St. Paul's Church, Candia, NH

January 21, 2007
3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Weekend Mass Intentions
Saturday, January 20
    6:00 PM For Parishioners of St. Paul
Sunday, January 21
    9:30 AM For Julie Boisvert by Richard and Madeleine Bilodeau
Saturday, January 27
   6:00 PM   For Parishioners of St. Paul
Sunday, January 28
   9:30 AM For Lucille St. Onge by Donald & Martgueritte Martineau

Parish News and Notes

Parish office hours
    Our parish office is open Monday through Thursday from 8:30 AM to 12:30 PM. The Pastoral Associate is in most afternoons until 4:00 PM. If you need to come in the PM please give us a call to make sure someone is here. Messages can always be left on the answering machine.

Are you registered?
     Are you new to our parish?   If you are, please pick up a registration form in the vestibule of the church. Registration is very important. Just drop it in the basket or mail it to our office. Thanks! We are always happy to receive new parishioners. We welcome you and pray you will be happy here with us.

Please use church envelopes
    Envelope users provide the bedrock of our financial support. Please consider using them. New packets of envelopes are mailed every three months. If you would like to receive some but you are not yet on the mailing list, please call Jeannine to give her your name and address. Thank you!

Envelope Request Form

____ I want to support our parish on a regular basis. Please add me to the envelope list.

Name ______________________________
Address___________________________
Town ________________,NH Zip ________

Update on Parish Income

Weekend of January 14, 2007
St. Paul, Candia
Envelopes   $1551
Loose           367
Credit    75
Total    1993

Donation    $150.00

Last weekend envelope users contributed 82% of our income.
(Amount tithed for the poor and needy: $119.56)

Thank You so much for your Generosity.

Generations of Faith – Resumed
We are now in the second semester of our Christian Formation Program. Between now and the month of April, we will be meeting every second Sunday of the Month, here at St. Paul. We cannot emphasize the importance of attendance at these monthly classes. Perhaps the most important facet of the program is the attendance of the parents. The presence of the parents accomplishes two major goals in our formation. One, it helps adults to refresh or perhaps learn for the first time, the teachings of the church to which we belong. Seeing things from an adult perspective helps us to see and understand our faith anew, helping us to live it with renewed zest and passion. The second goal is to teach our children that our Faith is important enough for us to go out of our way to learn more. Our act of presence teaches them more than we can possibly imagine. See you this afternoon.

Trinity High School Admissions Exam
Trinity High School will host an Admissions Exam for 8th graders and transfer students on January 27th from 8:30 to 11:30 am. The doors open at 8:15 am. Pre-registration is required. You may do so by downloading the Admissions Exam form from our website at www.trinity-hs.org and mailing it to Trinity High School, Admissions Office, 581 Bridge Street, Manchester, NH 03104, or by calling the Admissions Office at 668-1779 to register or with any questions you have.

Electronic Offering:
Our Parish is now able to take your offertory donations through Credit or Debit card. If you wish to make you contribution in this manner, simply fill in the following and return to our office.

*****************************************
Name on Card___________________________________
Address________________________________________
Please Check: ______MasterCard ______Visa
______Debit MasterCard _____Debit Visa
Card Number:____________________________________
Expiration:_________________Amount:_______________
How often do you want this transaction to occur?
____One time _____Weekly_____Bi-Weekly ______Monthly

Signature:________________________________________
Email___________________________________________

Christian Formation News

2006-2007 Schedule (click here)

Grades K – High School
If you have children of age for Religious Education, please remember to pick up a registration form for Religious Education for the coming year. All children from grade K – the end of Confirmation must register. The registration does not roll over from one year to the next. You can pick up a form in the back of the church or you can visit the parish office Monday – Thursday during office hours or give us a call at 483-8481 and ask us to mail you a form. We would be happy to do this

Grades K- 3 Classes for children in these grades has resumed on the weekend of September 16/17.

Grades 4 – 10 + Last year we initiated a new program for the children in these grade levels. The classes are held once a month and the program is geared to the entire family. Parents are strongly urged to attend the sessions as there is an adult component to the program which helps them to deepen their knowledge of the faith as well as making it possible for them to compliment the practice of the faith in the home. Our first class was held on Sunday, October 15, 2006. Our next class is scheduled for February 11th. This year, the classes will be held from 4:00 – 6:00 pm here at St. Paul’s. 2006-2007 Schedule (click here)

Question of the Week
3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
Theme: (One in the Spirit)
Reading Nehemiah 8:1-10(The Law of God )
Reading 1 Cor. 12: 12-30 (We Are Many Parts)
Gospel: Luke 1:1-4; 4:14-21 (The Fulfillment of Scripture)

Question for Adults: How can I immerse myself in the Scriptures in order that they might become a living part of my life? There are several ways of immersing oneself in Scripture. Probably the least practical and least likely to help someone who is searching for a way to have them become a living part of their life is by simply buying a Bible and proceeding to read the Bible from cover to cover. This practice is often adopted by people who are very sincere but it is not a wise move for the long haul. One can easily become discouraged by the sheer length of the book and by the detail and difficult names of the Hebrew Scripture.
    What then can we do to immerse ourselves? There are several steps one can take if is serious about this practice. First of all, it is always advisable to seek advice or council from a priest or spiritual director in order to have some idea of where to start. Secondly, it is always wise to become informed on Scripture interpretation. This can be done on your own by reading books written by Scripture scholars or it can be done by attending a Bible Study group.
    Thirdly and most importantly, one must take the time on a regular basis, to read and reflect on what is written as it applies to daily life. The Scriptures are inspired by God precisely for the reason, i.e. to be a living word for all people of all ages. The Gospels are always a good and safe place to begin since we are more familiar with them.

Question for Children? What are my favorite stories from the Bible, and what do they teach me? The answers you will hear from your children will differ according to their ages and years they have attended Religious Education classes. If you, as a family, have the practice of reading Bible stories to your children, the children will have more of a store to choose from. Be sure to discuss what they learn from these stories. Children often get caught up in the adventure and forget the lesson.
    If your child is completely baffled by this question, perhaps you may want to begin the practice of reading stories from a Children’s Bible. There are many good books available for children.

Community News

A Look at Upcoming Events

St. Anthony – Open House
    St. Anthony School, located on 148 Belmont St. in Manchester will be holding an Open House on Sunday, January 28th from 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. You will have an opportunity to tour the school and visit with our faculty, staff, students and parents from our PSO Group. St. Anthony is a Pre-Kindergarten through 6th Grade Elementary School offering transportation from as far as the Raymond and Candia Area. We offer a Before School
Program and an After School Program. For more information visit us on the web at www.stanthonyschool-nh.com or call 622-0414.

Holy Family Academy, a private school located in Manchester, NH, provides a classical education in the Roman Catholic tradition for students in grades 7 – 12. The Academy will be having an Open House for prospective students on Sunday, Dec. 3, 2006 at 2:00 PM. Come and hear about the Academy’s program of excellence in classical education and solid formation in the Catholic faith. Holy Family Academy is currently accepting qualified students for the 2007-2008 academic year.

Workshop on Autism: A Question of Morality for the Christian
    One of every 166 children in this country will be diagnosed with some degree of Autism. This affects every family and extended family member.
    The NH Diocesan Council of Catholic Women invites all women to join them for a morning of fellowship and information on this topic. January 27, 2007 at St. Pius X, Candia Rd., Manchester, NH will host a meeting beginning at 9:30 am. The guest speaker will be Elizabeth Webster. Her focus will be “Autism Awareness: Understanding the Spectrum of Autism.” There will be a brief meeting for the women’s club following the talk. An questions, call Deb Blais at 524-2909 or Helene Beauregard at 335-5999 or e-mail HELENEB@METROCAST.NET.

St. Thomas Aquinas School Registration
    St. Thomas Aquinas School in Derry announces its registration for the school year 2007-2008 for Grades 1-8. Registration will be held during the month of January. If you would like a tour of the school, you may come in any Tuesday or Thursday in January between 9am and 1pm. Kindergarten registration will take place on Wednesday, January 31 from 7:30 am – 2:00 pm in the school basement. Registration fee for Kindergarten and for grades 1-8 is $40.00 per child non-refundable. For further information please call the school office at 432-2712 (grades 1-8) or the Kindergarten at 437-6651 or check our website at www.staderry.com.

News from the CYA (Catholic Young Adults)
    The CYA group now meets the 2nd Wednesday of each month. If you are between the ages of 20-39, please join us at our next meeting at St. Paul’s Church from 6:30-8:00 pm.

Attention Married Couples!
    Ah yes, the calm, quiet, comforting holiday season! What? That’s not happening in your house? Perhaps you should consider a weekend away! Join us on Valentines’ weekend (Feb. 9-11, 2007) for an opportunity to rejuvenate your relationship. Register now to claim your space! Register at: registration@wwmenh.org.

Time to Think of Summer Camps!
    “Camp Fatima for boys and Camp Bernadette for girls are taking registrations for their summer sessions. For more information contact, Michael Drumm, (603)364-5851, PO Box 206 Gilmanton I.W., NH 03837, mdrumm@diocamps.org, or visit our website at www.diocamps.org. Don’t wait as sessions are filling up quickly.

Tapes and CDs Available
    If any of you are interested in listening to good spiritual material, you are invited to check the vestibule of the church for tapes and CDs that are available. The good news is that they are FREE. The producers of this material do this as a ministry in order that we are able to benefit from their work. We received these from a generous parishioner who is willing to share her findings. The topics include talks on the Sacraments, Conversion, The Rosary etc. You can keep it as long as you want to and you can feel free to pass them on to friends or neighbors you think would appreciate them.

CURRENT PRAYER REQUESTS

Please remember the following people and intentions in your daily prayers:

Our sick parishioners and friends…

Please pray for the following people: ..Stephen and Charlie Doucette, Betty Lintz, Cecile Gendron, Lori Aguilera, Kimberly Mirolo, Rita Sullivan, Kathy Gauthier, Jean Swindler, Roger Plante, Joseph Gesel, Jacob Desrocher, Cindy Huard, Deborah McGovern, Ethel Thomas, Gordon Gladden and Carol Sheperd

For peace in the world, especially in the Middle East…
For those serving in the armed forces...
For families experiencing stress due to financial, emotional or relational problems
For our sister parish in Haiti...
For vocations to full-time ministry, especially the priesthood, the deaconate, religious life lay ministry...

If you would like to add a person or intention, please let us know. If people on the sick list are no longer in need of prayers, please let us know.