WELCOME FATHER LEON KLIMCZCK

Fr. Leon Klimczyk, S.J., joins us at Mass this weekend, speaking on behalf of the missionary endeavors of the Wisconsin Province of the Society of Jesus and their work in Eastern Africa.

BLOOD DRIVE TUESDAY

This Tuesday, August 4, from 2:30 until 5:30 PM the Memorial Blood Center will conduct a blood drive here. Please call Judy Gyurci to sign up at 952-831-7728.

In recent blood drives at St Ed’s some of our high school students have donated. That is most impressive. You must be at least 17 or if 16 have parental permission. And there is no age limit. Just a few weeks ago, there was an article in the paper about a 97 year old man in Shakopee who continues to donate on a regular basis.

I am a donor and I encourage all those in good health to consider doing this religiously! 

JESUIT MISSIONS

Fr. Leon Klimczyk, S.J., will join us at Mass next weekend, speaking on behalf of the missionary endeavors of the Wisconsin Province of the Society of Jesus. Fr. Klimczyk has worked for several years as a pastoral minister in a number of Archdiocesan parishes.

The Society of Jesus, one of the largest religious orders in the Catholic Church, serves educational, social, and pastoral needs in many countries around the globe. Jesuits from the upper Midwest and Great Plains states have established 3 twinning relationships: with Eastern Africa, with northeastern India, and with Ecuador.

In the Kohima region of India there is the challenge to educate and evangelize tribal people. In Ecuador there is an opportunity for inter-cultural dialog and for initiating cooperative ventures between people in North and South America. In Eastern Africa there is ample opportunity to minister to people who are caught up in civil war, poverty, oppression, disease, and drought. Our mission collection this year will be particularly directed towards construction of a new school in Gulu, Uganda, a brave effort in a war-torn region.

Various Jesuits from the Wisconsin Province are also serving in Argentina, Honduras, Belize, the Dominican Republic, Korea, Japan, and the Philippines.

Your help, both in prayer and financial support, is very important for these endeavors. Seeing the world from another country's viewpoint can be the start of awareness and the seedbed for global cooperation in solving problems.

If you are interested in becoming a missionary or in helping the Jesuits serve the Church in other countries, either as a religious or as a lay co-worker, give your name and contact info to Fr. Leon or you may browse the web site at http://www.jesuitswisprov.org/ or http://www.thinkjesuit.org/

Fr. Leon's appeal to us for financial support is in cooperation with our Diocesan mission program. Please be as generous as you can. Thank you.

BREAD FOR THE LIFE OF THE WORLD & BEYOND

This weekend we break for reading from the Gospel of Mark and for the next 5 weekends as our gospel passage hear from the Gospel of John, chapter 6, the "Bread of Life" chapter. It is interesting that last Monday, July 20, was the 40th anniversary of the first manned moon landing. There is a eucharistic connection to this event.

The first food and drink consumed on the moon was the reserved sacrament of communion. At first, it was kept secret. To mark the 40th anniversary of the first Apollo moon landing, Bosco Peters has posted on his blog the details of this Christian act of worship 235,000 miles from the earth. The First Communion on the Moon is now one of The Episcopal Church's 'lesser feasts and fasts', he writes.

"On Sunday July 20, 1969 the first people landed on the moon. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were in the lunar lander which touched down at 3:17 Eastern Standard Time. Buzz Aldrin had with him the Reserved Sacrament. He radioed: "Houston, this is Eagle. This is the LM pilot speaking. I would like to request a few moments of silence. I would like to invite each person listening in, whoever or wherever he may be, to contemplate for a moment the events of the last few hours, and to give thanks in his own individual way."

"Later he wrote: "In the radio blackout, I opened the little plastic packages which contained the bread and the wine. I poured the wine into the chalice our church had given me. In the one-sixth gravity of the moon, the wine slowly curled and gracefully came up the side of the cup. Then I read the Scripture, 'I am the vine, you are the branches. Whosoever abides in me will bring forth much fruit.' I had intended to read my communion passage back to earth, but at the last minute Deke Slayton had requested that I not do this. NASA was already embroiled in a legal battle with Madelyn Murray O'Hare, the celebrated opponent of religion, over the Apollo 8 crew reading from Genesis while orbiting the moon at Christmas. I agreed reluctantly. Eagle's metal body creaked. I ate the tiny Host and swallowed the wine. I gave thanks for the intelligence and spirit that had brought two young pilots to the Sea of Tranquility. It was interesting for me to think: the very first liquid ever poured on the moon, and the very first food eaten there, were the communion elements."

"NASA kept this secret for two decades. The memoirs of Buzz Aldrin and the Tom Hanks's Emmy-winning HBO mini-series, From the Earth to the Moon (1998), made people aware of this act of Christian worship 235,000 miles from Earth."

SAVING SOLES

Do you have new or "gently" used shoes collecting dust in the closet or do you have shoes that no longer fit right?  The Mentor Corps could use them!  The Mentor Corps, a local non-profit, in collaboration with the Salvation Army Rehab Center will use the donated shoes to provide employment for men recovering from addictions. As they learn new job skills, the participants work their way towards successful reentry into society. The donated shoes are refurbished and sold and the proceeds go back into the program. Please drop them off at the box in the foyer or call Mike Grohovsky at 612-508-8970.

2 GUYS AND A TRUCK

Special thanks to all who helped take down the organ pipes that are to be shipped back to the Austin Organ Company in Hartford, Connecticut. Actually, after looking at shipping costs it was decided that “do-it-yourself” would pay off. And so our organist, Roger Burg, and your pastor got the assignment.

KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS

We have quite a few members of the Knights of Columbus in our parish. They have been very generous in volunteering their time in parish projects including recent landscaping efforts with the new Memorial Garden and the take down of the organ pipes last Sunday. Our local council is the Marian Council 3827 and their council hall is well used for both KC, church and civic gatherings.

They have members from quite a few local Catholic parishes. With some pastor's pride, I note that the Grand Knight for the past year has been parishioner, Jay Taylor, and the Grand Knight for the coming year is parishioner, Ralph Bartolotta. Congratulations to both of them. And thank you brother Knights.

GROUP PARTICIPATES IN CHURCH "ORGAN TRANSPLANT"
 
About 40 parishioners, including Knights of Columbus and their families and St. Edward's music staff, coordinated by Tom McDonough, participated in carefully removing and packing the exposed organ pipes for shipment to Connecticut. The pipes are being driven to the Austin Organ Company for their preparation to match the new pipes being created as the churches' organ is completed this summer. The organ is being completed thanks to the generosity of parishioners and the 40th Anniversary Fund.  Expect to see further signs of the installation this August. Thanks so much to everyone who came out on this Holiday weekend to help with this project.

HAPPY 4TH

This weekend we celebrate the birth of our country with the 4th of July Holiday. One of the great blessings of our country is the freedom of worship. Roman Catholics in Colonial America did not enjoy this right. It is precious, our founders pledged their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor to achieve this freedom. How appropriate for us to gather to worship this weekend and give thanks to God for the blessings that we enjoy.

THANK YOU ARLENE

We have so many generous parishioners who share their time and talent here at St Ed’s. Our liturgy director, Lonne Murphy tells me that 400-500 people help with the various ministries associated with our worship. It is difficult to recognize you individually but you have my gratitude. I do want to make an exception and publicly thank Arlene Voigt who is "retiring" from serving as a church usher after 18 years. Arlene was among the first women in the parish to serve in this ministry. Thankfully she will continue to share her lovely smile with us from the pews.

PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT FROM SOCIAL SECURITY

Help the Social Security Administration find Medicare beneficiaries who might qualify for extra help with their Medicare prescription drug plan costs. They are asking family members, caregivers and third parties to help anyone who might qualify apply for the extra help. If you know a Medicare beneficiary who might qualify or if you think you might qualify yourself, visit www.socialsecurity.gov/prescriptionhelp for more information.

They also have a pamphlet online http://www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/10509.pdf

MEATY SUBJECTS

Some of us grew up with abstaining from eating meat on Fridays. Although this church obligation was removed after the Vatican II Council, Catholics are still asked to abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and Fridays in Lent. But for health reasons many have since then cut back on eating meat.

I therefore was interested to see that on June 15 Paul McCartney (one-time Beatle and long-time vegetarian) helped launch a "Meat Free Monday" campaign in Britain.

Actually, "Meatless Monday" is an idea that began in 2003 at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, Md., and has been spreading.

The project's purpose is twofold: to lower our individual risk for preventable health-harming conditions (such as diabetes, obesity, heart disease and cancer), and to reduce our carbon footprint. According to a 2006 United Nations report, about one-fifth of global warming greenhouse gas emissions caused by humans are generated by the meat industry, cattle in particular.

Friday still works for me.


FLY LIKE AN EAGLE

Also on June 15 I attended the Eagle Scout Court of Honor for Boy Scout Troop 374 at Nativity Church. Parishioners Anthony Kasper and Kevin Kent received this scouting honor. They both have been active in the parish and our youth ministry. Anthony's Eagle Scout project included doing the preparatory work for our new Memorial Garden. They both go off to college in the Fall. Congratulations and best wishes to you both. It was also great to see so many other parish members, boys and their parents, involved in the program.