SAINT THOMAS THE APOSTLE CATHOLIC CHURCH THE THIRTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME JUNE 28, 2020 SAINT THOMAS THE APOSTLE CATHOLIC CHURCH WELCOMES YOU Pastor: 720 East Beach Boulevard Secretary: Fr. Cuthbert “Cuddy” P. O. Box 1529 Becky Mullins O’Connell Long Beach, MS 39560 228-863-1610 Cell: 228-493-9303 Website: [email protected] www.saintthomaslb.org Parochial Vicar: Office Manager & Bookkeeper: Office Hours: M-F Beverly Leslie Fr. Colten M. Symmes 9:00am-4:30pm 228-863-1610 On Sabbatical Phone: 228-863-1610 [email protected] Fax: 228-868-6068 Music Director: In Residence: Lauren Hymel Fr. Pat O’Shaughnessy 228-865-3972 MASS SCHEDULE [email protected] Deacon: Ernest “Buddy” Vancourt ATTEND MASS Maintenance: Ben DiLorenzo TUESDAYS 228-596-3379 Youth Ministry: AND [email protected] Ashlie Moran THURSDAYS 228-863-1610 11AM Bulletin Editor: [email protected] Donna Brown SATURDAY VIGIL 228-863-1610 4PM [email protected] SRE Coordinator: Dave Gauthier SUNDAYS Data Resource Coordinator: 228-596-8835 7:30AM 228-863-1610 [email protected] [email protected] 9AM & 11:30AM Pastoral Council: CONTINUE TO Receptionist: Lisa Starita WORSHIP Ann Mink 228-669-3205 VIRTUALLY 228-863-1610 [email protected] [email protected] SUNDAYS AT 9AM Baptism: Community Center Rental Sue Hoffman Robert Phillips TUESDAYS 228-864-5868 (home) 281-773-8328 AND 228-313-0157 (cell) [email protected] THURSDAYS [email protected] 11AM JOIN OUR PARISH We welcome you to St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church, Long Beach, MS. To join the St. Thomas family complete a registration form on our website under “Join Our Parish” and submit your registration electronically. If you have questions please call or visit the church office (228-863-1610). SAINT THOMAS THE APOSTLE CATHOLIC CHURCH THE MESSAGE SEEMS HARSH On first reading, our Gospel seems very harsh. The idea of taking up our cross can be fearful or have negative connotations, as if it were something only a few can do. It is also confusing. Scripture tells us to honor our father and mother, and yet here are told we must love Jesus more than our parents or children, or we are not worthy. The message that Jesus intends to convey, however, is not to give up these people, but rather to choose Christ first. Sometimes this means being countercultural. For a family, how do we make choices to keep Christ in the picture? It could mean that when you make plans to take the family to that water park for the weekend, you should also locate the local church so you can attend Mass. Or maybe it means not placing your child on the soccer team with 10 a.m. Sunday games, or rescheduling another part of your life to keep Christ foremost. Perhaps it is something as simple as locking yourself in the bathroom for five minutes so that you have time to pray. Maybe it means listening to an audiobook of scriptures on your commute to work. All we do is for naught if we do not include Christ. Copyright (c) J. S. Paluch Co. ADORATION In the church 9am to 4pm With the return of all the Sunday Masses there is a need for volunteers to help. Some of the positions are: Greeters Lectors Ushers Commentators Altar Servers Eucharistic Ministers Every Friday Come out and reconnect with your previous service or sign up for something new! Call the office for contact EXCEPT JULY 3RD information on the team of your choice! RETURNING TO NORMAL… READINGS FOR THE WEEK Adoration 9am-4pm, Fri, Church Baptism Class 9:30am, Last Sat of every month, Monday: Acts 12:1-11; Ps 34:2-9; 2 Tm 4:6-8, 17-18; Sue Hoffman at 228-864-5868 Mt 16:13-19 Choir Small Group Practices. See Parish Calendar Church Daily Mass, Tues & Thurs, 11am Tuesday: Am 3:1-8; 4:11-12; Ps 5:4b-8; Mt 8:23-27 Confession, Sat, 3:15 to 3:45 Vigil Mass, Sat, 4pm Wednesday: Am 5:14-15, 21-24; Ps 50:7-13, 16bc-17; Sun Mass, 7:30am, 9am, 11:30am & 5:30pm Mt 8:28-34 Good Shepherd Showcase Personal shopping appointments Thursday: Am 7:10-17; Ps 19:8-11; Mt 9:1-8 Contact Darlene Barry 228-452-6354 or Friday: Eph 2:19-22; Ps 117:1bc, 2; Jn 20:24-29 Nita Gross 228-918-0445 Knights of Columbus Saturday: Am 9:11-15; Ps 85:9ab, 10-14; Mt 9:14-17 Meetings 1st & 3rd Thurs every month, 7pm or, for Independence Day, any readings from the Mass Ladies Auxiliary of the Knights of Columbus “For the Country,” nos. 882- 886, or “For Peace and Jus- Meetings 3rd Thurs every month, 7pm tice,” nos. 887-891 SVdP Society 9:30am-12:30pm, Mon & Thurs, OPEN TO HELP! Sunday: Zec 9:9-10; Ps 145:1-2, 8-11, 13-14; Youth Gift Cards (SCRIP) During office hours, Rom 8:9, 11-13; Mt 11:25-30 9am-4:30pm Mon-Thurs, and Fri, 9am-12pm SAINT THOMAS THE APOSTLE CATHOLIC CHURCH ST. PETER ST. PAUL JUNE 29 JUNE 29 Paul was born in the Roman city Tarsus, located in He is known as Saint Peter the Apostle. today’s Turkey into a wealthy family. He participated in He is the Patron Saint of Fishermen. stoning Stephen, the first Christian Martyr. He was a He was born at Bethsaida, near the Sea of Galilee. Pharisee and a tentmaker. He was neither physically His name was originally Simon. imposing nor was he a good speaker. Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was first a follower of Here are some things you may, or may not know about John the Baptist and then became the first apostle of Jesus. Paul: Andrew introduced Simon Peter to Jesus. Relatives of Paul are mentioned in the New Testament. The name Peter, meaning 'rock', was selected by Jesus They are Andronicus and Junia, Jason, Sosipater and to indicate the he would be the rock-like foundation on Lucius. There was also mention of his sister and his which the Church would be built. nephew who helped him in prison. Peter was a faithful follower of Jesus He must have eaten fish with scales because the Jewish although at the Last Supper dietary laws restricted the eating of fish without scales. Jesus predicted that Peter would deny him Paul was the most popular apostle in the early Church three times following his death saying, and was efficient and effective in forming the Christian "Amen, I say to you, Community. this very night before the cock crows, He was educated in Jerusalem under the famous Jewish you will deny me three times." teacher named Gamaliel. At the time of the arrest of Jesus, His original name was Saul but after his conversion to Peter cut off the ear of a servant of the high priest Christianity he changed his name to Paul which means but then went on, as predicted, small. to deny that he knew Jesus three times. He never met Jesus during his brief years of ministry Peter became a missionary and returned to Rome in and he was also not one of the 12 apostles but according to 63/64AD. the New Testament he did interacted with many of the In 64 AD the Roman Emperor Nero set fire original disciples, especially in Jerusalem. He was a Jew- to Rome and blamed the Christians for its destruction. ish by birth and there were questions about his commit- He was one of the Christians who was arrested ment to Judaism both before and after his conversion to and was sentenced to death by crucifixion. Christianity. Jewish leadership plotted to kill him but Paul He died in AD 64 when he was crucified came to know of their plan. They watched the gates day with his head downwards and night waiting to kill him, so the disciples took him by because he did not consider himself worthy night and brought him through the wall in a large basket. to die in the same manner and posture as Jesus. SAINT THOMAS THE APOSTLE CATHOLIC CHURCH Saul went through a conversion experience on his way ST. JUNIPERO SERRA, to Damascus. He saw a bright light and heard Jesus asking why he (Saul) is persecuting him (Jesus). Hearing this he PRIEST fell off his horse and was blind for three days. Only after JULY 1 the visit of a disciple did he recover his eyesight. From that moment on he started preaching Jesus’ gospel. Junipero Serra spent his early ca- Another very interesting fact about St. Paul the Apostle reer as a Franciscan educator in Pal- is related to a incidence when he was traveling to Rome ma, Spain. He was in his thirties when and his boat was shipwrecked on the island of Malta. Paul he heeded the call to become a missionary. First he survived the wreck but was bitten by a poisonous snake worked to spread the word of God in Mexico in 1750s while setting up a camp. Everyone thought he would die and 1760s before moving to present-day California. Serra but he was saved by The Lord. established nine missions there from 1769 to 1782. He He is a major contributor to Christian theology. His died in 1784. He was beatified in 1988 by Pope John Paul idea of justification by faith, is the concept that humans II and canonized in 2015 by Pope Francis. are saved from sin by believing in Jesus.