What is Serra?
Serrans are lay Catholics, men and women of all ages, from all walks of life: lawyers, doctors, accountants, business people, nurses, engineers, sales people, retirees and more, all dedicated to promote and foster vocations to the ministerial priesthood and to consecrated religious life.
Calendar of Events.
February 2, 2018. The Presentation of the Lord.
February 3, 2018. St. Blase.
February 12, 2018. Lincoln's Birthday and Luncheon Meeting and Speaker, 12:00 Noon at Ss. Peter and Paul. Our speaker will be Father Mark Przybycz, Pastor of St. Anthony of Padua. His topic will be the Diocesean Program for the Formation of Deacons.
February 26, 2018. Board Meeting, 12:00 Noon at Ss. Peter and Paul.
February 27, 2018. Serra International Founders Day (1935).
June 27-July 1, 2018. Serra International Convention, Nashville, Tennessee.
Treasurer's Report.
Treasurer Pat Leikert reports that our club is financially stable, and our membership is at 26.
Let us each pray for an increase of vocations and for an increase in our membership.
Serra International Convention.
Our club is in the process of forming a plan for our participation. We note that Nashville is drivable, and there has been some discussion of renting a vehicle and doubling up on rides. Also, John Osterhart notes that registration will be limited to 400 participants, no more and no less.
Registration fee will be $250.00, and links to the sign-up will soon become available. Hotel rooms will be reserved from our Chicago office. Stay posted as the information becomes available.
Where you'll stay.
Feel inspired by the sights and sounds of Music Valley Drive during your stay at The Inn Opryland, our convention venue. Located near the famed Grand Old Opry and just 7 miles from Nashville Airport, this first-class hotel combines the excitement of Nashville with a comfortable, inviting place to recharge. Enjoy complimentary shuttle service to popular area attractions, including the Grand Ole Opry, General Jackson Showboat and Opry Mills Mall--Tennessee's largest shopping destination. The convention rate at the Inn at Opryland is $155 plus tax per night, including free parking.
Nashville: Home of Country Music.
If music is your thing, you're in the right place. After registering for the convention on Wednesday, June 27, get your ticket for the Grand Ole Opry concert hall, now home to the show that made country music famous. The next day, consider a tour of the Country Music Hall of Fame before opening Mass at the Cathedral of the Incarnation at 5:00 p.m. Enjoy entertainment at the reception after Mass, but get yourself to the Ryman Auditorium for authentic bluegrass starting at 7:30 p.m. Of course, there'll be plenty more cultural and culinary adventures for you to enjoy! We look forward to revealing these soon.
The Presentation of Jesus at the Temple and the Purification of Mary.
The Church celebrates the Presentation of the Lord with a Feast on February 2. F
or many centuries this feast was called, "The Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary,"
but it was modified in 1970 to "The Presentation of the Lord," a name that better describes the meaning of the celebration.
This feast had its origin in the 4th century in Jerusalem; it then was celebrated in Antioch and later in
Constantinople. The first thing that is known is the story of Egeria narrated in the Peregrinatio Aetheriae. In the 4th century people celebrated Christmas on January 6 and the Presentation on February 14. Egeria reports that 40 days after the Epiphany, people in Jerusalem participated in a grand celebration that included a procession, which started in the place where the Lord had resurrected.
The feast started to spread little by little from Jerusalem to the East, mainly throughout Byzantium, and during the papacy of Justin I (527-565), the feast received the name of Hypapante (encounter). This name helped to highlight the enounter between Jesus and Simeon, a righteous man from the people of Israel. The feast was set by the same pope to February 2, since the celebration of the Birth of Our Lord was set to December 25.
The Roman Missal celebrates this mystery 40 days after the Solemnity of Christmas, to remember the day in which Jesus is presented at the Temple to comply with the laws of primogeniture and consecration to God, acknowledging his sovereignty and in gratitude for the deliverance of
Egypt. The mother had to comply with the law of the 40 days of the parturient to be purified from the impurities of childbirth.
Luke seems to refer to both duties that Mary was observing at the temple (LK 2:22-24). She, the humble servant of the Lord, does not refuse to submit to God's covenant with His people...
The feast was celebrated in Rome up until the 7th century. It began with a procession from the Forum to the Basilica of Saint Mary Major. The people, along with the pope, walked with candles in their hands; thus it received the name of Feast of Candlemas..
The Marian character of this feast resides in the fact that Mary is indissolubly tied to the redeeming work of her Son (Cf. LG 53). Mary, as the mother of Jesus, Supreme Pontiff, Holy Bridge between God and men, participates in the redeeming work of her son by presenting at the Temple and complying with what is stated in the Law of Moses. The light of the candles in the festivity evokes Christ, Light of the World, illuminating men with his coming and his earthly presence, and Mary is the candlelabrum that holds this Light.
Source, Our Lady of Sorrows Bulletin, January 28, 2018.
The Serra Rally.
John Osterhart has prepared a booklet of the materials from the 2018 Serra Rally in Phoenix. We will make these materials available for the membership at our February meeting. Of special interest are references to the newly created SPARK program and an information sheet about a traveling vocations crucifix for use in our parochial schools.The ready-made kit, available at the Serra Store for $85, includes a distinctive 10" bronze crucifix with stand-up base, a travel case with protective foam padding, two brochures--one for schools and one for parish families--that explains the program and provides daily prayers, and 100 prayer cards for students and 100 prayer cards for families.
SPARK is a free on-line collection of best practices tools in religious vocations ministry. If you're seeking ways in which we can all make a difference in fulfilling our mission, a visit to the SPARK page at www.serraspark.org will serve you well.
A Message from our President.
We need to have someone step forward to replace me as my term of Club President winds down in the next few months. We also need to find a replacement for our District Governor for the four Serra Clubs in the lower peninsula replacing Bob Barrett, our current governor. Please let me know your thoughts as soon as possible.
Weldon Schwartz
Thank you, Weldon and Bob, for your dedicated service to Serra.
Mary, Mother of Vocations, pray for us.
