The fourth Sunday of Lent 11 march 2018

Anniversary Year Prayer

Holy Spirit, at work in our lives

and in the lives of our ancestors,

You created the Church at Pentecost

and made it a sacrament of Jesus for the world.

We thank you for creating

the Diocese of Scranton 150 years ago

and rooting it in faith, hope and love.

We marvel at the journey you have traveled

with our bishops, laity, religious, priests and deacons.

Continue to strengthen us as one family.

Give us the clarity to focus on the things that last:

-faith in you and the Gospel,

-hope in the Resurrection

-and the love of our God.

Amen.

11 March 2018

The Fourth Sunday of

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Psalm Response Psalm 137 (Modlin)

Song During the Presentation of Gifts Lead Me, Lord (Becker)

Daily Mass

MONDAY THRU FRIDAY Celebration of Eucharist

7:00 AM @CSG

12:10 PM @OLS

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MARCH 14 | 7 PM

@ OUR LADY OF THE SNOWS

Wednesday

Evening Prayer

Weekly

Poverty Meal

Sunday

Food Collection

The Light Is On For You

MONDAYS

Fr. John, Fr. Seth, and Msgr. Quinn will

be available for Confessions at

Our Lady of the Snows Church.

This is a wonderful chance for you to

know and receive God’s mercy in this

amazing Sacrament of Healing.

5:30 PM TO 7:00 PM

Pivotal Players

TUESDAYS

This video and discussion series will

meet on Tuesdays and meets once a

week in the Gathering Room at Our

Lady of the Snows. Please contact

Nettie at the OLS Parish Center, at 570

-586-1741, to sign up.

6:30 PM TO 8:00 PM

Stations of the Cross

FRIDAYS

Stations of the Cross will be

celebrated on Friday afternoon/

evenings at the following times

and place.

12:45 PM @ OLS

5:30 PM @ CSG

Reflecting on Living the Gospel In our modern culture, Sundays are often punctuated

with football. We know that Mass attendance can even

be influenced by the time of the local game. The excite-

ment, joy, and anticipation of the game can even distract

otherwise intent Mass-goers! More than a few times we

have heard homilies incorporating a reference to Sun-

day football. It’s become something of a secular religion

practiced in varying degrees by fans. Some time ago, in

the end zones of various games, dedicated believers

displayed a simple message: “John 3:16.” For those who

were not familiar with their Scriptures, many went to look

it up later in the day, and perhaps that was something of

the point. And it is that verse that appears in today’s

gospel: “For God so loved the world that he gave his

only Son.”

The profundity of this statement can be lost by its pithi-

ness. We proclaim a God of love, not a God of condem-

nation. And this love results in God sending his only

Son, Jesus. The starting point of our theology is, then,

love.

Though many today and throughout history seem to pre-

fer a God of judgment, a God of condemnation, today

we are reminded that our God is love. And God’s love is

eternal, expressed in a never-ending life he wants for

each of us, where the relationships and bonds we create

in this life are never broken. On this Laetare Sunday,

where we read John 3:16, may the joy experienced by

those at a football game remind us of the joy we have at

Easter, when the promise of eternal life is fulfilled.

For Reflection: How does the joy of Easter inform

my life today?

S ERVICE

Angels at the Doorstep Saint Gregory’s announces the formation of

a new ministry called Angels at the Doorstep.

The goal of the new ministry will be to provide support to

parishioners experiencing loss, illness, or the inability to

participate fully in parish life. The angel may be responsible for

supporting the parishioners in a variety of ways such as

cooking meals, home visits, shopping, sending cards or

transportation. If you are interested in this

ministry and would like additional information

on how you can help, please contact Joe

Hogan at jhoganstgregory@gmail.com or call

the rectory at 570.587.4808.

Sorting Lenten Food Drive On Sunday, March 18 at 1:00 PM, we will fill

our green bags with the food that has been so

generously donated. All help will be greatly

appreciated! “Many hands make for lighter

work.”

Girl Scout Fundraiser Girl Scout Troop 50797 in Clarks Summit will host a Pasta

Dinner fundraiser on Saturday, April 14 at the

Assembly of God, 204 S. Abington Road. The

success of the dinner funds activities

throughout the year and helps Scouts attend a

weekend of beach camping at Wildwood, NJ. Girl Scout Troop

50797 has supported various human services centers in the

area, volunteering at Willowbrook , the Women’s Resource

Center and Friends of the Poor, to name a few. For more

information on the pasta dinner or donating to Troop 50797

please call Jennifer Bardzel at 570.885.2984.

Confirmation Information Letters have been sent to parents of the students in our

Confirmation Class. Pertinent information is enclosed

regarding the sorting of our Lenten Food Drive items, Palm

Sunday Liturgy and the Confirmation Retreat on Tuesday,

May 1. We kindly ask that all registration forms be sent to the

rectory office as soon as possible. If you have any questions,

please do not hesitate to call the rectory.

We recognize God’s call to serve our parish family and neighbors near and far!

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Sunday Offering—$16,625.00 Care & Education—$1,006.50

Weekly Building Fund Payments—$5,852.05 Love and generosity start here at home. We are grateful for

your faithful stewardship which sustains the life of the parish,

supports our outreach and ministries, as well as maintains the

level of staffing needed to put our mission into action:

“welcoming the world with open arms, faithful hearts and

hands ready to serve.” Thank you for your gift of treasure and

commitment to do God’s work here at the Church of Saint

Gregory offered on the weekend of February 17 & 18, 2018.

Your weekly or monthly offertory gifts support everything we

do at the Church of St. Gregory.

Hands Ready To Serve Weekly Pantry Collection Items—

Soup, canned or instant Donations this week will be offered to United Neighborhood

Center.

Donations of pet food will always be welcomed.

Collected at Food Pantry Cupboard

Lenten Food Drive

This year, the Service Committee, will be collecting food and

grocery items for local food pantries throughout all of Lent. The

drive continues this weekend. There is a special need for non

perishable food items including cereals, canned fruits, soups

and vegetables, pasta, sauce, juices

and other nutritional food products.

Baby cereal/food (fruit)

Canned fruit

Soups

Pasta & Sauce

Rice

Breakfast Cereal

Juices

Canned Vegetables

W ORD

We recognize God’s call to serve our parish family and neighbors near and far!

We cherish our relationship with Jesus and strive to make the gospel relevant to our daily lives!

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Faith Formation

is Alive

with Prayer, Study

and Activity!

Regional Lenten Penance Services

Uniting with our neighboring parishes, communal prayer services

with individual confessions are scheduled for your convenience as

follows:

Sunday, March 18 at 6:00 PM

Our Lady of the Lake, Lake Winola

Monday, March 19 at 7:00 PM

St. John Vianney, Montdale

Tuesday, March 20 at 7:00 PM

Our Lady of the Abingtons, Dalton

Wednesday, March 21 at 7:00 PM

Our Lady of the Snows/Church of St. Gregory

Church of Saint Gregory, Clarks Green

THE THREE GREAT DAYS

March 29, 30 & 31 Holy Thursday, Mass of the Lord’s Supper

at 7:00 pm

Good Friday, Solemn Commemoration

of the Lord’s Death at 7:00 PM

Holy Saturday, The Easter Vigil

at 8:00 PM

C OMMUNIT Y

MONDAY

(CSG) 7:00 AM †Joseph V. Scott

The Family

(OLS) 12:15 PM † Ann James

Lea & Joe Divanna

TUESDAY

(CSG) 7:00 AM †Doris Milani

Dr. Frank Milani

(OLS) 12:10 PM †John Stracham

The Family

WEDNESDAY

(CSG) 7:00 AM †Biancardi, Memolo,

Beccaris Famlies

The Family

(OLS) 12:10 PM †Ann Picca

The Family

THURSDAY

(CSG) 7:00 AM †Ronald Cronkey &

Ann Morkel

The Family

(OLS) 12:10 PM †James R. Carroll

Jim & Jeanne Carroll

FRIDAY

(CSG) 7:00 AM †John Glynn

Wife—Janet

(OLS) 12:10 PM †Edward Gowarty

The Gowarty Family

SATURDAY

(CSG) 5:00 PM †Anthony & Colette

Fennessy

The Family

(CSG) Saint Gregory’s

(OLS) Our Lady of the Snows

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Opioid Prevention Forums The Gathering Place in Clarks Summit will host a series on Opioid Prevention. This sub-

stance abuse awareness series is for caretakers of children grades 5—12 and beyond.

The open dialog forum will be held on the following dates:

Exploring the Effects of Children’s Substance Abuse on Our Families

Thursday, March 29, 7:00 to 8:30 PM

All of the speakers participating address and support our mission and objectives for the

series. The four part series is balanced with prevention, education experts, medical ex-

perts, legal experts, recovery professionals, and people in recovery. For more infor-

mation please email: thegatheringplaceCS@gmail.com.

Day of Reflection The Annual Day of Reflection sponsored by the Church of Saint Gregory’s

Women’s Guild will take place on Tuesday, March 13 at St. Gabriel’s Re-

treat House. The conference leader this year will be Father Seth D. Was-

nock, Assistant Pastor at Our Lady of the Snows, and the Theme is: “Trust.”

The conference will begin at 9:00 AM and end at 3:00 PM. Registration will

take place at 9:00 AM. For further information or to make a reservation

please call Nancy at 570.586.9227 or Martha at 570.587.2491. The cost for the day is

$30.00 per person and includes lunch. The day is open to both men and women.

Who was Jesus? The book club will meet on Sunday, March 18 at 12:00 Noon in the

cafeteria at Our Lady of Peace School for discussion and activities.

Catholic Men’s Conference The fourth annual Diocese of Scranton Catholic Men’s Conference will be

held on Saturday, May 5 from 8:00 AM until 3:00 PM at King’s College,

Wilkes-Barre. Guest speakers include: Bishop Joseph Bambera, Jesse

Romero, Tom Peterson and Father Michael Gaitlye. Speakers will empha-

size Christ’s real presence in the Eucharist and the importance of your re-

sponse to His presence. Jesus Himself is here, alive and eagerly waiting for

each of us. You will experience how Jesus dwells in you and you in Him. He loves us-

what a beautiful consoling thought-perfect, sublime and profound. His burden is light, and

He has many blessing in store for each of us, most especially the bread of life. Cost is

$35, students $15.00. Light breakfast and box lunch included. For more information and

to make a reservation please call 570.207.2213.

Ham & Cabbage Dinner The Auxiliary of VFW Post 7069, Winola Road, will host their annual

Ham & Cabbage dinner on Saturday, March 17, from 4:00 until 7:30

PM. The cost is $8.50 for adults and $4.00 for children. Dinner also

includes homemade desserts. Eat in or take-out. Pre-ticket sales are

recommended. To reserve tickets, please call 570.586.9821 or

570.587.5663. Bagpiper to perform at 5:30 PM.

WE REMEMBER

AT MASS

March 12—March 17

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Monday, Mar 12, 2018 LENTEN WEEKDAY Take Jesus at his word What caused an anxious parent of a

dying child to accept Jesus’ word as

sufficient? “Your son will live” is not

medicine. These four words are not

magic. Yet they were enough because

of the authority of the one who spoke

them. Do we believe in the words of

Jesus in the same way? Try living as if

you do. Start with accepting that your

sins are forgiven. This is the miracle of

new life that Jesus promises us now

and when his Kingdom comes. TODAY'S READINGS: Isaiah 65:17-

21; John 4:43-54 (244). “The man

believed the word that Jesus spoke

to him and started on his way.”

Tuesday, Mar 13, 2018 LENTEN WEEKDAY Bathed in grace Not long before Jesus heals the sick

man at the pool, he encounters the

Samaritan woman at the well. The

stories have much in common. Neither

knew who Jesus was or the power he

possessed, but Jesus knew everything

about them—and offers to wash away

their troubles, in fact, without them

having to ask or repent first. Both were

afflicted and shunned for a long time,

coming to the water alone with nobody

to help them. Jesus goes ahead and

heals them, before they have a clue.

But isn’t that just like God? Giving us

what no one else will give? Giving it to

us before we have the sense to ask?

Our job: Tell others of God’s amazing

grace. TODAY'S READINGS: Ezekiel 47:1-9,

12; John 5:1-16 (245). “Who is the

man who said to you, ‘Take up your

mat and walk?’ But the man did not

know who it was.”

Wednesday, Mar 14, 2018 LENTEN WEEKDAY Extended hours God worked to create the world in six

days and then rested on the seventh.

Thereafter, all creation was called to

rest on the seventh day and to ob-

serve with God a sabbath of holiness.

But the gospel reminds us that God’s

work continues even after quittin’ time.

Jesus therefore ignores the whistle

and stays at his post, doing the work

of God even as the world rests from its

labors. God’s mercy and compassion

know no rest. They continue as long

as human weakness is in need of

healing. Followers of Jesus, therefore,

punch in at Baptism and stay on the

job until the work is done. TODAY'S READINGS: Isaiah 49:8-15;

John 5:17-30 (246). “Jesus an-

swered them, ‘My Father is still

working, and I also am working.’"

Thursday, Mar 15, 2018 LENTEN WEEKDAY Keep the focus where it be-

longs As Lent proceeds, one of the tempta-

tions that can sidetrack us is to start

feeling pretty good about ourselves: I

am keeping my resolution, I am pray-

ing more, I’ve asked God to forgive my

sins. Soon our hands folded in prayer

become fingers pointing at others:

They gossip, they lie and steal, they

are weak and sinful. We may not be

that obvious, but the readings today

show that the religious leaders were

quick to misjudge. We can’t let the

good that Lent is doing for us evapo-

rate by failing to embrace and love

others. TODAY'S READINGS: Exodus 32:7-

14; John 5:31-47 (247). “You

search the scriptures because you

think you have eternal life in them; it

is they that testify on my behalf.”

Friday, Mar 16, 2018 LENTEN WEEKDAY; DAY OF ABSTI-

NENCE Learn your origin story Where Jesus came from was always a

source of trouble. King Herod went

after all the babies around Bethlehem

because of the prophecy that said the

next king would come from there. Peo-

ple later scoffed to hear that Jesus

was raised in Nazareth—a town that

didn’t get any respect in cosmopolitan

Jerusalem. Some also complained

that Jesus came from anywhere at all,

because the Messiah’s origins ought

to be a bit more mysterious. But no

one seemed to get where Jesus was

coming from in a cosmic sense: from

the One who sent him. Are we as clear

about our origins? TODAY'S READINGS: Wisdom

2:1a, 12-22; John 7:1-2, 10,

25-30 (248). “We know

where this man is from;

but when the Messiah

comes, no one will

know where he

is from.”

We believe that our Baptism forms us into a family joined together to love God and one another!

Invest just five minutes a day, and your faith will deepen and grow—

a day at a time.

Baptism Baptisms are normally celebrated on the Third

Sunday of every month during or following the

12 noon liturgy. Baptisms may be arranged at

other times when necessary. Parent and Godpar-

ent preparation occurs monthly. Please call for

an appointment.

Anointing of the Sick Please contact the rectory at anytime for the

celebration of this sacrament.

Marriage Arrangements should be made

six months prior to the desired wedding date.

Please contact Father Lapera.

Music Ministry (Both) Spirit Song Ensemble and

Voices of Faith Choir: Wed. 7:00 p.m.

Genesis Children’s Choir: Wed. 4:00 p.m.

Art and Environment A team of volunteers who provide an appropri-

ate ideas and design for the decoration of our

worship space.

Ministers of Hospitality Ministers of Hospitality are the welcoming am-

bassadors of our parish family at liturgy. Please

contact our office for more information.

Communion Calls A team of Extraordinary

Communion Ministers visit

our homebound with Communion

every month. For more Information please con-

tact Deacon Bob at rsheils1@comcast.net.

Rosary Groups Every Tuesday morning at 10:00 AM and

every Tuesday afternoon at 5:15 PM.

C.L.O.W.

St. Joseph’s Outreach Our parish partners with St. Joseph’s School in

Uganda. Donations are always welcome in sup-

port of student tuition.

Prayer Shawl Ministry The prayer shawl ministry meets the second

Thursday of every month at 7:00 PM

in the rectory.

Angels at the Doorstep A team of volunteers who provide

comfort, a meal or assistance with

parishioners and neighbors suffering loss or

illness of any kind.

Hands Ready To Serve Weekly donations may be left near church en-

trances or in the cabinet in the hallway near the

restroom. See page 4 for a list of items we are

collecting this week. There are also four large

annual collections.

Heavenly Paws A pet group that collects food

and supplies for Meals on Wheels. For more

information please contact Carol Hughes at car-

olmariehughes@gmail.com.

Hospital Visitation If anyone has a family member, relative or friend

in any of the area hospitals and would like them

to have a visit, please call the rectory.

Veterans Ministry This ministry seeks to raise awareness of the

growing problem of homelessness of veterans

within our local community and serve residents

at St. Francis Commons. For more information

please email: bburkavage@gmail.com

Refugee Family Ministry This team will encourage parish support for

refugees arriving in our community from all over

the world in cooperation with CSS of the

Diocese of Scranton.

Religious Formation Our Religious Education program

takes place every Sunday Morning

at 11:05 AM at Our Lady of Peace

School for grades K-8.

Holy Cross School System Our Lady of Peace School— 410 N.

Abington Road, Clarks Green, PA |

570.587.4152 |

Mrs. M. Colleen Jumper, Principal

|www.OLPClarksSummit.com

Holy Cross High School—

501 E. Drinker Street, Dunmore, PA

570.346.7541 |

Mr. Benjamin D. Tolerico, Principal |

www.holycrosshs-dioceseofscranton.org

Early Childhood Program Our Kindergarten program is held five days a

week and takes place in the Early Childhood

Center. Please call 570.587.4808.

R.C.I.A. There currently is an R.C.I.A. team ready to

welcome anyone interested in becoming a

Catholic or to learn more about their Catholic

faith. Please email Connie at

rsheils1@comcast.net.

Women’s Guild Guild meetings take place the first Thursday of

every month from September through May, with

the exception of January. Meetings begin at 7:00

PM and are held in the rectory.

saintgregoryswomensguild@gmail. com

Community Table A social gathering to foster fellowship, friend-

ship and parish family for all parish adults. The

community table meets at a different venue

monthly. Information will be published in the

Green Dialog or you may email:

judywalsh730@gmail.com.

Community Gatherings We come together for seasonal celebrations

throughout the year. Please watch bulletin for

details and reservation information.

Holy Grounds Family, friends and visitors are welcome for

coffee after Mass in St. Joe’s Café on

Wednesday and Sunday mornings.