bulletin 08-27-2017

TWENTY-FIRST SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME From the Pastor’s Desk The Good news; the new school year has started. By the end of this past week and the beginning of this week I think all of our local schools are now back in session. May God bless our students as they get back to the task at hand: reading, writing and thinking; the work of education. God bless all our teachers, administrators and supporting staff as they provide a healthy and safe atmosphere for our children to engage in the goodness of learning. With the beginning of the new school year our weekday mass schedule will change this week. Our students will be coming to morning mass on Wednesdays. The students from Bishop Rosecrans will be attending the first and third Wednesdays joining the students from Bishop Fenwick who will be attending weekly. Mass will start at 8:10 a.m. allowing the students sufficient time to come down the hill to the Church. As we begin this new academic year we are also looking at the beginning of a couple of programs in the parish. As always this is the season when we begin a new RCIA session. Classes will begin Wednesday September 6th. Classes will take place in the meeting room in the basement of the Parish Office. The entrance is on the lower level on the Silliman Street side of the parish offices. Classes will begin at 7:00 p.m. Class usually runs about an hour and a half, give or take. So for all those who are interested in joining the Church or just inquisitive about the possibility, you are more than welcome to join us. It would be helpful if you called the office ahead of time. It is also good if you decide to appear on September 6th. In the past we have had individuals who have been Catholic all their life who have attended the RCIA classes. It is a good way to advance and further develop one’s knowledge and growth in the faith. These individuals have also played an important role in asking questions for clarification. This is particularly helpful for those who are thinking about entering the Church. Most of these individuals have enjoyed the classes and some have acted as sponsors for those coming into the Church. This is all good. So if you may be interested in furthering and deepening your knowledge and living the faith you are most welcome to join us. Learning and living our Catholic Faith is a life-long project. If we stop, we stagnate. Sunday school classes for our public school children will be beginning soon. Registration for this program will be the weekend of September 9 – 10 after all the masses. Those classes will begin Sunday, September 17th. With the beginning of the school year and the start of a new RCIA class we find ourselves in the midst of a season of new beginnings. Hopefully this can be a signal for a renewed beginning in our faith life as Catholic Christians. Great things and exciting things are happening as we continue to move forward in expanding the Catholic Culture in our schools. Hopefully this new beginning will inspire renewed enthusiasm for all Catholic Christians. With the new school year we have reason to hope to continue and expand that growth of the Catholic Community as well. To this noble end as we renew our efforts in the intellectual and physical growth of our children we also focus on the faith development of our parish. As we invest in our children we are truly investing in our future as a parish and as the Catholic Church’s presence in the Zanesville area. Parents have an important role in this great movement forward. God has blessed us and He will continue to bless us far into the future. Your efforts and continued support has been and is greatly appreciated. There is one reminder that is essential for this great endeavor: Sunday Mass is an important part of this development.

Our renewed and forward moving effort in this area of Catholic education is essential. Prayer and the Celebration of the Eucharist are absolutely necessary for a well rounded and strong Catholic education and Catholic Parish. We know that prayer and the reception of the Sacraments are essential for our life as Catholic Christians. Therefore it is necessary that prayer and the reception of the Sacraments to be an important part of our overall education programs. This is not only true for our grade school students, but is also very important for our high school and college students as well. In short it is of great importance for all of us. We learn more about the Catholic Faith and our growth in holiness when we actually practice the faith by prayer and frequenting the Sacraments (especially the Eucharist and Confession) and living a virtuous life. We cannot be faithful followers of Jesus Christ (good Catholic Christians) in this world without the worthy reception of the Eucharist and a healthy prayer life. I cannot stress this enough. Look around our world. There is a continuous rise in senseless acts of deadly violence. This is a reflection on a self-centered, immoral and aimless humanity. It is the slow rise in self-destructive madness: a classic display of a sinful and godless society. Attendance at Sunday Celebration of the Eucharist is essential for the Catholic and the Catholic Community. In speaking about church attendance I often hear the argument that a person is more of a “spiritual person” and not into organized religion and church attendance. When pressed about what “being spiritual” means, the individual usually finds it difficult to define. It’s one of those things that everyone is supposed to know what “being spiritual” means. Just the same, what kind of person would not respect someone “being spiritual”? Who can argue with that? Only evil non-spiritual persons would question this! A necessary warning need be mentioned here: the devil is a “spiritual being”. Some individuals rightly argue that they can pray in the privacy of their own home and get great satisfaction, maybe more so than going to church. At times this may be very true. Or another person says they get more by walking in the woods and taking in the beauty of nature. That is great and may be inspirational. However, I might suspect that many don’t have a weekly scheduled time or a structure for this form of prayer. My guess is that this happens randomly and rarely during inclement weather. It is more irregular than regular. The absence of a structured, scheduled time and place is part of the problem. For many people, private prayer time is spontaneous and random. There is something good here. It tends to be without structure: sincerely from the heart, which is also good. The problem arises when those who argue in favor of the primacy of private prayer: it is more important than communal prayer. This is the problem: the failure to see the need for communal prayer. In reality we don’t always feel spontaneous or creative. We also tend not to be challenged in our spontaneous prayer time to be better Christians or to grow in holiness. We tend to pray only when we feel like it as opposed to when we actually need to pray or when everything is rather neutral, or boring, or when we are tired or distracted. A favorite reason for not attending Sunday Mass is the excuse that “I was too tired”. I may be too tired for private prayer which may be the very time when I need to pray. There is also another consideration on this point; since we are already weakened by sin, and sin makes us more self-centered because of sin’s selfish nature, we tend to guide our prayer to where we want it to go and to serve our purposes: usually to make ourselves feel good. Personal private prayer without a communal component is tempted to be too self-centered and self serving. It can slowly become more about my will than openness to God’s will. The ultimate result of Christian prayer is to have

AUGUST 27, 2017 communion with God and to conform our lives to the will of God. Left unchallenged we tend to expect God to conform to our will. The communal prayer of the Church is to bring us into communion with God and God’s will. It is all too easy not to have this challenge in our private prayer. We need both: communal and private. Gathering as the Catholic Community is essential, especially for the support of our personal, private prayer life. When we gather we are not all on the same page, in the same mood, with the same mindset… etc. As diverse in so many ways we gather as a community. The structured prayer of the community, the Mass, guides us through the most effective prayer where we encounter Jesus Christ in Word and Sacrament. We are reconciled, give praise and thanksgiving. We are challenged, encouraged and nourished to be faithful followers of Jesus Christ as a community and personally. In communion with Him, we are also in communion with God’s Will. “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done.” This is why we have the Church and the Sacraments: our help us on the road to salvation: perfect communion with God. The Church and the Sacraments are encounters with Jesus Christ here and now with the foretaste of eternal life with God: our salvation. This can only be found in Jesus Christ and in his enduring gift of himself to the world: the Church and her sacraments. Make Sunday Mass a family priority. Commit yourself to it as you commit yourself to your personal private prayer life. We will faithfully follow the Lord as a community, as a family and as individuals. Have a Great Week. Father Ralko

Church Support AUGUST 20, 2017 OFFERTORY $12100..00 Diocesan Tax ($650.00) Fenwick Subsidy ($3,060.00) Rosecrans subsidy ($290.00) Available for Parish Operations $8,100.00 Parish Operating Expenses ($8,200.00) Religious Education Expenses ($800.00) Other Income $2,300.00 Weekly surplus $1,400.00 May God bless you for supporting your parish

Thank you and God Bless. This week we pray Week I of the Liturgy of the hours.

We pray for those who have died recently: Joan Shaffer Recent Baptisms: Lila Moyer daughter of Mr. & Mrs. Ryan Moyer Xavier Hannahs son of Mr. & Mrs. Brandon Hannahs Zanesville Catholic Teens WELCOME BACK! Be Prepared To Get Wet! Sunday, August 27th 5:00-7:00 p.m. St. Nicholas Teen Center- Do not wear your favorite clothes! Joint High School & Middle School Event-Grades 6-12 Join us for good food and great fun!

PLEASE CALL THIS WEEK! All families will be photographed for our directory Sept. 11-15 and 25-29 right here at the St. Nicholas Parish Office building. Our directory won’t be complete without you. Watch our bulletin for inserts. The online scheduler is ready for you to choose your appointment time at https://booknowlifetouch.appointment-plus.com/y3x6hqnc/ or call the parish office at 453-0597. We will be glad to schedule your appointment for you. SAINT NICHOLAS RELIGIOUS EDUCATION Registration for 2017-2018 Religious Education Classes will be Sunday, Sept. 10 from 9:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. at Bishop Fenwick School,1030 E. Main St. Classes start on Sunday, Sept. 17 at 9:45 a.m. Call 740-868-7146 for more details or if you have questions. PRE JORDAN CLASS St. Nicholas will hold a Pre Jordan class for parents and godparents who wish to have their infants and small children baptized. The class will be on Tuesday, August 29 at 7:00 p.m. in the Parish Office Building. Please call Mary Lou Staker at 740-453-7141 to register.  

RCIA – Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults

Are you in search of a deeper relationship with God? Are you interested in learning about Christian initiation, Christianity, the Catholic faith?  Have you been attending the Catholic Church, Mass, for years but just never ‘got around’ to joining?  Would you like to be baptized? RCIA, Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, is an opportunity to learn about the tradition and history of the Catholic Church, while experiencing our beliefs and worship. RCIA at St. Nicholas begins on Wed. September 6 at 7 p.m. in the Parish Office Building, 955 East Main St. (enter on the Silliman St. side.) Call Mary Lou Staker at 740-453-7141 for more information. SADIE CORRY PILGRIMAGE TO CAREY, OHIO Wednesday, October 4, 2016. Cost is $25.00. You may purchase your lunch at the cafeteria. Paid reservations needed by Wednesday, September 6th. Bus departure from K of C, Zanesville Sunrise Center, 7:55 a.m. and return about 6:45 p.m. For information call Mary Murphy at 452-4454 or Margaret Kronenbitter at 453-7657. Make checks payable and send to Margaret Kronenbitter, 2700 Wayne Ridge Rd., Zanesville, OH. 43701. WOMEN’S SPIRITUALITY – LAST CALL TO ORDER BOOKS. We will resume our gatherings on Monday, September 25 at 3:30 p.m. in the parish office. We will meet on the last Monday of the month until spring. This year we will use Heaven Starts Now Becoming a Saint Day by Day. Fee for the book is $10.00. If you plan to join us or just want the book, please phone Judi Peterson at 740-4535288. Books will be ordered September 1. 86TH ANNUAL LABOR DAY HOMECOMING PICNIC St. Mary’s Fulda will hold their picnic on Monday, September 4. Our day starts with Mass at 9:00 a.m. Dinner will be served starting at 10:30 a.m. -1:30 p.m. Carry-out dinners are available. A refreshment stand will be available all afternoon.

TWENTY-FIRST SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME LITURGICAL MINISTERS SCHEDULE It is your responsibility to find a substitute if needed. September 3, 2017- Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time

What’s Happening in Our Parish MONDAY, August 28, St. Augustine 8:00 a.m., Mass: Stella Tomson, anniversary, Church

Saturday, September 2 @ 5:15 p.m. Lector: Adelaide Pitcock, Tom J. Pitcock Server: Luke Pratt, Libby Pratt Eucharistic Minister – Coord: Mike Musselman Eucharistic Minister - Wash Vessel: Corinne Musselman, Don Susa Eucharistic Minister: Karen Robinson, Dottie Durant, Laurie Harmon, Ronald Davis Sunday, September 3 @7:30 a.m. Lector: Sue Hillis, Stephanie Bridwell Server: Davie Eppley, Justin Ewart Eucharistic Minister- Coord: Marvin Paul Eucharistic Minister - Wash Vessel: Carolyn Arnold, Jim Hillis Eucharistic Minister: Jennifer Bernett Sunday, September 3 @ 9:30 a.m. Lector: Rocky Rowe, George Kopf Server: Thomas Bernath, Will Bernath Eucharistic Minister - Coord: Gerald Tiberio Eucharistic Minister - Wash Vessel: Claire Tiberio, Cheryl Sylvester Eucharistic Minister: Jane Durant, Tom A. Durant, Chris Drake, Michael Drake Sunday, September 3 @ 11:30 a.m. Lector: Bernard Budde, Bill Sullivan Server: Charles Peterson, Nicholas Hoffer Eucharistic Minister - Coord: Paula Peterson Eucharistic Minister - Wash Vessel: Dodi Sealock, Alan Burns Eucharistic Minister: Vicki Burns, Larry Taylor, Jim McKee, Jim Pottmeyer

Our thoughts and prayers remain with those serving our country at this time and with their loved ones at home. We pray for a safe homecoming and that the world may one day be at peace. PLEASE REMEMBER ST. NICHOLAS PARISH IN YOUR WILL. CALL THE PARISH OFFICE AT 453-0597 FOR MORE DETAILS. Please join us each Monday at St. Nicholas Church at 2:00 P.M. as we gather to pray the Rosary asking Our Lady’s Intercession for the many needs of our nation, community, and parish.

TUESDAY, August 29, The Passion of St. John the Baptist 8:00 a.m., Mass: John Burkhart, Church

WEDNESDAY, August 30 8:10 a.m., School Mass: Thomas Trott, Church

THURSDAY, August 31 8:00 a.m., Mass: Doris Lake, Church

FRIDAY, September 1, World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation NO ADORATION 8:00 a.m., Mass: Henry Sulens, Church

Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time SATURDAY, September 2 4:15 p.m. - 4:45 p.m., Confessions, Church 5:15 p.m., Mass: Sara Reichart, birthday, Church

SUNDAY, September 3 7:30 a.m., Mass: St. Nicholas Parishioners, Church 9:30 a.m., Mass: Camillus Scott, Church 11:30 a.m., Mass: Mary Graves, Church

Readings for Week of August 28, 2017 Mon. . . . . . . . Tues. . . . . . . . Wed . . . . . . . . Thurs. . . . . . . . Fri. . . . . . . . . . Sat. . . . . . . . . . Sun . . . . . . . .

1Thes 1:1-5, 8b-10 1 Thes 2:1-8 1 Thes 2:9-13 1 Thes 3:7-13 1 Thes 4:1-8 1 Thes 4:9-11 Jer 20:7-9

Mt 23:13-22 Mk 6:17-29 Mt 23:27-32 Mt 24:42-51 Mt 25: 1-13 Mt 25:14-30 Mt 16:21-27

RHS ATHLETIC BOOSTERS Rosecrans Athletic Boosters will hold their Booster Mania on Sept. 13 at the Knights of Columbus Hall at 6:30 p.m. You may purchase your numbers for the next year and enjoy food and drink compliments of the boosters. Call Marvin Paul at 453-4482 with questions. RHS ATHLETIC BOOSTERS MUM SALE Bishop Rosecrans Athletic Boosters Mum Sale Forms are available at the Knights of Columbus Hall or Bishop Rosecrans High School, cost is $6. Pick up will be Wednesday, Sept. 13 at the Knights of Columbus beginning at 6:30 p.m. Contact Marvin Paul with questions at 453-4482.