St. Bonaventure Catholic Community
March 25, 2021
Join us in The Way of the Cross
The way of our Lenten journey is culminating in the high holy days of our Church. Starting this weekend we join Our Lord in his triumphal entry into Jerusalem and on to the dramatic end of his days at the hands of men. St. Bonaventure is making special accommodations for indoor and outdoor participation in our celebrations of Holy Week. Please join us as we conclude our Lenten walk with our dear Lord and toward the glory that awaits him.
Fr. Lawrence
1.
Liturgy Notes
Holy Week and Easter Schedule Online
Click HERE for our Mass and liturgy schedule on our website. You can worship with us in the church, overflow seating on the plaza, by Facebook livestream, and special outdoor noon Masses on Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday. Please remember that registration is required for all Masses inside the church and to bring seating for outside events.
Friday Stations of the Cross
● 6pm Spanish Mass & Stations in the Church
● 7pm English Stations of the Cross, YouTube
● 7pm English Stations of the Cross, YouTube
This Friday, March 26, we will be praying Pro-Life Scriptural Stations of the Cross. All of our past Stations remain available on our YouTube channel to pray during Lent.
Reconciliation
Saturdays 2:30 pm
Be sure to take advantage of this amazing sacrament of God's forgiveness during Lent! Our last regularly scheduled time for Reconciliation before Easter will be Saturday, March 27.
Walk-Up Holy Communion
Due to our outdoor Masses, Walk-Up Holy Communion will take place from 1:30-2:30 pm on Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday. (Palm Sunday will include palm distribution.)
How to Cancel Your Mass Registration
We understand -- sometimes your plans change. Because Masses fill up, it's very helpful if you can cancel your online Mass registration so that the space becomes available to another parishioner. Click HERE for instructions.
2.
Confirmation Retreat
This past weekend we had our high school Confirmation Retreat in person! It was amazing to be together. We were so blessed to have Parma Deli on Clayton Road cater the meals for the weekend. The owners of Parma Deli, parishioners of St. Agnes, were so generous with us and accommodated all of our requested safety precautions (they're awesome!). Please pray for our Confirmation Teens as they continue their final steps toward Confirmation Day on May 8th.
-Jacob Perry, Youth Minister
3.
Bible Camp
5.
Respect Life Ministry:
Celebrating Respect Life Month
This is the time of year that we normally would send out information about Vacation Bible Camp. We are sad to say, we will not be able to do Bible Camp this year.
BUT we do have some fun activities planned for the summer. We know everyone wants to get together and be with friends and that Zoom just doesn't cut it.
We are planning monthly gatherings for families outside. Things that have been discussed include outdoor movies and water games. We are looking at elements of Bible Camp that can be safely done outside.
Please keep your eyes open for announcements and updates. We will continue to send information via Flocknote and Faith Connections, and we will post activities on the parish website and Facebook.
4.
Register Now
for Upcoming Programs
Keep the Easter spirit alive and register now for these two new offerings beginning online this Easter Season.
1) Faith and Racial Healing
Join us for JustFaith Ministries’ Faith & Racial Healing: Embracing Truth, Justice and Restoration. The program is designed to guide participants through a study of the history of racism in the United States so that we might better understand and more effectively eradicate modern-day racial injustice. Faith & Racial Healing begins with an opening retreat April 10 and runs Tuesday mornings or evenings starting April 13. Contact Laura Nakamura to register at lmnakamura610@gmail.com. Video and more information HERE.
2) The Wild Goose
Discover a deeper relationship with the Holy Spirit. "Wild Goose” was a term the ancient Celts used for the Holy Spirit. Featuring Fr. Dave Pivonka and various interviews, The Wild Goose invites viewers to an encounter, or a renewed encounter, with the Holy Spirit. Each session includes a short (25-30 minute) video with time for discussion and prayer. Monday evenings at 7pm, April 12 to May 24, with a daytime session Wednesdays at 10am, April 14 to May 26. Visit our webpage for more information and to register.
5.
Invitation to Serve:
Parish Council
Our Parish Council is entering the discernment process for new members. The purpose of a Parish Council is to help the pastor investigate and consider all matters that relate to pastoral life and to formulate practical decisions for the good of a parish. The Council advises and consults and offers a consensus about pastoral issues.
The Discernment Process for the Parish Council begins with a self-discerning process followed by an information meeting and final discernment. Registered parishioners are invited to submit their name or that of another registered parishioner for consideration.
Additional information can be found on our webpage.
More news and events:
● Respect Life Ministry: We will be collecting for our Baby Items Drive at all Masses again this weekend. We especially need clothing sizes 3-18 mos. and diapers of all sizes, including the larger sizes. This is the final weekend of the drive, and we want to thank you for your continued generosity and support to help us as a parish to be Walking with Moms in Need.
The 40 Days for Life mobilization to pray & fast for an end to abortion continues in Concord and Walnut Creek through this Sunday, March 28.
Click HERE for more information about both of these important ways to support our commitment to life.
● Sign up now for Options Health Virtual Walk for Life 2021. Your support helps Options Health reach women and men struggling with decisions related to an unplanned pregnancy. Click HERE for more information about the virtual walk and Options Health.
● Take a weekend away at a Worldwide Marriage Encounter to gain a richer, fuller married life together. Go to wwme.org to find the next virtual Worldwide Marriage Encounter Experience that works for your schedule from the comfort of your own home!
● Nourish for Caregivers provides caregivers a faith perspective, as well as practical and emotional supports, useful tools, and shared experience.
Meetings every other Tuesday from 2-3 pm on Zoom. For more information, email Helene Billeci at fuzyfrank@aol.com.
Meetings every other Tuesday from 2-3 pm on Zoom. For more information, email Helene Billeci at fuzyfrank@aol.com.
Nourish offers meetings in Spanish too! For more information, please contact Biviane Ochoa at itsbiviane@gmail.com or (650) 278-6462.
Resources for Coping During the Pandemic
Feeling overwhelmed? You're not alone. Click HERE for spiritual, parenting, emotional, and mental health resources for coping during the pandemic.
Feeling overwhelmed? You're not alone. Click HERE for spiritual, parenting, emotional, and mental health resources for coping during the pandemic.
Tea Time Video
Tuesday Tea Time will be on hiatus for a few weeks and return after Easter. In the meantime, you are invited to share any topics you like to explore, ministries you'd like to learn more about, and/or people you'd like to hear from in future videos by responding to this Flocknote.
ALL ABOARD!!
Bible Camp is Coming
LITURGY AND PRAYER
Please visit our website at www.stbonaventure.net for the most up-to-date liturgy information.
All of our liturgies have returned inside unless otherwise indicated. Saturday Vigil (4pm) and Sunday Masses require advance registration on our website or by calling the parish office at (925) 672-5800 weekdays between 8:30 am and 12:30 pm. There is no registration required for daily Masses. (Registration will open Mondays at 10 am, Tuesdays if Monday is a holiday.)
We continue to livestream the Sunday 9 am (English) and 10:30 am (Spanish) Masses and usually offer walk-up Holy Communion from noon to 1 pm. (Special time for Palm Sunday and East Sunday: 1:30-2:30 pm.) For our full Mass schedule, please click HERE.
Sunday readings: Click here
Download Worship Aids for Sunday:
Please see our website for Spanish worship aid.
If you need help with watching a liturgy or other event live-streamed on Facebook, please click here.
Health Reminders
Please join us for our liturgies through Facebook if you have tested positive for COVID in the past 14 days, if you have a fever, cough, or difficulty breathing, if you were exposed to COVID in the past 14 days, or if you feel actively sick. We encourage all parishioners to receive the COVID vaccine as soon as they are eligible. Thank you for helping us keep St. Bonaventure a safe, welcoming place for all.
Prayer, Spirituality and Formation:
Prayers for Those Who Have Died: Please join us in praying for members of our community who have died. You may find their names on our website. May they rest in peace.
Daily Mass Readings: Click here
St. Bonaventure Domestic Church tips and links: Click here
Mass Intentions, Online Prayer Vine & Drive-thru Prayer Information: Details here
Friday Adoration & Holy Hour:
We offer Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament after 9am Mass on Fridays until 3pm. The Holy Hour beginning at 2pm includes the Rosary, the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy and concludes with Benediction at 3pm.
Online Spiritual Communion Service: Details here
Christian Centering Prayer Group: Details here
Word on Fire Videos on Flocknote: Details here
(Staying at home more? Take advantage of Bishop Barron's great videos! The "Conversion" series is perfect for Lent. Remember, you must have a Flocknote account with a password to access these videos.)
STAYING CONNECTED
Sacraments, Pastoral Counseling, and Staff Support
We're here for you! Our clergy and pastoral staff continue to be available to you during this pandemic. We can offer pastoral counseling by appointment, over the phone or by videocall, and the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick is available in person when needed. Please call the parish office at (925) 672-580 to make an appointment. We offer the Sacrament of Reconciliation in the classrooms on Saturdays at 2:30 pm, and during Lent we've added a second opportunity on Thursdays at 3:30 pm.
The office has had to close for walk-up visits, but staff are available by appointment. Please call the main office number or call or email the staffperson directly. As our staff are working from both the office and home, it is often easier to reach people by email. However, we are monitoring phones and voice mail, and will return messages as soon as possible.
Under current health regulations our ministries are unable to hold regular meetings at the parish. We are able to schedule outdoor gatherings for prayer and worship. Please contact your staff liaison if you are interested in scheduling a prayer gathering.
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Parish Connections Thank you to everyone in our parish community who is working to reach out and keep in touch. If you need assistance, or would like to volunteer to help others by running errands, picking up groceries, etc., please email info@stbonaventure.net. The St. Bonaventure Food Pantry is open Tuesdays from 9-10:30 am in the parish parking lot. See our website for more information. (Note: The Food Pantry thanks you for your continuing donations of food and other items, but is no longer requesting bags -- they have a sufficient supply.)
Thank you for the many ways you continue to support our community!
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Your Gifts Are Keeping Us Open
We want to say THANK YOU to our parishioners and those who are not members yet but have sent us their donations to help in this unprecedented time.
We are so grateful to many who are now sending their donations through mail, online and collection box methods. Your efforts and generosity are greatly appreciated and are helping us continue to live our mission as a community of faith.
To learn more about online giving or other options, please click here. If you attend the drive-in Mass or walk-up Holy Communion this Sunday, you may drop off your gift personally.
May God bless all of you and reward you abundantly for your support of your parish.
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May the Lord bless us, protect us from all evil, and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen.