Church of St. Peter 2600 N. Margaret St.

North St. Paul, MN 55109 651-777-8304

May 17, 2020

The Maternal Care of the Church

As you are aware our shepherds put together a team of about a dozen priests to grant the sacrament of the anointing of the sick to those suffering from Coronavirus who are in danger of dying. This is a great sign of the maternal care of our Church while the tightening restrictions prevent patients’ family and friends from entering their rooms and many people die alone. We all need to rejoice and express our gratitude for this. Please pray for all the priests involved in this service and especially for our brothers and sisters who are suffering because of the pandemic. I am among those priests appointed by the Archdiocese for this special ministry and feel it is a privilege. It’s indeed a privilege being called to take care of the faithful who are most in need at this time, but also an honor to do it on behalf of our Church, our archdiocese, our parish community, and my Fraternity. I know that I’m sent to represent each one of you and ultimately the One whose body you are. I’m very thankful to both the parish and my brothers who, despite the logistic and work-related issues connected to this, have allowed me to say yes to this call. Most of the time, the person you are called to anoint is unresponsive and no one is in the room. The words and gestures of the sacrament break the silence and desolation of that chamber and a ray of Heaven suddenly illuminates and dispels the darkness; you can feel the bare and objective power of God’s effective words and actions. I think that this ministry expresses in a very simple way the fundamental aim of the Church, to bring the closeness of God to people, especially people who are suffering. To say to them, “you are not alone, God is here, close to you. Your solitude, suffering, and death is not the last word”.

Fr. Daniele Scorrano

This is, after all, the meaning of our vocation as priests, even in normal circumstances, to be an instrument of the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep. In different forms, this is also the vocation of each one of us as Christians. From this point of view, there is no difference between working at home, taking care of your kids, doing chores around the house, or visit those sick with COVID-19. All of this is important in the same way, as long as each one of us is where God asks us to be. As St. Therese of Lisieux points out, even the smallest thing done in the secret of your house and offered up to God can hold the horizon of the entire world and affect the lives of people all around the planet. The usefulness of our life, in fact, is not bound to what we do, but to its being an answer to God’s vocation who always is the only adequate horizon in doing what we are doing. All of our lives participate in the same goal with the same dignity, allowing Christ to be present and do his work, the only necessary and important work that is needed. Another aspect that really strikes me about this ministry is that you’ll never know when you’re going to be called, so you have to be ready all the time. It’s not easy because there are a lot of steps and procedures to be followed in order to get ready. It is easy to lose focus and make mistakes. During these days, though, I realize that at the end of the day this is Christianity, this is the way we all are called to live always: being ready to hear the voice of God that, through different and unexpected circumstances, can call you any time. By “forcing” me to always be prepared, this ministry is teaching me the value of time and work. Whatever I’m doing (working remotely for our parish, reading, doing some chore around the house…), everything is kind of connected with that call that could arrive any time; so everything becomes what it really and always has been: relationship with God, a space to hear His call. Fr. Daniele Scorrano, F.S.C.B. Parochial Vicar

MEMORIAL DAY MASS UPDATE

My Jesus, I believe that Thou art truly present in the Most Holy Sacrament. I love Thee above all things and I desire to possess Thee within my soul. Since I am unable now to receive Thee sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace Thee as being already there, and unite myself wholly to Thee; never permit me to be separated from Thee.

Church of St. Peter Adoration &

Confession Times:

Saturday, May 16 From 2:00 to 4:00

We will be updating next week Schedule on the website

The Church of St Peter

Follows the CDC’s Guidelines of having

no more then 10 people in the building. We also

sanitize before, during and after each session.

ACT OF SPIRITUAL COMMUNION

As you know from the letter we received on May 8th from the Archdiocese and Archbishop Hebda we were hoping to open for public celebration of the Mass starting on Tuesday, May 19th. Due to the announcement from Governor Walz the evening of May 13, we will not be able to do that. As we wait to hear from Archbishop Hebda and get direction from him we ask that you stay in touch with us. We will be updating you via email and the website. If you have not given us your email address please do so by calling the parish office or emailing Connie at croering@stpetersnsp.org.

INFORMATION ON OPENING FOR MASS

Please be aware that there will not be a Memorial Day Mass at the cemetery this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Governors restrictions. Also you should be aware there will not be a Military Guard procession or rifle salute. We are so grateful to all of our veterans for their duty to protect our freedom and we will be praying for them each day of the week. While we are unable to have a Mass we will not forget those men and women who fought for us. The Veteran’s will be posting flags at each veterans grave as typical each Memorial Day. If you put your own flag up, it must be removed within 7 days, Thank you

LIVE STREAMING MASS

Please continue to join us for Mass on Sunday's at 10:30. You will find the information on the website or on Facebook how to connect to the Mass

Eucharistic blessing on Sunday’s at noon in the parking lot. Please stay in your car and park every other parking space and they will come around and bless you.

ENROLLMENT UPDATE Greetings from St. Peter Catholic School! We will complete our school year on May 29th and our conclusion will feel quite a bit different than most years. Our annual gathering for Field Day and an Ice Cream Truck won’t happen, our final Mass where we are all together and sing our school song for the last time won’t happen, and the ceremonial passage of stepping up to the next grade won’t happen. But, many things will happen! We will still have an 8th grade graduation even if it is a little later than planned. We will still have our 7th graders pick the scripture theme and school song for next year. We will still celebrate with an end of year Mass (albeit streamed vs in person). Things are different, but we still honor and live the same Catholic School culture we had before this and will have again (maybe

even stronger than before!) We look forward to welcoming a Kindergarten class of 24 students next year. This is a full class and we are so excited that many of these students are coming right from our Pre-Kindergarten class. We would like to welcome your children as well. We will have spots in all of our Middle School Classes 5-8th Grade as well as a few in our lower grades. If you haven’t seen what an 8th grade graduate of St. Peter looks like and sounds like check out our Morning Announcements on our Face-book Page and listen to some of our graduates reflect on their time at St. Peter. These students are poised, responsible, and desire to live our mission to become critical thinkers, virtuous leaders, and living saints. I look at these graduating students each year and think to myself, “What parent wouldn’t want their child formed in this school to have their children encouraged to become young men and women of virtue and thoughtfulness?” While times may be uncertain there is something unwavering - the formation in an authentic Catholic elementary school is invaluable and forms students to be the men and women who take courage, because Christ has conquered the world. Please do not hesitate to reach out for information on how to enroll your child next year. Alison Dahlman, Principal adahlman@stpetersnsp.org or 651-894-6156

ST. PETERS SCHOOL

Your prayers are requested for the repose of the soul of Robert Shally who passed away recently.

The new Catholic Bishop Abuse Reporting (CBAR) service became operational Monday, March 16. The Bishops of the United States approved the national reporting system following Pope Francis’ May 2019 apostolic letter, Vos estis lux mundi (“You are the light of the world”), to address the issue of sexual abuse and bishop accountability in the global Catholic Church. CBAR is one way to report allegations, operated by Convercent, Inc., an independent, third party entity that provides intake services to private institutions for reports of sensitive topics such as sexual harassment, through a secure, confidential, and professional platform. Individuals may make a report by accessing ReportBishopAbuse.org or calling (800) 276-1562. Reports are taken 24 hours a day in English and Spanish. More information may be

found at archspm.org/ReportBishopAbuse.

CATHOLIC BISHOP ABUSE REPORTING SYSTEM

VICTIM/SURVIVOR ASSISTANCE PROMISE TO PROTECT - PLEDGE TO HEAL

A SAFE PLACE TO COME FORWARD ARCHDIOCESE VICTIM ASSISTANCE: 651-291-4475

Do to the Corona virus and the State of Minnesota shelter in place, the parish office is not open to the public. Connie will be in the office Monday-Friday from 8:30 to 2:00 pm. If you are in need of assistance or would like to drop off you envelope, please let her know and she will come to the door. If you should have a pastoral emergency after hours, please call the emergency number on the message.

PARISH OFFICE HOURS

If you have an email address and you have not received an email from the parish in the last month, please contact the Parish Office with your updated email address. Email is one of the fastest, cheapest and easiest ways for us to communicate with all of our parishioners. If you no longer have a landline telephone and use a cell phone, please contact the parish office with your current telephone number. Please help us serve you by providing your current

email address and telephone number.

UPDATE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS & TELEPHONE NUMBER

PRAYER REQUESTS Please call the parish office with any prayer requests that you may have for those who are sick. Please know that you must have permission from the person that you are requesting prayers for. We are publishing these on our website. Please go to the website and pray for those that are ill.

Walking with Christ 6th Sunday of Easter

“For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that be God’s

will, than for doing evil.” 1 PETER 3:17

The old line says “if you want to make God laugh, tell him

your plans.” Many of us are diligent in our planning and

making sure things are progressing smoothly. Then disaster

strikes, we don’t get the result that was intended or an

unforeseen problem arises. Many times we may respond

negatively and ask, “Why me? I did everything

right!” Here’s the thing – adversity humbles us and reminds

us of our dependence on God and not on our own self-

reliance. Rest assured, God has a better plan in store for

you.

What plans are you holding onto that you could

offer to God this week?

NORTH ST. PAUL AREA FOOD SHELF

Now more than ever, our local food shelf community needs your support.

Thank you for your generous gift of $3,876.05 to the North St. Paul Area FoodShelf through the second collection. As our community gathers to-gether in this difficult time, we want to let you know that the Church of St. Peter has also donated $1,000.

These gifts help serve over 2,300 families in our community. We are grateful for your kindness and generosity during this challenging time.

MASS INTENTIONS

Week of May 17 - May 24, 2020

Sunday: 8:00 AM †Priscilla Roering 10:30 AM †Elmer Birkeland 6:00 PM Church of St. Peter Parish Monday: 8:00 AM †Carol Reinardy Tuesday: 8:00 AM †Priscilla Roering Wednesday: 8:00 AM †Eric Nordling 6:00 PM Archdiocesan Synod Process Thursday: 8:00 AM †Kay Reber Friday: 8:00 AM †Al Harter 9:30 AM †Allison Feldkamp Saturday: 8:00 AM †Harold Sonnek 4:00 PM †Richard Moody Sunday: 8:00 AM †Lawrence Weiss 10:30 AM Church of St. Peter Parish 6:00 PM †Judith Lund

These intentions are being honored by the priests at their daily Mass

SACRIFICIAL GIVING As of May 10 for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2020

Collected for Week: Electronic Giving $5,796.

Total Amount Collected for Week $25,236.

Amount Budgeted for Week $16,766.

Collected to Date: Stocks & Special Gifts $1,099,820.

Budgeted to Date: Stocks & Special Gifts $1,054,614.

Percentage Above (or Below) Budget 4.29%

Amount Above (or Below) Budget $45,206.

Collected for Week: Envelopes & Plate $19,441.

Current Fiscal Year Capital Improvement Fund balance after the HVAC project is

$65,468.49

Donations Received as of May 10, 2020:

Thank you for Supporting St. Peter Parish!

Please consider donating online to help us continue our

ministries. To donate online, click "Donate Now" on our

parish website or go to giving.parishsoft.com/app/

giving/stpetersnsp.org or try our new text to give

option, text “Give” to 651-240-6260.

Readings for the week of May 17, 2020 Sunday: Acts 8:5-8, 14-17/Ps 66:1-3, 4-5, 6-7, 16, 20 [1]/1 Pt 3:15-18/Jn 14:15-21 Monday: Acts 16:11-15/Ps 149:1b-2, 3-4, 5-6a and 9b [cf. 4a]/Jn 15:26—16:4a Tuesday: Acts 16:22-34/Ps 138:1-2ab, 2cde-3, 7c-8 [7c]/Jn 16:5-11 Wednesday: Acts 17:15, 22—18:1/Ps 148:1-2, 11-12, 13, 14/Jn 16:12-15 Thursday: Acts 18:1-8/Ps 98:1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4 [cf. 2b]/ Jn 16:16-20 Ascension: Acts 1:1-11/Ps 47:2-3, 6-7, 8-9 [6]/Eph 1:17- 23/Mt 28:16-20 Friday: Acts 18:9-18/Ps 47:2-3, 4-5, 6-7 [8a]/ Jn 16:20-23 Saturday: Acts 18:23-28/Ps 47:2-3, 8-9, 10 [8a]/ Jn 16:23b-28 Next Sunday: Ascension: Acts 1:1-11/Ps 47:2-3, 6-7, 8-9 [6]/ Eph 1:17-23/Mt 28:16-20 7th Sun Easter: Acts 1:12-14/Ps 27:1, 4, 7-8 [13]/1 Pt 4:13- 16/Jn 17:1-11a EMAIL OR TEXT SCAM

AFFECTING PARISHES With the coronavirus there are new attempts!

The Archdiocese has been notified that several local parishes have been affected by an email and text scam. Using Priest, Principal or a staff members name the scammer will create a new email address or text, contact the staff members, parishioners, or volunteers via email or text and then ask for a favor, money or gift cards.

PLEASE DO NOT RESPOND TO THESE EMAILS.

If you receive such a fraudulent email or text from the parish or any staff member, please contact Jeff Peterson, jpeterson@stpetersnsp.org and notify the North St. Paul Police. DO NOT RESPOND TO THE EMAIL OR TEXT. In the case of any email or text asking for funds or appearing to be suspicious, IT IS A GOOD IDEA TO CONTACT THE PERSON DIRECTLY BY PHONE OR IN PERSON TO MAKE SURE IT IS AUTHENTIC.

The Parish Office will be closed on Monday, May 25 for the Memorial Day Holiday. The office continues to be closed to the public. You may drop off or pick up things from 8:30 to 2:00 Monday - Friday. Please call the parish office for details.

PARISH INFORMATION