/Bulletin/

---

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ Jesus, we are glad to celebrate the feast of the

presentation of our Lord Jesus in temple today. This feast reminds us the offering,

giving, presenting and coming of the Lord in every Eucharist we celebrate. He

comes to be with us. He unites us with Him. Shall we receive Him, relate with Him

and return to Him from our doubtful path!

The feast of presentation of the Lord was being celebrated before the practice of

Christmas because it was the first visit of Jesus to the temple. How this first visit is

special and unique. In the first reading we read that the Lord will come to the

temple. This prophecy of Malachi is fulfilled as we have Jesus being presented in

the temple narrated by St. Luke the evangelist. We need to know the words

of Ezekiel “the glory of the Lord left the temple” it says that the Lord deserted

them, departed from them and left the temple because their worship and offering

was not real. Priests were not loyal in their responsibility and commitment. So,

people too collaborated with the action of priests as they were offering blemished

(blind, lame) sacrifices and giving bad example (1:6-2:4).  The people were

negligent in their support of the Temple (3:6-12). The religious, family and social

life of Israel was corrupt. So, as prophet Malachi proclaims Jesus enters, presents

and encounters first time in the temple to purify the actions of priests and people.

So, it is also called the feast of purification. The glory is returning back now as

human, personally to embrace and unite with humanity. This act is revealed

in Last supper, fulfilled on the cross and now repeated in every Eucharist we

celebrate. The Lord is being presented in every Eucharist as body and blood. He is

presenting, He is coming and He is giving to unite us with Him. We are called to

experience this encounter.

We are called to be light to present ourselves, to present the Christ within us to

others constantly. Our participation is presentation, our togetherness is

presentation. The presentation began on the day of our Baptism in the Church at

the altar continuous in every Eucharist. Shall we bring our self, our family, friends,

our emotions and struggle, our success and failures, our aspirations and anxieties to

be united with Him.

COLLECTIONS: Sunday, January 26 th , 2020 – ICC - $661.00; St. Margaret’s -

$356.00.

LITURGY COMMITTEE MEETING – A correction from last week – the

meeting will be Tuesday, February 4 th , 2020, at 4:00 pm in the Church.

The Eucharist: Catholic Beliefs and Practices The first in a series of teachings on

the Eucharist A Pew Research survey on religious views last year found that only

37% of regular Mass going Catholics accepted the teaching of the Church that

Christ is truly and actually present in the Eucharist. The teaching of the Catechism

of the Catholic Church asserts that Christ is present body, blood, soul and divinity

in the Eucharist species. While it is good news that 37% do accept this teaching of

the Church, it is sad news that 63% of active Catholics do not fully accept it. A

number of commentators quickly noted that the methodology used for the Pew

survey actually measured catechetical knowledge more so than actual belief, but

the results still are troubling. Even more troubling was that for self-identified

Catholics under forty, who only marginally practiced their faith, belief in the real

presence was at 26%. In light of these findings and after discussing the survey

with members of the Priests’ Council, I decided to begin a series of monthly

teachings on the Eucharist, brief in nature, that pastors could provide to

parishioners by a medium that works best for each parish. This is the first of the

series. Each will be posted on the diocesan website: www.diocesegfb.org.

Eucharist, a word derived from the Greek eucharistia, means thanksgiving. The

early Christian community began to use the word to refer to the Last Supper meal

of Jesus with his disciples. There are four accounts of the institution of the

Eucharist in the New Testament, the earliest account being by St. Paul in his First

Letter to the Corinthians (1 Cor 11:23-26). These early Christians gathered on

Sunday in order to recall Christ’s passion, death and resurrection from death

because it was on Sunday that he rose from death. Their coming together offered

them time and opportunity to thank God for their redemption from sin and

lasting death in and through Christ. At the Last Supper, referring to Christ’s last

gathering before his arrest, Jesus instructed his disciples to “do this in memory” of

all that he would do for them in the following days through his death and

resurrection. He connected everything he would experience through his passion,

death and resurrection with the sacred meal they were sharing and which he

instructed them to continue. It was more than a sacred farewell meal. It was

participation in a saving action. Through their continuing to gather and share this

meal, they were able to join in his saving sacrifice by which he brought about the

possibility of salvation for people once and for all.

ST. MARGARET’S BULLETIN

St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Rocky Boy was destroyed by fire in December.  Bishop

Warfel is reaching out to all in the diocese asking for help to rebuild St. Mary’s church. 

If you would like to aid in this effort put your donation in the Sunday collection clearly

labeled FOR ROCKY BOY CHURCH.

Valentine Plates will be prepared on Sunday, February 9 before 11:00 am Mass. 

Please have your donation to the church before 10:00 am. All types of snacks are

appreciated-sweet, healthy, nutty, fruit, etc.   We will prepare about 40 plates.

Everyone is invited to take a couple plates to deliver.

Reflection by Trish—Have You Eaten?

Recently I was watching a special on the celebration of the Chinese New Year, which

took place a couple weeks ago.  During the program I learned that a common Chinese

greeting is translated, “Have you eaten?”  

What a wonderful way to be greeted.  Imagine stopping by to visit someone, being

sincerely asked if you have eaten, and then offered something to eat.   The offering

does not have to be a full plate or anything special, just something to share.    

Sharing a meal in many countries is an important event.  Meals are not rushed, time is

taken, often at least an hour for a meal.   Often food is shared with families, neighbors

or friends. Eating with someone is therapeutic, a chance to talk and reflect on the day. 

Even sharing a cup of coffee can be meaningful. 

All faith traditions hold up the sacredness of shared meals.  Sharing a meal is core to

connecting as a group of people. In the Christian tradition the table is central to our

worship service.  Every Sunday we hear the words, “Take and eat.” We do not have a

whole meal at our table on Sunday morning. We receive Jesus, in a morsel of bread

and a sip of wine, so that we can take Jesus to the world.

The human family is created by the Divine Love.  We are called to be One Family, to be

neighbor for one another. There is a song we sing at church that says:

We are companions on our journey, breaking bread and sharing life; and in the love we

bear is the hope we share for we believe in the love of our God.

The word companion comes from the Latin root –with bread.  When we take time to

listen, when we reach out to someone due to care or concern, when we pause our

schedule to acknowledge another-we are companions.  When we share a moment from

our life we are helping to nourish another. We may not be offering bread or food to all,

but we can feed the hearts and souls of others.

This week when you encounter someone pause long enough to offer a greeting and a

few moments that might warm their heart giving them food for their journey.