Mar 16 2008
Bulletin News - 03.16.08
Upcoming Events
- 2008 Easter Mass Schedule
Monday, March 17th – Parish Penance Service, 7:30 PM.
Holy Thursday March 20th – 9:00 AM Mass, Mass of the Lord’s Supper at 7:30 PM, immediately following Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament until midnight.
Good Friday, March 21st –Church opens at 9 AM, 12 PM Passion Play, 3 PM Passion of the Lord, 7:30 PM Stations of the Cross.
Holy Saturday, March 22nd – Church opens at 9 AM, Easter Vigil Mass at 8 PM, please note there is no 5:30 PM Mass.
Easter Sunday, March 23rd – 8 AM, 9:30 AM, 11 AM, & 12:30 PM.
- Letter From His Excellency, Most Reverend Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio:
“Allow me to express my sincere thanks for your hospitality when I visited the Parish of St. Bernadette to celebrate the Eucharist commemorating the 150th Anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady to St. Bernadette at Lourdes. It was a very enjoyable and spiritually beneficial day for me, and hopefully for all who were able to participate. With the assurance of a remembrance in daily prayer and the celebration of the Eucharist for you, your staff and all the people of St. Bernadette’s, I am, Sincerely in Christ.”
- Liturgical Changes during the upcoming Season of Lent 2008
Since the dates March 17th (St. Patrick) and March 19th (St. Joseph) fall within Holy Week during this coming Lent, please note the following changes which have been made:
- Solemnity of Saint Joseph - Pope Benedict XVI has determined for the Universal Church that this year the Solemnity of Saint Joseph is to be celebrated on Saturday, March 15, 2008.
- Memorial of Saint Patrick - Bishop DiMarzio has determined that in the Diocese of Brooklyn this year, the Memorial of Saint Patrick is to be celebrated on Friday, March 14, 2008. As this is a Friday during Lent, Bishop DiMarzio has also granted a dispensation from abstinence from meat to all those members of the faithful who celebrate this day. It is suggested that those who make use of this disposition substitute another day on which to abstain from meat.
On Monday, March 17th at 7:30 PM this will be the last opportunity for Confession before Easter. There will be no confessions here at St. Bernadette on Holy Saturday, March 22nd, 2008.
Please join us as we offer a Holy Hour Of Prayer on Good Friday and Holy Saturday from 10 AM to 11 AM to Jesus, King of Mercy. It will include recitation of the rosary and the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy, as well as a reading from Blessed Sister Faustina’s Diary, “Divine Mercy in My Soul”.
Will be distributed at each of the Masses on Easter Sunday. To make sure that each family receives ONE bottle, we ask each parishioner who has received a bottle in the past, to bring back the bottle to Church so that we can refill them with new Holy Water. Please give the old bottle to one of the ushers before Mass begins. Remember that the Holy Water is for the family, so, if your family goes to a different Mass on Easter Sunday, please decide who will take the bottle home that day.
The Holy Name Society of St. Bernadette invites all parishioners to join His Excellency, Most Rev. Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio, and many thousands of other faithful, from our neighboring parishes, in The Solemn Candlelight Good Friday Procession. Our Bishop will lead us in prayer, while the statues of “The Dead Christ” and “Our Most Sorrowful Mother” are carried from Shallow Jr. H.S. to St. Finbar’s Church, where a closing ceremony will be held in Italian. Candles and bus service to Shallow Jr. H.S., and from St. Finbar’s, will be provided free by the Holy Name Society. Meet in front of St. Bernadette Rectory on March 21, 2008, at 7:00 PM. Bring your family and friends, young and old, for a traditional and prayerful walk on this most solemn night. If interested, please write your name on the sign-up sheet in the back of the Church.
The donation for the Easter Flower Club is $15.00 per plant or a portion of a bouquet. You may purchase either one or several plants and have them donated in memory of, or for the intentions of someone. At the end of the celebration, we will publish a list of all the intentions into the bulletin. You will also receive a thank-you letter with a small gift, and as a special benefit, you and your intentions will be remembered at a special mass at Easter. You may reserve a plant or bouquet at the Rectory Office at any time.
Easter’s collection will be to support the Senior Priests. Please be as generous as your means will allow.
A collection on Good Friday will be to support the Holy Land. Please be as generous to protect the Holy Places and Christian Shrines.
Wednesday, April 16th at 7:30 PM. More information to follow.
- Pilgrimage to Lourdes & Paris
Celebrate with the Diocese of Brooklyn as we make a Pilgrimage to Lourdes & Paris to remember the 150th Anniversary of Our Blessed Mother’s Apparitions to St. Bernadette in Lourdes: April 21-28, 2008: $2,192 per person. Please pick up an Itinerary in the back of the Church for complete information. - Special Novenas
We will be reciting the Novena Prayers to our Lady of Lourdes and to St. Bernadette after every Sunday and weekday mass, until the end of the Anniversary of Our Lady’s Apparitions to St. Bernadette at Lourdes, which is December 8th, The Feast of the Immaculate Conception. You will find the prayers in the pew holders in front of you. Please return them to the proper place for all to use. - Celebration of Christian Renewal
An extraordinary event comes to Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights. Find hope in the human experience. Friday, April 25th at 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM; Saturday, April 26th 1 PM – 4:30 PM. More information to follow.
Lenten Regulations
- Abstinence
The Church requires all the faithful who have reached their 14th year of age to abstain totally from meat on Ash Wednesday, February 6, 2008 and all Fridays of Lent. - Abstinence
The Church requires all the faithful who have reached their 14th year of age to abstain totally from meat on Ash Wednesday, February 6, 2008 and all Fridays of Lent. - Fasting
All the faithful between the ages of 18 and 59 inclusive are also bound to observe the fasting regulation on Ash Wednesday (February 6, 2008) and Good Friday (March 21, 2008). This practice involves limiting oneself to a single full meal and avoiding food between meals. Light sustenance may also be taken on two other occasions in the course of 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 season, unless for a good reason it is fulfilled at another time during the year. By special indult, in the United States, the time period for fulfilling this precept has been extended to include the period between the First Sunday of Lent (February 10, 2008) to Trinity Sunday (May 18, 2008).
Parish Meetings & Committee News
- Altar Rosary Society
Will be sponsoring the Annual Communion Brunch following the 11:00 AM Mass on Sunday April 13, 2008. Please see the flyers in the back of Church for more information. - Holy Name Society
The meetings are set on the Monday after the second Sunday of the month. - Evangelization Committee
The meeting will be held on Tuesday, March 25, 2008 at 7:30 PM in the lower rectory. The St. Bernadette Evangelization Committee invites you to join them for their weekly prayer group on every Monday night at 7:00 PM in the Rectory. The lectionary readings will be studied and reflected upon. Everyone is welcome! - Outreach Committee
More to follow. - Worship Committee
We look forward to seeing you again in April as we plan our next Youth/Family Mass, date to be determined. Please see our bulletin located in the vestibule of the Church.
Cluster News
- Diocesan Wedding Anniversary
Saturday, April 5, 2008, at Our Lady of Angels Church, located at
7320 Fourth Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11209. Bishop DiMarzio will celebrate the Anniversary Mass at 11:00AM. All couples celebrating their 25th, 30th, 40th, and 50th (and above) wedding anniversaries are invited to attend with their families. The fee remains at $30 per couple. All registered couples will receive a personalized certificate and will be greeted by the Bishop. Please be aware that we will have only one combined celebration for both the Silver and Golden Anniversaries. If you would like to attend, please register at the Rectory Office no later than March 11, 2008.
- Diocesan Alcohol and Substance Abuse Assistance Program
The Diocese of Brooklyn has created a program to provide confidential ongoing assistance to parish and community families who suffer from the effects of alcohol and substance abuse. The program provides counseling, support, treatment and care to those seeking assistance. To connect to a network of services that will help you and your family in addressing this concern, please make a confidential call to the Diocesan Alcohol and Substance Abuse Assistance Program Hotline: 1-800-659-1603. Any one with depression can also call the hotline. For general information, please visit Catholic Charities’ website: www.ccbq.org. - Help the Needy Program
Knights of Columbus John Hughes Council has created the Help the Needy Program in order to collect food clothing and toys to help the less fortunate. Items must be in good condition. Items can be brought to the council between the hours of 10am to 4:30pm and 7:30pm to 10pm, seven days a week. For more information, call John Adesso at (718) 614-2689 or Frank Marzigilano at (718) 533-0491 - Italian Board of Guardians
Located at 7808 18 Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11214 offers Home Companion Services, Counseling Services, Psychological Evaluations and Tutoring Services. Please call 718.232.4242 for more information. - Information for Divorced and Separated Catholics
St. Anslem R.C. Church, 356-82nd Street (Fourth Avenue), Brooklyn, NY 11209, on April 7th, at 7:30pm. Speaker: Father Joseph Grimaldi, Pastor, St. Mark’s Church, Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, NY/Associate Judge of the Diocesan Tribunal. - Senior Citizen Homeowners’ Exemption (SCHE)
Brooklyn-State Senator Martin Golden is encouraging senior homeowners to apply for the Senior Citizen Homeowners’ Exemption (SCHE). Applications are available until March 15, 2008 for the tax year beginning on July 1, 2008. People interested in applying for SCHE can visit the New York City Department of Finance website at www.nyc.gov/finance or call Senator Golden’s office at 718-238-6044 or 718-627-3659, and request a copy of the application be mailed to them. - Make your Voices Heard
The New York State Catholic Bishops have formed a statewide Catholic Advocacy Network of concerned Catholics who want to put their faith into action. Together, we can speak out in support of the poor and vulnerable, the sick and elderly, the unborn, children and families. Our parish encourages you to join this network. There is no cost. The easiest way to join is to go to www.nyscatholic.org to sign up. Or you can send your name, address, phone number and e-mail address to Catholic Advocacy Network, New York State Catholic Conference,
465 State Street, Albany, NY 12203-1004. Be sure to mention you are a member of St. Bernadette parish in the Diocese of Brooklyn. For more information, see the flyers in the back of the church.
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Xaverian High School Parent Circle
Card Party
7100 Shore Road, Brooklyn, NY
Friday, April 11th, 2008,
form 7 PM to 11 PM. The $50 admission includes light refreshments and a value pack of raffle tickets worth $65. Call 718 – 836- 7100 extension 184 for more information.
- Computer for Adult Beginners
6 classes, starting on March 31, 2008, from 5 to 7PM. Tuition is $100. Registration will take place at the Regina Center,
1258 65th Street, Brooklyn, NYon a first come basis. Call the Catholic Migration Office, 718- 236-3000 or email languages4u@cmodob.org.
Fund Raisers
- Memorial Funds
Remember to support St. Bernadette memorial funds next time you need to memorialize a relative or friend. Arrangements can be made through the Rectory to memorialize with bread, wine, altar flowers, altar candle or sanctuary lamp for one week. - Prayer Cards
Available now in the Rectory Office is an assortment of prayer cards for different saints and various special donations. The selection of prayer cards will change depending on the Liturgical season and upcoming feast days. There is a small donation of 25 cents for each card. - St. Bernadette Wall of Remembrance
You can remember your beloved departed with a small cross. The donation for the first year is $200.00 and each additional year is $100.00 The crosses are made from imported wood from Belgium, with the name engraved on a metal plate. There are three ways that the engraving can be made on these plates - “John Doe”, “Mrs & Mrs. John Doe” or “The Doe Family”. Included in this donation will be remembrance each month at the Purgatorial Mass and a special remembrance on All Souls Day. If someone wishes not to re-enroll, we will give them the cross as a keepsake. The cross is placed on the wall with a temporary label, and when the metal plate is engraved, it will be put on the cross. Arrangements can be made through the Rectory Office Monday to Friday from 9am to 4pm. - Box Tops Education
In the vestibule of the church, there is a large box where Box Tops can be dropped off. Find and clip 10¢ Box Tops coupon on hundreds of General Mills, Ziploc and Kleenex products to help St. Bernadette School can earn up to $60,000.00 per year. - 2008 Annual Catholic Appeal
If you have received the Appeal letter in the mail, please return it to the Diocese, making sure that you list St. Bernadette as the parish. If you will be making a pledge, please do so as soon as possible since the Appeal not only helps the Bishop, it also help our Parish. Please be as generous as your means will allow.