TWENTIETH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME | AUGUST 16, 2020

Mission Statement The parish of Mater Christi is a faith community, unified by belief in Jesus Christ, guided by the Holy Spirit, and rooted in the discipleship of our Blessed Mother. United by our common baptism in the tradition of the Roman Catholic Church, we celebrate the Eucharist and seek to work and pray for the deepening of faith in

Jesus Christ through worship, evangelization, and service.

Parish of Mater Christi 40 Hopewell Street, Albany, NY 12208

Phone: (518) 489-3204 | Email: materchristialbany@gmail.com

WEEKLY BULLETIN

STAY CONNECTED Please follow us on the following social media platforms to stay connected and receive updated information about what’s happening at the parish:

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Email Correspondence: If you have not been receiving electronic messages from us, we strongly encourage you to please share a household email address with our office to allow for more timely and cost effective communication of parish news and information in the future. Send a message to: materchristialbany@gmail.com including your full name and street address and ask us to add your email address to our database.

SACRIFICIAL OFFERING Weekend of August 2 & August 9, 2020

Number of Donations:ONLINE 73

ENVELOPES 247

TOTAL 320

Regular Offertory:ENVELOPES $22,363.00

LOOSE $340.00

ONLINE $8,214.00

TOTAL $30,917.00

AVERAGE WEEKLY EXPENSES (x2 weeks 8/2, 8/9) $31,600.00

DIFFERENCE ($683.00)

OTHER COLLECTIONSASSUMPTION $269.00

CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY $15.00

CATHOLIC CHARITIES $95.00

EASTERN EUROPE $18.00

EVANGELIST $54.00

FOOD PANTRY $1,501.00

HOME MISSIONS $90.00

MISSION SUNDAY $10.00

HOLY FATHER (PETER’S PENCE) $132.00

“Who am I to judge?”

The parish office remains closed to visitors, but staff can be reached via telephone and email. Please note that the office closes at noon on Fridays during the summer.

UPDATED MASS SCHEDULE Daily Masses

Indoors Monday, Wednesday, and Friday 8:15am

Wednesday 5:30pm

Sunday Mass Outdoors

8:00am Outdoor Masses will be canceled in the event of inclement weather.

Please check social media and local news for announcements.

Please note that dispensation from the obligation to attend Sunday Mass remains in place. Those who are vulnerable or even simply uncomfortable attending a public liturgy are encouraged to remain home

and view Mass on our YouTube channel or Facebook page.

Please check our website to review detailed guidelines for both indoor and outdoor Masses: parishes.rcda.org/MaterChristi

FOOD PANTRY I'd like to take this moment to remind everyone of a few guidelines regarding food donations. If the seal or packaging on the food has been opened, we cannot give that food out. Similarly, if cans are significantly dented, they are unsafe and cannot be given to our guests. Lastly, canned items and grain-based items are the only items that are safe for consumption for multiple years after their expiration date. If you have items which are more than 6 months past their expiration date, and are not canned or grain-based, please do not donate them; we will simply have to throw them away. The same goes for open packages and dented cans - as per our food safety guidelines, we simply throw them away. Your cooperation with these guidelines will help us ensure that our families are getting safe, quality food, and make it easier for us to handle incoming donations in a timely manner. —Victor Russak, Food Pantry Coordinator

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT! Online giving isn’t just for COVID! By making online donations through WeShare, your contributions will go directly to the Parish. You can make a one-time donation or set up weekly or monthly recurring donations. Use this link: https://materchristi.weshareonline.org or go to our parish website and click on the “Give Online” box in the upper right corner. If you need assistance you can call LPI (WeShare) Donor Customer Service at: 800-950-9952 (press #3 and then press #2). We encourage those who would like to donate online to continue doing so or visit WeShare to get started today! You may also continue to donate by mailing in or dropping off your envelopes. Thank you.

MONDAY, AUGUST 17 ROOINTON PAVRI Req. by Carol Bonnabeau MARY MARTIN Req. by Kathy & Joe Toomey

TUESDAY,AUGUST 18 ROBERT LYONS Req. by his family WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 19 9TH ANNIV. THERESA THOMAS Req. by her family 19TH ANNIV. ROBERT KEANE SATURDAY, AUGUST 22 Req. by his family THOMAS MITTLER NORA NOLAN Req. by Karen Rossi Req. by Eileen Bartholemew SUNDAY, AUGUST 23 THURSDAY, AUGUST 20 HEATHER MEGAN SHEPHERD ROBERT DACEY Req. by her family Req. by Christopher & Erina Dacey JERRY POMAKOY & TONY IAVENDITTI Req. by Marge & Jack Koreman FRIDAY, AUGUST 21 SEVERA BANDALAN JOSEPH SHEA Req. by her family Req. by his family 13TH ANNIV. MARILYN KILLELEA SPECIAL INTENTIONS OF MARIA MALATINO Req. by her husband, Ron Req. by the Malatino family JOAN MCCAFFREY 3RD ANNIV. GERALD B. CONLIN Req. by Kathy & Joe Toomey Req. by Robert & Mary Ellen Sochor SPECIAL INTENTIONS FOR 18TH WEDDING ANNIV. MARCO & EL TOMAKIN

SCHEDULING A MASS INTENTION OR RESERVING THE SANCTUARY CANDLE

If you would like to reserve the sanctuary candle to burn in memory of a loved one, we now have Fall & Winter dates avaialble. The offering is $20 and the candle burns for the entire week (Sunday-Saturday). Reservations are limited to one intention per week. Please keep this in mind when scheduling as you may be asked to select an alternative date. Requests can be sent to materchristialbany@gmail.com with “Sanctuary Candle” as the subject. Please include the week you would like to schedule, the name(s) of your loved one(s), and who the request is from. You may also call the office to schedule at 518-489-3204. If someone isn’t able to take your call, please leave the intention and your contact information on the voicemail and we will get back to you.

Although we are currently limiting public liturgies to Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday, Masses are celebrated everyday and all scheduled intentions are offered. If you’d like to schedule a Mass intention, please email materchristialbany@gmail.com with “Mass Intention” as the subject. Please include the date you would like to schedule, the name(s) of your loved one(s), and who the request is from. You may also call the office to schedule at 518-489-3204. If someone isn’t able to take your call, please leave the intention and your contact information on the voicemail and we will get back to you. The suggested offering is $10 per intention. If you’d like your intention to appear in the bulletin it must be scheduled at least one week in advance of publication on Thursdays. Mass cards are also available.

Offerings can be mailed to the parish office at: 40 Hopewell Street, Albany, NY 12208, Attn. Jasper, or deposited through the secure mail slot at the parish office, or in the collection basket, inside a labeled envelope, Attn. Jasper.

Burns In Memory of ROBERT KEANE

Req. by his family Week of August 16-22

REST IN PEACE Please remember in your prayers the souls of all

those who have passed away recently.

CHANGES TO THE BISHOP’S APPEAL We want to let you know about a few changes to the annual campaign formerly known as the Bishop’s Appeal: 

• The campaign will now be known as the Diocesan Appeal and themed, “For we walk by faith, not by sight.” (2 Corinthians 5:7)

• There will no longer be “in-pew” collection of pledges.  • The 2020-2021 Diocesan Appeal will begin with a mailing sent to parishioners from the Roman

Catholic Diocese of Albany (RCDA) - Office of Stewardship and Development.  You should expect to receive this correspondence between now and early September; it will include a pledge card and envelope.

• All pledges and payments will be sent directly to the RCDA Office of Stewardship and will no longer be processed in the parish office.

• The appeal year runs through June 30, 2021 (rather than ending in March as in the past). • Monthly or one-time gifts by credit card can be made via secure website

at donate.thediocesanappeal.org. You can also make a pledge at that site as well as pledge payments. • For more information on the appeal, visit www.thediocesanappeal.org. • Questions - call the RCDA Office of Stewardship & Development at 518-453-6680 or

email stewardship@rcda.org    As the Diocese serves as a critical partner with us in serving you, we thank you in advance for your prayerful consideration of a pledge to the Diocesan Appeal.

Mater Christi family:

I am always proud to thank God that he has given me a great family back in Vietnam. Since I came to the USA, Mater Christi became my second family, a bigger, with many members, and a beautiful family. I

am so proud to be part of this fantastic faith family. I am truly amazed and very happy by the way that all of you welcome and treat me. You treat me as a part of your own family. I am proud to be a humble part of Mater Christi, my home parish. Thank God and thank you so much for accepting me into this family, thank all of you for supporting me, praying for me, forgiving me, and loving me. By words, I cannot express my most enormous gratitude for what you have been doing for me and this parish.

I am truly blessed to be here in this beautiful family. Here, I have many opportunities to learn from excellent teachers who love me, take care of me, and support me very well. Fr. James Ebert, Fr. John Cronin, Fr. Kyle, Deacon Frank, Diaconate Candidates, seminarians, and parishioners have

been so good to me. Thank you very much! Thank you again for allowing me to learn, to serve, to love, and to be with you for almost two years. I am moving to St. Mary’s Seminary, and I will bring all of you into my prayers, and I hope you will support and pray for me, our parish, the priests, deacon and other ministers, who day and night serve our Church. Lastly, Thank you very much for your kindness and generosity in supporting me. I am so touched by your generous gifts. I’m having a hard time putting my gratitude into words. I want to thank God and thank all of you for what you have given me. From the bottom of my heart, I hope you know how much I appreciate all of your help. Thank you again for everything. You are my family and my home.

Thanks be to God!

Joseph