Parish Staff Rev.Thomas J Cieslikowski, Administrator Ken Ewaskie, Senior Deacon Mrs. Alese Kummer, Business Manager Denny McNamara, Cemetery Director Debi Durette, Coordinator of Religious Education Glenn Durette, Director of Music (Good Shepherd) Mark Silva, Director of Music (St Augustine) Art Paquette, Building and Grounds (St Augustine) Frank Parda, Building and Grounds (Good Shepherd)

Parish Website www.stnicholasct.org Email - stnicholasct@comcast.net

Telephone 203-888-9243 - Fax 203-888-6016

Baptisms Registration is required. Please call the rectory office. Marriages Please contact rectory office at least six months in advance.

Office of Vocations Phone: 860-242-5573 Web site: www.vocationshartford.org Sick Calls We are happy and honored to visit the sick or homebound.

Saint Nicholas Parish March 22, 2020

Seymour, Connecticut

Rectory Office Hours

St. Augustine Mon. & Wed. 8am - 11:30am

Good Shepherd

Mon. & Wed 12pm - 4:30pm

Tue. Thur. 8am - 4:30pm

Fri. 8am - 1pm

Church of the Good Shepherd 135 Mountain Road

Vigil Mass Saturday 4:30 pm Sunday Mass 8:00 am & 11:00 am

Weekdays (T, Th,) 9:00 am Sat.Confession 3:30 - 4:00 pm

St. Augustine Church 35 Washington Ave

Sunday Mass 9:30 am Weekdays (M, W) 9:00 am

Handicap Accessible Side Entrance

Fourth Sunday of Lent March 22, 2020

St. Nicholas Parish, Seymour CT

Date Time Intention Requested By: Gathering

Sat. Mar. 21 4:30pm ✞ Warren & ✞ Betty Ferdina ✞ Susan Marsillio Karen & Ricky Carr Religious Education Classes

Canceled until further notice

Sun. Mar. 22 8:00amRepose of the Souls of the Deceased Members of the

✞ Petruccelli FamilyLucy & Steve Kopchick 2nd Collection Catholic Relief

No Confirmation ClasesRetreat has been Postponed until

further notice Sun. Mar. 22 11:00am ✞ Dino DeAngelis Wife, Mary Ann and Family

Mon. Mar. 23 No Mass

Tue. Mar. 24 9:00am Mass Available

Wed. Mar. 25 No MassPostponed until after Easter

“Making Sense of the Bible in the Catholic Tradition.”

Thu. Mar. 26 9:00am ✞ Thomas Cieslikowski Family Rosary has been Postponed until further notice

Fri. Mar. 27 No Mass

Sat. Mar. 28 4:30pm ✞ Dolores Popowski Family Religious Education Classes Canceled until further notice

Sun. Mar. 29 8:00am Mass AvailableConfirmation Clases

Canceled until Further Notice Sun. Mar. 29 11:00am ✞ Basso & ✞ Cortello Families Cortello Family

Date Time Intention Requested By: Gathering

Sat. Mar. 21 No Mass

Sun. Mar. 22 9:30am ✞ Ada Mary Burns Cindy & Don Baxter 2nd Collection Catholic Relief

Mon. Mar. 23 9:00am Mass Available

Tue. Mar. 24 No Mass

Wed. Mar.25 9:00am Mass Available Choir Practice Canceled until further notice

Thu. Mar. 26 No Mass

Fri. Mar. 27 No Mass Stations of the Cross 3:30pm

Sat. Mar. 28 No Mass

Sun. Mar. 29 9:30am ✞ Joseph Diliso Family

St. Augustine

Good Shepherd Weekly Church Calendar

Bulletin Announcements All notices must be submitted to Church Office or Email to mvignola@me.com by 5pm of the Friday preceding

the weekend of publication.

Confessions During Lent Starting Monday, March 2, Confessions will be heard every Monday evening at 6:00pm and on Saturday afternoon from 3:30pm to 4:00pm at The Church of the Good Shepherd

Fourth Sunday of Lent March 22, 2020

St. Nicholas Parish, Seymour CT

Please Note: That we are only reporting first name and initial of last name. We ask that if you have a name (1st name and 1st initial of last name) that you would like on the list, you must call the rectory (203-888-2081 - St. Augustine or 203-888-9243 - Good Shepherd) and resubmit the name. The name will stay on for 2 months and then be removed unless their name is resubmitted. Using this method we can keep names current. Thank you for your cooperation.

Please pray for the health and wholeness in body, mind and spirit for:

Al M Pat K Baby T Ron F Katya A

Henry R Jay R Milton G Lori A Arnie R

Cameron S Karen K Barbara R

Readings for the week of March 22, 2020 Sunday: 1 Sm 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a/Ps 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6 [1]/Eph 5:8-14/Jn 9:1-41 or 9:1, 6-9, 13-17, 34-38 Monday: Is 65:17-21/Ps 30:2 and 4, 5-6, 11-12a and 13b [2a]/Jn 4:43-54 Tuesday: Ez 47:1-9, 12/Ps 46: 2-3, 5-6, 8-9/Jn 5:1-16 Wednesday: Is 7:10-14; 8:10/Ps 40:7-8a, 8b-9, 10, 11 [8a and 9a]/Heb 10:4-10/Lk 1:26-38 Thursday: Ex 32:7-14/Ps 106:19-20, 21-22, 23 [4a]/Jn 5:31-47 Friday: Wis 2:1a, 12-22/Ps 34:17-18, 19-20, 21 and 23 [19a]/Jn 7:1-2, 10, 25-30 Saturday: Jer 11:18-20/Ps 7:2-3, 9bc-10, 11-12 [2a]/Jn 7:40-53 Next Sunday: Ez 37:12-14/Ps 130:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8 [7]/Rom 8:8-11/Jn 11:1-45 or 11:3-7, 17, 20-27, 33b-45

March 2020 St Augustine Good Shepherd

Relax God’s Got it

In Memory of Walter & Mary

Lungarini

AvailableIn Memory of

Jachimowski & Gioielli Families

In Memory of Joseph Dilisio

In Memory of John & Mae

Lesko Communion

Hosts

SANCTUARY

LAMP

Altar Wine

March 15, 2020

Offertory Envelope

2nd collection

Total Collection

$2,502 $0 $2,502

Cathderaticum Total Stay in Parish

$183 $2,319

Thank You for your Generosity

St. Vincent de Paul of the Valley Thrift Shoppe and Food Bank asks you to be part of the community that gives back. We are in need of hams, non-perishables, food store gift certificates ($25), and monetary donations. We help the homeless, elderly, working poor, and the unemployed. Please drop off at St. Vincent de Paul, 237 Roosevelt Dr, Derby CT. Hours are Monday — Saturday 9:30-2:30. No amount of help is too small and we are grateful for any help you can give. Thank you. Any Questions, Please contact Remy Kocurek, Director, at 203-734-7577

ST. NICHOLAS PARISH HOMEFRONT PROJECT: This will be our 13th year for repairing a house for a needy person on May 2nd. This year we have to give Homefront $2750 to cover all of the supplies needed. Anything over that amount they cover.

The donation collection process has been postpone until further notice

Thank you Carmie Potash - Co-Ordinator Ralph Noel - House Captain

Fourth Sunday of Lent March 22, 2020

St. Nicholas Parish, Seymour CT

Archbishop Blair, with the growing concerns about the spread of the coronavirus, has notified the churches of the Archdiocese of the following precautionary measures he asks the parishioners to follow:

✴ The sign of peace will be omitted ✴ Communion on the tongue is strongly discouraged ✴ Holy Water fonts have been removed ✴ Priests,Deacons and Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion are urged to

practice good hygiene, washing their hands before Mass begins or even using an alcohol based anti-bacterial solution before and after distributing Holy Communion

The faithful, if they are sick or are experiencing symptoms of sickness, are not obliged to attend Mass. We appreciate your cooperation and understanding in implementing these measures to protect your health and those around you

Effective immediately and through Sunday, March 29, the Archbishop has dispensed from the obligation of attending Sunday Mass the elderly and those of any age who fear for their health or the health of their families. Anyone who is ill or showing symptoms is already obliged not to attend. Parishioners who are absent from Mass are urged to make alternate provision for their weekly contributions since parishes depend on this for their operation.

How Conversion Happens Conversion to Christ is a process. The blind man in the Gospel reading exemplifies this journey into faith. Notice that at first he did not go to Jesus. Jesus came to him. The man responded by waiting to see what would happen and then by obeying Jesus. Conversion begins when Jesus seeks us out and we make ourselves available to his touch. He then opens our eyes to the truth, but we don't immediately understand. When the man's neighbors asked about his cure, he did not yet understand who Jesus was; he thought of him as just a man. Then, the pressure of listening to the Pharisees argue about who Jesus was caused him to give it more thought. He concluded that Jesus must be a prophet, which for the Jews was a highly esteemed, holy vocation. Next, as the Pharisees treated him more roughly and raised the possibility of expelling

him from the synagogue if he claimed that Jesus was the Christ, he began to wonder whether it might be true. Their reasons for hating Jesus became the eye-openers that cured his spiritual blindness. Finally, Jesus sought him out again, this time to minister to him in response to the mistreatment he had suffered from the Pharisees. In this act of caring, the man could see who Jesus really was. Conversion -- the purification of our spiritual vision -- takes place in the fire of our sufferings as we recognize the love and concern that God has for us. Questions for Personal Reflection: Name the areas of your life where there is confusion from a lack of understanding. Perhaps you're having a hard time seeing the good in someone. Maybe you're worried about the future. What will you do this week that will help you see it from God's perspective? Questions for Community Faith Sharing: 1. In the first reading, God makes it clear that he sees what we cannot see when we're focused on external evidence. Think of a time when you looked deeper or beyond the obvious. How did that change you? 2. In Ephesians 5, we read that we have become light in the Lord. Name some of the good fruits that come from the ability to see what Jesus is doing in your life. 3. The Gospel reading illustrates that those who think they can see the truth are very often blind, and those who acknowledge their blindness become able to see clearly. Why does this happen? How has it happened to you? © 2020 Terry Modica, Catholic Digital Resources, www.catholicdr.com. Printed by permission.

Stations of the Cross are held at St. Augustine Church at 3:30pm. Stations of the Cross on Good Friday April 10 will be held at the Church of the Good Shepherd at 7:00pm

Fourth Sunday of Lent March 22, 2020

St. Nicholas Parish, Seymour CT

In just a few short weeks, our parish has raised $ $7,555 for the 2020 Archbishop's Annual Appeal. The Archbishop's Annual Appeal supports many important ministries and programs. Gifts are allocated towards religious education programs, youth ministries, local charities, the education of our seminarians, our retired clergy, our Catholic schools, and the many ministries provided by the Archdiocese. If you have not made a gift, please prayerfully consider making a pledge or one-time gift. Join us, your parish community, and Growing in Faith, Giving in Love, by sharing your blessings.

All funds contributed to the Archbishop's Annual Appeal are used exclusively for the purposes outlined in the Appeal literature, which can be found at https://archdioceseofhartford.org/appeal/

NoAppealfundsareeverusedforlegalfeesorsettlements

The Seymour / Oxford Clergy Present Along the Road

Congregations will offer; 6:00 pm Simple Soup and Bread Supper

7:00 pm Services

March 25th Trinity Episcopal Church Church 91 Church St, Seymour

April 1st St Thomas the Apostle 733 Oxford Rd,Oxford CT

Religious Education Registration: Registration for the Fall, 2020 religious education classes Registration will also be held on Wednesday evenings from 6:30 PM to 7:30 PM in the Rectory Conference Room located in the back of the Good Shepherd rectory. This registration is for children who are currently in Kindergarten through Grade 7. Please bring a copy of the Baptismal Certificate for all Kindergarten students and students who are new to the program only if they were not baptized at

the Church of the Good Shepherd or Saint Augustine. If your child has received First Communion, a copy of that certificate is also necessary. If you have any questions, please contact Glenn or Debi Durette at 203-735-3190.

ENVELOPE/MONEY COUNTERS COMMITTEE Do you like to count money? Are you organized, trustworthy and discreet? WE ARE IN NEED OF YOUR HELP! We would like to expand the number of teams we have within both churches for the Offertory Envelope Counters Committee. Presently at each church we have only 3 teams of 2 people each. So that each team would only have to count one weekend a month, we would like to create another team at each church and expand the teams to 3 people to make the process go faster. To make this work we need your help! Teams have the option of counting on Sunday morning or Monday morning at the rectory of either church. A quarterly rotating schedule is provided for each team so you know in advance when you are needed . The team is responsible for each mass’ collection; opening the envelopes, counting and recording the money that comes in with each mass, and preparing the deposit for the bank. The entire process usually takes several hours to totally complete. We are in need of a few good men and/or women who would like to give back to the church by giving a few hours of their time once a month. Hands-on training working with an established team would be provided. If you are interested or have questions, please call Alese at the main office, 203-888-9243

April 10th Good Friday, Immanuel Lutheran Church25 Great Hill Rd, Oxford 7 pm worship only

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