ST. BENILDE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH

1901 Division Street • Metairie, Louisiana 70001

Church Office: (504) 834-4980 • Church Fax: (504) 834-4997 • Church Email: stbenildechurch@cox.net

www.stbenilde.org

CLERGY Rev. Robert T. Cooper, Pastor Rev. H.L. Brignac, Sacramental Asst. Deacon Biaggio DiGiovanni Deacon Stephen Gordon Deacon Clifford Wright

BAPTISMS First and Third Sundays of the month at 12 Noon. Please call the Parish

Office for more information.

MATRIMONY Please contact a priest/deacon 8 months prior to your wedding.

FUNERALS Arrangements may be made at the Parish Office.

Sunday, January 8, 2017 The Epiphany of the Lord

ORDINARY FAMILIES

EXTRAORDINARY FAITH

DEVOTIONS Holy Hour in Church

Monday, 6:00-7:00 p.m.

Novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Help Following 7 a.m. Mass on Tuesday

NEWCOMERS Call the Parish Office to receive a New

Parishioner Registration Packet.

ST. VINCENT DE PAUL SOCIETY

St. Benilde Conference (504) 233-3246

ST. BENILDE SCHOOL Mr. Matt Downey, Principal

1801 Division Street • Metairie, LA (504) 833-9894

MASS TIMES Saturday Vigil … 4 p.m.

Sunday … 9:00, 11:00 a.m. & 6 p.m. Monday—Friday … 7:00 a.m.

Monday and Thursday … 5:30 p.m. First Saturday … 8:45 a.m.

HOLY DAYS OF OBLIGATION See Inside the Bulletin for Schedule

CONFESSION TIMES Saturday … 3:00—3:45 p.m. Sunday … 5:00—5:45 p.m. Monday … 6:00—6:45 p.m.

and by appointment at the Parish Office

DIVINE MERCY ADORATION CHAPEL Eucharistic Adoration from 7:00 p.m. Sunday

till 4:00 p.m. Saturday

Parish Motto—Building the Kingdom of God

Ministers of the Liturgy January 7 & 8, 2017

Saturday - 4 P.M. Intention: Dorothy Van Hoven, Jennie Spitale,

George Spaulding, Rose Marie Greco Federico,

Carl A. Guidroz, Jr., Flora Maria Be, Dale Forshag,

Merle & Charles Dittmer, Patrick C. McKinney,

Joseph Segari, Hubert LaBorde, Clifton James Neyrey,

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion:

R. Aucoin, K. Hartdegan

Cantor: Trish Foti

Sunday - 9 A.M. Intention: Parishioners

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion:

M. Evola, P. Fleming, R. Meche, B. O’Hara

Song Leaders: Traditional Choir

Sunday - 11 A.M. Intention: Powers Family (L),

Joseph Donald Bernard, Clifton Neyrey,

Rudy Neubeck, Jr., Dianne Z. Harrison,

Mary & Melvin Ducote, Kelvin Ducote,

Monistere Family (L), Hilton F. Daigle, Jr.,

Connie Gauchet , Allen Galloway

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion:

S. Gordon, L. Peters, J. Ackermann, J. Wright

Song Leaders: Contemporary Choir

Sunday - 6 P.M. Intention: Mary Quaid

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion:

L. Daigle, B. David

Cantor: Lauren Gisclair Pianist: Beth Kettenring

Weekday Masses Monday 7:00 a.m. Don Rowan, Sr.

5:30 p.m. June & Marvin Ackermann (L)

Tuesday 7:00 a.m. Floyd C. Bangs, Sr.

Wednesday 7:00 a.m. Bill C. Johnson

8:15 a.m. Gladys Gsell

Thursday 7:00 a.m. Roy Carubba, Jr.

5:30 p.m. Connie Gsell Gauchet

Friday 7:00 a.m. Grace Poche

The Church Sanctuary Lamp burns in memory of

The Souls in Purgatory

The Blessed Mother

Votive Lamps burn

For the Seminarians

at St. Ben’s

Adoration Chapel

Sanctuary Lamp burns

in memory of

Stuart and Gloria Fourroux

Adoration Chapel Candles

Burn for an End to Abortion

Altar Ladies Week of January 8

J. Dunn, C. Batt, L. Segari

Linens Large - M. Seeber Small - J. Zeringue

The St. Joseph Votive Lamps

burn in

Thanksgiving for a Prayer

Answered

St. Benilde Catholic Church

The Altar Flowers are in memory of

Deceased Parishioners

Stewardship of Treasure Weekend of Dec. 31 & Jan. 1

Envelopes ……………………………………$5,708.00

Loose …………………………………………..4,749.00

Electronic Giving ……………………………….460.00

Repairs & Maintenance ……………………….256.00

Msgr. Richaud Fund …………………………...118.00

Totaling …………………………………….$11,291.00

Christmas Day Regular Collection……….$19,300.00

Seminarians/Charities Collection……….....$3,923.00

“Let us focus on generosity, or returning God’s gifts

with increase, through the generous sharing of our time,

talent and treasure.”

~ Fr. Cooper

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion

Jan. 14/15 4 PM J. Rodosta, L. Segari 9 AM J. & G. Rojas, J. Tusa, P. Cifreo 11 AM J. Hutchinson, J. Hutchinson, C. & T. Pitre 6 PM C. & T. Pitre

Out Of Reverence For The Lord Jesus

who so generously shares with

us His Body and Blood in the

Eucharist, worshipers are

earnestly invited to remain with

the congregation until Mass is

concluded.

St. Benilde Catholic Church Volume 35 Issue 2

Parish Motto—Building the Kingdom of God

Safe Environment Training

Safe Environment Training will be held at St. Benilde on January 19, at 6:30 p.m., in the

cafeteria. All volunteers who have even one unsupervised contact with minors, and all who participate in an overnight event, must attend safe environment training prior to volunteering for the first time and

every three years thereafter. Please contact Mary Kelly, 504-834-4980 ext. 113, for further information.

Night at the Races

Please join us for the annual “Night

at the Races” hosted by the St.

Benilde Home & School Association. It

will be held on Saturday, January 28.

Clubhouse will open at 7 p.m. with

racing to begin at 7:30 p.m.

Admission to the Clubhouse is $3 per

individual and $5 per couple. We will

have plenty of food and drinks for

everyone to enjoy. If you would like

to volunteer to be a Jockey, please

contact the Home & School Association

at stbenildehomeandschool@gmail.com.

This event is for adults only.

Bible Study

Save the date! Unlocking the Mystery of the Bible is an engaging journey beginning with Genesis and ending with Jesus' passion, death and resurrection. Uncover the story woven throughout Scripture and get the "big picture" of the Bible. The journey will begin on January 11 and end on March 15, 2017. All sessions will be held in the Teen Center on Wednesdays, at 7 p.m. There is a $10 fee for the workbook. If you have questions or would like to pre-register, contact Val Hebert at valencemet@aol.com or call 504-427-0327.

Fr. Cooper’s Corner

Epiphany Message 2017

From Advent until now the readings and themes of our liturgies have all centered on God’s coming to us. The underlying movement has been God seeking us out and offering Himself to us in His Son, in the Word made flesh, Jesus Christ. He is the Messiah first promised to the descendants of Adam and Eve after the Fall. In today’s Liturgy, the basic movement shifts. Now it is all about our seeking, specifically our seeking out God in His Christ; and by the word “our,” I mean all of humanity. The Magi we need to remember were not Jews. They were the representatives of the gentile nations and peoples. They were kings who were sages, wise men, visionaries, men who searched beyond what is obvious; searching into the mysterious non-scientific world in which we exist as distinguished from what is merely technical and material. The word "question" has the word "quest" tucked inside it, an idea that is presented to us in today’s Gospel account by St. Matthew. Epiphany invites us to join in the quest of the Wise Men as well as the quest of all Christian believers seeking to enter into the mystery of God, particularly the mystery of God become incarnate in our humanness. We live in a world of problems to be solved. A mystery, however, is not a problem to be solved; it is a quest to be lived. A well-known sports figure was asked what his chief ambition in life was. He replied, “My chief ambition is to go to heaven.” The sports writer who was interviewing him thought it was a joke. The ball player responded: “My friend, I don’t think that’s funny. I know you don’t mean to be a smart aleck, but there’s something wrong with a person’s attitude when he’s flippant about the great mysteries of the universe.” And the man who spoke these words was a professional baseball player! We, too, can be superficial if we miss the point of today’s gospel. We can get all wrapped up in solving the problem about where the star came from, where it was located in heaven, who the Wise Men really were and where they came from, and exactly how a heavenly star could guide them. So, too, when people try to analyze Christ’s miracles, attempting to explain them away by finding natural causes, completely missing God’s revelation that is made evident to us in them. The gifts of the Magi are meant to express our human awe and reverence at the true inner nature of the

Christ child. Worldly powers, represented by the Three Kings, along with their powers of government over peoples, are placed at His feet. Gold, the currency of kings, is given to Him. Frankincense is the gift given to priests, bringing us into contact with the world of mystery and transcendence. Myrrh is an ointment used in the preparation of a body for burial; its significance being quite obvious in terms of this child’s destiny, as well as our own human destiny. Death is a mystery we all enter into as equals, regardless of how important or significant our lives have been during our time here on earth. Death is a mystery to be lived;

Parish Motto—Building the Kingdom of God

St. Benilde Catholic Church

it not just another problem to be solved. Mysteries lead to discovery, or more accurately to revelation. When you encounter paradox and mystery, you are close to the Gospels. For quite obviously, God is bigger, more powerful, and infinitely more than anything we are as mortal men. Mere data, mere information cannot possibly carry the weight or bear the load of the enormity of Mystery, particularly theological mysteries. The only thing that is strong enough to bear the full weight of revelation is mystery, along with poetic and symbolic language. Science and technology collapse under the weight of all we must face, and face daily. There is a motto that tells us: “knowledge is power.” Quite so! But wisdom is superior, deeper, and a far more profound reality than knowledge or understanding. Wisdom is found in the realms of mystery; it is the only true path to revelation. We should not let our modern technological world and culture rob us of our innate sense of mystery. We should not let our children be deprived of having a childhood. We should not deprive ourselves of something that children can point to, namely the world of awe, reverence, and mystery. To enter into those realms we must, as Jesus told us, become as little children. Children, as we all know, love stories. So do we! The infancy narratives surrounding the birth of Jesus Christ are filled with wondrous stories. The legendary story of Gaspar, Melchior and Balthazar, the three Wise Men, is a story that invites us to be as little children once again and with awe, reverence, and wonder to enter into the world of Mystery, there to receive God’s revelation. Is it a story that we regard with distant and unemotional objectivity? Is it merely the subject of cool intellectual curiosity? Or is it a wondrous, mystical story that invites us to embark upon a quest, a journey that was there in the beginning at the birth of our Savior, and a journey or a pilgrimage that Christians have been embarked upon for 2,000 years now? God has a Word for you. He has something He wants to say to you. God has a vision for you, a revelation to give you. Are you willing to be a seeker and to journey with those Wise Men from the East? The wise still seek Him. Epiphany is not a one-time event; it is a context in which we live. How, then, can we seek the Lord in these days, in these times of ours? The one necessary thing is to give God our time, quiet and alone time in which to reflect and meditate. I have talked with some very busy and highly successful people who actually take time out away from their many concerns to reflect. They give their attention to God’s still, inner voice deep within them. They have come to know that they are more effective if they reflect on what they are doing, reflect on their goals and how they are achieving them. A by-product found in such times is a sense of fulfillment, satisfaction, and happiness. These are all things that can be done in the presence of God – all things that are ultimately directed at seeking God’s purposes for our lives. They are far more important to attend to than the problems that beset us. If Christmas is all about God coming to us to seek us out, then Epiphany is all about our seeking out the God who has come among us. The Wise Men offer us great wisdom. They give us a gift that is priceless. After finding Christ, they went home by another route. We should too. With the Wise Men, may you and I make that journey!

St. Benilde Catholic Church Volume 35: Issue 2

Parish Motto—Building the Kingdom of God

JANUARY 8, 2017

ST. BENILDE CATHOLIC CHURCH – ID # 113850

1901 DIVISION ST.

METAIRIE, LA 70001

504-834-4980

NANCY CAROLLO

504-834-4980

MONDAY THROUGH THURSDAYS - 9 A.M. TO 3 P.M.

FRIDAYS - 9 A.M. TO 12 NOON

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS: