What's Happening During a Pandemic
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While we are "Safer At Home" our weekly newsletter is changing format
to help you during this challenging time.
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Spiritual Meanderings During a Pandemic
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DELIVERANCE PRAYER FOR USE BY THE LAITY
In His name and by the power of His Cross and Blood, I ask Jesus to bind any evil spirits, forces, and powers of the earth, air, fire, or water, of the netherworld and the satanic forces of nature. By the power of the Holy Spirit and by His authority, I ask Jesus Christ to break any curses, hexes, or spells and to send them back where they came from, if it be His Holy Will. I ask You, Lord Jesus to protect us by pouring Thy Precious Blood on us and our families, which You have shed for us and I ask Thee to command that any departing spirits leave quietly, without disturbance and go straight to the Cross to be disposed of as Thou sees fit. I ask Thee to bind any demonic interaction, interplay, or communications. I place (name a person, place, or thing) under the protection of the Blood of Jesus Christ which He shed for us. Amen.
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Palm Sunday
**Per Archdiocesan guidelines, we will NOT be handing out palms either Saturday or Sunday.**
Weather permitting, I will hear confessions on Sunday at the St. Francis Shrine from 9:00 - 11:00 a.m.
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Your donations are needed and will help us
continue to operate during these unsettling times.
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WORD AMONG US
The parish office has copies of the new April Word Among Us. It covers the period from Easter Sunday through May 31. The cost is $2.00 per copy. If you are uncomfortable or unable to come to the office in person, please send us a check for $5.00 and we will mail a copy to you.
Call 414-321-1965 if you have any questions, Monday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. and Friday, 8:00 a.m. until Noon.
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During this time when many of us are spending more time at home, consider the following as a way to continue the practice of the faith:
- Spend time praying the Rosary with your family.
- Read/Pray over the Mass readings for the day (in “The Word Among Us” or “Magnificat” or on the USCCB website.
- Pray for all of those affected by the Coronavirus as well as those who care for them.
We rely on our faith when faced with challenging times like this. We place our trust in our merciful Father who never fails to take care of us.
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Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord
April 4/5, 2020
We begin this Holy Week with the reading of the Lord's Passion from the Gospel of Matthew. It is fitting that during this week, we intensely focus our minds and hearts on the steps of our Savior as He laid down His very life for us. But let us also examine the seemingly small acts of stewardship by some who encountered Jesus during this most eventful week.
One occurred when Jesus gave instructions about the room where He would celebrate the Passover. Jesus said, "Go into the city to a certain man and tell him…" 'In your house, I shall celebrate the Passover with my disciples.'" While we do not know this man's name, we do know he agreed to this request; he shared the material gift of his home and the gift of hospitality. Because of his good stewardship, his own home became the site of the institution of the Eucharist!
There was also Simon the Cyrenian, who offered the gift of his physical strength, helping the Lord to carry His Cross. Consider, too, the actions of Joseph of Arimathea; he generously shared a material gift of the tomb that was his, and he gave the gift of service to our Lord by giving Him a proper burial. Then there were the "two Marys" who gave Jesus the gift of their time. Keeping watch in a tender vigil after His death, they "remained sitting there, facing the tomb."
Each of these was simple acts of good stewardship, yet God used them in mighty ways. God invites each of us, too, to cooperate with Him in small ways through the sharing of our time, talents, and material gifts. Small gifts can become mighty deeds when placed in God's service.
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Measuring Spiritual Growth and
Parish Engagement
Survey open until April 5.
As of March 31, we have had 167 people take the Disciple Maker Index survey online and an additional 76 paper surveys turned into the parish office. This gives us a total of 243 surveys completed. The numbers are getting better, but we still have over 2,000 members eligible to take the survey (over age 18).
This survey is designed to help you grow in your relationship with Jesus Christ and become more engaged in our parish. By answering the questions in the 15-minute survey, you will have the chance to reflect on individual spiritual growth as well as provide our parish leadership with invaluable insight into our parish strengths and opportunities. This will allow St. John’s to set priorities and allocate resources in the years ahead.
There are two ways to participate. There is a convenient online survey that you can take at home. There is a link on our parish website or you can
click here
. Click on the link and first select the Archdiocese of Milwaukee then St. John the Evangelist Parish, Greenfield, from the options provided.
There are also paper surveys in the narthex. Contact the parish office if you would like a survey in a language other than English. The survey deadline has been extended to April 5.
The survey is completely confidential. St. John’s will not receive any individual survey responses.
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Our Unusual Journey and the Need for Prayer
Of course, school is still closed. As I told you last week, our teachers have stepped up to the challenge.
Our third and fourth graders work in the Google Classroom platform. This allows them to provide their students with online lessons, challenges, and video meetings all in one online area. Although these students are accustomed to logging into Chromebooks at school, adjusting to using the tools from home has brought some unique struggles. I’m lucky to join these meetings now and then. I am so impressed by the desire to learn and engage on the part of these students. With daily support from their families, our middle graders relish every opportunity to share what they are learning, building, and exploring outside of our traditional classroom setting.
Our third and fourth graders are blessed to have a special relationship with the sisters who live at Our Lady of the Angels - a facility for elderly nuns on the grounds of Clement Manor. These students so look forward to their monthly walks over to visit with our sister friends, even in the middle of winter. So while they are learning from home, we are encouraging these students to practice their writing skills communicating with their sister friends through the US mail. What a great way to maintain these precious relationships while learning!
This experience in distance learning is truly a marathon. Please keep our SJE family in your prayers as we stay the course!
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Safe at Home and Being a Blessing!
Mary Laidlaw-Otto, Principal
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CDs from Augustine Institute
Did you know we have CDs (and other items) located in the narthex? Each week we will highlight one of the available CDs.
Cost is $4 each.
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Saint John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI, and Pope Francis have made it clear that Divine Mercy is at the very center of the Christian faith. In this talk, best-selling author Vinny Flynn shares his 7 Secrets of Divine Mercy, and Christ’s message of love for each of us, and for the whole world.
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With public celebrations of Mass being canceled over the next few weeks, SCRIP is still available at the parish office during regular business hours. However we have some materials available if you would like to set up an online account.
Our enrollment code is
18DE7D4F11822. Once you have an online account you can pay by direct debit from your checking account (Presto Pay), by credit card, or by check here in the parish office. If we do not have the item in stock we will order on Monday and have the cards by Thursday. Once you have the physical card you can enroll it in your "wallet" and reload it as needed.
These are unprecedented times, but with your help we can keep this fundraising effort viable.
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to call the parish office at 414-321-1965.
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This program allows .5% of your shopping on Amazon to be donated to St. John the Evangelist.
If you purchase Scrip, St. John's receives an additional 2.25%. That's 2.75% of your purchases to St. John's if you are already shopping Amazon.
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The newsletter is published on Wednesdays. Articles for each week's publication are due on Mondays at noon.
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"Remember God's Will in Yours!"
Please keep the needs of St. John the Evangelist in mind as you do your estate planning. For information on how to include the parish as a beneficiary, contact the Parish Office at 414-321-1965.
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