Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish Bulletin... · August 30, 2020 Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish , Methuen ~ Lawrence 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time St. Vincent de Paul Society Today,

Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish Twenty-Second Sunday In Ordinary Time

August 30, 2020

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August 30, 2020 Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish , Methuen ~ Lawrence 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

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Mission Statement Our Lady of Good

Counsel Parish Lawrence ~ Methuen

Our Lady of Good Counsel is a diverse multi-cultural parish serving the Catholic community of Methuen and Lawrence. We are committed

to building a community of faith intent upon God, in unity of mind and heart.

We are a family of believers, joined by our Baptism, and nurtured by the Eucharist.

As children of God, we endeavor to bring the love of Christ to all we meet. We are committed to be the Body of Christ, rooted in the tradition of the Catholic Church. Together we worship

and praise our God. Guided by prayer and the counsel of the Blessed Mother, we minis-ter to the community through faith formation, fellowship, and service. With diligence, com-passion, and love we endeavor to help others come to know and love Jesus. Empowered

by grace, constant in our mission, we strive to be led by the Holy Spirit.

Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish

22 Plymouth Street, Methuen, MA 01844 Phone: 978-686-3984 Fax: 978-686-8300 Email: [email protected]

Web: OLGCParish.com

Parish Staff: Very Rev. Christopher Casey, V.F. Pastor — Ext 25 [email protected] Rev. Mr. Steven J. Murphy Deacon—Ext 10 [email protected] Mrs. Karen Miller Business Manager — Ext 17 978-686-0728 [email protected] Mrs. Denise Mundry Parish Office—Ext 10 978-686-3984 [email protected] Lori McLaughlin Coordinator of Music Ministries 603-275-6486 Jimmy Massie Facilities 978-697-4701 [email protected] Religious Education Ph: 978-686-3984 Fax: 978-686-8300 Mr. Mark Friedrich Coordinator of Adult Faith Formation [email protected] Mr. Mark Houle Coordinator Grades K-8 [email protected]

Prayer Shawl Ministry Our prayer shawl gatherings are the first Wednesday of the month at 1pm in Duperry Hall.

We welcome new folks at any time to join us in this beautiful, simple ministry. We thank all who have donated yarn or money with which to purchase new yarn. Remember: Blessed Shawls, Lapghans & Baby Blankets are available in the parish office. Thank you and God Bless! Questions? call the parish office.

Ellen Gallant Card Ministry Do you know of someone who is sick, going through difficult times, in the mili-

tary, or may just need a little note of encourage-ment? Fill out the forms found in the church and chapel and drop them in the box labeled “The Ellen Gallant Card Ministry” or the weekly collection basket. If you’d like to help make someone’s day by joining

us in this ministry, contact Donna Fawcett @ [email protected]

Mass Schedule: Church & Chapel are handicapped accessible (elevator in Church, ramp at Chapel)

Sat. 4 pm at St. Theresa Church 22 Plymouth St., Methuen, MA

Sun. 8 am at St. Theresa Church

Sun. 10:30 am at St. Augustine Chapel 128 Ames St., Lawrence, MA

Daily Mass: 7 am Monday — Friday at St. Theresa Church

Reconciliation: Saturdays, 2:45—3:30 pm at St. Theresa Church or anytime by appointment

Baptism: Second Sunday of the month. Previous arrangements necessary

Marriage: Arrangements must be made at least six months in advance

New Parishioners: Welcome! Please come to the Parish Office to meet us and to register

Lawrence Catholic Academy

101 Parker St. Lawrence, MA 01843

www.lawrencecatholic

academy.org

978-683-5822

PARISH OFFICE HOURS

Monday to Thursday 8 am to 3 pm

Friday 8am to noon

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Dear Parishioners, Have you noticed that we’ve been reading from St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans for the past several weeks? We will continue in Romans for two more weeks as well. In Peter Kreeft’s book “You Can Understand the Bible” his chapter on Romans is entitled “The First Systematic Christian Theology: Romans” and he begins the chapter with: “Samuel Taylor Coleridge called Romans “the most profound book in existence”. Godet called it “the cathedral of the Christian faith”. It is placed first among the epistles not only because it is the longest, but also because it is the greatest.” Kreeft provides a concise summary of the book in this paragraph: “The main point of Romans, and of Christianity, and of life itself, is Christ. Romans presents Him as the Second Adam, the new man, and humanity’s second chance. He is “the righteousness of God”. This is the phrase Paul uses to identify his main theme at the beginning (1:16–17): “For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salva-tion to everyone who has faith, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, ‘He who through faith is righteous shall live.’” This is a two-verse summary of the entire book. We read Romans 12:1-2 this weekend, and I love verse two, “Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.” Paul reminds us that as Christians we are called to follow Jesus in thought, word, and deed… that means being sure we are not conformed to the world around us, but instead conformed to Christ. A good YouTube video reminded me of how difficult that is. It was an ad for a video “cleaning service” called VidAngel… a company that offers a filtering service to screen out certain offensive language and actions. The video has the family get hit with a paintball each time a curse word is used in movies over time. It started with 1939, the first time a curse word was used in a movie, “Gone with the Wind” (Frankly Scarlet, I don’t give a…). The fact that such language might not even raise an eyebrow says something about how readily we become conformed to the world. For example, VidAngel mentioned the following potentially troubling areas of the movie “12 Years a Slave” that they addressed with their editing services: “Lord’s name in vain: 19 times, Other swear words: 23 times, Nudity: 5 times, Rape: 1 time, and 96 other parts.” Although VidAngel only screens out the troubling parts of movies that you are streaming into your home, they have been facing lawsuits for years by the entertainment industry that wants to shut them down. The worldliness of the entertainment industry is on full display in such an effort, but remember they are suing so that their worldliness is yours and your family’s as well! I have the habit and recommend the habit of praying every time I hear the Lord’s Name taken in vain, just a simple prayer that uses the Name in a Holy way, like “Lord Jesus, may Your Name be praised by all people everywhere.” I sometimes cringe when I’m having my dinner watching an NCIS rerun when an autopsy is being performed for all to see. It is too much. But I likely would watch “12 Years a Slave” and not be put off by any of the content, even though I’ll have to pray 19 times while I watch it! Am I allowing myself to be conformed to the world rather than to Jesus? As Christians are we supposed to be di-vorced from the world around us and keep our heads in the sand? At a bare minimum we need to be conscious of our own time when we are more impacted by the world around us because of our intense media environment and make a more concert-ed effort to conform ourselves to Christ by our committed daily prayer, our faithful reading of Scripture, and our regular at-tendance at Mass and participation in the Sacraments of Reconciliation and Holy Communion. It is only getting harder… VidAngel mentions that 2013 was the year with the most swear-words in cinema history! Two people told me they walked out of the movie “The Wolf of Wall Street” from 2013, and VidAngel mentions the following stats on that film: “the F-word was used 528 times, blasphemy 70 times, other language 200 times, sex and nudity 27 times and graphic violence 3 times.” To hear St. Paul’s caution to be conformed to Christ and not to the world is clearly a message for our time! We all need to be aware that the crudeness of the culture in which we live has changed us, and not for the better! God Bless, Fr. Chris

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Saturday, August 29 ~ The Passion of Saint John the Baptist

4:00 pm Rita and Charles Chory ~ Requested by their family

Sunday, August 30 ~ Twenty-Second Sunday In Ordinary Time 8:00 am Rita Cote ~ Requested by Frank and Terry Beauchesne 10:30 am Louise Fusco ~ Birthday Remembrance ~ Requested by Pauline Halloran Michael Messineo ~ Requested by the Friedrich Family Robert Abraham ~ Requested by his family All Living Members of the Parish

Monday, August 31 ~ Weekday No daily Mass

Tuesday, September 1 ~ Weekday No daily Mass

Wednesday, September 2 ~ Weekday No daily Mass

Thursday, September 3 ~ Saint Gregory No daily Mass

Friday, September 4 ~ Weekday No daily Mass

Saturday, September 5 ~ Saint Teresa of Calcutta 4:00 pm Paul Kroeter ~ 8th Anniversary ~ Requested by his family Maurice Lagasse ~ 3rd Anniversary ~ Requested by his family Bernard Lynch ~ Requested by his family Exilia Sirois ~ Anniversary ~ Requested by Pauline Halloran Frank Heymans ~ Requested by Tom and Fran Gradzewicz Charles Peikert ~ Requested by Eileen DeSalvo All Living Members of the Parish

Sunday, September 6 ~ Twenty-Third Sunday In Ordinary Time 8:00 am Lillian Kiberstis ~ Anniversary ~ Requested by her family 10:30 am Larry and Connie Bouchard ~ Requested by their family

Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,

but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Matthew 16:24-25

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St. Vincent de Paul Society

Today, we hear Jesus say to us, “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” The challenge is to let go so

God can lead us.

This month, through your gifts, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul enabled the poor to experience

Jesus’ presence by assisting needy families, providing food vouchers, assistance for utility

and rent bills, etc. Thank you!

Tommy Keylock, Robbyn Culpon, Claire Hanlon, Aiden

Scanlon, Patrick and Sarah Scanlon, John Dezan, Margaret

“Peggy” Manning, Jose Luis Martinez Sanchez, Robert P.

Nolan, Juliana Rosato, Rose Gaudreau, Allison Hawkes, Eugene Baldi, Walter Beynon, Joseph

Howanski, Jeannette Demers, Michael Culpon, Mary Jo Daigle, Ronald Begin, George Henderson,

Andrew Champy, David Champy, David Adams, Gary Stachulski, Douglas McKnight, William Luna, Aiden Sutliff, Ellen Villers, Judith Upham, Benjamin

Melo, Ron Simonian, Art Munger, Brad Waters, Mary Conway, Elisabeth Hooper, Matt Kinsley, Bishop Todd Brown, Diane Castiglione, Fr. Paul

Valley, SP, Noah Leary, Joseph Androwas, Cecile Townsend, Ray Boutselis, Ronald Mullen, Leeann

Hanson, Elaine Labrecque, Sheila Hunt, Reina Rodriguez, Jennifer Prugnarola, Nicholas Norcia,

Donna Myers, Anita & Dottie Watson, Gary Dubois, Michael Donovan, Jaykub Parsons, Ava Gagnon,

Tom McGuire, Judy Lacroix, Charlie Carrell, Mariana Rosato, Carrie McNiss, all those on our

Parish prayer line, and all the residents at Woodmill Nursing Home, Nevins Nursing Home, Mary-

Immaculate Nursing Home, Berkeley Nursing Home and Methuen Village.

Those who have died: Kevin Fitzpatrick, Alfred Zappala, Eileen Whitaker, Roberta Blanchette

If you have a friend or loved one that you would like us to pray for, please call the parish office and leave the name. If you would like a name put back on the

list, call the office. Thank You.

Prayer Requests for Priests

O Jesus, Eternal High Priest, live in (name a priest), act in him, speak in and through him. Think your thoughts in his mind, love through his heart. Give him your own dispositions and feelings. Teach, lead and guide him

always. Correct, enlighten and expand his thoughts and behavior. Possess his soul; take over his entire

personality and life. Amen

August 29 Cardinal Sean ordained 1970 ~ August 30 Fr. Brian Flynn ~ August 31 Fr. Mark Storey ~ September 1 Msgr. Joseph Lind ~ September 2 Fr. Gerard O’Meara ~ September 3 Fr. Stephen Madden ~ September 4 Msgr.

John Abruzzese

Weekend of August 22/23, 2020

Total Offertory: $ 3,785.00 Maintenance: $ 25.00 Grand Annual to Date: $ 16,698.00

Our highest gratitude and appreciation ~ we are so grateful for your support.

Bless your generosity!

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From the Deacons Desk Year of the Eucharist

Why does Jesus give himself to us as food and drink? Greetings and blessings, This week my focus will be on “Why does Jesus give Himself to us as food and drink?” We now know, as we have reviewed in some of my past writings that the elements of the bread and wine transubstantiated by the Priest during the Holy Mass is the true Body and Blood of Jesus of which we are fed. Jesus, gives himself to us in the Eucharist as spiritual nourishment because he loves us. God's whole plan for our salva-tion is directed to our participation in the life of the Trinity, the communion of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Our sharing in this life begins with our Baptism, when by the power of the Holy Spirit we are joined to Christ, thus becoming sons and daughters of the Father. It is strengthened and increased in Confirmation. It is nourished and deepened through our participation in the Eucharist. By eating the Body and drinking the Blood of Christ in the Eucharist we become united to the person of Christ through his humanity. "Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him" (Jn 6:56). In being united to the humanity of Christ we are at the same time united to his divinity. Our mortal and corruptible natures are transformed by being joined to the source of life. "Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me" (Jn 6:57). By being united to Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, we are drawn up into the eternal relationship of love among the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. As Jesus is the eternal Son of God by nature, so we become sons and daughters of God by adoption through the sacrament of Baptism. Through the sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation (Chrismation), we are temples of the Holy Spirit, who dwells in us, and by his indwelling we are made holy by the gift of sanctifying grace. The ultimate promise of the Gospel is that we will share in the life of the Holy Trinity. The Fathers of the Church called this participation in the divine life "divinization" (theosis). In this we see that God does not merely send us good things from on high; instead, we are brought up into the inner life of God, the communion among the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. My friends we must remember that in the celebration of the Eucharist (which means "thanksgiving") we give praise and glory to God for this sublime and most precious and beautiful gift. May the blessing of the Lord be with you all, Deacon Steve

My Thoughts On Communion In The Time Of Covid Since COVID closed churches, I have not been able to receive Communion daily as I had. It has been about five months, and I have only received Communion twice. Communion is food for my journey. It is the source and summit of my faith. I gain strength to become what I am trying to achieve. That strength comes from receiving Jesus in Communion. The two times I received were special, much like Thanksgiving and Christmas.

These two holidays are a highlight because special foods are part of the celebration that are not enjoyed at other times of the year. The anticipation of tasting something special starts weeks before. The preparation of the special dish is planned ahead of time and then finally executed with great care. The family gathers around the table, and the food is shared. Everyone savors the taste and texture, for they know it will be another year before they will enjoy this food again. For me, this is what it has been like receiving Communion. The anticipation of knowing I will be able to receive Communion started as soon as I knew the possibility existed. Finally, the moment arrived when I was able to receive Jesus in the form of bread. I prayed thankfully for that special opportunity. Before COVID, it was easy to take Jesus' love in the form of bread and wine for grant-ed as it was available every day in many churches. However, one thing I have learned from the past few months of self-quarantining is that nothing can be taken for granted--especially receiving Jesus' love in Communion. I did learn that there are other ways to experience the love of Jesus that need to be explored. With that being said, I am looking forward to the day when I can again receive Jesus every day.

The above was submitted by Arleen Bradley on a Contemplative Photography Page

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Saturday, September 12, 2020 @ 10:00 to 10:30 a.m. Merrimack Valley Memorial Service for Aborted Children

Memorial donated by local Knights of Columbus Council

On September 12, Pro-Life Americans throughout the country will gather at the gravesites of aborted babies & other memorial sites dedicated in their honor for the 8th annual National Day of Remembrance of Aborted Children. Solemn vigils will be held at these sites to commemorate the more than 60 million children who have lost their lives to legal abortion since 1973, and to remind our society of the humanity of the unborn child.

WHEN: Saturday, September 12, 2020 @ 10:00 to 10:30a.m. (Followed by recitation of the Rosary)

WHERE: Knights of Columbus Memorial for the Unborn St. Mary’s Cemetery 29 Barker Street Lawrence, MA

Knights of Columbus councils throughout the Order pay tribute to the millions of children killed by abortion by erecting memorials in Catholic cemeteries, council hall grounds, and on parish grounds throughout the United States. For memorial event information, please call 978-490-5302.

Congratulations to

Marguerite and Arthur Brien Who received a

SPECIAL BLESSING Last weekend on the occasion

Of their 68th Wedding Anniversary!

May God continue to bless them

with His abundant

love!

Scripture for the week of August 30,2020

30 SUN Jer 20:7-9/Rom 12:1-2/Mt 16:21-27 31 Mon 1 Cor 2:1-5/Lk 4:16-30 1 Tue 1 Cor 2:10b-16/Lk 4:31-37 2 Wed 1 Cor 3:1-9/Lk 4:38-44 3 Thu 1 Cor 3:18-23/Lk 5:1-11 4 Fri 1 Cor 4:1-5/Lk 5:33-39 5 Sat 1 Cor 4:6b-15/Lk 6:1-5 6 SUN Ez 33:7-9/Rom 13:8-10/Mt 18:15-20

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OLGC Website

Please continue to check out the OLGC website which is being updated regularly.

You can view the weekly bulletin and watch our live

stream Masses.

Weekday Masses (Monday to Friday) will air at 8:00am. Sunday Mass will air on Saturday (vigil) at

4:00pm Sunday at 8:00am and 10:30am

Find us at www.olgcparish.com

A Note From Fr. Chris . . .

Father Chris will be away on

vacation from Monday, August 31st until Friday, September 11th. Bishop Hennessey will be here to

cover the Masses on Saturday, September 5th and Sunday,

September 6th.

We will not be live streaming the Daily Mass during the

weekdays during these two weeks. The daily Mass can be viewed on Catholic TV, EWTN, and

on demand at www.watchthemass.com, and you can find more resources for prayer at www.catholicTV.com

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OLGC Prayer Shawl Ministry

On August 15th the parish’s prayer shawl ministry celebrated their 8th year of creating beautiful shawls, lapghans and baby blankets from 25 caring and generous hearted women. This past year 162 pieces were made with prayer and compas-sion and 134 were given out to many in need of comfort, love, courage, and the knowledge that our Lord loves and cares for them in their time of need. Fourteen baby blankets were also given to celebrate each child baptized in our parish. Our other recipients were from Hospice Care in Haverhill, Mary Immacu-late Nursing Home, Woodmill Nursing Home, The Pregnancy Care Center, Haven of Hope, Holy Family Hospital and chap-lains working with Communities Together. You can see that many people have been blessed during this past year. The recipients are reminded that someone prayed and continues to pray for them and their special needs. We thank ALL OF YOU who have donated yarn or given a donation with which to purchase yarn. We are most thankful. On the weekend of August 15th Fr. Chris blessed many pieces and they are available at the parish office during office hours. Be sure to mark your name and the person you wish us to pray for in the white book. We also have 2 bins in the church in the front alcove on the side of the rectory. Feel free to take one after Mass. PLEASE DO NOT TAKE THE SHAWLS OUT OF THE BAG UNTIL YOU GET HOME DUE TO THE COVID 19 VIRUS. Feel free to join this ministry at any time. We meet in Duperry Hall the first Wednesday of each month at l:00pm. There are NO meetings in the evening at this time. Again, thank you for your support. Any questions...simply call Ann at 978-609-7431 or leave a message at the parish office.

CAN YOU HELP DESTROYED AND DEVASTATED CATHOLIC PARISHES?

St. Anthony Maronite Catholic Church is asking for our

help. Three Catholic Parishes in Beirut have been completely destroyed to the ground. They have endured countless human casualties in addition to the collapse of over 80% of their buildings. They now have homeless

elderly, children and young people.

YOU CAN HELP BY ATTENDING ST. ANTHONY’S

LEBANESE FOOD DRIVE THRU

WHEN: Saturday, September 5th from 5pm to 8pm and Sunday, September 6th from 10am to 2pm MENU: Kibbe, humus, taboule, chicken shawarma, beef shawarma, falafel, homemade Lebanese pastries.

You can pre-order or order same day by phone 978-853-5145 or 603-235-0801

Drive Thru orders will also be available

St. Anthony Maronite Catholic Church 145 Amesbury Street

Lawrence, MA 01841 978-685-7233

www.stanthonylawrence.org

For Advertising call 617-779-3771 Pilot Bulletins Our Lady of Good Counsel, Methuen, MA 21516

Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, businesses and consumer behavior

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Also, visit their websites to see how they can assist you with any of their services

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Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish Bulletin... · August 30, 2020 Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish , Methuen ~ Lawrence 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time St. Vincent de Paul Society Today,