Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
January 18-25, 2018
“Your right hand, O Lord, glorious in power….” Ex. 15:6
Depiction of Trinity in Baldachino
Photo credit: Margaret Dick

January 21 – January 28, 2018

Weekly Activities

Sunday, January 21 following 10:00 a.m. Mass ~ Anointing of the sick and well-aging in church

Thursday, January 25 at 8:00 p.m. ~ Bingo will be played in St. Charles Hall*

Saturday, January 27 from 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. ~ Helping Hands Food Pantry in St. Charles Hall

Saturday, January 27 at 8:00 p.m. ~ Bingo will be played in St. Charles Hall*

Sunday, January 28 following 10:00 a.m. Mass ~ Coffee Hour 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, January 21 ~ Mass at 10:00 a.m. – Pauline Rollek (Requested by John Curtin)

Monday, January 22 ~ No Service

Tuesday, January 23 ~ St. Vincent, St. Marianne Cope ~ Mass at 11:00 a.m. – Catherine M. Maher (Estate)

Wednesday, January 24 ~ St. Francis de Sales ~ Mass at 11:00 a.m. – Deceased Members of the Ryan, Reilly, Reynolds, and Pfeiffer Families (Estate of Mary Reilly)

Thursday, January 25 ~ Conversion of St. Paul ~ Mass at 11:00 a.m. – Catherine M. Maher (Estate)

Friday, January 26 ~ Ss. Timothy and Titus ~ Mass at 11:00 a.m. – Deceased Members of the Ryan, Reilly, Reynolds, and Pfeiffer Families (Estate of Mary Reilly)

Saturday, January 27 ~ St. Angela Merici ~ Vigil Mass at 4:30 p.m. – Catherine M. Maher (Estate)

Sunday, January 28 ~ Mass at 10:00 a.m. – Most Rev. Dominic Luong (John Curtin)

Ministry Schedule for Saturday and Sunday, January 20 and 21:

Saturday, 4:30 p.m.  Reader: Lorna Cameron; Eucharistic Minister: Michael Ogoh

Sunday, 10:00 a.m.  Readers: Bonnie Williams, Don Williams;  Eucharistic Ministers: Fran Cahill, Sharon Dunnigan, Kathleen Marien, Judy Casassa, Maggie Gatson

Photo Credit: Sean T. Brodfuehrer

News from our Parish Community

Monthly Coffee Hour is Sunday, January 28, following Mass. It will be hosted by our bingo volunteers. Please stop by St. Charles Hall for coffee and conversation with your parish family.

A Prayerful People ~ The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is January 18-25, and January 22 is the Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection for Unborn Children.  This week of prayer becomes increasingly significant as our current era becomes more tumultuous. The theme of this year’s prayer week is “Your Right Hand, O Lord, Glorious in Power,” taken from Exodus 15:6, the victory song of Moses and Miriam. This is a required canticle for the Easter Vigil. In keeping with our initiative of using a new hymn every week during Ordinary Time, this week’s closing hymn was a setting of that Exodus text – To God Be Praise and Glory. Please let me know if you liked this arrangement of that text, as you may be singing it again this year at the Vigil Mass. Until then, remember that singing is twice praying, so consider singing your prayers this week! Choir practice resumes on Tuesday, February 6, at 7:00 p.m. in St. Charles Hall.

Follow-up to MLK Day of Organizing ~ If you liked what you learned at Monday’s event at Ss. Columba-Brigid, you can find out more about organizing in your own community on Wednesday, February 7, from 7:15-8:30pm at Ss. Columba-Brigid Church, 75 Hickory Street. Even if you were unable to attend on January 15, you are still more than welcome at this “Part 2” gathering. To register, please call their parish office at 852-3331.

Making a Difference – One Family at a Timeis the mission of Family Promise of WNY. The network of local religious organizations responds to the needs of homeless families. It is one of only three local agencies that keep families together as a unit in an emergency shelter. As a host congregation, Ss. Columba-Brigid Parish shelters families for a week, four times a year, and serves as the Family Promise Day Center providing laundry, shower, kitchen facilities, mail delivery, internet access, case management, and school bus service. As a support parish, Blessed Trinity cooks and serves one dinner a week during the four weeks hosted by Ss. C-B. Our next date is March 24. We need a few new volunteers to join our BT team. If willing to help, please contact Amy Johnson at 716-836-4694.

Sign Up for a Prayer Partner ~ Lent is a time when we are called to pray for the needs of others. If you would like to participate in the Catholic Churches of Central Buffalo (“CCCB”) Prayer Partner Program, please sign up by the weekend of January 27. Registration sheets will be found on the altar rail. You will then receive the name of a person from another CCCB parish to pray for, and that person will be given your name to pray for throughout the Lenten season. If you have questions or you are a homebound person who wishes participate, please call Pam Zanghi (716-834-9129) or Dan Korchowsky (716-465-4771). You will have the chance to meet your prayer partner at a pot-luck dinner on April 19.

Sodality Dues Reminder for 2018Sodality membership runs with the calendar year, so please remember to renew. Life membership (no dues required) begins at age 80. Mickey Dick, our membership chair, will be happy to accept your $5 payment in cash or check payable to “Ladies Sodality of Blessed Trinity.” You may also drop your dues in the collection basket as long as the envelope is clearly marked “Sodality Dues.” If you would like information on becoming a member, please call Mickey (716-832-2540) or President Vera Andrew (716-704-2944).

Mass of Thanksgiving for the success of the Upon This Rock Campaign with Bishop Richard J. Malone will be at 5:30pm on Tuesday, January 30, at Infant of Prague Parish  (921 Cleveland Drive in Cheektowaga).

Bible Study ~ Plans for the next series of Bible study meetings are underway. Please continue to watch this space and the bulletin for details of our next meeting and assigned readings. Contact Althea Porter at 716-316-8395 for more information.

Openings for Mass Intentions ~ Thank you to all who have recently placed Mass intentions. We again have openings on Saturdays and Sundays, so please contact the church office (716-833-0301) with your requests. Office hours are: 10:30am-2:30pm, Tuesday through Thursday. The Mass Stipend is $15.

New parking spaces have been added to the wheelchair ramp side of the church to compensate for losing ten spaces behind the old school building (FLARE) with the sale of the building. The new owner plans to rehab the structure into twenty apartments, a project that will certainly benefit the neighborhood.

Important Deadlines to Remember ~ As we begin the new year, please remember to contact our secretary, Pat Pendleton, with dates (even tentative ones) that should appear on the parish calendar. Our bulletin is printed on Thursdays, so announcements should be submitted no later than Noon on the Wednesday prior to the weekend you wish it to appear. Announcements to be read at weekend Masses are due on Thursday. You may contact Pat at blessedtrinitychurch@gmail or 716-833-0301 any Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday between 10:30am and 2:30pm.

Parish Record Keeping ~ We have created a parish group email to be used for notification of time-sensitive information; e.g., a mid-week funeral service. If you would be interested in receiving such messages, please make sure that the church office has your email address. If you need to update your contact information or would like to register as a parishioner, please call the church office (716-833-0301) on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday during office hours: 10:30am-2:30pm, email your contact information to blessedtrinitychurch [at] gmail [dot] com, or use the CONTACT feature of this web site.

 

Terra cotta ornamentation in the right (west) transept Shrine Area. The “Globe surmounted by a Cross, Olive Branch and Lily…are used as symbols of Christ’s life on earth.”
Rev. Walter Kern’s Guidebook to Blessed Trinity R.C. Church, page 27. Photo credit: Margaret Dick.

News from our Vicariate Cluster and the Wider Community

Tomorrow’s Youth Today Program can help you obtain your high school equivalency diploma and gain job readiness. The Catholic Charities program through the Workforce and Education Department is available to those ages 16-24 who are out of school. Visit ccwny.org/ReadySetJob or call 716-893-3500.

Journey into Love Program for engaged couples seeks married couples willing to offer a 20-minute talk to share their experiences. Contact the Family Life Office at 716-847-2210 or visit buffalodiocese.org for more details about volunteering.

The Calix Society meets on the last Sunday of each Month at 3pm in the basement of St. Michael’s Church Rectory (651 Washington Street in Buffalo) for those seeking a spiritual-based program for recovery of alcoholism.  More information at calixsociety.org or 716-847-2210.