IMMACULATE CONCEPTION PARISH In this issue:

• Highlight of events from

January.

• February Birthdays,

and More January

Photos. Pg. 2

• Jesus, Lamb of God?

and Pope tweets. pg. 3

• New Altar Servers, See

More Photos, & Save the

Date! pg. 4

I. C. Angels January 2017 Newsletter

Highlights from January:

SPIRITUS

On January 18th the SPIRITUS team came and put

on a Faith on Fire Retreat for 2nd — 5th grade

students. The name of the retreat was Bible Bam.

We talked about how important the Bible is and

ideas of how families could find time to read a

verse each day. Students acted out the parable of

the seeds scattered (some on rocks, some in

thorns, etc.). We sang songs and played games. Fun was had by all while

learning about the importance of reading the Bible and how precious the gift

of the Bible is.

Snow Day

We had our first snow day during Faith Formation on January 11th. Thank

you to those who emailed or texted me to make sure I knew that Freedom

area schools were closed for the day. I emailed and texted (those who have

given me cell numbers) all parents/guardians and catechists to let all of you

know classes were cancelled. If you did not receive a text or email, please

let me know so I can make sure going forward you are notified.

As stated in our handbook, I will first send out an email and then text all cell

phone numbers that I have to try and make sure the message is not missed.

Enrollment Rite

Enrollment Rite was held on Sunday, January 29th. This is a time when

those journeying towards a Sacrament such as First Eucharist or

Confirmation make it known publicly their commitment to this sacrament

before the congregation.

Confirmation

Brandon Buck Son of Jerry and Dottie Buck

Amanda Goffard Daughter of Ray and Sheila Goffard

First Eucharist

Cade Adamski Son of Steve and Denise Adamski

Miley Geurts Daughter of Bill and Nichole Geurts

Ashton Saliger Son of Jesse and Maurine Saliger

This is also a time that the congregation itself affirms the testimony

expressed by these candidates and accept their personal responsibility to

pray for them, support them in their faith and to be examples for them as

they prepare for their sacraments.

We, as their faith family, are not just spectators, we are a critical part of

every baptized person’s faith journey. Once baptized, we are Priest, Prophet

and King.

In being anointed with Sacred Chrism, we are chosen by God, claimed by

Christ and through the Holy Spirit are named priest, prophet and king (CCC

1241). (Catechism of the Catholic Church)

St. Francis de Sales writes, “Be who you are, and be that well.” We, as

baptized, are priests. We are prophets. We are royalty. The call as baptized

disciples is to live these attributes and to live them well. Lumen Gentium

(LG) explains that by our priestly duty we are called to “consecrate the world

itself to God” (LG 34) through our works, prayers, activities, and daily

responsibilities. http://www.catholicapostolatecenter.org/blog/baptized-priest-prophet-king

It is Christ who gives the laity a share in his priestly, prophetic and kingly mission as he intimately links them to his life and mission. (LG 35) ...And that The Mission of the Laity as Priest, Prophet and King “they might

by humility and patience lead their brethren to that King for whom to serve is

to reign” (LG 36). http://www.seatofwisdomjournal.org/uploads/7.6_-_Student_Essay_-

_The_Mission_of_the_Laity_-_C_Adutwum_-_final_-_20_Aug_2013.pdf

IMMACULATE CONCEPTION PARISH

I. C. Angels January — 2017 Newsletter pg. 2

God’s Blessings on Your Birthday

February Birthdays:

Gracie Anderson on February 2nd

Brandon Buck on February 18th

Jadyn Garvey on February 11th

Emma Garvey on February 11th

Brandy Meyer on February 27th

More January Photos

IMMACULATE CONCEPTION PARISH

I. C. Angels January — 2017 Newsletter pg. 3

Jesus, Lamb of God?

John the Baptist pointed out Jesus as the spotless Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. This title, so prominent in the Mass, illumines the meaning of Christ’s passion, recalling the first Passover remembered every year during Holy Week and the Triduum. The Protestant Church is all about the Bible; the Catholic Church is all about the Sacra-ments. Right? Not exactly. When it comes to personal Bible reading, Protestants often put Catholics to shame. But as far as Sunday worship goes, it is hard to find a more biblical service than the Mass. The readings are awesome enough, but even the prayers of the Mass are full of Scripture. Many lines spoken by priest and people are, in fact, direct quotes from the Bible. Consider, for example, what the priest says just before communion: “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.” That’s a direct quote from John 1:29 where John the Baptist says this as he points out Jesus to his disciples. Messiah as Lamb of God We are so used to calling Jesus the Lamb of God that we can miss the jolt that this must have given the first people who heard it. Most Jews were expecting a Messiah who would be the Lion of Judah, a new David who would drive out the Romans through military heroism. It hadn’t occurred to them that the Messiah would be a Lamb. Lambs are not exactly known for their prowess in battle. They don’t kill; they die. They were, in fact, sacrificed daily in the Jewish temple as an act of worship to God. Passover Lamb But there was a special sacrifice that happened every year in which lambs were featured most predominantly. It was the central celebration of the Jewish Year–Passover. This was the yearly remembrance of the greatest act of salvation in the Old Testament, the deliverance of the Jews from Egyptian slavery. The final plague that would bring Pharaoh to his knees and the Israelites to freedom was the angel of death “passing over” Egypt to take the lives of Egypt’s most precious resource–their first-born sons. What was to prevent the Israelites from suffering the same fate? The sacrifice of a perfect lamb, without spot or blem-ish. This Lamb was a substitute for the first-born of the Israelite family that offered the sacrifice. And a costly offering this was, since the wealth of a family was counted in terms of its animals. Blood of the Lamb The blood of the Lamb was to be smeared on the doorpost of the house and the family was to eat the flesh of this sac-rificial animal in a special ritual meal. We all know the end of that story. Pharaoh let the Israelites go, and the Israelites celebrated this event each year, with hundreds of thousands of Jews coming to Jerusalem to sacrifice their lambs and to eat the Passover supper in the Holy City. It was no accident that Jesus was arrested and put to death during Passover. In the Gospel of John, Jesus breathes his last at the very same moment that the Passover lambs were being sacrificed in the Temple. The same Gospel is the only one to point out that Jesus legs weren’t broken to make sure he was dead, as was customary in crucifix-ions. Rather, the Romans employed an alternate verification method – a lance thrust to the heart (John 19:32). Why does John take pains to emphasize this? Because Scripture stipulates that no bone of the Passover Lamb could be broken (Exodus 12:46). Perfect Sacrifice All the words and events of the Old Covenant had great value, meaning and dignity in and of themselves. But they al-so pointed forward to a greater covenant, to a person who was the Word made flesh, to a Lamb who saved Israel from a deeper slavery than Pharaoh’s, to an event that would be the culminating moment in human history. The Word came as a spotless Lamb to offer the perfect sacrifice of love that would outweigh all human evil and there-fore take away all sins. The Shepherd offered his blood for our sins and his body as our new Passover meal, to give his sheep the strength to become lambs like him who offer their lives for the life of the world (Romans 12:2). This article on John the Baptist pointing out Jesus as the Lamb of God is offered as a reflection on the scripture reading for the 2

nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, cycle A (Isaiah 49, Psalm 40, 1 Corinthians 1:1-3; John 1, 29-34).

Originally posted on Jan 08 2017 https://www.crossroadsinitiative.com/media/articles/Jesus-Lamb-of-God/

Yours in Christ, Sue Meyer

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“Let us ask the Virgin Mary to help us follow Christ on the way of faith and charity, the path set out by our Baptism.”

Pope Francis Tweets – 1/8/17 @pontifex

Altar Servers

Parents, if your student is in the 3rd grade or above and they would like to be an

Altar Server at IC, please contact: Sue Meyer at joensue46@yahoo.com

We Welcome our New Servers in Training:

Jacob Garvey

Ivy Van Den Heuvel

Alicen Gonnering

Josie Geurts

Thank you, to all who serve our Parish!

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See more photos of program events

To see more photos from our events go to our website and look under Faith Formation then Pictures or

Parent Center then Pictures — http://imcffinformation.weebly.com/ or http://www.imconeida.org/ and

click on Faith Formation on the list on the left side of the page and follow same instructions. For more photos

of the blessing of our new addition go to www.imconeida.org and click on pictures (left hand side menu),

then on New Addition.

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Save the Date! (Dates to remember)

Feb. 19th (Sun) - Confirmation Retreat 10:15 am to 6 pm

Feb. 22nd - Grades 6th-11th SPIRITUS Retreat from 6 pm to 7:30 pm — Note the extra 15

minutes.

March 1st - Prayer Service - Ash Wednesday 6 pm with family and parish (all are welcome)

March 12th (Sun) — Bishop Ricken is coming to present our Accreditation during Mass

March 23rd — First Eucharist Retreat for grade 2 and parents 6 pm to 8 pm at St. Nicholas

March 24th-26th — Anchor TEC weekend for grades 10th & 11th (Friday to Sunday)

March 29th — K-11th grades — Stations of the Cross with family (all are welcome)

April 12th - Seder Meal - Confirmation Candidate, Sponsor & Parents - 6 pm

April 12th - Service day for grades 9 & 10 - attend and help with Seder Meal — 5:30 pm

April 12th - Holy Week — No Classes for grades 1-8

April 20th - First Eucharist Practice for grade 2 and parents 6 pm (was 5:30 pm)

April 23rd - First Eucharist Mass for grade 2 and parents 8 am

April 26th - Closing ceremonies - All are Welcome!! Pizza party after prayer service.

IMMACULATE CONCEPTION PARISH

I. C. Angels January 2017 Newsletter pg. 4