Crazy Hair Day

The students at St. Columbkille Catholic School hit another fundraising milestone and got to celebrate Crazy Hair Day today

Our Parking Plan: Next Steps

Over the last year the parish has been able to purchase the four homes to our east.

There is  currently 1 parking space for every 4.4 people at Sunday Masses. Papillion ordinances say there should be one for every 4 people. Many new churches provide one parking spot for every 2-3 worshipers. Under our proposed plan, there would be 1 parking spot for every 2.9 people.

But flow through the parking lot is as important as the number of parking places. That's why this plan expands the number of lanes into our parking lot from 1 to 3 and the number of exit lanes from 2 to 6. We would also like to work with the city to add a turning lane to improve safety.

Our plan goes before the City of Papillion Planning Commission Wednesday at 7 p.m. at City Hall.

One of our neighbors has let us know she is planning to be at the meeting to oppose our plan. We would welcome anyone who would like to attend the meeting to support the plan - particularly if you are a Papillion resident.

After the Planning Commission makes their recommendation, it goes to the City Council. If all goes smooth, the quickest it could be approved is mid December.

Fire Station Field Trip

 Recently students from Sacred Heart Preschool took a

 field trip. They walked to the Papillion Fire Station.

They got a very good view of the truck: inside and out.

Visiting the Fire Station was a lot of fun!

St John Paul II's Gift for Us

Twelve years ago this month, St. John Paul II left us a gift, one of the many treasures he left us during his long pontificate.

This particular gift was given to him when he was a child, and he lovingly passed it on to us to be rediscovered and appreciated anew: the rosary.

In 2002 the pope issued his apostolic letter “Rosarium Virginis Mariae,” the Rosary of the Virgin Mary, and delved into the richness of this traditional prayer. It had become devalued in recent times, the pope wrote, but was the perfect prayer for the new millennium, “destined to bring forth a harvest of holiness.”

At the time, St. John Paul II saw the many challenges faced by families, and throughout the world “the need to implore from God the gift of peace.” The answer, he said, was in the rosary.

Twelve years later, we need the rosary more than ever. Now, after celebrating the newly canonized saint's feast day and during the month of the rosary, let's renew our efforts.

If you have never regularly prayed the rosary, now would be a good time to start. If you have been praying it faithfully, you might consider reading (or re-reading) the apostolic letter, to learn from a master how to unite yourself with Mary to contemplate the face of God.

The rosary, St. John Paul II said, will conform us to Christ and allow us to not just know Jesus’ teaching, but to know Him and proclaim Him.

The pope teaches us that the rosary is not just a “mechanical repetition of formulas” but a way to remember the events of our salvation. “Those events not only belong to ‘yesterday,’” he reminds us, “they are also part of the ‘today’ of salvation.”

And “to ‘remember’ them in a spirit of faith and love is to be open to the grace which Christ won for us by the mysteries of His life, death and resurrection.”

St. John Paul II's writing is eloquent, yet easy to understand, with helpful tips that might enhance you or your family’s prayer.

A few of those suggestions:

-Announce each mystery of the rosary, perhaps even use an icon to portray it.

-Follow with “the proclamation of a related biblical passage, long or short, depending on the circumstances.”

“No other words can ever match the efficacy of the inspired word," he said. "As we listen, we are certain that this is the word of God, spoken for today and spoken ‘for me.’”

-Be silent. Pause and focus attention on the mystery before moving into vocal prayer.

-Then say the Our Father. “After listening to the word and focusing on the mystery, it is natural for the mind to be lifted up towards the Father.”

-Pray the Hail Marys, drawn from the words spoken by Mary to the Angel Gabriel and by Saint Elizabeth, contemplating in adoration the mystery of that decade.

Note that the name of Jesus is the "hinge" between the two parts of the prayer. Reverently pause at His name or add a clause related to the mystery. For example, in the Fifth Joyful Mystery (the finding of our Lord in the temple), you could say: Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus, found in the temple.

-Pray the Gloria (Glory Be), not just as a “perfunctory conclusion,” but to raise your heart and mind “to the heights of heaven.”

Some other things to keep in mind as you pray:

-The beads are more than a counting mechanism. Notice that “the beads converge upon the Crucifix.”

 “The life and prayer of believers is centered upon Christ. Everything begins from Him, everything leads toward Him, everything, through Him, in the Holy Spirit, attains to the Father.”

The beads also “evoke the unending path of contemplation and of Christian perfection.” They are a chain that links us to God, a “sweet chain.”

And for parents who are reluctant to pray the rosary with their children:

“Why not try it? With God’s help, a pastoral approach to youth which is positive, impassioned and creative – as shown by World Youth Days! – is capable of achieving quite remarkable results.”

Alone or with others, give the rosary a try, St. John Paul II encourages us.

“Dear brothers and sisters! A prayer so easy and yet so rich truly deserves to be rediscovered by the Christian community. Let us do so . . .”

Inspired by the Year of Faith, Susan Szalewski began writing weekly columns for us. Although that year is over, we liked them so well that we asked her to keep writing. Thankfully, she said yes. So watch for these on Thursdays and see the Year of Faith Blog here.

Uniforms instead of Uniforms

We're used to seeing the students at St. Columbkille Catholic School wearing uniforms, but not like these.

As a reward for hitting the third level of their fundraiser, students got to enjoy Athlete Dress Up Day.

Congratulations on hitting 

another reward level!

A + B = Mystery

In January we told you about some Girl Scouts who were filming a movie in the Education Center.

The movie is finished.

So those involved with the movie (and their families) recently gathered to watch it together. It also gave them a chance to talk about the process and what they learned from it.

Part of the lesson is that movie making is a lot of work.

 Congratulations on your film!

World Mission Sunday

Today is World Mission Sunday. For an understanding of some of the work the Church is doing, watch the video below:

The Rummage Sale is in Progress

The St. Vincent de Paul Rummage sale began yesterday at 807 Tara Plaza, continues today until 5:00 and finishes tomorrow at 3:00.

All the funds raised go to our St. Vincent de Paul Society. They work to help those in need in our community regardless of their faith.

 So stop by and check it all out in person.

Preparing for Mass

My family has taken on a suggestion on how to more fully participate in Sunday Mass.

We’ve been trying (albeit somewhat haphazardly) to go over the Mass readings ahead of time, to ponder what the Holy Spirit might be saying to us individually, using a prayerful method of spiritual reading called lectio divina.

This involves first praying to the Holy Spirit as we seek His inspiration. Someone reads the passage, with each of us listening for a word or phrase that might jump out at us from the passage. Then we are supposed to reflect further on what that word or phrase means in our own individual lives. (I say “supposed to” because typically all this reflecting and pondering gets a lot of disruptions in my family. But we’re working on it.)

And the goal, of course, is to find our personal message from God, in His Word.

I know my children’s prayer lives have to go beyond rote prayers if they are to develop a personal relationship with God. So this endeavor seemed perfect: a way for them to try to still themselves enough to hear His voice and His unique plans and desires for them.

So far, though, our attempts have been far from perfect. Sometimes a few of us will go over the readings hastily, right before Mass. Ideally, we should have been reading them one at a time, over the course of the preceding week.

Other times, we forget entirely, and examine the readings after Mass, on Sunday evenings. And at best we’ve done this with only three or four people, not the entire household. Still working on that.

Last Sunday seemed like another miserable attempt. Again, we had forgotten until Sunday evening. And the gathering ended up just two people – me and a 7-year-old, David, sitting in our van in a high school parking lot.

We had dropped two boys off at a basketball practice when I suddenly remembered our forgotten duty. I pulled out a monthly Magnificat prayer magazine I keep in my purse, which contains Mass readings for each day. And I tried to choose the easiest reading for a first-grader.

David listened as I read the brief passage from St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians: “. . . I have learned the secret of being well fed and of going hungry, of living in abundance and of being in need. I can do all things in Him Who strengthens me.”

“Stop!” David yelled. “Strengthens.”

That was the word that jumped out for him, and I didn’t read any further. “Okay,” I said. “Why don’t we just memorize that whole line, ‘I can do all things in Him Who strengthens me.’?”

 I offered him a reward if he could do it.

We took the sentence apart bit by bit to help: “I can do all things … in Him … Who strengthens me.”

We had errands to do, so we drove off. As we went on, I would say each phrase and David would repeat it after me – over and over again. “I can do all things . . . in Him . . . Who strengthens me.”

By the time we were through with our errands, he pretty much had it memorized, though I still needed to prompt him with the first words. But good enough, I told him. And we splurged with a McDonald’s meal.

I tested him a couple more times this week, and he has mostly remembered the words. His older brother, Paul, overheard us, and I challenged him to create a picture illustrating the quote that would be worthy of framing and hanging on a wall. He came up with ideas immediately.

The most unexpected thing, however, has been how St. Paul’s words have been working on me as they come back to me from time to time. It’s been a busy, overwhelming week, and more than once I’ve thrown an all-out pity party for myself.

But then God reminds me what real problems and suffering look like.

And I remember: “I can do all things in Him Who strengthens me.”

Inspired by the Year of Faith, Susan Szalewski began writing weekly columns for us. Although that year is over, we liked them so well that we asked her to keep writing. Thankfully, she said yes. So watch for these on Thursdays and see the Year of Faith Blog here.

The Visual Gospel

This year's BASIC (Beginning Apologetic Studies in Catholicism) has been focused upon the Visual Gospel. Friday night was the second session which Fr Vogel has been leading with the help of his sister Rachel.

We live in a culture where a superabundance of visual and audio experiences flood everyday life, many of which are neither beautiful nor Christian. In such a visual culture the time is ready to rediscover the power sacred art has to speak truth through beauty. Sacred art is not a consumer product of visual entertainment, but serves to awaken, to teach, and to nourish faith.
 

Fr Vogel pointed out the elements of this image which make it special ...

 ... but he did not speak highly of the above image of the crucifixion.

Below is a recording of the last session.