The results for our mass time survey are in you get them here first.
Saturday 5:00pm. Sunday 9:00am and 11:00am.
Here are the vote totals:
Saturday 4:00pm - 58
Saturday 4:30pm - 72
Saturday 5:00pm - 280
Saturday 5:30pm - 102
Sunday 9:00am and 11:00am - 320
Sunday 9:30am and 11:30am - 198
Thank you for taking part in the survey. Mass times will not change until late spring or early summer. We will give you plenty of notice before changing the Sunday mass times.
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Haiti Earthquake
It is truly heartbreaking to watch the news reports of the tragic earthquake in Haiti. It is so sad to see a nation that has so little suffer so much.
On the weekend of January 23/24 we will take up a special collection for Haiti. If you wish to make a contribution before then you can make out a check to Catholic Relief Services and send it to the parish office 8300 Old Columbia Rd. Fulton, MD 20759.
I ask you to pray for all those suffering in Haiti, especially the dead. Among those killed in the earthquake was Archbishop Joseph Serge Milot, the Archbishop of Port-au-Prince. Please remember him in your prayers.
On the weekend of January 23/24 we will take up a special collection for Haiti. If you wish to make a contribution before then you can make out a check to Catholic Relief Services and send it to the parish office 8300 Old Columbia Rd. Fulton, MD 20759.
I ask you to pray for all those suffering in Haiti, especially the dead. Among those killed in the earthquake was Archbishop Joseph Serge Milot, the Archbishop of Port-au-Prince. Please remember him in your prayers.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
You Choose
In preparation for our new Faith Formation Center we are conducting 2 surveys that we would like you to participate in.
The first survey (this is for Religious Ed families) has to do with the scheduling of our Religious Education classes for the Fall of 2010. You should have received an email explaining the survey and asking for your response. I ask each of you to respond to this very important survey so that we can schedule classes at times that are the most convenient to the largest number of families. If you did not recieve this survey in your email please contact Joanna religiouseducation@instrumentofpeace.org or Becki youthminister@instrumentofpeace.org .
The second survey is for every parishioner because it deals with our weekend mass schedule. We want to schedule our weekend liturgies at convenient times for you and at times that will help to alleviate some of the traffic congestion that we face every Sunday morning. You will have an opportunity to vote on the mass schedule this weekend January 9 & 10 and on the weekend of January 16 & 17. If you would like to register your vote early please check your choices on the survey in the left hand column.
The new mass schedule will not take effect until late spring or early summer and we will give you plenty of notice before the change takes place. I hope to hear from you.
The building construction continues to move forward in spite of rain, snow and extreme cold. Construction is a little behind schedule but at this point not enough to delay our move in date which is planned for late Spring.
The first survey (this is for Religious Ed families) has to do with the scheduling of our Religious Education classes for the Fall of 2010. You should have received an email explaining the survey and asking for your response. I ask each of you to respond to this very important survey so that we can schedule classes at times that are the most convenient to the largest number of families. If you did not recieve this survey in your email please contact Joanna religiouseducation@instrumentofpeace.org or Becki youthminister@instrumentofpeace.org .
The second survey is for every parishioner because it deals with our weekend mass schedule. We want to schedule our weekend liturgies at convenient times for you and at times that will help to alleviate some of the traffic congestion that we face every Sunday morning. You will have an opportunity to vote on the mass schedule this weekend January 9 & 10 and on the weekend of January 16 & 17. If you would like to register your vote early please check your choices on the survey in the left hand column.
The new mass schedule will not take effect until late spring or early summer and we will give you plenty of notice before the change takes place. I hope to hear from you.
The building construction continues to move forward in spite of rain, snow and extreme cold. Construction is a little behind schedule but at this point not enough to delay our move in date which is planned for late Spring.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Let it Snow! Let it Snow!
It is 11am and the snow is still falling. Here in Laurel I measured 8 inches on my front steps. Somehow when I started shoveling it seemed like a lot more than that. The sidewalk is not to bad it is shoveling out the car that is labor intensive especially when the snowplow had piled all the snow behind my car. In spite of the work I still love the snow (although a little less with each passing year) and the beauty of a new fallen snow can't be beaten. Growing up in Cumberland and going to school in Canada you were prepared for snow and saw it as just another day. Not so down here in the Baltimore area. I must confess even after living here since 1970 I am still amused by people running to the supermarket to buy bread, milk and of course the ever popular toilet paper. I have canceled our 5pm mass for today. This is only the 4th time in my 35 years as a priest that mass has been canceled due to snow. Believe me I have been having quite a conversation with God about sending this strom on a weekend. You can look out at the snow and see how much of an influence I have!
This is the 4th Sunday of Advent and if you are stuck in the house looking for something to do(instead of reading my blog and surfing the net) I suggest you read the Scriptures for this Sunday. The first reading is Micah 5:1-4a. In this passage God announces that from insignificant Bethlehem shall come the ideal king for Israel. The second reading is from the Letter to the Hebrews 10:5-10. This passage tells us that God no longer delights in the sacrifices of the old law and so Christ became human so that He could offer a sacrifice of perfect obedience to God's will. The Gospel is Luke 1:39-45. Mary visits Elizabeth and is greeted with those beautiful words "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb." During these last days of Advent we focus on Mary and what a strong and faith filled person she was. Mary was always willing to do the will of God and hopefully we will all imitate her.
Well, I just looked out my window and see that my nice clean sidewalks and car are covered with snow yet again so I guess it's time to bundle up get the shovel and get to work. I hope you are safe and warm and that you enjoy this beautiful gift from God. Let it snow!
This is the 4th Sunday of Advent and if you are stuck in the house looking for something to do(instead of reading my blog and surfing the net) I suggest you read the Scriptures for this Sunday. The first reading is Micah 5:1-4a. In this passage God announces that from insignificant Bethlehem shall come the ideal king for Israel. The second reading is from the Letter to the Hebrews 10:5-10. This passage tells us that God no longer delights in the sacrifices of the old law and so Christ became human so that He could offer a sacrifice of perfect obedience to God's will. The Gospel is Luke 1:39-45. Mary visits Elizabeth and is greeted with those beautiful words "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb." During these last days of Advent we focus on Mary and what a strong and faith filled person she was. Mary was always willing to do the will of God and hopefully we will all imitate her.
Well, I just looked out my window and see that my nice clean sidewalks and car are covered with snow yet again so I guess it's time to bundle up get the shovel and get to work. I hope you are safe and warm and that you enjoy this beautiful gift from God. Let it snow!
Monday, December 14, 2009
Party Time
As we move ever closer to Christmas the number of parties increases and that's a good thing. Parties give us a chance to relax and enjoy the company of friends and of course eat lots of great food.
Saturday (December 12) night after the 5pm mass the Knights of Columbus had their annual Christmas party. There was a great turn out of Knights and their families in fact I believe this may have been the biggest turnout ever. Even Santa came to visit the children. It was a pleasant evening and I think everyone enjoyed spending time together.
Today was the party for our Seniors. They might be Seniors but they still love to party. We had a wonderful turn out and everyone brought plenty of food to share. I had an opportunity to talk with many of them and I am always uplifted by their joy for life and their commitment to our parish. After lunch they all got to work wrapping gifts for merchant sailors at the Seafarer Center at the port of Baltimore run by our own Msgr. Fitzgerald. It was a great afternoon.
I don't want you to think that all we do is party because that's not true. If you had been around the gathering space on Sunday afternoon you would have seen a lot of volunteers working harder than Santa's elves to prepare gifts for families at our sister parish of St. Benedict. The generosity of our parishioners it truly inspiring. I think St. Francis himself would be very pleased with the way in which our parish cares for the less fortunate.
Saturday (December 12) night after the 5pm mass the Knights of Columbus had their annual Christmas party. There was a great turn out of Knights and their families in fact I believe this may have been the biggest turnout ever. Even Santa came to visit the children. It was a pleasant evening and I think everyone enjoyed spending time together.
Today was the party for our Seniors. They might be Seniors but they still love to party. We had a wonderful turn out and everyone brought plenty of food to share. I had an opportunity to talk with many of them and I am always uplifted by their joy for life and their commitment to our parish. After lunch they all got to work wrapping gifts for merchant sailors at the Seafarer Center at the port of Baltimore run by our own Msgr. Fitzgerald. It was a great afternoon.
I don't want you to think that all we do is party because that's not true. If you had been around the gathering space on Sunday afternoon you would have seen a lot of volunteers working harder than Santa's elves to prepare gifts for families at our sister parish of St. Benedict. The generosity of our parishioners it truly inspiring. I think St. Francis himself would be very pleased with the way in which our parish cares for the less fortunate.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Christmas Presepio
St. Francis of Assisi is credited with enacting the first living nativity as a means of bringing the greatest story ever told to life. His novel idea rapidly spread throughout Christendom. Presepio is Italian for creche. The Italians have a custom of including scenes from everyday life in the Presepio. The idea is that Christ is born in the here and now and not just 2000 years ago, and so he has great relevance to our lives.
The tradition of the Presepio was begun here in our parish after I took a trip to Rome in 1998 and visited the Franciscan church of Saints Cosmas and Damien. They have on display the Grand Presepio which was a gift to them from the King of Italy. It is a beautiful work of art and well worth the visit to the church.
Our Presepio will be blessed next weekend and will be on display throughout the Christmas Season. I hope you will take time to view the beautiful scene and use it as an opportunity to teach your children about the true meaning of Christmas.
The tradition of the Presepio was begun here in our parish after I took a trip to Rome in 1998 and visited the Franciscan church of Saints Cosmas and Damien. They have on display the Grand Presepio which was a gift to them from the King of Italy. It is a beautiful work of art and well worth the visit to the church.
Our Presepio will be blessed next weekend and will be on display throughout the Christmas Season. I hope you will take time to view the beautiful scene and use it as an opportunity to teach your children about the true meaning of Christmas.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Bazaar Day
Our annual Christmas Bazaar was held on November 13 & 14 and it was great fun as well as a very successful fund raiser. We raised over $18,000 to be used for furnishings for our new Faith Formation Center.
There were so many who volunteered their time and talents to make the bazaar a great success that I won't mention any names for fear of forgetting someone. I am extremely grateful to everyone who helped in so many different ways. Not only was the day a financial success but it was also a wonderful day of building community.
I am also thankful to the many parishioners who attended the bazaar and supported it by buying raffle tickets.
On another Christmas related issue I want to remind you to stop by the Christmas Tag table in the Gathering Space to select a gift tag for a needy family. Wrapped gifts should be returned to the church on December 12 and 13. These gifts help to make a joyful Christmas for a number of families in our sister parish St. Benedict.
There were so many who volunteered their time and talents to make the bazaar a great success that I won't mention any names for fear of forgetting someone. I am extremely grateful to everyone who helped in so many different ways. Not only was the day a financial success but it was also a wonderful day of building community.
I am also thankful to the many parishioners who attended the bazaar and supported it by buying raffle tickets.
On another Christmas related issue I want to remind you to stop by the Christmas Tag table in the Gathering Space to select a gift tag for a needy family. Wrapped gifts should be returned to the church on December 12 and 13. These gifts help to make a joyful Christmas for a number of families in our sister parish St. Benedict.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
