December 30, 2018 – January 6, 2019
Weekly Activities
Sunday, December 30 at 12:30 p.m. ~ Explore Buffalo tour of our church
Wednesday, January 2 from 12:00 noon – 4:00 p.m. ~ Catholic Central Food Pantry in St. Charles Hall – NEW HOURS
Thursday, January 3 at 8:00 p.m. ~ Bingo will be played in St. Charles Hall*
Saturday, January 5 at 8:00 p.m. ~ Bingo will be played in St. Charles Hall*
*To check the Red, White & Blue and progressive Share-the-Wealth carry over amounts and progressive numbers for this week, click HERE and visit our Facebook page.
Mass Intentions
Sunday, December 30 ~ Feast of the Holy Family ~ Mass at 10:00 a.m. – Ethel Grabenstatter (Requested by Bud and Mickey Dick)
Monday, December 31 ~ No Service
Tuesday, January 1 ~ Solemnity of Mary ~ Mass at 10:00 a.m. – For the intentions of our parishioners, both living and deceased (Blessed Trinity Parish)
Wednesday, January 2 ~ Ss. Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen ~ Mass at 11:00 a.m. – Deceased Members of the Ryan, Reilly, Reynolds and Pfeiffer Families (Estate of Mary Reilly)
Thursday, January 3 ~ Mass at 11:00 a. m. – For the intentions of our parishioners, both living and deceased (Blessed Trinity Parish)
Friday, January 4 ~ St. Elizabeth Ann Seton ~ Mass at 11:00 a.m. – Deceased Members of the Ryan, Reilly, Reynolds and Pfeiffer Families (Estate of Mary Reilly)
Saturday, January 5 ~ St. John Neumann ~ Vigil Mass at 4:30 p.m. – For the intentions of our parishioners, both living and deceased (Blessed Trinity Parish)
Sunday, January 6 ~ The Epiphany of the Lord ~ Mass at 10:00 a.m. – Birthday Remembrance for John Duffy (The Duffy Family)
Ministry Schedule for Saturday and Sunday, January 5/6, 2019:
Saturday, 4:30 p.m. Reader: Michael Ogoh; Eucharistic Minister:
Lucille Venezia
Sunday, 10:00 a.m. Readers: Judy Casassa , Don Williams; Eucharistic Ministers: Dan Korchowsky, Kathleen Marien, Sr. Liz Savage ; CHOIR –
News from our Parish Community
Explore Buffalo Visits Blessed Trinity ~ Sunday, December 30, at 12:30pm, Explore Buffalo again visits our church for its third and final 2018 “Inside Blessed Trinity Church” tour. The tour is about ninety minutes. It’s a great opportunity for families to bring holiday visitors to our architectural gem and really impress them! Reservations can be made by contacting Explore Buffalo at 716-245-3032 or explorebuffalo.org…or simply show up for the event ($15 per person or $10 with Explore Buffalo Pass, a portion of which is returned to us). Tell your friends and bring your visitors!
Solemnity of Mary ~ Tuesday, January 1, is a Holy Day of Obligation: The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. Our only Mass will be at 10am on Tuesday.
God’s Family ~ The Opening Collect for this week’s Feast of the Holy Family provides a beautiful framework for our preparation:
O God, who were pleased to give
us the shining example of the Holy Family,
graciously grant that we may imitate them
in practicing the virtues of family life.
American Families are diverse, but we can all be part of a family if we live within these words. The Church is a family of believers who live under this bond. The musical selections for this week’s honor our relationship with our Christian family, with Jesus, our Brother, and Mary, our Mother. Joy to the world – the Lord (our Brother) has come! May the coming of our Christ fill your hearts with joy, music, and love. Choir rehearsals resume Tuesday, January 15 at 7pm in St. Charles Hall. All are welcome to join our Choral Family … Elizabeth
Prayerful Thanks ~ We are extremely grateful to Bob Barnes; Tom, Nik and Drew Brodfuehrer; Judy Casassa, Bud and Mickey Dick, Alan Frank, Bob Heicklen, Amy Johnson, Althea Porter, Sr. Liz Savage and Palma Zanghi who took on the rigors of decorating the church for Christmas. May each of you enjoy many blessings on Christmas and into the new year.
Prisoner Gifts 2018 ~ Continuing Sr. Karen Klimczak’s message of hope, love, peace, and forgiveness to the imprisoned…A Big Thank You is extended to all the friends and supporters of Sr. Karen who donated goods and books, decorated bags, and helped package the gifts.
- On the evening of December 12, goods and books were delivered with the help of a team of men from the Ancient Order of Hibernians.
- On Friday morning December 14, volunteers, representing churches, schools, social agencies and friends of Sr. Karen Klimczak, unpacked, sorted and counted supplies for 2100 gift bags. Cartons and boxes were flattened and plastic wrappings bagged for recycling. Working very efficiently, they then filled gift bags destined for the men at Wende Correctional Facility. The evening crew prepared 1100 gift bags for the women at Albion, and finished packing the shipping boxes. Each bag contained: 2 books, a pair of socks, a ramen noodles or granola/snack bar, a bag of candy, 2 hot chocolate packs, and a note of peace and encouragement.
- On Tuesday, Decemeber 18, “Paint of WNY” donated their truck and employees to load the boxes for delivery to the prisons that day.
- Blessed Trinity’s Cocoa Challenge hit its goal of 4200 packets. Cash donations totaled $327.80 to purchase cocoa, with $145 left to fill shortages and donate to Peaceprints of WNY. Our BT parishioners also decorated or arranged for friends and students to decorate over 200 gift bags.
- Thanks and appreciation to our maintenance man, Dennis, for setting up and meeting deliveries, and to our parishioners who stayed late to clean up.
- We are most grateful that Blessed Trinity Parish has made the church available for this yearly project. We acknowledge and thank Janice Burns, project coordinator, for her hard work bringing this project to another successful end. Hopefully we have left fingerprints of peace.
Blessed Trinity Needs Your Help! We’re not asking for money, but for some-thing maybe even more valuable: a little bit of your TIME. Just a bit. ONE or TWO nights a month that will really help your parish. Our last financial report (included in a recent bulletin) shows the importance of BINGO. Clearly, this fundraiser is essential for our parish’s financial health. Just as clearly, it needs broad parish support in the way of MORE workers. We have Bingo every Thursday and Saturday night. Can you PLEASE commit to one or two nights a month? You can start simply by helping to sell things and — as you learn the routine — cross-train for other essential tasks. Our friendly team of workers stands ready to help you. Please contact Kathy Press at 716-445-8160 for more information. Your Parish Bingo Team thanks you!
The holidays can be a hard time. If you or someone you love is struggling, turn to Catholic Charities. Our agency offers several different types of counseling support including: marriage counseling, individual psychotherapy, family and group therapy, substance abuse treatment, diocesan counseling for church ministers, children’s clinics, and individual, child and family counseling. To learn more, visit ccwny.org and click the “Counseling & Mental Health” tab on the right.
Do you know that Mass is the highest and greatest form of prayer? The Catechism of the Catholic Church reveals that “from the very earliest days of the Christian religion, [the Church] has honored with great respect the memory of the dead.” In its reference to the Second Vatican Council’s conclusion that “it is a wholly and a wholesome thought to pray for the dead that they may be loosed from their sins,” the Catechism adds: “Our prayer for them is capable of not only helping them, but also of making their intercession for us effective.” Consider contacting the church office (716-833-0301) to request a Mass for yourself, your deceased loved ones, or for any intention. The stipend is $15.
Has your contact information changed? Our parish secretary is finding that our parish records contain a growing number of not-in-service phone numbers, and the recent parish mailing resulted in several letters returned for “expired forwarding.” If your contact information has changed, you can notify the rectory office in one of several ways: use the form on the back of the bulletin; phone our secretary at 716-833-0301 any Tuesday-Thursday between 10:30am and 2:30pm; send an email to blessedtrinitychurch [at] gmail [dot] com; or Click HERE to use the contact feature of our web site to submit the information. If you choose either of the last two, please use “New Contact” as the subject of the email or message.
Home Visits ~ Please notify the church office if you know of aged, sick, or homebound parishioners who may wish to receive a visit and the Eucharist on the last Friday of each month.
News from our Vicariate Cluster and the Wider Community
Fourteenth Annual Festival of Lights Benefit & Auction at Our Lady of Fatima Shrine (1023 Swann Road in Lewiston), Saturday evening, January 12, including wine tasting, auctions, door prizes, and a catered dinner. Call 716-754-7489 for tickets.