Saint Mary’s Catholic Church IMMACULATE CONCEPTION CHURCH E st. 1858 PARISH COMMUNITY Pastor ASH WEDNESDAY FR. JEREMY PAULIN, O.M.V. FR. DAVID BEAUREGARD, O.M.V. LITANY TO BEGIN AGAIN FR. PAUL NGUYEN, O.M.V. FR. BENJAMIN UNACHUKWU, O.M.V. (Compiled from the words of Venerable Bruno Lanteri, OMV) DEACON JIM SCHWARTZKOPF BR. LELAND THORPE, O.M.V. That I may begin immediately, PARISH OFFICE That I may never fail to begin again, 618-465-4284 That I may begin even without devotion, Fax: 618-463-4637 Hours: Mon.-Fri. That I may begin each day, 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. That I may begin every day, Check out our Facebook page... That I may begin every hour of the day, St. Mary’s Catholic Church MASS SCHEDULE That I may say with boldness, “Now I begin,” Weekdays & Saturdays: That I may begin humbly and with full confidence, 6:30 a.m. & 8:00 a.m. During School Year: Fri. 8:15 a.m. That I may begin with holy tenacity, Saturdays: 5:15 p.m. That I may begin with faith, (For Sunday Obligation) That I may begin with gentleness, Sundays: 6:30, 8:00, 9:30, That I may begin with peace, 11:00 a.m. & 6:00 p.m. That I may decide always to begin, Day Before Holy Day: 5:15 p.m. Holy Days: 6:30, 8:00 a.m., That I may begin again, 12:00 noon and 5:15 p.m. firmly convinced that God forgives me, (if announced) First Fridays: 5:15 p.m. That I may rise immediately and begin again, CONFESSIONS That I may always, and in every moment, begin again, First Fridays: 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. Saturday: 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. That I may begin again to trust, 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. That I may begin again to hope, BAPTISMS That I may begin again to love, On Sundays after the 11:00 a.m. Mass Venerable Bruno, pray for me. Amen. Please make an appointment. MARRIAGES (Composed by Kirsten Butera, February 9, 2020, To be arranged at least six months St. Clement Eucharistic Shrine, Boston, Massachusetts) before marriage. Call the Parish Office. SCHOOL OFFICE 618-465-8523 ƒ Middle School 618-465-9719 Mon.-Fri. 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. 519 EastOBLATES Fourth OF THE VIRGIN Alton, MARY Illinois www.smsalton.com www.stmarysalton.com St. Mary’s Learning and Living Our Catholic Faith Catholic Church My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, ALTON, ILLINOIS This Wednesday is Ash Wednesday! Lent is upon us! THE SEVENTH SUNDAY IN The Lord and His Church invite us to enter upon a path of prayer, penance and sacrifice ORDINARY TIME that we might might see him more clearly, follow him more closely and love him, and each other, more fully. I always look forward to Holy Lent and to the Holy Days of the Sacred FEBRUARY 23, 2020 Triduum that await at its end and especially the Easter Vigil Mass on Holy Saturday Night (to which I invite the entire parish). The Easter Vigil is the night of nights and feast of feasts, when we celebrate the incomparable manifestation of God's power - the Resurrection of MASS INTENTIONS Jesus Christ from the Dead, which changed everything, and by which you and I are still and Monday, February 24 again transformed. It is the great culmination of the ashes you will receive this Wednesday. Please, please plan on coming to the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday at 8:00 p.m.! 6:30 am Pete Borman† 8:00 am Mike Fischer† Ash Wednesday is not a Holy Day of Obligation. Priests are blessedly amazed however, to see so many coming to seek the ashes and the repentance and conversion they symbolize, Tuesday, February 25 and that the wearing of them out into the world on our foreheads proclaims. As each of 6:30 am Mary Hartshorn† us receives those ashes we are saying to Jesus and the world, "I am sorry for my sins (and 8:00 am Int of Fr. Jeremy quite likely taking advantage of the many confession opportunities we will offer this Lent) Paulin, OMV and I am with God's help intending to be from this day forward more Christian in all I think Wednesday, February 26 and say and do." 6:30 am Juliana Hellrung The Psalm for today's Mass is Psalm 103, and the antiphon we pray or sing together is Moehn† wonderful news - the "Good News", in fact: "The Lord is kind and Merciful". Yes, the Lord 8:00 am Pro-Life Efforts is kind and merciful! The Psalm verses sing praise of God and his kindness and mercy: 8:00 am George & Armilda "Bless the LORD, O my soul; and all my being, bless his holy name. Bless the LORD, O my Wittman† soul, and forget not all his benefits. He pardons all your iniquities, heals all your ills. He Noon Int of Madeleine redeems your life from destruction, crowns you with kindness and compassion. Merciful Jaworski and gracious is the LORD, slow to anger and abounding in kindness. Not according to our sins does he deal with us, nor does he requite us according to our crimes. As far as the east 5:15 pm Mary Ann Pranger† is from the west, so far has he put our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion Thursday, February 27 on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him." 6:30 am Patricia Wolff† Speaking of mercy, last Saturday the parish was blessed to host a seminar taught by Fr 8:00 am Juliana Moehn† Timothy Gallagher OMV (www.frtimothygallagher.org) entitled "Overcoming Spiritual Friday, February 28 Discouragement". Over 200 people were able to take part in the day and learn about God's limitless mercy and its ever-present availability to us in our sin, weakness and need. 6:30 am Tim Molloy, Sr.† The teaching about God's ever-present Mercy was offered through the lens of the life and 8:15 am Mary & Jimmy teachings of the founder of the OMV, Venerable Father Bruno Lanteri (1759 - 1830). It was Wagnon† and is a very uplifting and hope-giving teaching, which may be simply summed up in Fr 5:15 pm Margaret Sugent† Lanteri's Latin phrase "Nunc Coepi" or "Begin Again." Fr Lanteri said: "If I should fall, were Saturday, February 29 it even a thousand times, I will not lose courage, I will not be troubled, but I will always say immediately, with peace, Nunc coepi ["Now I Begin."]" And also: "Do not be surprised to 6:30 am Int of Halliday Family find yourself (spiritually) dry. This is a human condition to which we are subject, and you 8:00 am Thanksgiving to will profit spiritually by this when you bear it with patience and perseverance, striving to Mother of Perpetual avoid voluntary negligence. And if you fall into voluntary negligences, profit from these by Help humbling yourself before God, and renew your resolve always to begin again." 5:15 pm Int of John & Rosario The Saturday seminar concluded with our praying together the beautiful and powerful Stobbs "Litany to Begin Again" which is on the cover of this week's bulletin. Sunday, March 1 In Lent the Church offers us an opportunity and invitation to very profoundly begin again 6:30 am Albert Walter† in our loving of Jesus. I would like to suggest you save this week's bulletin cover and make 8:00 am The People of St. the "Litany to Begin Again" your daily prayer these next 40 days. We could even consider Mary’s it to be taking on something holy and helpful - maybe even at the same time giving up our 9:30 am John Forgas, Sr.† doubt and lack of trust in the Lord! If you and I could appropriate to ourselves, make our 11:00 am Int of Carol & Tom own more fully this hope-filled and hope building saying of Venerable Fr Lanteri, "Begin Boerner Again", how much closer to Christ we will be by Easter! The Lord is kind and merciful! 6:00 pm Samuel John Geisen† Our Lady of Holy Hope, pray for us! Venerable Fr Lanteri, pray for us! – Fr Jeremy OMV If you have submitted a name for prayers in the bulletin they THE SEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME will remain for one month. If you would like to ask the parish Focus: Strive for perfection in love. to continue praying, please let the parish office know by calling (618) 465-4284. Thank you for your prayers! Jesus expands on the law that his followers knew well. As God loves all people without partiality – the bad and the good, the just and the unjust – so are all who follow him to do. Certainly this can be difficult, but it is not impossible. For by Christ’s sacrifice, we have been made children of the Please remember our brothers and sisters, Father. With this help, and God’s grace, we are capable of who are in need of prayer. striving for the perfection in love to which we are called. Jan Manns, Lucy Rose Lucas, Bill Haine, Naomi Fader, In Leviticus, the Lord declares his statutes to Moses for the Barb Cronn, Everett O’Connor, Tom Grossheim, Jack Israelites, calling them to holiness and love. In our second Droste, Greg Weirich, Mary Donahue, Sean Michael reading, Paul instructs the Corinthians, calling them to Donahue, Veronica Murray, Richard Cox, Mabel holiness as temples of the Holy Spirit.