Mass Intentions SATURDAY MARCH 12th 8:00 AM THE PEOPLE OF THE PARISH 5:00 PM NICHOLAS A. MARINO (THE FAMILY) SUNDAY MARCH 13TH 8:00 AM VITO PERAGINO (HENRY DISTEFANO) 9:30 AM RAYMOND WITTLE (JOE & CAROL FOTI) 11:00 AM PADDY MURPHY (HARRY & MARY DUNLEAVY)

MONDAY 8:00 AM MICHAEL WENNING (ROBERT & FRANCES MAYER) TUESDAY 8:00 AM GEORGE HAUENSTEIN WEDNESDAY 8:00 AM INTENTIONS OF LESLIE WIRTH (JOHN & GERALYN BOYCE) 7:00 PM VITO PERAGINO (BARBARA BAYLES) THURSDAY 8:00 AM ELIZABETH WATSON (DENICE LUSCIK) FRIDAY 8:00 AM IRENE PIZZTIOLA (MARILYN RAMA)

SATURDAY MARCH 19TH 8:00 AM MARK BRIGHAM (LINDA BRIGHAM) 5:00 PM INTENTIONS OF JOSEPH POLANSKI (THE FAMILY) SUNDAY MARCH 20TH PALM SUNDAY 8:00 AM HEATHER GLENNON (THE FAMILY) 9:30 AM CHARLES HAUTAU (THE FAMILY) 11:00 AM ED FLAHERTY (THE FAMILY)

CALENDAR EVENTS

MEMORIALS

The week of March 13th the Sanctuary Lamp Burns for: Robert Hagerman

Mon. 3/14 Confession Grade 9: 6:00pm -7:15 pm

Mon. 3/14 Confession 7:00pm-8:30 pm

Mon. 3/14 Eucharistic Adoration /Benediction 7:30 pm

Wed. 3/16 Mass 7:00 pm

Thurs. 3/17 Healing Mass 7:30 pm

Fri. 3/18 Stations of the Cross 7:30 pm

Sat. 3/19 Rel. Ed & Confirmation Classes

Sun. 3/20 Easter Egg Hunt 12:00 pm

Mon. 3/21 Chrism Mass at St. Philip (Clifton) 7:00 pm

Mon. 3/21 No Eucharistic Adoration /Confession 7:30 pm

Wed. 3/23 Mass 7:00 pm

COLLECTIONS

March 5th & 6th $3,326 Diocesan Assessment $1,378 Total $4,704

Estimated Weekly Expense $6,500 Shortage ($1,796)

Envelopes Mailed: 219 Envelopes Received: 104

*If you are not already doing so, please use your envelopes each

week. Only contributions in your numbered envelope are recorded

for documentation required by the IRS.

The Catholic Academy of Sussex County is pleased to announce the Autumn 2016

opening of the Pope John XXIII Middle School for grades 5, 6, & 7.

Open House & Registration for Grades PreK-7 Tuesday evening, March 15, 2016, 7:30 p.m.

Come see the exciting plans for our PreK-12th grade campus.

Hosted by Rev. George A. Brown School 294 Sparta Ave, Sparta, NJ

Questions? Please contact Mrs. Linda Artigliere at 973.729.9174 Option 3

FIFTH SUNDAY IN LENT - MARCH 13TH

Please remember in your

prayers: Geraldine Czarkowski,

Ambrosia Garcia, Monica Carrico,

Mary Kelleher, Hap Rowan, Sue

Geimer, Patricia Poole, Lucille Esposito

From the Desk of Father Ed:

Dear Parishioners,

This weekend we celebrate the 5th Sunday in Lent and continue to move closer to Holy Week, and the celebration of Easter Sunday. The Gospel for this Sunday is from St. John, the woman caught in adultery. The Jewish leaders of Jesus’ time set a trap for him with the hope that he would come to a similar fate as did John the Baptist who was beheaded by King Herod. If Jesus said to stone the woman who was caught in adultery and follow the Mosaic Law then they could turn him over to the authorities and have him arrested for insurrection because the Jewish people were under Roman rule and forbidden to put anyone to death. If Jesus said it was wrong to stone her and to let her live then they would have been able to discredit him in front of the crowds for not following the Jewish Law, which stated that adulterers be put to death by stoning.

Jesus outwitted the Jewish leaders of his time, who considered themselves to be righteous in the eyes of God by inviting them to throw the first stone at the woman. “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her…they went away one by one.” The trap that they tried to catch Jesus in was now on them. If they threw the stone then they would be liable to the Roman law and if they walked away then the people would look upon them as sinners.

Jesus poured out his mercy upon the woman caught in adultery and did not condemn her but rather forgave her. In this Year of Mercy given to us by our Holy Father, Pope Francis, we are all invited to experience the tender mercy of our God through the gift of His Church, which pours out mercy in her Sacraments, especially in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Jesus told the woman to go and sin no more. The gift of his mercy and forgiveness is tied to his telling her of the need for conversion, the need for tuning away from her sins. The Gospel today invites us to receive his mercy and forgiveness but we must also work at turning away from our sins and we can only do that by grace and acceptance to grace. As we continue on our journey through this holy season of Lent let us turn from our sins and embrace the Lord’s mercy and forgiveness so that we can experience the joy the Lord wants to give us at Easter Sunday.

Our Lady Queen of Peace, pray for us,

Father Ed, Administrator

Parish Life:

It was wonderful to see so many people come for the Sacrament of Reconciliation and attend the Holy Hour and Benediction this past Monday night; I had to call Fr. Brian to assist me with hearing all the confessions. Be assured that God will continue to bless your families and our parish as you continue to turn to him in the healing Sacrament of Reconciliation. Reconciliation will be available this week at Monday, 7-8:30 Pm, Wednesday, 7:30-9:00 Pm , and Thursday evening after The Healing Mass at 7:30 Pm.

A special thanks to all those who contributed for the purchase of our new Allen Organ; the sound is magnificent! Also thanks to our music director, Margaret Meockel and her husband John for the many hours they spent researching for our new organ. The new organ will enhance our Liturgy for many years. We will be spending the next several weeks with the technician to fine tune the sound and volume levels so please be patient as we work to continue to improve the already beautiful sounding organ.

Thank you for donating the baby diapers that were delivered to Birth Haven and used to help mothers who are in need. Thanks to the Knights of Columbus for organizing the drive and bearing witness to the faith.

Please consider joining us to celebrate the three most Holy Days of the Church: Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday (the Easter Vigil). See the bulletin for the Liturgy times.

March 12th– March 13th

5:00 pm Marilyn Stipo

8:00 am Debbie Carter

9:30 am Michelle Teitsma

11:00 am Carolyn Luisi

Palm Sunday March 19th– March 20th

5:00 pm Patricia Pfeil & Bob Mayer

8:00 am John Iacopelli & Tom Hudak

9:30 am Tom Lapinski & Barbara Bayles

11:00 am Katie O’Connor & Rick Hahn

Altar Server Schedule

March 12th– March 13th

5:00 pm Chris Pirello

8:00 am Nico Albanese

9:30 am Abigail Oras

11:00 am Xavier Munoz

Palm Sunday

March 19th– March 20th

5:00 pm Andrew Opitz

8:00 am Remy Hautau

9:30 am Matt & Paul Corazza

11:00 am Brian O’Connor

Divine Mercy Sunday

April 3rd, 2016

Divine Mercy Sunday is a very special Sunday when the Divine Floodgates from Heaven are wide-opened and Jesus offers us the total forgiveness of all sins and punishment to any soul who goes to Confession and receives Him in Holy Communion on that day

Divine Mercy Sunday will be celebrated at all Masses this weekend. There will be a special Divine Mercy Sunday Prayer Service with the Chaplet of Divine Mercy and Confessions at 3:00 PM. Please come and join us – don’t miss out on the many graces the Lord wants to give us.

HOLY WEEK SCHEDULE

Holy Thursday March 24th

Morning Prayer 8:00 am

Mass Of The Lord’s Supper 7:30 pm

Adoration will follow until 11:00 pm

Good Friday March 25th

Morning Prayer 8:00 am

Solemn Celebration of the Lord’s Passion 3:00 pm

Stations of the Cross 7:30 pm

Holy Saturday March 26th

Morning Prayer 8:00 am

Easter Vigil 7:30 pm

Easter Sunday March 27th

Masses 8:00, 9:30, and 11:00 am

Religious Education & Confirmation Registration Registrations are now being accepted for the 2016-2017 OLQP Religious Education Program. All returning students, as well as new students, must complete a registration form, no student is automatically re-registered. The REGISTRATION FORM can now be downloaded from our website at www.olqpbranchville.org under the Religious Education tab and mailed or brought into the Religious Education Office. We appreciate your kind support and cooperation. God bless you.

Religious Education Reconciliation Schedule Father Ed will be offering the Sacrament of Reconciliation to all students in our Religious Education Program from Grades 3 through 10 Below please find the Monday evening Lenten Reconciliation schedule for the students, however, if you are unable to make the recommended date, please feel free to come on another evening. MONDAY, MARCH 14 GRADE 9 6:00 pm-7:15 pm MONDAY, MARCH 28 GRADE 10 7:00 pm (after Confirmation Practice)

EASTER EGG HUNT

Sponsored by the

Men’s & Women’s Club

Please join us for a visit from the Easter Bunny &

Easter Egg Hunt with Snacks & Prizes

Sunday 3/20 at 12:00 pm

Please provide your own Easter Basket for the egg

hunt, and a camera for pictures with the Easter Bunny.

If you are interested in Altar Serving for the Confirmation Mass

on Tuesday, March 29th @7:30 pm please contact Mike

O’Connor at oak121@yahoo.com.

F

“Welcome Home” is a diocesan initiative to invite

all Catholics to experience the grace of the

Sacrament of Reconciliation. Confession is a

wonderful opportunity to set aside our sinful ways

and to draw closer to our Lord. Confessions will be

held every Monday during Lent, from February 15

to March 14, 2016, from 7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. in

every Catholic Church in the Diocese of Paterson.

Don’t be afraid! Information will be provided.

Ask the priest to help you. Experience the gracious

mercy of God! www.WelcomeHomeToHealing.org

Lenten Schedule

Monday: Welcome Home to Healing

Confessions 7:00pm—8:30 pm

Eucharistic Adoration

and Benediction 7:30 -8:30 pm

Wednesday: Mass at 7:00 pm

Friday: Stations of the Cross at 7:30 pm

Lenten Regulations

on Fast and Abstinence

The days of both Fast and Abstinence during Lent are Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.

The other Fridays of Lent are days of Abstinence.

On a day of fast, only one (1) full meal is permitted. Those between the ages of 18 and 59 are obliged to fast.

On a day of abstinence, no meat may be eaten. Those who have reached the age of 14 are obliged by the law of abstinence. The obligation to observe the laws of fast and abstinence “substantially,” or as a whole, is a serious obligation.

The time for fulfilling the Paschal Precept (Easter Duty) – All the faithful, after they have been initiated into the Most Holy Eucharist, are bound by the obligation of receiving Communion at least once a year) extends from the First Sunday of Lent to the Solemnity of the Holy Trinity.

L E N T E N P A S T O R A L L E T T E R

Bishop Arthur Serratelli

INDIVIDUAL CONFESSION:

THE EMBRACE OF GOD’S MERCY

Section 5 o f 6

To all the faithful, religious, deacons and priests:

Grace to you and peace from God (Col 1:2)

[19] In my pastoral letter Reconciliation: Gift and Sacrament,

published on February 9, 2005, I explained, on the basis of

Scripture, theology, history and spirituality, the present discipline

of individual confession. Pope St. John Paul II was unambiguous

in teaching that individual confession is the norm for the Universal

Church. As bishop, entrusted with overseeing the proper

administration of the sacraments in this local church, Iemphasized

that communal penance service with general absolution is not a

valid form of celebrating the Sacrament of Penance in this diocese.

The individual celebration of the sacrament is easily accessible

throughout the diocese.

[20] It is opportune once again during Lent, especially in this

Jubilee of Mercy, to reflect on the gift of individual confession. In

every confession, the penitent must confess his or her sins with

contrition and have a firm purpose of amendment. As St. John

Bosco reminds us, “To draw fruit from this sacrament, it is not

enough to go to confession frequently. One must also honestly

strive to not sin.”

[21] The penitent must approach the priest in private, individually

and alone and confess all mortal sins insofar as they can be

recalled. If there are mortal sins, it is not enough simply to choose

one or two. All mortal sins must be confessed. If there are no

mortal sins, it is not enough simply to express in a general way

one’s sinfulness. Some individual venial sin or sins must be

named.

[22] It is never permitted for a family or group of individuals to

approach a priest and together make a general statement of

sinfulness. This does not constitute the sacrament. In fact, it robs

the individual of the gift that the Church is so eager to offer: the

gift of personal encounter with our merciful Lord and the grace of

true repentance and conversion.

[23] In 1980, the Holy See called upon bishops to discontinue

communal penance services where general absolution was given

without individual confessions. Our priests have been faithful in

their response to the Church’s direction. They have made

themselves available to hear individual confessions and administer

the Sacrament of Penance, as directed by the Church.

*Each week of Lent we will print one section of the Bishop’s letter.