Thank You Letter from Fr Joseph:
Dear Parishioners and friends of Saint Antoninus Church,
11-28-20
The people of St Antoninus know how to celebrate in the Lord!
This past Sunday - the glorious Solemnity of Christ the King, we had a heavenly celebration of the “Divine Liturgy” (Holy Mass), followed by an outdoor Eucharistic Procession accompanied by a parade of flags from 21 Nations. Two hours later we began our Virtual Harvest Bazaar. Attached are pictures from all three.
I thank God for the faith and generosity of my St Antoninus family. Thus far we have raised about $44,000 in pledges and direct donations. That is amazing! Thank you to all who gave so very sacrificially, of your time, talent and treasure, whether big or seemingly small. May the Lord give fruitfulness to your offering. If you haven’t yet given, please consider making a sacrificial offering.
We continue to press on toward our goal of $100,000 for this year’s Thanksgiving Harvest. Stage I of replacing our dilapidated church heating system is two-fold: an essential electric supply upgrade (200 amps to 600 amps) and installation of one main HVAC unit in the lower church. Pray that we can complete these before the winter cold sets in.
Because this is a mission church, even though the majority of our funds come from our active parishioners, we also need the support of those outside the official boundaries of the parish, the “friends of St A’s”. Therefore, at this time I want to specifically ask you to reach out to others for support. The example I put before you is our Father and Mother of the Day - Lawrence and Joy Anyanwu. They reached out to family & friends, co-workers, doctors, etc., and thus far have been able to raise $7,200 in pledges and direct donations. So I ask you to extend our appeal to all those you are in some way connected to. Call them, or use WhatsApp, email, Facebook, text messaging or even snail mail. Send them the attached pictures and the specific appeal link we will send along with this letter. If you’d like me to send them a personal letter, just let me know. By God’s grace and your efforts, we can even exceed our $100,000 goal.
As we did last year, we will set aside 5% of what we raise to serve those in need financially. If you and family are in need at this time, please contact me.
Thank You Jesus - Lord of the Harvest, and thank you brothers and sisters.
In Jesus thru Mary,
Fr Joseph
THANKSGIVING HARVEST APPEAL - Please support our mission!
Click below to donate to our St Antoninus Thanksgiving Harvest 2020. Thank you and may God bless you a hundredfold for your generosity! Use ZELLE
We are now accepting Zelle for online contributions. Easy & safe! All you need to do is enter on the Zelle info: Name: St. Antoninus Catholic Church Email: saintantoninuschurch@gmail.com If you don't have a Zelle account yet, it is easy to do this one time setup: https://www.zellepay.com/get-started Or you can contribute though our PARISH ONLINE GIVING. Click image below. Part 1: THE GLORIOUS SOLEMNITY OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, KING OF THE UNIVERSE!
Sunday, Nov 22, 2020. Our Thanksgiving Harvest 2020 began with our joyful celebration of the Solemnity of Christ the King. Our Mass was celebrated by Fr Joseph Meagher, and concelebrated by Fr Peter Okafor , Fr Louis Aumaitre, Fr Marcellinus Uwandu and Fr Stephen Aribe. Fr Peter delivered a stirring homily. During the Presentation of Gifts, we had our Parade of Nations, which was as lively a celebration as ever, even with the masks and social distancing. We came before the altar bearing our flags & our hearts to offer ourselves, our families and our home countries to the Lord of the Harvest. The Offertory gifts were offered by our Father & Mother of the Day, Lawrence & Joy Anyanwu. Part 2: CHRIST THE KING PROCESSION WITH PARADE OF NATION
Part 3: OUR VIRTUAL HARVEST BAZAAR
Our first time ever 2-hour Virtual Harvest Bazaar on Zoom took place in the afternoon, two hours after our liturgies. And what fun, especially in the moments of high intensity "auctioning"! Our emcees, Laureen Iskenegbe and KC Ochibili, and all the panelists, including Fr Joseph & Fr Peter, were so wonderfully engaging. But the best moments were those shared by the Zoom participants who gave- not only financial contributions - but more importantly their invaluable witness of what St Antoninus and our parish community mean to them. Below, watch our Virtual Harvest Bazaar, if you were not able to join us, and be blessed! PREPARATIONS for our Thanksgiving Harvest 2020
Our annual Thanksgiving Harvest 2020 is on November 22! Our big celebration starts with Holy Mass at 10am. This is an in-person celebration, as well as live-streamed via YouTube. Then at 2pm, we will proceed to our online Thanksgiving Harvest Bazaar via Zoom. ( See provided Zoom link.) Gather your friends and family and join us right in your living room. Be part of the sweet & mighty blessing of Jesus, the Lord of the Harvest! Links to our Zoom Harvest Bazaar. - Live at 2 pm on Sunday Nov 22 - Connect on your computer or phone. Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84733214475 Meeting ID: 291 928 2319 One tap mobile +16468769923,,2919282319# US (New York) +13017158592,,2919282319# US (Germantown) Quick videos:
Support our Thanksgiving Harvest ~ Support our mission! Thank you! 11/6/20 Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ: “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thes 5:18) The Covid 19 virus has impacted all of our lives in many profound ways. Some of us have lost loved ones, and haven’t even been able to fully mourn in the company of family. For months parishioners were deprived of the sacraments - even during Holy Week & Easter Week. Many are still not able to come to church due to age and/or a medical condition. Family celebrations, weddings, birthdays, and anniversaries have been greatly reduced or canceled. The financial and emotional strains on all of us have been great as well. We are all trying to adjust as best we can. These adjustments came as a burden, and yet, with the eyes of faith, we see that they can also become something of a blessing. In this time there is a great opportunity for us to simplify our lives and take stock of what is most important. A wise man once said: “The spiritual life is more about subtraction, than addition.” (continue..) This is a time when we can see ourselves before our Sovereign God, and allow Him to purify and sanctify us, knowing that He is committed to completing what He has begun in us.
“For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. “ Romans 8:38-39 We have learned to adapt here. Within two weeks of the lockdown we were live streaming all of our Masses and soon added a daily Rosary conference call. As of June 1st we opened up for “in-person” Mass, and since then have become “fully functioning” both “in person” and through live streaming – thus reaching a far wider audience than we ever could have before. Trusting in the Lord, and as God gives us capacity, we press on toward the future of this dynamic parish community. With this in mind we are preparing for our Thanksgiving Harvest 2020. Our main event will be on Sunday, November 22, beginning with Holy Mass at 10am, and followed by our virtual Harvest Bazaar via Zoom at 2 pm. We’ve come a long way… St Antoninus was founded in 1875 by the Dominican Friars who with the generous support of God’s people, built this beautiful parish and faithfully served here for 100 years. The 1960’s and early 70’s brought great decline in the parish. However, in 1975, under the leadership of Fr Jim Ferry, the parish was “born again” in the power of the Holy Spirit when the Charismatic Renewal took root here. Since then it has grown into a dynamic, unabashedly Catholic, culturally rich, family friendly community. Sunday Mass is lively Spirit-filled worship, yet it is also profoundly reverent. This combination of the Charismatic and the traditional, along with a strong sense of community draws people back each week from near and far. Our mission: evangelization & discipleship through worship, preaching & teaching, community outreach, weekly prayer meetings, Eucharistic adoration, Bible studies, & monthly Healing Masses, as well as food and clothing distribution & one-on-one mentoring. (continue..) The Lord has allowed us to be fruitful in his Kingdom. Literally thousands of people from near and far have encountered the love of God and the power of the Holy Spirit here, whether through Sunday Mass, frequent Life in the Spirit Seminars, tent revivals or annual Charismatic conferences. In the past 45 years this little parish has helped produce 6 priests and 2 religious. I know, I am one of those 6 priests. At this time of unprecedented challenges brought about by the pandemic - with God’s blessings and your support - St Antoninus will continue this mission of bringing the Gospel to our broken world. Our Thanksgiving Harvest is our main fundraiser each year. Please consider being a part of the Lord’s mission here at St Antoninus by becoming a benefactor, sponsor, or donor in our Thanksgiving Harvest 2020. The Main event will be on Sunday, November 22, beginning with 10am Holy Mass (in-person & live streamed) followed by our online Harvest Bazaar extravaganza at 2pm. We look forward to your presence and support. Thank you ahead of time. May the Lord God keep you in His care and abundantly bless you and all of your loved ones. In Jesus thru Mary, Rev. Joseph A. Meagher |
Saint Antoninus Catholic Church
337 South Orange Ave, Newark NJ 07103 963-623-0120 . SaintAntoninuschurch@gmail.com |