Fourth Sunday of Lent

"Lent comes providentially to

reawaken us, to shake

us from our lethargy."

Pope Francis

Prayers Recommended by an Exorcist

Father Gabriele Amorth, has performed over 70,000 exor-cisms from 1986 to 2010. He serves as an exorcist for the Diocese of Rome and is the founder and honorary president of the International Association of Exorcists. He has written two books: An Exorcist Tells His Story & An Exorcist: More Stories. In his book An Exorcist Tells His Story, Fr. Amorth lists the following prayers to help combat evil; however, Fr. Amorth and many other priests have stressed that the number one protection from evil is the Sacrament of Confession and the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. Often times people want esoteric rituals to deliver them from evil, when in reality what they need is to become right with God. Along with regular Confession and reception of the Holy Eucharist, these prayers should be coupled with Our Lord’s Prayer and the Prayer to St. Michael the Archan-gel.

Prayers

1. Prayer Against Malefice from the Greek Ritual Kyrie eleison (Lord have Mercy), God, our Lord, King of ages, All-powerful and All-mighty, You Who made every-thing and Who transform everything simply by Your will. You Who in Babylon changed into dew the flames of the ‘seven-times hotter’ furnace and protected and saved the three holy children. You are the doctor and the physician of our soul. You are the salvation of those who turn to You. We beseech You to make powerless, banish, and drive out every diabolic power, presence, and machination; every evil influence, malefice, or evil eye and all evil actions aimed against Your servant [name of person/s]. Where there is envy and malice, give us an abundance of goodness, en-durance, victory, and charity. O Lord, You Who love man, we beg You to reach out Your powerful hands and Your most high and mighty arms and send the angel of peace over us, to protect us, body and soul. May he keep at bay and vanquish every evil power, every poison or malice in-voked against us by corrupt and envious people. Then, un-der the protection of Your authority may we sing, in grati-tude, ‘The Lord is my salvation; whom should I fear? I will not fear evil because You are with me, my God, my strength, my powerful Lord, Lord of peace, Father of all ages.”

Yes, Lord our God, be merciful to us, Your image, and save your servant [name of person/s] from every threat or harm from the evil one, and protect him/her by raising him/her above all evil. We ask You this through the intercession of our Most Blessed, glorious Lady, Mary ever Virgin, Mother of God, of the most splendid archangels and all Your saints. Amen!

2. Anima Christi Soul of Christ, sanctify me; Body of Christ, save me; Blood of Christ, inebriate me; Water from the side of Christ, wash me; Passion of Christ, strengthen me; O good Jesus, hear me; within Thy wounds, hide me; let me never be separated from Thee; from the evil one, deliver me; at the hour of my death, call me and bid me come to Thee, that with Thy saints, I may praise Thee forever and ever. Amen.

3. Prayer Against Every Evil Spirit of our God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Most Holy Trinity, Immaculate Virgin Mary, angels, archangels, and saints of heaven, descend upon me. Please purify me, Lord, mold me, fill me with yourself, use me. Banish all the forces of evil from me, destroy them, vanish them, so that I can be healthy and do good deeds. Banish from me all spells, witchcraft, black magic, malefice, ties, maledictions, and the evil eye; diabolic infestations, oppressions, possessions; all that is evil and sinful, jealous-ly, perfidy, envy; physical, psychological, moral, spiritual, diabolical aliments. Burn all these evils in hell, that they may never again touch me or any other creature in the en-tire world.

I command and bid all the power who molest me – by the power of God all powerful, in the name of Jesus Christ our Savior, through the intercession of the Immaculate Virgin Mary – to leave me forever, and to be consigned into the everlasting hell, where they will be bound by Saint Michael the archangel, Saint Gabriel, Saint Raphael, our guardian angels, and where they will be crushed under the heel of the Immaculate Virgin Mary. Amen.

4. Prayer for Inner Healing Lord Jesus, You came to heal our wounded and troubled hearts. I beg You to heal the torments that cause anxiety in my heart; I beg You, in a particular way, to heal all who are the cause of sin. I beg You to come into my life and heal me of the psychological harms that struck me in my early years

Fourth Sunday of Lent Page 2 March 6, 2016

From the Pastor Continued . . .

The Rosary is prayed before the 8:15 a.m. weekday Mass. The intention for this week is to pray for our faith community, may we grow in fervor and in holiness as we pray together to know God’s will for us, and the strength to carry it out.

Opportunities to Grow in Holiness - Lent 2016 Jubilee Year of Mercy

John Wood, author of: Ordinary Lives: Extraordinary Mission

Saturday, March 5th

Most Holy Trinity Church at 7:00 pm.

Father/Son Breakfast with John Wood Sponsored by the Knights of Columbus Sunday, March 6

th, in the Activity Center

Please call the office for more details

Novena to St. Joseph Beginning on Thursday, March 10

th

Solemnity of St. Joseph Saturday, March 19

th

Confession Times

Confessions every Saturday from 3:00 till 4:00 pm.

Thursdays after Ash Wednesday March 10

th March 17

th

Fr. Dennis will be hearing confessions for school students in his office

*this is a time for school students*

Parish Penance Service St. Mary’s, Westphalia

Monday, March 14 at 7pm

Regional Penance Service St. Gerard, Lansing

Sunday, March 6 at 2pm

Holy Week Liturgies

Holy Thursday

Chrism Mass With Bishop Boyea

At St. Mary’s Cathedral Lansing at 10:30 am.

Mass of the Lord’s Supper Mass begins at 7:00 pm.

Procession with the Blessed Sacrament to the Fr. Ray Center at the end of the Liturgy

Reposition until Midnight

Good Friday Stations of the Cross 12 noon

Solemn Service of Good Friday 3:00 pm. Evening Service 7:00 pm.

Solemn Feast of Easter - Christ is Risen!

Holy Saturday Vigil 8:45 pm.

Easter Sunday 8:30 and 10:30 am.

After the 10:30am Mass, Prayer Teams will be available

Divine Mercy Sunday Celebration Sunday, April 3

rd at 2:30 pm.

St. Mary’s Parish in Westphalia Confessions & Chaplet of Divine Mercy

DSA

Thank you to everyone who has shared the many blessings they have received, with your generous gift to our Diocesan Services Ap-peal. Our parish goal is $60,286 and our pledge amount to date is $18,805. If you have not yet made a gift or a pledge, please join the faithful of our parish community who have taken an active role in the mission of the Church. Your gift to our Diocesan Services Appeal will enable our diocese to continue providing the vital services and ministries that help bring the love of God to those who face hardships.

and from the injuries that they caused through my life.

Lord Jesus, You know my burdens. I lay them all on Your Good Shepherd’s Heart. I beseech You – by the merits of the great, open wound in Your heart-to heal the small wounds that are in mine. Heal the pain of my memories, so that nothing that has happened to me will cause me to re-main in pain and anguish, filled with anxiety.

Heal, O Lord, all those wounds that have been the cause of all the evil that is rooted in my life. I want to forgive all those who have offended me. Look to those inner sores that make me unable to forgive. You Who came to forgive the afflicted of heart, please, heal my own heart.

Heal, my Lord Jesus, those intimate wounds that cause me physical illness. I offer You my heart. Accept it, Lord, purify it and give me the sentiments of Your Divine Heart. Help me to be meek and humble.

Heal me, O Lord, from the pain caused by the death of my loved ones, which is oppressing me. Grant me to regain peace and joy in the knowledge that You are the Resurrec-tion and the Life. Make me an authentic witness to Your Resurrection, Your victory over sin and death, Your living presence among us. Amen.

5. Prayer for Deliverance My Lord, you are all powerful, you are God, you are Father. We beg you through the intercession and help of the arch-angels Michael, Raphael and Gabriel, for the deliverance of our brothers and sisters who are enslaved by the evil one. All saints of Heaven, come to our aid.

From anxiety, sadness and obsessions, we beg You. Free us, O Lord. From hatred, fornication, envy, we beg You, Free us, O Lord. From thoughts of jealousy, rage, and death, we beg You, Free us, O Lord. From every thought of suicide and abortion, we beg You, Free us, O Lord. From every form of sinful sexuality, we beg You, Free us, O Lord. From every division in our family, and every harmful friend-ship, we beg You, Free us, O Lord. From every sort of spell, malefic, witchcraft, and every form of the occult, we beg You, Free us, O Lord.

Lord, You Who said, “I leave you peace, My peace I give you,” grant that, through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, we may be liberated from every evil spell and enjoy your peace always. In the name of Christ, our Lord. Amen.

A Holy Lent to all.

God bless, Fr. Dennis

Office Phone: 989-593-2162 Page 3 Website: mhtparish.com

Announcements

Prayer of St. Ephrem for Lent

Lord and Master of my life, take from me the spirit of laziness,

discouragement, lust for power and idle talk.

Instead grant to me, Your servant, the spirit of purity, humility, patience and love.

My Lord and King, grant me the grace to be aware of my own sins and refrain from judging others;

for You are blessed forever. Amen.

God, be merciful to me a sinner! God, cleanse me of my sins and have mercy on me!

New Life Center - Project Rachel Conference The New Life Center in Lansing is offering a conference in Muir, Michigan: "Pregnancy Loss and Unresolved Grief: A Seminar on Post-Abortion Healing," on March 18

th. The Con-

ference is aimed at Mental Health care professionals, Social Workers, Therapists, Counselors, Spiritual Directors, Clergy, Women in Religious Orders, Prison Ministers, Pastors and Priests, Pastoral Associates, Youth Ministers, and any lay person seeking to know how to help those traumatized by abortion. For more information, contact nlc@resurrectionlansing.org. To register now, go to: https://resurrectionlansing.wufoo.com/forms/mf9avhe1rmfrwo/.

“The business of finding fault is very easy; the business of doing better, very difficult."

St. Francis de Sales

I was able to attend our parishes adult retreat in February. In the week leading up to the retreat I was getting excited and looked forward to it, which was a new feel-ing for me. I had been on retreats before and every time in the week leading up to those retreats I was dreading going and always looking for excuses not to go. I’d always hope for something to come up that would keep me away but nothing ever did, so I would end up going. Each retreat

experience I’ve had has been different and every one has been amazing. The Lord knew what He was doing because those retreat weekends always seemed to come at the per-fect times in my life. This adult retreat was no exception and what made it even more powerful was the fact that it was at the beginning of Lenten Season. On past retreats, I had always tried to make it a point to be completely open mind-ed and open hearted and truly surrender myself to the Lord. I always thought I did a good job of that but it took about a week or two after the retreat to let the fire in my heart die out and become complacent again. Going into this past adult retreat I knew I had to go about it different-ly. In my heart there was a desire to surrender to the Lord, but my mind has always held me back. I decided I would do whatever it takes to let what I felt in my heart take over.

It started before the retreat even began. Like I said, I was actually excited for the retreat weekend to come, and that was already a difference. I was excited to take advantage of everything offered to us on the retreat, every opportunity I would be able to be with the Lord. The first night went by quickly for me but we had the chance to sit in adoration, and that’s where I just spent time pleading with the Lord to help me to surrender and to help me let go of the things in my life that were keeping me from Him. From there I just let go and decided to let God take over. Of course I still had to do my part in just staying open to Him and the words He was going to be speaking to me through all of the speakers the rest of the way.

Saturday morning I made sure I kept the same mindset of letting what was in my heart out and not letting the things in the back of my mind sway me. That was much easier said than done. I kept asking God to make sure I stayed on track and to help keep me focused. I continued to tell Him how much I desired to give Him everything. But my mind kept telling me “but what about this part of your life, or that part, how will you get along if you have to change that?” I’m sure pretty much everyone has been there. In the afternoon we had a period of time where we were able to go off on our own in prayer. During this time the battle between my heart and my mind continued. The desire of my heart vs. the questions of my mind. How will people treat me if I start truly living my life for the Lord? Will I lose friends? Will my relationship with my co-workers take a turn for the worst? I didn’t know the answer to those questions and it scared me. I felt like Peter when Jesus was walking on the water and called to Peter to come out to Him. Peter started out, but then with all the waves and rough waters around him, he got scared and lost sight of Jesus and fell. I’ve done that many times where I start my way to Jesus but then the rough waters of life come around and I lose sight of Him.

We then had the chance to get some spiritual guidance and also receive the sacrament of reconciliation. I definitely took advantage of both. The spiritual guidance I received

was a big help in calming my mind and taking the worries that were in my mind away. Confession was awesome as always and with the weight of sin off my shoulders I felt ready to go back into battle. I knew we were going to be in adoration again that night and I was ready to truly let go! But just before adoration I received another weapon for the battle, and that was my Dad. He courageously got up in front of everyone to give his testimony. I was lucky enough to have a front row seat to hear what the Lord has done in his life. It was amazing to see how excited and confident he was being up there and sharing how the Lord has been at work in him. Seeing him do that gave me the courage to finish the battle I had been fighting and I was ready for ado-ration. As I sat in adoration listening to the music and praising Jesus, the battle began again. The questions rose up again in my mind, but this time with my sins forgiven and allowing Jesus to fight with me I knew I could beat it. As questions rose and the evil one tried to prevail, I just prayed all the harder and I felt a sense of relief. Then I could pic-ture situations that might come up in my life that pertain to the questions that were eating at me all day. But this time I was picturing Jesus at my side in all of those situations and realized that He is all I need. I had finally given everything to Him. That night after adoration I was exhausted. It took a lot out of me to give everything to the Lord, battling back and forth between my heart and my mind. But in the end Jesus gave me everything I needed to win that battle and it was definitely worth fighting for. I know there will surely be times I fall and fail to defend my faith in the way I need to. But I also know for certainty that, like in Peter’s situa-tion, Jesus will be right there reaching out his hand to pick me back up again, and that makes all the difference in con-fidently living my life for Him.

God Bless, Jesse Schneider

This week I have asked Jesse Schneider to Share with us.

God bless, Fr. Dennis

Fourth Sunday of Lent Page 4 March 6, 2016

Director of Religious Education Paul Fahey—mhtdre@gmail.com—593-3174

Director of Youth Ministry Mary Schomisch - mhtyouthmary@gmail.com

Principal of Most Holy Trinity School Anne Hufnagel—AnneH@mhtparish.com

MHT School – Connecting Faith to Life Important Dates: Tuesday, March 8 Mass @ 8:15 a.m. Tuesday, March 15 Mass @ 8:15 a.m. School Confessions Thursday, March 17 Mass @ Hazel Findlay (3/4 grades)

Tuesday, March 22 Mass @ 8:15 a.m. Friday, March 25 No School – Good Friday Friday, April 1 Mass @ 8:15 a.m./11:30 Dismissal

SCRIP: Our scrip sales are way down this year so please consider using scrip gift cards for purchasing items at your favorite stores. There is no extra cost to you and our school families benefit by the proceeds going towards designated tuition accounts and our technology fund. Gift cards are available from stores such as Meijer, Kohls, Wal-Mart, Subway, Applebees and much more. For more information contact the school office.

Open Invitation: Families interested in learning more about MHT School can do so in a number of ways. Our Wednesday ambassador program features two eighth grade students giving tours from 9:00 a.m. until 10:00 a.m. On the first Sunday of every month you can stop by the school for coffee and visit with the principal or other staff member from 9:45 a.m. until 10:45 a.m. The next one is scheduled for Sunday, March 6. If neither of these work for you, please stop in the school office or contact us at 593-2616 and school@mhtparish.com to schedule an appointment at your convenience.

Registration: Information regarding registration at MHT School for the 2016-17 school year will be starting soon. Watch your email and the bulletin for more information.

MATHCOUNTS: Congratulations to our MATHCOUNTS club for placing 4

th place in this year’s competition.

Members (pictured) competing on Friday, February 26, 2016, included Camden Braun, Kyle Snyder, Hudson Phillips, Logan Kramer, Logan Klein, Dominic Horak, and Braeden Andros. Logan Kramer, son of Bill and Emily Kramer was MHT School’s top finisher. Congratulations to all of our participants.

Dear Lord, like the second criminal nailed to the cross beside Jesus, give us the strength to embrace your love, to surrender our control, and face the suffering that might come our way. - from The Last Words of Jesus

Steubenville Save-the-Date: We are going the weekend of June 24-26. The cost per student is $285. Sign-up infor-mation is available on the parish website under youth minis-try page. Forms for Steubenville need to be filled out online, printed, and then turned in with $100 depos-it. Forms and deposit can be turned into the parish office, Sunday and Wednesday night youth group, or at Monday night Religious Education classes.

Steubenville LEAD: An informational meeting for youth and their parents about the Franciscan LEAD program was held last Sunday, February 21

st. Contact Mary if you are

interested in LEAD and were unable to attend.

Sponsor of the Week

Our thanks to the many businesses that make it

possible for the bulletin to be cost-free to our parish.

Miller Excavating

Bryce Daniel Rehmann; Son of Ken and Kathryn (Smith) Rehmann.

We welcome Bryce into our parish family.

Please Pray for Our Elect This Lenten Season

Kurt Marvel

Hello! My name is Kurt Marvel. My wife Elizabeth and I have 3 children Landon (6), Lily (3), and Charlotte (1). We relocated to Fowler in 2006. I decided to join the RCIA class to learn more about the Catholic Church. The journey thus far has been amazing. I have thoroughly enjoyed diving deeper into my faith and learning the “real” roots of the Christian faith. I look forward to being confirmed and partaking in the Holy Eucharist at the Easter Vigil.

Elizabeth Marvel

Hi! My name is Elizabeth Marvel. I have had a great interest in the Catholic religion for many years. I would always ask questions of any and all Catholic friends. Upon asking questions to a friend he invited Kurt and I to Mass. After coming to Mass and experiencing the service we decided we should explore the Catholic religion further and joined RCIA. The RCIA experience has been a very rewarding experience that has brought a deeper study of the Word into our home. I look forward to the Easter Vigil where I will be confirmed and partake in the Holy Eucharist.

Sacred Heart Kid’s Club

A meeting will be held Friday, March 11 for grades 1st through 4th from after school until 4:00pm in the Msgr. Koenigsknecht Hall.

Office Phone: 989-593-2162 Page 5 Website: mhtparish.com

Monday - March 7 7:00 p.m. + Arlene Harr & Living & Deceased Members of the Family Tuesday - March 8 8:15 a.m. + Martin & Laurine Edinger & Living & Deceased Members of the Family Wednesday – March 9 6:00 p.m. Eucharistic Adoration for Vocations & Stations of the Cross 7:00 p.m. + Alan J. Thelen Thursday – March 10 8:15 a.m. + Poor Souls in Purgatory Friday – March 11 8:15 a.m. + Edgar A. Thelen Saturday - March 12 8:15 a.m. + Mass Cancelled 4:30 p.m. + Kenneth Simon & Living & Deceased Members of the Family Sunday - March 13 8:30 a.m. + Edgar Thelen (1st Anniversary) 10:30 a.m. People of the Parish

Ushers for Saturday & Sunday, March 12 & 13 4:30 p.m. - Jim Koenigsknecht, Luke Hufnagel, Kevin Feld-pausch, Volunteer 8:30 a.m. – Bill Armbrustmacher, Tom O’Rourke, Bruce Schafer, Dean Schrauben 10:30 a.m. - Don Martin, Chris Conner, Steve Spitzley, John Rademacher

Mass Servers for Saturday & Sunday, March 12 & 13 4:30 p.m. – Savannah & Charlie Boak, Kaitlyn & Holly Schmitz 8:30 a.m. - Tony Hufnagel, Randy Koenigsknecht, Mason Pline, Katherine Smith 10:30 a.m. - Madison & McKenzie Koenigsknecht, Chad Klein, Jared Snyder Readings for the Week of March 6, 2016

Monday Isaiah 65:17-21; Psalms 30:2, and 4, 5-6, 11-12a, 13b; John 4:43-54 Tuesday Ezekiel 47:1-9, 12; Psalms 46:2-3, 5-6, 8- 9; John 5:1-16 Wednesday Isaiah 49:8-15; Psalms 145:8-9, 13cd-14, 17-18; John 5:17-30 Thursday Exodus 32:7-14; Psalms 106:19-20, 21-22, 23; John 5:31-47 Friday Wisdom 2:1a, 12-22; Psalms 34:17-18, 19- 20, 21, and 23; John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30 Saturday Jeremiah 11:18-20; Psalms 7:2-3, 9bc-10, 11-12; John 7:40-53

Please pray for our friends and relatives who are sick or recovering especially: Frieda Gallagher, Carl Stump, Regina Martin, Sean Dush, Evan Pung, Charlene Thelen, Davison Curtin, Jeffrey Lee Thelen, Luke Martin, Sara Sanchez, Melissa Schulte, Kenny Briganti, Jeff Pline, Sharon (Thelen) Droste, Theresa Fox, Marie Hengesbach, Edward Wohlscheid, Linda Rogala, Sarah Weber, Jean Schafer, Don Simon, Roman Arens, Roy Frechen, Paul Soyka, Julie Wieber Schafer, Irene (Luttig) Weber, Maryann Esch, Bill Barns, Bob Marshall, Dennis Smith, Sandy Herta, Fr. Bill Koenigsknecht, Dick Rehmann, Cindy Russell, Pam (Thelen) Stump, Janet Simmon, Scott Kus and a special intention.

Please contact the parish office to inform us when we can add or remove a person’s name from the list. Thank you.

Let us also keep in our prayers all those from the Parish Community who are in the Armed Services.

Most Holy Trinity

March 6, 2016

Pastor - Fr. Dennis Howard

Parish Office Hours 8am-12pm & 1pm-3pm

To Contact Us: Parish Office: 593-2162 Fax: 593-2171 E-Mail: office@mhtparish.com Website: mhtparish.com

Most Holy Trinity School: 593-2616

News & Events From Our Parish & Other Areas

Our Parish Stewardship God’s Treasure at Most Holy Trinity

Amount needed each week…………....……….$13,200.00 February 27 & 28 Collection…………....……. 12,689.16 Shortage.…………………………………………. - 510.84 Envelopes used: 201

Mass Servers During This Week Mon., 7:00 p.m. - Cyrus Carbone, Keegan Klein Tues., 8:15 a.m. - MHT School Wed., 7:00 p.m. - Olivia Datema, Evan Curtiss Thur., 8:15 a.m. - Volunteer Fri., 8:15 a.m. - Volunteer Sat., 8:15 a.m. - Cancelled

Fowler Fire Department Breakfast

The Fowler Fire Dept.’s annual All-U-Can Eat Breakfast is on Sunday, March 13 from 8am to 12 noon at the Activity Center.

Preparing the Church for the Easter Season

Preparing the church for the Easter season will take place on Saturday, March 26 beginning at 8:30 am (Holy Satur-day morning). A sign-up sheet is located in the vestibule of the church and details of what needs to be accomplished. If you can help, please sign up. If you can help for just a short time, please come. Many hands make light work. If you have any questions, please contact Susie at 593-2490. Thank you and God Bless!

Healing Service

St. Mary Church, Westphalia is having a healing service next Sunday, March 13th at 3:00 pm, with Father Mathias Thelen-additional prayer teams will also be available. If you are in need of healing of your body, mind and/or spirit please join us and experience the Lord's Mercy & Love in a very powerful way.

Cemetery News

Please contact Adam at the parish office if you would like to have a foundation installed in the cemetery before Memori-al Day. All orders should be placed by May 1 to insure that there is plenty of time for the foundation to settle before the stone will be placed on it.

We are nearing the time for the cemetery clean-up. If there are any decorations to be saved, please have them re-moved. As always there is a need for new volunteers for the lawn mowing groups. Please call 593-2162 or 593-2612 to volunteer.