6th Sunday of the Resurrection

‘The word is near you, on your lips and in your heart’ (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved.

Imagine a young child who wants to go out to play. Her parents say, "Don't go outside by yourself and never get near the road." The parents want the safety as well as the joy of the girl and play with her outside every day, remembering safety first.  One day the door is not closed all of the way, and the child goes outside. She plays at first with a small ball, throwing and rolling it around. Trying to see how far she can throw the ball she throws it down the driveway and near the street. Picking up the ball she rolls it into the road and steps into the road. At this moment 4 events happen- the parents realize the child is not inside and rush outside, a car drives down the road, a child is wandering into the road, a man is walking nearby and sees the impending doom. The parents run, too far away to do anything but panic, the car slams on the break, too close to stop, the child grabs her ball ready to throw, the man dives into the road knocking the child out of the way.  Screams and sobs are replaced with sirens, as the little child's laughter turns to confusion, then boredom, and then clapping at the sight of the ambulance. The ambulance drivers arrive to late and the man is dead, having saved the child. Jesus' saved us and we like that child do not know it. We do not know the danger, and are soon bored. We soon return to the game of life. The parents never forget the sacrifice of the man, the driver is horrified and seeks to live a life of service, although he did nothing wrong. The loved ones of the man who died, live their lives changed, one a widow, four with no father, two with no son. Every day of their life is touched, marked, and transformed by the memory of the one they have lost.  If our faith, changes us less than a new birth or a sorrowful death then maybe we do like that child do not know that Jesus died for us to save us. Maybe we never even realized that we were  or are in need of saving.  Jesus loves us. He has a plan for us. He died and rose to save us from sin, to make us part of His Church, to give us the Holy Spirit, and to live a transformed life. That we may be witnesses to the world of His great love. Let us come together to give what we can so that we can purchase and renovate Our New Home on 50 Nutt Rd. We hope to close on May 31st. We plan to have our first liturgy on Sunday, June 16th. The goal is to raise $150,000 in additional donations and pledges with $60,000 to go towards the purchase and $90,000 to go towards renovations including renovations and hall and addition of commercial kitchen so that we can make a smooth transition while keeping a safety net in our savings and waiting for the sale of our current property. We have raised the last $60,000 to close on Our New Home. Please help us raise $90,000 to renovate Our New Home over the next few months. We hope to have the money raised by January.

-First Communion will be on May 26th at the 11 am liturgy. -Come serve dinner at St. Vincent de Paul mens shelter Saturday, June 2nd at 6:30 pm. 41 Prison Rd. 45417 near 1921 S. Gettysburg.  - Major Holy Day Ascension Thursday liturgy, 7pm Thursday, May 30th. -Closing on Our New Home May 31st. -St. Anthony of Padua festival in Cincinnati,  June 2nd. -St. James festival in Loveland June 7-9 -Yellow Springs Festival June 8th. -Our New Home Prep Week Monday, June 10th -June 14th -Our New Home Moving Day Saturday, June 15th from 5915 N. Springboro Pike to 50 Nutt Rd. -House of Bread Tuesdays June 18th and July 30th from 9 am - 2 pm at 9 Orth Avenue. -First Liturgies at Our New Home, Sunday, June 16th. 50 Nutt Rd. -Youth summer camp in Michigan from July 1st-July 4th. There are activities like a ropes course, kayaking, canoeing, swimming in the lake, sports, and other fun activities which will be facilitated by trained camp staffers. Ages 12-17. Please speak with Fr. Alex for more information. -Annual Lebanese Festival August 23rd, 24th, and 25th. - Annual St. Ignatius of Antioch Banquet Saturday, December 14th. -Our religious education policies are changing. Please see Fr. Alex for more information

- Initiatives- To what is God calling you? What are your hopes, dreams, and ideas for our parish? What do you want to do? Mission, charity, prayers, work, fundraisers, or maintenance? How can we support you? -We need volunteers to read during the liturgy and to bring the gifts. If you would like to do so, please see George Najem for 11 am liturgy or Jim Zaidan for the 9 am Liturgy. -Marriage announcments

Please pray for John Dohar and Jessy Eid as they prepare for marriage. Please pray for Jordan Gunter and Krystal Daoud as they prepare for marriage. Please pray for Tarek Shteiwi and Micheline Eid as they prepare for marriage.

Please pray for two parishioners in treatment for cancer.  Please pray for one parishioner who is sick. Please pray for the school of one parishioner which has had two gun scares.

- Bible Study every Sunday at 10 am.

- Sunday liturgies 9 am and 11 am

- Confessions immediately before and after liturgies or by appointment.

St. Ignatius of Antioch 6th Sunday of Resurrection May 26th, 2019