5th Sunday of Lent

7 April 2019

Immaculate Conception Parish

Fairbank Iowa 50629

Today’s Readings Isaiah 43: 16-21

Psalm 126: 1-6

Philippians 3: 8-14

John 8: 1-11

Marriage Building Blocks “The Lord does not see as humans see.” (1 Samuel 16:7). As

the saying goes, “Love is blind.” God and your beloved can see

beauty beneath the surface. Beyond physical appearance or

prowess, what invisible gift do you see in your beloved?

???????? Ask Father ??????? Question: There are 40 days of Lent and wandering the desert

for 40 years. Is there another significance to 40?

Answer: Forty is a symbol of fulfillment and completion. The Scripture often uses numbers to symbolize things or events.

Lord, We Lift Up to You in Prayer…. Scott McMahon, Carole Levendusky, Norman Schmitt, Leo

Wickman, Leo Beierschmitt, Lindsey Ernst, Fr.Anthony Sloan,

Mary Ellen Youngblut .Pat Miller,Don Reiter (Angie Auel’s

father), , Sr. Barbara Rastatter, Jim Kaufman Sr., , Sherry

Duffy, Don Brandt, Mary Ann Ryan, Ellie Shimp, Lisa (Sadler)

Dolan, Melvin Sadler, Lisa Koile Schares, Dean Mangrich

victims of hatred, racism, violence, natural disaster; terrorism,

and all in our parish, our community, and our hearts who are

suffering and in need of Christ’s healing touch May they

know His loving Presence in the eyes, hands and hearts of those

who give them care. May our prayers for help and healing rise like incense

to our God of hope, love and mercy.

Communion To Our Sick Or Homebound Ministry: contact Diane Wenger at 319-269-2553 or Michelle Weepie 319-635-2428

I C Parish Prayer Chain Hotline: Please contact

Dorothy E. Duffy (Mrs. Jack) at 319-929-4788

Sacrament Of The Sick ~ Anointing for the seriously ill

or dyng, call the Sacred Heart Parish Center 319-283-3743, or if having surgery speak with Father Atwood in the Sacristy before or after Mass

Baptism Class For Parents: All parents who wish to

have their child baptized at Immaculate Conception parish are required to attend a baptism class prior to scheduling the baptism Next Class May 4 at 8:30.

I C Cemetery – contact the parish office

Funeral Dinners: Group #3: Sept, Oct, Nov, Dec

We provide desserts & serve a catered meal

For Rental Of The Parish Center : contact Tammy

Kaufman to inquire about renting the parish center.

I C STAFF ~ Fr. Ray Atwood, Pastor ~

IC Parish Office Wednesday Mornings after 8AM Mass Office at Sacred Heart Parish Center 319-283-3743

Sacred Heart Rectory 319-283-9577 email: dbq151@dbqarch.org

~ Deacon Jim Patera ~ Office at Sacred Heart Parish Center 319-283-3743

~Glenda Kleitsch IC Secretary/Bookkeeper~

I C Parish Office PH: 319-635-2211 located at 405 Fairbank St I C Parish Office hours:

Mon-Thurs 8AM – 3PM Closed Friday Mailing address: P O BOX 505 Fairbank IA 50629

email: icfairbank@gmail.com website: http://icfairbank.weebly.com/

Archdiocesan website: www.dbqarch.org

~Dan & Lynda Cutsforth, DRE & Youth Ministry~ DRE Office PH :319-635-2211

located in the Parish Center at 405 Faribank St Mailing address: P O Box 505, Fairbank IA 50629

Dan email: dcutsforth@dunkerton.k12.ia.us Lynda email: cutsforthlynda@yahoo.com

~Tammy Kaufman, Facility Rental Coordinator~ PH: 319-404-9071 or email tammy.kaufmanic@gmail.com

If you wish to make a donation toward the Easter flowers

please complete the form below and put it in the collection, mail, or bring to the office no later than Wed. April 17. In Memory of______________________________________

_________________________________________________

_________________________________________________

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In Honor of________________________________________

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Contact Name & PH:________________________________

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Amount enclosed: $____________

Stewardship in His Name…. “If anyone would serve me,” says Jesus in today’s Gospel,

“let him follow me; where I am, there will my servant be.” In

what way is Jesus inviting me to follow Him? What service is

He asking of me?

Donut Sunday Today – Directory is here!!! Come join us in the Parish Center for donuts today and pick up your new directory AND the new UPDATED Parish Guild Directory. You must check in with the committee in order to receive your directories. The committee and Guild Captains will be available to hand these out. PLEASE stop in today to get yours. If you did not order a directory, please stop and get your parish guild roster from your perspective month.

April Calendar

Mon Apr 8 Parish Life Mtg 3 PM

Wed Apr 10 Stations of the Cross 7:30 PM Thurs Apr 11 KC Meeting 7:00 PM Fri Apr 12 IC Fish Fry 5 – 7:30 PM Wed Apr 17 Cleaning in the Parish Center Sun Apri 28 Last Donut Sunday of the season Individual Confession times for Holy Week 2019:

Monday, April 15 7-8 p.m. IC Wednesday, April 17 6-7 p.m. SH Thursday following Holy Thursday's Liturgy Friday following Good Friday Liturgies at noon and 6 Holy Saturday, April 20 from 11 to 12 at SH

Easter Schedule: Holy Thursday, April 18 at IC 7PM Good Friday Services April 19 as follows: Noon at IC and 6PM at Sacred Heart Easter Vigil Saturday April 20 at SH at 8:30PM Easter Sunday April 21 as follows:

8:30AM at IC and 10:30AM at Sacred Heart

Joan Rourke will be turning 90 on April 12th

All cards and well wishes may be mailed to

Joan Rourke

512 2nd St. NE

Fairbank, IA 50629

~MASS SCHEDULE & INTENTIONS~ Sun Apr 7 8:30 AM IC For the People Sun Apr 7 10:30AM SH Paul & Mary Catherine Bloom Mon Apr 8 8:00 AM SH Robert & Regina Bergman Wed Apr 10 8:00 AM IC Patrick Corcoran Thurs Apr 11 8:00 AM SH For the Sick

Fri Apr 12 8:45 AM SH Mike & Christopher Adams

Fri Apr 12 5:30 PM SH Gerald Lamphere & Lucille Keppler

Sat Apr 13 4:30PM SH Arnold Suhr Sun Apr 14 8:30 AM IC Jack & Mark Duffy Sun Apr 14 10:30 AM SH For the People

~MINISTRY SCHEDULES~ SUNDAY, April 7 at 8:30 AM Lector: Emma Cutsforth EM 2 Hosts & 2 Cup: Dan Cutsforth, Duane Schmidtke

Diane Rourke, Paula Schares Servers: Trevor Sauerbrei, Ava Auel Cantor: Kim Weepie Organist: Carol Gifts: Curt & Kay Vorwald Money Counters: Susi LaRue & Julia, Mitch & Jean Sauerbrei

SUNDAY, April 14 at 8:30 AM Lector: Lori Beierschmitt EM 2 Hosts & 2 Cup: Deacon Jim, Glenda Kane,

Diane Rourke, Michelle Weepie Servers: Mary Bodensteiner, Preston Weepie Cantor: Kim Organist: Roxanne/CHOIR Gifts: Adam Kaufman Family Money Counters: Denny & Mary K Frost, Karen Matthews

HOSPITALITY PEOPLE FOR APRIL Bob Bellis, Joe & Dianne Rubino

***New Greeters: Dallas Wittenburg, Luke Rockford Tyler Ott, Kaylee Kleitsch ***

We are in need of volunteers to lead the rosary

and distribute communion. Please contact the office.

Beautiful Baby Crib Raffle Handcrafted and Donated By Don Steil $1/ticket or 6 for $5 Tickets for sale

in the Parish Hall starting today!!! All proceeds go to the Prayer Garden. Drawing will be at Fairbank Days Thanks to Don & Virginia Steil for thinking of IC Parish.

Heart to Heart!!! Today we welcome Colleen Pasnik, Dir who is speaking on behalf of Mary’s Inn Maternity Home. Solution focused program empowering courageous women to stand on their feet independently in faith and dignity to provide for themselves and their baby. At the end of Mass today, bottles will be handed out for your spare change or you can put a check made out to Mary’s Inn Maternity Home for your contribution to bring back next Sunday.

Matthew 19:14 “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for Kingdom of God belongs to such as these.”

Parish Financial $upport March 31 – Apr 4 Budget $3227 Offertory $138 Youth $5 Building Fund $135 Easter $100 Pledge Install $2290

April Congratulatory Celebrations 80+ Birthdays

Lenora Ott on the 30th 50+ Wedding Anniversaries

Ed & Donna Sadler on the 23rd

Be sure to let the parish office know when you celebrate these milestones so that we too may share your joy!

Background on the Gospel Reading

John 8: 1-11 The Gospel for the fifth Sunday of Lent continues to offer

lessons about God's mercy and forgiveness. Last Sunday we

heard the Parable of the Prodigal Son from the Gospel of

Luke. Today we hear not a parable, but the report from John's

Gospel of an encounter among Jesus, the scribes and

Pharisees, and a woman caught in adultery.

In John's Gospel, the conflict between Jesus and the scribes

and Pharisees occurs much earlier than in the Synoptic

Gospels. Jesus' cleansing of the Temple in Jerusalem is

reported at the beginning of John's Gospel. Even after this

event, Jesus continues to teach in the Temple. After returning

to Galilee for a time, Jesus again enters Jerusalem and cures a

man on the Sabbath. From this point forward in John's Gospel,

the Pharisees are described as making plans for Jesus' arrest

and seeking his death.

In the chapter preceding today's Gospel, Jesus was teaching

in the Temple area. Feeling threatened by his teaching and his

actions, the chief priests and the Pharisees are already sending

guards to arrest Jesus. The guards return, however, without

arresting Jesus because they have been impressed by his

words. Even more than this, some among the crowds are

considering the possibility that Jesus is the Messiah. The chief

priests and the Pharisees change their plan. Before making an

arrest, they seek to gather more evidence against Jesus by

posing a question intended to trap Jesus.

Today's Gospel begins by reporting that Jesus is again

teaching the crowds in the vicinity of the Temple. The scribes

and the Pharisees approach Jesus, bringing a woman who has

been caught in the act of adultery. They put to Jesus the

question of what ought to be done in this case.

The Pharisees state clearly that according to the Law of

Moses, those caught in the act of adultery were to be stoned

to death. Under Roman occupation, however, the Jewish

people did not have the authority to execute people; this is

cited in John's passion narrative. To answer the Pharisees'

question, Jesus must propose an action that will be either

contrary to the Law of Moses or contrary to Roman law. The

purpose of the question appears to be similar to the question

about paying taxes found in Mark 12:13-17. Either answer,

yes or no, will support the Pharisees' case against Jesus.

Jesus avoids the trap, however, by offering an answer that was

not anticipated by those who posed the question. Jesus, after

writing on the ground with his finger, addresses those who

stand before him and suggests that the one without sin cast the

first stone. Jesus then returns to his writing. This Scripture

reading, by the way, is the only evidence we have of Jesus

writing. Yet there are no specific details about what he wrote.

We can easily imagine the scene as the Pharisees and the

elders disperse, one by one. Jesus has eluded the trap they

had prepared. We might also give credit to the elders and the

Pharisees who do not, in the end, claim to be sinless and

worthy of passing judgment. These Pharisees are not as self-

righteous as the portrait found in the parable of the pharisee

and the tax collector (See Luke 18:9-14).

Jesus' response to those who accuse the woman is more than

a caution to us about making judgment of others. It is a

profound lesson in divine mercy and forgiveness. As sinners,

we are all unworthy to judge the sins of others and we would

stand convicted by God for our transgressions. Yet Jesus, the

one without sin and thus our judge, offers us who are sinners

his mercy and forgiveness. Redeemed by Jesus' compassion,

we are sent to sin no more and to live in God's love and

peace.

Dear Padre

Play 500 & Euchre Tuesdays & Thursdays 6:30PM @ Parkview

EASTER BUNNY is making a stop in Fairbank Saturday

April 13 in the Riverside Park Gazebo! 10 – 11:30AM

In case of rain, it will be held at the Legion.

‘Hopping’ you’ll be there! Sponsored by Fairbank Community Club

Smelt Fry, Friday, April 26, 4:00 -8:00 PM; Aurora Legion Hall;

All You Can Eat; Huge Raffle Lots of Merchandise

We had a small but mighty crew for our spring work day

but we are ready for warmer weather at Helping Hands

Clothing Closet. A huge Thank you to the volunteers

who came on March 23rd and to all the volunteers who

put in extra hours and worked very hard before then to

get winter packed away and summer clothes out. In

March, Helping Hands Clothing Closet had 140 client

visits and 91 hours were given to the Clothing Closet by

our volunteers. Volunteers from Imagine the Possibilites

came two times in March; they will be helping us once a

month from now on. A big Thank you to them too. Homily Notes:

What did I hear that I would like to remember or think about later???