CHURCH OF SAINT ELIZABETH First Sunday of Advent

December 2, 2018

Parish Center 700 Wyckoff Avenue, Wyckoff, NJ 07481 Office: 201-891-1122 Fax: 201-891-3708 Website: www.saintelizabeths.orgEmail: rectory@saintelizabeths.org School Principal Karen Lewis Parish School Greenwood Avenue, Wyckoff, NJ 07481

Office: 201-891-1481

Website: www.sainte-school.org

Daily Mass Chapel

2

COLLECTIONS FOR THE WEEK ENDING November 18th Offertory $19,680| Online $2,202| Total $21,882 November 26th Offertory $22,864|Online $3,881| Total $26,745

Seniors Christmas Luncheon: The Seniors will be meeting on Monday, December 3rd, at 12 noon at Fiona’s Restau-rant in Midland Park.

+ My dear parishioners and friends:

I begin my column with sincere thanks for your very positive feedback on our proposal for the new Daily Mass Chapel. We placed the computer rendering on this week’s cover so that you will have your own copy. As I mentioned during my homily last week, we hope to begin construction just as soon as school ends in June. I am excited for all of us to embark on this new chapter in our beloved parish. Certainly, many practical needs will be met with the new addition, but the part that resonates on the deepest level for me is the spiritual aspect. We have an opportunity here and now to build a beautiful space to worship God and to continue to celebrate the sacramental milestones in all our families. We will keep you posted as the plan unfolds. I deeply appreciate all your love and support.

I also want to thank you for your condolences on the loss of my spiritual director, Father Bill Poorten, SJ. He was a major source of inspiration to me and a true beacon for me to see God’s plans for me as a young priest. I only hope I do justice to all the faith that Bill had in me, and ultimately, all the faith and trust that God has given me. I pray each day to be worthy.

This Sunday is our first week in Advent. I always find this to be such a joyous time of year. I think no matter how old you are, you always remember the childhood wonder of preparing the manger and getting ready for Christmas. Of course, I re-member all the fun and tasty things like the Advent calendars that had a small piece of with chocolate behind each window. My mother’s idea was that each of the four of us children would have a turn at opening the little window each day and en-joying the chocolate. The reality was that my brother and I would open many windows assigned to our sisters and steal the chocolate from them! There were several years when my brother and I actually received lumps of coal in our stockings!

While I still love chocolate, these days I find much more enjoyment in a prayerful preparation for the Lord. We just had a wonderful retreat this weekend for the men of the parish. Father Carlos, Father Vincent, Deacon Andy, Jonathan Camiolo, and I all gave reflections on the Seasons of a Man’s Life. We only had a few hours together as a group, but it was deeply meaningful time, and helped us focus our attention on how God is working in all our lives on so many important levels.

This Tuesday evening, Cathy Ingrasci will lead the Advent women’s evening of reflection beginning at 7PM in the Elizabeth Room. I know that we all have so much going on in our lives leading up to Christmas, but just for this evening, give this gift of prayer to yourselves. I know it will fill you with Christmas joy, and perhaps help you to be patient with little children and chocolate Advent calendars! Seriously, I would encourage you to spend this time in reflection. It’s good for our souls.

Music is another big part of the weeks leading up to Christmas, and we are very blessed to have a lot of musical talent at Saint E’s! Next Sunday, the choir will present their annual Christmas Concert in the church at 4 PM. I was so impressed with them last year that I am really looking forward to participating in their Christmas merriment once again.

We will also host our very first Bonfire Christmas Carols on Sunday, December 16 at 7:15 PM on the soccer field. Please bring your favorite Christmas cookies to share. We’ll provide the hot chocolate and the marshmallows to roast. Feel free to bring your friends and neighbors. Santa has confirmed that he will be stopping by to see the kids of all ages!

My final note this week is to say how proud I am of the first round of recipients of our Annual “Elizabeth’s Eight” award. Jim Cannon, Al Daloisio, Joe Francica, Nancy Hohmann, Karen Klypka, Joe Meighan, Diane Ulrich, and Helen Van Slyke epitomize the spirit of dedication and devotion that is the hallmark of our amazing parish! Congratulations! Yours in the Risen Lord,

NEWS AND EVENTS

Feast of Immaculate Conception of Mary Mass Schedule Friday, December 7th, 7:00 pm Vigil and Saturday, December 8th, 9:00 am, and 12 noon.

Special Collection for the Retirement Fund for the Religious will be this weekend. Your gift will help the religious communities furnish necessities such as medications and nursing care. It helps ensure younger members can continue the good works of their elders. Please place your offering in the collection box in the back of the church.

Altar Servers Needed: Want to serve God and your Parish? If you are in 3rd grade and older, you can serve at Mass as an Altar Server. Altar Server Training will be held on Friday, December 7th at 4:00pm or Saturday, December 8th at 11:00am.

3

MASS INTENTIONS

Saturday, December 1 9:00 am Memorial Mass

5:00 pm Nicholas Maniaci

Odell Nassar, 2nd Anniversary

Sunday, December 2 7:30 am Florence Ricciardi

9:00 am Gae & Salvatore Sinagra

10:30 am People of the Parish

12:00 noon Joseph McNamara

6:15 pm Winifred Doran

Monday, December 3 7:00 am Phil Rozzo

9:00 am Gloria & Georeg Barton

Tuesday, December 4 7:00 am Helen M. Plowman,

33rd anniversary

9:00 am Mary Zahuer

Wednesday, December 5 7:00 am Dennis Sciole

9:00 am Marie Vance

Thursday, December 6

7:00 am Carmela Sature

9:00 am Vincent Carson

Friday, December 7 7:00 am Alan Peturh

9:00 am Louise Capalbo

Feast of

Immaculate Conception

of Mary

Vigil Mass

7:00 pm Maureen Farley,

1st Anniversary

Saturday, December 8 9:00 am Memorial Mass

12:00 noon Richard Doherty

5:00 pm Gae & Salvatore Sinagra

Sunday, December 9 7:30 am People of the Parish

9:00 am Margaret & Harold Bell

Bonnie Bell Gerli

10:30 am Joan Martini

12:00 noon Tom & Teresa Patti

6:15 pm Rose Helfrich

NEWS AND EVENTS

Memorials for the week of December 2nd Altar Bread & Wine, Sanctuary Light,

Candles on the Altar, Flowers for the St. Elizabeth Shrine, in memory of Carmela Sature, donated by The Minichetti Family.

Advent Giving Tree please help us to bring Christmas joy to the many fami-lies in need this year by taking a card or two from the Christmas tree in the Nar-thex and purchasing a gift for that per-son. Please follow the wrapping instruc-tions on the card you select and return your NEW gift WITH THE TAG taped to the OUTSIDE of the package no later than 12 NOON ON SUNDAY, DECEMBER 9th. Thank you for your generosity with your gift of time, talent or treasure.

Christmas Wafers “Oplatki” A brief prayer begins the festivities of sharing the blessed Christmas wafer. If you would like to continue or to begin this sacred tradition, wafers can be purchased at the Parish Office. Donation: $2.00.

A Christmas Choral Celebration Sunday, December 9th at 4pm Come celebrate the miracle of God becoming human and dwelling among us through the powerful blend of choral selections and sing-a-longs! St. Elizabeth’s Music Ministry proudly presents “Come Let Us Adore” A Christmas Choral Celebration.” This concert will feature the Festival Choir, Con-temporary Choir, and the fabulous, Children’s Choir. Mark your calendars: Sun-day, December 9th at 4pm.

Best Time of the Year to Shop! Come out to Tons of Toys OR Tons of Treas-ures on Wednesday, December 5th and St. Elizabeth School will receive 15% of your purchase. Mention St. Elizabeth School at checkout. Coupons are not accepted. If you have any questions, please contact Krista.Barabas@gmail.com.

December Monthly Food Collection: Bags are being distributed this weekend for our monthly food collection. Food bank supplies are low at this time of year, so please help by returning a bag of groceries next weekend. No time to shop? No worries! Cash, check, or any kind of gift cards are joyfully accepted. Thanks in advance for your continued generosity.

Advent Wreaths: Available to purchase in the Narthex after all Masses December 1st and December 2nd. Price—$25.00 in-cludes pine wreath, metal frame, candles, bow and prayer pam-phlet. First come, first serve.

Teen Help Needed! St. Elizabeth’s Parish will be celebrating a Christmas Mass for the residents at Christian Health Care Center on Saturday, Decem-ber 22nd 1:45pm to 3:45pm at Heritage Manor, CHCC. Your job will be to help transport the wheelchair bound from their rooms to the auditorium for Mass. Please RSVP to Lisa Tota at 201-891-1122 ext. 211 or lisa@saintelizabeths.org to sign up and get more information.

St. Martin’s Soup Kitchen On Saturday, December 22nd, we will be ca-tering the meal to the Soup Kitchen. If you would like to donate, please contact Jonathan Camiolo at jcamiolo@saintelizabeths.org by Tuesday, Dec. 18th.

Bereavement Support Night: We encourage anyone who has experienced a loss to come to Bereavement Support Night on Wednesday, December 5th at 7:30pm in the Amadeus Room. No registration is required.

Christmas Mass Schedule

Christmas Eve 4:00 p.m. Mass (Church and Gym) 5:30 p.m. Mass (Church and Gym)

7:00 p.m. Christmas Pageant 7:30 p.m. Family Mass

10:00 p.m. Caroling 10:30 p.m. Mass

Christmas Day

9:00 a.m. 10:30 a.m. (Church and Gym)

12 Noon (Church and Gym)

4

NEWS AND EVENTS

Are you Ready for Your Best Advent Ever?

Slow Down and Focus on What Really Matters. This year, Saint Elizabeth parishioners are invited to experience your Best Ad-

vent Ever by participating in this FREE on-line program from Dynamic Catho-

lic. Sign up at BestAdventEver.com/You're Invited. Beginning December

2, the first Sunday of Advent, receive daily emails with short inspirational vide-

os, practical tips for incorporating Advent into your everyday life, and real-life

stories to encourage your in your faith journey. Register now so you don’t miss

a day of your Best Advent Ever!