Christ The King Catholic Community-

We Frs. Tims come to you with sad, but not unexpected news. The pastors and priests of Carroll County have suggested some mid-steps to the diocesan pastoral planning that was unveiled some months ago. The “two parish plan” for the county, St. John Paul II and one to be named for 5 of the CTKCC parishes (wait for it!) was always on the docket. We hoped and proposed, however, that there might be ways to have a plan that for a bit more time does not involve current parishes moving to “Church Building” status (no weekend or holy day Masses, but open, at the pastor’s discretion, for baptisms, weddings, funerals, Church’s feast day, etc.). Any possibilities, truth be told, would have only been “bandaids” for a limited time, because the number of active priests will continue to dwindle for years to come. Please pray for our seminarians; please encourage young men to think about priesthood.

Bishop Nickless and his advisors on pastoral planning have confirmed with us priests of the county that we are to move forward with the reorganization as it had been laid out. This would be difficult and saddening in the best of times; it is even more so when we cannot gather in large groups for more sharing. For our current grouping, this means that St. Elizabeth Seton, Glidden, will become a “Secondary Church” of St. John Paul II Parish. Our other five parishes and Holy Angels Church Building will become a new parish: Good Shepherd Catholic Parish (the Bishop chose our top choice). It will have three “Secondary Churches” (Sacred Heart, Templeton; St. John the Baptist, Arcadia; St. Bernard, Breda) and three “Church Buildings” (Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Mount Carmel; St. Augustine, Halbur; along with Holy Angels, Roselle). After resolutions for these changes are approved by the Presbyteral Council (an advisory group of priests to the Bishop), formal decrees from the Bishop will be published in The Lumen.

As difficult as this is, we Frs. Tims hope that all of us will work to be supportive and welcoming of each other. We hope, too, that all of our current communities will keep alive their special traditions that build up faith and community. We hope, too, that we will find new ways to be a parish, to be a Church, to be the Body of Christ, in Carroll County and the Diocese of Sioux City. May we do all that we do out of faithful discipleship and for God’s greater glory.

Readings: I Samuel 3:3b-10, 19; Psalm 40:2, 4, 7-8, 8-9, 10 (R: “Here am I, LORD; I come to do your will.”); I Corinthians 6:13c-15a, 17-20; John 1:35-42.

As a general rule, we read from The Gospel According to Mark on Sundays of Ordinary Time in Year B, our current liturgical year. Because Mark is the shortest of the four canonical Gospels, however, there are times when passages from The Gospel According to John fill in. Such is the case this Sunday.

After the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord last week, the Scriptural passages this Sunday continue on the theme of our call, our vocation. Samuel is called in the midst of being of service in the Temple; although he is sleeping, he is likely staying in the Temple to tend to the eternal flame, a symbol of God’s abiding presence in the Temple. We can compare that to the two disciples of John the Baptist who have already chosen to follow this powerful prophet and preacher of repentance. Samuel and Andrew come to hear their call by already being in the presence of men of God (the other disciple of John seems to disappear— perhaps this is the first instance in the Gospel of John that shows that one is either for or against Jesus). The first thing to note about vocation, then, is that it helps to be within a community of faith, with mentors in faith (Eli, John the Baptist).

A second similarity between these call stories is that coming to hear God’s call clearly is a process. Three times Samuel goes to Eli, thinking that Eli had called him out of his sleep. Three times is a biblical way of saying something is fixed in God’s will: Samuel’s mentor, Eli, realizes that it is God who is calling Samuel. Andrew (and the other disciple) begin to follow Jesus after John the Baptist witnesses to Jesus as the “Lamb of God”. Jesus asks them a question important for every human being: “What are you looking for?” (or “seeking”). The two respond in a rather odd way, “Rabbi, where are you staying?” (v. 38). That response, however, fits an important theme in the Gospel and picks up on the verb (menein, to dwell, abide, stay, remain) that the Baptist used in v. 32: “John testified further, saying, ‘I saw the Spirit come down like a dove from the sky and remain upon him’” (italics added). Later in the Gospel, Jesus will use the verb to speak about how he remains in the Father. To come to know who Jesus is, Andrew and the other disciple “go and see” where Jesus stays, remains—they remain with him for a time. For his part, Samuel remained in the Temple. To fully understand God’s call takes time, it is a process. It leads to a deep personal relationship with God.

Then there is the response: Samuel returns to his post and when the LORD again calls him, he does as Eli had instructed: “Speak, for your servant is listening.” Then we hear a summary statement of Samuel’s faithfulness to his calling: “Samuel grew up, and the LORD was with him, not permitting any word of his to be without effect.” (Similar language is used by Luke when speaking of how Jesus grew up.) In the Gospel, Andrew becomes a faithful follower of and witness to Jesus: “He first found his own brother Simon and told him, ‘We have found the Messiah’ — which is translated, Christ. Then he brought him to Jesus.” Now Simon will also be called: “Jesus looked at him and said, ‘You are Simon the son of John; you will be called Cephas’ — which is translated Peter” (Cephas is Hebrew for “stone, rock”, which is what Peter [petros] means in Greek; btw, Cephas is pronounced with a “hard c”, long and short “a”—Kā-fas ;) ).

God’s call changes Samuel, Andrew, and Peter. They understand what St. Paul realizes he has to teach the Corinthians who are notoriously immoral. Namely, our Christian vocation, our life in Christ Jesus, is not just a “spiritual” thing. It involves our whole being, body, and soul: “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been purchased at a price. Therefore glorify God in your body.”

Today, may we reaffirm with Samuel, with the Psalmist, with Andrew, Simon Peter and Paul: “Here am I, Lord; I come to do your will.” I am all yours, Lord. Similar to Jesus’s experience in baptism, we became beloved daughters and sons of God through the power of the Holy Spirit in our baptism. May our Christian identity and call be the center of our lives, so that we are “temple[s] of the Holy Spirit” by which we truly “glorify God”.

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        WEDNESDAYS:

   •  9:30 AM Personal Prayer; Mass @ 10:00 AM, St. John the Baptist, Arcadia

   •   11:30 AM Personal Prayer; Mass @ NOON, Sacred Heart, Templeton

   •   4:30 PM Personal Prayer; Mass @ 5:00 PM, St. Elizabeth Seton, Glidden

   •   Mass @ 5:30 PM, Our Lady of Mount Carmel

     STARTING Sept 15th

     Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church is open 7:00 am– 7:00 pm on Tuesday–Friday for private prayer (use front center door). Mask wearing and social distancing are required.
     In addition, when you leave, use a provided wipe to sanitize surfaces you have touched.
      Thanks to all who help make this possible.

     THURSDAYS:

   •  Mass @ NOON, St. Bernard, Breda

     STARTING SEPTEMBER 15th

     St. Bernard Church will be open 9:00 am–6:00 pm on Tuesday– Friday
     for private prayer (use front doors, or for handicap accessibility, the south side door).
     Mask wearing and social distancing are required. In addition, when you leave, use a provided wipe to sanitize surfaces you have touched.  
     Thanks to all who help make this possible.

   •   4:30 PM; Mass @ 5:00 PM, St. Augustine, Halbur
     
     (Remember, bathrooms will not be available.)

     See the LITURGICAL CALENDAR for times of Live-streamed Masses and Prayers:

   •   On & archived
     @facebook.com/ChristTheKingCatholicCommunityBredaIowa;

   •   Sat., 5:30, on @ facebook.com/StElizabethSetonGlidden/

   •   Weekend Masses posted on
     youtube.com/channel/UCl_reG3jDreke2YjOTPVc9A.

ST BERNARD-Breda
Office Hours Mon - Fri: 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Phone: 712-673-2582
Fax: 712-673-2239
stbernard@westianet.net

ST JOHN THE BAPTIST-Arcadia
Office Hours: Mon & Fri 7:30-11:30 am Phone: 712-689-2595
stjohnarcadia@gmail.com

ST AUGUSTINE-Halbur
Office Hours Mon & Fri: 8:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. Phone: 712-658-2464
Fax: 712-658-2464 staug@iowatelecom.net

PASTOR
Rev. Timothy A. Friedrichsen
Breda Rectory Office (712-673-2351) t.a.friedrichsen@gmail.com

PAROCHIAL VICAR
Rev. Timothy A. Pick
Breda School Office (712-673-2582) 
pickt@scdiocese.org

Donna Wesely
ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT
Phone: 712-673-2582
stbernard@westianet.net