July is the Month of the Precious Blood of Jesus

Devotion to the Precious Blood of Jesus is one of the oldest devotions in the Church.  Our Blessed Mother adored the most Precious Blood of her infant son on the day of his circumcision as the first drops of his precious blood were shed amongst many tears for the salvation of our sinful humanity.  Pope John XXIII stated, "the world can still set itself right and always will be able to, because the voice and blood of Christ cry out for pity and mercy... Devotion to the precious blood is the devotion of our time...it is devotion for all souls, for the whole world."

CCD Registration

Registration is now taking place for our Religious Education Program for the 2009/2010 school year.  Registration forms can be found in the vestibule of the church.  They can be mailed to us or dropped in the collection basket.  Parents are reminded that if their child is not attending a Catholic school or home schooled, your child needs to be enrolled in formal religious education classes.  It’s the promise you made when you were married in the Church, as well as on the day your child was baptized.  Be faithful to your promises to God and God will be faithful to you!

The Good Old Summertime

At one of my previous parish assignments, when summer vacation came around we had to always remind the school children to go to church during the summer break.  The pastor used to tell the children at the last school Mass that there is “NO vacation from your vocation!”  What he meant by this is that everyone who is a baptized Christian has received a special vocation or calling from God and it is full-time.  We are called by God to practice our faith always and everywhere, even during the “good old summertime!”  Even when we are on vacation!  Whether we stay at home all summer or travel, our vocation goes right along with us and that means we make time EVERY SUNDAY to attend Mass!  Because “there’s NO vacation from a vocation!” going to Mass these days when you are away from your home parish is not a difficult thing to do.  We spend a lot of time planning vacations, buying tickets, making reservations, packing and planning fun activities.  We need to also plan for Sunday Mass!  It’s very easy to do this.  You can use your computer to do this.  Just go to www.masstimes.org and you will find the Sunday Mass schedule for every Church in the United States.  First find your state, then your city and then the parish nearest to where you will be.  Along with schedules, frequently there are given maps, telephone numbers, email addresses, and parish websites.  It’s so easy!  And going to Mass at a church other than your own can be a very educational experience.  You will either grow in appreciation of your own parish or bring back new ideas to help build up the community you belong to.  Either way it’s a positive experience because you know you’ve been faithful to something as important in life as Sunday Mass!

Good News for Candle Lighters

We have recently been notified by our candle supplier that the cost of candle wax has gone down.  We are happy to pass the savings on to all of you who have the devotional custom of lighting votive candles.  The new offering is $3.  This is for a limited time only, so take advantage of this low cost.  Lighting a candle symbolizes bringing the light of Christ to our prayers.  A candle represents our prayer remaining before Jesus, the Blessed Mother or the Saints.    

Upcoming Repairs and Improvements

Future maintenance projects will include the following in the months of June, July and August:

v       Installation of trumpet for church organ (June)  COMPLETED

v       Painting of vestibule statue of St. John Gualbert (June)  COMPLETED

v       Painting of exterior window frames of front of rectory (June)

v       Painting of altar server church sacristy and passageway, along with replacement of ceiling panels (July)

v       Carpeting of church choir loft (July)

v       Re-finishing school gym floor (August)