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September 26th, 2021 Vol. 40 No. 8

St. Stephen’s Catholic Church 4601 Neely Avenue Midland, Texas 79707 (432) 520-7394 Fax (432) 520-7395

www.ststephensmidland.com

Rev. Rodney White, Pastor Assistant Pastor: Rev. Kevin Lenius

Deacons: Leonard Hendon, Luis Mata, Fidel Saldivar, Larry Salazar Director of Religious Education: Gretchen Lara

Music Director: Gabriel Salgado Youth Director: Crystal Villareal

St. Stephen’s Women’s Organization Thank you to all the ladies who attended our first meeting on September 13th, 2021! We had the opportunity to share a meal, meet new members, and visit after the summer break. Following with our meeting, there were two topics at the top of the list. Ushering once a month and Fall Festival scheduled for October 23rd, 2021. Please contact Jimena True or Liz Madrid if you, would like to volunteer to usher, help with the Fall Festival, or would like to make a donation to the Silent Auction. Our next General Meeting : When: October 11th, 2021 Time: 6:30p.m. Where: Parlor Jimena M. True Liz Madrid SSWO SSWO 956-286-6432 432-352-1961 retrue@yahoo.com lizmadrid21@outlook.com

Adult Confirmation Classes for those Catholics who have been baptized and are above High School age, 18 years and older: Those candidates who also need to receive First Communion will receive it in the same ceremony. These classes are NOT for those who need to receive Baptism or Reception into Full Communion. Classes will begin on Thursday, September 30, 2021 through November 18, 2021 from 7:00 PM - 9 :00 PM in room 1 & 2 for English speakers and in room 5 for Spanish speakers. If you're interested in attending the classes, please contact our Parish at 432-520-7394 or via email gladys@ststephensmidland.com. PS. A COPY OF YOUR BAPTISM CERTIFICATE IS REQUIRED TO TURN IN 1ST OR 2ND DAY OF CLASS (WITHOUT FAIL AND NO EXCEPTIONS). Se invita a todos los adultos, que han sido bautizados. mayores de 18 años que necesiten los sacramentos de Primera Comunión y Confirmación a una formación que iniciará el 30de septiembre y concluíra el 18 de noviembre de 2021, la formación se llevará a cabo s de 7:00 PM a 9:00 PM en el salón 1& 2 (Ingles) y salón 5 (Español) en la parroquia de San Esteban. Los que estén interesados favor de pasar a la oficina a inscribirse 432-520-7394, email gladys@ststephensmidland.com. Gracias. PS. SE REQUIERE UNA COPIA DE SU CERTIFICADO DE BAUTISMO EN EL 1ER O 2º DÍA DE CLASE (SIN FALTA Y SIN EXCEPCIONES

Dear Brothers & Sisters in Christ at St. Stephens Catholic Church : I want to offer my sincere thanks for your hospitality, generosity and prayers supporting our mission work in Northern Alaska. As Deacon Les shared during his mission appeal visit, we have 46 parishes spread over 410,000 square miles in a challenging Arctic environment, which are often able to only experience Mass once every 6-8 weeks. Given that the vast majority of these parishes are far below the poverty level and our Native Alaskan peoples live off the fruits of the land and sea, your financial assistance will greatly help with the expensive travel in small aircraft to these locations as our priests and religious serve these good people of God. Thank you, again, and please be assured of my Mass intentions and prayers for your families. In Christ’s peace, Bishop Chad Zielinski Bishop of Fairbanks, Alaska

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ST. STEPHEN’S CONFESSION SCHEDULE

Monday - Friday

6:45 am - 7:00 am & 5:00 - 5:30 pm

Saturday 7:45 am - 8:00 am; 4:00 - 4:45 pm

Sunday

8:15 a.m. - 8:45 a.m.; 11:15 a.m. - 11:45 a.m.; 4:15 p.m. - 4:45 p.m.

Anytime by appointment.

Monday, September 27th– St. Vincent de Paul, Priest 7:00 am †Frank Hernandez by Olga 5:30 pm Alena Crivella by Family

Tuesday, September 28th– St. Wenceslaus, Martyr; St. Lawrence Ruiz & Companions, Martyrs 7:00 am †Steven Lee Waldron by Mom & Sister 5:30 pm Crystal Lopez (HB) by Mom Wednesday, September 29th– St. Michael, Gabriel & Raphael, Archangels

7:00 am †Pedro, †Pascual, & †Narciso Martinez by Olga 5:30 pm R.J Bryan by Family

Thursday, September 30th– St. Jerome, Priest & Doctor of the Church 7:00am †Father Robert Kelly by Olga 5:30pm Ralph Crivello by Family First Friday, October 1st– St. Therese of the Child Jesus, Virgin & Doctor of the Church 7:00am Valentino Pio Trevino by Mother 5:30pm †Manuela & †Roman Solano by Hortencia Carrasco First Saturday, October 2nd– The Holy Guardian Angels 8:00 am Megan Gerstenberger by Rosario Gonzalez 5:00pm †Carrie Salazar by Sons

October 3rd– 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time 9:00am For the Parish 12:00pm †Elena Doina by Alejandro y Araceli

Last Week’s Collection Week of 09.13.21-09.19.21 Collection Totals

*Includes Contributions for: Diocese of Fairbanks Northern Alaska & Helping Hands

Mass Intentions For the week of September 26th, 2021

Upcoming Baptismal Classes: Próximas clases bautismales

November 14, 2021 /

14 de noviembre del 2021 English : 2:00 - 4:30pm Español: 2:30 - 5:00pm

Please come by the Office and present a Driver’s License to

Register

Por favor vengan a la oficina parroquial y presenten la licencia para registrarse.

Parousia The Bible and the Mass Location: Parlor at Stephens Catholic Church Date: September 8, 2021 Time: 9:30am-11:00am Presented by: St. Stephens morning bible class Registration: call the church office Contact Name: Joann, Kat Phone: (432)559-2658 (Joann) (432) 638-2722 (Kat)

Contributions:

Offertory $13,436.18

Mailed or Delivered $ 1,545.50

Online $ 2,042.36

Total Weekly Contributions $21,334.04

Weekly Budget Objective $26,925.00

Actual vs. Budget $(5,590.96)

Continued Prayers!

Other Designated Funds $ 1,370.00

Second Collections $21,625.31*

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September 26 Dana Bustamanto

Willard Davis Ngozi Emembolu Catherine Fabro

Daniel Flores Sebastian Gomez

Kailynn Heernandez Hailee Klein

Armando Limon Monique Lujan Ubaldo Medina Maria Mendieta Everlyn Miranda Kenneth Nolen

Ruben Ortiz Michael Pane Isaac Ramirez Robert Read Paul Reese

Auden Renteria

September 27

Pablo Avila Fiona Karel Beltran

Rebecca Cortez Tracy Eichorst Hector Flores

Kody Gonzales Thomas Groner

Marc Guerra Christabel Marin

Jesus Daniel Ortega Joe Padilla

Ava Maria Reyes Bellen Toscano Perla Zarrazola

September 28 Gael Anchondo

Giancarlo Calbesi Roberto Cedillo Albert Garcia Paxton Garza

Leonard Hendon Laura Lazcano

Mary Palko Denise Ramirez Jaime Ramos Sissy Romero Sara Salcedo

Gerardo Sanchez Audrey Sharrock

Aidan Uriel Raudel Villa

September 29 Abel Abundez

Nayeli Armendariz Nubia Baeza Lynda Beal

Sonya Benavidez Patricia Cruz Eric Evenson

Susan Guebara Paxton Heiting

Guillermina Mora

Joseph Mora Benjamin Salcedo

Natalie Shelkey Ida Torres

September 30 Lety Amalla Ana Baeza

Marisa Borrego Julian Carrasco Jasmine Garcia

Joe Gomez Ezequiel Gonzales

Cheyenne Gonzalez Elgica Hernandez

Dora Jimenez Isabella Munoz

Miriam Navarrete Ariel Ramos

Gabriela Rodriguez Mike Sweeney Siroc Tavarez Manny Ybarra Mary Zamora

October 1 Dolores Baeza Jose Chavez

Alondra Maldonado Evelynn Mondragon Faustino Rodriguez

Garrett Jeffrey Smith

October 2 Beatriz Acosta Nash Dowdle Kristen Garcia

Dominic Gibson Mike Lulloff

Nahilea Mata Melissa Meraz

Eric Reyes Jordan Rodriguez

Aniya Salazar Patsy Salgado

Gustavo Sanchez Magdalena Vega

October 3 Hilda Aranda

Iralynn Barriga Matthew Bustamante

Mirta Chavez Karen Dominguez

Emiliano Lopez Rosio Lujan

Aldo Maldonado Bill McCormick Oliver Lopez Jian Trujillo

Casey Wallace

Jennifer Galyean, Gavino Flores Almaguer, Homero Pando Levario, Mary Borrego, Facundo Borrego & Loved ones, Juan Musquis, Yolanda Rodriguez, Alfred Garcia, Eva Garcia, Yulisa Garcia, Rudolfo & Lorena Armendariz, Katherine Shapira, Michael Gomez, †Joaquina Riveros Lozano, Michael Jackson, Manh Tran, Mika V., Johnny V., Randal B., Heriberto Gardea,Leah Wheeler, +Ezriah Rolfe Brown, Nilang Patel, Jaden Patel, Stella Patel, Manh Tran, +Michael

Jackson, Pete and Laura, Lorraine Chavez, Micah Villa, Bob Berridge, Michelle Hogan, Mae Col & Family, Sandra Pendergrass & Family, Heather M., Alvaro C., Domingo Carrizales, Clarissa Espudo, Rudy Valdez, Sr., Rudy Valdez, Jr. and the Valdez Family, Daiga Garza & baby, Emma Valdez, Juan Musquis, Maddalyn Bailey Hall, Heather & Josh Hall, Chris Holguin, Chito Villa & Family, Nissy Teagarden, Annie Teagarden, Dan & Kim Rusceetti, Diane Archibeque, Steve Oetting, Chris Holguin, Lupe H., Isaiah V., Cassy, Johnny V & family, Mika V., Mary Helen Smith, Yvonne Razo Zubiate & Family, Hortencia Villegas & Family, Aria Mobley & Family

Email Frontdesk@ststephensmidland.com or call the office at 520-7394 to be added to the prayer list! If someone needs to be removed from prayer list please contact the office to remove request. Thank you!

Envíe un correo electrónico a frontdesk.sscc@att.net o llame a la

oficina al 520-7394 para ser incluido en la lista de oración! Si alguien necesita ser removido de la lista de oración, por favor comuníquese con

la oficina. Gracias!

RCIA NEWS We are excited about RCIA starting Tuesday, September 14 at 6:45 PM – 8:45 PM, in room 11 for Spanish and in the Parlor for English, no childcare will be provided. Would you like to learn about the faith of Catholic Christianity? Are you interested in becoming a full member of the Catholic Church? Do you need your Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, Holy Eucharist, Confirmation)? Then RCIA is for you! RCIA stands for the Rite of Christian Initiation for adults, and it is a journey of exploration and initiation into the Catholic Church. RCIA is a fun, safe, faith-building discovery of Jesus Christ and the Church he started. RCIA will change your life. It will bring you closer to Jesus. Is God calling you? The Catholic Church welcomes you! “RCIA” stands for the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults. It is the process by which adults come into full communion with the Catholic Church. It’s free, we have a lot of fun. If you are interested in RCIA or know someone who needs their Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, Holy Eucharist, Confirmation) we would love to have you join us! All you have to do is send an email to billberry100@aol.com for more information (English) or vb.jaquez@outlook.com for Spanish or call the parish office or in person at 432-520-7394. Also, if you are interested in serving on the Team RCIA, please let us know. Estamos entusiasmados con RICA , Rito de Iniciación cristiana para adultos, a partir del Martes 14 de septiembre a las 6:45 PM – 8:45 PM, en el salón 11 Español e Inglés en el salón Parlor, no se proporcionará cuidado de niños. Es gratis; ¿nos divertiremos mucho y aprenderemos mucho y aprenderemos de nuestra fe católica? ¿Estas interesado en convertirte miembro de la Iglesia? Necesitas de ti sacramentos (Bautismo, Eucaristia y Confirmación) no has sido Bautizado o eres bautizado protestante y deseas conocer mas de la fe católica. RCIA es para ti! ¿Es un Viaje de exploración y te da la iniciación adentro de Iglesia católica, RCIA, es cuidadoso, construye tan fe y descubres a Cristo Jesús, cambiara tu vida, Dios te ha llamado? ¡La Iglesia católica teda la Bienvenida a ti! Te Esperamos. Envía un correo Electrónico a vb.jaquez@outlook.com en Español o al Billberry100@aol.com en Ingles, comunica a la ofician parroquial o en persona al 432-520-7394.

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Youth News

PEEK AT THE MONTH… ALL YOUNG ADULTS INVITED 18-26

September: • 30th– Anxiety

• Young Adults meet every Thursday at 6pm in the Youth Building

Crystal Villareal :

Ph: (432)-520-7394 crystal@ststephensmidland.com

If you are interested in volunteering

please sign up for your areas of

interest and visit: ststephensmidland.com/volunteer

God and Father, we ask you to be with young people as they experience sorrow and joy. Protect them from the dangers that are present in our world today. Give them and their families the courage to follow you as they journey through life. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, may they experience your loving care and mercy. We make this prayer through Christ, our Lord, Amen.

Altar Server Training For New and Experienced Youth All youth that have received their First Holy Communion are eligible and invited to become part of our Altar Server Ministry. This is a beautiful ministry for female and male youth. We are grateful for the dedication of those who are presently part of this special ministry and we are inviting all youth who may have an interest to join us. We provide initial and ongoing training for all our servers. Deacon Lorenzo Salazar will be providing training for both English and Spanish mass servers. Servers are very important to our Sunday and Special Liturgical Celebrations. There is always pizza after every training. Parents are always welcome and encouraged to attend. The fall 2021 trainings are as follows: Monday, October 4 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm Sanctuary of the Church Monday, November 1 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm Sanctuary of the Church For additional information or questions please contact: Anne Hobbs Daniel Lujan 432-934-3192 432-235-9774 behobbs47@gmail.com daniel@mudsmith.com Todos los jóvenes que han recibido su Primera Comunión son elegibles e invitados a formar parte de nuestro Ministerio del Servidor del Altar. Este es un hermoso ministerio para jóvenes femeninos y masculinos. Estamos agradecidos por la dedicación de aquellos que actualmente forman parte de este ministerio especial y estamos invitando a todos los jóvenes que puedan tener un interés a unirse a nosotros. Proporcionamos capacitación inicial y continua para todos nuestros servidores. El diácono Lorenzo Salazar proporcionará capacitación para servidores masivos en inglés y español. Los servidores son muy importantes para nuestras celebraciones litúrgicas dominicales y especiales. Siempre hay pizza después de cada entrenamiento. Los padres siempre son bienvenidos y se les anima a asistir. Los entrenamientos de otoño de 2021 son los siguientes: Lunes, 4 de octubre 6:30 pm a 8:30 pm Santuario de la Iglesia Lunes, 1 de noviembre 6:30 pm a 8:30 pm Santuario de la Iglesia Para obtener información adicional o preguntas, póngase en contacto con: Anne Hobbs Daniel Lujan 432-934-3192 432-235-9774 behobbs47@gmail.com daniel@mudsmith.com

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“In the Gospel of Matthew 6:33, the Lord says, “seek first His kingdom and His righteousness,” and all of our earthly needs will be provided for according to God’s plan. This verse reminds me of how God has provided for my education through the sacrifices of the people of the Diocese of San Angelo. Your financial generosity towards seminarian education shows me that God is always there, providing for all that I need and guiding my path. Thank you for being a part of God's mission in preparing future priests for our great Diocese of San Angelo! I ask that you please continue to pray for me as I will be praying for you.” – Humberto Diaz, 1st year Theology, Notre Dame Seminary On the weekend of September 25-26, all churches in our diocese will take up a special collection for the benefit of Seminarian Education in the Diocese of San Angelo. Our contributions to this collection will help to provide for the formation and education of seminarians in the Diocese of San Angelo. Donations for special collections can be made by donating online at www.sanangelodiocese.org/special-collections. Some of you may feel called to do more to help sustain seminarian education in our diocese. The Diocese of San Angelo has established the Seminarian Burse Endowment Fund, which is a permanent fund separate from the Diocese of San Angelo operating budget. The sole intention of this endowment is to provide a perpetual source of funding for seminarian formation and education. The principal amount of the gift remains intact and is invested for long-term growth. Our goal is to fully fund our Seminarian Burse so that we can support a significant number of seminarians for our diocese in perpetuity. If you are interested in learning more about the Seminarian Burse, please contact Mercedez Rassi at mrassi@sanangelodiocese.org or 325-651-3717. If you would like to follow the seminarians in their journey, search San Angelo Vocations on Facebook and Instagram! "En el Evangelio de Mateo 6:33, el Señor dice,"busca primero su reino y su justicia ", y todas nuestras necesidades terrenales serán satisfechas de acuerdo con el plan de Dios. Este versículo me recuerda cómo Dios ha provisto para mi educación a través de los sacrificios de la gente de la Diócesis de San Angelo. Su generosidad financiera hacia la educación seminarista me muestra que Dios siempre está ahí, proveyendo todo lo que necesito y guiando mi camino. ¡Gracias por ser parte de la misión de Dios en la preparación de futuros sacerdotes para nuestra gran Diócesis de San Angelo! Les pido que sigan orando por mí, ya que yo estaré orando por ustedes ". - Humberto Díaz, 1er año de Teología, Seminario de Notre Dame El fin de semana del 26 al 27 de septiembre, todas las iglesias de nuestra diócesis realizarán una colecta especial en beneficio para la Educación de Seminaristas de la Diócesis de San Angelo. Nuestras contribuciones de la colecta ayudarán a proveer para la formación y educación de los seminaristas en la Diócesis de San Angelo. Las donaciones para colecciones especiales pueden realizarse mediante haciendo una donación en línea en www.sanangelodiocese.org/special-collections. Algunos de ustedes pueden sentirse llamados a hacer más para ayudar a mantener la educación de los seminaristas en nuestra diócesis. En 2019, la Diócesis de San Angelo estableció el Fondo de Dotación para Educación de Seminaristas, que es un fondo permanente separado del presupuesto operativo de la Diócesis de San Angelo. La única intención de esta dotación es para proporcionar una fuente perpetua de financiación para la formación y educación de seminaristas. El monto principal de la donación permanece intacto y se invierte para el crecimiento a largo plazo. Nuestro objetivo es financiar completamente nuestro Fondo de Dotación para que podamos apoyar una cantidad significativa de seminaristas en nuestra diócesis a perpetuidad. Si usted está interesado en aprender más sobre nuestro Fondo de Dotación para Educación de Seminaristas, comuníquese con Mercedez Rassi en mrassi@sanangelodiocese.org o 325-651-3717. Si desea seguir a los seminaristas en su camino, busque Vocaciones de San Angelo en Facebook e Instagram!

Stay Informed at St. Stephen’s We are excited to announce a new way of communicating with you. The Parish has adopted Evangelus, a new system to help keep you connected to the life of the Parish. Visit eva.us/sscc to sign-up and let us know if you prefer to receive emails or text messages from us. If you have any questions or need assistance please contact The Parish Business Manager, Mandy Treviño at mandy@ststephensmidland.com as we can register you on your behalf as well.

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www.helpinghandsmidland.com

Because we feel it is important that you know how and where your dona-tions to Helping Hands are spent, here is what was done in the past week:

Electric 2 families $316.93 Rent 14 families $12,098.12 Total $ 12,415.05

Helping Hands of Midland

1301 Brinson Lane Midland Tx.

(432) 520-8900

It is true that our assistance is down considerably from last year. Prior to the pandemic we were averaging $25,000/week in assistance to the poor. Then when Covid hit and so many jobs were shut down, assistance jumped to $40-50,000/week (made possible with the help of our donors who came through magnificently to help our neighbors in need). Now one year later our numbers have dropped significantly. There are reasons for this: Rents in Midland went from being the highest in the state 2 years ago, to being the lowest in the state now. Amazingly apartments are renting for roughly ½ of the rates that were being charged back then. So obviously more people can keep on top of that expense. We are currently experiencing an unemployment rate of 5.3% which as we all know is far lower than the numbers we experienced during the pandemic last year. And now that extended unemployment has been cut more and more people are rejoining the workforce. There are still many, many jobs waiting to be filled so there is little reason to be asking for help because of inability to find a job. And the child tax credit that has been given to families having children through the month of December has offered added income to those who struggled in the past to pay their rent and utilities based on their paycheck alone. All these factors combined have really made an impact on our requests for assistance. Yes, we still get probably 20-30 call per day from people wanting assistance, but the vast majority are people we choose not to help (people who have been caught trying to scam agencies in the past, those who clearly are making no effort to find work or manage their money, and those who call month after month after month trying to “get lucky” and get a bill paid for free). Those we do help are usually people with medical concerns (off work without being paid, such as those suffering from Covid, strokes or cancer), those who have missed work due to wrecks, and those who lost their jobs without notice. In other words, those facing hardships due to circumstances over which they had no control. While times are good right now, unfortunately it cannot be expected to last. In the meantime, we are, as always, thankful to our donors who continue to support us with their financial gifts. What we do not use now will be put away until that money is needed. God bless you for your generosity!

Volunteer Needed to Pick Up Bread/Pastries on Mondays We are needing a volunteer to pick up the donated bread and pastries from United Supermarket (Midland Drive and Wadley) each Monday morning by 9 a.m. and bring them to our store at 1301 Brinson Lane. If you are interested, please call Mary at (432) 528-6265 anytime!

OCTOBER TRUCK SCHEDULE Our truck will at St. Stephen’s next Saturday, October 2, from 9 am until 1 pm to pick up your donations, and again at St. Ann’s on Saturday, October 16. We thank the Knights of Columbus for taking on this responsibility.

Families need your help today! You can help. When you give, you provide immediate assistance to our Haitian sisters and brothers desperate to survive the devasting situation. CRS is preparing to help families affected by the earthquake meet there immediate needs for relief and long term recovery. HOW TO HELP:

• Donate online crs.org/supporthaiti

• Donate by phone1-877-HELP-CRS

• Donate by check : Haiti Response, Catholic Relief Services, P.O Box 17090,

Baltimore, Maryland 21297-0303 Un poderoso terremoto sacudio Haiti. Las familias necesitan su ayuda hoy. Usted puede ayudar. Cuando usted da, usted proporciona asistencia inmediata a nuestras hermanas y hermanos haitianos desesperados por sobrevivir esta devastadora situacion. CRS se esta preparando para ayudar a las familias afectadas por el terremoto y a satisfacer sus necesidades inmediatas de ayuda y recuperacion a largo plazo COMO AYUDAR:

• Donar en linea: crs.org/supporthaiti

• Donar por telefono 1-877-HELP-CRS

• Donar con cheque Respuesta a Haiti, Catholic Relief Services, P.O. Box 17090,

Baltimore, Maryland 21297-0303