Today's Live-Streamed Mass

Worship Aid for the First Sunday in Lent 

 Parish Office will be closed Monday, 19 February in observance of President's Day.

 The mailing for the 2024 Bishop’s Lenten Appeal – also called the BLA - has been sent to registered parishioners. The funds from the BLA are a unique way for leaders of ministries, volunteers, lay people, and priests – people from all walks of life – to grow as a community to enrich parish life, form seminarians, teach children our Catholic faith, help the needy and inspire those outside the church through evangelization efforts. Please read the BLA materials and then prayerfully reflect on making a sacrificial pledge to this vital appeal that spreads the love of Christ throughout our diocese. Thank you.

 Concerts at Saint Bernadette presents the nationally renowned Bowling Green State University Men’s Chorus, Monday, March 4, at 7:30pm. All are invited to this free concert.

 On the Fridays of Lent Fr. Jeb will be offering Lenten Reflections in Spanish in the Chapel at 7pm after Soup Supper at 6pm and before the Stations of the Cross in Spanish at 8pm. Join us on this spiritual journey!

 Los viernes de Cuaresma el P. Jeb ofrecerá Reflexiones de Cuaresma en español en la Capilla a las 7pm, después de la Cena de Sopa a las 6pm y antes del Vía Crucis en español a las 8pm. ¡Únase a nosotros en este viaje espiritual!

 Lenten Soup Suppers are Fridays in Lent at 6 pm, followed by Stations of the Cross in English at 7 pm and 8 pm in Spanish.

 Our 40-hour Eucharistic Adoration begins in two weeks, on Sunday, February 25.  We will need two people for adoration round the clock from Sunday evening through Tuesday evening.  There will be two additional Masses on Monday and Tuesday evenings at 6:30 pm.  Sign up for adoration in the vestibule.

 Additional Wednesday evening confessions during Lent begin Wednesday, February 21, from 6:30 to 8 pm.  Our parish penance service will be on Tuesday, March 19th.

 Have you purchased your 23rd Gala and Auction Tickets? Buy a Gala Ticket today!

 Do you love putting your creativity into action? Be part of our team for the upcoming “Sailing into The Future” Gala being held by our beloved Saint Bernadette School. The event will be on April 20. Use your time and talents to help us execute a beautiful and enjoyable evening. Please contact Jean Corday in the parish office.

 The Confirmation 2025 Team #3 has put together a prayer tree with the names of our 2024 Confirmation Candidates that can be found in the Vestibule. Each tag has the name of a candidate and a simple prayer that can be said daily on their behalf. Please take a tag on your way out of Mass and pray for your candidate in preparation for their confirmation next November.

 All High Schoolers are invited to join us every Tuesday for fun and fellowship. We meet weekly from 7:00-8:30 pm in the youth room.

 All 6th-8th graders are invited to join us for Middle School Youth Mininstry, February 21 from 6:45-8pm in the Gym. We'll have snacks, games, and a teaching from Fr. James. Contact Grace Rihl, grihl@stbernpar.org with any questions. 

Dear Good People of Saint Bernadette,

Last weekend we celebrated our annual Night of Gratitude honoring all our volunteers in the parish. Over several hundred volunteers attended the event.

We probably never have the opportunity to tell our volunteers just how much they are appreciated, often we get into the ministries of service and our time is taken up. During the Night of Gratitude last weekend one of the volunteers remarked how he had no idea there were so many people doing so much here at Saint Bernadette. It is true. To see so many in one place and realize how great is the number of committed parishioners helps us to know better who we are – and grow in strength as a community. Otherwise you would have no idea how many and committed are the people who spend hours for all of us.

All parish staff and many of the school faculty members and administration came and spent all Saturday decorating the gym and prepared the food and served it. It is important that our staff show their appreciation. After all, it is only through the assistance of volunteers that we are able to provide the leadership and many services that make us a vibrant parish. I wish to thank all those who served, especially Rick Caporali, who coordinated the many aspects of the evening. You make a pastor proud that we are able to pull something like this off to thank so many people for their dedication.

Again this year we enjoyed the music of the Andrew Thielen Big Band, a 12-musician orchestra with two amazing vocalists from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. There aren’t that many orchestras like this still around, and we hope to welcome them back again next year.

Last year we honored 21 volunteers with a Volunteer of the Year Award. Having come through the pandemic and gathering again for the first time in several years we had some catching up to do. Last year’s honorees were: Nancy Allard, Barbara Dalmut, Cedric D’Cruze, Jenn Garver, Lyn Goldberg, Frank Guest, Brendan Harris, Don Howell, Sylvia and Bob Malinowski, Kathy and Gino Marchetti, Kathleen Moyer, Clare Mugno, Nilda and Michael Norris, Tom Palumbo, Mark and Pat Price, Gina Soriano, and Jim Womack. We could just as easily given any of these volunteers another award this year for their continued service to the parish.

Added to their ranks this year are Sarah Hoffman for service to the school; Becky Garcia for many years of leadership in the school, parish events and the school gala/auction; Bart Bailey for his leadership as the new executive director of Mary’s Comfort; Suyapa Shine for her many roles, including coordinator of Eucharistic ministers and Walking with Purpose; and Henry Champagne and Bernie Matis for their dedication to the Religious Education Program. Thank you! We can only imagine the possibilities of new ministries and opportunities in the future once we have our new Parish Life Center!

You can find photos of the Night of Gratitude on pages 8 and 9 of this bulletin.

The Lord be with you,

Dear Good People of Saint Bernadette,

Ash Wednesday is here! I have a proposal for everyone this Lent. Are you looking for something to give up, or maybe something positive to do for the season as a penitential and transformative practice?

As much as we can, let us stop using our screens for Lent.

I’ve been doing a little research and the results are overwhelming. Screens are replacing society as we know it. Community, real community, can’t be virtual. You are no longer challenged to love your neighbor, all you have to do is swipe. Screens are replacing relationships, too, and some studies show that we will have an economic population crisis in the future because people aren’t entering into meaningful (and challenging) relationships which lead to family life. Online, no commitment necessary. We find that pornography has become a common part even of married life, it is so easy to access. God is the third person in your marriage. Seminaries in many churches have added an additional year of “human formation” because they find candidates for ministry aren’t coming with an aptitude for forming healthy relationships.

Is it any wonder that gossip, hate and inhumanity are so prevalent when virtual chat and social media allows people to say, without any accountability whatsoever, things they would never dare to say to another person face to face? God did not create us anonymous... and when people put on a mask usually bad things happen. The hate that bubbles up to the surface and becomes visible is actually only the tip of the iceberg. Cruel and violent words are exchanged between children, and I find that parents often are not doing a very good job at monitoring their sons’ and daughters’ content. If we are virtually shooting people for hours a day, at some point that is going to bubble over into streets and schools.

Reality becomes something other than truth. And now with artificial intelligence, that person you are “talking with” may not be a person at all, influencing your opinions and the way you live your life, a new filter through which we approach our own real life, which has suddenly become boring, inadequate, even optional. There are studies which say that suicide rates are up and up and content on screens is to blame.

Health providers all agree that the prolonged use of screens has a detrimental impact on our mental health, leaving us fatigued, irritable and disillusioned about what the world has to offer, leaving people with a more negative outlook on life. Screens near bedtime alters your sleep patterns. The bright light from screens reduce melatonin production and keep you up late into the night. Higher levels of screen time is commonly associated with depression and weakens your stress response. Researchers from Harvard University find that higher levels of screen time is associated with a less efficient cognitive control system. It is a cycle of boredom which seeks more and more stimulation, and people don’t have a chance to let their brains wander without stimulation.

We would call that prayer, or meditation.

Now that I think about it, this is far bigger than Lent. But we can certainly take advantage of Lent to help turn around these trends, especially with our children who are completely unaware of the dangers of overstimulation and the need to pause, self-regulate their emotions, and form real friendships.

The Lord be with you,

Today's Live-Streamed Mass

Worship Aid for the Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time 

 The mailing for the 2024 Bishop’s Lenten Appeal – also called the BLA - has been sent to registered parishioners. The funds from the BLA are a unique way for leaders of ministries, volunteers, lay people, and priests – people from all walks of life – to grow as a community to enrich parish life, form seminarians, teach children our Catholic faith, help the needy and inspire those outside the church through evangelization efforts. Please read the BLA materials and then prayerfully reflect on making a sacrificial pledge to this vital appeal that spreads the love of Christ throughout our diocese. Thank you.

 We have kicked off our 23rd Gala and Auction by opening the first of several waves of silent auction items. Beautiful baskets donated by our school families will continue to be displayed in the school vestibule, and bidding will remain open through February 11. Make your bid now or purchase a Gala Ticket today!

 Do you love putting your creativity into action? Be part of our team for the upcoming “Sailing into The Future” Gala being held by our beloved Saint Bernadette School. The event will be on April 20. Use your time and talents to help us execute a beautiful and enjoyable evening. Please contact Jean Corday in the parish office.

 The Saint Lucy Project Food Drive is here! The charity collects and distributes food where it is most needed in the Diocese. Please bring your blue bags this weekend.

 Ash Wednesday is this Wednesday, February 14. Mass Times: 7am, 9am, 12pm, 6pm (Liturgy of the Word-NO Communion), and a bilingual Mass at 7:30 pm

 Lenten Soup Suppers start this Friday at 6 pm, followed by Stations of the Cross in English at 7 pm and 8 pm in Spanish.

 Our 40-hour Eucharistic Adoration begins in two weeks, on Sunday, February 25.  We will need two people for adoration round the clock from Sunday evening through Tuesday evening.  There will be two additional Masses on Monday and Tuesday evenings at 6:30 pm.  Sign up for adoration in the vestibule.

 Additional Wednesday evening confessions during Lent begin Wednesday, February 21, from 6:30 to 8 pm.  Our parish penance service will be on Tuesday, March 19th.

 The Knights of Columbus are hosting a Spaghetti Dinner and Trivia Contest this Saturday, February 17th, in the school cafeteria. Dinner is from 6-7:45 pm followed by trivia until 9 pm. See the bulletin for more information.

 The Confirmation 2025 Team #3 has put together a prayer tree with the names of our 2024 Confirmation Candidates that can be found in the Vestibule. Each tag has the name of a candidate and a simple prayer that can be said daily on their behalf. Please take a tag on your way out of Mass and pray for your candidate in preparation for their confirmation next November.

 All High Schoolers are invited to join us every Tuesday for fun and fellowship. We meet weekly from 7:00-8:30 pm in the youth room.