Third Sunday of Easter April 18, 2021 - Saint Polycarp Church
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Third Sunday of Easter Our Bishop has asked us all to prayerfully reflect
on how God wants to use us as instruments in
April 18, 2021 supporting the various ministries of our Diocese.
Sacrifice is never easy. It is even harder during the
PASTOR’S PEN
pandemic because we already sacrificed so much.
Dear People of God, None the less, this tradition is what makes us who
we are. Based on our proud heritage, I have no
I hope and pray that all is well with you and your doubt that we will be “Disciples of Christ and
loved ones as we celebrate the Pascal Mystery of Witnesses of Hope” once again.
our salvation!
May God continue to bless you and reward your
As the pandemic has ravaged our planet, so much sacrifice for His Church!
has changed. Sorrow, frustration and anger have
become part of our lives on every level. Economic
uncertainty has added stress to individuals,
families, businesses and even our beloved Church. 2021 ANNUAL CATHOLIC APPEAL
Some folks have crumbled under these burdens and Commitment Weekend
lost hope.
Yet, this is not unique to our day and age with
Covid. It is THE story of faith. The two disciples
on the road to Emmaus show us this reality. They
were leaving Jerusalem in despair. Then with the
“breaking of the bread”, Their hope was restored.
By this familiar return to routine, the disciples
were given the gift that enabled them to be Jesus’s As Luke recalls for us in today’s Gospel, only after the
Apostles had absorbed the excitement and wonderment
witnesses. of seeing Jesus alive when they thought Him dead, did
the importance of His words take on meaning.
It is this backdrop that frames our Annual Catholic
Appeal. Since 1976, our Diocese has asked all Jesus had chosen them as His witnesses to His mission
and His true identity. If anyone among them had thought
parishes to provide critical financial support to that Jesus had some other way of telling the world about
more than thirty ministries that individual parishes Himself, these thoughts were dismissed when they
could not sustain. Here at St. Polycarp, Diocesan realized that they were the means, that they would be
God’s instruments.
ministry provides pastoral care for the prison.
Further, the many departments of our Diocese Just as the disciples realized that with the death and
resurrection of Jesus they were suddenly forced to
provide us with guidance and direction for all of confront the radical change in their lives, we too are
our parish ministries. called to do the same. As Christ’s followers, we must
make Easter season a time of new beginning in our lives.
Since I became Pastor, our parish has always been As Disciples of Christ, being witnesses and believers, we
a shining example of loving stewardship to our cannot separate ourselves from being doers of the Word.
Church. Never have we not made our appeal goal. The Annual Catholic Appeal works to ensure the viability
This includes last year during the pandemic. Even and growth of many charitable, pastoral and educational
ministries throughout Delaware and Maryland’s Eastern
more admirably, we have always exceeded our goal. Shore. With its theme, “Disciples of Christ, Witnesses of
This in turn, yields a rebate which has enabled us Hope” the Appeal brings hope and the good news of
to do many special projects here at St. Polycarp. Christ’s love to thousands of men, women and children
each year. (Continued on the next page.)
(Annual Catholic Appeal - continued from previous page.) LET US PRAY
Recently, you were invited to participate in the 2021
Annual Catholic Appeal. If you have already provided a
gift, thank you for your generosity. If you have not, please
give prayerful and thoughtful consideration to your
resources and the needs of those served by the Annual SP
Catholic Appeal. Saturday, April 17
4 pm Mary Sponaugle - Eleanor Schauer
You can contribute to the Appeal by using the pledge Sunday, April 18 3rd Sunday of Easter
card and return envelope mailed to your home, by 10:30 am Trudy Kasubinski - Walter Kasubinski
accessing the Appeal website at Monday, April 19
www.cdow.org/annualcatholicappeal and clicking “How No Mass
to Donate” or by completing a pledge card located at the Tuesday, April 20
doors of the Church and in the black drop box under the 8:30 am Jimmie Dykes - Laverne Dykes
portico. Wednesday, April 21 St. Anselm
8:30 am John Saber Family - Rita Brown
To learn more about the Annual Catholic Appeal visit the Thursday, April 22
diocesan website at 8:30 am Michael Powell Jr. – The Marvian Family
Friday, April 23 St. George/St. Adalbert
www.cdow.org/annualcatholicappeal. Consider viewing a 8:30 am Jane Marvian - The Marvian Family
brief video highlighting a few of the supported ministries Saturday, April 24 St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen
at https://youtu.be/1789oOHmTkg. 4 pm Suzanne Cuncic - Robert Cuncic
Sunday, April 25 4th Sunday of Easter
LIVE STREAM 10:30 am Parishioners
All Masses and Services from St. Polycarp: Bread & Wine for the Eucharist are given in prayer for an
Visit www.saintpolycarp.org and increase in religious vocations.
click on the picture of the altar or visit Our Sanctuary Lamp in Church burns for the healing
https://www.youtube.com/c/StPolycarpSmyrnaDE intention of Carol Donahue, at the request of the Saint
Vincent de Paul Society.
THINKING CATHOLIC! We Pray for Our Sick and Those in Need of Our Prayers
From time to time, we hear or read words that are often To have someone’s name added to the Bulletin for prayers,
used in our Catholic Faith, yet we never fully understand please email submission@saintpolycarp.org or call the
office and leave a message.
their meaning. Hopefully, this will help you increase your
Catholic vocabulary! Keep learning! Gordon Hollander, Carol Hurst, Ed Stachow, Patty Moon,
Christie Moon, Bishop Malooly, Mark Kennedy, Ben Walters,
What exactly is the Paschal Mystery? The Paschal Michelle Dean, Austin & Dylan Dean, Kenny Bullins, Deirdre
Mystery is the passion, death, resurrection, and Moor, Linda Blow, Deacon Charlie Robinson, Mariann
ascension of Christ commemorated at each Holy Mass. Pierson, Kevin Patterson, Ron Ivory, Ruth Staub, and all
(OSV Catholic Dictionary) those suffering from Covid-19.
We Pray for our Deceased
May the souls of all the faithful departed,
through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen
STONES FAITH GARDEN
What is Your Message?
50/50 RAFFLE
PROCEEDS BENEFIT OUR PSR!
Our 50/50 winner is pulled monthly! Simply
place $1 in an envelope and mark 50/50 on
the envelope along with your NAME and phone number. Place
the envelope in the collection basket or drop off in the drop
box. Winner gets half; PSR gets half! If you want to play more
Now that we are in the Easter Season, finished stones often, just put in whatever amount you like and we will enter
may be returned to our Church and placed in the basket you once a week for each dollar you send in! Thank you for
under the portico until Pentecost Sunday, May 23rd. supporting our PSR! Good luck!
Watch our How-to” Video at
https://youtu.be/7rB7atK3ohQ
A DEACON’S THOUGHTS He will even teach the Child how to walk, Pope Francis
tells us, taking him by the hand, “raising the infant Jesus
Year of St. Joseph to his cheeks, bending down to feed him.” Throughout
the remainder of his life, St. Joseph would admirably
St. Joseph- Silent, Strong & True fulfill his “divinely assigned” role and help prepare Jesus
for his ultimate destiny as Savior of the world.
As we celebrate the Year of St. Joseph, one thing is
certain, you will not find much about him in the Easter Blessings & peace,
Scriptures. But it does not diminish his role or presence Deacon Frank
in the life of the Holy Family. The work to which Joseph
has been summoned can be described in a single word:
Protect.
You would think that someone as close and
indispensable as Joseph was to the Mother of God and to
a helpless Child whom God had entrusted to his care,
would have whole chapters devoted to his life. Despite
his lack of presence in the Bible, what little we know
about him, perfectly describes a man, silent, strong &
true whose only desire was to follow the will of God and
fulfill his role as protector, guardian and patriarch of the How is God calling you?
special family entrusted to his care. He fulfilled this role
in perfect love for his wife and foster-son, who would PASTORAL COUNCIL
become the Redeemer of the world. St. Joseph, Pray for Us!
The example of Joseph’s life is an inspiration to me and Joseph was a carpenter not known for
to all fathers, whether blood-related or not, especially in his wealth or high status in his small
town. The Lord called him to care, protect and guide
a world where fatherless families are more common
Mary and Jesus. What is Our Lord calling you to do?
than they should be or even now where we find a society
Pastoral Council is now actively searching for new
that seems “bent on” diminishing or even eliminating the
members. Our parish needs people to say yes to the
role of a father in a child’s life. calling of care, protection and guidance of the people of
Just ask my wife Debbie, how important her stepfather St. Polycarp Church. Ask The Holy Spirit to give you the
was in the formative years of her life, so much so that bravery to say "Yes Lord, I'm listening!" Elections will be
when it was time to give her away in marriage to me, she in May. Please contact any member on Pastoral Council
insisted that both her real father and stepfather fulfill or Cindy Kennedy at (302) 653-7525, Kenndy-
this significant honor. Being a “true father” is more than 078@msn.com with an expression of interest and/or for
a title; it carries with it an indispensable responsibility to additional information. God Bless!
protect & care for his family through “thick & thin,” and NETWORK COMMUNICATIONS
be an example of moral fortitude and courage. HELP NEEDED FOR LIVE STREAMING
From the moment when the angel proclaimed to Joseph In order to be able to maintain our live streaming of
that he should continue to take the Virgin Mary as his Masses, we are in need of individuals with a
wife and together raise the child she was pregnant with, technological background, a good understanding of
network communication, online social media and a
knowing he was the Son of God, he did so with perfect
desire to help grow our online presence with live
obedience and love. streaming. Please contact our Communications Office at
All that Joseph was summoned to do can best be said in communications@saintpolycarp.org
that single word which carries the force of an imperative:
Protect. He must protect his wife lest she be destroyed PARISH AND FAMILY LIFE
by scandal. He must protect his Son lest Herod “snuff Consider helping St. Polycarp’s Parish & Family Life! We
out” his life. By this last act, the Dominican, Fr. Basil Cole, are looking for volunteers to help us with events in the
O.P. describes St Joseph as the “Savior of our Savior.” Community. At some time, events will begin again and in
Then he would return his family back to their shared the meantime, we need to get new ideas and plans
homeland, where Jesus would learn the lessons of a together! We cannot make such events possible without
young, Jewish boy, all this while serving the role of enough assistance from our Parishioners. Please contact
protector and model of silent, strong & courageous Deanna Lail at 302-535-2957 or email
obedience to God’s will. dlail14@comcast.net if you are interested. Thank you!
USHERS AND GREETERS COLLECTIONS.
As more COVID vaccine is being made available, and
with a continuing easing on the limitation restrictions, The 2nd Collection this weekend is for Parish Maintenance.
the need for ushers and greeters for both Masses has
increased. If you feel comfortable and have returned to April 4 Offertory Poor Box Holy Thursday Easter
Mass or plan to in the near future, please consider Collection $5,249 $150 $112 $10,522
volunteering as an usher/greeter. Our mission is to
provide general care of our worship space and to create April 11 Offertory Poor Box Holy Land Easter
an environment where all feel welcome. Shrines
Collection $2,807 $173.00
Anyone interested in volunteering for one of the most eGiving $6,231 $326.50 $67 $927
important positions in the Church should contact: Cindy Total $9,038 $499.50
Kennedy, 653-7525. kennedy-078@msn.com or Tom
O’Drain, 659-5317, odrain709@comcast.net. April 11 Easter PSR Parish Mother’s Day
Flowers Maintenance Remembrance
Thank you for your consideration and for helping to eGiving $164 $217 $207 $97
make people feel welcome at our church! Note: eGiving figures are reported twice a month.
WEEKLY BULLETIN Please consider signing up for eGiving to ensure your
We’re looking for someone to temporarily help with the contributions are received even when you are not here
Bulletin. Basic knowledge of Microsoft Word, including for Mass. Visit faith. direct/DE831.
skill in formatting documents and ability to proof read
documents. Please contact Judy at our Communications TEXT-TO-GIVE: Faith Direct offers a safe and secure Text-
to-Give option allowing you to make a one-time gift. To give,
Office at communications@saintpolycarp.org.
please follow these simple steps:
1. Text $$ amount to 302-202-2251
BROTHER VINCENT COLUMBIETTES 2. Follow the link and complete a one-time process
Wondering what Brother Vincent Columbiettes have
been up to during COVID 19?
Thank you to all those who continue to send in their
envelopes and for those who have enrolled in eGiving.
We pray the Rosary, as a group, every Tuesday. All are or donated through Text-to-Give. Thank you for your
welcome to join (contact Jill Mercer at (302)653-3836 or generosity and continued stewardship.
jllmercer@yahoo.com. We continue to support the youth
THIS WEEK IN OUR PARISH
of our parish. We also supported the “Rock Your Socks – All meetings/events are virtual unless otherwise noted.
World Down Syndrome Day”. Brother Vincent Our Parish Office remains closed at this time.
Columbiettes were the largest Columbiette contributors https://saintpolycarp.org/calendar/
in the State of Delaware, both with the sock project and Saturday, April 17
monetary contributions. We THANK THE LADIES who 2:30 pm Confession
helped to make this possible. These are only a few of our 4 pm Mass (Blessing of Environment Committee)
activities. Our ladies are continuously striving, even Sunday, April 18
during trying times, to help wherever help is needed. The 9 am Intermediate Sac. Prep (ISP)
more ladies we have, the more we can do. Your talents, 9 am PSR Grs. PK/K-4 (Lesson Posted)
Monday, April 19
friendship and ideas would be greatly welcomed.
6:30 pm Columbiettes Rosary (Virtual)
Everyone benefits. For more information, you can talk to 6:30 pm RCIA Sessions (Virtual)
MaryLois Barnas (302)388-3332 or 7 pm Columbiettes Meeting (Virtual)
mlbarnas@comcast.net or Linda Mood at (302)653- Tuesday, April 20
6852 or Mood222@comcast.net or any of our members. 10 am Columbiettes Rosary (Phone)
We would be thrilled to have you join us. 6:30 pm Finance Council (Virtual)
7 pm PSR Grs. 5-8 (Lesson Posted)
Wednesday, April 21
9 am St. Vincent de Paul (Virtual)
6 pm K of C Officers Meeting (Virtual)
6:30 pm Baptismal Class- Advance Registration Required
7 pm CFC General Meeting & Executive Committee (Virtual)
7 pm K of C Social (Virtual)
Thursday, April 22
6:30 pm Flame of Love Rosary (Virtual)
Friday, April 23
11 am Connected in Christ Zoom Meeting (Virtual)
Saturday, April 24
2:30 pm ConfessionYou can also read
