FEBRUARY 18, 2018 ♥ FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT

St. Gregory the Great

224 Brooklyn Ave.

Brooklyn, NY 11213

Tel 718- 773-0100

Fax 718- 773-4198

Email: faithcommstgreg@aol.com

Mass Schedule:

Mon. -Sat. 8:30am; Sat.Vigil-5pm

Sunday 11:30am

Saturday: Reconciliation-4:00 pm

Office Staff

Secretary: Rosanne Barber Ext.100

D.R.E: Monica Flemmings

Office Hours:

Monday - Friday: 8:00am-4:00pm

Saint Gregory the Great

Catholic Academy

Spiritual & Academic Excellence

2520 Church Ave.

Brooklyn N.Y.11226

Tel 718-282-2770;

Fax 718-774-3332

Principal: Mr. Rudolph Cyrus

St. Matthew

1123 Eastern Pkwy.,

Brooklyn, NY 11213

Tel 718- 774-6747;

Fax 718- 953-4895

Email: stmatthew1123@aol.com

Mass Schedule:

Monday-Friday 7:30am &

9:00am

Saturday 8:00am & 8:00pm

Saturday: Reconciliation-7:30 pm

or by appointment

Sunday:

English-7:30am & 11:30am

Spanish 9:30am; Kreyol 1:30pm

Office Staff

Secretary: Sharon Andrews

D.R.E.: Steven Horka

Office Hours:

Monday:9:30am-4:00pm

Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday:

9:30am-7:00pm

Thursday: 9:30am-9:00pm

Saturday: 10:00am-7:00pm

Sunday: 9:00am-4:00pm

Our Lady Of Charity

1669 Dean St.,

Brooklyn, NY 11213

Tel 718- 774-5100;

Fax 718- 778-3335

Email: OlcharityRC@aol.com

Mass Schedule:

Sunday: Rosary 9:00am

9:30am-Praise & Worship

10am-Mass

Office Staff:

Secretary: Patricia Romain

D.R.E.: Ethel Andoh-Menson

Office Hours:

Monday-Friday:10am-6pm

Catholic Cemeteries–

80-01 Metropolitan Ave.

Middle Village, NY 11379

Tel:718 – 894-4888

Pastoral Staff Pastor

Fr. Frank Black

In Residence Bishop Guy Sansaricq

Priests

Fr. Jean–Augustin

Francois

Fr. Juan Luxama

Deacons

Roy George

Dennis DaCosta

Nickie Colon

Website: www.stmatthewrc.org

St. Matthew Parish

1st Sunday of Lent-The Rainbow& the Hound

This year the first readings for the Sundays of Lent present various covenants. The term covenant means a binding agreement between people, or in the case of Sacred Scrip-ture, between God and His people. Today we have the Covenant God made with the people at the time of Noah, the Covenant of the Rainbow. Next Sunday, we’ll hear about the Covenant of Faith made between God and Abra-ham. Then we’ll come upon the Covenant of the Law made with Moses. We’ll hear about the Covenant of the Heart prophesied by Jeremiah. This will all lead to the Paschal Mystery and the Blood of the New and Eternal Covenant, the covenant we will renew on our altar in a few minutes. God’s actions at the time of Noah are center stage today both in the first reading from Genesis and in the sec-ond reading from the First Letter of Peter. In Genesis God saw how wicked mankind had become. Every desire their heart conceived was always nothing but evil, we read in Genesis 6:5. God was going to wipe out all of creation, mankind and all the animals who were scarred with man-kind’s sins, his abuse of nature. God was going to destroy them all with a flood, but the life of one just man tempered God’s wrath. That man was Noah. Noah was righteous and blameless. He walked with God. So, as St. Peter points out, eight of mankind were saved, Noah, his wife, his three sons and their three wives. Water destroyed the evil of Noah’s day, but water would become the means of redemption in Jesus’ day. Water took away life at the time of Noah. Water would restore life for those who believe in Jesus Christ. That is why St. Peter wrote, The waters of the flood prefigure the waters of baptism.

And God set a bow on the clouds. The bow was a rain-

bow. It was a sign that God will never again use a flood to destroy all of the creatures of the earth. The rainbow was a sign that God would never give up on his people. God will not give up on mankind. Homilist need to remember this. Sometimes Sunday homilies become a catalogue of the evils of the world. Some priests and dea-cons pound people with one horrible situation after another to demonstrate the presence of sin in the world. People don’t need to come to Church to hear bad news. They can always turn on FOX NEWS, or CNN if that form of insanity is more to their taste. People don’t come to Church to hear the bad news. Jesus did not send his disciples out to tell the world the bad news. He sent his disciples out to proclaim the Good News. The Good News, the Gospel, is that God has rescued and is rescuing His people from the clutches of evil. The Good News is that everyone who accepts the baptism of Jesus Christ, and accepting means fulfilling the responsibilities of Christian life, everyone who accepts Je-sus Christ will be part of the defeat of evil in the world and will share in the victory of Christ in heaven. The Good News is that all the negativity that surrounds us and some-times appears to overwhelm us, all this negativity is only part of the total reality of God’s creation.

The truth is the world is good because God created it, and He is Good. The truth is people are good because people are made in the image and likeness of God, and He is Good. The truth is that you and I are good because we are sons and daughters of God. And yes, good people can choose to become evil people, but that is their choice. Even the most horrible person to ever live could still reject evil and once more become a good person. The world is not bad. The world is not evil. The rainbow. The rainbow proclaims that God sees the good that is in the world.

He will not give up on mankind in general. Nor will He

give up on us as individuals. Over a hundred years ago the poet Francis Thompson wrote about God’s continual pursuit of him even as he tried his best to avoid God. He called his poem, The Hound of Heaven: Once a hound has a scent, he will not quit the chase. God has our scent.

We need to savor the image of God as the Hound of

Heaven. He refuses to give up on us, any of us. No mat-ter what our sins, no matter where we try to hide from him, His pursuit is relentless. He refuses to give up on us. What right do any of us have to give up on ourselves? Are we suffering from an addiction that we keep falling back into? We have to keep fighting it. We can’t give up on ourselves. Have we done some thing or things that we still cannot believe we did? Do we let hatred determine our choices? And then we feel rotten. Do we want to throw in the towel and say, “I’m just not any good? I belong with evil people.” How dare we say that about someone for whom Jesus Christ died?

How dare we say that about ourselves? God

will not give up on us.

Look at the rainbow. Picture it in your mind. It is beautiful. It is awe-inspiring. It is a sign of God’s love and God’s mercy. The rainbow is a covenant between God and us. He will never give up on us, any of us. Try to remem-ber this the next time you see a rainbow: God will never give up on me.

The word Lent is derived from a Teutonic word meaning Spring. Lent is the time for a new beginning. The rainbow is there. The Hound of Heaven is real. God’s love is pursuing us. May we have the determination to begin again. May we have the courage to allow His mercy into our lives.

Join us every Friday during Lent in the Church @ 7:30 pm to journey to Calvary with Jesus

STATIONS OF THE CROSS

BREAD & WINE, CANDLE, BLESSINGS MASS INTENTIONS

ST. MATTHEW: MASS INTENTIONS

ST. MATTHEW BREAD & WINE - FEBRUARY

Saturday February 17

8:00pm– Birthday blessings for Tishon Rodriguez by parents, Dawn & Pascual

Sunday February 18

1st Sunday of Lent

7:30am– Bday blessings Juliana & Aisha by Juliana Blackburn

9:30am– In loving memory of Alfonso Rochez by the Rochez family

11:30am– In loving memory of Angela Ellis & Ruby Griffith by Charmaine Noel

1:30pm– In thanksgiving by Evelyn Barreau

Monday February 19

7:30am– Blessings & healing for Cynthia & Zita

9:00am– For Jennifer , thanking God for health, strength, & blessings in all

her endeavors by Maria Clouden

Tuesday February 20

7:30am– Blessings & healing for Leon

9:00am– Thanksgiving to St. Anthony for blessings for the Content family by

Bertha Content

Wednesday February 21

7:30am– Thanksgiving for Samuel Dupont & Nordyne by Rose Macena

9:00am– Thanking God for compassion, grace & healing

Thursday February 22

7:30am– For all my deceased relatives

9:00am– For priests and all religious

Friday February 23

7:30am– God’s healing blessings for Fr. Andy & Sr. Anna

9:00am–Thanksgiving to Divine Mercy & blessings for the Content family by

Bertha Content

Saturday February 24

8:00am– For the children of the world especially in war torn countries

WEEKLY READINGS

Sun Feb 18 Gn 9:8-15;1 Pt 3:18-22; Mk 1:12-15

Mon Feb 19 Lv 19:1-2,11-18; Mt 25:31-46

Tue Feb 20 Is 55:10-11; Mt 6:7-15

Wed Feb 21 Jon 3: 1-10; Lk 11: 29-32

Thu Feb 22 1 Pt 5:1-4; Mt 16:13-19

Fri Feb 23 Ez 18:21-28; Mt 5:20-26

Sat Feb 24 Dt 26:16-19; Mt 5:43-48

BIRTHDAY BLESSINGS - O.L.C.

BIRTHDAY BLESSINGS : Denzel Charles, Robin Spellman, Naya Mathis, Angela Gabriel, David

Andrews, Mother Margaret Thompson, Omari Ausby, Olivia Wright, Kevin Sheppard, Kahlee Otumba, Vanessa King, Tyler Merius, Jeremy Desvariaux, Anthony Holloway, Tytianna King, Enrique Taylor,

We pray to the Lord.

PARISH PRAYER: For our parish, that the three communities of St. Matthew, St. Gregory the Great and Our Lady of Charity, learn how to merge and grow together spiritually and become financially

sound as three and yet one, We pray to the Lord.

ALTAR BREAD and ALTAR WINE : For the month of February is donate by , We pray to the Lord.

TODAY’S MASS : For the people , government and land of St. Lucia on their Independence Anniversary,

We pray to the Lord.

ST. GREGORY: MASS INTENTIONS

Prayers for all who minister & work @ St. Matthew Parish

ST. MATTHEW CANDLE -FEBRUARY 18-24

Birthday Blessings for Cecil Beard Adoration in the Chapel:

Monday – Friday After 9:00 am Mass until 12:00 noon. The Divine Mercy is recited during the

reposition. Benediction every First Friday at Noon @ St.Matthew

Sunday, Feb. 18th

11:30 AM Mass For Jennifer Clouden, In Thanksgiving For Life Requested by Maria Clouden &

Family

Monday, Feb.19th

8:30 AM Mass For Emila Edouard & Joachim Edouard, Birthday

Blessings, Requested by Emila Edouard

Saturday, Feb 24th

5 PM Vigil Mass for Philomena Maria Fernandes, R.I.P.,

Requested by Fiona

WEEKLY MEETINGS REMEMBER IN OUR PRAYERS

For the homebound, hospitalized and sick

Carmen Allen, Armelle Amilcar, Monica Bain Lewis, Wisel Barber, Constant Barreau, Evelyn Barreau, Ejannah Barrett, Catherine Bernard, Elma Figaro Bernard,Sylvia Boyce, Mother Juanita Brathwaite, Marjorie Brathwaite-Pierre, Silvester Brathwaite,

Ismay Brewster, Diandra Brown, Evelyn Brown,Yolande Cadet, Cadore & Allen families,

Virginia Caesar,Venice Chambers, Delcia Charles, Germaine Charles, Amy Clough, Martha Cortez, Louisa Cummins, Mother Veronica Dale, Shirley

Daniels, Mother Jessey Danzy, Polly Davis, Catherine DeLeon, Carmen Desilva, Berard Desrosiers,Eulalia

Diaz, Deacon Roy Dudley, Lulia Durio, John Edgehill, Stella Emmanuel, Gloria Farley, William

Forrester, Mother Carrie Frasier, Lorna Fyffe, Angela Gabriel, Cynthia Gairy, Muriel Gomez, Rosalia

Grajales, Violetta Hamilton, Gwendolyn Harding, Florence Edna Haynes, Elreta Hinds,

Estes Holder, Joie Horsford, Keine Hospedales, Joan Hudson, Danielle Huie, Enid Huntley, Annastal

Jasmine, Antoinette Jones, Kallel Joseph, Elaine King, Viola King, Deacon James Lacy, Roger Lewis, Percival Lewis, Sampson Lewis, Stephanie Logan,

Francisco Lopez, Carmen D. Lorenzo, Jocelyn Lynch,Barbara Manuel, Darsen Marcellin, Virginia

Marcellin, Theresa Marriott, Mother Pearl Matthews, Dorothy Mazzio, Vera McArthur, Leticia McDowell, Vermita McDowell, Dylan Stephens- McKee, Kerry Mills, Edson Mitchell, Isai Monroe, Alicia Mungo,

David Isaie Munoz, Nelson Munoz, Patricia Nazire, Wilmot Nedd, Suzanna Neil, Edith Neuman,Mother Dolores Olff, Gabrielle Ortiz, Cynthia Pilgrim, Maria Pitt, Lettuce Rayson,Dorothy Irons Reid,Catherine

Richards, Carlos Rudas, Fr. Robert Seay,Carl Serrette, Pamela Smith,Leonora Speid, Violet Swaby, Javier Talango,Cynthia Thomas, Edris Thomas, Irvine Thomas, Mary Thomas, Mother Margaret Thompson,

Janet Throne, Carmen Valentin, Martel Vendryes, Audrey Williams, Russell Wilson, Elodia Zuniga

SPECIAL PRAYERS FOR : Vida Boyea, Kerry Mills,

Oliver Joseph, Emillio Holder, Anthony Williamson, Dean Jackson, Donna Dingle, Mellisa Powell, Gail Spencer, Prince Bradley, Clarie Holas, Phat Lum-

lumba, Drew & Ford families, Lacy & Garth families. All students, teachers and principals, President

Donald Trump & family, our Government, prayers and petitions in our prayer basket, for all Priests especially those serving here at Charity, for Religious Vocations, and an increase in Religious Vocations, all men and women serving our country, the elders, all who are

incarcerated, and unexpressed prayers, We pray to the Lord.

WEEK OF SUNDAY 02/18/18 @ ST. GREGORY

+ 10 AM Senior Choir –Church

+10 AM Service - Marcus Garvey Manor

+ 10:30 AM Rosary Recitation-Church

+ 4 PM Black History Month Mass of Thanksgiving at

Immaculate Conception Center Douglaston, NY- Bus

leaves at 2:30 PM SHARP!( $10 per person transportation

round trip)

+ CREDIT UNION OPEN+ GIFT SHOP OPEN

MONDAY 02/19/18 – Rectory Office Closed

PRESIDENT’S DAY - HOLIDAY

+ NO Choir Rehearsal

TUESDAY 02/20/18

+ 7:15 AM Bible Study with Bishop Sansaricq-

Rectory basement

THURSDAY 02/22/18

+ After Mass Senior Bible Study -Rectory basement

FRIDAY 02/23/18

+ 7 PM Stations of The Cross - Church

SATURDAY 02/24/18

+ 4 PM-Vigil Choir Rehearsal - Church

+ 6 PM Light Fest Prayer Group – Church

WEEK OF SUNDAY 02/18/18 @ ST. MATTHEW + 11:45am Legion nidi de la Presentation

+ 1:30pm Youth Ministry

MONDAY 02/19/18

+ 7:00 PM Narcotics Anonymous

+ 7:00 PM Haitian Charismatic Prayer Group

WEDNESDAY 02/21/18

+ 11am– Senior Group

FRIDAY 02/23/18

+ 5 PM English Legion of Mary

+ 7 PM Spanish Charismatic Prayer Group

SATURDAY 02/24/18

+ 4 PM-Youth Choir Rehearsal

+ 4:15 PM Haitian Legion of Mary

O. L C WEEKLY MEETING SCHEDULE

+ 1st, 2nd & 3rd, Mondays A .A Group 6pm—9pm

+ 3rd Tuesdays 7pm

Liturgy Meeting 7pm

AA Group 6pm-9pm

Thursdays A. A. Group 6pm —9pm

Praise & Worship Team 7pm

+ Fridays -Feather Men 5pm

2nd, 3rd & 4th Saturdays

Bible & Culture 10am—noon

+ Every Saturday Prayer Group 8 am-10

2nd & 4th Saturdays Liturgical Dancers

Every Saturday Feathers Meeting 5pm

Every Sunday after Mass- Choir Rehearsal

+ 3rd Sunday-Baptism

UPCOMING PARISH EVENTS - ST. MATTHEW

ENGLISH LENTEN MISSION

Monday March 5th - Our Lady of Charity 1669 Dean

Street Brooklyn, NY 11213

*******

Tuesday March 6th - St Gregory the Great 224

Brooklyn Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11213

*******

Wednesday & Thursday (March 7th & March 8th) -

St. Matthew Parish 1123 Eastern Parkway Brooklyn,

NY 11213

*******

Mission begins at 7:00 pm with the Rosary.

Fr. Elveau Augustine from the Island of Dominica will

be the celebrant of the Lenten mission

SPANISH LENTEN MISSION

March 20-21 @ St. Matthew R. C. Church.

Starts @ 7PM.

ANNUAL SOUP DAY

March 17th from 12PM —3:00 PM the English

Charismatic Group “Annual Take away Soup Day” in

the vestibule of the Church. Adults: $8.00; Children

12 and under: $5.00. Proceeds go to aid the poor.

@ St. Matthew

FREE TAX PREPARATION

Dates: Sundays, February 25th and March 18th

from 9 AM to 1PM in the Parish Center. Combined

income must be $64,000 or less. Must have photo ID

and SSN #’s for yourself and dependents. Sign up in

the rectory to receive a complete list of requirements.

@ St. Matthew

ST. MATTHEW GROUP OF HOPE Will have a Theme Dance Party of the 70’s,80’s and

90’s. on Friday, April 6th in the Parish Center at 9PM. Price is $25 which includes admission and food.

There will be a cash bar. Tickets are available from group members or in the rectory@ St. Matthew

MARK YOUR CALENDAR @ ST. GREGORY

UPCOMING PARISH EVENTS @ ST. GREGORY

The Heritage Committee of St. Gregory the Great Faith Community presents the Annual Cultural

Extravaganza on Sunday, February 25th, 2018 at St. Matthew’s Parish Center located at 1345 Lincoln Place (bet. Schenectady & Utica Ave.) at 4 PM. Come and enjoy A Cultural Explosive Evening,

Featuring Music, Drama, Poetry, Dance, Fashion and Quake USA. Dinner will be served. Tickets are $20 for adults. Children are $12. Raffle Books are $1.00 per chance or a book of 6 for $5.00. {NEED NOT BE

PRESENT TO WIN} Tickets and Raffle books are NOW available for

purchase. You can contact Rosanne Barber at the Rectory office or any other member of the Heritage

Committee.

****

St. Gregory the Great Academy started their annual Candy Sale of Chocolate bars. The sale will run until February 11th, 2018. Cost is $1 per bar. See Margaret Mary Casey or a seller in the back of the church after Mass.

**** The Parent Support Group of St. Gregory the Great Worship Site invites you to their annual Lenten Fish Fry Fundraiser during the Lenten Season starting Friday, February 16th, 2018, also on Friday, March 2nd & Friday, March 16th in the Rectory basement. Cost of dinners: $10 & $12. Fish (Whiting or King Fish) Sides: Rice & Peas/Fries, Roll & Salad. You can contact Lorna Gilkes at 718-954-6926 or Estella Caesar at 347-268-3262 and put in your order(s). Thank you for your continued support.

**** If you know of any parishioner who is ill, shut-in or in the hospital please contact Ms. Estela Caesar, Parish Group Leader of the Luminaries of Hope Ministers at 718-774-8029 or contact the Rectory office at 718-773-0100, ext. 100. Please kindly leave a detailed message and contact information and a Minister of the Luminaries of Hope Ministry can follow up.

ST. GREGORY

OUR LADY OF CHARITY

COLLECTION 2/10—2/11

ST. MATTHEW

Mass

Enve-

lopes

Used

Envelope

Collection

Loose

money Totals

5:00 pm 15 585.00 129.50 714.50

11:30AM 43 1,283.00 372.47 1,655.47

Grand

Total 58 1,868.00 501.97 2,369.97

Mass

Enve-

lopes

Used

Envelope

Collection

Loose

money Total

10am 62 1,900.00 49.00 1,949.00

Free will 11 261.00 — 261.00

Grand

Total 73 2,161.00 49.00 2,210.00

GENERAL WEEKLY EXPENSES— ST. MATTHEW ;OUR LADY OF CHARITY

AND ST. GREGORY —$ 27,000.00

Mass

Enve-

lopes

Used

Envelope

Collection

Loose

money Totals

8 PM 45 1,111.00 175.50 1,286.50

7:30 AM 110 2,916.02 226.62 3,142.64

9:30 AM 60 878.75 195.01 1,073.76

11:30 AM 74 1,837.26 231.31 2,068.57

1:30 PM 46 559.21 111.00 670.21

L.I.R. 30 877.00 — 877.00

TOTAL 365 8,179.24 939.44 9,118.68

In order to assist the faithful of the Diocese of Brook-lyn to take full advantage of the Lenten season, our Diocesan Bishop, Most Reverend Nicholas DiMarzio would like to call our attention to the following:

Abstinence - All the faithful who have reached 14 years of age arc required to abstain totally from meat on Ash Wednesday and the Fridays of Lent.

Fasting - All the faithful between the ages of IS and 59 inclusive are bound to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. This practice involves limiting oneself to a single full meal and avoiding food between meals. Light sustenance may also be taken on two other oc-casions during the day.

Easter Duty - After they have been initiated into the Most Holy Eucharist, all the faithful are bound by the obligation of receiving Holy Communion at least once a year. This precept must be fulfilled during the Easter unless for a good reason it is fulfilled at another time of the year. By special indult, in the United States, the time period for fulfilling this precept has been extended to include the period beginning the First Sunday of Lent (February 18, 2018) to the celebration of Pentecost (May 20, 2018).

Funeral Masses - Funeral Masses are not permitted during the Sacred Triduum. Funeral Rites during these days may make use of a Liturgy of the Word, concluding with the Rite of Farewell.

The obligation to observe, as a whole or substantially, the penitential days specified by the Church, is a seri-ous one. Days of penance are not merely individual exercises - they are observed by the whole Church, as the Body of Christ.

The faithful are encouraged to celebrate the sacra-ments of the Eucharist and Penance frequently during the Lenten season. Reading the Scriptures, prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, generosity toward the poor and the needy are additional means of becoming more involved in the Lenten season. Operation Rice Bowl is one example of a specific way to give alms. Pastors and parents are responsible to see that young persons, who are not bound to the above re-quirements, are educated in an authentic sense of penance.

All other Fridays of the year remain as days of penance in prayerful remembrance of the Passion of Jesus Christ. The Bishops of the United States have recommended abstinence from meat as a penance for all Fridays of the year, although each individual may substitute for that tradition some other practice of voluntary self-denial or personal penance. This may involve acts of mortification, prayer or charity.

LENTEN REGULATIONS

The Widow’s Offering Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.

Calling his disciples

to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in every-

thing—all she had to live on.”

FANTASTIC NEWS REGARDING ARISE/LEVÁNTATE

SACRAMENTS & REGISTRATION

BAPTISM: .

To have your child baptized in St. Matthew, you must

pick up a list of requirements in the rectory

MARRIAGE:

Marriage sacrament requires a time of spiritual

preparation. Therefore, couples should make ar-

rangements six months to a year before the planned

date, by making an appointment with the parish priest

ANOINTING OF THE SICK:

If you or a loved one is near death or very ill and need

a priest , we encourage you to call the chaplain of the

hospital or call our rectory

PARISH REGISTRATION

We urge everyone to register in the parish. Any letter concerning sponsorship for the sacraments or testimonial letters will only be issued to registered parishioners of 6+ months. Please register @ the rectory.

PASTORAL CARE MINISTRY

If anyone is interested in joining the Pastoral Care Homebound Ministry please leave your name and

telephone number in the rectory.

RCIA

RCIA stands for RITE OF CHRISTIAN INITIATION

OF ADULTS and is composed of a series of sessions

bringing people together to experience the prayer life

of the church as well as learn about its doctrines and

teachings. Using the readings from the Bible which

we hear daily at Mass, the Sacred Liturgy as well as

the Catechism of the Catholic Church, teens and

adults who have not yet done so prepare themselves

to receive the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation &

Holy Eucharist.

RCIA is offered in Spanish, Kreyol & English and

is for people who:

Were baptized in the Catholic Church but have

not received the sacrament of Confirmation,

First Holy Communion or First Confession

Were baptized in another Christian denomination

and wish to join the Catholic Church

Were never baptized & wish to fully worship in the

Catholic Church

Want to know more about what it means to be

Catholic?

The sessions begin in October. If you are interested

in knowing more, please contact the rectory.

As we approach the fourth season of ARISE/LEVÁNTATE, we continue to see a number of parishes joining this won-derful initiative. We have reached our initial goal of 90 par-ticipating parishes, and continue to add parishes each sea-son. This means more opportunities for the people of Brooklyn and Queens to join these groups and share their faith. The testimonies by participants and leaders regard-ing their experiences while part of the small sharing group have been truly remarkable. This initiative has also helped us achieve many of our goals set forth in our diocesan evangelization and renewal plan, The Joy of Encountering Christ: The Family's Hope.

Those involved in these groups are urged to attend the Diocese of Brooklyn's Evangelization Assembly and Dioce-san Celebration of the V Encuentro on Saturday, April 28, 2018, at St. John's University. There is an early registration deadline of February 28, 2018.

Witnesses of Mercy program would like to invite all those who minister to the sick and homebound to a special afternoon of reflection.

Sister Ave Clark, O.P. of Heart to Heart Ministries will be our guest speaker on Saturday, March 3rd at 12:30 P.M. as we explore “Caring for ourselves….. as we care for those we love.”

Anyone who is currently ministering to those in need, or would like to begin visiting the homebound in the parish, please join us on March 3rd at the Immaculate Conception Center in Douglaston.

Although this session is FREE; registration is required. Seating is limited. Please RSVP to Deacon Andrew Mastrangelo @ 718-722-6000 Ext. 6458 or E-mail Andrew.Mastrangelo.org to reserve your seat. Registration will begin at 12:30, followed by a light lunch.

East Brooklyn Congregation & Monadnock Develop-ment are pleased to announce that applications are now being accepted for 83 newly constructed homes for Nehemiah Nehemiah Spring Creek Phase 4. 56 single family homes and 27 two family homes are available to purchase. The application is accepted through a lottery process. All applications must be submitted no later than April 3,2018. To request an application by mail send a self addressed envelope to Nehemiah Spring Phase 4A, 551 Vandalia Ave. 1st Fl, Brooklyn N.Y. 11239 or you can download an application at www.Nehemiah-spring-Creek.com/application. There will be an informational session on Monday, March 12th at St. Paul Community Baptist Church.

WITNESSES OF MERCY PROGRAM

EBC HOUSING