MISSION APPEAL SPEAKER

St. Michael Catholic Church

MASS SCHEDULE GIRARD
Saturday
5:30 pm
Sunday
10:00 am

ARMA
4:00 pm
8:00 am

CONFESSION
GIRARD
ARMA
Saturday
2:00-2:30 pm 3:15-3:45 pm
Weekdays before Mass
Anytime by appointment
RECTORY HOURS
Tuesday-Friday: 9:00 am - Noon
Closed Mondays
(620) 724-8717
STAFF Pastor: Fr. Max Biltz
Secretary: Faith Paoni
Bookkeeper: Janel Scales
Bulletin Editor: Nancy Bauer
PARISH WEBSITE:
www.stmichaelgirard.com
UPCOMING EVENTS:
Finance Council
Parish Council
Tony Stonerock, Chair Dale Coomes, Chair
TBA
TBA

!Altar Society

Aug. 24 @ 6:00pm
Daltons Back 9

!Helping Hands

Knights of Columbus
1st Tuesday of Month
7:00pm in hall

Daughters of Isabella
Carrie Smith
Marilyn Bradshaw
724-6684
724-7133
Kapauns Men: Fridays at 6:00am in the hall

From the Pastor

Dear Parish Family; instead of my words here is a homily by Pope Benedict on Mary the Mother of
God:
Dear Brothers and Sisters! On the first day of the year, the liturgy resounds in the Church
throughout the world with the ancient priestly blessing that we heard during todays first reading:
The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to
you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace (Num 6:24-26). This blessing
was entrusted by God, through Moses, to Aaron and his sons, that is, to the priests of the people of
Israel. It is a triple blessing filled with light, radiating from the repetition of the name of God, the
Lord, and from the image of his face. In fact, in order to be blessed, we have to stand in Gods
presence, take his Name upon us and remain in the cone of light that issues from his Face, in a space
lit up by his gaze, diffusing grace and peace. This was the very experience that the shepherds of
Bethlehem had, who reappear in todays Gospel. They had the experience of standing in Gods
presence, they received his blessing not in the hall of a majestic palace, in the presence of a great
sovereign, but in a stable, before a babe lying in a manger (Lk 2:16). From this child, a new light
issues forth, shining in the darkness of the night, as we can see in so many paintings depicting
Christs Nativity. Henceforth, it is from him that blessing comes, from his name Jesus, meaning
God saves and from his human face, in which God, the almighty Lord of heaven and earth,
chose to become incarnate, concealing his glory under the veil of our flesh, so as to reveal fully to us
his goodness (cf. Tit 3:4). The first to be swept up by this blessing was Mary the virgin, the spouse of
Joseph, chosen by God from the first moment of her existence to be the mother of his incarnate
Son. She is the blessed among women (Lk 1:42) in the words of Saint Elizabeths greeting. Her
whole life was spent in the light of the Lord, within the radius of his name and of the face of God
incarnate in Jesus, the blessed fruit of her womb. This is how Lukes Gospel presents her to us:
fully intent upon guarding and meditating in her heart upon everything concerning her son Jesus (cf.
Lk 2:19, 51). The mystery of her divine motherhood that we celebrate today contains in
superabundant measure the gift of grace that all human motherhood bears within it, so much so
that the fruitfulness of the womb has always been associated with Gods blessing. The Mother of
God is the first of the blessed, and it is she who bears the blessing; she is the woman who received
Jesus into herself and brought him forth for the whole human family. In the words of the liturgy:
without losing the glory of virginity, [she] brought forth into the world the eternal light, Jesus
Christ our Lord (Preface I of the Blessed Virgin Mary). Mary is the mother and model of the
Church, who receives the divine Word in faith and offers herself to God as the good soil in which
he can continue to accomplish his mystery of salvation. The Church also participates in the mystery
of divine motherhood, through preaching, which sows the seed of the Gospel throughout the world,
and through the sacraments, which communicate grace and divine life to men. The Church
exercises her motherhood especially in the sacrament of Baptism, when she generates Gods
children from water and the Holy Spirit, who cries out in each of them: Abba, Father! (Gal 4:6).
Like Mary, the Church is the mediator of Gods blessing for the world: she receives it in receiving
Jesus and she transmits it in bearing Jesus. He is the mercy and the peace that the world, of itself,
cannot give, and which it needs always, at least as much as bread.

Altar Ministers for August 22 & 23

Mass Schedule and Intentions for August 15 - 23

Aug. 15 Saturday
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23

4:00pm
5:30pm
Sunday
8:00am
10:00am
Monday
7:00am
Tuesday
5:30pm
Wednesday 6:30pm
Thursday 8:00am
8:30am-3:00pm
Friday
7:00am
8:00am-6:00pm
Saturday 4:00pm
5:30pm
Sunday
8:00am
10:00am

106 N. Western Ave.

Girard, KS 66743
(620) 724-8717
Pastor: Fr. Max Biltz

Mary Ginardi
Vera Diskin
Jim Davied
For the People
Joe Hofer
No Intention
Patricia Haderlein
No Intention
Adoration
Arlene Schulte
Adoration
Louisa Serena
Jim Davied
Jim Davied
Mary Masser

Arma
Girard
Arma
Girard
Girard
Arma
Girard
Arma
Arma
Girard
Girard
Arma
Girard
Arma
Girard

Next Saturday (8/22/15)

!Altar Servers:

5:30 pm

Next Sunday (8/23/15)

10:00 am

Brandon & Bailey

Leritz, Sara Goble

MacKenzie Droessler,
Josh Duling, Eric
Wilson

EMHC:

Rachel Ausemus

Joan Davied

Lector:

Ned Sauer

Beth Wilson

Gift Bearers

Jim & Margaret

OToole

Hank & Carrie

Smith family

!
!

This weekend, Fr. Philip from the La Salette Missionaries will

be speaking at our masses. Fr. Philip is from Myanmar
(formerly known as Burma) and is the director of the La
Salette Missions there.
Having brought the fullness of life to our world when He
rose from the dead, Jesus sent his disciples to share this life with
all of creation. They went forth and preached
everywhere (Mk 16:20). The Missionaries of Our Lady of La
Salette minister to people of every race, language, culture and
way of life - beginning at the La Salette Shrine in France
where our Blessed Mother appeared in 1846. Her final words,
Well, my children, you will make this known to all my people
echo Jesus Gospel mandate. It is little wonder that the La
Salette Congregation has always been mission orientated.
When called upon by the Vatican to preach the Gospel in
foreign lands, they eagerly responded. This spirit brought them
to mission in 27 countries, especially among the poor in
Angola, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Haiti, India, Madagascar,
Myanmar and the Philippines. With your cooperation, the
Missionaries of La Salette can continue to provide spiritual
and financial assistance to these mission countries as they bring
Gods reconciling message to the poor.

ANGELS AMONG US
If you or someone in our area that you know has been
diagnosed with cancer and needs assistance, please contact
Joan Davied with Angels Among Us at 724-4862.

PRAYERS FOR THE SICK OF OUR PARISH

Please pray for parishioners Ron Breneman, Gerald Davied,

Rosemary OToole, and Stan Thomas who are ill. Also, please
pray for former parishioner John Doherty who is in the
hospital.

ST. MICHAEL ALTAR SOCIETY

The St. Michael Altar Society will hold their first meeting of
the fall on Monday, August 24 at 6:00pm at Daltons Back 9
restaurant at the Girard golf course. All women of the parish
are invited to join us!

ST. MICHAEL PSR, GRADES 1-5

Due to Girard schools new early release schedule on

Wednesdays, and the inability to secure catechists for the
afternoon PSR program at St. Michael, starting this fall, PSR
classes for children in grades 1-5 will be held on Sunday
mornings in the parish hall prior to 10am Mass. We apologize
for the inconvenience this may cause.

Collections

Contributions

Last Week

July 2015 to date

$3,706.00

$15,171.00

$3.00

$23.58

Childrens Offering
Expenses

$8,367.53

Over / (Under)

$6,827.05

Building Fund Contributions

$762.00

Building Fund Loan Balance

$234,403.95

ST. MICHAEL PSR CLASSES, REGISTRATION

PSR classes for parish youth grades 1-5 will begin on Sept 12
and Sept 16 for grades 6-12. Registration information will be
available later this month.

CATECHISTS NEEDED!

Please prayerfully consider volunteering to become a catechist

or co-catechist (team teach with another) and sharing our
Catholic faith with the children in our parish. Through
catechesis, you will teach children to know, love and serve God
and that they are created in Gods image. You will receive
training, support and a weekly lesson plan to follow. We are in
need of catechists, co-catechists and substitutes for grades 2 - 5
(Sunday mornings) and additional adults to team teach the
Confirmation program for our high school youth in grades
9-11 (Wednesday evenings). Classes are held September
through April. Please call Michelle Puckett at 620.724.4364
for more information or to volunteer.

ST. JOSEPH HOMECOMING BREAKFAST

The St. Joseph Parish Council is sponsoring the Homecoming

Breakfast this Sunday, August 16, from 9:00 to 11:00 am, in
the parish hall. The cost is a Free Will Donation. Carry Outs
are available. Everyone is welcome. The menu is as follows:
Scrambled eggs, Biscuits & Gravy, Sausage Patty, Hash
Browns, Cinnamon Roll, Juice, Coffee, Milk. Please come and
join us!

HOG ROAST FUNDRAISER

The Sherman Township Firefighters will be holding their

annual hog roast on Sunday, September 13 at the Methodist
Church in Farlington. The hog roast will be from 10:45 am to
1:30 pm. Free will donations will be accepted and will benefit
the Sherman Township Firefighters Maintenance Fund.

A big Thank You to our advertisers. Please support them!

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!
!

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620-395-2141

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Tim OToole 620-724-8990
620-238-0430 c