FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT
The birth of the Messiah
gives the church great hope.
Although secular
celebrations of Christmas
ignore the significance of the
holy day, the church gives us
Advent to help us keep our
focus. We reorient our hearts
and minds to recall, once
again, the mysterious glory of the Incarnation.
In these weeks of yuletide preparation, we stop
to remind ourselves what it means to be
Christian, in case we have begun taking it for
granted. To be Christian is to believe that God
is truly with us, in the most personal, intimate
way imaginable; he is one of us! "They shall
name him Emmanuel, which means 'God is
with us.'"
Through the Incarnation, God became human
and lived among us to love us, to guide us, to
heal us, and to strengthen us. It is the promise
of a savior given through the early prophets, a
promise that the faithful held dear as they
waited.
As that most beautiful of all anniversaries
approaches, celebrate this season remembering
the greatest gift ever given to every person--the
gift of a Savior.
Today’s Homily The final Sunday of Advent each year is the only
one on which the Gospel explicitly refers to the birth of the one whose birth we celebrate at Christmas.
Today, that proclamation takes place in the context of that famous meeting between Mary and
her older relative Elizabeth.
Prayers of the Faithful Judy C., Ron,
Deanne MacDonald, “Rosebud” Bouquet
ST. JOSEPH’S CHURCH
Weekly Scripture Passage for Next Weekend
December 29th & December 30th, 2018
The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph
1 Samuel 1:20-22, 24-28 (17C)
Psalm 84:2-3, 5-6, 9-10
1 John 3:1-2, 21-24
Luke 2:41-52
Scripture readings are held each Wednesday after 8am
Mass in the Rectory. These readings help us to
prepare for the upcoming Sunday’s Gospel.
Feast of Christmas
Monday, December 24th ~ 4:30pm Christmas Eve Mass Monday, December 24th ~ Midnight Mass
Tuesday, December 25th ~ 9:00am Christmas Day Mass
Solemnity of Mary Monday, December 31st ~ New Year’s Eve
4:30pm Adoration 5:00pm Mass
Tuesday, January 1st ~ 9:00am New Year’s Day Mass Feast of Epiphany
Saturday, January 5th ~ 5:00pm Mass Sunday, January 6th ~ 8:00 & 10:30am Masses
Just a friendly reminder, please join us in the Parish Library Sunday, January 6th from 1 to 3 to discuss life after loss. You can share your experience, strength and hope (or just
listen if you prefer).
Vol LXIII No. 49 Fully Alive Adoration Friday, January 4th, 2019 Stop into Church ANYTIME
between 6:30 – 8:00pm – stay for 10 minutes, half an hour or
the whole time, the invitation is to everyone, young and old alike.
Spend some time in the presence of Jesus – enjoy a meditative song or reflection, and begin your weekend by leaving your burdens and soaking up the Peace and Love
that only Jesus can give!
Meeting January 3rd, 2019 @ 7:00pm in the Parish Hall.
Please join us on Sunday, January 6th in the Parish Hall for Coffee & Donuts
after the 8:00am & 10:30am Masses. All are Welcome!
Gift to God: Collection Week Of: 12/16/2018
$2665 Regular Collection, $677 Religious Education,
$80 Fuel, $50 Religious Retirement
Attendance Week Of: 12/16/2018
Saturday Mass 5pm ~ 61 Sunday Mass 8am ~ 73
Sunday Mass 10:30am ~ 86
Total = 220
Counters for December 30th– M
September-November YTD Collections $38,645 YTD Budget $38,750 YTD Variance ($105)
December 22nd – December 23rd, 2018
Mass Schedule & Intentions for the Week
M – Memorial A – Anniversary L –Living Monday, December 24th
4:30pm Marcia & Zenon Zakrzewski
(Zakrzewski Family) Midnight Rose Painter –M
(Tim & Family)
Tuesday, December 25th
9am Ron Michalski – M (Joyce)
Wednesday, December 26th
8am All Souls
Thursday, December 27th
8am Members of the Golden Treasury of
Masses*
Friday, December 28th
8am Fr. Matt and the Wendzikowski Family
Saturday, December 29th
5pm Robyn Richards (Kennick Family) Sunday, December 30th
8am Frances Willard Scott Key Lentz – M (Hilton Family)
10:30am Edward Posluszny (Dan & Maryann Posluszny) ALTAR SERVER SCHEDULE
Saturday, December 29th 5pm Help Needed Sunday, December 30th 8am Zywiczynski Children 10:30am Emily & Ian
EUCHARISTIC MINISTER SCHEDULE
Saturday, December 29th 5pm N Hack & C Roth Sunday, December 30th 8am J Montgomery & C Kramer 10:30am S Youngers
LECTOR SCHEDULE
Saturday, December 29th 5pm Norm Turner Sunday, December 30th 8am Ann Everts 10:30am Mary Ruminski
SACRISTAN SCHEDULE
Sat/Sun December 29th – December 30th ●5pm K Orlando ● 8am S Franczak ● 10:30am K Macy