PRECIOUS BLOOD

CATHOLIC CHURCH 3306 Fenmore Street, Owensboro, KY 42301 Website: Precious-blood.net

270-684-6888 FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT DECEMBER 20, 2020

For ever I will sing the goodness of the Lord. Ps 89

Our Mission: We are a Catholic Community of Faith, called to be Jesus to all people, Striving to live the message through the Eucharist and the sharing of our time, talent and treasure.

FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT DECEMBER 20, 2020

ASSISTED LIVING: Please remember Nancy Best, Clara Gilles, Doug Howard, Shirley Jarboe, Barbara Mingus, Mary Ann Postlewaite, Debbie Sapp, JB Smith and Lois Sims

MASS INTENTIONS: December 22-27 Tues. 7:00a.m Donna Kamuf Wed. 6:00p.m. Dave & Ima Axley Dec Thur. 4:00p.m. Alfred & Alice Gilmore Family 7:00p.m. Robert & Frances O’Bryan Sr. Dec. Fri. 8:00a.m. Charlie Ebelhar Dec. 10:30a.m. James Lee Dec. . Sat. 5:00p.m.. Joe Westerfield Dec. Sun. 8:00a.m. Parish Family 10:30a.m. Marion Roby Dec. STEWARDSHIP OF TREASURE Financial information for December 13, 2020 was not available at the time of printing. STEWARDSHIP THOUGHT FOR THE WORD When he discovered that Mary was with child, Joseph resolved to end their engagement with as little disgrace as possible. But obedient to the voice of God, he changed those plans and became instead the protector of the child Jesus and his mother Mary. God grant that I may be as open to the leading of the Holy Spirit!

SPECIAL PRAYERS: Please remember Jamie Berry, Kay Berry’s son-in-law, Nelda Bickwermert’s daughter, Joe Bit-tel, Jerry Blandford, Ron Boarman, Erin Borland’s mother Donna Kamuf, Sharon Bumm’s mother, Mary Kittinger and her brother James Lee, Gene Bunch, Kathy Carr, Mary June Cecil and her son, Sydney Clouse, Guy Connor, Bill & Rita Elder, Eric Fulkerson, Angela Gentry, Libby Girten, Harold Hall, Tonya Hamilton’s friend, Mary Hartz and her husband Dean Hartz, Liz Hawkins, Earl Hayden, Jim Head, Marie Hester, Janie Howard’s brother, Ray and Marianne Jones grandson Mike Jones Robert Johnson’s mother, Randall Jones, Sandra Kimmel Jones mother JoAnn Kimmel and San-dra's cousin Ramona Hoffman Rowland Kenny Kelley, ruth and Kenny Kelly’s daughter Mitzi, Janet Lawrence, Jess and Theresa Lowe, Donna Mason, Carolyn McDaniel’s uncle, Ma-mie McDaniel’s great niece, Barbara Magan, Jordon McIn-tosh, Charlene Meadows, Anna Carol Murphy & her daugh-ter Oleta, Gary Murphy’s brother, Mary Murphy, Karen Os-borne’s mother, Vickie Osborne and her brother, Janie Payne, Mary Edna Payne, Sandra Posey, Tony Powers, Ally-son Renfrow, Carol Riney’s sister, Gene Roberts, Doris Schrecker, Leo Schwartz, Sandra Self, b Slack, Ed Sullivan’s brother, Lillian Taylor, Mike Thompson, Mary Ellen Van-Vactor and her brother, Glenn Young, Dorothy Wathen’s daughter, Otis & Rita Webb’s daughter and Joyce Young’s friend .

HELP OFFICE

December is Precious Blood’s month to help furnish food for the Help Office. Your non-perishable food items can be placed in the baskets at church.

FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT DECEMBER 20, 2020

Happy and joy-filled Christmas: On that first Christmas, the angels praised God, saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth to men of goodwill." The shepherds came and adored the newborn Savior. St. Luke wrote, "And Mary treasured all of these things and reflected on them in her heart." We too need to pause and treasure the gift of Christmas in our hearts. And that gift is simply Jesus, true God who became true man, who came to perfectly reveal God's truth and love to us. I treasure the gift of you and the dedication, sacrifices, and hard work you have shown to make this parish a beacon of Christ's love. I thank those who serve in the various ministries and committees. On

behalf of Sr. Rosanne, Ray Jones, Jennifer Hawes, Michael Langdon, and Mike Howard, I wish each of you a blessed and joyous Christmas. Please be assured of my prayers for your intentions and remembrance at Holy Mass. May the peace, joy, and love of Christmas fill your hearts and minds.

Christmas Shopping: We buy presents, buy gifts, buy for ourselves, for our loved ones, friends during Christmas. We may tend to think that commercialism has made Christmas into a great shopping event. But guess who started this "shopping for Christmas"? If you were to ask me, I would say that it was those wise men, and what they bought was not cheap stuff. In those days, gold, frankincense, and myrrh were commodities of great value. So, they "shopped" for those things to present them to the infant king of the Jews. And they may not have gone shopping with their wives. Otherwise, there would be more than three gifts. If their wives had gone along shopping with them, then probably there would be diapers and milk powder for the baby, and essence of chicken and birds’ nest for the mother. So, there it is, the origins of Christmas shopping and it has not stopped ever since.

Read this beauty of Pope Francis: Christmas is usually a noisy party: we could use a bit of silence, to hear the voice of Love. “Christmas is you when you decide to be born again each day and let God into your soul. The Christmas pine is you when you resist vigorous winds and difficulties of life. The Christmas decorations are you when your virtues are colors that adorn your life. The Christmas bell is you when you call, gather, and seek to unite. You are also a Christmas light when you illuminate with your life the path of others with kindness, patience, joy, and generosity. The Christmas angels are you when you sing to the world a message of peace, justice, and love. The Christmas star is you when you lead someone to meet the Lord. You are also the wise men when you give the best you have no matter who. Christmas music is you when you conquer the harmony within you. The Christmas gift is you when you are truly the friend and brother of every human being. The Christmas card is you when kindness is written in your hands. The Christmas greeting is you, when you forgive and reestablish peace, even when you suffer.

The three orders: A Jesuit, a Dominican, and a Franciscan were walking along an old road, debating the greatness of their orders. Suddenly, an apparition of the Holy Family appeared in front of them, with Jesus in a manger and Mary and Joseph praying over him. The Franciscan fell on his face, overcome with awe at the sight of God born in such pov-erty. The Dominican fell to his knees, adoring the beautiful reflection of the Trinity and the Holy Family. The Jesuit walked up to Joseph, put his arm around his shoulder, and said, "So, have you thought about where to send him to school?

God's blessings

Fr. Suneesh Mathew

Psalm 16: You Are My Inheritance O Lord

FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT DECEMBER 20, 2020

THE WEEK AHEAD TUESDAY , December 22nd Mass 7:00am Parish Staff Meeting 10:00am WEDNESDAY, December 23rd Communion to the Homebound: 9:00am Adoration & Confession: 5:00-5:45pm Mass 6:00pm THURSDAY, December 24th Christmas Eve Mass: 4:00pm and 7:00pm Parish Office Closed FRIDAY, December 25th Christmas Day Mass: 8:00am and 10:30am Parish Office Closed SATURDAY, December 26th Feast of Saint Stephen, The First Martyr Confessions: 4:00-4:45 pm Mass: 5:00 pm SUNDAY, December 27th Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph Masses: 8:00am, 10:30 am

WHAT’S YOUR CATHOLIC IQ?

1) The Blessed Virgin Mary was visited by the Angel Ga-briel to prepare her for the birth of the Son of God. Who else received an angelic visit? a) Elizabeth b) Joseph c) John the Baptist

2) Candy canes symbolize___? A) the shepherds who visited the Christ child b) the sacrifice (red stripes) and the purity (white stripes) of Christ c) the body of Christ when it is broken and shared d) all of the above

Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.”

On the Second Sunday of Advent we noted that “John [The Baptist] was just being John.” He discerned God’s will for him and he did it. Now we hear about “Mary just being Mary,” a young teenager in a tiny hamlet on a crag-gy hilltop in the northern region of Galilee. Mary heard a message from God so amazing she wondered how it could happen. But she realized it was God’s will for her and she consented. There were many details and conse-quences she could not know, but she said “Yes!” to be the human mother of God incarnate. That was “Mary just being Mary.” That is all God asked of her and that is all God ask of us - to be all that God creates us to be. For us, just as for John and Mary, we begin by identifying, ac-cepting and developing all of the unique talents, abilities and gifts God has given to each of us, and then using them to the best of our ability for ourselves and for oth-ers. Is that not the greatest gift we can give to Jesus when we celebrate his birth on Christmas? Is our present for Jesus ready ?

YOUTH NEWS:

WHAT: ODY (Owensboro Diocese Youth) Christmas Party 2020: A virtual Party for ALL the Youth of the Diocese. WHEN: Tuesday Night, December 22, 2020 from 7:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m. WHERE: Zoom Video Conferencing WHO: All 6th-12th Grade Youth are invited. THE PLAN: Ben Warrell and Hannah Bland will serve as our emcees for the night and vari-ous Youth Leaders from across the diocese will be leading games, craziness, etc. PRIZES: We are going all out on the prizes and will have over $300.00 in gift cards and Gasper River gear to be mailed out to lucky winners that night. One lucky winner will walk away with a $50.00 gift card and a handwritten Christmas Card from Bishop Medley. FOR LINK TO ZOOM: Contact Sr. Rosanne

FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT DECEMBER 20, 2020

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

TO OUR PARISHIONERS

12-21 Charlotte Goss and Amanda Murphy

12-22 Morgan Brown, Lauren Fogle, Mary Hartz, Pauline Langdon, Theresa Lowe, Audra Murphy and Michael Swift

12-23 Justin Bailey, David Coomes, Lora McCarty, Sharon Tucker and Sofia Wimsatt

12-24 Paul Dornburg

12-26 Steve Cecil and Theresa Schartz

12-27 Bryant Horsley, Margaret Lancaster,Justin O’Bryan, Thomas Peak and Alissa Wimsatt

Catholic IQ Answer

1) b. Joseph 2) d. all of the above

WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES 12-21 Thomas and Myra Weis (29) 12-21 Jessie and Theresa Lowe (57) 12-23 Gary and Lois Miller (48) 12-26 Jerry and Ellen Blandford (63)

T'WAS A MONTH BEFORE CHRISTMAS 2020 T’was a month before Christmas, And all through the town, People wore masks, that covered their frown. The frown had begun way back in the Spring, when a global pandemic Changed everything. They called it Corona, but unlike the beer, It didn’t bring good times; it didn’t bring cheer. Contagious and deadly, this virus spread fast, Like a wildfire that starts when fueled by gas. Airplanes were grounded, travel was banned. Borders were closed across air, sea, and land. As the world entered lockdown to flatten the curve, the economy halted, and folks lost their verve. From March to July, we rode the first wave, people stayed home, they tried to behave. When summer emerged, the lockdown was lifted. but away from caution, many folks drifted. Now it’s December and cases are spiking, wave two has arrived, Much to our disliking. Frontline workers, Doctors, and nurses, try to save people, from riding in hearses. This virus is awful, this COVID-19. There isn’t a cure yet. There is no sure vaccine. It’s true that this year has had sadness a plenty, we’ll never forget the year 2020. And just ‘round the corner - the holiday season, but why be merry? Is there even one reason? To decorate the house and put up the tree, When no one will see it, no-one but me. But outside my window the snow gently falls, and I think to myself, let us deck the halls! So, I gather the ribbon, the garland, and bows, as I play those old carols, my happiness grows. Christmas isn’t cancelled and neither is hope. If we lean on each other, I know we can cope. LET’S TRY TO BE SAFE, HAPPY AND MERRY AND FULL OF HOPE.

Thursday December 24th

4:00pm and 7:00pm

Friday December 25th

8:00am and 10:30am