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ST. JUDE THE APOSTLE CATHOLIC CHURCH
Established 1966
9150 Highland Road Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70810
(On the Corner of Highland Road and Gardere Lane)
St. Jude the Apostle Church, as a Catholic Faith
Community, strives to spread the love of Christ by embracing
our diversity of God-given gifts celebrated in prayer,
sacraments, Eucharistic worship, fellowship, religious
education, and service to the local and world community.
–St. Jude Parish Advisory Council: March 15, 2006
Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
July 25th & July 26th, 2015
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www.stjudecatholic.org
(Check out Fr. Trey’s Blogs!!!)
Daily Masses
Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 8:15am
Tuesday at 5:30pm (followed by Benediction and Adoration)
Wednesday at noon also
Weekend Masses
Saturday 4:00pm Vigil
Sunday at 8:00am, 9:45am, and 11:30am
The Sacrament of Reconciliation
Saturdays from 3:00pm-3:45pm
or by appointment
Parish Contact Information
Parish Office Phone
225-766-2431
Parish Office Fax
225-766-0722
School Phone
225-769-2344
Parish Website
www.stjudecatholic.org
School Website
www.stjudebr.org
Fr. Trey Nelson, Pastor [email protected]
Deacon James Morrissey, [email protected]
Director of Administration
Emergencies: after hours, please call 766-2431 and follow the
directions given on the voice mail message.
FROM THE TEE BOX
A Few Thoughts from Our Pastor
From the Tee Box!
July 25-26, 2015
The Seventeenth Sunday in
Ordinary Time
Dear Friends:
DO NOT TELL ME it’s the end of July! Good
Lord, where’d it all go?! For me personally, I feel
like this has been the fastest summer on record.
How about you? Anyway, this coming week
(July 29) I’ll turn 53. I am so thankful for the
gifts of life, family, friends, health, and the gift
of being here with you! As I celebrate, please
know that I am holding you close in prayer.
Since I was over at Saint Louis King of France
last weekend and not able to preach here, I
thought I’d pass on to you something that I
recently read regarding the gift of silence. Do
you, for example, have enough silence in your
life? In preparing for last weekend’s homily, I
read a few articles on the topic. It seems to be
common thought that an appropriate amount
of silence can help decrease stress,
hypertension, and high blood pressure. One
article even stated that silence, when integrated
into our daily lives, can affect how we look to
each other. (Back at the beginning of the
summer, after 4 days at the beach, a parishioner
said to me, “father, you look great!” I said,
“thanks, but how’d I look before?”
She
responded, “you don’t wanna know!”) Anyway I
read the story of a young man in his mid to late
twenties. He’s a personal trainer and life coach
and very involved in his church. He felt God
calling him to help others learn how to live
healthier lives. He thought, however, that he
himself would need to be prepared to practice
what he would be preaching. So he tried
something a couple of years ago, something
that at first he saw as more of an experiment
but eventually came to greatly appreciate. He
decided to take one week out of each month
(for a one year period) and have a week of
silence, sort of like a week-long silent retreat.
He writes in his journal that, at first, it caused
more anxiety in him than peace. After a while,
however, he longed for it. He kept a journal, in
which he mentioned several gifts that
eventually came as a result of “regular silence.”
I share 4 of these with you here: 1. a sense of
satisfaction, 2. a sense of peace from living a
simpler life, 3. a deeper sense of gratitude, and
4. a clearer sense of truth. Sounds pretty
philosophical? I guess you could say it is, at least
in part. The truth is, though, silence is an
awesome thing.
Some people are
uncomfortable with it. I think we’re challenged
to overcome that discomfort to a degree. It is
most definitely true, as the old adage goes,
“silence is golden.”
When we consciously choose to hit the “STOP”
button, not the “PAUSE” button, and let God
breathe into us whatever we need, great things
will happen.
The Lord will speak to us
something new, whatever it is that we need to
hear, if we just simply stop every now and then
and take a break from the noise in order to
immerse ourselves more deeply into God’s
presence.
Since school’s a-comin’, I thought this might be
good to consider...
Have a great week!
Sincerely,
Fr. Trey Nelson
Pastor
LIFE ISSUES UPDATE – July 2015
Pope Francis’ encyclical “Laudato Si” calls us to protect our
environment and honor the dignity of all
As expected, Pope Francis’ newly released encyclical “Laudato Si” (“Praise
be to You”) argues for wise and politically courageous action to address
environmental threats such as climate change, pollution, shortages of safe clean water and the extinction
of species. The environment is, after all, “Our Common Home”; the “home” for the human family.
But Pope Francis also argues that respect for the environment goes hand in hand with respect for human
dignity. Pope Francis writes, “a sense of deep communion with the rest of nature cannot be real if our
hearts lack tenderness, compassion and concern for our fellow human beings.”
Pope Francis also rejects those seeking to justify abortion on environmental grounds. Concern for the
protection of nature is “incompatible with the justification of abortion.” He asks, “How can we genuinely
teach the importance of concern for other vulnerable beings, however troublesome or inconvenient they
may be, if we fail to protect a human embryo, even when its presence is uncomfortable and creates
difficulties?”
Pope Francis urges us to cooperate with God in the work of creation. He says, “When we fail to
acknowledge as part of reality the worth of a poor person, a human embryo, a person with disabilities – to
offer just a few examples – it becomes difficult to hear the cry of nature itself; everything is connected.”
May we prayerfully consider our wise Pope’s words and take action to protect all LIFE!
State and Federal Legislative Update
STATE
House Bill 701, the Louisiana Pre-Natal Non-Discrimination Act, would have prohibited abortion when
based on the gender of the unborn baby. Unfortunately, the bill, sponsored by Rep. Lenar Whitney
(R-Houma), did not pass the Senate Judiciary Committee. Therefore, the bill failed.
FEDERAL
The “Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act” would protect unborn children beginning at 20 weeks
fetal age from abortion. The 20-week period is based on research that indicated that the 20-week-old
unborn child has the capacity to experience pain during an abortion. The bill passed the House 242-184
on May 13. On June 11, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) introduced the bill (S. 1553) in the Senate where it
was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. In a June 16 letter to Congress, Sean Cardinal O’Malley,
Archbishop of Boston and Chairman of the USCCB Committee on Pro-Life Activities, urged Senators to
support the bill.
Positive Trends Reported in June
A new national report from the Associated Press indicates that the number of surgical abortions in the
United States has declined 12% since 2010.
♦ The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that the nation’s birth rate rose 1% last year.
This was the first time the birth rate increased in 7 years. Unfortunately, the authors noted that the
nation’s birth rate remains below replacement levels (i.e., 2.1 births per woman).
♦
Upcoming Respect Life Events
♦ September 23 - 40 Days for Life Fall Campaign Begins - Campaign closes November 1
♦ October 10 - Diocesan LifeFest and Bishop's Annual Respect Life Mass - Tracy Center
St. Jude Parish to Form Vocation Awareness Program: Saint Jude Parish is
in the process of forming a vocation awareness initiative, the purpose of which will be 2
-fold: to foster the understanding that each of us has a God-given vocation (such as
marriage, lay ministry, or ordained ministry, to name a few); and, secondly, that some
are indeed called to religious life as a priest, religious brother or sister, or a permanent
deacon. Parishioners will be invited to offer their input regarding creative ways to increase this awareness.
“The sky is the limit” when it comes to doing so. If you are interested and would like to be a part of this
conversation and effort, please contact Father Trey directly by either calling the office (225-766-2431) or
by email at [email protected]
Also, if someone feels called to explore the possibility of a vocation to priesthood or religious life, Father
Trey is available for a confidential conversation. Please feel free to contact him using the same contact
information mentioned above. “Come, follow me!”
Join The MIR Group in welcoming Fr.
Joseph Cazenavette for a visit to NOLA!
Following Mass and the Rosary, Fr. Joseph, The Policy
Advisor for Marriage and Family for the USCCB, will give
a short talk about what the USCCB is doing to effect
public policy regarding marriage and how we can
participate in this effort. Everyone is invited to join us for
this special celebration!
Monday, July 27th
St. Edward the Confessor Church,
4921 West Metairie Ave., Metairie
6:00PM Holy Mass
For more details contact Carol at 504-256-3322
or [email protected]
Nursery News!
Nursery is now being offered at the
Sunday 9:45 Mass during the summer months.
Nursery is located in the St. Michael’s Room
(bride room in parish hall).
Children registering for Nursery must be
between the ages of 6 months and 3 years.
Volunteers are also needed to staff this
ministry. Please contact the church office (7662431) if you are able to volunteer this year or
would like more information. All volunteers
work on a rotating basis so you will not have
to work every week.
Come, allow us to care for
your child as God cares for
you during the Mass.
Family Choices: Transitions in Aging
Saturday, August 29th — 9:00-3:00pm
Catholic Life Center, Main Auditorium
Cost: $15, $20 for walk-ins
Lunch Provided
The Family Choices series, presented by the
Diocese of Baton Rouge, is offering a dynamic one
day conference devoted to the transitions
associated with aging. Please plan to join us for
this Spirit-filled day of support, education and
encouragement.
CEU credit hours will be awarded to Social
Workers for attendance of the entire program and
completion of the post program evaluation. The
number of hours is pending approval by the
Louisiana State Board of Social Work Examiners.
Register online at www.MFLDiobr.org,
or call the Office of Marriage & Family Life
at 225-242-0323.
SVDP Pharmacy
Prescriptions
Canister’s are in the foyer of
the church for parishioners
wanting to donate to the St.
Vincent de Paul Pharmacy Prescription Program.
This program provides medical prescriptions for
those in need of medicine, but cannot afford it.
Prescription bottles are attached to the canisters.
You may put your check or cash donation into
the prescription bottle, and then drop the bottle
into the bucket. The buckets will remain in the
church for a few weeks for your donating
convenience.
Thank you for helping some of Christ' children
most in need.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
SUNDAY, JULY 26
9:00 am Coffee & Donuts-Hall
9:45 am Nursery-St. Michael Room/Hall
MONDAY, JULY 27
5:00 pm St. Vincent de Paul Client Meeting-Hall
TUESDAY, JULY 28
6:30 pm Choir Practice-School Music Room
WEDNESDAY, JULY 29
6:30 pm Choir Practice-Church
THURSDAY, JULY 30
No Scheduled Meetings
FRIDAY, JULY 31
No Scheduled Meetings
SATURDAY, AUGUST 1
No Scheduled Meetings
SUNDAY, AUGUST 2
9:45 am Nursery-St. Michael Room/Hall
READINGS FOR THE WEEK
Monday:
Ex 32:15-24, 30-34; Ps 106:19-23;
Mt 13:31-35
Tuesday:
Ex 33:7-11; 34:5b-9, 28; Ps 103:6-13;
Mt 13:36-43
Wednesday: Ex 34:29-35; Ps 99:5-7, 9; Jn 11:19-27
or Lk 10:38-42
Thursday: Ex 40:16-21, 34-38; Ps 84:3-6a, 8a, 11;
Mt 13:47-53
Friday:
Lv 23:1, 4-11, 15-16, 27, 34b-37;
Ps 81:3-6, 10-11ab; Mt 13:54-58
Saturday: Lv 25:1, 8-17; Ps 67:2-3, 5, 7-8; Mt 14:1-12
Sunday:
Ex 16:2-4, 12-15; Ps 78:3-4, 23-25, 54;
Eph 4:17, 20-24; Jn 6:24-35
In the Gospel many people hunger
for a small amount of food. In our
day there are too many people for
thesmallnumberofpriests,sisters,
brothersanddeacons.Wetoomust
trust in the Lord by praying for vocations and
respondingifwefeelGodiscallingustoaChurch
vocation. If so, call or email Father Matt Dupré at
225.336.8778, [email protected], or visit,
www.diobr.org/vocations.
Culture of Life Reflections
“The scourge of abortion is an attack
against life.”
--Pope Francis, May 30, 2015,
address to the Italian Science and Life Association
For Prayer Request
Call our Prayer Line,
766-3668 or 766-3736
MASS INTENTIONS
MONDAY, JULY 27
8:15 am For the People
TUESDAY, JULY 28
5:30 pm For the People
WEDNESDAY, JULY 29
8:15 am Rosemary Williams
12 Noon Tammy Songy Callegan
THURSDAY, JULY 30
8:15 am For the People
FRIDAY, JULY 31
No Mass
SATURDAY, AUGUST 1
4:00 pm Peter Dragna
Ashley Harper
Mervin Fontenot &
Jocelyn Lange
Charles Mart, III
SUNDAY, AUGUST 2
8:00 am Camille Serio
9:45 am For the People
11:30 am For the People