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Browsing From the desk of Fr. Tharp

Fourth Sunday of Lent

Pastoral Region Lenten Penance Service on April 5

The St. Ann / Sacred Heart Pastoral Region Penance Services for Lent will take place on Wednesday, April 5 at 7:00 p.m. at Sacred Heart Church.  Six priests will be available to hear confessions.  This will be your last and best chance this Lenten Season to go to confessions when there are not long lines.

 

Open Listing of Two Employment Positions at St. Ann

Our Business Manager/Secretary at St. Ann, Susan McAbee, has indicated her desire to retire on July 1, 2017.    The Parish Council of St. Ann has decided to divide Susan’s job into two full time positions.  Position One is titled “Business Manager with Clerical Responsibilities” and Position Two is titled “Receptionist with Data Entry and Secretarial Responsibilities.”  These job descriptions are posted here in St. Ann’s Bulletin and Website as well as Sacred Heart Bulletin and Website.  Resumes and applications should be mailed to “St. Ann Church in Hamilton, Ohio.”  We will post beyond the Pastoral Region if necessary, but wanted to give parishioners and friends of the pastoral region “first dibs.”

 

Lenten Services

St. Ann:  Stations of the Cross and Benediction Friday Evenings (7:00 p.m.), March 3 – April 7.  Good Friday Service on Good Friday (7:00 p.m.) but no stations.

 

Sacred Heart:  Stations of the Cross and benediction Sunday afternoons (3:00 p.m.), March 5 – April 2.  NO stations on Palm Sunday afternoon because the Passion was already read at all the Sunday Masses.

 

The Lay Presider Ministry at Sacred Heart has Stations without Benediction on Friday evenings at 7:00 p.m. during Lent, (except Good Friday), led by lay persons without a priest or deacon.  No Benediction.

 

CMA

At the time when this is being written, St. Ann has donations or pledges of 88.05% of its goal of $23,249.  This represents participation of 23.36% of the parish families.  Thanks to all who have made a commitment.   Twenty three percent is good, but a few more giving only a little and we will reach our parish goal.  If you have not pledged as yet, please prayerfully consider even a one-time donation no matter how small. Remember that this is St. Ann’s way of doing its fair share to support programs that every parish uses throughout the Archdiocese.   Envelopes are still available in church.

 

Reflection on Scripture

The healing of the man born blind as depicted in the Gospel of John is far less concerned about recounting an astounding miracle, and far more concerned to make the analogy between the effect of Baptism on a Christian and compare it to a person who never had sight, seeing clearly.  Before baptism we are steeped in original sin.  We have never experienced grace.  We have never seen the light! 

 

Baptism gives light and understanding to those who convert to Jesus, just like the man born blind.  When the man born blind (now healed) speaks to the Pharisees he tells them that Jesus is a prophet.  They are so angry with his contention that Jesus healed him, and he was born totally blind; that they expel him from the Temple.  No doubt the early Jewish Christians reading this gospel could relate to being ostracized and expelled from the Temple because of their faith in Jesus.  They saw the parallel between the healing of the man born blind and all of them, Jews who had been baptized and thus were shunned by their Jewish brothers.  Being a Christian means cutting the strings to cultural tradition and social status.  It is not just taking on new customs.  It is becoming one with your fellow believers in the Body of Christ. 

 

Readings for Fifth Sunday of Lent

Ez 37:12-14

Rom 8:8-11

Jn 11:1-45

Theme:   Resurrection

 

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