Bulletin for November 27, 2016 ~ First Sunday in Advent

Catholics Invite Catholics:
“Come to Mass in the Lord’s house on the Lord’s day.” A way to remind people of a way to be faithful to the third commandment: Keep holy the Lord’s Day.

Live the Liturgy—Inspiration for the Week:
Gathering on this first Sunday of Advent, we are reminded that we are called to be ever vigilant; living in expectation of the second coming of Christ. With the busyness of our lives, it is easy to gloss over these beautiful four weeks and preoccupy ourselves with other things. However, now is the time to stop, wait, listen, and prepare ourselves for Christ’s unexpected coming.

Upcoming Events:

• Scripture study classes of the Gospel according to Mark: Tuesdays after the 9:00 a.m. Mass at St. James the Apostle Church.

• AA Meetings: St. Francis Church, on Tuesday, at 8:00 p.m.

• Food Pantries: Ovid Federated Church on Mondays, 10:00 a.m. The Food Truck is available to everyone every other Tuesday, 3:00 p.m. (November 29 and December 13 and 27). At the Interlaken Federated Church on Fridays, 3:00 p.m. The Trumansburg Food Pantry is at the Methodist Church every other Monday 1:00–2:00 p.m. and 5:30–6:00 p.m. (December 5 and 19).

• RCIA Classes: Begin the First Sunday of Advent, November 27

• Parish Choir: The rehearsal date is Tuesday, November 29, from 6:30–8:00 p.m. at the Parish Center

• The Angel Trees at St. Francis and Holy Cross churches: Gifts must be returned no later than Sunday, December 11

Free Advent Reflections Delivered to Your In Box:
Join Bishop Robert Barron and 275,000 Catholics in receiving free daily advent reflections. To sign up, go to adventreflections.com and follow instructions. An easy way to take five minutes each day this hectic season and prepare for the celebration of the Lord’s birth and His second coming.

A Family Advent Activity:
This is a creative way to help our local food pantries. Set a box or basket in your house and, each day of Advent, add one food item to the box or basket. After Christmas donate the contents of the box to your local food pantry. This is a wonderful activity for the whole family while helping those in need.

2016/2017 Catholic Ministries Appeal (CMA):
The active phase of our parish CMA campaign continues. Thank you to everyone who has responded with a gift or pledge. If you have not yet responded, please give consideration to your financial participation. Another letter and pledge form has been mailed to everyone who has not yet responded. The Catholic Ministries Appeal provides, funding for important programs, services and ministries that strengthen our whole Church. We need your financial support to reach our given parish goal of $29,855. A report was issued on November 15 and our parishioners have pledged $10,560. Making a pledge is primary, what is pledged is secondary. If all our families were to make a pledge we would reach our goal easily. Please respond as soon as possible. Here is a link to a CMA informative video: youtu.be/z1t-yW3Bu8k.

Parish Choir:
The rehearsal date is this Tuesday, November 29, from 6:30–8:00 p.m. at the Parish Center (St. Francis Solanus Church, Interlaken). Rehearsals generally take place on the last Thursday of the month but because of Thanksgiving Day the rehearsal has be moved to the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. All who are interested in joining the choir are welcome.

Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA):
For those interested in learning more about what the followers of Jesus believe or becoming Catholic or completing the celebration of the Sacraments of Initiation (Confirmation and Eucharist), classes will begin this Sunday, November 27, First Sunday of Advent, at 12:15 p.m. at St. James the Apostle. Please phone the parish center or be in touch with Fr. Bernard to register for the classes.

Bulletin Announcements:
If you wish an announcement in the Sunday bulletin it must be submitted nine (9) days before the date of publication. Announcements are put together on a Friday­—a week and two days before the actual publishing date. Please forward announcements to the Parish Center—the parish email address may be used which is found on the front page of the bulletin. Regarding events, it is a good idea to have them announced four weeks in advance—that is, to give the parishioners a reminder four times.

Your Help is Solicited:
In order to ensure that the Catholic mission of word, worship, service (witness), and community (fellowship) continues in a vibrant way throughout the parishes in the eastern area of the diocese, parishioners are being asked to complete an online survey. The survey is sixty questions in length and will be used to help pastors, staff, and councils identify priorities, areas for improvement, and areas where parishes can work together to increase ministry opportunities or training. The survey will be open until December 4, when reports will be compiled by the Diocesan Office of Pastoral Resources and Planning and sent to each pastor to distribute. Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey. To participate in the survey go to: www.surveymonkey.com/r/EastDeaneryMinistryAssessment.

St. James the Apostle Offertory Collection Counters:
We currently have three counting teams that perform their counting activity either on Sunday (after the 11:00 a.m. Mass) or 9:30 a.m. on Monday. The counting activity takes about one and a half hours depending on the size of the collection(s). We need substitutes for when one of the counters is either ill or on holiday and would like to increase the number of teams to four so that each team counts only once a month. Each team would consist of a minimum of two non-related individuals and would attend a training class to review the diocesan/St. James counting procedures which takes about one hour.

St. James the Apostle Christmas Hat/Mitten/Scarf Tree:
The tree has been placed near the altar. Items will be donated to Catholic Charities in Ithaca. Items needed are for all ages from babies to adults; both sexes.

Seneca County Christmas Project—Angel Tree Tags:
The Angel Trees are up at both St. Francis and Holy Cross churches! If you take a child’s tag, the gifts must be returned no later than Sunday, December 11. All presents will be picked up Monday morning, December 12. Please do not wrap the gifts—parents need to see what has been given for their children. You need to include the tag information where it can easily be seen. Also wrapping paper, ribbon, or bows would be appreciated. Distribution for gifts will be Wednesday, December 14. If you have helped in the past you will be contacted for your assistance again; if you would like to volunteer for the first time please contact Gerry Frank at 869 5009.

Seeking Volunteers To “Share The Warmth”:
Tompkins County Catholic Charities is seeking volunteers to help with set-up, distribution, and clean-up for the annual “Share the Warmth” project, which distributes hundreds of coats, hats, gloves, and boots to people in need. Specifically we are looking for some strong and able-bodied folks to help during the day with set-up on Monday, November 21, and take down on Monday, December 12. Then for Monday, November 28, through Friday, December 2, and Monday, December 5, through Friday, December 9, we are seeking volunteers from 8:45 a.m. until 4:00 p.m., generally in two hour shifts, to interact with people, helping them find coats and hats and gloves. We try to make it like shopping, only everything is free! To help ensure that both kids and adults are adequately clothed this winter, please contact Michaela Cortright at 272-5062 ext. 10 or email [email protected] to sign up for a shift.

Catholic Relief Services and “Rice Bowl” Participants:
The St. James the Apostle church has been notified that the Trumansburg Food Pantry has received $187.90 to support hunger relief efforts, which represents a percentage of what our parishioners donated through the “Rice Bowl” fundraiser.

Immaculate Conception School—Ithaca:
The school is looking to hire a part time after school aide. The position would have hours from 4:00–5:30 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. If interested, phone: 607 273 2707 or visit icsithaca.org.

Pregnancy Care Center of the Finger Lakes:
Pregnancy Care Center of the Finger Lakes, located at 551 Exchange St. in Geneva, is offering a “Forgiven and Set Free” post abortive ten-week session beginning October 4 until December 13. There is no cost involved. “If you regret your abortion, you are not alone. Let us help you learn to forgive yourself. Pleased join us for this healing ministry program.” For more information phone 315 789 0708.

Scripture Study:
Parishioners are welcome to join an informal study of The Gospel According to Mark on Tuesday mornings after the 9:00 a.m. Mass (St James the Apostle Church), The study will be facilitated by Debbie Short and Camille Taranto. The Liguori Catholic Bible Study will be used. Questions: contact Camille (607) 387-3125.

Making Contributions by Check:
The parish of Mary, Mother of Mercy, is yet to be civilly incorporated, therefore checks cannot be made out in that name. For the present time, please make checks out in the name of the church, that is, to St. James the Apostle, or St. Francis Solanus, or Holy Cross.

Sisters of St. Joseph of Rochester Prayers:
Sister Susan Schantz, SSJ, continues to pray for St. James the Apostle church in Trumansburg. Let us keep Sr. Susan and the Sisters of St. Joseph in our prayers.

Toiletries and Hygiene Products:
There is a basket in the vestibule of St. James church for donations of toiletries. The request comes from Catholic Charities which is in need of items like shampoo, toothpaste, diapers etc. The items will be transferred to the Catholic Charities office in Ithaca.

Cancer Services Program (Cortland and Tompkins Counties):
This a program that provides free cancer screenings (breast, cervical, and colorectal) to women from ages 40–64 and men ages 50–64, who are uninsured or have health insurance that does not cover these screenings and who meet income eligibility requirements. These services are provided in local health centers, doctor’s offices, and hospitals. For more information call 1-866 442 2262.

Ministry Schedules for St. James

Schedule for this weekend, November 26 and 27 (fourth Sunday):

5:00 p.m. Mass
Lectors: Kathleen Rourke (for Paul Povinelli) and Carol Kuklo
Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion: Cathy DelSignore, Joan Hogan

11:00 a.m. Mass
Lectors: Tara and Leon Webster
Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion: Anna Zavala, Mary Szymanski, Glenn Stamps

Schedule for next weekend, December 3 and 4 (first Sunday):

5:00 p.m. Mass
Lectors: Scott Hamula and Carol Kuklo (for Amy Panek)
Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion: Barbara Willers, Robin Hamula, Kathleen Rourke

11:00 a.m. Mass
Lectors: Lynne Stager and Maria Connell
Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion: Mark Scibilia-Carver, Glenn Stamps, Mary Szymanski

Schedule for following weekend, December 10 and 11 (second Sunday):

5:00 p.m. Mass
Lectors: Kathleen Rourke and Scott Hamula
Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion: Barbara Willers, Carol Kuklo, Robin Hamula

11:00 a.m. Mass
Lectors: Rich and Hilary Wong
Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion: Lynne Stager, Glenn Stamps, Susan Stafford

Ministry schedule for Holy Cross

November 2016:

Ministry Schedules for St. Francis Solanus Church
November through December 2016

  Lectors:

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion: