Spiritual Bouquet for Bishop Gainer and his Intentions:

We invite you and your family to participate in a spiritual bouquet that we are organizing for Bishop Gainer. Please write down some spiritual offering (one Rosary, one Holy Communion, a Holy Hour, etc.) that you will make for the bishop, and perhaps include some words of thanks, and we will collect them from the whole parish and deliver them to him soon. Please submit them in an envelope marked “spiritual bouquet for Bishop Gainer” to the office (either in person, via post, or via the collection). We will open the envelopes and organize them before we submit them.

Openings in the Choir at St. Lawrence:

The choir has openings for additional dedicated volunteers and three qualified section leaders. Members are expected to be available for Thursday evening rehearsals, Sunday 11 am Masses throughout the year, and for other important Feast Days as notified. Volunteers with previous choral experience are preferred, but those with strong desire may be considered at the discretion of the Music Director. Section Leader positions are available for Soprano, Alto, and Tenor; all applicants must audition and demonstrate strong vocal musicianship. Inquiries can be directed to Paul Thomas May at music@materdeipa.com

All Souls Mass Novena:

Envelopes for the All Souls Novena of Masses are out in the back of the church today.  These envelopes must be returned with your Mass intentions by All Saints' Day, Monday, November 1, so that they can be included.  They can be returned to the office or placed in the collection baskets.

All Souls Day Mass Schedule:                                        

• 7:10am Mass and 2 Masses following.
• 7pm Sung Mass for Deceased Members of Fraternity

BOOK-SALES TABLE:

We are now making available for sale two publications: a hand missal, and the monthly publication Benedictus. Both are designed to help the Faithful to assist at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and provide all of the prayers, as well as additional commentary. The monthly publication Benedictus can be borrowed for use at the church or it can be purchased at our new book-sales table, which will be available after the 9 am and 11 am Masses.

World Mission Sunday Collection October 24:

Next Sunday there will be a second collection for World Mission Sunday. You are invited to support mission dioceses in Africa, Asia, the Pacific Islands, and parts of Latin America and Europe, where priests, religious and lay leaders serve the world’s most vulnerable communities.

Parish-wide Total Consecration to Our Lady Invitation:

We would like to invite the parishioners of St. Lawrence to participate in a Total Consecration to our Lady according to the method of St. Louis de Montfort.  There are several ways of doing this, but we will use a simple method proposed in Preparation for Total Consecration According to Saint Louis Marie de Montfort published by Montfort Publications.  We propose to have the consecration on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, Dec. 8, which is the patronal feast of the United States.  Therefore, those wishing to participate should start their 33-day preparation on November 5.  Though this preparation will be done by individuals/families privately, we will recite this consecration publicly as a parish after the Masses we have on the Immaculate Conception.  If you have any questions, please contact contact@stlawrence.cc.  Preparation for Total Consecration booklets will be available for purchase at St. Lawrence soon.

DETAILS ON PARKING:

Thank you for your patience in using our new parking arrangement at the South Street Garage. Some people had difficulty and ended up having to pay. If this happened to you, please provide us the last four digits of your card (or an image of the parking ticket instead), and the garage will reimburse you.

Some further details that will be helpful:

• Upon exiting the garage, please do not try to scan any tickets. Insert into the slot the entrance ticket that you received upon entering. Then, immediately insert into the slot the exit voucher that you received at the church. That should work.
• If for some reason it does not work you can call (717) 238-0496 and get a local person who can open the gate for you.
• Please do not use the pay station to get out of the garage. Just go straight to the gate with your car.

Church Purchase and Construction Financial Expertise Needed:

As we prepare to purchase St. Lawrence Church, Fr. Smith would be very grateful for help from anyone with expertise in finance, accounting, or bookkeeping. These skills will be very helpful for doing a proper assessment of our financial picture so Father can make the right decisions. Please email Father if you have this expertise and are willing and able to help: financialanalysis@stlawrence.cc

 Members wanted for church Technical Advisory Council:

As we prepare for the purchase of St. Lawrence church, we will be responsible for maintaining and possibly expanding the building. Therefore, we need the help of technical professionals and tradesmen to guide the pastor on the best decisions to make. So, please consider offering your expertise, time, or talent if you have training or work in one of the following fields: architecture, carpentry, design, electrical wiring, IT, flooring, roofing, structural engineering, HVAC, plumbing, and project management. If interested, please email technicalcouncil@materdeipa.com.

Registration at Mater Dei:

The Chaplain and Assistant Chaplain have the special grace to guide those who are registered parishioners and are hence assigned to their care. The Mass offered for the people every Sunday, Pro Populo, is offered for those who are registered members. Anyone seeking the Sacraments of Baptism, 1st Communion, Confirmation and Matrimony here must be registered and active parishioners for 6 months. Registration forms are available on our website.

All Saints Day Celebration—October 31, 2021

The celebration will take place at Castle Creek Farm, Dillsburg, beginning around 1 PM. An email went out last week with sign up info. Signing up is important for planning purposes, as well as for receiving important logistical and safety information closer to the date. If you did not receive the email and would like to attend, please email allsaintsparty@materdeipa.com

Introducing Exposition and Benediction on Sunday evenings:

Beginning Nov. 14, we will adjust the Sunday evening schedule as follows: Sung Vespers every Sunday at 5 pm; Exposition and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament between Vespers and Mass; Mass at 6 pm (as currently). Confessions will take place during Exposition and Benediction, and will end at the beginning of Mass.

Sunday Social -Volunteers needed:

We are looking for individuals to serve on a committee and coordinate future Sunday Socials. If you can help, please contact the Office at socials@materdeipa.com

Email Prayer Chain:

If you are not currently on the Mater Dei prayer request email list and would like to be, email prayers@materdeipa.com to be added. Parishioners are able to send in prayer intentions which are then shared with everyone on the email list.

Mass Intentions:

We are now accepting Public and Private Mass Intentions. Envelopes are located in the vestibule.