SACRAMENT OF MARRIAGE Arrangements must be made at least six months in advance. SACRAMENT OF BAPTISM Expectant parents are to participate in the Baptism preparation program. Classes are offered in February, June, and October. SACRAMENT OF PENANCE Weekdays 6:30 - 6:50 AM Fridays 7:00 - 8:00 PM Saturdays 3:45 - 4:15 PM and 6:15 - 6:45 PM SACRAMENT OF THE ANOINTING OF THE SICK Those preparing for serious surgery are to contact the rectory; the shut-ins and elderly contact Sr. Rita. PARISH MEMBERSHIP Call the Rectory Office 715-384-3252

St. John the Baptist Catholic Church

201 W. BLODGETT ST. MARSHFIELD, WI 54449-2004 website: www.stjohnsmarshfield.org

ESTABLISHED IN 1877 XIV VOLUME 7 N0 24 DECEMBER 31, 2017 HOLY FAMILY OF JESUS, MARY & JOSEPH

CALENDAR OF PARISH ACTIVITIES DECEMBER 2017 / JANUARY 2018

MISSION STATEMENT: Our mission at St. John the Baptist Parish is to prepare people for the coming of the fullness of God’s Kingdom by sharing the Catholic Faith and its tradition.

PARISH PERSONNEL Fr. Samuel Martin, Pastor 715-384-3252 ext. 212 Fr. Daniel Sedlacek, Associate Pastor 715-384-3252 ext. 213 Deacon Jeffrey Austin, Permanent Deacon 715-676-3186 Sister Rita Adlkofer, Spiritual Counselor 715-384-9929 Mary Gouin, Parish Secretary 715-384-9565 ext. 210 Pam Housworth, Finance Office 715-384-9565 ext. 215 Deb Mlsna, DRE 715-659-4480 ext. 202 Dan Kitzhaber, Youth Minister 715-384-3252 ext. 6 St. John School Office 715-384-4989 ext. 1 David Eaton, CCS President 715-387-1177 MASSES Weekdays 7:00 AM Saturdays 8:00 AM / 4:30 / 7:00 PM Sundays 7:00 / 9:00 / 11:00 AM

31 1 2 3 4 5 6

7 8 9 10 11 12 13

Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

SUNDAY MASSES 7:00AM 9:00AM

11:00AM

NEW YEAR’S DAY MASS

7:00AM ADORATION

7:30AM - 12:00PM CONFESSIONS

7:30AM - 8:30AM CHURCH

LOCKED AT NOON

THREE OAKS 1:30PM MASS

NO CCD TEACHER

INSERVICE

ROSARY 12:15PM

CONFESSIONS 7:00 - 8:00PM

CONFESSIONS 3:45 - 4:15PM 6:15 - 6:45PM

MASSES 4:30PM 7:00PM

SUNDAY MASSES 7:00AM 9:00AM

11:00AM

ADORATION

7:30AM - 12:00PM CONFESSIONS

7:30AM - 8:30AM

4 COMMITTEES GATHERING

6:30PM

MARSHFIELD CATHOLIC CEMETERY

ASSOCIATION 3:00PM

CCD

6:15PM

ROSARY 12:15PM

EVENING OF RECOLLECTION

6:30PM ST. JOHN’S

CONFESSIONS 7:00 - 8:00PM

CONFESSIONS 3:45 - 4:15PM 6:15 - 6:45PM

MASSES 4:30PM 7:00PM

PARISH OFFICE CLOSED

MASS SCHEDULE / SCRIPTURE READINGS MON 1/1/18 Solemnity of Mary, Holy Mother of God 7:00am Patricia Ottelien Scripture Readings: Nm 6:22-27 Gal 4:4-7 Lk 2:16-21 TUES 1/2/18 Sts. Basil the Great and Gregory the Nazianzen, Bishops, Doctors of the Church 7:00am Virginia Mondloch Scripture Readings: 1 Jn 2:22-28 Jn 1:19-28 WED 1/3/18 The Most Holy Name of Jesus 7:00am Russell Faber 8:00am James Hastrieter Scripture Readings: 1 Jn 2:29-3:6 Jn 1:29-34 THUR 1/4/18 St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, Religious 7:00am Warren Mondloch Scripture Readings: 1Jn 3:7-10 Jn 1:35-42 FRI 1/5/18 St. John Neumann, Bishop 7:00am George & Audrey Trudeau Scripture Readings: 1 Jn 3:11-21 Jn 1:43-51 SAT 1/6/18 Saint Andre Bessette 8:00am Dale Bohman Scripture Readings: 1 Jn 5:5-13 Mk 1:7-11

THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD 4:30pm Joan Kuyoth 7:00pm St. John the Baptist and Christ the King parish families SUN 1/7/18 7:00am Lucine Cook 9:00am Shirley Hughes 11:00am Reuben & Agnes Merkel Scripture Readings: Is 60:1-6 Eph 3:2-3a, 5-6 Mt 2:1-12

LITURGICAL MINISTERS January 6th & 7th, 2018

LECTORS 4:30pm Bryan Pischel 7:00pm Maureen Karaliunas 7:00am Mary Joy Dick 9:00am Donna Staab 11:00am Ellen Roehrborn MINISTERS OF HOLY COMMUNION 4:30pm Marty Draxler / Gary & Ruth Elderbrook / Marcy Gotz 7:00pm Mary Jane Sydow / Andy & Carol Wanta / Michael Clubb 7:00am Connie Manlick / Al & Barb May / Bernice Mercer 9:00am Cheryl Schmidt / Gail Snortheim / Mary Stieber Mark or Patti Wittman / Dan & Dorothy Flees 11:00am Chris Rutschow / John & Lori Salzmann / Jeff Zondlo SERVERS 4:30pm Olivia Mahoney / Emily Mc Quillen 7:00pm Julianna & Paul Kollross 7:00am Luke Kaiser / Joshua Peters 9:00am Sydney & Isaac Mauritz 11:00am Aleena Varghese / Catherine Kitzhaber MUSIC MINISTER 4:30pm Open 7:00pm Open 7:00am Open 9:00am Open 11:00am Open

PARISH ANNOUNCEMENTS To have a prayer added to St. John’s Prayer Chain, please call Shirley 715-384-3613 and Donna 715-384-2479 (there are 2 lists). The Parish Office will be closed on Monday, January 1st in honor of the Solemnity of Mary. The parish staff wishes everyone a blessed New Year! CCD News: There will be no CCD the evenings of December 27th and January 3rd. Classes will resume on Wednesday, January 10th. Diocesan Annual Appeal: Thank you to all parishioners who have returned their Diocesan Annual Appeal Pledge Card. As of 12/19/17 the Diocese has a recorded $116,952.00 coming from 476 parishioners. Our goal is $124,680.00. If you haven’t yet pledged and/or made a payment we ask you to kindly consider doing so. Adult Confirmation Classes–sign up today! If you are a practicing, baptized Catholic adult who has never been confirmed and would like to receive the sacrament we have an opportunity for you! This 8-week session (beginning Jan. 15th) is for adults only and is not the RCIA program. Questions? Contact Deb Mlsna at 715-613-4458 or ReligiousEd@frontier.com Any donations you wish to have included on your December 2017 statement must be dated no later than December 31st, 2017 and into the parish office by Sunday, December 31st. Diocese of La Crosse - Building Upon A Tradition of Faith The Diocese of La Crosse will be celebrating its 150th anniversary as a Diocese. To commemorate this special event a full color 400 plus page hardcover book depicting all the parishes in our diocese will be available for purchase at the price of $33.00. This book has arrived and is everything it promised to be. To get your copy come to the parish office between 9:00am and 4:30pm Monday through Friday. All checks should be written out to St. John’s. Cash is also accepted. Please, if possible, bring the exact cost of the book. Marshfield Deanery Father - Daughter Dance to be held on Saturday, February 3rd from 5:00 - 7:30pm. This event will be held at Our Lady of Peace in Dillenberg Hall. Registration details coming! St. John’s Book Exchange: Looking for a wonderful way to grow closer to God and His people? In the hallway leading to the Bride’s room is a bookshelf with plenty of books to pick from. The shelves have recently been restocked! These books are free and meant to be taken and read. When you finish with the book you may pass it on or return it to the shelf for others to read. Give yourself and others the best gift this Christmas, come adore Our Lord at Pope St. John Paul II Adoration Chapel. Please consider coming at one of these hours if it fits into your schedule: Sunday from 9-10am, Monday from 2-3pm or Saturday noon-1pm. You are most welcome to come and adore at anytime that works for you if those hours aren't feasible. For more information contact Dale Garfield at 715383-2262 or Jean Kaiser at 715-387-0571. Please save your canceled stamps for the Schoenstatt Seminarians. Kindly place them in the labeled basket in the back of Church. Thank you! Volunteers are needed to make rosaries for the missions. Our Lady’s Rosary Makers is a national organization providing simple to make handmade rosaries to missionaries world-wide, who are requesting rosaries. For more info. contact Rose at 715-650-7222. Do You Love Divine Mercy? Everyone who wants to live Mercy and the spiritual life more deeply is welcome to attend our meetings every other Thursday evening. Sr. Mary Veronica will lead us through teaching, prayer and fellowship. Join us on Thursday, Jan. 4th at Corpus Christi Church, Bakerville at 7pm. Questions? Call 715-207-6664 or fsofdivinemercy@gmail.com

WEEK DAY SERVERS Jan 1st - Jan 6th Ray Housworth FUNERAL SERVERS Jan 1st - Jan 6th Ardell Klein / Ron O’Brien / Gary Elderbrook

The Diocese of La Crosse is committed to creating a Safe

Environment within the Church for children and youth. We continue to have a special care for and a commitment to reach-ing out to victims of sexual abuse and their families.

FROM THE PASTOR’S DESK Praised be Jesus Christ! This weekend we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family. The following meditation was found on a card inserted into all the pews of a parish somewhere in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan: “To the Parents of our Young Children, May we suggest...... Relax! God put the wiggle in children; don’t feel you have to suppress it in God’s house. All are welcome! Sit toward the front where it is easier for your little ones to see and hear what’s going on at the altar. They tire of seeing the backs of other people’s heads. Quietly explain the parts of the Mass and the actions of the priest before Mass and as they happen during Mass; don’t overwhelm them, though. Sing the hymns, pray and voice the responses. Children learn liturgical behavior by copying you. Take care of bathroom needs before Mass, but if you have to leave with your child, please come back. Remember that the way we welcome children in Church directly affects the way they respond to the Church, to God, and to one another. Let them know they are welcome. Let them know, too, how to be reverent in this house of worship. If at times your child is fidgety, encourage them to draw what they see in church. Feel free to use the back side of this sheet for that purpose. THANK YOU FOR BRINGING YOUR CHILDREN TO CELEBRATE WITH US. To the members of our parish: The presence of children is a gift to the Church; they are a reminder that our parish is growing. Please welcome our children and give a smile of encouragement to their parents.” Well, what do you think? It’s pretty well written and even if we might quibble with a detail or two, it does capture our joy when we see young families coming faithfully to Mass. In case you haven’t noticed, our parishes are getting younger again and that’s a rich source of hope for our future. Now the beauty of a parish family is that it runs the full spectrum of human life, from infancy to the day the Lord calls us home. We also want to be sensitive to the needs of our seniors and it seems both parishes are doing a wonderful job in this category too. It’s edifying when people park in such a way so as to let others with greater challenges have the spots closest to church. Moreover, we work hard to make sure Holy Communion is distributed to everyone in church, even if some are no longer able to receive by processing to the front. God knows our older members are rich in wisdom, humility, and redemptive suffering and our parish is indebted to them for this. When I was home over Thanksgiving I sat down and read my Uncle Leo’s memoirs, which he wrote before finally succumbing to Alzheimer’s in December of 2015. As you know, my own Dad is walking a similar path (Uncle Leo is his older brother by three years), so reading it was rather emotional. Toward the end, Uncle Leo wrote, “It’s frustrating! And there is also the depressing psychological aspect… it is NOT LIKELY TO GET BETTER. Confidence and good self-image is weak. It’s pretty obvious that I’m uncertain, lacking conviction and purpose.” Some have titled Alzheimer’s “The long good bye,” as it is a very challenging disease with no cure. Just the same, my Uncle’s faith in God was true until the end and someday God will show us how his suffering brought untold graces into the world. Uncle Leo’s last words are the most profound of all: “The dignity we seek in dying must be found in the dignity with which we have lived our lives!” There is enough wisdom in that statement for a lifetime of meditation. This weekend we celebrate God’s family, which is to say our family. And we are grateful for each and every one of you, young, old, and everywhere in between. May God continue to bless us with the enthusiasm of our young families and the wisdom of our elders! Your friend in Christ, Father Martin

NOTES FROM FR. MARTIN Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! Please know how grateful Father Sedlacek and I are for your generous outpouring of love for Christmas. We’re grateful for the wonderful food, generous gifts, thoughtful cards, and most importantly, all of your prayers and the Masses you had said for us. As I’ve mentioned before, it would be best if I wrote to each of you and thanked you personally. But my rationalization is that I spend that time in the confessional (20 hours during the week before Christmas), something only a priest can do. That is my way of serving you as an instrument of God’s mercy. Please know that both Father Sedlacek and I love our two parishes and thank God for the kindness we’ve received during our time here. Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God: Because this feast day falls on a Monday in 2018 it will not be an obligatory Holy Day of Obligation. Therefore, there will be no vigil Mass on Dec. 31st. However, we encourage you to attend our 7:00am Mass on Monday, January 1st for what better way to begin the New Year than to honor His Mother. Evenings of Recollection: The next Evening of Recollection will be held Thursday, January 11th from 6:30-8:00pm. Father’s meditation will be Pro-Life Reflection. The evening will begin by exposing the Blessed Sacrament followed by a half hour meditation. There will be time for silent adoration and confession. Benediction will close the evening. This evening of Recollection will be held at St. John’s.

Beloved - Finding Happiness in Your Marriage All married couples are encouraged to experience the wonder, mystery & joy of the sacrament of marriage by participating in the deanery BELOVED series: Finding Happiness in Your Marriage. The next session will be Sun., Jan. 7th from 3-4:15pm in the Columbia Rm of St. John’s school. Childcare: RSVP by Wed prior for onsite daycare. Assistance available for babysitting in your home. More information & RSVP to Dan Kitzhaber, 715-384-3252 x6 or yministry@frontier.com Estate Planning Workshop—January 10th, 2018 from 11am - 1pm and again from 6 - 8pm at the Eagles Club, Marshfield. Light lunch will be provided. Presented by Life Tributes Funeral Home. Guest speakers from Schmoldt Law Office and McNeely Financial Services. Beneficial to any age group. March For Life Pilgrimage 2018 The March for Life pilgrimage will be Jan 17th-21st, 2018. All people 13 years of age and older are invited to be a witness to the dignity of life for the unborn, elderly, and those who society regards as useless. We’ll travel with a Diocesan group via motorcoach. This is for YOUTH & ADULTS. Cost is ~$355 for teens, $315 for chaperones. Deposit of $175 due by Dec. 1st. Pilgrims will also get a hooded sweatshirt. Fundraising options and need-based scholarships are available. (*$25 less if you have a hood from previous March) For more information, please contact Mr. Dan Kitzhaber at 715-384-3252 x6 or 715-659-4480 x4 or yministry@frontier.com Pilgrims for Life Fundraiser – Need WIDE mouth quart Jars The youth preparing to participate in the March for Life make and sell delicious Jar Mixes. Looking to the future, we need more QUART size canning jars. If you have some to donate, please contact Mr. Dan Kitzhaber 384-3252 x6, 659-4480 x4 or yministry@frontier.com Tanzania Mission Trip 2019 Plans are being made for an Intergenerational Parish Mission Trip of 20 people ages 16 and older to serve with the Sisters of Our Lady Queen of Africa, in Sumbawanga, Tanzania, Africa from June 17th-28th, 2019. This immersion experience will offer the chance to serve at the school, orphanage, and clinic. There will also be an opportunity for a safari and market experiences. Tentative cost is $2500 (dictated by airfare). There will be an information meeting on Tuesday, January 30th, 7pm in the Columbia Room. For more information, please contact Mr. Dan Kitzhaber at 715-384-3252 x6 or 715-659-4480 x4 or yministry@frontier.com

Stewardship update: With the Christmas holiday and the timing of getting the bulletin to the printer, the Stewardship report for the weekend of December 24th / 25th will be in next weekend’s bulletin.

�&'(%� !#$"&'(President and CEO | Certified Financial Planner- CFP™Phone: (715) 384-4005 | www.heritagebankwi.com

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RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIALLAWN SERVICES PROVIDED

Mowing & Trim • Yard Clean-up Spring/FallAeration • Weed & Nutrient Treatment

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