ST. MATTHEW THE EVANGELIST 9915 HOLLISTER ST. HOUSTON, TX 77040-1702 (713) 466-4030 December 15, 2019

Readings for the Week of Dec. 15, 2019

MASS INTENTIONS (INTENCIONES DE LA MISA) DEC. 14-22ND SATURDAY DECEMBER 14 5:00p.m. †Loretta Lawrence & †Evelyn Ahlgrim 7:00p.m. En Agradecimiento por Alejandro Garcia y Ana Maria Campos SUNDAY DECEMBER 15 Is 35:1-6a,10; Ps 72; Jas 5:7-10; Mt 11:2-11(7) 8:00a.m. For the People of St. Matthew’s 10:00a.m. †Arturo Villalon, Sr. & Thanksgiving for Ivan Ramirez 12:00p.m. †David Cabrera, †Alfredo Ortega y †Esther Rodriguez MONDAY DECEMBER 16 No Mass TUESDAY DECEMBER 17 8:30a.m. Special Intentions of David D. Villarreal, Paola & Yolanda Villarreal WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 18 8:30a.m. †Fabian, Marciana y Arturo Garcia & Special Intentions of Belen Villalon THURSDAY DECEMBER 19 8:30a.m. Special Intentions of Cain Lott & Chester Filipiak FRIDAY DECEMBER 20 8:30a.m. Special Intentions of Leocadio Garcia & Arturo Rory Villalon, Jr. SATURDAY DECEMBER 21 5:00p.m. †Sarah Buckley & †Evelyn Ahlgrim 7:00p.m. Por la Comunidad de San Mateo SUNDAY DECEMBER 22 Is 7:10-14; Ps 24; Rom 1:1-7; Mt 1:18-24 8:00a.m. In Thanksgiving for Editha & Eduardo Santiago 10:00a.m. †Syble Lucher, †Robert Flores & Thanksgiving for Ed & Tessie Garcia 12:00p.m. †Esther Rodriguez, †Etelvina Garza Rosas Y †Alfredo y Eucario Ortega

Acosta-Lopez Family -Janie Colmenero -Sierra Peña -Bill Bielenda -Charlotte Gullo Ramon Garcia -Nancy Soliz -Rene Carlos Salinas -Ofelia Salinas Enrique DeLeon Sandy Murphy -Linda Castro –Robert Alcala -Gwen Johnson -Dan Danchak

Monday Nm 24:2-7, 15-17a; Ps 25; Mt 21:23-27 Tuesday Gn 49:2, 8-10; Ps 72; Mt 1:1-17 Wednesday Jer 23:5-8; Ps 72; Mt 1:18-25 Thursday Jgs 13:2-7, 24-25a; Ps 71; Lk 1:5-25 Friday Is 7:10-14; Ps 24; Lk 1:26-38 Saturday Sg 2:8-14 or Zep 3:14-18a; Ps 33; Lk 1:39-45

UPDATES TO OUR PRAYER LIST...

HOLIDAY LITURGY SCHEDULE 2019

Simbang Gabi – Monday, December 16: at 7 pm Advent Reconciliation – Tuesday, December 17:

at 6:45 pm Christmas Eve – Tuesday, December 24:

5 pm Children’s Mass (E) & 7:30 pm Vigil Mass (E) Christmas Day – Wednesday, December 25:

9 am Mass (E) & 11 am Mass (S) Mary, Mother of God – Wednesday, Jan. 1:

9 a.m. Mass (E) &11 am Mass (S)

2019 Posadas December 15th @ 6 pm Main Church/Auditorium December 16th @ 7 pm Room 129 December 18th @ 7 pm Room 129 December 19th @ 7 pm Room 129 December 20th @ 7 pm Room 129 December 22nd @ 7 pm Room 129 December 23rd @ 7 pm Room 129

Every one is welcome to attend. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Todos son bienvenidos!

OBITUARY

Expesamos nuestras más sentidas condolencias y nos unimos al sentimiento de dolor de la Familia Acosta-Lopez en el

fallecimiento de †Roberto Acosta. May his soul and the souls of the faithful departed through the

mercy of God, rest in peace.

Children’s Christmas Eve Mass Rehearsals

If your child is participating in the Children’s Christmas Eve Mass please make sure to attend both rehearsals. Monday, De-cember 16th & Monday, December 23rd @ 6:30 p.m. in room 205. Costumes will be provided. If you have any questions or would like your child to participate please contact Claudia Men-dez @ 713.466.4030 ext. 308.

During this holiday season, many will travel to see their loved ones or visit friends out of town or out of the country. St. Mat-thew’s parish staff wishes you safe travels and a wonderful trip. “O God, our heavenly Father, whose glory fills the whole crea-tion, and whose presence we find wherever we go: preserve those who travel; surround them with your loving care; protect them from every danger; and bring them in safety to their jour-ney's end; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.” - - - - - - - - - - — - - - - - - - -

Durante esta temporada de vacaciones, muchos viajarán para ver a sus seres queridos o visitar a amigos fuera de la ciudad o del país. El personal de la parroquia de San Mateo le desea un viaje seguro y un viaje maravilloso.

Safe Travels Prayer

THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT/ TERCER DOMINGO DE ADVIENTO

Did you know Amazon helps Support our Parish, while you shop. Signing up is easy! Here's how to shop AmazonSmile: 1. Visit smile.amazon.com 2. Sign in with your Amazon.com credentials 3. Choose St. Matthew the Evangelist Houston, Tx as your charitable organization . 4. Select and Start Shopping! (You will see on Top-Left corner of home page the name of our Parish) 5. Add a bookmark for smile.amazon.com to make it even easier to return and start your shopping at AmazonSmile.

Our Advent Penance Service will be on Tuesday, December 17, 2019 at 7 p.m.

There will be additional priests for individu-al confessions in English and Spanish.

This is a very important part of our Advent preparation.

Sponsoring Information for 2020

Around the parish... Dear Parishioners, We currently have sponsors for the fresh flowers on the altar every week. These flowers commemorate an anniversary or birthday, or are given in memory of a loved one, etc. The current cost of the flowers each week is $65.00. We all know that fresh flowers last only a couple days before they are wilted, so we have thought about another way to honor an event or loved one. Starting Jan-uary 1, 2020, for those wishing to commemorate a special time (birthday, anniversary, etc) or in memory of the a loved one, we will change to the family now sponsoring the bread and wine for $65.00 for a weekend. Your name will be listed in the bulletin with the reason for the sponsor-ship (anniversary, birthday, in memory of…, etc) as is currently done. Example: Bread and Wine this week sponsored by ________ in honor of _______________ or in memory of ______________. Greenery and live plants will be on the altar with seasonal plants also at various times of the year. By making this change, our altar will remain beautiful with live plants and sponsorship to honor an event or loved one will continue. Thank you for all you do for St. Matthew’s. We hope that you embrace this decision and will continue your sponsor-ship.

SATURDAY DECEMBER 14 SUNDAY DECEMBER 15 NO Faith Formation Classes Christmas Break Magnificat House Party Auditorium 11 am Posadas Begin (MFCC) Church/Auditorium 6 pm MONDAY DECEMBER 16 Bridge 129 1 pm Simbang Gabi Church/Auditorium 7 pm Boy Scouts Morton 7 pm Grupo de Oracion Chapel 7 pm Posadas 129 7 pm TUESDAY DECEMBER 17 Bible Study 216 9:30 am Crafts from the Heart 205 10:30 am Cub Scouts Auditorium 6:30 pm Advent Penance Service Church 6:45 pm WEDNESDAY DECEMBER 18 Choir Practice Church 6:30 pm Spiritual Guidance 203 6:30 pm Bunco Auditorium 6:45 pm Grupo de Oracion Morton 7 pm RCIA Classes 205 7 pm Posadas 129 7 pm DJM 109 7 pm Youth Meet Youth Room 7 pm THURSDAY DECEMBER 19 50+ Game Social 205 9:30 am Choir Practice Church 6:30 pm CDA Monthly Mtg 205 7 pm Legion of Mary 203 7 pm Posadas 129 7 pm FRIDAY DECEMBER 20 Posadas 129 7 pm SATURDAY DECEMBER 21 SUNDAY DECEMBER 22 Posadas 129 7 pm

*Confessions on Saturdays 3:30-4:30p.m. in the chapel.* * Wednesdays by appointment only.*

Christmas Poinsettias St. Matthew has a long tradition of decorating the sanctuary with poinsettias during the Christmas season. To support this beautiful custom, we need your help. You can make a special Christmas flower offering in memory of a loved one. There are poinsettia flower envelopes located at the back of the church, complete and return in the collection baskets or drop off at the parish office. Thank you for you collaboration.

Faith Formation/CCE Christmas Break

The CCE department and all the catechists wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2020! CCE classes are out on vacation, will resume Sunday, January 12, 2020. Please don’t forget to attend Mass.

THE GIFT OF FORGIVENESS: A GUIDE TO CONFESSION

Do you have questions or thoughts about the Sacrament ? *It’s been so long, I don’t remember the words… *I have committed too many sins, the priest won’t forgive me… *What’s the Sacrament called? Is it Penance, Reconciliation or Con-fession… Reconciliation (also Confession or Penance) is a Sacrament institut-ed by Jesus Christ in His love and mercy to offer sinners forgiveness for offenses committed against God. At the same time sinners recon-cile with the Church. Every time we sin, we hurt ourselves, other people and God. In Reconciliation we acknowledge our sins before God and his Church. And it is by Reconciliation that we receive the forgiveness of Christ and his Church. The Four Parts of Confession: Contrition: a sincere sorrow for having offended God, and the most important act of the penitent. Confession: confronting our sins in a profound way to God by speak-ing about them– aloud– to the priest. Penance: an important part of our healing is the “penance” the priest imposes in reparation for our sins. Absolution: the priest speaks the words by which “God, the Father of Mercies” reconciles a sinner to Himself through the merits of the Cross.

Stop by the parish office to sign up for the 2020 MASS Intentions

Confirmation 1 students are required to attend penance service. Please meet in room 205 @ 6:15 p.m. this day.

ST. MATTHEW THE EVANGELIST 9915 HOLLISTER ST. HOUSTON, TX 77040-1702 (713) 466-4030 December 15, 2019

Stewardship Reflection / Reflexión Sobre Las Lecturas

.3rd Sunday of Advent: December 15 That through daily prayer we gain patience and align ourselves with God and His plan for us. “You too must be patient. Make you hearts firm, because the coming of the Lord is at hand.” James 5:8 Patience is another one of those things many of us struggle with. We want things to go according to our plan and our schedule. Any change brings anxie-ty and fear. Through daily prayer we better align ourselves with God’s will and His plan, which is far better than anything we can come up with on our own. __________________________ 3er domingo de Adviento: 15 de diciembre Que a través de la

oración diaria ganemos paciencia y nos alineemos con Dios y su

plan para nosotros. “Tú también debes ser paciente. Haz que tus

corazones estén firmes, porque la venida del Señor está cerca.”

Santiago 5:8 La paciencia es otra de esas cosas con las que mu-

chos de nosotros luchamos. Queremos que las cosas salgan de

acuerdo con nuestro plan y nuestro horario. Cualquier cambio

trae ansiedad y miedo. A través de la oración diaria, nos alinea-

mos mejor con la voluntad de Dios y su plan, que es mucho

mejor que cualquier cosa que podamos inventar por nuestra cuen-

ta.

Nuestro Servicio Penitencial sera el martes 17 de diciembre a las 7pm.

Habrá varios sacerdotes que Confesaran en ingles y español.

Esta parte de Adviento es muy importante. Todos estan invitados.

HORARIO DE LOS DIAS FESTIVOS

Simbang Gabi – Lunes 16 de diciembre a las 7 p.m. Servicio Penitencial de Adviento – Martes 17 de diciembre a las 6:45 p.m. (Bilingüe) Noche Buena – Martes 24 de diciembre: 5 p.m. Misa de Niños (I) & 7:30 p.m. Misa (I) Navidad – Miercoles 25 de diciembre: 9 a.m. Misa (Ingles) & 11 a.m. Misa (Español) María, Madre de Dios– Miercoles 1º de enero: 9 a.m. Misa (Ingles) & 11 a.m. Misa (Español)

There is no Healing Mass in the month of December/ No habrá Misa de Sanacíon en el mes de diciembre.

Flores de Navidad San Mateo mantiene una gran tradición de flores de navi-dad en nuestra iglesia cada año. Para poder mantener esta hermosa tradición, necesitamos de su ayuda. Una manera de ayudar es hacer una donación en memoria de alguien especial o que ya no esta aqui con nosotros. Tenemos so-bres con flores de navidad en la parte posterior de la igle-sia, puede escribir los nombres de sus seres queridos y re-gresarlos en las canastas de la ofrenda o traerlos a la ofici-na parroquial. ¡Gracias por su cooperación!

Pasa por la oficina parroquial ó llama para tus intenciones de la Misa del año 2020.

Vacaciones de clases de Foramción de Fe

Departe de oficina de Formación de Fe y todos/todas las catequistas les deseamos una Feliz Navidad y Prospero Año Nuevo 2020. Estamos de vacaciones de doctrina. Regresamos el 12 de enero de 2020. No se les olvide ir a Misa. ¡Gracias y felices fiestas!

Todos los estudiantes de Confirmacion 1 deben asistir al Servicio de Reconciliacion el 17 de diciembre. Se reuniran el el salon 205 a las 6:15 p.m.

A Stewardship Parish Parroquia Administradora de los Bienes de Dios

12-8-2019 Collection Goal: $10,000.00

Sunday Offering/Ofrenda del Domingo: $7,554.00 On-Line Giving/Donaciones hechas por Internet: $1012.50 Children’s Offerings/Ofrenda de los Niños: $323.65 Total Collection/Colecta en Total: $8,890.15 We are short! $1,109.85

Envelopes 232

Retired Fund for Religious Sisters $3,083.50

Bank Direct and Credit Card Donations available on our website www.stmatthewhou.org by clicking on “Online Giving” button.

THIRD SUNDAY OF ADVENT/ TERCER DOMINGO DE ADVIENTO

DSF Summary Report– 2019 St. Matthew the Evangelist - Houston– DSF19

Parish Goal: $56,000.00

Total Amount Paid: $43,777.00

Total Amount Pledged: $48,142.00

Total Number of Participant: 184

*Total Number of Households 1132

Average Participant Pledge: $261.64

Paid Over (Under) Goal: ($12,223.00)

Pledged Over (Under) Goal: ($7,858.00)

Percent Paid: 78.17%

Reminder: Many organizations and clubs use rooms in the administration building and church. When you hold a meeting/event please clean up as much as possible, turn off lights and shut the door to the room. Turn off air conditioner/heater. By follow-ing these simple rules we will save on electricity bills and it will make it more convenient for the lock-up person in charge.

The Christmas Gift for that Special Couple in

your life! What better way to say I Love you? You can bring light and direction with this gift. Giving this 3-day Marriage Enrichment has changed many lives. The couples who have experienced this weekend have rediscovered joy and love in their marriage. Frequently, couples share a newfound spirituality as well as a desire to become more active in their faith. The weekend focus is to build unity and trust with their spouse. This is the perfect gift and it can affect a lifetime! A Worldwide Marriage Encounter Weekend Experience will be presented this Valentines Day. Now taking applications. If you would like to bless your special couple, go to: www.houstonme.org or call (713) 482-1791. Application fee is $100.00

February 15, 2020, 9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Home of the Consecrat-ed Women of Regnum Christi, 22730 Lain Road, Spring, TX 77379 Explore your vocations and come fully Alive in Christ - A day for High School Girls! Build friendship and community, meet Sisters and other Consecrated Women, meet other High School Girls, and pray together! To register, please use the web link: https://cvent.me/DnPeZ Fee - $20, Scholarships are available. More information, contact us at 713-652-8239 or voca-tions@archgh.org

"Alive" High School Girls Retreat 2020