Christ the King Church
195A Brandon Road
Pleasant Hill, CA 94523
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Parish Newsletter
April 13, 2022
Staying Connected
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Dear Friends,
On Sunday we begin the season of Easter. In the prayers of the Liturgy and in the Word of God proclaimed in our churches during this time, we will hear and celebrate the themes of passing from death to life, from darkness to light, from blindness to sight, and from alienation to restoration. Christ is risen from the dead and, with Him, we are offered the hope of resurrection, new life and new hope. This is a powerful hope, and it comes to us this year in the context of a world and a society that cries out for this kind of transformation and renewal.
The greatest feast of Christianity comes during the saddest days in our history. For the last two months the people of Ukraine have walked through a real way of the Cross. They continue to be on the Mount Calvary. Hundreds have been killed. Young and old and even the children have been mercilessly killed. Dark days.
As we look around us, we are aware of and touched by troubling realities. We see more refugees and migrant peoples on the move than at any point in history, fleeing oppression, persecution, and violence. Some of us carry with us the scars of the pandemic, the loss of our loved ones. In the face of these and other painful realities of our lives, we dare to celebrate Easter and, the hope, wonder and transformation that Jesus will continue to bring into our world, if we let Him!
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The message today is resurrection, a new world. The message from the empty tomb is not one of vengeance, not violence, not despair: it is one of hope. It is one of victory of light over darkness; the victory of good over the evil.
This Easter, each of us can bring the power of Christ’s Resurrection into our world by standing against the powers of oppression and fear. Where there is violence, we can sow peace. Where there is hatred, we can sow love. Where there is sadness, we can sow joy. Where there is harassment, we can sow respect. Everywhere in our lives, there are incredible chances to witness to the Easter miracle.
I am proud of our communities of St. Stephen and CTK. We have lived this message of hope. We have lived through a couple of years not knowing how long we would be able to sustain our communities through prayer and worship. We faced many challenges, interruption of regular activities, indoor masking and so much more. Through it all, our staff, ministers, and our leaders remained resilient and persevering. Our communities are stronger and better.
Faced with the realities of suffering and war, natural and man-made disasters, we have stepped up as Christ demanded us (Matthew 25). Just last week we sent $40,000 to the Church of Ukraine. During the past two years of the pandemic we raised over $300,000 for St. Vincent de Paul to support the poor and needy in our neighborhoods, through food and rental assistance. We have reached out to Haiti, Louisiana and other people of our world distributing over $50,000 this year. I am so grateful for you. We are an Easter people, and we offer hope.
Happy Easter!
Fr. Paulson
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Holy Thursday - April 14
7pm Mass
No 9am Morning Mass
St. Stephen Church - 7pm Mass
Good Friday - April 15
12pm - Taize Prayer Around the Cross
1pm - Stations of the Cross
1:40pm - Preaching on the Passion
2pm & 6pm- Liturgy of the Lord’s Passion
No 9am Morning Mass
St. Stephen Church - Outdoor Stations of the Cross - 6pm
Easter Vigil - Saturday - April 16
7:30pm Mass
No 9am Morning Mass
St. Stephen Church - 7:30pm Mass
Easter Sunday Masses - April 17
7:30am, 9:00am, 10:30am, 12noon
(In the church)
10:30am - Children/Family Mass - Outdoors
(Please bring your own chairs for this outdoor Mass).
No 4pm Mass on Easter Sunday
St. Stephen Church - 9:30am Mass
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Links To Our Holy Week Services |
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Links to our services (live or archived) can be found at ctkph.org
or clicking the Facebook or YouTube images below.
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CTK’s Easter Egg Hunt is back!
The Knights of Columbus are
holding their annual CTK
Easter Egg hunt on Saturday, April 16th
On CTK’s Lawn
Join us for a morning of fun and excitement on the lawn. The Easter Bunny will be arriving at 10am and the Easter Egg Hunt will follow our usual schedule: 10am for 1-4 year olds, 10:30am for 5-7 year olds and 11am for 8-10 year olds. Bring your Easter baskets, get a picture with the Easter Bunny, participate in the Easter egg hunt and enjoy some light refreshments and games as we celebrate Easter weekend.
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Time to Return your CRS Rice Bowls |
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Please Return Your
CRS Rice Bowls!
You can drop off your CRS Rice Bowls in the baskets located in the back of the church.
Please drop them off this week.
Please do not drop them off on Easter Sunday.
Thank you for your support!
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Dear Religious Education Families,
An early Happy Easter greeting to each of you! We look forward to celebrating the Triduum this week, and Jesus Resurrection this weekend with all of you!
Easter provides us opportunities to celebrate. Here are two specific events to add to your calendar. First is our Outdoor Religious Education Family Mass, at 10:30 AM, on Easter Sunday. Student actors will present the events of Easter morning in pantomime, as the gospel is being read. It’s a fun way to learn and connect with the gospel of Jesus Resurrection! Read More
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Our Parish Office will be closed on Monday, April 18th for Easter Monday. Normal office hours resume on Tuesday, April 19.
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Support for Ukrainian Refugees |
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Donate Supplies for Ukraine
As we focus this year on one family, one community, let us remember our dear neighbors in Ukraine and the surrounding areas that are suffering at this time.
Join us, as a CTK community, to mobilize in this critical hour of need, in providing humanitarian aid to the war victims and refugees. To do our part, we have partnered up with the non-profit organization White Pony Express in Pleasant Hill, and are now collecting items for the most requested supplies and goods. WPE will ship these items to trusted organizations serving the millions of refugees that have fled Ukraine.
For a comprehensive list, visit: here
Donated supplies must be new and may be dropped off in the designated bin, located in front of the school by noon on Thursday, April 14.
On Holy Thursday, April 14, at 12:30pm, we will be hosting a community building family event, for those interested in getting involved even more! We will be categorizing and boxing the items to be picked up by WPE. Let’s take this opportunity to serve and give to our global community.
For more information, please contact Sofia Gonzalez 415-930-3562 and/or Eileen Brinker 415-994-2060.
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Congratulations to Maria Tiongson and Wilson Lam who had their marriage blessed in the church. |
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Parents: Francesca & Simone
Baby: Leonardo Gioele
Congratulations to Leonardo who was baptized on Saturday. Welcome to the CTK and St. Stephen Community.
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Weekly Reflections On Sunday Readings |
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Welcome to our weekly reflections on
the Sunday Scriptures.
Easter Sunday
Peter presented the Risen Christ to the people as an authentic prophet, who came to continue the work of previous prophets, those faithful spokespersons of God’s word. But he went on to say that in Jesus God had announced the good news of peace—that Yahweh had reconciled humankind with himself, once and for all. Read More
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Italian Catholic Federation |
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ICF Meeting and Spring Potluck Luncheon
April 24 at 1pm
Parishioners and guests of both Christ the King and St. Stephen’s parishes are invited to come to the next meeting of our Pleasant Hill branch of the Italian Catholic Federation. Did you know you do not have to be Italian to join the Italian Catholic Federation? We are a Catholic organization that has celebrated faith, family, and heritage since 1924. We support our parishes and our communities through our charitable activities and enjoy fellowship in a Catholic Christian context. Come and see what we are all about!
Our April meeting and potluck lunch will be held at 1 PM on Sunday, April 24 in the parish hall, Rooms A and B. Bring an entree, salad, or dessert to share for lunch and a drink if you want something besides 7-up or ice water. Hope to see you there! Any questions? Contact, Ann Consul: anniebanana724@yahoo.com.
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We have an easy way to give! You can scan this QR Code and it will take you to our safe and secure Realm Site where it will lead you to a convenient way to give. Or you can text CTKPH to 73256. Thank you for your generosity!
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To donate a one-time/on-line donation for Easter |
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If you do not wish to give on-line,
you can continue to contribute using your offertory envelopes.
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Offertory Envelopes and
Paper Checks
Can be sent directly to:
Christ the King Church
195A Brandon Rd.
Pleasant Hill, CA 94523
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Offertory Envelopes and
Paper Checks
Can be sent directly to:
St. Stephen Church
1101 Keaveny Ct.
Walnut Creek, CA 94597
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Worship Aids for Holy Week |
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St. Stephen Church - Masses |
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St. Stephen Church
1101 Keaveny Ct.
Walnut Creek 94597
Easter Vigil Saturday - Mass at 7:30pm
Easter Sunday - Mass at 9:30am
Worship Aide for the Holy Triduum can be found here
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Easter Sunday
On Easter Sunday the Church celebrates the Resurrection of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ from the dead, the greatest feast of the liturgical year. For this purpose Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was sent into the world. Through the celebration of this feast Christians also anticipate the resurrection of their own glorified bodies at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. It is customary for Christians to joyfully proclaim to one another, “He is risen!” with the response, “He is risen, indeed!”
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"To Hear the Gospel and Make a Difference" |
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