PLEASE NOTE: The rectory will be closed on Monday, February 15
th, 2016 for Presidents Day.
CRS Rice Bowl Join our parish community — and nearly 14,000 Catholic communities across the United states — in a life-changing Lenten journey with CRS Rice Bowl. CRS Rice Bowl is a faith-in-action Lenten program for families, individuals and faith communities with family activities, meatless meals, prayers and reflections. Rice Bowl invites Catholics to live in
solidarity with our most vulnerable brothers and sisters through the Lenten pillars of Prayer, Fasting and Almsgiving.
Please pick up a Rice Bowl with a Lenten calendar and a flyer for more information at the church entrance.
What you give up for Lent changes lives: “Lent is a time for self-denial; we would do well to ask ourselves what we can give up in order to help and enrich others by our own poverty.” —Pope Francis
COLLECTION Thank you so very much for your generous response to the needs of the parish. Our collection last Sunday was $11,177. $4,090 was received in ParishPay for a total of $15,267. $2603 was collected for the Peters Pence Collection.
COMMITTEE FOR PASTORAL PLANNING Make a difference in our future, join the Committee for Pastoral Planning, a newly formed group that seeks to clarify our mission as a parish and then find ways to implement and fulfill it. The Pastoral Plan is a commitment made by the Pastor and parishioners to further the mission of the parish, the reason the parish exists.
We are looking for volunteers who can share their talents and skills to join sub-committees of data gathering, survey design, analytics, communications and meeting planning and facilitation.
Please join us on March 5th from 9:30 AM to 2:00 PM for our first Committee for Pastoral Planning assembly.
The planning process began in mid-January and should be complete by Thanksgiving. In order for our Pastoral Plan to be inclusive and collaborative, the process will require frequent
communication with the various parish ministries, groups, individual parishioners, parish staff, Parish Council and the Pastor. Planning committee members will be seeking input from as many parishioners as possible. Data gathering will begin very soon and a parish Town Hall will be held. We will provide ongoing communication as the plan unfolds.
We hope you will consider giving your time and talent to Blessed Sacrament Parish in this way. For more information, please leave your name and email address in the rectory office and a committee member will be in contact with you.
BLESSED SACRAMENT SCHOOL School of the Blessed Sacrament is a pre-k through eighth grade Catholic elementary school in the heart of the upper west side. Our well-rounded curriculum incorporates love of God, self, and others. We integrate technology, the arts, music, and physical education to provide a liberal arts education for the whole child. We seek to develop saints and scholars through innovative, personal learning experiences. Accepting applications now, with financial aid opportunities for qualified families, contact us today at
212-724-7561 or
www.sblsnyc.org
34th ANNUAL PAX CHRISTI NY WAY OF THE CROSS Join several hundred people in one of the largest public Christian peace witnesses in New York City. For over thirty years Pax Christi Metro New York has walked The Good Friday Way of the Cross as a modern-day enactment of the Stations of the Cross, praying for peace and justice on the streets of our city. Pope Francis has declared 2016 as the year of Mercy, join with us as we reflect on Living Lives of Mercy with Care and Compassion.
The Walk will take place from 8:30am to 12:00 noon on Good Friday, March 25th.
We begin at Dag Hammarskjold Plaza (47th and First Avenue) and proceed along 42nd street between Eight and Ninth Avenues.
PLEASE WEAR OR CARRY A CROSS.
For further information about our work, please contact us at 371 Sixth Ave., New York, NY, 10014; 212-420-0250;
[email protected] or
www.nypaxchristi.org
Sunday School Volunteers Needed With the growing number of students in our Sunday School program the need for volunteers is also growing. Catechists, assistants, and substitutes are needed. All volunteers who work with children will need to complete a background check form and an abuse awareness and prevention class as provided by the Archdiocese. Please call Tina Silvestro at 212-877-3111.
LENTEN VESPERS Corpus Christi Church – 529 W 121
st St
Sundays at 4:00pm – The Mercy of God
February 21, 2016
Preacher: Rabbi Michael Moskowitz
Aish Campus Ministry, Columbia Univ. Jeremy Rhizor, violin
Academy of Sacred Drama
Be the Change: Climate Commitments for Lent
Lent is an opportune time to evaluate our lifestyles and make conscious decisions that contribute to a happy, healthy planet. Together, we can follow Pope Francis’ lead to choose what is good by adapting our behavior and being better stewards of the earth and her resources. Each week through Easter, we will be providing advice and tips on how to decrease your carbon footprint this Lent. You can begin to incorporate these actions and changes in your daily life, creating a sustainable and more earth-friendly lifestyle.
Second Week: February 14 Thinking of a last-minute Valentine’s Day gift for someone you love? Consider this an opportunity to break away from consumerism by thinking of a meaningful note or trying something creative instead of purchasing something.
To be involved in the parish’s Care for Creation efforts, contact Luke Mayville at 208-610-1783.
SMACK Do you need help running errands? Is it difficult for you to grocery shop? Or travel to places in the winter-time? Do you know someone who could use just a little help or a small act of kindness (SMACK)? Contact the rectory for assistance and we'll connect you to one of our parishioner-volunteers. This program is not appropriate for people that need medical assistance or skilled nursing care. (Note: We are no longer accepting volunteers at this time, only people in need of assistance.)
Food & Faith Connect! This spring (for the first time!) parishioners can buy fresh, organic, locally grown vegetables from the Dominican Sisters' Harmony Farm in Goshen, NY. After all masses on February 27 & 28, March 5 & 6, and March 12 & 13 you can purchase a membership to the Sisters' farm and receive a box of produce each week from April through November. We'll deliver the food to Blessed Sacrament and you can pick it up on the Church steps! Also included in membership is the opportunity to go on retreat at the farm.
The JOYJ Initiative Homeless Outreach The JOYJ Initiative will hold its next homeless outreach on Saturday, February 20th at 10:00 am. (If you wish to help with the packing of the bags, please arrive by 9:30 am). Volunteers will meet in the church hall, located down the stairs between the rectory and the church. If you are interested in volunteering for this outreach, or wish to be on the mailing list for future service, please email
[email protected], or stop by rectory after the masses this weekend and sign up!
BLESSED SACRAMENTS WOMENS GROUP Our next Women's Group Meeting will be February 21st at 6:45 p.m. upstairs in the rectory. We will be discussing spiritual growth during advent, and building relationships with one another over snacks and wine. We hope to see you there!
SAVE THE DATE and Please Join Us! A Talk with Fr. Sean
Fr. Sean McDonagh will explore implications for humanity and the earth as presented in his book "Reflections on Laudato Si: On Care for our Common Home".
Saturday 2/27 at 6:45PM at Blessed Sacrament Church. A reception and book signing will follow. (A similar presentation will also be held at St. Francis of Assisi Church, San Damiano Hall, 129 West 31st St. on 2/26 at 6PM.) Please
CLICK HERE for more information.
LENTEN SIMPLE SUPPERS Please join us during any or all of the Wednesdays of Lent: 2/17, 2/24, 3/2, 3/9, and 3/16 for our Lenten Simple Suppers. Prayers and meditation begin at 7PM in the rectory, followed by a meal of soup and salad…and fellowship. The suppers are a wonderful way to not only deepen one’s Lenten experience, but also to be able to reflect in a very comfortable and quiet setting with fellow parishioners. For more information, please call John Gasdaska at 646-345-7350. We look forward to seeing you then.
TREAT THE PATIENT, HEAL THE PERSON: Embracing Spiritual and Cultural Diversity in Contemporary Health Practices.
Tuesday, March 8
th, 2016 from 8:30am – 5:45pm
Fordham University, E. Gerald Corrigan Conference Center,
12
th Floor Lounge
113 West 60
th Street, NYC
Join us for a daylong gathering of leading practitioners and scholars who represent diverse approaches to medicine, culture, and spirituality. We will examine cross-cultural perspectives in well-being, explore best practices, and propose innovative approaches to healthcare delivery.
FREE ADMISSION – RSVP: [email protected]
BEING EVICTED? NEED HOUSING ADVICE? Please join Assembly Member Linda B. Rosenthal and Jasa Club 76
at a legal Clinic on Housing Issues
WHEN : Thursday, February 18
th, 2016, 6:30 – 8 PM
WHERE : Jasa Club 76
120 West 76th Street, 3
rd Floor
(Between Amsterdam & Columbus Avenues)
Organizations Attending (List in formation)
Goddard Riverside SRO Law Project
Housing Conservation Coordinators
MFY Legal Services
For more information or to RSVP, Please contact Assembly Member
Linda B. Rosenthal at (212) 873-6368 or
[email protected]