Parochial Administrator Rev. Michael J. Saban (Ext. 104)

Resident Rev. Hugh J. Dougherty

Permanent Deacons

Deacon Thomas P. Fitzpatrick

Director of Religious Education Marykate Murphy (Ext. 212)

School Principal Mrs. Joanne Montie

Parish Business Manager Robert J. Helmig (Ext. 103) Administrative Secretary Helen V. Kraus (ext. 101) Parish Music Coordinator

Dorothy Toomey

Saint Bernadette of Lourdes Parish “Where Miracles Happen”

1035 Turner Avenue Drexel Hill PA 19026 Rectory: (610)789-7676 Fax: (610)789-9539 School: (610)449-5184

www.stbl.org April 26, 2020 — Third Sunday of Easter

____________________________________________________________________________ Mass Schedule

Sunday Masses Holy Day Masses Saturday Vigil: 4:30pm Times Announced in Sunday Bulletin Sunday: 9:00am and 11:00am

Weekday Mass Sacrament of Reconciliation Monday—Friday 8:30am Saturday: 3:30pm — 4:15pm __________________________________________________________________________________________________________

0234 Page Two April 26, 2020

Parish Information

NEW FAMILIES

Welcome to St. Bernadette Parish! To register in the parish, please email Deacon Tom Fitzpatrick at deacontom@stbl.org. He will get back to you to arrange a convenient time to meet with him to regis-ter. We are eager to greet new members of our parish community and look forward to meeting you.

RECTORY OFFICE HOURS The rectory office hours are Monday through Friday from 9:00am to noon and 1:00pm to 5:00pm. During the summer the rectory will close at 3:00pm on Fridays. Items for the Sunday newsletter must be at the rectory by Monday at noon for publication the fol-lowing Sunday.

BAPTISMS

Baptisms are held at 12 noon on the 2nd and 4th Sundays of the month. Parents must attend a Pre-Jordan class held in the Wright Center at 12 noon on the first Sunday of every other month (please refer to the bulletin for exact dates). Registration for the class is required. In order to arrange for a baptism, the parents must be active members of the parish for six months. To register, please call the rectory office at 610/789-7676. Godparents should be prac-ticing Catholics, confirmed and at least 16 years of age. If not from this parish, sponsors must have a letter of eligibility from their par-ish stating that they have been actively participating for six months. St. Bernadette Parishioners must be registered and actively partici-pating for six months to receive a letter of eligibility.

MARRIAGES We request that couples contemplating marriage call the rectory to make an appointment with the priest. At this initial interview, the date and time of your request will be recorded and you will receive a copy of the Parish Wedding Guidelines.

SACRAMENT OF THE SICK/COMMUNION CALLS A priest will administer Holy Communion to parishioners who are unable to come to Church. If you desire, Eucharistic Ministers can bring Communion each week. Please contact the Rectory to be placed on our Sick List. Parishioners who are to undergo serious surgery at a hospital are encouraged to make an appointment at the Rectory before going to the hospital.

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION St. Bernadette School offers sessions for Pre-School and Kindergar-ten and conducts full-time classes from first through eighth grades. PREP classes are held in the parish school for all students attending public school. PREP classes are held on Monday evenings at 6:45pm. Adults seeking religious instruction should call Marykate Murphy, Director of Religious Education at (610) 789-7676 ext. 212. The RCIA Program begins in October.

SAINT BERNADETTE PARISH ON FACEBOOK We can be found at “Saint Bernadette of Lourdes Parish”. Check out the page and “like” us to keep up with the latest parish news.

VISITS TO THE MOST BLESSED SACRAMENT can be made

in the Chapel

RECITATION OF THE ROSARY takes place every Monday

through Thursday at 8:00am in the church and on Wednesday eve-nings along with the Miraculous Medal Novena at 7:00pm in the Chapel.

UNITED HEARTS OF JESUS AND MARY meet every Monday

evening at 7pm in the Chapel.

NOVENA TO ST. LEONIE AVIAT takes place every Tuesday at

7:00pm in the Chapel.

FLAME OF LOVE PRAYER CENACLE takes place every Thurs-

day at 7:00pm in the Chapel.

RESPECT LIFE GROUP information can be obtained by calling

Doris Hurd at 610-789-2708.

MEN’S PRAYER GROUP meets in the chapel every Tuesday at

7:30pm.

MUSIC MINISTRY is open to all who wish to share their time and

talent in praise and thanksgiving to God – call Dottie Toomey at 610/449-4013 for rehearsal times.

ST. BERNADETTE MARTHAS AND A JOSEPH are a dedicat-

ed group who clean the church every Thursday after the 8:30am Mass; new volunteers always welcome—call Johanna Ryan at 484-988-2414.

KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS Ave Maria Council #4063 serve

St Bernadette Parish invites interested men 18 years of age and old-er to join in fraternity and the service to our parish and greater com-munity; contact amdhillkofc@gmail.com

ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS meetings are held ever

Thursday at 9:30am in O’Brien Hall.

ST. JOHN’S HOSPICE Casseroles to feed the homeless sponsored

by St. John’s Hospice in Philadelphia are collected in O’Brien Hall before the weekend Masses that precede the first Thursday of the month. Casserole pans are available in the main entrance of church. Call Mary at 610/789-6206.

FOOD PANTRY Non-perishable food items for the Food Pantry can be place in bags and left in the vestibules of church. Any monetary donations or donations of gift cards should be sent to Fr. Saban. If you have a question, call the Food Pantry at 610-789-7676 ext. 213.

THIRD SUNDAY OF EASTER

We are an Easter people so we are a joyful people. Jesus has conquered death, broken open our tombs of sin

and despair, and redeemed us in our humanity. Animated by the Holy Spirit, we live in the light and life of

Christ, spreading that light and life on to those around us. Let our hearts be glad and tongues exult as we lift

our voices in praise to God.

0234 Page Three April 26, 2020

QUESTION OF THE WEEK

When have I acutely realized the Lord’s presence? In the Eucharist?

In listening to scripture? When we gather in his name? In my day-to-day life?

Third Sunday of Easter Saturday, April 25 4:30pm Regina M. Dengel Sunday, April 26 7:00am Regina Ronayne (moved to May 4) 9:00am Frank & Gertrude Erdlen 11:00am Kenneth Bohs Monday, April 27 8:30am Dolores & John A. Georeno, Jr. Tuesday, April 28 - St. Peter Chanel & and St. Louis Grignion 8:30am Jean Lewandowski Wednesday, April 29 - St. Catherine of Siena 8:30am Rita Wolfington Bennett (23rd Anniv.) Thursday, April 30 - St. Pius V 8:30am Deacon Frank Burke Friday, May 1 - St. Joseph the Worker 8:30am Charles DeVitis Fourth Sunday of Easter Saturday, May 2 4:30pm Frank Reinke Sunday, May 3 7:00am Ambrogio & Theresa Rocca (moved to May 5) 9:00am Deceased of Grace and Johannesson Families 11:00am Anthony Nicholas Venini (12th Anniv.)

All Masses will be private but will be streamed online at www.stbl.org

FOR YOUR SPIRITUAL REFLECTION

This week’s readings are: Firsts Reading - Acts of the Apostles 2:14, 22-23 Second Reading - 1 Peter 1:17-21 Gospel - Luke 24:13-35 Next week’s readings will be: First Reading - Acts 2:14a, 36-41 Second Reading - 1 Peter 2:20b-25 Gospel - John 10:1-10

EASTER SEASON FUN

God is good, all the time! All the time, God is good!

Remember, Easter is more than a day. It is a whole season with 50 days! Check out the PREP curriculum web page at

https://st-bernadette.org/prep-curriculum

for fun interactive ideas, projects and resources to celebrate this Easter Season! Marykate Murphy will post new resources each week through the rest of the school year so be sure to check back.

SYMPATHIES AN PRAYERS We extend our sympathies and prayers to the family and friends of Emma O’Brien who was recently buried from our church.

PRAYER TO ST. MICHAEL

THE ARCHANGEL Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him we humbly pray; and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host, by the Power of God, cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits, who

prowl through the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen. ______________________________________________________

TOGETHER WE PRAY . . .

May the Lord support us

all the day long, until the shades lengthen,

the evening comes, the busy world is hushed,

the frenzy is over and our work is done

Then in His love and mercy,

may He give us a safe lodging; a holy rest and peace at the last.

0234 Page Four April 26, 2020

WE PRAY FOR THE SICK - Fred Amatucci, Joseph Anthony, Lisa Pfaff Bevilacqua, Pamela Bower, Joseph Bradley, Marie Bree, Theresa Ca-puto, Michael Carroll, Robert & Joanne Christo-pher, Ron Christopher, Elaine Cole, Dennis Conway, Dave Costella, Barbara Cunningham, Molly Curtis,

Vinnie D’Ambrosio, Ann Davis, Laurel Dee, Michael DeEmilio, Tom and Peggy Dever, Frances Diegnan, Christopher DiMarto, Gabriella DiSaverio, Julia Donohue, Darrin Dougherty, Dawn Dougherty, Michael Dougherty, James Drumm, Jeff Dudley, Bernie Dupras, Jason Durkee, Trevor Durkin, Matthew Dwyer, Marie Feola, Patrick Flanigan, Emily Flynn, Jerry Flynn, Joe Flynn, Sr. Rose Foulk, Maggie Franz, Maureen Gibbons, Tom Glancey, Christine Grosso, Joan Grycewicz, Rachel Hagan, Christian Hamp-ton, Kim Hayman, Lizzy Hennessy, Pat Henningsen, Michael Ho-gan, Judith Holmes, Baby Lila Holmes, Adrian Hughes, Christo-pher Hunt, Frank Iacone, John Ingle, Anthony Jones, Ashley Juli-ano, David Kasella, Linda King, Tommy Lake, Catherine Lavan, Wilmer Lehman, Steven Little, Betsy Long, Michele Malolie, Dal-ton Martin, Kathy Martin, James Maynard, Neil McClelland, Hele-ne McCole, Karen McIlvaine, Sean McKeefery, Baby Rosie McKenna, Marianne McLaughlin, Megan McLean, Theresa Merlini, Jerry Misterman, Sue Mitchell, Bridget Morris, Charlie Morris, Dan Murphy, Kathleen Murtaugh, Matthew Nicholas, Nan-cy Nicholas, Sydney Nihill, Roman O’Brien, Sr. Eleanor O’Con-nell, SJ, Carmen Pettin, Pearl Polto, Sharon Pozzuolo, Christopher Rafferty, Michele Re, Dan Rock, Mimi & Rich Rogge, Anna Ro-kos, Marie Seiler, Michael Shane, Bridget Sharpe, Amy Sheeler, Marion Sloan, Rob Smith, Kristin Sorrentino, Carmella Spano, Emily Tong, Mario Turchiarolo, Dan Visintin, Annie Walker, Lily Walker, Sharon Yost, Lori Zytkonicz and those suffering from seri-ous illnesses & incurable diseases. HOSPITAL SICK CALLS - Emergency sick calls may be made to the rectory at any time. If surgery or admission to the hos-pital is scheduled, please call the rectory ahead of time to make arrangements to receive the Sacrament of the Sick. Due to the pri-vacy act, if you are in the hospital and wish to see a priest while you are there, you must register as a Catholic when admitted or make sure a family member does so for you to assure a visit by a priest or Extraordinary Minister of the Eucharist.

The St. Bernadette Scrip program is offered through Shop with

Scrip. Scrip is the parish based program where you purchase

gift cards to your favorite stores and receive a rebate that can

be redeemed in various ways: apply towards school tuition,

PREP, high school tuition or donate to the parish. The purpose of

the program is to help St. Bernadette families earn cash back

on everyday purchases and support the parish.

Local grocery/retail gift cards available include: Giant, ACME,

Shop Rite, Colonial Village, Swiss Farms, Freddy's, Kohl’s, Sam’s

Boardwalk Style Pizza and JD McGillicuddy’s. Scrip is available

for purchase on Monday nights in the school gym from 6:30- 7:30

pm & Friday mornings from 8:00 - 9:00 am in the school lobby,

with the exception of first Friday mass dates.

To enroll in the program, please contact the scrip coordinator, at

scrip4bernies@gmail.com or Susan Coyne at 610-405-6439.

FINANCIAL FACTS Easter 2020 (To Date) Easter: $18,004 Operation Rice Bowl: $680 Holy Places in Palestine: $700 Easter 2019 Easter: $29,462 Operation Rice Bowl: $1,424 Holy Places in Palestine: $1,120

JUST A NOTE!! Please! Please! Please! Remember your Easter envelopes! Fill them! St. Bernadette is still here! Drop it off at the rectory mail box (which is locked) or mail it in! Do not forget us! Please!

(a) Weekly target necessary to fund Parish operating expenses and avoid operating deficit. As followers of Christ Jesus, we are reminded that all things in-cluding life itself are a gift from God. What matters to God is not the gift, but the giver. Giving is God’s invitation to a way of life. It helps us to overcome our selfishness and love of things. What we do with what we have been given is a sign to God and to the world of the depth and meaning of our commitment. By recalling that all is gift, we therefore must strive to be generous with the financial gifts, both great and small, that God has bestowed upon us. Thank you for your support and your generosity to God and to St. Bernadette Parish. St. Bernadette Parish has enlisted Parish Giving to provide its pa-rishioners and supporters with the opportunity to use Electronic Funds Transfer as an alternative method for giving. The Program is free of charge for parishioners. More information about Parish Giving is available on our Parish web site: www.stbl.org on the “Parish Giving” page.

CHURCH HOURS

Until we are able to attend Mass together, the church will be open for private prayer and devotions according to the following sched-ule:

Saturday 9am — 4pm (church closed for Mass)

Sunday 12noon — 3pm (church closed for Masses)

Monday through Friday 9am — 5pm (church closed for Mass)

Let us be united in prayer so that we can come back together soon!

0234 Page Five April 26, 2020

A REFLECTION

What an experience this Holy Week has been — Holy Thursday, the Mass of the Lord’s Supper; Good Friday, the

Passion of the Lord; then Holy Saturday, the blessing of the fire and candles, the Exsultet sung, the Readings from the

Old Testament remembering salvation history; the Gloria is sung; the New Testament is read; the Alleluia, the Gospel

announcing the Resurrection; the blessing of the Easter water; the renewal of our baptismal promises — the very foun-

dation of our faith!

As we celebrated the empty tomb, I looked out at an empty church. It could have been discouraging. It could have

been canceled, but we could do neither. The sacred and ancient rituals and liturgies must be carried out, even if only 2

or 3 were gathered in His name. It must be celebrated, remembered, renewed. It is the foundation of our faith. It is the

very reason for our existence as a Church, as God’s adopted people. He rose! He was seen! We read the eyewitness tes-

timony and watched how this message is passed on from generation to generation. We are the repository of that ancient

faith, those Epiphanes, those revelations.

In another way, our experience has expanded. So many people watch the Mass live from St. Bernadette — Houston,

Dallas, Bismarck, Rhode Island, Myrtle Beach, Bucks and Montgomery counties. It is so neat to see our little parish im-

pacting so many other people’s lives. When they looked for a little healing, faith and prayer, they searched and somehow

found it here. It’s like an episode of “Touched by an Angel.” We all make a positive difference in our small niche of the

world. That is what we are called to do.

So, I just want to say “Thank You” to all of you who continuously support our Parish. Your perseverance helps us in

many ways to continue to give witness that Christ is risen! It is so important to maintain that support prayerfully and

financially — Gotta keep the lights on and the live streaming going so we can be ready for when the doors can finally be

opened and the bells ring indeed!

I want to thank in a special way Deacon Tom for all his support! He loves you all so much. Thanks also to Matt and

Denis for serving. They are men of discernment and service. Also thanks to Dottie and Maryanne for the music. It add-

ed to the beauty of the liturgies, as always. You all make a great difference! As always, thanks to good old Bill for keep-

ing the church running! Behind the camera is just as important too!

A reminder — As the stress levels increase, do not lash out and say regretful things or do harm. Come over here!

The church is open Monday - Friday from 9am - 5pm; Saturday from 9am - 4pm; Sunday from 12noon - 3pm — sit,

stand back, cool down. Never make a serious decision in times of stress or anger. It will probably be the worst decision

of the year!

Finally, keep watching online — even the funerals and Baptisms — we are still ON! Please help us stay ON!

KAPECHE!

C H U R C H C H A T WITH FR. SABAN

THE FAITHFUL TRAVELER

Teach me, my Lord, to be sweet and gentle in all the events of my life, in disappointments, in the thoughtlessness of oth-

ers, in the insincerity of those I trusted, in the unfaithfulness of those on whom I relied. Let me forget myself so that I

may enjoy the happiness of others. Let me always hide my little pains and heartaches so that I may be the only one to

suffer from them. Teach me to profit by the suffering that comes across my path. Let me so use it that it may mellow

me, not harden or embitter me; that it may make me patient, not irritable; that it may make me broad in my forgiveness,

not narrow or proud or overbearing. May no one be less good for having come within my influence; no one less pure,

less true, less kind, less noble, for having been a fellow traveler with me on our journey towards eternal life. As I meet

with one cross after another, let me whisper a word of love to You. May my life be lived in the supernatural, full of pow-

er for good, and strong in its purpose of sanctity. Amen.

0234 Page Six April 26, 2020

Catholicism has been a moving force in the development of Western culture. It continues to be influential in religious issues, social institutions, art, education, medicine, science, music, philosophy, literature, and politics.

The Catholic Church’s Vatican has diplomatic relations with almost every country in the world.

Pope John Paul II traveled to more than 129 different countries, logging more than 750,000 frequent flyer miles, which is about three times the distance to the moon.

The word “Catholic” was first used by Ignatius of Antioch around the year A.D. 110. It is from the Greek word katholi-kos, which means “toward the whole.” Ignatius was suggesting that the Church is a gift offered by Christ to all people.

The Catholic Church is the largest single denomination in Christianity.

The “Devil’s Advocate” or Advocate Diaboli, is a real position within the Catholic Church.

Pope John Paul II was the first non-Italian pope in over 400 years.

Between John Paul II’s election to the papacy in 1978 and his death in 2004, more than 17 million people attended his weekly audiences in Rome.

The oldest institution in the Western world is the Catholic Church. It traces its history back almost 2,000 years.

There are more than 1 billion Catholics in the world, in all five continents. They are particularly concentrated in south-ern Europe, the U.S., the Philippines, and the countries of Central and South America. What binds them together is a belief in Jesus Christ and obedience to the papacy.

Catholics believe that the pope, who is based in Rome, is the successor to Saint Peter, which Christ appointed as the first head of His church.

For almost 1,000 years, Catholicism was Christianity. But over time, schisms have disrupted the unity, including a schism in A.D. 144 with Marcionism, a schism in 318 A.D. with Arianism, a divide in 1054 A.D. with the East-West Schism, and yet another divide in 1517 during the Protestant Reformation.

A 2008 study suggested that most practicing Catholics are ignoring the Church’s teachings on contraception and sex.

The pope does not live in Italy; he lives in Vatican City, which is a county within Italy.

Brazil has the most Catholics in the world.

Brazil has more Catholics than Italy, France, and Poland combined.

The Catholic Church is the body of churches that are in full communion with the Bishop of Rome, which includes the Roman Catholic Church and 22 Eastern Catholic Churches.