first sunday of advent – november 29,...
TRANSCRIPT
St. Thomas Aquinas Church Iglesia Católica Romana
1501 South Atlantic Boulevard Monterey Park, California 91754
First Sunday of Advent – November 29, 2015
First Friday December 4, 2015
9:00 AM–6:00 PM Eucharistic Adoration 6:00 PM - Rosary 6:45 PM - Benediction 7:00 PM - Mass
Adoration signup sheet can be found by the altar.
Advent 2015
On this first week of Advent, we will celebrate the season with the blessing of the Advent wreath. The wreath contains four can-dles, which represents each week leading up to Christmas. This week’s candle represents the light of the Lord. Isaiah invites us to walk in the light of the Lord as we enter this Ad-vent season. Our program which lists our Advent season activities and Christmas Mass schedule can be found inserted in today’s bulletin. Feel free to take an extra one to share and invite family and friends to join us, they can be found at our church entrances.
Hold The Date Simbang Gabi Mass
Thursday, Dec. 17th @ 7:00 PM
The Filipino community of St. Thomas Aquinas invites you to the annual “Simbang
Gabi” celebration. Simbang Gabi is one of the most popular Filipino traditions in the country. Additional details will be provided soon. If you are interested in volunteering for this special cultural and spiritual celebration, please con-tact Divina Rodriquez at (323) 228-5265.
Our Lady of Guadalupe
Every year we celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. This year is we have the following schedule:
Friday, Dec. 11th 8 PM Cantos a la Virgen of songs to Mary 8:30 PM Rosary 9 PM Presentation on the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, a reflection by Fr. Cirilo Bailon, the Universty of Mexico City. 9:40 PM Refreshments in the hospitality area.
Saturday, December 12th 5 AM Mananitas, Aztec dancers, explanation of the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Regular 8 AM Mass Regular 5:30 PM Mass
7PM Drama of Our Lady of Guadalupe by STA parishioners. 7:45 PM Concluding Spanish/ English Mass. Re-freshments.
We invite you to participate as much as you are able as we celebrate this annual feast in the Church.
FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT NOVEMBER 29, 2015
Advent A time to prepare; A time of Mercy
Now that Thanksgiving is over, Advent, in the Holy Year of Mercy has begun. The next few weeks will prepare us for Christmas. We shall celebrate the Feast of the Immaculate Conception on Tuesday, December 8th with two Masses. One at 8 AM and the other at 7 PM. On December 12th we will celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe with manani-tas at 5:30 AM and conclude the day with a dramatic presentation at 7 PM, followed with a special 7:45 PM Mass which will be in both English and Spanish. We will still hold our reg-ular Masses at 8 AM and 5:30 PM on this day. Then on Monday December 21st at 7 PM we shall celebrate our Parish Penance Ser-vice. Several priests will be here to assist us. I invite you to spend this advent in prayer for our parish community that we may continue to work together and celebrate our diversity and our faith. Let us be alert and watchful, and celebrate the presence of God’s Mercy among us.
Celebrating our Elders
In many societies around the world the young and the elders hold a special place. They are the bookends of society and for that reason they are precious. Today we cele-brate and give thanks to God for the elders in our church. Some of them have been here since 1961 when the parishioners gathered for Mass in the Machine shop somewhere on At-lantic Blvd. The community grew with Fr. Mau-rice Evans as the first pastor, followed by Fr. Brian Cavanagh, Fr. Ed Dover, Fr. Gabriel Lui and many associates in between. In these past 54 years our parish has not only changed in leadership but also
grown in spirituality and social diversity. With time some of our founders have gone to the Lord. We keep them and their memories and contributions in our prayers. Some of them are still actively present in the parish ministries and life. A few major things have taken place since 1961. The Second Vatican Council that brought about changes in the Mass from Latin to English and other languages. Pontifical lead-ership from Pope John XXIII , Pope Paul VI, Pope John Paul I, Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI, to Pope Francis I, all have made an impact on the life of the Church. Global social changes during this time period are enormous. They range from coloni-alism to formation of independent states, the invention of the Internet, shift from transistor radios to mps, from pacific telephones to the modern day cellular phones, the scientific dis-coveries and the moon landing, just to men-tion a few. Through all these changes our el-ders have learned to adapt to new ways. They have been changed but not broken. We cele-brate their courage, their fortitude and their service. Today we turn to you our elders and ask for your guidance that we may pass on the light you have held for so long and continue the tradition of sharing and caring for one an-other. We thank you for opening your doors to the new immigrants, to the new ways of life that your children and grandchildren and great grandchildren have embraced. Our future is bright because of you. As long as you are here we will take care of you. Today we celebrate you because you are our Gift from God. For this, we give thanks as well. Fr. John and STA community.
From the Desk of Our Pastor
FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT NOVEMBER 29, 2015
Month of Remembrance Special Blessing
Friday, December 4th @ 7 PM
Always as we enter the final month of the liturgical year, the Church calls us to re-member our loved ones who have gone be-fore us. On December 4th, the first Friday of December, we will have a closing Mass for the Month of Remembrance. At the end of this Mass we will bless the pictures on our Re-membrance Altar and the families will pick them up and take them home. All are invited and encouraged to attend.
STA Social Justice Detention Ministry
Come bring God's love to incarcerated youth at Central Juvenile Hall Christmas
Celebration!
Date/Time: *Saturday, Dec. 19, 2 pm-5 pm Place: Central Juvenile Hall-Eastlake, Los Angeles Advance pre-registration is required space limited, volunteers must be 18 years and over. Incarcerated youth are ages 8 - 18 years. For information on signing up for the Christmas Celebration and/or visiting incarcer-ated youth, please contact Sonia Macias (323) 724-6443 or [email protected]
WE ARE CALLED TO SERVE Matt 25:35 – “For I was hungry and
you gave me food. I was thirsty and you gave me drink. I was a stranger and you
welcomed me”
Christmas Food We are collecting the following food items for Christmas Food baskets:
· Canned yams, cranberry sauce, fruit & vegetables · Boxed mashed potatoes & stuffing · Packets of instant gravy mix
Frozen turkeys may be delivered to the Parish Office. Please have all donations in by Friday, December 11th.
SCHOOL NEWS All are invited to join us for our annual Christmas Program on Thursday, December 17th at 6:30 PM at Don Bosco Tech. If you would like more information, please contact the school office at 323-261-6583.
Special Collection Church Christmas Season
Flowers Next weekend a second collec-tion will be taken to purchase flowers and decorations for
our Church environment during this blessed Christmas season. Sponsorship of our Christmas trees will begin next week also. We are asking individu-als, families and businesses to sponsor the pur-chase of a Christmas tree for only $35.00. The names of the sponsors will be displayed on our Christmas trees. Sponsorship forms will be available at all church entrances. Your generosity in previous years provid-ed a beautifully decorated church environment which added so much joy to all who entered and worshiped in our church. We appreciate your continued support.
Chinese Ministry Gift Sale Sunday, December 6th
Our Chinese Ministry will be holding a gift sale after all Masses on Sunday, Dec. 6th. Clothes, toys and Christmas items will be sold. Stop by for great bargains!
KEEP IN PRAYER
• Henry Guerrero • Vivian Hamilton • Maria Ibarra • Peggy Jasso • Richard Jerome • Enrique Juarez • Rudy La Ferla • Yvonne Lau • Celia Leyva • Alfonso Luna • Geneva Luna • Chris Maestas • Richard Mann • Alice Maldonado • Diana Marquez • Tiffany Marquez • Jesse Mendoza • Isabel Aguilar
READ & REFLECT ON THE SCRIPTURES
NOVEMBER 29-DECEMBER 6 Sunday: Jer 33:14-16; Ps 25:4-5, 8-10, 14; 1 Thes 3:12 — 4:2; Lk 21:25-28, 34-36 Monday: Rom 10:9-18; Ps 19:8- 11; Mt 4:18-22 Tuesday: Is 11:1-10; Ps 72:1-2, 7 -8, 12-13, 17; Lk 10:21-24 Wednesday: Is 25:6-10a; Ps 23:1- 6; Mt 15:29-37 Thursday: Is 26:1-6; Ps 118:1, 8- 9, 19-21, 25-27a; Mt 7:21, 24-27 Friday: Is 29:17-24; Ps 27:1, 4, 13-14; Mt 9:27-31 Saturday: Is 30:19-21, 23-26; Ps 147:1-6; Mt 9:35— 10:1, 5a, 6-8 Sunday: Bar 5:1-9; Ps 126:1-6; Phil 1:4-6, 8-11; Lk 3:1-6
MASS INTENTIONS FOR THE WEEK
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 2015- 5:30 PM For all those who have died on the battlefields For Irene Escalante, requested by Escalante Family SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2015– 8:00 AM In memory of George J. Hantgin 11:30 AM For the well being of the Berumen Family 1:30 PM For the well being of the Berumen Family In memory of Olivia Gavilanes, requested by Erica Torres For the health of Eric Sosa TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2015- 8:00 AM For all STA Parishioners THURSDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2015– 8:00 AM In memory of Emilio Chiu Sr., requested by Nenita Ong FRIDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2015- 7:00 PM In memory of Santiago Sulit SATURDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2015- 8:00 AM For all STA Parishioners 5:30 PM For all those who have died on the battlefields
WEEKLY SCHEDULE
Saturday, November 28th 9 AM– Hall Decoration 10 AM– Legion of Mary Mandarin–Dining Room 11:30 AM– Hispanic Ministry-Church 1:30 PM– Church Decoration
Sunday, November 29th 9 AM– Elders Breakfast– Hall 11 AM– Youth Rosary-copy rm 11 AM– CCA Choir-Dining rm 11 AM– Chinese Rel. Ed Mtg-MPR 4 PM– Line Dancing Rental-Hall
Wednesday, December 2nd 9:30 AM– Together in Mission Training– Hall 6:30 PM– Bible Study– Hall Friday, December 4th 5:30 PM– Girl Scouts– Hall 7 PM– Cantonese Church Greet-ings– CL4 7:30 PM- CCA Christmas Concert Rehearsal– Church
7:30 PM– Family Fellowship-MPR 7:45 PM-Chinese Adult Bible Study– Copy Room 8 PM– Agape– Dining Room
Saturday, December 5th 9 AM– Legion of Mary Mandarin and Cantonese Meeting– Hall 10 AM– Bereavement-Copy rm 11 AM– Baptism– Church 11:30 AM– Hispanic Ministry-Church 2 PM– Christmas Concert Set Up-Hall 1:30 PM– Church Decoration 7:30 PM–Christmas Concert– Hall
FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT NOVEMBER 29, 2015
Parish Information
Parish Office: (323) 264-4447
Chinese Ministry Office: (323) 264-4448 General Email: [email protected] Parish Website: STAMPK.ORG Fax: (323) 264-2524 Hall Rental: (323) 264-4447 ext. 102
IN GRATITUDE TO ALL WHO SUPPORTED OUR PARISH with your contributions on:
Nov. 22nd/23rd: Next Bulletin
SAFEGUARD THE CHILDREN DID YOU KNOW?
Who should report child abuse?
Priests, deacons, school faculty and admin-istrators and other staff members in our parishes and schools have been designated as mandated reporters under California law. When one of these persons receives information leading to a “reasonable suspicion” that a child is being abused or neglected, he or she must make a re-port to the appropriate child protection or law en-forcement agency. However, every adult has a moral responsibility to report suspected child abuse. For a copy of the VIRTUS® article “How to Familiarize Yourself with Policies and Proce-dures on Reporting Abuse,” email: [email protected].
Parish Staff
Fr. John Kyebasuuta—[email protected] Pastor– Ext. 108
Fr. Jay Wu—[email protected]
Associate Pastor– Ext. 106
Lorraine Melendez—[email protected] General Manager– Ext. 103
Linda Almaguer—[email protected]
Parish Secretary/Bookkeeper– Ext. 102
Sherry Hsu—[email protected] Chinese Ministry Staff Support– Ext. 105
Cathy Pang– [email protected] Chinese Ministry Admin. Support– Ext. 104
Safeguard The Children Carmen Austria—626-993-4933
School Information
School Office: (323) 261-6583
Gloria Castillo – Principal Email: [email protected]
General Email: [email protected] Website: stampkschool.org
Mass Schedule
Saturday Vigil 5:30 PM (English)
Sunday 8:00 AM (English) 9:30 AM (Chinese) 11:30 AM (English) 1:30 PM (Spanish)
Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday 8:00 AM
Friday 7:00 PM
Sacrament of Reconciliation Saturday at 4:00 PM
FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT NOVEMBER 29, 2015
Religious Education Information
Office: (323) 264-1338
Elsa Jimenez– DRE
Email: [email protected]