This Week’s Gospel Reflection
Sunday, July 19 – Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
www.usccb.org/bible/readings/071920.cfm
www.usccb.org/bible/readings/071920.cfm
by Sr. Carol Czyzewski, Pastoral Minister
Jesus, Word of God, You speak in parables to nudge us into reflecting upon the state of our heart, the clarity of our conscience. From the seeds and weeds of life, each of us has soul searching to do.
You remind us that the Holy Spirit, in prayer, enables the growth of good seeds, to open us to weeds within self and within others—they grow together. We trust the words of Wisdom: You judge with clemency, and with much lenience You govern us. May we imitate Your love so that the good in us will help to convert the weeds in us.
Conversion is very difficult, but, as the message of Romans reminds us:
The Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness;
for we do not know how to pray as we ought,
but the Spirit himself intercedes with inexpressible groanings.
Help us, Holy Spirit of God, to rid ourselves of the weeds that block our life in You. Let us ponder the words of a spiritual writer who cautions:
“Anything that we refuse to recognize or own in ourselves is a place where we are closed to God and to that creative impulse urging us to wholeness.”
[Ann Kline, “the Four Words of Listening,” Presence, vol. 14, no.2, June 2008]
May we obey the concluding words of today’s Gospel: Whoever has ears ought to hear. Amen.
Sign Up for Mass July 18-19
We encourage you to pre-register for Mass to save time when you check in at Mass, as well as to help us gauge attendance. Kindly sign up for Mass by Saturday, July 18 at 3:00 PM. Here’s how:
- Click here, then click the “Sign Up” button of the Mass you’d like to attend.
- Select the number of people in your household who will be attending from the drop-down menu.
- If you’re already in the Flocknotes database, the system will recognize you when you click the sign-up button. If not, enter a contact name and email or phone number if prompted.
- Click Submit and close the sign-up window/tab.
- You’ll receive an email confirmation after your sign up is complete.
What’s New
Sunday Bulletin
This weekend’s bulletin is attached. For the current as well as past editions of our bulletin, you may also click here.
Worship Music Resource
Click here to view and download this Sunday’s worship music, which includes:
- Here I Am to Worship
- MSMM Glory to God
- Ps. 86: Lord, You Are Good and Forgiving
- MSMM Gospel Acclamation
- Wonderful, Merciful Savior (solo)
- MSMM Holy
- MSMM We Proclaim Your Death
- MSMM Amen
- MSMM Lamb of God
- New Wine (solo)
(MSMM = Mass of St. Mary Magdalene)
Electronic Worship Resources
In the absence of hymnals and other printed worship aids, there are several electronic resources available to help you follow along with the readings, prayers, and music. Click here to learn more.
Outdoor Mass Sunday at 11:30 AM!
With nearly 80 people in attendance, our first outdoor Mass on July 12 was a success! Weather-permitting, the Sunday 11:30 AM Mass will continue to be celebrated outdoors. This is a shorter-Mass option without music for families who may not be comfortable celebrating in a confined space. Here are more details:
- Mass will be celebrated near the Conference Center, with the altar on the front porch.
- Limited handicapped parking will be available on the lot near the playground.
- For safety and hygiene, please bring your own chair or blanket; households must maintain 6-feet of social distancing at all times.
- Participants must worship outside of their cars, per Archdiocesan guidelines.
- We suggest wearing a face covering, especially during Communion.
- There will be no music at the 11:30 AM Mass, whether held outdoors or in the church.
- Please use the restroom at home before coming to Mass. If needed, the restroom of the church narthex will be available during Mass.
- If the weather does not permit, the Mass will be relocated to inside the church, subject to capacity limits.
Our Daily Bread THANK YOU!
Thank you to all who contributed casseroles to Our Daily Bread last weekend. We would especially like to thank our Teens In Ministry who volunteered their time and talent to prepare casseroles for this past Sunday’s collection. We collected 117 casseroles, and those at Our Daily Bread were so impressed and grateful. Our parishioners are the BEST! We truly appreciate your unfailing dedication to helping those in need, even during this most unsettling time. God Bless you all for your love and caring of our brothers and sisters in Christ.
St. Elizabeth of Hungary Food Pantry THANK YOU!
It was a beautiful day, Sunday, July 12, in more ways than one. Our parishioners donated 243 bags of food for St. Elizabeth of Hungary Food Pantry – so impressive! A few parishioners even went door-to-door in their neighborhood asking for donations. Another wonderful outpouring of generosity from the St. John community.
August Casserole/Food Collection Date
Our next drive-thru drop-off date for food pantry and frozen casseroles for August will be on Sunday, August 2 from 8:30-11:30 AM by the Chapel/Bell Tower.
SJE School Plans Another Service Day at First Fruits Farm
School families are coming together for another day of service at First Fruits Farm and we’d love to have members of the parish join in! First Fruits Farm, located in Freeland, MD, is a non-profit, Christian ministry dedicated to providing fresh, nutritious produce to those experiencing hunger in the Mid-Atlantic region. (You can learn more about them here: www.firstfruitsfarm.org.)
SJE School and its faculty have done a few service days in recent years, harvesting potatoes and cabbages. (What we’ll be doing is TBD, but likely we’ll be harvesting tomatoes or zucchinis.) Our service date is Tuesday, August 4 from 9:00-11:30 AM (or any part of that!) Register for August 4 by signing FFF’s waiver here: bit.ly/serveFRUITS.
All family members and friends welcome!
Beans & Bread Brown Bag Lunch Collection
Tuesday, July 28, from 8:00-10:00 AM, is SJE School’s monthly brown bag lunch collection. Usually averaging about 250 lunches monthly, our parish community has been extremely generous during the pandemic. When the need at Beans & Bread is the greatest, we’ve been averaging 380 lunches with a collection high of 455!
Please join us again this month. Pre-packed lunches are the only meals Beans & Bread can provide their clients during the pandemic because their dining room is closed. Lunches can be dropped off in the front of school between 8:00-10:00 AM and our dedicated parish volunteers, John and Barb Ward, will transport them downtown. For lunch packing directions visit here: www.bit.ly/BeansBreadInstruct.
Would You Like to Be Better at Explaining and Defending Your Catholic Faith?
Watch this 50-minute video, “How to Win Souls and Influence People,” presented by the Word on Fire Institute. Dr. Matt Nelson uses a down-to-earth approach to offer seven tips to become a better apologist. The video is chock-full of practical suggestions, commonplace examples, and useful resources (many of them available at no charge), which will help you to hone your evangelization skills.
Here’s what you will learn:
- How to prepare effectively for giving and refuting arguments
- How to charitably disagree with others
- Why an offensive approach is better than a defensive one
- Which arguments are most likely—and least likely—to impress nonbelievers
- What is perpetually attractive about the Catholic faith
Check it out here: https://wordonfire.institute/watch-may-2020-webclass.
Natural Family Planning (NFP) Awareness Week
July 19-25, 2020
The dates of Natural Family Planning Awareness Week highlight the anniversary of the papal encyclical Humanae Vitae (July 25) about Catholic beliefs on human sexuality, conjugal love and responsible parenthood. For more information on NFP, click here.