Our Lady of Lourdes Bulletins

Welcome to Our Lady of Lourdes!

Lourdes MN — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 09:36:19 +0000

We welcome all visitors and anyone who has recently moved into our community. We invite you to become members of our parish. If you are interested in joining, or have any questions, please contact the parish office.

Electronic Funds Transfer

Lourdes MN — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 09:32:54 +0000

Our Lady of Lourdes Church offers Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) for your sacrificial giving. For more information, please contact Rosanne in the parish office.

Thanks to all who helped with Yard Day!

Lourdes MN — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 09:22:06 +0000

The new gardens by St. Francis look great!

Feeding The Hungry

Lourdes MN — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 09:21:15 +0000

Many thanks to Paul Piazza, Jr. and his volunteer team for preparing and serving the Cabrini Partnership Client Picnic.

RCIA

Lourdes MN — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 22:10:00 +0000

In last week’s parish bulletin I wrote about the Apostle to theGentiles, Saint Paul. I wrote of his dramatic conversion to become a follower of Jesus. His conversion was celebrated on January25th. That event prompted me to reflect again on the way that men and women become members of the Church in today’s world. That process is dramatic in its own way.

On Monday evenings from September until the Easter Vigil Celebration, our parish participates in the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). During thsoe months we will help a group of people to become members of the Catholic Church. The preparation is more than a program. It is an initiation into what it means to be a Catholic and how to live as a Catholic.

This initiation calls for the sacrifice of time and energy for those who participate in it. The personal rewards can make it a time of welcome renewal in one’s life. That is true not only for the candidates of initiation, but for those who serve as personal or parish sponsors for those in the RCIA. Interested people generously take part in the initiation process. They take seriously the time in which they prepare themselves to become members of the Church. Each person who asks to become Catholic asks a dedicated Catholic to serve as their personal sponsor, to walk with them through the initiation. The parish also has general representative sponsors to help the whole group through theinitiation. Those who have served as sponsors in the past will gladly tell anyone what the RCIA has meant for them.

In our Monday evening meetings there is always a lesson that is taught on some Church Teaching. It usually draws out questions from the candidates. Time is set aside to relax and come to know each other better and learn something of the traditional practices of the church, for example the sign of the cross and what it means. There is also some time given to write out questions that a person may not want to speak publicly. Those are often the most challenging of questions. Deacon Michael, Sister Ellen and I are eager to answer those questions.

Another important element of the RCIA is to integrate the participants into the life of the church. Periodically through the year the participants are asked to stand before the congregation to receive a blessing or formally to receive the sign of the cross and the Creed. It is a touching moment as the congregation welcomes these people into our midst.

With this brief explanation in mind I would ask two things of you who are members of the Church. First, pray for those who are participants in the RCIA. Pray that the same Spirit that touched St. Paul might touch the hearts of these people. Secondly, if you know someone who might be interested in becoming a Catholic, give them this bulletin and tell them to think about it.

May the Holy Spirit come upon our RCIA participants.

-Fr. Charlie Froehle-

Published in the bulletin on January 30th, 2011

Conversion of Saint Paul

Lourdes MN — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 13:50:49 +0000

On Tuesday, January 25, the Church celebrates the feast of the conversion of Saint Paul. We are blessed to have Saint Paul as the patronal saint of our Archdiocese. The story of his life is the story of how his preaching embraced the message of Jesus in a way that effectively brought it to people of the whole Middle East.

His story begins with his conversion. Paul began his preaching by speaking against Christ. He was filled with zeal to teach his fellow Jews that Jesus was not the Messiah as John the Baptist had claimed. Paul chose to persecute the followers of Jesus.

God had a different plan. While Paul was on the road to Damascus, Christ encountered him in a vision. Immediately Paul fell to the ground and was struck blind. A voice asked him why he was persecuting Jesus. It was the beginning of his transformation whereby he became a zealous follower of Christ.

We know St. Paul by reading and listening to the various letters that he wrote to Christian communities throughout the Middle East. We are familiar with his two letters to the Corinthians, and his letters to the Romans, and the people of Thessalonica, and still other letters that helped form the church’s understanding of the person and message of Jesus.

St. Paul wrote several of his letters while he was in prison. One was written to the Philippians. The introduction to that letter offers us a powerful statement of St. Paul’s great love and care for the people. It is a word of encouragement to all of us, and it is worthy to be remembered as we celebrate the feast of the Conversion of St. Paul.

“I give thanks to my God at every remembrance of you, praying always with joy in my every prayer for all of you, because of your partenership for the gospel from the first day until now. I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus. It is right that I should think this way about all of you, because I hold you in my heart, you who are all partners with me in grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and confirmation of the Gospel. For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. And this is my prayer: that your love may increase more and more in knowledge and every kind of perception, to discern what is of value, so that you may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.”

Saint Paul, pray for us

-Fr. Charlie Froehle-

Published in the Bulletin January 23rd

Abortion and Constitutional Law

Lourdes MN — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 13:24:00 +0000

A few years ago Father Froehle wrote in our Bulletin:

"The cold and the snow of January in Minnesota always makes me think of one particularly difficult January day. It was January 22, 1973. The reason I remember that day is not because of the weather. Rather, it was the day that the US Supreme Court made its Roe v. Wade decision. As you know, that decision made it legal for women to seek an abortion in our country."

Father went on to invite us to pray for the safety of unborn children in the womb and for the end to abortion. At an earlier time, these words from our pastor would have made me very uncomfortable as I sat in my pew feeling judged, silenced and alone. But this time, I felt only gratitude towards him for his courage to speak the truth about a subject that can often be divisive. For many years I had buried my own teenage abortion under layers of false rationalizations, but I recently had faced it for what it was, with the help of the Rachel's Vineyard Ministry. Though incredibly difficult, the experience was wonderfully healing. It brought me fully back to the Catholic Church, to its gift of the sacraments, and to the life of this parish.

The Roe v. Wade decision has had profound implications for our society. It designated an entire group of human beings, the unborn, as non-persons, excluded from the basic rights and protections accorded other human beings. In doing so, it created a false “choice”. As Mother Teresa observed, an abortion not only results in the death of a child, but that of the mother's conscience as well. There have been numerous legal attempts, some successful, to limit the damage done by Roe v. Wade and extend legal protections to infants in the womb and to their mothers.

On Sunday January 23rd between 10:00 and 10:45 AM in the Great Hall, the Social Justice Committee has invited Professor Teresa Collett to speak about the treatment of abortion in the context ofconstitutional law. She is the director of the Prolife Center at the University of St. Thomas Law School where she teaches constitutional law, bioethics and property. In 2009 Pope Benedict appointed Professor
Collett to the Pontifical Council for the Family in recognition of her work on issues related to marriage, family, and life. She also serves on two advisory committees of the Archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis. As a lawyer and law professor she has defended various laws limiting abortion in state and federal courts.

Please join us for Professor Teresa Collett's informative presentation on Sunday, January 23, at 10:00 AM.

-Victoria Johnson and the Social Justice Committee

Published in the bulletin on January 9th, 2011

My Christmas Homily 2010

Lourdes MN — Mon, 03 Jan 2011 12:28:00 +0000

The time of preparation is over. Now is the time to celebrate the birth of Christ. I welcome all of you who have come to celebrate this holy day. We come to listen to beautiful music and sing along with familiar and inspiring Christmas carols. We come to enjoy the crèche at the foot of the altar, reminding us of the scene of Christ’s birth in Bethlehem. This is a time to enjoy the traditional decorations of our church and admire the flowers and wreathes displayed throughout the church.

First and foremost, however, we come to rejoice and be glad that Jesus Christ is born for all of us.

For a hundred and thirty-two years people have come to this church on Christmas Eve and Christmas day to give praise to God. We now extend that list one more year.

With all our reasons for rejoicing today I invite you most of all to recall the words of the angel who spoke to the shepherds. The angel said: “Do not be afraid, for behold, I proclaim to you Good News of great joy that will be for all the people. For today in the City of David a savior has been born for you, who is Christ and Lord.”

You have heard this message before. We hear it year after year as we gather to celebrate the feast of Christmas. The Church proclaims it again and again. These are words that speak of freedom and profound hope.

Notice too that this Good News is meant for

Do you experience darkness of spirit when things are not going well? Remember that Jesus is the Light of the World who scatters all darkness. Do you experience alienation from others? Remember that Christ came as the Prince of Peace. Do you fear being isolated and alone in daily living; remember that Jesus promises that he will be with you always, even till the end of the world? Are you tortured by temptation, Jesus promises that he will never give us a burden greater than we can carry. Do you fear that your sin will never be forgiven? Remember that this infant became the Good Shepherd who searches until he finds and cares for all the lost sheep. Do you fear dying? Remember that this infant will be the one who gives his life that we might live forever.

You may say that you have heard this message before. I hope you have, for it brings union with Jesus Christ. All of us have heard the message before. Let it touch your heart this Christmas day and remember it all days in the future.

I pray for God’s Blessings on you this Christmas Day.

-Fr. Charlie Froehle-

Published in the bulletin on January 2, 2011

The End to Darkness

Lourdes MN — Sun, 26 Dec 2010 12:14:00 +0000

We all know the story, don’t we? We know the story of the birth of Jesus and how his coming was foretold by the prophet Isaiah, and how angels spoke to local shepherds who came to see the newborn baby.

We know the story of wise men who came from the east to honor the child and bring him precious gifts. We all know the story. We learned it in our youngest years.

Even though we already know the story, the Church invited us on the Sunday before Christmas to listen to some of that story again so that we may be even better prepared to celebrate the Feast of Christmas.

The prophet Isaiah reminds us that 250 years before the coming of Christ, Isaiah foretold that one day a virgin would conceive and bear a son. Remember brothers and sisters that the story of Jesus is the fruit of a promise from God, and all God’s promises are fulfilled. The story of Jesus is part of God’s ancient plan foretold long before it took place.

More important still was the prophet’s promise that the child to be born would be named Emmanuel – “God is with us.” Remember my brothers and sisters that this child is not just a wonderful baby, but he is the very presence of God. St. Paul reminds us also that this wonderful child will die and rise again. God with us will conquer death for all people. Don’t think only of this gentle child as he is now, but who he will become.

Remember also the often forgotten Joseph, foster father of Jesus. He does his part in making the difficult decisions that would protect Mary and the child to come.

All this and more was outlined for us in the last Sunday before Christmas. We all know the story already, but today we can see the people and events that surround this beautiful story of the birth of Jesus.

On Christmas we will hear the story of the actual birth of Jesus and his first resting place in a manger in Bethlehem. We will hear the angels sing and watch the shepherds marvel. Remember today the words and actions of those who have helped prepare the way. That may help us to be even more prepared for the coming feast of Christmas.

-Fr. Charlie Froehle-

Published in the Bulletin December 26th, 2010

Come, Jesus, Come!

Lourdes MN — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 01:20:00 +0000

We opened the Season of Advent here at Our Lady of Lourdes with the beautiful ancient 15th century hymn, O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. Throughout this wonderful season, we are continually singing for our Lord to come. We sing “Maranatha”, an Aramaic word,which literally means, “Come, O Lord.”

But why are we asking for our Lord to come? The season of Advent is a time of preparation to celebrate Christmas when Christ came to us over 2000 years ago. And as we remember that event yearly, we are invited to partake in the great mystery of the Incarnation where our God became one of us in order to lead us completely to Him.

During this season of Advent, we are given the examples of how to do that. First there is Mary, the simple peasant girl, who gives an immediate “yes” to Jesus coming into her womb. Next week we willhear the Gospel story where Joseph through a dream will say “yes” toGod and take Mary as his wife and be a father to her child.

So too, we are asked to let Jesus come into our lives. As thecontemporary composer, John Bell, tells in a hymn, “The lover of theworld proposes to meet and mend us in this place.” But how can wemeet that wondrous proposal? We can do that by taking some timeduring this Advent season, this time of preparation, to pray, to listen toGod so that we can hear the plan God has for us and to be able like Maryand Joseph to say “yes” to God.

Unfortunately, taking some time this December may be difficult for many of us. Our culture celebrates the season of Christmas right now and ignores that needed preparation time of Advent. We’ve got to do our Christmas shopping and there are so many Christmas events, Christmas concerts or Christmas parties for us to attend. In our secular society Christmas begins often well before Halloween and ends immediately the day after Christmas when Christmas trees are thrown out the door. Eventhough finding that time for quiet prayer and meditation this Advent maybe difficult, the result will allow us to let Jesus truly come and be born in our hearts.

Patrice Stegbauer, Music Director

Published in Bulletin: December 12th, 2010