Daily Monday - Friday 8:00 A.M

Rectory Office Father John Reiker

Pastor ext. 102 johnreiker01@gmail.com

Deacon Richard L. Stevens

rlsteve@sbcglobal.net

Deacon Jim G’Sell james.r.gsell@gmail.com

314-484-2055

Mrs. Rusalyne Ahlemeyer Business Manager, ext. 104

rusalynesahr@att.net

Mrs. Jackie Dostal Secretary, ext. 100 jackiesahr@att.net

Cafeteria Ext. 212

For submissions to our facebook page, the website, or our parish app please email Mike at mike63051@yahoo.com. Or phone: 314-401-3334 Please allow several days for submission to be approved and posted. Thank You

Religious Instruction Parish School of Religion

Phone (636) 677-4868 ext 118 Grades (pre-K through 8)

Mrs. Kathy Joslin mrskathyjoslin@yahoo.com

Adults - RCIA Please contact:

The Rectory Office 636-677-4868 ext. 100

Sacramental Preparation Baptism Preparation Meeting: Infant Baptisms require parental attendance at a meeting prior to baptism. Meetings will be held with the Pastor in the rectory. Call rectory office for information 636-677-4868, ext. 100. Baptisms: After 10:15 AM Mass on a Sunday of mutual arrangement. Call rectory office to schedule 636-677-4868, ext. 100.

Bulletin Deadline Monday 9:00 a.m. the week you need it to be published in the bulletin. Notices must be submitted in writing: email text to jackiesahr@att.net.

Marriages: Make arrangements with Priest or Deacon of your choice no less than six months prior to proposed wedding date.

Parish Help Line: St. Vincent de Paul Society, 1-877-238-3228, ext. 3329

New Parishioners: Welcome! Please register by contacting the rectory during business hours @ 677-4868 ext. 100

Change of Address or Telephone: Please call the rectory during business hours. 677-4868 ext. 100

Archdiocese of St .Louis Website: www.archstl.org

Catholic Elementary School: All of our parish children who wish to attend a catholic elementary school may do so at the school of their choice and still remain parishioners of St. Anthony of Padua. Call rectory for details.

Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord - Year C April 14, 2019

Mass Schedule

Confessions Saturday 4:20-4:50 P.M.

By appointment anytime

Holy Days 8:00 A.M. - 7:00 P.M.

RECTORY CLOSED ON ALL HOLY DAYS

Sunday Saturday 5:00 P.M.

Sunday 8:30 A.M., 10:15 A.M.

St. Anthony of Padua 3009 High Ridge Blvd. High Ridge, MO 63049

Business Hours Monday - Friday

7:30 A.M. - 2:30 P.M. Phone (636) 677-4868

Fax (636) 677-2781 Website www.stanthonyhr.org

Pastor Father John Reiker

Parish Mission Statement Our mission is to be on fire with the love of Jesus Christ,

and with the help of the Holy Spirit, to celebrate our community of faith in the Eucharist

and to share God’s love and mercy with our neighbors through our ministries and evangelization.

Pastor’s Column

St. Anthony of Padua, High Ridge, MO

Spread the Gospel, the Good News about Jesus and His St. Anthony Family. A Holy Community through Holy Communion!

Prayer of the Week Holy Week Rice Bowl Prayer

During Holy Week, we walk with Jesus and remem-ber that he endured the suffering and pain of Good Friday to give us eternal life with God. During Lent, we have mirrored Christ’s love for us by encounter-ing our brothers and sisters most in need around the world, by giving up what we enjoy and making sacrifices for the good of others. As we end our Lenten journey of encounter, we pray that these our Lenten sacrifices, may be an offering of solidarity and a promise to continue to serve the poor and vulnerable. As good stewards of your many gifts, may we always remember that when we encounter those who thirst and hunger, those forced to flee their homes because of vio-lence or lack of opportunity, and anyone who needs comfort, we are encountering our risen Lord Jesus! We ask this in name of Jesus our Lord. Amen.

Joke of the Week

Things you will never hear in church

Hey, it’s my turn to sit in the front pew.

I was so enthralled, I never noticed your sermon went twenty-five minutes over.

Personally, I find witnessing to my faith much more enjoyable than golf.

I love it when we sing hymns I’ve never heard be-fore.

Nothing inspires me and strengthens my commit-ment like our annual stewardship campaign.

Saint of the Week Blessed Frederic Ozanam

Founder, St. Vincent de Paul Society (1813-1853)

France in the nineteenth century was rent by the continuing reverberations of the Revolution. The Church hierarchy allied itself with the conservative cause, incurring the distrust of the working class and the disdain of those intellectuals who embraced the republican spirit of liberty. One man who tried to bridge this gap was a Catholic layman and scholar, Frederic Ozanam. As a student and later professor at the Sorbonne, Ozanam was moved by the appalling squalor of the urban poor. Convinced that Christianity is not about ideas but about deeds of love, he formed a fellow-ship of Christian laypeople who would immerse themselves in the world of the poor, performing acts of charity at a personal sacrifice. This became the St. Vincent de Paul Society. In entering the world of the poor, Ozanam saw the world and the Gospel from their perspective. He challenged the Church to renounce its alliance with the rich and powerful, along with nostalgia for a by-gone prerevolutionary era. The poor, he believed, called Christians to conversion. They were “messengers of God to test our justice and our char-ity and to save us by our works.” His stance earned the suspicion of fellow Catholics, leaving him iso-lated and discouraged. He died on September 8, 1853. Nevertheless, his society spread across the globe. He was beatified in 1997 by Pope John Paul II. “The Church would do better to support herself upon the people, who are the true ally of the Church, poor as she is, devout as she, blessed as she by all the benedictions of the Savior.” —Blessed Frederic Ozanam

April 14, 2019

Holy Week Schedule

Holy Thursday, April 18 ✞ 7:00 PM MASS OF THE LORD’S SUPPER

with washing of the feet and Eucharistic Pro-cession of First Holy Communion Candi-dates and all.

Good Friday, April 19 ✞ 7:00 PM SOLEMN COMMEMORATION OF

OUR LORD”S PASSION. This is a beautiful commemoration of Jesus’ death as we thank our Lord for giving His life for love of us on the Cross. EVERYONE should come on Good Friday to show our love for Jesus by our veneration of the Cross and Holy Com-munion.

(Holy Saturday) Easter Vigil Mass, April 20

✞ 8:00 PM FIRST MASS OF OUR LORD’S RESURRECTION. This is the most uplifting and exciting celebration of the Church year.

With: ✞ Fire Service

✞ God’s Word

✞ Baptisms

✞ Renewal of our Baptismal Vows

✞ Confirmations

✞ First Holy Communions Please come to welcome new members into our Catholic Family. BRING BELLS IN A TOWEL TO RING DURING THE GLORIA!

Easter Sunday, April 21 ✞ Masses at 8:30 and 10:15 with re-

newal of our Baptismal Vows.

Joy in our Risen Lord Jesus!

What are you doing for Holy Week this year?

It’s OK if your list includes coloring Easter eggs, buy-ing candy, photos with the Easter Bunny, buying new outfits and preparing for a big family dinner. But are we giving even higher priority to joining with Je-sus and His Family in celebrating His Dying and Ris-ing to Eternal Life?

The Sacred Triduum -

Three Days that Changed the world

and can still change our World

The Triduum (the three days of Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday/Easter Vigil Mass) are meant to be a retreat of “40 Hours” - a time to pray and grow in love for Jesus and of Jesus for all. These sacred days are blessed times to come to-gether to pray in church and on our own. Every Catholic of every age should want to celebrate our salvation together on Holy Thursday (7pm) and Good Friday (7pm) and Holy Saturday/Easter Vigil Mass (8pm) - which really are one continuous lit-urgy. Come and let Jesus make us and our world “a new creation!” (Bring your bells wrapped in towels to Easter Vigil to ring during Gloria!)

What do you do with a Blessed Palm?

Many display palms behind a crucifix or religious picture. You can weave them into crosses as a fam-ily while they are still green. An old Italian custom is to present your palm branch to someone you have hurt as a sign of reconciliation.

St. Anthony of Padua, High Ridge, MO

Encounter Lent From desert to resurrection Pray to encounter Christ in your life and in every member of our human family. Through Catholic Relief Services, we en-counter our brothers and sisters most in need around the world. ✞ Catholics in the United States touch more than

130 million lives through CRS programs. ✞ Motivated by the example of Jesus Christ, CRS

reaches communities in more than 100 coun-tries.

✞ CRS Rice Bowl helps us live out our Catholic faith during Lent through prayer, fasting and almsgiving.

Thank You for changing lives this Lent! 75% of your CRS Rice Bowl donation supports Catholic Relief Services programs around the world. 25% helps alleviate hunger and poverty in your local diocese. To learn more, visit crsricebowl.org. My Lenten gifts change lives $1 a day for 40 days of Lent means 1 month of food for a family 2 years of seed for a farmer 1 emergency kit for refugees Fill your CRS Rice Bowl with dollars and coins, or give online at crsricebowl.org/give Return after Easter to Church or Rectory or PSR.

Lenten Prayer CRS Rice Bowl

God of Hope, You journey with us through the desert. You challenge us to become more like Christ. During this Lenten season , may our prayers, fasting and almsgiving give us the courage to go forth from these 40 days in the desert to share our gifts with the world. May our encounter with you allow us to bring your hope to all of our human family. Amen.

A Friendly Reminder: Sunday, April 14th

ALL FIRST COMMUNION AND CONFIRMATION FAMILIES AND ALL PSR FAMILIES

AND ALL PARISH MEMBERS ARE WARMLY INVITED

TO COME CELEBRATE PASSOVER SUPPER

Palm Sunday - April 14 4 PM in Cafeteria

As a parish family we can help the 1st Com-munion and Confirmation Candidates to better understand the setting of The Last Supper of Holy Thursday, our 1st Mass. We will have prayers, symbolic foods, Bible readings, songs and candy games as part of the Supper. It is fun and prayerful for everyone.

What to bring - serving for (12):

A-H vegetable/pasta I-R appetizer or salads

S-Z dessert

Welcome To all our Guests, Fr. John Reiker, Deacon Dick Stevens and Deacon Jim G’Sell and All your sisters and brothers at St. Anthony’s Parish Family welcome you and hope that your time with us may be a moment of spiritual experience. You are always welcome here and if you would like to become a member of this parish or are thinking to become a Catholic, contact the Rectory office. Our phone is 636-677-4868 ext. 100.

John Kindt Frank Kohn

Roman Stolarski Mason Korn

Jimmy Bowles Jack Matlock Dave Riley

Becky Quigley Ryan Bowles

Jacqueline Gries Fran Melenbrink

Sylvia Doucot Isaiah Thornton Trent Rynders

Emersen Hercules Dolores Roser Caleb Scanlon

Bob Kilper Kady Baranek

Mike Pinski Cathy LaRue

Sharon Seiberlich Gerry Harper

Margie Krupinski Donald Moore Bob Townsend

James Cooseman Erwin Nickels

Connie Struckhoff Marjorie Korn

Freeman Fouts

Julie Marlinghaus Mary Ellen Miller Shirley Caggiano

Gerri Barbeau Carol Bardon

Jim Kreienkamp Brad Hook

Ryan Heard John McCarthy

Lainey Bartleson Deacon Bill Casseau Rosalie Cooseman

Brycen Kalesh– McMunn Matthew Carley Earl Challans Tom Conboy

Mason Lohman Sue Barton Kathy Ryals

Joe Hunt Terry Hunt Adam Petry

Nancy Kalkbrenner Dean Stegmann Robert Beougher Richard Siebert

Judy Brouk Marcus Utama Clara Gansner Janet Parker

Justin Schnieders

Please Pray for the Sick

Names of the sick will remain on the list above for a month. You may contact the office to have a name added to the list for an addi-tional month at a time. New additions will appear at the top of the list as they are received.

NOTE: Due to privacy laws, hospitals no longer notify us when parishioners are patients. If you wish a visit from the parish staff please notify the office. Thank you.

This Week with our St. Anthony Parish Family

Monday, April 15 Monday of Holy Week 8:00 A.M. Hoelting Family Tuesday, April 16 Tuesday of Holy Week 8:00 A.M. Rae Rottmann (intention) Wednesday, April 17 Wednesday of Holy Week 8:00 A.M. Jennifer Wu Thursday, April 18 Holy Thursday 7:00 PM Archie McConnell Friday, April 19 Good Friday Fast and Abstinence 7:00 PM Celebration of the Passion of the Lord Saturday, April 20 Holy Saturday/Easter Vigil 8:00 PM Jamie Schmidt Sunday, April 21 Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord 8:30 A.M. Evelyn Tucker 10:15 A.M. Parishioners of St. Anthony

Mass Intentions

Readings for the Week

April 14, 2019

Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord April 14, 2019

The Lord GOD is my help, therefore I am not disgraced.

-- Isaiah 50:7a

Monday: Is 42:1-7; Ps 27:1-3, 13-14; Jn 12:1-11 Tuesday: Is 49:1-6; Ps 71:1-6, 15, 17; Jn 13:21-33, 36-38 Wednesday: Is 50:4-9a; Ps 69:8-10, 21-22, 31, 33-34; Mt 26:14-25 Thursday: Chrism Mass: Is 61:1-3a, 6a, 8b-9; Ps 89:21-22, 25, 27; Rv 1:5-8; Lk 4:16-21 Lord s Supper: Ex 12:1-8, 11-14; Ps 116:12-13, 15-16bc, 17-18; 1 Cor 11:23-26; Jn 13:1-15 Friday: Is 52:13 -- 53:12; Ps 31:2, 6, 12-13, 15-17, 25; Heb 4:14-16; 5:7-9; Jn 18:1 -- 19:42 Saturday: a) Gn 1:1 -- 2:2 [1:1, 26-31a]; Ps 104:1-2, 5-6, 10, 12, 13-14, 24, 35; or Ps 33:4-7, 12-13, 20-22; b) Gn 22:1-18 [1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18]; Ps 16: 5, 8-11; c) Ex 14:15 -- 15:1; Ex 15:1-6, 17-18; d) Is 54:5-14; Ps 30:2, 4-6, 11-13; e) Is 55:1-11; Is 12:2-6; f) Bar 3:9-15, 32 -- 4:4; Ps 19:8-11; g) Ez 36:16-17a, 18-28; Ps 42:3, 5; 43:3-4 or Is 12:2-3, 4bcd, 5-6 or Ps 51:12-15, 18-19; h) Rom 6:3-11; i) Ps 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23; Lk 24:1-12 Sunday: Acts 10:34a, 37-43; Ps 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23; Col 3:1-4 or 1 Cor 5:6b-8; Jn 20:1-9 or Lk 24:1-12 or (at an afternoon or evening Mass) Lk 24:13-35

April 14, 2019 - April 21, 2019 SUNDAY - April 14 Children’s Liturgy of the Word 10:15 Mass PSR 11:30 AM - 12:45 PM Family Faith Group 11:30 AM - 12:45PM (café) PASSOVER SUPPER 4:00 PM cafeteria MONDAY - April 15 MUSICAL Stations of the Cross 6:30 PM followed by the Patriotic Rosary TUESDAY - April 16 Quilters 9:00 AM Cub Scouts 6:30 PM (aud) Choir 7:00 PM RCIA 7:00 PM Rectory Women’s Small Faith Sharing Group 7:00 PM (Little Lambs) WEDNESDAY - April 17 Youth Group 6:00 PM Men’s ACTS Team 6:30 PM (church) 4th Degree Knights of Columbus 7:00 PM HOLY THURSDAY - April 18 Server Practice 6:00 PM Mass of the Lord’s Supper, washing of the feet, and Eucharistic Procession 7:00 PM GOOD FRIDAY - April 19 Fast & Abstinence Server Practice 6:00 PM Clean Church Rectory Office Closed Celebration of the Passion of the Lord 7:00 PM HOLY SATURDAY - April 20 Server Practice 7:00 PM Easter Vigil 8:00 PM NO 5:00 PM Mass and NO Confessions EASTER SUNDAY - April 21 A most blessed and happy Easter is wished for all!

Activities This Week

Upcoming Events

NO FISH FRY APRIL 19th! Thanks to all who helped and participated in any way! MOST Rummage Sale Saturday, April 27th May 3rd First Friday Eucharistic Adoration May 4th First Saturday Prayer Breakfast

St. Anthony of Padua, High Ridge, MO

Diaper Drive The weekend of April 14, the Permanent Deacons in the Archdiocese of St. Louis, in conjunction with the Respect life office, will be collecting diapers as part of our 3rd annual diocesan-wide Pro-Life service project to assist families in need. Donations of dia-pers should be brought to church and placed in the vestibule.

All diapers collected will be donated to assist fami-lies in our parish community (St. Vincent de Paul and the Food Pantry). For more information speak to our permanent deacons, Deacon Dick Stevens or Deacon Jim G’Sell, or give the office a call. We ask you to pray for the success of this project and to please be as generous as possible. We are in need of diapers sizes 3,4,5 and pull ups.

Bible Study

NO Bible Study Sunday, April 14th - Palm Sunday

Sunday, April 21st - Easter Sunday

MUSICAL Stations of the Cross Patriotic Rosary

Stations of the Cross will be held Monday eve-ning, April 15th at 6:30PM with the Patriotic Ro-sary to follow. We will have special MUSICAL Stations this Monday. We encourage everyone to come for stations and if up to it, stay for the Rosary.

Choir

Tuesdays - Choir 7:00 PM for practice All new members welcome: Teens, adults and any 7th or 8th graders Questions/concerns: Nancy: upholster52@aol.com

The STAY high school youth group is now meeting weekly. Wednesday evenings at 6:00 PM to 6:30 PM for social time and meeting starts at 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM. To receive our emails, please send your name and e-mail address to Rachel at beautifulmountain96@gmail.com to be added to the list.

We would like to thank

Catholic Cruises and Tours for advertising in our parish bulletin. Because of their generosity we do not pay for our bulletins to be printed. Please patronize our advertisers and thank them for supporting our parish.

We clean Church every Friday after the 8:00 AM Mass. Our Heavenly Dusters are in need of help! If you can offer any time, it would be deeply appreciated. Thank you!

ATTENTION BUSINESS OWNERS and GENEROUS PARISHIONERS!

Mary Ottenberg from JS Paluch will be working on setting up the advertising sponsorships for our bulletin. Advertisements can be purchased for a business, family or a sponsor ad. Please support our sponsors! Their generosity helps us to enjoy our FREE bulletin publication every week throughout the year! If you would like to have your business card handed out on a weekly basis and can help this effort, please call Mary Ottenberg at 314-757-7598, or email @ ottenbergm@jspaluch.com

Good Friday Collection for the Church in the Holy Land

Christians around the world are united in a special way during Lent, Holy Week and Easter. Our hearts, minds and prayers are also especially aware of the Holy Land.

Our parish, once a year on Good Friday, is called on to support Christians in the Holy Land. Many Christians in the Holy Land depend on the collection for their lives.

As a pontifical collection requested by Pope Francis, the annual Good Friday Collection offers a direct link for parishioners to be witnesses of peace and to help protect the Holy Places. When you donate on Good Fri-day, you are supporting Christians in the Holy Land.

Franciscans and others in the Holy Land are housing and feeding the poor, providing religious formation and education, maintaining shrines and parishes, and conducting pastoral ministry.

April 14, 2019

Jonah Prayer Ministry

Our Parish’s Jonah Prayer Ministers have a prayer box mounted on the inner wall of the vestibule. You will find it on the right-hand side (near the candle stand) as you enter church. This box is for written prayer requests. All

petitions are kept confidential by your Jonah Prayer Ministers.

Follow us on Facebook Saint Anthony of Padua

High Ridge

SERVERS & SERVER PRACTICE:

Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday

Number of Servers needed:

Holy Thursday (4-18)- at least 6 Good Friday (4-19)- at least 4

Number of Servers needed: Holy Saturday (4-20) - as many as possible BUT

at least 6

Practice one hour prior to service for each day.

Ministry Schedule

The Liturgy Committee, along with sign-up sheets, will handle scheduling for Holy Week and Easter Sunday.

Parish Financial Report

Thank You for Your Gifts to God & Your Parish Family

Due to the early publishing deadline, totals for the April 7, 2019 collection were NOT yet available.

God bless you for your generous contributions.

We all appreciate your sacrifices and love of our St. Anthony Family!

Are we in your will?

For more information, please visit our website: www.stanthonyhr.org

Collections for April 2019 Weekly Contributions (general fund)

Building Fund Catholic Home Missions Holy Land/Good Friday

Collection for Retired Priests Easter

Catholic Home Missions Appeal

Thank you for your generous support of last week’s Catholic Home Missions Appeal. Our parish raised funds to strengthen the Church at home and ensure that the Gospel spreads across the United States. If you missed the ap-peal, it’s not too late to give! Just visit www.usccb.org/nationalcollections and click on the “How to Give” link on the left.

St. Anthony of Padua, High Ridge, MO

April 14, 2019

St. Anthony PSR News For information contact Kathy Joslin at mrskathyjoslin@yahoo.com or call 636-677-4868 ext. 118 or 636-677-1567. April Prayers & Lists ~1st grade – Review all prayers ~2nd grade – Review all prayers ~3rd grade – Review all prayers ~4th grade – Review all prayers ~5th grade – Apostles’ Creed ~6th grade – Apostles’ Creed ~7th grade – Apostles’ Creed ~8th grade – Act of Love Encourage your children to pray every day. “Prayer is our greatest weapon…” Padre Pio

April 14 – Palm Sunday Family Faith Group meets 11:30-12:45 in the cafeteria Grades 1-8 Stations of the Cross

April 21 – Easter Sunday No Classes “Apart from the cross there is no other ladder by which we may get to heaven.” -- Saint Rose of Lima

Children Celebrating

Faith

St. Anthony of Padua, High Ridge, MO

We are now accepting applications for the June 20-23, 19 Men’s ACTS Missions Retreat weekend. This parish-based retreat offers the opportunity to renew your spirituality, to strengthen your faith and its application in your daily life, and to the build lasting friend-ships among members of the parish community. It is presented by your fellow parishioners, with spiritual direction from Fr. John Reiker and Fr. Dennis Schmidt. The retreat begins Thursday evening, June 20th, with check-in at 6:15 pm at Our Lady Queen of Peace in House Springs. Transpor-tation will be provided to and from the retreat center .The retreat concludes at OLQP at the 9:30 Mass on Sunday, June 23rd, with a reception following in the school cafeteria. Approximately 10- 14 days prior to the Retreat, you will receive a letter describing what to bring with you (clothing, reading material, etc) for the weekend.

The cost for each retreatant is $260.00. A deposit of $60.00 is requested to reserve your place. The balance, $200.00, will be due at the time of check-in on Thursday, June 20th. Financial difficulties should not prevent anyone from attending this retreat. If you wish to inquire about special arrangements or need more info, please contact any of the following:

Director - Rich Ortmann 314-574-0084

Co-Directors-Mike Kinworthy 314-686-0876

Pete Ostlund 314-655-8363

Please make checks payable to: St. Anthony's ACTS and send or deliver this reservation form and deposit fee to either parish office.

RESERVATION INFORMATION Name:________________________ Parish: ________________________

Address / City / Zip Code: ______________________________ Cell Phone #: ______________________________ Home Phone #: ______________________________ Work Phone #: (Opt) ______________________________ Primary Email Address: ______________________________ Any special physical, dietary, medical or other needs for the retreat weekend? ______________________________ ______________________________

EMERGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION:

Name:________________________ Relationship: __________________

Cell Phone #: ______________________________ Home Phone #: ______________________________ Primary Email Address: ______________________________

OLQP & St. Anthony's

Men's ACTS Retreat Mercy Retreat Center

Kirkwood, MO June 20-23, 2019

"He welcomed them,

spoke to them about the Kingdom of God and healed those who needed

to be cured"

April 14, 2019

St. Anthony of Padua & Our Lady Queen of Peace Men's ACTS Mercy Retreat Center

in Kirkwood, MO June 20-23, 2019

The ACTS (Adoration, Community, Theology, Service) Retreat movement began in San Antonio, Texas, in 1997 and came to St. Louis in the early 2000’s. It is now thriving in over 65 parishes in St. Louis and starting in many other cities. Popularity keeps increasing with the ACTS Retreats because they are parish-based, uplifting and faith-enriching week-ends. Part of the ACTS purpose is assisting parishes and parishioners in spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ among Catholic communities with faith filled enrichment and fellowship by promoting, facilitating and sponsoring ACTS retreats. As we find in the reading from: Acts 2:42-47.

Adoration

A response to God’s love through prayer and worship

Community Participating in the One Body of Christ as Church

Theology

Deepening our relationship with God in order to better fulfill his will

Service Answering the call to discipleship by following the model He gave us

Q: How long is the retreat? What do I prepare for?

A: The retreat begins at OLQP in House Springs on Thursday night at 6:15pm and is complete at 9:30 AM Mass on Sunday at OLQP Bring very casual, comfortable clothing. While most of the activities take place indoors, you will likely spend some time out-doors. Also, pack things you would typically bring for a short trip such as toiletries, medications, etc. Bedding and towels are pro-vided, but you might want to pack a pillow and extra towel if you like. Also bring clothes appropriate for Mass on Sunday. Q: What about accommodations and meals?

A: You have a private room with your own restroom facilities. Three Meals served daily, with PLENTY of snacks, water, soda and coffee. Q: Are there any requirements for making the retreat?

A: All are invited, Catholics and non-Catholics, in or out of our parish communities. The only requirement is a willingness to spend more time with God and fellow parishioners. Q: How is the retreat run?

A: Your fellow parishioners will run the retreat. They spend time prior to the retreat, meeting weekly and preparing spiritually for the retreat, as well as handling most of the planning and logistics for the weekend. Each team has a priest who has a role in the weekend as well. Q: So what exactly happens on the retreat? What activities? Is it a silent retreat? If not, am I required to participate?

A: This a little different, and part of the blessing ane enjoyment of the weekend is discovering what it means to you as it hap-pens. For this reason, it’s hard to go into specifics. There is prayer, reflection, Mass, opportunity for sacraments and discussion. You can choose to participate in the discussion as much or as little as you like. People are different, so their experience and reaction to the retreat differs, but if you talk to men and women who have been on the retreat, you’ll see that responses are typically very positive.

Q: So if I go on the retreat, am I required to participate more in the future? Do I have to do certain things? Do I have to be on a retreat team or be involved in other retreat centered acitivities?

A: The short answer is no, you don’t have to do anything after retreat. Hopefully during your retreat you learn things about your faith, yourself, and the way others practice their faith. The goal isn’t to build a larger parish retreat group; it is to build a stronger relationship with Jesus and with others in the parish community.

St. Anthony of Padua, High Ridge, MO

April 14, 2019