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Welcome to St. Anthony Parish
Week January 28, 2024
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WELCOME
If you are new to our faith community and are interested in becoming a member of St. Anthony Catholic Church, please stop by the parish office or call 515-244-4709 or go online to StAnthonyDSM.org to fill out a “New Member” form.
BIENVENIDOS
Si eres nuevo en nuestra comunidad de fe y estas interesado en convertirte en miembro de la Igesia Católica de San Antonio, pase por la oficina parroquial o llame al 515-244-4709 para obtener un paquete para nuevos miembros, o ingrese en linea a StAnthonydsm.org para completer un nuevo formulario de miembro.
Fr. Chris Reising, Pastor
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Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Is knowledge of who Jesus is, enough to get to heaven? Is it enough to just know the details, to know the commandments, the prayers, the corporal and spiritual acts of mercy? Unfortunately, faith is sometimes reduced merely to the content of faith as it is reduced to merely tenants of belief without the practice of belief.
Look at the Gospel for this weekend, the unclean spirit says to Jesus, “I know who you are—the Holy One of God!” Do you find it interesting that an unclean spirit, a demon, knows who Jesus is? The unclean spirit does not worship God, does not love God. The unclean spirit confesses that Jesus is the Holy One of God. St. Augustine said that the demon confesses out of fear. Think confess as to declare. The fear is seen in the question that the unclean spirit asks Jesus, “Have you come here to destroy us?”
St. Augustine also said that a similar confession is made by St. Peter. The difference is that St. Peter’s confession of who Jesus is, is made in love. Saints, Chrysostom, Ambrose and Augustine, said that for the demon the confession of who Jesus is without charity meant nothing. That is the same conclusion for us. If we confess Jesus to be the Son of God, the Holy one of God, but do not have charity, the words we say mean nothing. Rember St. Paul in his letter to the Corinthians, he says that if he has all
these gifts…but without love he is nothing. A profession of who Jesus is without love is nothing, that is why the demon’s acknowledgment of Jesus is not a sign of love but rather a mere acknowledgement of the truth of who Jesus is.
Now look at the other part of the Gospel, Jesus teaches with authority, and the people are amazed and even a second time they say after he expels the demon, “What is this? A new teaching with authority. He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.” They see he has the authority to cast out the demon, and the demon leaves. The demon is subject to him as he is the Son of God. We are all subject to his authority, but the question is, will we be subject to his authority living in fear or will we be subject to his authority in love?
Look back to St. Peter, he makes his confession in love when Jesus asks, who do you say that I am, Peter responds, “You are the Messiah.” (Mk 8:29) It is in the Gospel of Mathew it is at this point that Jesus calls Simon Peter and says to him, “And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church,…”(Mt 26:18) It is this same Peter who will deny Jesus three times in his passion, and three times will renew his love after the resurrection.
Now let's look at confession again…in two ways, the sacrament and the declaration. In seminary we were taught that even in confession (the sacrament) we confess (declare the goodness of God.) Think about this, the Authority of Jesus has been given to his Church such that through the Church, Christ makes himself present in the Eucharist. He gives the Church the power to forgive sins.
Looking at the sacrament of confession, do we go because we fear hell, or do we fear the just consequences of sin? Or do we go because we have offended the one we love? Are we there for fear of love? If we go out of fear, it is a beginning. But now how do we move to love? Frequent use of the sacrament of confession and receiving the Eucharist worthily will help us to grow in love.
We can all ask why am I at mass? Am I here because I love God and want to praise and thank him for all the good things he has done for me? If not, now is the time to ask God for the grace to love him more, the grace to put belief into practice and the grace to always confess Jesus is Lord in love and devotion.
Peace,
Fr. Chris
Responding to God's Call to Love and to Serve Program
Thank you to all parishioners who have completed and submitted your Commitment Card. For those parishioners who have not yet had the opportunity to submit their card, a final letter will be mailed to you with a personalized Commitment Card. We invite all faithful parishioners to complete a card as our parish goal is 100% participation!
Our goal is 100% participation!
Thank you to all parishioners who have completed and submitted your Commitment Card. For those parishioners who have not yet had the opportunity to submit their card, a final letter will be mailed to you with a personalized Commitment Card. We invite all faithful parishioners to complete a card as our parish goal is 100% participation!
As a friendly reminder, electronic giving is an easy, safe and secure way to support St. Anthony Catholic Church. To set-up a recurring weekly or monthly gift or to make a one-time donation directly from your bank account or credit card, please CLICK HERE and follow the instructions. We are grateful for your support!
If completing your card was not possible at Mass, you can scan the code below and complete an electronic card:
Our goal is 100% participation!
Thank you for your generosity and support of St. Anthony Catholic Church!
Please visit our Stewardship page to learn more and sign up for online giving!!
Upcoming Parish Events
SAY 4:12 - SA Youth Group - St. Anthony Church Music Room - enter at circle drive door. 1st and 3rd Wednesday of every month! See Parish website for more details
The 3rd Sunday of each month at the 10:00am mass, it will be a children’s mass with student servers and lectors. We would love to see families join in the 10 o’clock mass every weekend. Also, contact the church office if you would like your child to be a server or reader.9th Daddy Daughter Little Princess Dance - Feb. 24th, 2024 - 6-8PM, Parish Hall, DJ, Dancing, and Pictures Included - Register by February 21, Space is Limited - Click here for more details and signupParish Mission - Feb. 25, 26,27 - 6 to 7:30PM - Featuring guest speaker Bud Marr - register or more info, pls call the office. Bingo Extravaganza - 1st Saturday of the month 6PM - Parish Hall, Doors open at 5PM, Early Bird 6PM - Next date Feb. 3rd!
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Download Our Parish Mobile App Today!
Just snap a photo of the QR code to the left on your mobile device, and it will take you to the appropriate MyParish mobile app download for your particular phone - once the app is downloaded, it will automatically take you to the St. Anthony specific app.!
Our Mission Statement: To make life-long disciples, baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them in all aspects of the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.