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Entries for September 2023
The annual walk to fight hunger, the CROP Walk, is scheduled for Sunday, October 8, 2023. The walk will begin at 1 p.m. in front of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church (142 Market Street). St. Boniface & St. Lawrence High School Ministry will be participating in the Walk to Stop Hunger. We will have donation boxes in the churches if you would like to donate. If you would like to walk with our students, please contact Andrew McCarroll after Mass or email AMcCarrollSBSL@gmail.com.
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As a kid, I had one big fear… it wasn’t a future career, the Mets losing the World Series, or even the monster underneath my bed… no, my big fear was being picked last. No kid wants to be picked last in gym class or on the playground. If this has ever happened to you, then you know how horrible it feels. You probably asked yourself: Why me? Why wasn’t I first? Don’t they know I play linebacker for the Lake-Lehman mini-football team? Well, luckily the kingdom of heaven isn’t a gym class or the playground. However, we as humans can often ...
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I’ve already written the check. Yes, I’ve already written my check to the Diocesan Annual Appeal. Why? To stop the flow of repeated letters inviting my donation? To help my parish communities reach their goal earlier? Well, in part, yes. But, it’s more about gratitude. I’m grateful for the education I was given in my seminary. I didn’t pay for that—you, the Church, did! And I thank you! I’m grateful that this Diocese continues to support seminarians—like Andrew—ensuring that we will have priests and Eucharist into our fu...
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Bring your pets for a blessing in honor of St. Francis of Assisi on Wednesday, October 4, at 5:30 p.m. Meet in front of the St. Francis statue & garden on Washington Blvd.
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This fall’s cemetery cleanup is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, November 4. In addition to leaves, limbs, and sticks, we will be removing anything that is broken, plants that are dead, and any other items that interfere with the maintenance of the cemetery. Just as a reminder, in the spring we asked that individuals do not place borders and/or stones or brick chips on the plots since they are a hazard to our grass-mowing employees & equipment. This is a violation of the posted cemetery regulations and will be removed.
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Cemetery
At the invitation of Pope Francis, parishes around the world have been invited to participate in a Taizé prayer vigil: "Together | Gathering of the People of God". This prayer vigil is to precede the work of the next assembly of bishops in the process of the ongoing Synod on Synodality. In our local area, this will take place at St. Boniface Church on Saturday, September 30 at 7 p.m.
For musicians who are interested in participating, there will be two rehearsals: Sunday, September 24, from 7–8:30 p.m. and on Saturday, September 30, from 5:...
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Memories of my childhood are often filled with experiences and lessons from my family’s business. My father was the owner of McCarroll Precast Inc. in Lehman, PA – as was his father before him. Our family business was nothing particularly impressive as compared to larger precast plants throughout the Northeast. I often wondered why our family business – being rather small and simple for most of its 54-year history – never expanded and diversified as compared to others in this region. When I asked my dad this very same question, he responded: “i...
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The Mass intentions calendar for St. Boniface & St. Lawrence will open on Monday, October 2 for intention requests from January 2024 through December 2024. Contact the parish office to schedule an intention. Our office is open 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. from Monday–Friday, except Holy Days and holidays. Please note that 2023 St. Lawrence Masses are still available.
Intentions may be requested by a single sponsor for one Sunday or one Saturday Mass and up to two daily Masses. Additional requests can be made after January 1, 2024.
One request per person can also...
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Middle of September: our time to gear up our Christian formation programs. PREP for our school students. High school group for the older kids. Adult programs all over the schedule—Monday evenings with The Chosen, Sunday mornings, Wednesday afternoons, and evenings (Check the bulletin for details about each offering!). We’ve made a commitment to helping people of all ages to learn their faith and to grow in appreciation of the sacred scripture and our Catholic tradition. But, if all we did were learn, we’d fall drastically short. Think of the two disciples ...
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Do you want to deepen your faith? Do you want to learn more about what it means to be Catholic? There are several programs beginning in early October that will be led by several parishioners, Seminarian Andrew McCarroll, and/or Father McCreary, that will provide adults from both St. Lawrence and St. Boniface outlets to explore the sacraments, the Eucharist, the Mass, and more. You are encouraged to learn about these programs offered at various times and locations, which are designed to help you live out your faith in the modern world. Drop...
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Last Sunday we were reminded that we all have crosses to carry throughout our lifetime as we strive to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. These crosses can present themselves in a variety of ways: grief, employment, burdensome tasks, economic pressures, and physical or mental illness. Often these crosses are personal issues – struggles that don’t really seem to stem from any particular person but ourselves. However, what if our cross is another person? All of us have encountered individuals whom we have found annoying, disagree with, or have caused us harm. These...
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If you work, live, or worship near St. Boniface Church, you’re used to our bells. They’re a prominent part of the landscape on Washington Boulevard. We hear them ringing the quarter hours for the best portion of each day. Lately, you might have noticed a difference. Too many peals, you may have thought, for the normal time-telling task. Perhaps something’s gone wrong with those familiar bells.
But, no! We’ve reintroduced—and it’s largely our seminarian’s persistent follow-through that made this happen—the Angelus. Three set...
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THANK YOU... to everyone who contributed to the success of this year's carnival despite the weather challenges. Parishioners were instrumental in the carnival's success by working games, selling raffle tickets, preparing and serving food inside and out, donating baked goods, providing gift baskets, organizing (and shopping) the white elephant sale, supporting the kiddie rides, and so much more. A special thanks to all who helped set up for the carnival and will help tear it down. You were ALL seen and appreciated.
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Carnival
Our parishes are offering an opportunity for interested individuals to attend a silent retreat at Mt. Saviour Monastery in Pine City, New York, November 10–12, 2023. The retreat is sponsored by Calvary Hill Ministries and is offered to us at a reduced rate (at least $40 off the normal cost, depending on the number of registrants). During the retreat, there will be presentations on Lectio Divina and Centering Prayer. Also, group Centering Prayer sessions will be held for those interested. Slots are limited. Pre-registration is required and is expected to close on ...
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By now, most of us have seen the tweaks to the Mass schedule. A 5:45 p.m. Mass on Saturday evenings. No longer an 8 a.m. Mass on Wednesday mornings. I know those changes may make people unhappy or annoyed. But, know that they were made very carefully, with serious input from the Liturgy Committee and Parish Pastoral Council. Many factors had to be taken into consideration including the balance between our two parishes, the limits on how many Masses a priest can celebrate each day, pieces of my schedule beyond parish control (and beyond my control!), and the availabilit...
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The celebration of the sacred Triduum is most likely far from our thoughts and minds as we enjoy the end of our summer months. Yet, this Sunday we are reminded of Jesus’ suffering, death, and resurrection. We hear in the gospel (Matthew 16:21-27): “Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly… be killed and on the third day be raised.” We may feel perplexed as to why we are hearing such a message at this point in our year. After all, aren’t Lent and Easter over five months away? We hear this profound messag...
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