Our new Pastor as of July 1, 2017 is Father Nick VanDenBroeke
Ordained: May 26, 2012 at the Cathedral of St. Paul
Home Parish: Guardian Angels, Chaska
Parents: Bob and Julie VanDenBroeke
Education: Bachelor’s degree in Catholic studies and philosophy from St. John Vianney College Seminary, St. Paul
You can read Fr. VanDenBroeke’s full bio here
Please pray for our Parish as we say goodbye to Fr. Dennis Thompson and welcome our new pastor Fr. VanDenBroeke.
Thank you to everyone who attended the April 17th Parish Bazaar Committee Meeting.
Meeting minutes can be found here.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the Parish Bazaar Committee.
Our Parish Bazaar is scheduled for Sunday, August 6, 2017!
May 28st, 2017
The Ascension of the Lord
“And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”
MEMORIAL DAY PRAYER
Heavenly Father,
as we remember those
who have made the ultimate sacrifice
for the freedoms we enjoy every day,
we think of how they have followed
in the footsteps of your Son,
our Savior, Jesus Christ.
May the members of our armed forces
be supplied with the courage
to face each day
and may they trust
in the Lord’s mighty power
to accomplish each task.
Let our military brothers and sisters
feel our love and support.
Amen.
May 21st, 2017
6th Sunday of Easter
“And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”
Congratulations and God Bless
the Newly Confirmed Members
of Our Parish Family
Andrew Cienciwa
Son of Michael & Allison Cienciwa
Joseph Conway
Son of Timothy & Anne Conway
Elizabeth Malecha
Daughter of Christopher & Stacie Malecha
Jenna Novak
Daughter of Anthony & Patricia Novak
Hunter Voracek
Son of Alan Voracek & Jean Troska
These students received the Sacrament of Confirmation
From Bishop Andrew H. Cozzens on Thursday, May 18th
at the Cathedral of St. Paul
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GOD BLESS OUR GRADUATES
Today we are honoring and celebrating
our Immaculate Conception Parish 2017 High School Graduates
at our 10:00AM Mass
We wish them well, & offer our prayers for their success in the future.
Mariah Hager
Daughter of Jon & Selena Hager
Skyler Harper
Son of Mark & Angie Harper
Luke Malecha
Son of Steve & Heather Malecha
Isaac Pint
Son of Greg & Marilyn Pint
Andy Sibenaller
Son of Mark & Nancy Sibenaller
Brookelyn Skluzacek
Daughter of Bruce & Lisa Skluzacek
AJ (Alan) Voracek
Son of Jean Troska & Alan Voracek
Kyle Yetzer
Son of Mike & Barb Yetzer
Faith is not knowing what the future holds, but knowing Who holds the future.
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We offer our special prayers and Congratulations to the following students,
who will graduate from HOLY CROSS CATHOLIC SCHOOL on Thursday, May 25, 2017
Larissa Anderson, daughter of Ron & Andrea Anderson
Joseph Cienciwa, son of Mike & Allison Cienciwa
Allie Heselton, daughter of Dan & Kelly Heselton
Joshua Kassa, son of Ron & Betty Kassa
Daniel King Jr, son of Dan & Lori King
Tyler Langford, son of Lance & Cheryl Langford
Rebecca Meger, daughter Leon & Rachel Meger
Katherine Moening, daughter of Mike & Sherry Moening
Karley Vochoska, daughter of Joel & Deanna Vochoska
Seth Weitzel, son of Jeff & Dawn Weitzel
May 7th, 2017
4th Sunday of Easter
World Day of Prayer for Vocations
“I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.”
Welcome To The Table of the Lord
Congratulations
To the following children who are receiving their
FIRST HOLY COMMUNION
Today, Sunday, May 7, 2017at the 10:00 AM Mass
Cora Crow
Daughter of Jason & Roxanne Crow
Lilly Duban
Daughter of Brian & Patricia Duban
Blake Durbin
Son of Robert & Pamela Durbin
Kirra Flicek
Daughter of Joseph & Jamie Flicek
Brandon Geer
Son of Shannon & Kristen Geer
Abigail Grant
Daughter of Jeffrey & Heather Grant
Andrew Hauge
Son of Joel & Amber Hauge
Kellen Jirik
Son of Michael & Margaret Jirik
Karson Keilen
Son of Nathan & Amy Keilen
Garid Meyer
Son of Tad & Nan Meyer
Gabriella Pavek
Daughter of Joseph & Sarah Pavek
Annie Rynda
Daughter of Allen & Kimberly Rynda
Milo Simon
Son of Paul & Cassy Simon
Landen Walgrave
Son of Brad & Halle Walgrave
April 30, 2017
3rd Sunday of Easter
“Were not our hearts burning within us
while he spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us?”
NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER
Thursday, May 4th, 2017
People of faith across the nation will join in intercessory prayer for our governmental leaders, local communities, and the most vulnerable among us.
As Catholic Christians, Jesus invites all of us to be vibrant witnesses of trust in God and love for one another.
All are asked to be a part of this landmark day!
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A PRAYER FOR OUR NATION
God our Father, Giver of life,
we entrust the United States of America to Your loving care.
You are the rock on which this nation was founded.
You alone are the true source of our cherished rights
to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Reclaim this land for Your glory
and dwell among Your people.
Send Your Spirit to touch the hearts of our nation´s leaders.
Open their minds to the great worth of human life
and the responsibilities that accompany
human freedom.
Remind Your people that true happiness is rooted in seeking and doing Your will.
Through the intercession of Mary Immaculate, Patroness of our land,
grant us the courage to reject the “culture of death.”
Lead us into a new life.
We ask this through Christ Our Lord.
Amen.
April 23, 2017
2nd Sunday of Easter
Divine Mercy Sunday
“Receive the Holy Spirit.
Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”
It is one thing to doubt the fact that Jesus is risen, as Thomas did. We, however, are more likely to doubt the power flowing from that Resurrection, — a power that can keep us from sin. Today is Divine Mercy Sunday, but mercy is not to be confused with presumption or permission to sin. In fact, it is precisely in giving us commandments that, as the second reading tells us, “are not burdensome,” that God shows his mercy. It is not simply our weakness that “God understands.” He understands, first of all, our need of him, and the fact that we flourish only by living a life in union with his will. Therefore, his mercy provides us with every ounce of strength we need to actually fulfill the commandments, which is the same as to fulfill the demands of love.
Love has concrete demands, beginning with a reverence and absolute respect for one another’s lives, and the lives of the weakest and most vulnerable in our midst. Actions that deliberately take innocent human life are always contrary to love. Yet “his commandments are not burdensome,” because by our faith in his Resurrection, we have the power to love as he loves, even to the point of sacrificing ourselves as he sacrificed himself.
Thomas found the strength to believe when he returned to the unity of the Church. Perhaps when Thomas was missing on Easter night, he was out looking for Jesus on his own. After all, he was the kind of person who wanted to see for himself. But he actually found Jesus only when he returned to be with Peter and the other apostles. We too will find the strength to believe, to carry out the commandments, and to respect every human life, when we maintain close unity with the Church, the community of believers built on the apostles.
– Priests for Life
April 16, 2017
Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord
“Christians, praise the Paschal Victim!
Offer thankful sacrifice!
Christ the Lamb has saved the sheep,
Christ the just one paid the price, reconciling sinners to the Father”.
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Lord, As we gather together as family and friends
we invite you into our lives.
May the hope of Your Resurrection
fill our days.
May the promise of your spirit working in us
light up our lives.
May the love you revealed to us
shape our giving.
May the truth in Your Word
guide our journeys,
And may the joy of Your Kingdom
fill our homes.
We thank you for all the wonderful blessings
we now enjoy,
And celebrate Your Glorious Resurrection.
Thank you Lord.
Amen.
We are once again hosting a packaging event for Food for Kidz.
We hope you are able to come! When you do, please bring your cash/check donation with you to cover the cost of food. If you are unable to come, please mail your tax-deductible donation to:
Food for Kidz
c/o Immaculate Conception Parish
PO Box 169
Lonsdale, MN 55046
Checks can be made payable to Food for Kidz
The mission of Food for Kidz is to package and distribute nutritious meals to hungry children and their families where crisis has struck and there is an immediate need. People like you, coming together with friends and family to package food, donate money and offer compassion MAKE A DIFFERENCE. Change has to start somewhere, and it’s often with the simplicity of a meal.
Please see the flyer for more details and pass on the word!
Sponsored by the Parish Pastoral Council
April 9, 2017
Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord
“Hosanna to the Son of David;
blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord; hosanna in the highest”
The Cross
They brought him to the place of Golgotha (Place of the Skull). They gave him wine drugged with myrrh, but he did not take it. Then they crucified him.… It was nine o’clock in the morning when they crucified him. (Mark 15:22–23, 25).
When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him and the criminals there, one on his right, and the other on his left. [Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”] (Luke 23:33–34a)
So they took Jesus, and carrying the cross himself he went out to what is called the Place of the Skull, in Hebrew, Golgotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, with Jesus in the middle.… When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four shares, a share for each solider. (John 19:16b–18, 23a)
In the ancient world, there was no punishment more painful, terrifying, and dehumanizing than the cross.
It is not simply that Jesus died or even that he was put to death by corrupt people; it was that he endured the death reserved only for the lowest and most despised.
We are the inheritors of centuries of artwork and piety that present the cross as a moving religious symbol. We wear it as jewelry, and we hang it on the walls of our homes as a decoration.
But for the men and women of Jesus’ time, a person condemned to this manner of execution would be stripped, nailed or tied to a cross-bar fitted into a stake, and then left for hours, or in many cases days, to suffer the excruciating pain of very slowly asphyxiating while rocking up and down on wounded hands and feet in order to breathe.
The mocking of the crucified, which is frankly described in the Gospels, was part of the execution. When finally the tortured criminal died, his body was allowed to remain on the cross for days, permitting animals to pick over his remains. Jesus’ rapid burial was exceptional, a favor specially offered to Joseph of Arimathea, a high-ranking Jewish official.
To be sure, the Gospel proclaimed by the first Christians involves the glorious resurrection, but those initial evangelists never let their hearers forget that the one who had been raised was none other than the one who had been crucified.
So what exactly is happening on the cross? Why could God not simply have pronounced a word of forgiveness from heaven and dispensed with all of the blood and horror of the crucifixion?
The scriptural authors understand sin not so much as a series of acts, but as a condition in which we are stuck, something similar to an addiction or a contagious disease.
A mere word of forgiveness, uttered from the safety of heaven, would never have affected the needed transformation. No amount of merely human effort could possibly solve the problem.
Some power has to come from outside of us in order to clean up the mess; something awful has to be done on our behalf in order to offset the awfulness of sin. With this biblical realism in mind, we can begin to comprehend why the crucifixion of the Son of God was necessary.
Something had to be done—and God alone could do it. On that terrible cross, Jesus took upon himself the worst of humanity and swallowed it up in the ever greater divine mercy.
Jesus’s Passion and death are not the end;
they point to the joy of the Resurrection.
“By His wounds, we were healed” (Isaiah 53:5)
