VISITING PRIEST

St. Michael Catholic Church

MASS SCHEDULE GIRARD
Saturday
5:30 pm
Sunday
10:00 am

ARMA
4:00 pm
8:00 am

CONFESSION
GIRARD
ARMA
Saturday
2:00-2:30 pm 3:15-3:45 pm
Weekdays before Mass, anytime by appointment
RECTORY HOURS & INFORMATION
Tuesday-Friday: 9:00 am - Noon
Rectory: (620) 724-8717
Fr. Maxs cell: (316) 708-9473
Fr. Maxs email: thomas.becket.fan@gmail.com
STAFF Pastor: Fr. Max Biltz
Secretary: Faith Paoni
Bookkeeper: Janel Scales
Bulletin Editor: Nancy Bauer
PARISH WEBSITE:
www.stmichaelgirard.com
UPCOMING EVENTS:
Finance Council
Parish Council
Tony Stonerock, Chair Dale Coomes, Chair
TBA
TBA

!Altar Society

Monday, April 25
6:30pm @ Daltons

!Helping Hands

Knights of Columbus
1st Tuesday of month
7:00pm in hall

Daughters of Isabella
Carrie Smith
Marilyn Bradshaw
724-6684
724-7133
Kapauns Men: Will resume meeting in the fall

Apr. 23 Saturday
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
May 1

4:00pm
5:30pm
Sunday
8:00am
10:00am
Monday
7:00am
Tuesday
5:30pm
Wednesday 6:30pm
Thursday 7:00pm
8:30am-3:00pm
Friday
12:00 noon
8:00am-6:00pm
Saturday 4:00pm
5:30pm
Sunday
8:00am
10:00am

106 N. Western Ave.

Girard, KS 66743
(620) 724-8717
Pastor: Fr. Max Biltz

WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A CATHOLIC

Last Monday evening, Helen and I went to Lenexa to attend our grandson, Bens,
Confirmation. There were some 130 in his 8th grade class to be confirmed with Archbishop Joseph
Naumann of the Diocese of Kansas City, Kansas, as principal celebrant. Prior to the
Confirmation, the archbishop gave an informal homily entitled, What It Means To Be A
Catholic. He spoke with such sincerity that you could have heard a pin drop in that huge,
capacity-filled, Church of the Holy Trinity.
He told us, Most Catholics have similar beliefs based on their childhood catechism study. On
Holy Thursday, the first Mass was said by Jesus in the Upper Room, and the next day, He became
the Paschal Lamb, dying for our sins on Good Friday. After three days in the tomb, Jesus rose from
the dead on Easter Sunday. Forty days later, He ascended into heaven and ten days hence, the
Holy Spirit descended on the apostles, confirming them with special gifts to go into the world and
perform their mission. This is the foundation of our faith in Jesus life, death, and resurrection.
Now, what it means to be a Catholic: Many today attend Mass faithfully on weekends and holy
days, while others have become cafeteria Catholics, taking to heart only the truths from the
Church which they want. Some think that it isnt necessary to assist at Mass on every weekend.
Others choose to use birth control. What being a Catholic will mean to you, young people, will
depend, in large measure, on how close you are to Jesus.
I hear people say that they attend Mass because they really like their pastor and what he says
in his homilies. Others go because theyre active with the music and enjoy making it come to life
during the service. Let me tell you quickly that what it means to be a Catholic is not found in
Fathers homilies or the songs that are sung. It will ultimately come down to how well do you
know Jesus? We can know our catechism totally, but it doesnt mean that this will bring us closer
to God. The more we study the life of Jesus, His family and friends, His teachings, His likes and
dislikes, and His sacrificial nature, the closer we will come to understand Him, to desire Him, and
ultimately, to love Him with all our hearts! To reach such a point, we must delve into the
various stages of His life. Why did He come on earth to die? We will come to know that the simple
reason was to save us from our sins. He wants to make us holywe will be redeemed by
being made holy. (Fr. Bob McElwee once said in a homily, Holiness is the language of heaven.
Thats how we get there. Holiness isnt for extra credit! Youre either holy or youre not getting in!)
Archbishop Naumann concluded with, The idea, young people, is the more we know Jesus,
we become like Him and share His nature more fully. In time, we will take that approach to our
fellow human beings by treating them fairer and avoid passing our hurts on to them. This is what
friendship with Jesus will get you and the result will make you more aware of what it means to be
a Catholic.
I know that those 8th graders received more than the Holy Spirit that evening. They heard
their Archbishop lay out the blueprint for an abundant Catholic life. I, too, was thankful to have
been in that audience.
- Marcel Normand

Altar Ministers for Next Weekend

Mass Schedule and Intentions for Apr. 23 - May 1

CJ & Virginia Schaub
Greg Evans
No Intention
For the People
No Mass
No Mass
No Mass
No Mass
No Adoration
No Mass
No Adoration
Wally & Betty Rons
Cathrine Madl
For the People
Patricia Haderlein

Arma
Girard
Arma
Girard
Girard
Arma
Girard
Girard
Arma
Girard
Girard
Arma
Girard
Arma
Girard

Next Saturday (4/30/16)

Next Sunday (5/1/16)

!Altar Servers:

5:30 pm

Trevor & Peyton

Amershek

Abi, Ethan & Carter

Doherty

EMHC:

Linda DeGarmo

Joan Davied

Mary Twarog

8th Grade Students

Dean & Tonya

Davied family

8th Grade Students

!
Lector:
!

Gift Bearers

Collections

Fr. Bob McElwee will be our visiting priest this weekend.

Please thank him for being here and make him feel welcome!

10:00 am

Contributions

K of C THANKS YOU

The Girard/Arma Knights of Columbus would like to express

their gratitude to all who came and ate at their Pancake Feed
on Sunday, April 10. A special thanks to those who helped
organize and serve.

Childrens Offering

PSR NEWS
This Sunday, April 24, will be our last Sunday morning
PSR session of the year. See you in the fall!

Last Week

July 2015 to date

$2,917.00

$105,851.87

$57.00

$646.82

Expenses

$112,501.39

Over / (Under)

($6,002.70)

Building Fund Contributions

$15.00

!Evening classes will have their final session on Wednesday,

Building Fund Loan Balance

$218,736.67

April 27. All evening PSR students (including Confirmation

class) are invited to join us for food and fun that evening!

ALTAR SOCIETY MEETING/OFFICERS

Please call Teresa Davenport, 362-3042, or Linda DeGarmo,

724-8905, if you would like to be on the nominating
committee for the 2016-17 year for Altar Society. If you are
interested in being an officer (President, VP, Treasurer,
Secretary) for next year, please let them know! The Altar
Society meeting will meet Monday, April 25th at 6:30pm at
Daltons Back 9. This will be their last meeting of the year.
They will resume in the fall.

MAY CROWNING
8th

May Crowning will be on Sunday, May 1, 2016. The

grade
class will lead our Marian procession at the 10:00am mass.

TOTUS TUUS SCHEDULED

Save the date! Totus Tuus is scheduled for the week of July
9-15, 2016! There are brochures in the back of church with
additional information.

MIDWEST CATHOLIC FAMILY CONFERENCE

The 17th Annual Midwest Catholic family conference will be

held Aug. 5-7 in Wichita, Ks. Call the parish office for more
information or visit catholicfamilyconference.org.

3RD ANNUAL LIFE RUN

Join us for the 3rd Annual Life Run, May 7, 2016, at Sedgwick
County Park. There is something for everyone: a 5K run and
1.5 mile family fun run, lots of activities and family friendly
vendors. For more information or to register, go to
www.liferunwichita.org. Contact the Respect Life and Social
Justice Office at (316) 269-3935 with questions.

FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH DINNER

Girard's First Christian Church will be serving a Homemade
Pulled Pork Dinner this Sunday, April 24th from noon to
1:30pm. It will be located in the First Presbyterian Church
Fellowship Hall. The menu will include pulled pork, baked
cowboy beans, cole slaw, potato chips, dessert and drink.
Adults are $6.00, Children 6-10 are $3.00 and carry-outs will
be available.

KAPAUNS MEN

Kapauns Mens group is finished meeting for the spring. They

will reconvene in the fall.

PRAYERS FOR OUR PARISHIONERS

Please pray for parishioners Herman Masser, Thurma Masser,

Rosemary OToole, Tom Weston, and Judy Widner who are ill
or in need of prayers.

ST. PEREGRINE ITEMS AVAILABLE

St. Peregrine cards, medals and tokens are available free of

charge for persons with a cancer diagnosis or cancer survivors.
St. Peregrine is the patron saint of persons suffering from
cancer. If you would like one for yourself or a loved one, call
Teresa Davenport at 362-3042.

FROM THE OFFICE OF RESPECT LIFE/SOCIAL JUSTICE

By radiating charity and mercy to all our neighbors, we
provide those much-needed islands
of mercy. Together, we stand
against the wind of the throwaway
culture, and brave its sea of
indifference, sustained by Jesus who
is, as Pope Francis has called Him,
the living face of the Father's
mercy.

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