The Church of Saint John Neumann

LENT
A Sense of the Season

The word Lent means springtime. This word comes from the same root as lengthen. Daytime lengthens during Lent. The northern hemisphere turns toward the sun, the source of life, and winter turns into spring. In Hebrew, the word for repentance is the same as the word that means to turn, like the turning of the earth to the sun, like the turning of the soil before planting.

“Even now, says the Lord, turn to me.” (Joel 2:12) The word sin means separation. We are called to turn from our separate selves, from our sin, to come together in community. Self-denial is the way we express our repentance. In the lengthening brightness from Ash Wednesday until Holy Thursday afternoon, our holy Lent, we turn to God as our source of life.

Self-denial is threefold, advises Matthew’s gospel. We pray: “Go to your room, close your door, and pray to your Father in private.” We fast: “No one must see you are fasting but your Father.” We give alms: “Keep your deeds of mercy secret, and your Father who sees in secret will repay you.” Through the Lenten exercise of prayer, fasting and almsgiving, we spring-clean our lives, sharpen our senses, put tomorrow in its place and treasure the day at hand.

Why are there forty days in Lent? It took forty days for sinfulness to drown in the flood before a new creation could inherit the earth. It took forty years for the generation of slaves to die before the freeborn could enter the promised land. For forty days Moses and Elijah and Jesus fasted and prayed to prepare themselves for a life’s work.

At the beginning of Lent the bishop calls out the names of the catechumens who seek to be baptized at Easter. Their names are written in the book of the elect, the chosen. God has chosen them, and they have chosen to turn to God. Lent is the forty days before the baptism of the catechumens. The already baptized can share the excitement and the struggles of the elect and rediscover the meaning of baptism in their own lives. During the forty days, both catechumens and the faithful journey together to the holy font.

We keep Lent together. We put aside our business-as-usual to support each other in prayer, fasting and almsgiving. We turn to God to enlighten us and purify us throughout the lengthening brightness of our holy season of Lent.
“For now is the acceptable time! Now is the day of salvation!”

The Life and Dignity of the Human Person: We believe that the Gospel of Jesus

Christ is a "Gospel of life." It invites all persons and societies to a new life lived abundantly in respect for human dignity. (Living the Gospel of Life, 20) Central to the principle of human dignity is the understanding that, every human being is created in the image of God, redeemed by Jesus Christ, destined for union with God, and therefore worthy of respect as a member of the human family. All human life no matter how big, small, able, disabled, young, old, etc is sacred. “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of happiness” is one of the most famous phrases in the US Declaration of Independence. However, since 1973, the right to life for the unborn has not been protected. Each year millions of babies die in abortion and thousands of women and men suffer emotionally as a result of this so called “choice”. As a result of various pro-life legislation, abortion in Ohio is the lowest it has been for 12 years.

President Elect Barack Obama promised the abortion lobby that the “Freedom of Choice Act” will be the first piece of legislation he will sign into law as president of the United States of America.

The Freedom of Choice Act overturns virtually all federal and state pro-life laws. FOCA would also overturnall restrictions on public funding of abortion and require we the taxpayers to pay for elective abortions. This means unlimited federal funding for abortion, patients not receiving ultrasounds prior to an abortion, no requirement of parental notification for minors seeking an abortion, no protection for doctors who refuse to perform abortions, and overturning the ban on partial-birth abortions.
Don’t just be pro-life in your heart, now is the time to be active in the pro-life movement. Be aware, contact legislators and Senators who will make abortions more common, volunteer to help those pregnant and scared, and pray for the end of abortion in our country. Take a stand for LIFE today.

Year of St. Paul Year of St. Paul

Though he was not one of the twelve, no account of the apostles would be complete without mention of Paul, known to us today as the Apostle. Born in Tarsus, he was a member of the Jewish colony there and was given at birth the Jewish name Saul; he also took the Roman patrician name Paul, a common practice among Jews living outside their homeland. He followed the family trade of tent-maker, a trade by which he supported himself all his life, even as he did ministry.

Saul went to Jerusalem, probably after the death of Jesus, and studied the Law there under the great teacher Gamaliel I. He took part in the stoning of Stephen and dedicated himself to the stamping out of the followers of Jesus. As he journeyed to Damascus in pursuit of his mission, Jesus appeared to him. Shortly after this impressive experience Paul was baptized by Ananias into the religion he had resolved to destroy.

Some time after Paul’s conversion, he embarked on his ministry to the Gentiles. He undertook three great missionary journeys during which he made countless converts to Christianity, and established numerous churches to which he wrote his famous Letters or Epistles. After his third journey, he returned to Jerusalem, were some accused him of bring gentiles into the inner court of the temple. Paul’s arrest led to his appeal to Caesar, which was his right as a citizen of Rome. There he was held under house arrest for two years.

Although little is known about Paul after this, it is believed he made two more missionary journeys, to Spain and Macedonia. Traditionally he is said to have been martyred by beheading, on the Ostian Way at a place called Aquae Silviae in around 67 CE.

Honoring the Saints in January and February
As Catholics, we have a rich tradition of honoring and remembering those who have led exemplary lives imitating Jesus. Each issue of the Neumann News will contain various Saints that we will honor and remember.

St. Agnes lived during the third century. She was a martyred for her faith. There is not much known about her. She died when she was a young girl at the age of 12 or 13. A church was built over her grave later in the fourth century. Her youthfulness and steadfast courage have made her one of the most popular saints. In art she is often depicted with a lamb. Her feast day is January 21.

Sts. Timothy and Titus were two companions of St. Paul who were influential in the early church. They both traveled with St. Paul on his missionary journeys. They were both known for their ability to mediate problems and maintain peace in the church. Their feast day is January 26th.

St. John Bosco lived in the 19th century and was known as an apostle of the education of youth. In 1859 he founded the Salesians. They were named after St. Francis de Sales and were dedicated to the education of young people. John Bosco was a charismatic personality who handled his charges with gentle firmness, looking to Jesus and St. Paul as models on how to treat them. His feast day is January 31st.

St.Paul Miki and his companions lived during the 16th century in Japan. In 1597 St. Paul Miki was crucified with 25 companions, women and men, ordained and lay, young and old on a hill overlooking Nagasaki. Amidst these persecutions the seed of faith took root in Japan. Some 300 years later when Christian missionaries were allowed to enter Japan again they found that hundreds of Christians were living around Nagasaki, practicing their faith in secret. Their feast day is February 6th.

St. Scholastica lived in the 5th and 6th centuries and was the twin sister of Saint Benedict. They would meet once a year for spiritual conversation and to spend time praising God. St. Gregory tells of their last visit in his biography of St. Benedict. St. Scholastica asked her brother to stay a little longer after they had supper, but he wanted to return home to the monastery. St. Scholastica then prayed to God to intercede on her behalf. Suddenly a storm arose that made it impossible for Benedict to go home. He asked her sister what she had done and she replied “I asked a favor of you and you refused it. I asked it of God, and He has granted it.” They spent the night talking about holy things. Three days later she died. Her feast day is February 10th.

Cleveland, Kansas City and Youth Ministry
On December 4-7, 2008, Fr. Steve, Elizabeth and Michael Montgomery went to Cleveland for the National Catholic Conference on Youth Ministry. The Conference theme was “Formed by Living Waters”. Between the profound keynote speakers, the informative workshops and the powerful prayer and worship, the experience left us all transformed and renewed. The ideas that we returned with will benefit the parish in many ways some simple and others will be for the long term.

Many of sessions, and all of the liturgies were done in the Cleveland Music Hall. Not only was this a beautiful setting for prayer, it became a holy place. The responses of the 2000 plus people at Mass nearly shook the hall and echoed throughout. The Mass then literally moved us. The praise and worship was so strong especially as many of the artists that have written the songs in our hymnals were there to pray them with us. In the weeks and months ahead watch and listen for the stories and lessons we learned from Cleveland.
The Youth Ministry conference for youth takes place every other year with the one for adults in the off years.

Looking ahead to next year is the youth conference called “NCYC” in Kansas City. It is not too soon to mark calendars for anyone who will be in high school starting in the 2009-2010 year. The dates for the Kansas City, Missouri conference are November 19-21, 2009. The theme is Christ Reigns. More than 23,000 attendees are expected to participate. Hopefully, there will be a large group of young people and adults from St. John Neumann saying, “Kansas City, here we come.”

High School Winter Retreat Happening in February
From Fri. Feb.6th - Sun. Feb.8th, the high school youth will be on retreat at Villa Madonna in northern Kentucky. We will be joining Ascension parish for this retreat again. Some of the teens who attended the retreat last year have been meeting for many weeks to help lead and facilitate this year’s retreat. Please keep the young people in your prayers while on retreat. If you know of a high school teen that would benefit from a retreat experience, please contact Elizabeth Montgomery at emontgomery@isoc.net.

CONFIRMATION
Below is a list of words from our first Confirmation Spirit Night. The young people were asked to come up with a list of words that came to mind when thinking what it means to alive in Christ. The letters of the name C H R I S T were to begin each word. This night the focus was on understanding Baptism as a sacrament of new life.

Pastoral Area Celebrations during Lent
We invite everyone to come together with our neighboring parishes to celebrate Lent together. One of the three-fold-prongs (prayer, fasting, almsgiving) of Lent is to pray. Through our prayer we continue to grow in our relationship with God and with each other. Our 2009 Lenten Prayer Service Schedule is as follows: Wednesday, March 4 Taize Prayer at Corpus Christi, Wednesday, March 11 Evening Prayer and reflection at St. John Neumann, Wednesday, March 18 Evening Prayer and reflection at St. John the Baptist, Wednesday, March 25 Evening Prayer and reflection at Corpus Christi, Saturday, March 28 Reconciliation Service at St. John Neumann at 10:00 AM, and Wednesday, April 1 Reconciliation Service at St. John the Baptist. Each of these, with the exception of Saturday, March 28 will begin with a soup supper at 6:00 PM followed by prayer at 7:00 PM.

IN MEMORY
We wish to acknowledge a donation to the parish in memory of parishioner, Paul Stettenbenz, from his wife, Carolyn and his family.
We have printed memorial envelopes available for those who might wish to remember Saint John Neumann Parish. We have put some of the envelopes in the Gathering Space of the church. We have some at the parish office. Presently we are suggesting that gifts be made to the parish general fund.

We will acknowledge each of these memorial gifts in a card or note to the family and in our NEUMANN NEWS.

Perhaps you will find this kind of memorial to be a fitting way to remember the people you love: the person who has died and the parish with which you worship.

Prayer Opportunities
The Rosary is prayed on Sunday mornings at 8:30 in the Our Lady’s Chapel.

A Holy Hour with Eucharistic Adoration is every Thursday from 6:00 pm -7:00 pm, in Our Lady’s Chapel. The first Thursday of the month concludes with Benediction.

FOCUS ON THE FUTURE CAMPAIGN UPDATE
As of 12/10/2008

GIFTS & PLEDGE PAYMENTS: $1,010,182

OUR PAYMENTS HAVE REACHED AND SURPASSED OUR MILLION GOAL!
THANK GOD AND THANK YOU!

Our parish has loans totaling $266,195. Our Focus on the Future payments will be used to pay on these loans and the current interest accrued until we have paid the principal in full. The blue Focus on the Future payment envelopes will continue to be mailed to our homes in the envelope packets.

ST JOHN NEUMANN PASTORAL COUNCIL 2008-2009
Have a question? Ask a council person.

STEWARDSHIP 2008
It’s not too late. SJN needs to hear from you! Have you returned your 2008 Stewardship Form? Please read the letter mailed to our homes and after prayerful consideration, fill in the 2008 Stewardship commitment form indicating how you will support our parish by prayer, time and talent, and treasure. Please return the Stewardship Form to the parish when you come to Mass. To help in planning, the Finance Council needs to know what financial commitment you will make to our parish for the 2008-2009 budget year. Extra commitment forms and information are available in the plastic racks in the Gathering Space. We hope to hear from every family.

DID YOU NOTICE…the link to set up a Sunday collection e-donation from your personal computer is now available on the parish web page SJNews.org. Those who would like to preauthorize a Sunday collection e-donation can pick up a yellow form in the gathering space.

Recycle – Save valuable resources – Earn money for our schools
   We are part of the Recycle Challenge, collecting aluminum cans for St. John the Baptist School. We have had another pick up! Let’s see how fast we can fill the container again. The Rumpke recycling container is conveniently located by the garage near the John Gray Road driveway. Save your cans, drop them in the recycling container, help save the environment and earn money for St. John the Baptist School.
    We are part of the Abitibi Paper Recycling Program for John Paul II School (SBCS).
   WE ACCEPT: newspapers, magazines, catalogs, junk mail, envelopes, folders, office paper, notebooks, fax & copy paper and shredded paper (shredded paper must be in a plastic bag to prevent it from blowing away!) WE DO NOT ACCEPT: Phone Books, Cardboard, Waxed Paper, Metal, Trash, Glass or Plastic (except for bags that hold shredded paper). The Abitibi Paper Recycling container is also conveniently located behind the garage near the John Gray Road driveway. Bring your paper, help save the environment and earn money for JPII.
   Bring your aluminum cans and newspapers next time you will be passing by church.
      Drive in and drive out, easy access, 24/7, and help keep tuition costs down!

St. John the Baptist U Corpus Christi U St. John Neumann
A Pastoral Area School: Three parishes…One commitment to Catholic Education
Registration for new families to the school program, grades K-8 at St. John the Baptist School, for the 2009-2010 school year for families who are presently registered members of St. John Neumann Parish begins March 5, 2009. K-8 re-registration for returning students begins Wednesday, February 25, 2009. Please watch the weekly bulletin for information about the school parent meeting and tuition aid.

Please note the following: Membership in SJN Parish is determined by formal registration in the parish and regular attendance at Eucharist with the SJN community. This should be noted by all who plan to register or reregister children in the St. John grades K-8 program. For information about membership, parish policies etc. call Janet Joerger at the parish office, 742-0953. Please call the school office 385-7970 or visit us online at www.stjohnbluejays.org. for more information about our school and registration.

WE WELCOME NEW PARISHIONERS
Please warmly welcome:
Ed & Mary Rae W and Ralph & Hilda H
who have all recently joined our parish family.

Baptisms:
The newest members of our Christian family are:
Jared Joseph W, son of Scott and Jennifer, Addilyn Lee M, daughter of Chaz and Nicole and Madison Claire P daughter of Michael and Natalie.

They were all recently baptized here at St. John Neumann. May they grow healthy, strong and steadfast in their faith with the love of each other and the Lord.

The Neumann News is published by
St. John Neumann Church
12191 Mill Road
Cincinnati, Ohio 45240
742-0953

Printed every other month, six times a year, for the entertainment,
information and education of our readers. Comments, inquiries
and articles should be submitted to the parish office.
Please submit articles on disc or hard copy.
Layout Coordinators:
Karen Albrinck and Terri Hackman

SJN Neumann News
Volume Twenty-Eight
Issue one
Jan/Feb 2009

“Celebrating 31 years of making the name of the Lord known in this place”

SJN Neumann News Volume Twenty-Eight Issue one Jan/Feb 2009

“Celebrating 31 years of making the name of the Lord known in this place”

SJN Neumann News
Volume Twenty-Eight
Issue one
Jan/Feb 2009