FOURTH SUNDAY OF LENTMARCH 26, 2017

SATURDAY, MARCH 25, 2017 5:30 P.M. Mary Luciani

Roman WojciechowskiMonserrate Abreu

SUNDAY, MARCH 26, 2017 7:30 A.M. Parishioners

Rocco FlorioCharles ThielitzGenowefa Eva Majdosz

10:00 A.M. Victor PierantozziDorothy & Frank OrofinoShirley & Roy ParianRudy Siano – 2nd Anniversary

12:00 P.M. Angela CaporaleJoan Bellantoni

MONDAY, MARCH 27, 2017 8:00 A.M. Nunzio DiLauraTUESDAY, MARCH 28, 2017 8:00 A.M. Robert Means

Intentions of Bob & Carol DibartolomeoTHURSDAY, MARCH 30, 2017 8:00 A.M. Elena SutulaFRIDAY, MARCH 31, 2017 8:00 A.M. Alice DiMeglio 7:30 P.M. STATIONS OF THE CROSSSATURDAY, APRIL 1, 2017 5:30 P.M. Ted Srodon

Margherita DavisJohn RenickCecelia Sagan

SUNDAY, APRIL 2, 2017 7:30 A.M. Parishioners

Ada & Irving RumseyLydia Gavin

10:00 A.M. Rose WhitmanRoman Wojciechowski

12:00 P.M. Frank & Bella OrioleMamie Oriolo

PLEASE REMEMBER IN YOUR PRAYERSSICK: Mary Carton Jacob Hicks Nina Margossian Veny Hongo Gary Ragusa Reva Zanetti Joan Deblasio Baby Michael Soojian Jan Hongo Joe Muso Baby Ryder Sasso Carmela Fusco Danny O’Connor Frances De Maria Dorothea King Eileen McPartland Gabe Bellantoni Millie Farina Jerome Foray Rosemary Liebman Cenelia Soto Gertrude Tindoc Stacey Caropreso Sharon Acquaire Noah Lorencovitz Sister Marie Louise Jeremy Dymowski Ron Moebius Frank Sanclementi Silverio Conte Dan Hauge Barbara KincaidDECEASED: Lydia Gavin Cecelia Sagan

WEEKLY OFFERINGSunday - $5,140.50

Thank you for your continued support.Dear Friends in Christ:

In today’s Gospel Jesus sends the blind man to Siloam, “Go wash in the Pool of Siloam” (John 9:4). Here again John adds his own

comment to make sure we understand what is really happening; he wrote, Siloam means “Sent.” In any other New Testament book this might not be so significant but in John’s Gospel every word is noteworthy and this word “sent” is certainly significant because many times in John’s Gospel we are told that Jesus has been sent by the Father: Jesus’ food is to do the will of him who sent him, whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him; these works that I perform testify…that the Father has sent me.

So when John tells us that the blind man washed in the Pool of Siloam which means Sent and came back seeing, he wants us to understand that the blind man washed in Jesus and came back seeing. What really happened is that the blind man was washed by Jesus.

Jesus taught three times earlier in this Gospel about the gift of the Spirit during baptism, and now this blind man washes in Siloam – he really washes in Jesus - and is cured of his blindness. The blind man does not yet have faith in Jesus but that will also change now.

The man who had been blind is put through a series of tests by the Pharisees. During this interrogation, we see two things happening; the blind man grows in his understanding of who Jesus is and at the same time the Pharisees grow more and more blind to who Jesus is.

Jesus asks the man if he believes in the Son of Man and the man asks who is the Son of Man.

Jesus reveals that he is the Son of Man and the man responds in faith, “I believe Lord” and he worshipped Jesus. Going to the Pool of Siloam to wash was only a preparatory journey. The man would make an even bigger journey, a journey to faith in Jesus, as he is tested. We can see this chapter being played out all around us today as people now act in the same way as the Pharisees, the blind man and his parents.

There are those like the Pharisees who are blind to Jesus and living in darkness and who persecute and ridicule those who have faith in Jesus. There are others like the man’s parents who are afraid to witness to Jesus because they don’t want to disturb the comfort of their lives. They want Jesus but not the cross. What about us? We have been washed in the Siloam of baptism. Like the blind man, we have grown in our faith in Jesus through trials and tests just as the blind man went from saying “the man called Jesus”, to Jesus is a prophet, to Jesus is from God.

Now Jesus stands before us today and asks for our everything, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” Yes, Lord, we believe and we worship you.

St. JosephSolemnity: March 19

St. Joseph is one of the first saints we ever learned about. We were taught as children that he is the spouse of the Virgin Mary, foster father of Jesus and patron saint of the universal Church. Many of us who have been unemployed and seeking work or having trouble in our families have asked him to intercede for us at some point in our lives. Somehow we can sense that he is always there for us, standing by quietly and ready to help.

Joseph isn’t mentioned often in Sacred Scripture. We know that he was a carpenter by trade, that he was engaged to Mary and decided to divorce her when she was found to be with child. It is written that he planned to do this “quietly” because he was “a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame” (Matthew 1:19) While he was trying find the kindest way to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:20). Joseph did as the messenger of God told him to do: in marrying Mary, in naming Jesus, in shepherding his Holy Family to Egypt, and in bringing them to Nazareth. He was simply, joyfully, and completely obedient to God.

Joseph is paid the highest compliment in Sacred Scripture when he is referred to as a “just man”. To say that he was “just” is to say that he was always open to all that God wanted of him and for him. He became holy by opening himself totally to God. His life was one of quiet faith and courage.

Perhaps you participated in a Nativity play as a child. If you were a boy, maybe you were lucky enough to be chosen for the role of St. Joseph. If you were a girl, you might have been given the honor of playing the part of Mary. Some of you were asked to be an angel, or a shepherd or play some other part in the story of the birth of Jesus. Do you remember how special that was, and feeling like you might even be a little bit holy that day? It was a good feeling, wasn’t it? We can experience this feeling in our daily adult lives too if we try to follow the example of St. Joseph, patron of our church. St. Joseph is also the patron saint of carpenters, fathers, workers and happy death.

CHILDREN’S CHOIRCalling all kids ages 6-14: We want YOU to join the Children's Choir!  Do you like to sing?  We would love to have you!  Starting in February, we will be getting ready for the Easter season. Anyone interested should see our Music Director Dania Emusov for more details and a registration form.  Practices will be on a rotating basis to remain flexible

for everyone who wants to be involved!  Remember- when you sing, you pray twice!

CALENDAR RAFFLE WINNERS!Thank you to all who participated in our Calendar Raffle!

Congratulations to the following winners.

Week 8Winners Date Number  Winner Amount

3/19/2017 502Hermogenes Bautista $ 75.00

3/20/2017 338Constantine Topczij $ 25.00

3/21/2017 103 Frank Saraceni $ 25.00

3/22/2017 156 Vernon Miller $ 25.00

3/23/2017 502Hermogenes Bautista $ 25.00

3/24/2017 545Lauren Sylvester $150.00

We thank all parishioners who participated in the Calendar Raffle and to all the winners - “Congratulations”! A big thank you goes to Erika Reid who spent much of her time organizing the raffle. Job well done, Erika! Fr. Greg & Staff

CHAPEL RENOVATION

The renovation to the chapel is now complete. If you have not seen it yet, please stop in and see the magnificent change. For those parishioners who would like to help toward the cost of the renovation, there are several options for you. These can be either Memorials or Gifts-whatever the giver chooses.

First option: Bronze plate (leaf) will be made for anyone who gives $250 - $499.

Second option: Silver plate (leaf) will be made for anyone who gives $500 - $999.

Third option: Gold plate (leaf) will be made for anyone who gives $1,000 or more.

Additional option: Anyone who would like to give a donation in a lesser amount may either mail/or drop it off at the rectory or place it in the lucite boxes that will be placed in the Narthex and by the side door. Every dollar counts.

The plates (leaves) will be placed on a giving tree donor plaque that will hang on a wall in the Chapel.

ZUMBA

Zumba Classes (BURN up to 1000 calories) – in St. Francis Church Hall.Regular Zumba is Tuesday and Thursday – 7pm to 8pmClasses are $7.00 per class or 10 classes for $60.00.Please call or email Theresa Reilly for more information – No class registration needed.theresaloveszumba@yahoo.com or call 973-248-0013 or 973-868-4206

THURSDAY PRAYER GROUPEvery Thursday at 11AM the Prayer Group of St. Francis will meet in the Chapel to pray for those who are sick and are in need of prayers.Please come and join them and if you know someone who needs prayers you are welcome to add their name for those to be prayed for.

ST. JOSEPH’S TABLE “THANK YOU”Special thanks to Fr. Gregg for opening up St. Francis for our 2nd. Annual St. Joseph’s Table.The Table, held on March 18, was a huge success thanks to the Ladies Guild for all the work they did to set up a beautiful Table, manning the refreshments, preparing the hall, and a lot of ‘running’. Special thanks goes out to all those who donated a wonderful variety of foods, raffle items, & beautiful baskets, too many to mention. Can’t forget our cookie bakers… what a wonderful variety…Thank You. We had donations from non-parishioners; who donated beautiful baskets; bags from Corrado’s & Trader Joe’s; a huge basket of breads from Barbara Giliberti, and especially to Melissa and Jane, from the office, for their help. Thanks also goes out to those who donated money towards the Table.A very special thanks to Dale for setting up the hall and always being an important part of St. Francis. And of course, to those of you who attended the Table, purchased items, making it a success…Thank You. We hope that you had fun and we look forward to our next Table.

2017 Fish and Chicken Fry Dinner: Donations Needed

Good News! It is only a few weeks to our Lenten Fish and Chicken Fry dinner which will be held on Saturday, April 1st. Tickets will be $15.00 each. The dinner includes a drink, fish or chicken, fries, dessert and coffee or tea. Take Out will be from 5:30 to 6:15 pm and Eat In will be from 6:15 to 7:30 pm. You can pick up your tickets at the rectory or in the Narthex this weekend - March 25th/ 26th.

We are in need of donations of soda—Coke, Pepsi, Sprite—diet and regular, and bottled water. We also need chips and pretzels. If you can donate, please bring the items to the rectory. We are most grateful.

We are also asking everyone who baked (or bought) a dessert for us last year to do so again. New bakers are always welcome.

We so much enjoy seeing our parish community share a meal together. Please try to come.

Thank you very much. See you April 1st.

PALM CROSSESOrders will be taken this weekend for Palm Crosses for anyone who hasn’t ordered yet. The cost is $10 and the crosses will be available for pick up next weekend April 1st-2nd

in the Narthex after all Masses.

RECONCILIATION: Confessions are heard every Saturday from 4:30– 5:00 PM. RECONCILIATION ADDITIONAL HOURS 7:00 – 8:30 PM Mondays: March 27, and April 3.

HOLY HOUR FOR PEACEThe Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth invite you to a monthly Holy Hour of Quiet Prayer at Holy Family Chapel, 2 Convent Road, Convent Station, NJ 6:30pm – 7:30pm. Everyone is invited the third Tuesday of every month starting with April 18th.

PRAY THE STATIONS OF THE CROSS: In Lent it is especially meaningful to pray the stations. Join us as a community when we pray them on Friday nights at 7:30 PM in

Lent. It can also be done alone at any time, going from station to station as we pray. It can even be done at home!

LAKELAND NURSING HOME SCHEDULESUNDAY, APRIL 2, 2017

Pat Demarest & Hatima Omolon

LECTORSSATURDAY, APRIL 1, 2017 5:30 P.M. Giovanna VollaroSUNDAY, APRIL 2, 2017 7:30 A.M. Bill Boswell10:00 A.M. Judy Moran12 NOON Armando Haro

EUCHARISTIC MINISTERSSATURDAY, APRIL 1, 2017 5:30 P.M. Frank & Sandy PolglazeSUNDAY, APRIL 2, 2017 7:30 A.M. Suzanne Raoul & Hatima Omolon10:00 A.M. Tom & Olympia Luciani12 NOON Linda O’Connell & Tony Mazza

ALTAR SERVERSSATURDAY, APRIL 1, 2017 5:30 P.M. Scott & Steven BrackenSUNDAY, APRIL 2, 2017 7:30 A.M. Elizabeth Reid10.00 A.M. Kelly Frisina & Jonathan Hogue12 NOON Tim Kenny & Divine Crilly