FATHER'S TWO CENTS WORTH

Last week was a busy week, and so will this week be also.  Last week, the Pre-Cana Marriage Preparation went well, and was well appreciated by the participants.  Thank you for your prayers!

Monday of this week, we have our Confirmation Retreat for the 8^th grade students of Holy Childhood Parish.  We hire a team from St. Louis to come and give the retreat for the day.  This is their specialty, and they do it for many other parishes in our diocese.  Pray for all of the 8^th grade students who will be participating, that they will be open to the value of this sacrament, and make it a valuable tool for the rest of their lives.  Knowing about our faith and “having the faith” is not enough.  We must live it, “the Gospel Value” every day.  What does Jesus expect of us?

Lent has begun this past week!  If we were standing before Christ, how would he see us, and judge us?  What do you think He might be telling us to do in spite of our objections?

Lenten Services this week:  Mass on Wednesday at 5:30 P.M.; Stations of the Cross and Benediction on Friday at 5:30 P.M.  Please come and pray with us!  There is much to pray for - not only for the present situation, but for what may still take place.

Thursday will be the Red Cross Blood Drive in our school cafeteria—2 to 7 P.M.  Please come and save a life.  Tell a friend about it, and encourage them to come.  Here is an opportunity to do a special Lenten sacrifice—just like Jesus did for us!

Next Sunday, March 8^th, I will leave to go see my brother in Iowa, and return on Friday the 13^th.  I feel that it will be good for the parish and also for myself if I take this time in preparation for the rest of Lent, Holy Week, and Easter.  Masses and services will continue as scheduled, with visiting priests and clergy covering all of the events.

Our Catholic Services and Mission Appeal begins this week.  You will be receiving a letter and commitment envelopment this week, if you have not already received it, asking for your support.  I hope that all of you will be able to renew the same commitment that you made last year, or even to increase it, in spite of the financial climate that we now live in.  I know that it will be a sacrifice!  However, I also ask you to look at the good that will be obtained by your support.  For those of you who did not get a letter, there are envelopes in the pews that you may take and use.  Again, I encourage you to spread out your gift over a period of ten months, thereby making it easier on you to afford your gift, and allow great things to happen through the Diocesan Services and Mission Appeal.  By the way, I have also been chosen to serve on the Governing Board of Directors, along with being on the Allocations Committee of the Catholic Services and Mission Appeal.  At any rate, please support this most worth-while program.  Try to do what you did last year!

A church “clean-up” Saturday is being planned to clean around church, rectory, and parish center—property in general.  It  probably will be March l4th or 21^st.  Mark your calendar!

ANNUAL SOUP SUPPER AND SPEAKER SERIES: Once again we are fortunate to have three outstanding speakers for our soup supper series. On March 16 we will have Fr. Ed Hauf, OMI, and on March 23 we will hear Sr. Janis Yaekel, who is on the staff of the King's House in Belleville. Our final speaker for the series will be Msgr. William Hitpas, the pastor of St. Nicholas Church in O'Fallon. Mark your calendars and plan to attend. Soup, bread and a light dessert will be served each evening beginning at 6:30 PM in the parish center. Everyone is welcome!

EASTER FLOWER MEMORIALS: Now is the time to send in your request for Easter Flower Memorials for your deceased loved ones. For $10, you can list one or two individual names or one or two family names. The Holy Childhood Council of Catholic Women is sponsoring this program. The money is used for the purchasing of the Easter flowers and any other items needed for the altar. For your convenience, there is an Easter flower envelope in your church envelope box. Make sure you list who the memorial is for and the donor's name on the envelope. Please make checks out to HCCCW. Donations are needed by April 7th, to insure your loved ones names are included on the list displayed at all entrances to the church. For more information, please contact Pat Bowker at 566-7089.

ATTENTION ALL MEN: Don't forget to register for the upcoming Catholic Men's Conference in St. Louis. Even if you miss the special price for early registration, the event still only costs $50 and that includes a meal and transportation. A registration table will be set up in the space between the church and the parish center.

BELLEVILLE DEANERY: The spring meeting of the Belleville Deanery Council of Catholic Women will be held on Saturday March 14 at St. Luke's Parish in Belleville. The meeting will begin with registration at 8:30 AM and will conclude with lunch at noon. All women of the parish are invited to attend. The cost will be $5 for the lunch. Please contact Pat Fletcher by March 10 if you plan to attend.

KING'S HOUSE RETREAT: Can you recall the last time you had a moment for yourself? To think...to pray...to relax...to be quiet…? Now is the time to do something for yourself and God. Come with other women from your parish for the women's retreat on March 20-22. Join us for a time of rest, renewal, and spiritual nourishment at King's House Retreat and Renewal Center in Belleville. Contact Mary Elmore at 566-7315 for further information or to register.

MARK YOUR CALENDAR: On March 11, the youth group is sponsoring a guest speaker in the parish center. The title of her talk is "The Choices You Make Today Can Affect the Rest of Your Life." All middle school & high school students,  and their parents are urged to attend. You do not have to be active in the youth group to attend; it is open to the public. If you have any questions, please call Kathy Renth at 618-588-4018.

FROM THE PASTOR'S DESK: Next weekend, every parish in the diocese will be participating in the Annual Catholic Service and Ministry Appeal. This annual collection supports the ministries and agencies in our diocese whose scope of service could not be duplicated by an individual parish. Our parish financial goal for the appeal is $38,734.00. You will have an opportunity to make your pledge at Mass next weekend. No gift is too great or too small and your contribution will do so much to help build the Kingdom of God here in our parish and across southern Illinois. If you do not receive a pledge card in the mail or forgot it at home, please use one of the in-pew envelopes found at the end of each row. Thank you!

The 8th grade class is having their Confirmation Retreat on Monday March 2nd.

Pray for our eighth grade students

 that they have a joyful, spiritually lifting experience during their retreat.

Parents, if you are interested in your child going to Camp Ondessonk,

there are camp forms available in the office.

The Eucharist is one of the most tangible ways God is present in our world today.

If confusion or loneliness weighs too heavily on our hearts,

if we struggle with meaninglessness,

if we long to step off life's frantic treadmill and

slow down to ponder the direction of our lives - Jesus invites us,

"Come to Me."

The Blessed Sacrament is exposed every Tuesday following the 8 o'clock Mass until 7 PM and on Saturdays from 9-10 AM. Come spend any amount of time you can give with our Lord as He waits patiently for us.

 If you have  questions, please call Mary Ellen Mueller 566-9529.

*If HCS or Mascoutah School is cancelled due to weather, Adoration will also be cancelled. You can listen to KMOX radio or KSDK News Channel 5 for the closings.

Tuesday, March 3

 8:00 AM  Jung & Fellin Families

Wednesday, March 4

8:00 AM  Francis Fischer

Thursday, March 5

8:00 AM Father Schoeberle     

Friday, March 6

8:00 AM People of the Parish

Saturday, March 7

5:30 PM       Thanksgiving

                        Dan Stukenberg

                JoAnn Funk

Sunday, March 8

8:00 AM   Special Intention

10:30 AM      People of the Parish

February 15, 2009

MONDAY, March 2

No Mass

8th Grade Confirmation Retreat

Tuesday,  March 3

8:00 AM  Mass→Adoration→7 PM

9:00 AM            Quilting

6:00 PM             Quilting

Wednesday,  March 4

8:00 AM            Mass

5:30 PM            Mass

7:30 PM             Choir Practice

THURSDAY, March 5

8:00 AM Mass

9:00 AM Quilting

2-7 PM   Blood Drive

FRIDAY, March 6

8:00 AM Mass

Communion Calls

5:30 PM Stations/Benediction

SATURDAY, March 7

9:00 AM  Adoration

4:30 PM  Confessions

5:30 PM   Mass

SUNDAY, March 8

8:00 AM Mass 

10:30 AM Mass - Father Thomas

9:00 AM PSR/RCIA

Dear Parents,

“…create in me a clean heart O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” Psalm 51

                         Prayer, fasting and almsgiving are called the “three pillars” of the Christian way of life.  They help support a full and healthy life.  During Lent, we try to repair and strengthen these three pillars, which also are called the “three disciplines” because they help people become better disciples of the Lord.

                         Prayer is conversation with God.  Make a good habit of daily prayer.  Read the psalms, and each Lent learn one or two by heart.  Try to sing your prayer at home, and make every effort to sing well when you worship with others.

                         To prepare himself for his life’s work, Jesus fasted in the wilderness.  As Christians grow up, they need to learn traditional, healthy ways to fast.  When we fast, we deny ourselves some food or other good thing.  We remind ourselves of how dependent we are on God’s gifts, which always must be shared fairly and never taken for granted.

                        Almsgiving means “sharing compassion.”  Almsgiving means more than giving away the things we don’t need.  It means giving away some of the things we do need because someone else also needs them.  It means giving until it hurts.

                        Saint Augustine said that fasting and almsgiving are the two “wings” that help our prayers “fly to heaven.”  Prayer, fasting and almsgiving go together.  They are ways we ask God to root out selfishness from our lives.  They are ways we Christians live life to the full.

Sincerely,

Deacon Ron Karcher

Principal 

HELP:  The Uniform Exchange is in need of size 16 or size 18 boy’s pants. 

 If you have any at home to donate, please send them in.

Holy Childhood Open House & Registration- 2009

Preschool (3 & 4 year old) – March 11,   7pm Preschool Room

Kindergarten – March 18,    7pm  Meeting Room – Lower Level

WORLDWIDE MARRIAGE ENCOUNTER: "Your ways, Lord, make known to me..." As today's Psalm pleads, come and get away to hear the voice of God for your marriage.  The next Worldwide Marriage Encounter Weekend in this area is April 24^th through 26^th.  Early registration is highly recommended. To register or for more information call 888-889-9963.

RITE OF ELECTION MASS: Bishop Braxton from the Diocese of Belleville, will celebrate the Rite of Election Mass, for all six Dioceses for the new Catechumens and Candidates on Sunday, March 1 at 3 PM. at the Belleville Cathedral. Seating for guests and public will be available. Tours of the Cathedral are available from 1:45 - 3 PM. For more information, please call Kay Osborn (Hospitality Chair for the day) at 566-2203. Ladies from all six Deaneries will be there to guide you. All are welcome.

ST. GEORGE PARISH is having a chicken dinner on Sunday, March 8, from 11 AM - 6 PM. It will be held at St. George Hodapp Hall in New Baden, IL. Everyone is invited! Adults- $8.50; Children(5-12)- $4.25; Under 5- free. Carry-outs available.

QUILT & CASH BINGO: Sunday, March 15, at St. Michael's Church in Radom, IL. Starting at 1 PM and doors opening at 11 AM. Lunch and refreshments will be available.

AN EVENING WITH ELVIS: Steve Davis as Elvis with band, and special guest Buddy Holly. The Leu Civic Center is sponsoring this Dinner & Show, Silent Auction, and Cash Bar on Saturday March 7th at the Sportsman's Club; doors open at 5:30 PM and the event begins at 6:30 PM. To purchase tickets, please contact Bobbye Broughton at 566-4668.

PRO-LIFE NEWS: Women in our diocese faced with a crisis pregnancy regrettably will sometimes go to the abortion facility in Granite City, not realizing the gravity of their choice, or else feeling that they have no choice. 40 Days for Life is a national prayer campaign at abortion facilities across the country to be a silent, prayerful witness that every life matters. How can you participate? 1) Pray- Our parish will pray for life and an end of abortion during the holy hour on Tuesdays during Lent.  2) Pray- We are organizing a group to participate in the 40 Days for Life vigil at the Hope Clinic (abortion mill) on Saturday, March 14th. If you would like to be a part of the group that travels to Granite City, please call Mary Kellerman at 566-8139.  3) Pray- There are daily prayers and meditations for the 40 days on the internet. Go to www.respectlife.catholicweb.com.

CATHOLIC SOCIAL SERVICES: The Belleville Region of Catholic Social Services (CSS) is seeking nominations for the 19^th Annual Christian Service Awards.  Individuals nominated should serve or live in the following counties:  Clinton, Monroe, Randolph, St. Clair and Washington.  The awards will be presented at a benefit dinner on May 1, 2009, at 6 o’clock in the evening at Albert’s Banquet Center in Belleville.  Reservations for the event are $45 per person (or $320 for a table of eight) and can be made at any time by calling the Catholic Social Services office at (618) 394-5900.