropriate decorations. We can also apply this to our hearts, both our individual heart and our community heart. Today four voices offer direction. Jeremiah calls us to remember the God who worked on the house of Israel and Judah, bringing “a just shoot” (Jeremiah 33:15) to flower from the old stump that Israel had become, replacing lifeless leadership with a new branch of the house of David. Justice would flourish for all the people. Jeremiah calls us to trust God’s designs that go beyond the surface. Jesus’ words, however, seem to contradict all this, predicting signs that will dismay and perplex, with people dying of fright. What happened to security and justice? But all this frightening activity is not for those waiting on the Lord. Jesus’ words are strong: Don’t cower; stand erect. Don’t let your heart sink into sleep, dive into drink, or be corrupted by carousing. Redemption is in the room, a heartbeat away. Paul reminds us that we best renovate our hearts by filling them with God’s love for others. We do this by how we treat each other. A new year offers time to bring healing to damaged relationships, to reach out to someone we have neglected. And God works along with us, pouring the Holy Spirit into our hearts. —James A. Wallace, . . . Copy ight © 2012, World Librar Publications. All rights reser ed.
CALENDAR CRUNCH We live in an era when calendars seem to rule our lives—the office calendar, the school calendar, the holiday calendar, the social calendar. Not surprisingly, many of us rely more and more on technology to help us keep track of all our various obligations and responsibilities. The new Church year begins today and the scriptures invite us to pause, slow down, and consider some of our core priorities as disciples of the Lord. Statistics show that, more than any previous generation in human history, we have disposable time to use how we choose. We are not tied to the unrelenting agricultural calendar of traditional farm work or to sixteen-hour days in factories, yet we often feel rushed and over-committed. This all comes down to how we use our God-given time. The readings today declare that God will fulfill the promises that God has made. Until that time of perfect justice, righteousness, and salvation comes upon us we are asked to do four things: to be alert at all times, not to give in to worry and distractions, to pray for strength, and to care lovingly for one another. So, as we prepare to celebrate again the coming of the Savior, think about the stewardship of time. Think back to third grade when we learned the difference between needs and wants, and realize how much the line has blurred between the two since then. Is your calendar too full? Streamline it by looking at it with an informed eye: What must you do and what would you like to do, and how can you put God first this Advent? Copyright © 2009, World Library Publications. All rights reserved.
Celebrating Sunday for Catholic Families
First Sunday of Advent Gospel: Matthew 24:37-42
On the Way to Mass: Alert your children to the start of a new liturgical year. Ask them to notice what new color they see and changes in the church environment. On the Way Home From Mass: Talk about how your family can actively wait for Jesus this Advent season. Some ideas could be regular family prayer, service to the community, or an Advent calendar with daily acts of love. Living the Word: For family prayer, light an Advent wreath (or any candles) and listen to the Taizé chant “Wait for the Lord.” (Find recordings online.) Sing along once you are comfortable with the refrain. Even if the world rushes toward Christmas Day, use this time to focus purposefully on Christ to come into our hearts and lives.
Celebrating Sunday for Catholic Families 2019-2020
Find Us On
Facebook Twitter: st_agnes_church
Instagram: st.agnescatholicchurch Parish Website
www.st-agnes-church.com myParish App
In the App Store on your phone or tablet
Page 6 Frist Sunday of Advent
R_ligious E^u][tion Progr[m Email—[email protected] Religious Education Office—308-635-1362
Wednesday Formation Sessions 7 p.m. - 8:15 p.m.
4th - (6th-12th grades) Advent Reconciliation - Church
15th - Sunday - (9th-12th grades) Ignite Christmas Movie Night! 11th - (6th-8th grades) Formation Sessions (9th-10th grades) Formation Sessions (11th grade) Confirmation Formation 18th - (6th-8th grades) Gift Wrap - KC Hall - 7p.m. (9th-12th grades) Gift Wrap - KC Hall - 6p.m.
25th - No Formation sessions
Sunday Formation Sessions 9:15-10:15 a.m.
1st - No Formation Sessions 8th - (Pre-K-5th grades) 15th- (Pre-K-5th grades) 22nd - (Pre-K-5th grades) 29th - (Pre-K-5th grades)
Meet the 2020 Confirmation Candidates
William Edelbrock
My name is William Edelbrock. I live with my mom, sister, and stepdad. I go to Scottsbluff High School. I am in my junior year of high school. I live to watch T.V., play video games, and play soccer in my free time. After I receive the sacrament of Confirmation I plan to help the church out with the various events held at the church. The Pope’s Monthly Intentions Each year, the Holy Father asks for our prayers for a specific intention each month. You are invited to answer the Holy Father's request and to join with many people worldwide in praying for this intention each month. From time to time, the Holy Father may add a second prayer intention related to current events or urgent needs, like disaster relief. The second prayer request will help mobilize prayer and action related to the urgent situation. December 2019 - The Future of the Very Young. That every country take the measures necessary to prioritize the future of the very young, especially those who are suffering.
Page 7 December 1, 2019
Teens Encounter Christ TEC #110
January 18,-20, 2020 Christ the King - Gering
Teens Encounter Christ (TEC) is an intergenerational movement focusing on youth who are engaged in living out their passage from youth to young adulthood. TEC seeks to intervene into the lives of youth within its age range to "make the mystery of Christ, dying and rising, in His Church" present to them. By presenting the Paschal Mystery of Christ, this evangelization movement seeks to help youth work out their faith commitment and vocation within the concrete realities of their young lives. The core of the TEC movement is the proclamation of the central Christian message—the Paschal Mystery. Youth not only hear about death, resurrection, and mission in Christ, but they experience these mysteries. TEC weekends begin at 10:00 AM Saturday morning and end at 3:00 PM Monday afternoon.
Registration cost is $85.00 and includes meals, lodging, and t-shirt. Transportation is the responsibility of the participants. To register go to: https://www.gidiocese.org/yya/tec
The Advent Angel A Catholic Alternative to Elf on the Shelf
In a recent article that was written by Cindy Coleman, The Advent Angel: A Catholic Alternative to Elf on the Shelf, she offers advice in making the season of Advent more meaningful for families. In the article
the author proposed that families consider taking a break from the mischievous Elf on the Shelf and try an Advent Angel to encourage acts of kindness and to welcome messages from Scripture into the home.
The author lists several ideas to have fun with your Advent Angel: ♦The angel could arrive with a “letter of introduction” explaining about
who angels are and where their stories are in the Bible
♦The angel could leave a book about angels one day or a note encouraging your children to pray to their guardian angel.
♦Angels are God’s messengers, so they could leave Advent messages. They could leave a Scripture verse or Bible storybook. They could suggest an Advent act of kindness (either a specific deed, or challenge kids to do a random act of kindness). They could propose an Advent activity like watching a Christmas movie, making an ornament or craft, creating a Christmas card for a grandparent or someone special or anything else you have planned.
♦Take the daily prompts from the Advent Family Calendar that will be featured in the weekly bulletin during the season of Advent and use those as daily notes, including mentioning saint’s feast days. Searching the internet will turn up lists of both Advent Scriptures and suggested Advent acts of kindness for kids that you can print out or easily adapt into notes.
♦Or, if you want to stick with the elf theme, then just buy an elf and call him the “Advent Elf.” You can make any angel or elf into an “Advent Angel” or an ”Advent Elf” it might be an elaborate tree topper, or one from a dollar store.
♦Make your own rules: The bonus of creating your own family Advent Angel (or Advent Elf) is you get to make your own rules. You can create customs that work for you and your family. Make it as simple or involved as you like. Your angel can move to a new hiding place every day or only every few days, or never. They could move closer each day to your nativity set. How often they leave message, and what kind of messages they leave, are up to you. They leave whatever combination of messages, small gifts or treats you determine.
♦Don’t forget to check out the resources that are featured on
Formed.org. If you have not had a chance to check out the site, go to www.saintagnescatholichurch.formed.org and register today!
Page 8 December 1, 2019
Connecting Students and Families through Faith December 1, 2019
School Newsletter
St. Agnes Catholic School 205 E 23rd, Scottsbluff, NE
Ph: 308-632-6918
Wednesday, December 4th Mass @ 8:15
Reconcilia on follows Thursday, December 5th
Christmas Program @ 6:30 back doors open @ 6:10
Hotdog Dinner The annual hotdog dinner was held on Wednesday,
November 20th. Students in 4th & 5th grade cooked and served the dinner to their fellow schoolmates. Each
student paid $2 to enjoy the meal of hotdog, chips, beans, Jell-O and cookie. A total of $905.00 was raised to
purchase gifts for 10 children. The gifts will be wrapped and delivered to deserving children in the valley as part of the Tree of Love program. Thanks to all who helped make
this service project a wonderful success.
What’s Happening at St. Agnes School………...
Monday, Dec 2 Super Nachos w/ Taco meat, cheese sauce Black Beans Potato Circles Steamed Broccoli Mixed Fruit Helpers: Shannon Sierra Angela Hernandez
Tuesday, Dec 3 Chicken Patty Mashed Potatoes & gravy Steamed Carrots Apple Slices Helpers: Paty Garcia Sheree Verbeck
Wednesday, Dec 4 Spaghetti & meat balls Fresh Green Salad Pineapple Tidbits Cookie Helpers: Melissa Dudley Lana Zulkoski
Thursday, Dec 5 Corn Dog Tater Barrels Peas 1/2 Banana Helpers: Bridget Peck Irma Torres
Friday, Dec 6 Pancakes Sausage Patty Spinach Potato Triangle Orange Wedges Helpers: Sarah Zeiler Shannon Sierra
Hot Lunch Menu for December 2nd - December 6th, 2019
Advent December 1st marks the first Sunday of Advent. In preparation for the coming of
Christmas, St. Agnes students will be participating in the Rainbow Advent program every Tuesday and Thursday morning beginning at 8:15. Students from various
classes will be leading the celebrations. All are welcome to attend.
The Emperor’s New Clothes Kindergarten-5th grade students enjoyed the Missoula Children’s
Theater performance of The Emperor’s New Clothes
presented at the Midwest Theater on Friday Nov. 22nd. In the performance, the Emperor takes the advice of “Dress for
Success” a bit too seriously and begins wanting to impress his friends. When the clothes and
opinions of others become more important than the people of his kingdom,
trouble brewed. To help the Emperor find his way back to
his heart, his true friends create an elaborate “birthday suit” for
the Emperor to wear for is birthday parade. The Emperor
quickly and humbly learned that sometimes, less is more. What a great message! The students
thoroughly enjoyed the performance, and watching our
own Graecyn Benton, 5th grader, as an artisan jeweler.
Young Engineers First grade students were charged with the task of
working in pairs to design a plan then build as tall of
structure as possible using cranberries, tooth picks,
marshmallows and gum drops. These little minds and hands
went right to work, showing great team work and effort. While some were successful in building a relatively tall tower, others had system failure.
Great discussion ensued regarding what needed to be changed to improve the original design (a
stronger base, less weight at the top, etc). It was amazing to watch these young ones use trial and error to improve their plan. We have some very
smart first graders who may one day be the designers of tall buildings.
Classroom News………... Pre-K Class
By Nicole Boness Pre-k just celebrated their Thanksgiving Feast. They made turkey hats to wear, colored their own placemats, and loved getting to make their own pumpkin pies in a cup. We talked about being thankful and each child wrote what they were thankful for. In science, we have been learning how to use a tape measure and how to measure things, We have measured items around the classroom, noodles, and even measured ourselves. We have also been learning how to arrange items from smallest to biggest and shortest to tallest. At the beginning of November we celebrated 50’s day. We got to dress up, play games, and drink root beer floats. The kids got to make their own records, hula hoop with bubblegum, bowl, make crafts, and dance to fun 50’s music. We are very excited for December. We recently just changed out our centers. We have a writing center where they get to write letters to Santa and make Christmas cards for their family. We have a tree decorating station and a gift wrap station. Pre-k is very excited to play in these centers and be Santa’s little helpers. Pre-K wishes everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Holidays!
Fifth Grade Class By Liz Salazar
Another month has come and gone for the 5th Graders. We continue to be busy and time is flying by! The class has been divided into four reading groups. Each group is reading a different novel and working on various skills. The entire class has been working on writing complete answers to essay type questions. Each group will focus on a variety of skills such as retelling, sequencing, predictions, story elements, and more. In math, we have begun to work on fractions and divisibility rules. We are also working on improving number sense by taking part in Number Talks on Thursday. We have practiced estimation by trying to discover how many pages in a magazine, and then using that information to guess how many pages in a book, and then in a text book. We will continue to work on estimation throughout the year. This past week we focused on fractions and played fraction bingo and next Thursday we will be working on factors. We really enjoy our Thursday math!