Ministry help needed for “Holy Week”. Sign up sheets will be placed on long table, in gathering room of church the week of April 1st, 2019. The need is for:
Holy Thursday-April 18, 2019 * Washing of the Feet” 12 participants * Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament” from 9 pm until midnight * Ministry participants for the 8 p.m. mass * Good Friday-April 19, 2019 * ministry participants for 1 pm Service * Holy Saturday-April 20, 2019 * deco- rating the church for Easter @ 9 am * Holy Saturday * Minis- try participants for the 8:30 pm Mass * Easter Sunday- April 21, 2019 * Ministry participants for 8 a.m. Mass and 10 a.m. Mass. Your time and talent are needed to make this a memorable Easter in this parish. Thank you.
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Sister Maria Concetta Esu is an Italian nun who for almost 60 years has devoted her life to missionary work in Africa. In her profession as a midwife, Sister Concetta has delivered thousands of babies and at 85 her commitment to children, mothers and families continues. Read More... Please pray for the following intentions:
Praised be Jesus Christ! I hope Lent is treating you well. What Lent is all about is taking an honest look at what’s in our heart and soul and working to align our lives more with the will of the God who made us. That can sometimes be hard work that entails dying to bad habits and learning to humbly ask God for His forgiveness and His grace. Ash Wednesday commends to our attention the ancient practices of prayer, fasting and alms giving. Let’s begin with our favorite: fasting! A couple of weeks ago I began experiencing some rather significant pain in my back. Because I worried it might be a kidney stone or something worse, I went to Urgent Care. Everything checked out okay, and it turned out to just be back pain, probably triggered by shoveling copious amounts of snow. What didn’t check out okay was my weight – when I stepped on the scale I was aghast at what I saw. Maybe I should have seen this coming: Father Barry got me a pair of snowshoes for Christmas and written on each of them in bold letters is the word “TUBBS.” I guess I just didn’t want to believe he was talking about me. Well, it’s turned out to be a real blessing because I’ve had a little extra motivation for the fasting component of Lent. Now please don’t misunderstand: fasting is not a diet plan for vain people hoping to look good at the beach. Rather, it’s a spiritual discipline that liberates us from being dominated by our physical desires. As Saint Teresa of Avila pointed out, give the body what it wants and it just wants more. Jesus put it this way: “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.” We do not live in a culture known for its fasting practices. When was the last time you were truly hungry? Jesus fasted to give us a method that leads to a deeper spiritual life and a greater freedom from the sometimes inordinate desires of our bodies. Moving on to prayer, have you visited the new Saint John Paul II Adoration Chapel? Adoration is an acquired taste, but just stopping for 10 minutes once or twice a week will help you to have a more genuine prayer life. Learning to adore Jesus for an hour at a time might take a while, but the spiritual fruits are abundant. For example, people who develop a deeper prayer life learn to recognize their own sinfulness more readily, which keeps them from being so quick to judge others. Moreover, people who pray regularly are more and more able to know God’s will for their life and this is a source of deep peace. Finally, a deeper prayer life reminds us that one of the most merciful things we can do for people is to pray for them. Jesus was praying as He died for us on the cross – when we pray, we are imitating the merciful love that Jesus brought into our fallen world. And finally, alms giving, which is a constant source of generosity and wisdom to those who engage it. Our parish food drives are impressively organized and garner a great amount of participation. Our mission outreach has been a source of pride as we’ve served Christ in many ways in our own community and abroad. The hope is that this spirit of giving will inspire our younger parishioners to do their part as impressively as our older members have done. As we celebrate this Laetare or 4th Sunday of Lent, we renew our efforts to grow closer to Jesus through prayer, fasting, and alms giving. And as for this scribe, it seems to be working: I’m down 8 pounds! May God’s grace, preeminently received in the Eucharist, change our hearts to be more forgiving! Your friend in Christ, Father Martin Requesting help from the men and women of the parish to help with “Spring Cleaning” of your church on Thursday - April 11, 2019. This will take place after the 8:30 am morning mass. If you are able to help we ask that you place your name on sign-up sheet on back table. Thank you!
The Diocese of La Crosse has a handy page with most of the fish fries during the Lenten Season.
--> Check it out! Please pray for the following intentions:
Praised be Jesus Christ! The following, titled “The Dollar and the Cent” is a bit outdated. Nevertheless, as you’ll see, the principle is still valid today: “A big Silver Dollar and a little brown cent, Rolling along together they went. Rolling along the smooth sidewalk, when the dollar remarked... for the dollar can talk: I’m bigger and more than twice as bright. I’m worth more than you a hundred fold, and written on me in letters bold, is the motto drawn from the pious creed, “In God we trust,” which all can read. Yes, I know said the cent, I’m a cheap little mite, and I know I’m not big, nor good, nor bright, And yet, said the cent, with a meek little sigh... You don’t do to church as often as I!” Money, a very volatile topic: it always has been and most certainly always will be. Some years ago a man speaking about stewardship made the interesting point that only in church is $5.00 considered a huge amount! He went on to pose the question (and one I think of often): “If I can give more, should I?” Well, that’s a question each person should take to prayer and see what God has to say about it. Of course, be very careful what you ask of God... worldly people don’t ask such questions because they don’t want to know the answer. Some of us reading this, in our weaker moments, can look back and say there were times when we wished we hadn’t asked God for His opinion on whatever matter we were considering. But in the end, there is always more joy in giving than receiving – Jesus knew this and when He came to His “hour,” He knew His sacrifice would ultimately inspire countless men and women to follow Him and daily die to themselves so that others might live. Money is just paper (or a small piece of metal dipped in copper), but what we do with it says something about how much we really trust God. As the old adage puts it, “It pays to tithe.” But of course, that is something one can only learn by giving it a test run. Now you’re maybe wondering what I am building up to with such an auspicious start... first, to say that Saint John’s is the most generous parish I’ve ever served (actually, it’s the only parish, along with Christ the King, that I’ve ever served... but the point is still true!). We always do our part to support Bishop Callahan and the myriad works he and his staff offer for the salvation of souls. We are a few thousand dollars short of our goal for the Diocesan Annual Appeal, but the goal that we have of more participation is the one that we are really emphasizing. Thanks for all who have supported the good works of the Catholic Church by participating in the Annual Appeal. And now that the Saint John Paul II Adoration Chapel and the Mother Frances Streitel Center are humming with activity, we can thank God that all of it is paid for and we’re just making little adjustments here and there. Some have asked if you’re allowed to walk into the classroom and look around after praying in the chapel: yes, by all means. We host Catechesis of the Good Shepherd in that room every Thursday afternoon and it’s been a huge hit. This is basically Montessori for the Catholic faith, so it’s a lot of hands on and quiet time so that the kids can begin to experience an interior life. The ages are 3-6 year olds and the next level is 6-9 year olds. We won’t have enough room to host the 2nd level, but Father Kitzhaber is building at Sacred Heart and he said if someone can come up with the money, he’d be willing to modify their project so that they could host it. If you’re interested in Catechesis of the Good Shepherd and the fruit that it is bearing, check out their classroom and pray to God that He will help it to grow.
May God inspire us by His Son’s sacrifice, that we may become more like the One we receive each Sunday! Your friend in Christ, Father Martin |
MASS SCHEDULE
Tuesday - Friday: 8:00 AM Saturday: 4:00 PM Sunday: 8:00 AM & 10:00 AM RECONCILIATION
Saturday: 3:15 - 3:45 PM OFFICE HOURS
Monday - Thursday: 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM Friday: 8:30 AM – 12:30 PM Stay Connected with Our ParishWelcome from Our PastorWelcome to Christ the King Catholic Church! Ever since 1938 this parish has been assisting souls in their quest for deeper union with God. Our mission statement is essentially found in the stained glass window above the main altar: “For Christ our King.” Insofar as God made us and we belong to Him, we have come to... Read More
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