SAINT MATTHEW PARISH

2 Searles Road, Windham, NH 03087 Telephone: 603-893-3336

Sunday, August 20, 2017 Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

MASS SCHEDULE WEEKENDS IN

ST. MATTHEW CHURCH

SAT: 4:00 PM

SUN: 7:30, 9:30, 11:30AM & 6:00 PM

WEEKDAYS AT WARDE HEALTH CTR

MON - THUR: 8:30 AM

WEEKDAYS IN

ST. MATTHEW CHURCH

WEDS: 7:00 PM

FRI: 8:30 AM

HOLY DAYS

Contact Parish for Mass Schedule

SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION

SAT: 2:30 - 3:30 PM

or by appointment

PARISH EMAIL

windstmatt@comcast.net

PARISH WEBSITE stmatthew-nh.org

Office: 603-893-3336

Rel.Ed.: 603-898-4818

Fax: 603-898-4008

Rev. Brian Kennedy, CSsR, Pastor

LITURGY

Mass Intentions For The Week

SATURDAY, August 19

4:00 PM Norman & Vivian Nadeau by the family

SUNDAY, August20

7:30 AM Frank Baggett by Pauline & Al Gagne

9:30 AM Charles & Carol Desell by John & Denise O’Connor

11:30 AM Annie Aiken by the Forgione family

6:00 PM For all parishioners of St. Matthew

DAILY MASS—WARDE HEALTH CENTER CHAPEL

MONDAY, August 21

8:30 AM Josephine M. Bassi by Lillian & Chip Scionti

TUESDAY, August 22

8:30 AM Vivian Nadeau by Michael Saffie & family

WEDNESDAY, August 23

8:30 AM Rita & Fred Langlais by Pauline & Al Gagne

7:00 PM James Madigan by Chris Dryden

THURSDAY, August 24

8:30 AM Robert Radie by Mary Lou Nicastro

FRIDAY, August 25

8:30 AM Zack Gallucci by St. Matthew Staff (Church)

* * * * *

SATURDAY, August 26

4:00 PM Tim Stevens (living) by Bernie & Sue MacDonald

SUNDAY, August 27

7:30 AM For all parishioners of St. Matthew

9:30 AM William Connors by Donna & Daniel J. Sullivan III

11:30 AM Eugene, Pasqualina & Pasquale Vallante by daughters and family

6:00 PM For Peace in our world

Responsorial Psalm

Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

Dear Family of Saint Matthew,

The prophet Isiah, in today’s first reading, proclaims the Word of God to his fellow exiles

living in Babylon. God announces a renewed Temple in Jerusalem, where: “The foreigners who join themselves to the LORD will be made joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be acceptable on my altar...”

Last Friday we received a little group of “foreigners” who came: to sing and play their music, lead adoration and offer witness to the power of God who converts the wayward. They arrived at 11 AM and sacrificed the rest of their day to set up lights, prepare their instruments and adjust their presentation. They were all young people from Salem and Connecticut. Their enthusiasm and joyful willingness to sing God’s praises surprised those of us who were privileged to hear them. They went home after 10 PM, grateful for the small group of parishioners who received them. (We were only about 50 people).

Our diocese is clearing a path toward sacramental living. This involves cutting away the underbrush of a mind-set where Mass and the sacraments are consumed without uprooting any fundamental assumptions, such as: God and His saints aren’t “really” in my day to day life. “We are the ideas that we have consumed” writes Dean Koontz. If I pour into myself the idea that the liturgy of the Church is just one more item on a “to do” list (rather than a door which opens outward onto a sacred way of living in Jesus and Mary), then my faith will remain a path overrun with weeds.

Encouraging our young people to participate in the initiatives of “foreigners” like the Salem youth music ministry (including: to discern for themselves what the Spirit of the Lord is doing in this ministry) is a welcomed aspect of clearing and following a path of sacramental living. If we as adults and parents of our teens categorically reject that God could be working in a music ministry organized by young adults... aren’t we like the apostles in today’s gospel who pre-judge the Canaanite woman as being faithless?

-Father Brian Kennedy

FAMILY

THE REASON FOR OUR HOPE A Catholic conference focused on renewing the vital gift of Hope - an essential virtue which every heart desires and all of humanity hungers for. A powerful day of grace including 5 extraordinary speakers, Music, Holy Mass, Confession, and Adoration. September 30th - Lowell Memorial Auditorium $30 per person. For more information, visit:

www.hopeconferences.com

VOCATION AWARENESS

“Who has known the mind of the Lord?” Through prayer

our minds become better aligned with the mind of Christ

and His will for us. If the Spirit is prompting you to know

Christ as a priest, or in the consecrated life, Call Father

Jason Jalbert 663-0132, or write: jjalbert@rcbm.org.

ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

Bishop Peter A. Libasci invites all couples who are celebrating their 25th, 30th, 35th, 40th, 45th, 50th or beyond Wedding Anniversary (anytime during the year 2017), to attend a Special Anniversary Mass. This celebration will be held on October 15, 2017 at 2:00 p.m., at St. Joseph Cathedral, Manchester. If you are celebrating a special anniversary year, please contact the parish office by September 22, 2017. We will need your last names, first names and mailing address. Please also indicate your special anniversary year. By providing your name to your Parish Office you will be registered and receive an invitation.

We offer our sympathy and prayers to the family and loved ones of Zack Gallucci (son of David & Debra) and

Mary Gambale (wife of Michael) who passed away recently. May they be surrounded by Christ’s peace and comforted by the hope of the promise of the Resurrection.

Women of Grace Faith & Bible Study

Formation Group will be celebrating 10 years at St.

Matthew Parish this fall. I would like to invite all

past and present members to join us in a Potluck

breakfast celebration on September 13th at 9:30am

in Room 208 of the Parish Center.

Please come and experience the joy of the Lord in

community and fellowship. This invitation is open

to all women who would like to “Come and See”. If you have any questions, please contact Pat

Kennedy at 603-890-1013 or email

st.pat52@comcast.net.

How You Can Help With St. Matthew’s

Prayer Path Project:

The MOSAIC of Faith moms and parishioners of St. Matthews will be building a Prayer Path in the woods beside the Parish Center. It will be a labyrinth style pathway, outlined in rocks. The purpose of the Prayer Path is to provide a tranquil space for people to walk and pray, drawing them closer to God in the process. We would love to include all the parishioners in the project and have the following needs:

Rocks the size of a shoe box to be used in the

labyrinth pattern. Rocks should be from your yard or from the town where you live so the space is truly "of the community." (Rocks can be left by the lamppost on the grass beside the parish center up until Monday, September 11th.)

Gardeners to plant flowers and a trellis to

beautify the space.

Volunteers who would like to help lay the stones on Tuesday, September 12th at 9 a.m.

For questions, or to volunteer, contact Claire McGarry at clairemcg@comcast.net. To learn more about MOSAIC of Faith, visit www.shiftingmyperspective.com.

Thank you to the Sweat Shop Ladies who will be donating a reflection bench for the space, Maureen White and the 7:30 a.m. parishioners who cleared the logs and debris from the area, the VBS Kids who raised money for the plants and trellis, and the Knights of Columbus who will be acquiring a life sized crucifix to be the focal point of the space.

RCIA Are you interested in becoming Catholic?

Were you baptized Catholic but never received Communion or Confirmation? Would you like to join us from another Christian Faith? The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults team will be offering instruction/faith formation in the evenings this fall. For more information, please contact Peg at the Religious Ed Office by calling 898-4818.

Gospel For All Ages

"O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you

wish." This woman was an outsider. She was a Canaanite,

not an Israelite, and as such she would have been

considered ritually unclean. But she approached Jesus

nonetheless and asked for his help. And Jesus used this

opportunity to teach his disciples an important lesson.

In the verses directly before today's passage, Jesus had

told Peter that what defiles a person comes from the heart,

not from ignoring external purity practices. Then, Jesus

traveled with his disciples from Galilee to the region of Tyre

and Sidon where they were much more likely to encounter

someone considered to be unclean.

At first it appeared that Jesus wasn't going to acknowledge

the woman who begged for help. His comment, "It is not

right to take the food of the children and throw it to the

dogs," was a common comparison between Jews (the

children) and Canaanites (the dogs). But, in fact, Jesus said

this only to go right ahead and break this social code! He

showed by his actions that it did not matter whether

someone was Jewish or not, what mattered was the faith in

a person's heart. And this woman proved to Jesus and the

doubting disciples that she had great faith.

How many others would have even approached Jesus to

ask for his help? How many others would have persevered

when he appeared unresponsive? By pausing in his

response, and first mentioning the standard reply, Jesus

gave this woman the opportunity to demonstrate her great

faith. And then, he answered her request and praised her

extraordinary faith. What a lesson for his prejudiced

disciples! And what a lesson for us, both to persevere in

faith, and never to judge others on mere appearances.

Life Question: When have you judged someone based

only on what you see on the outside?

CATECHESIS

It’s almost Back To School time… which means Religious Education Classes will begin! Now is a good time to register your student(s) for fall sessions! Classes are filling up!

Stop by the Parish Office or you can find our Registration Forms on our website!

Visit: stmatthew-nh.org! Go to Faith Formation and Youth! Just fill out your forms and mail them in… it’s that easy!

CHILDREN’S CHOIR We are beginning to assemble a Children’s Choir for children in Grades K through 5. The Choir will participate in the 9:30 Mass

during the Children’s Liturgy of the Word (CLOW), approximately 2-3 times a month during the Religious Education year. If your child is interested, please contact the office at 603-898-4818.

We can’t do it without you! We are very much in need of Teachers and Aides. Please consider being a VOLUNTEER

in our program! Volunteer Needs for Grades K - 5 :

Catechists:

Sun. 8:15am Grades K, 3 Sun. 11am Grades K, 1, 2, 4, 5 Mon. 4:15pm Grades K, 1, 4, 5 Wed. 4:15pm Grades 1, 2, 3, 5 Sat. 9:00am Grades 2, 3, 4, 5 Aides: Sun. 8:15am Grades K, 1, 4 Sun. 11am Grades K, 1, 2, 4, 5 Mon. 4:15pm Grades K, 3, 4, 5 Wed. 4:15pm Grades 1, 2, 3, 4 Sat. 9:00am Grades 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Classes are held 2-3 times a month, great teaching materials are provided! Please pray about becoming a teacher or an aide in Religious Ed!

We are all children of God,

all of us. And God loves all of us.

-Pope Francis

YOUTH

Homily Notes: ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Pope Francis Tweeted this on August 14th… “The journey of entrusting ourselves to the Lord begins every day, starting each morning.”

Follow Pope Francis on Twitter

@Pontifex

Readings for the Week of August 20, 2017

Sunday: Is 56:1, 6-7/Ps 67:2-3, 5-6, 8/Rom 11:13-15, 29-

32/Mt 15:21-28

Monday: Jgs 2:11-19/Ps 106:34-37, 39-44/Mt 19:16-22

Tuesday: Jgs 6:11-24a/Ps 85:9, 11-14/Mt 19:23-30

Wednesday: Jgs 9:6-15/Ps 21:2-7/Mt 20:1-16

Thursday: Rv 21:9b-14/Ps 145:10-13, 17-18/Jn 1:45-51

Friday: Ru 1:1, 3-6, 14b-16, 22/Ps 146:5-10/Mt 22:34-40

Saturday: Ru 2:1-3, 8-11; 4:13-17/Ps 128:1b-5/Mt 23:1-12

Next Sunday: Is 22:19-23/Ps 138:1-3, 6, 8/Rom 11:33-36/

Mt 16:13-20

Please pray for all students who are

returning to school, especially those

who are beginning their first year or

returning to college!

YEAR I & YEAR II STUDENTS: PLEASE REGISTER FOR FALL CLASSES ASAP We are ordering materials and classes will be starting soon. Questions, please call Sandy at X21 or email sgibbonsstmatt@comcast.net

Middle School Students! We are looking for you! Please register as soon as possible! We are ordering materials for fall sessions and classes are filling up! Stop by the office and sign up! Questions? Call Mary Jude at X22 or send an email to stmattwind@comcast.net

College Connection Core Team Anyone interested in joining our new College

Connection Core Team, please contact Sandy at X21

We need caring people to help reach out, and

organize different ways to keep our college students

connected to St. Matthew’s!

Important PARENT Meeting for Middle School and High School

Middle and high school parents, please come to a parent meeting on Sunday, Sept. 17th at 4:30pm in the Church. Important information will be shared about this year’s program and classes which begin the following Sunday, Sept. 24th.

SAVE THE DATES! Upcoming Youth Events Oct. 11th 7-9:30pm REBOOT w/ Chris Stefanik St. Joseph Cathedral, Manchester, NH (This event open to all ages) Oct. 22nd 2:00pm JASON EVERT Event St. Monica Church, Methuen, MA (This event open to grades 7 and up) Watch for more info and RSVP details!

Catechist Meeting - Middle & High School All middle school and high school catechists

and aides are asked to attend a meeting on

Weds. August 23rd immediately after the 7pm

Mass, in Matt’s Place (youth lounge). If you

cannot make it, please watch for an

additional meeting date in September!

OUTREACH

HONOR ROLL Monday: St. Pius X, Pope

Tuesday: Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Wednesday: St. Rose of Lima, Virgin

Thursday: St. Bartholomew, Apostle

Friday: St. Louis; St. Joseph Calasanz, Priest

SACRIFICIAL GIVING

Sacrificial Giving for August 12 & 13…$8,535.00

Thank you for your faithful and generous support!

Worldwide Marriage Encounter Help increase your faith in your marriage by attending a Worldwide Marriage Encounter Weekend. The next WWME Weekends are Sep 16-17, 2017 in Medway, MA and Oct 21-22, 2017 in Contoocook, NH. For more information, call Stephen & Michelle O'Leary at 800-710-9963 or visit us at https://wwmema.org/.

Divorced or separated?... We can help. This program covers all aspects of the pains of separation and divorce...turning frowns into smiles, bringing hope to those who thought they had lost it. Saints Mary & Joseph Parish, 200 Lawrence Rd., Salem, will be holding Fall/Winter sessions. All are held on Tuesday nights from 7-8:30pm. Tentative dates: Fall: Sept. 5, 12, 19, 26, Oct. 3, 10, 17, 24,

31, Nov. 14, 21, 28, Dec. 5 Winter: Feb. 20, 27, Mar. 6, 13, 20, 27, Apr. 3, 10, 17, 24, May 1, 8, 15, 22, 29. For more information or to sign up, please contact Joe Kish at 508-982-9104 or JoeDoc222@aol.com

“Could you not watch with me one hour? Our Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration Chapel

is in great need of Adorers. Could you spend

one hour or more with Jesus in the Blessed

Sacrament? Please come to our Adoration

Chapel, spend time with Jesus… pray about

giving one hour of your time to Him who

never leaves us alone. Please contact the

parish office if you would like to commit to be

an Adorer on a certain day or time.

UNBOUND… Would you like to sponsor a dream? I am an UNBOUND sponsor - an ordinary person building an extraordinary relationship to support and encourage my sponsored friend’s dreams. You can help build connections that challenge poverty in innovative ways. Please call me to learn more about UNBOUND and the two children who are waiting for help. - Roz Prizio 603-560-1068

Presentation of Mary - FALL FUN FEST

Saturday, September 23rd from 10am-4pm

(rain date Sunday, Sept. 24th)

Face Painting, Petting Zoo,

Mechanical Bull, Inflatables, Pumpkin

painting, Tie Dye, Super Raffle, plus

over 20 theme basket raffles. Penny

Sale with over 200 items, Sisters Fish Pond, Food

Court, bake sale and more! Presentation of Mary

Academy, 182 Lowell Road in Hudson.

Vocation Awareness

“What profit would a man show if he were to gain the

whole world and ruin himself in the process.” Are

you being called to be a priest, religious brother or

sister? Call Father Jason Jalbert 663-0132, or write:

jjalbert@rcbm.org.

Blanket Project Get your scissors sharp and ready!

In honor of St. Teresa

of Calcutta we will once

again be asking YOU, our

crafty parishioners, to

help cut and tie fleece

blankets which will be

distributed to the

homeless and needy.

The blankets will be handed out at

Masses on Sept. 2 & 3 and you will

have a month to complete the kit.

The different colors will represent

the different organizations who will

be receiving them...we can’t do it

without you!

Save the Date - Healing Mass w/ Fr. Bash Mark your calendar and join us on Friday,

September 22nd at 7:00pm in St. Matthew Church

for a healing Mass with Fr. Bash. Physical,

Spiritual, or Emotional… no concern is too great

or too small to bring before our merciful Lord!