Welcome to St. Anthony's!
Fr Fred's weekly letter for Sunday, October 17, 2021
My Sisters and Brothers of St. Anthony Parish,
What is it that makes a parish truly great? Is it the size, the amount of activities, the
beauty of its facilities, its financial position, or any other marks of distinction? Although
none of those things are necessarily bad, they certainly do not come close to how the
Lord defines being great. First, I would say the most important part of any parish is the
people. St. Anthony’s is a great parish because of the great people here. However,
Jesus went even further and said, “Whoever wishes to be great among you will be
your servant; whoever wishes to be the first among you will be the slave of all.
For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give His life as
a ransom for many”. We can do a lot of good things as individuals and as a parish,
but to be truly great, we must be a people of Christ-like service.
Speaking of a truly great servant-leader, this coming Saturday our own Steve Biro, is
being officially certified as a Lay Ecclesial Minister in the Diocese of Cleveland by
Bishop Malesic at a special Eucharistic liturgy at 10 am at the Cathedral of St. John. All are welcomed to attend this liturgy! I am so proud of Steve because in the year or so I have had the privilege of working with him I have truly seen the meaning of servant-leadership, and genuinely the “heart of a shepherd”. We are very blessed at St. Anthony’s to have Steve in his role (many I should say), and his tremendous dedication. I join Deacon George, Deacon John and all of you in offering Steve our sincerest prayers, our great thanks, and our prayerful support as we work together to enable St. Anthony’s to grow in greatness and holiness. Thank you,Steve, for your blessed ministry.
We have begun our efforts to join the diocese in the Heart of a Shepherd campaign.
You will hear more about what this is about, and how each of us can do our part. When
you make your decision, pray first, consider your own blessings and needs, do what
God tells you, and know that whatever you do is appreciated and will make a difference.
Please remember that this campaign will not only greatly benefit the needs of the
diocese, but also a significant percentage of what is collected by our parish is directly
returned to our parish for specific projects of great need. We need each other, and now
is a time to help each other through the generosity and good stewardship of our lives.
There is no pressure—only tremendous gratitude. You will be hearing more about this
as the campaign continues.
Have a great week. Strive for greatness. Please know that you are in my constant
prayers, and I am ever grateful for yours. My back surgery is October 27 th , and I will be
out at least six weeks. I miss being at St. Anthony’s, but I will be back. Peace to you.
In God’s love,
Fr. Fred
Fr Fred's weekly letter for Sunday, October 10, 2021
My Sisters and Brothers of St. Anthony Parish,
We all ask a lot of questions. However, the question someone asked Jesus in the
Gospel today is, I believe, the most important question anyone could ask, and everyone should ask: “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit everlasting life?” Jesus starts off by reminding that person to keep the commandments, but like most of us, he or she seemed to be trying his or her best. No one is perfect. Then Jesus said, and I will paraphrase a bit, that person needed to get rid of anything in their life more important than God, and then come and follow Him. That is when the person went away very sad, feeling that would be impossible. It may be for us, but nothing is impossible for God. In a word, Jesus was calling that person, and each of us, to Discipleship. That means more than just coming to Church on Sundays—although that is important. It means more than just saying I am Catholic or involved in some activity or ministry or organization affiliated with the Church (which are all good). Those things are all the “means of faith”. The ultimate goal, or the “end of faith” is to become true disciples—people who follow the Lord and imitate His example of service and boundless, unconditional love for all people. This requires commitment, fidelity, an ongoing and deep prayer life, and a daily effort to integrate everything we do into a “life of discipleship”. Ultimately, Discipleship is all about love, because Jesus is all about love. So, keep that question always in the forefront of your life: “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit everlasting life?”
St. Anthony Parish, like all parishes in our diocese, is now getting ready to participate in the diocesan “Heart of a Shepherd Campaign” aimed at helping to support more fully those called to serve the Church. Steve Biro, who is soon to be certified as a Lay Ecclesial Minister in the Church on Saturday October 23rd at St John's Cathedral at 10am, is a good example of that. Our Parish Target is determined by a percentage of the previous year’s Offertory collection. The option our parish leaders chose can give our parish a 65 % return of what is collected and 80% of anything over our goal. This campaign not only helps the diocese, but can tremendously benefit our parish. Our leaders will be giving you much more information. Pray over it and follow your heart. There is no pressure, just tremendous gratitude. You will be very much in my heart and prayers these next several weeks, but I am afraid you will not be seeing me for a while. I am suffering from rather severe back pain which is necessitating back surgery on October 27th , and approximately 6 weeks of recovery. In the meantime, I just cannot stand or walk, so I appreciate your understanding and prayers.
Enjoy this beautiful week of changing colors and temperatures. See and feel God’s
glory.
In God’s love,
Fr. Fred
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PSR Registration Form 2021-2022 __________________ October Minister Schedule
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Check out our Parish's catechetical (PSR) program by clicking on the icon below. For more information contact Steve Biro at steve@stafh.org
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Fr Fred Pausche
St Anthony of Padua
Presbyteral Moderator
Deacon George Malec Parish Life Coordinator
Current Mass schedule
- Saturday (Vigil Mass) 4pm
- Sunday-8am and 10am
- Wednesday 8am
Eucharistic Adoration: Wednesdays 3pm-7pm
Please click on the online giving logo to be transported to the online giving page!
Upcoming Events
Eucharistic Adoration every Wednesday from 3-7pm unless otherwise noted
Monday evenings (Aug 2-Nov 1, 2021) GriefShare ministry begins 7pm in Room 103 for those in need of support after losing a loved one
Sunday, September 19th- Commissioning of Catechists at 10am Mass
PSR begins on Sunday Sept 19 on Catechetical Sunday at 11am with PSR parent meeting and open house
*ALPHA faith formation focus group coming this September
RCIA will be offered at St Anthony's beginning in October . If you, someone you know or you are Catholic yourself and would like to know more about the Catholic faith please contact Steve Biro 440-354-4525 or steve@stafh.org
