SJC - Announcements & Activities

Our Catholic community in the United States does something amazing each Lent. We come together to practice prayer, fasting and almsgiving—and by doing so we help lift families and communities out of poverty. This year due to the pandemic and the ongoing safety protocols & restrictions, our parish will NOT be distributing Rice Bowls. Please donate what you can using the resources below: Thank you.

Visit: www.crsricebowl.org
To Give By Phone
1-877-453-7277
To Give By Mail:
Catholic Reliev Services
CRS RICE BOWL
P.O. Box 17090
Baltimore, MD 21297-0303
We know that Covid 19 has affected many households & families. We ask that you prayerfully consider giving whatever you can to help support St. Joseph Parish.
Give Online using the link below or mail in your contributions to:
St. Joseph Church
43 Kapiolani Street,
Hilo, 96720,
Prayer for the
Year of St. Joseph
Written by Pope Francis
Hail, Guardian of the Redeemer, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
To you God entrusted his only Son; in you Mary placed her trust; with you Christ became man.
Blessed Joseph, to us too, show yourself a father, and guide us in the path of life.
Obtain for us grace, mercy, and courage, and defend us from every evil.
Amen.
Prayer for the
COVID-19 CORONA VIRUS PANDEMIC
Written by Bishop Larry Silva
Dear God of all the living, you sent your Son Jesus to heal us from illness and sin. We turn to his healing power in this time of anxiety over the pandemic of this potentially deadly virus.
St. Damien and St. Marianne Cope dedicated their lives to the service of those who had an infectious disease. St. Marianne Cope said, “I am not afraid of any disease,” because she was confident in your power to save. At the same time, she took prudent precautions of hygiene to assure that she and her Sisters would not be infected.
Let us learn from this example to put our trust in you to save us from the ravages of disease and to take prudent measures to prevent its spread. Guide us to know when to isolate ourselves from the possibility of infection, but never let anyone be left without the care and concern of others in the community.
As our Diocese of Honolulu has been dedicated to the Divine Mercy, we pray with confidence,
Jesus,
I trust in you.
Saint Damien,
pray for us!
Saint Marianne,
pray for us!


3rd Sunday of Lent – 2021 (B)
“I, the LORD, am your God…”
When asked which of the commandment is greatest, Our Lord Jesus without hesitation responded: “To love God and our neighbor!” For us Christians, therefore, “to love” is the essence of our being disciples. So that while we might not being engaged in something illegal or immoral or that violates the 10 commandments but neglect to act in love then we are not true to our calling as Christians.
The cleansing of the temple by our Lord is precisely inspired by this commandment of love. Jesus was not against people going to temple to worship. It is an outward expression of the people’s love for God. But when the priests of the temple turned this moment of loving worship to be an opportunity for financial profit. Not only did they forget to uphold worship as an act of love of God but that they have also taken advantage of the people who come to worship and failed to communicate God’s love for them. Thus, Jesus just felt he the need to restore temple worship to its true intention of encounter in love between God and humanity – thus driving out the merchants and money changers.
This Lenten journey hopefully enlightens us not to make our prayers a business deal with God like the merchants and the leaders of the temple. And likewise, be reminded that our fidelity to the 10 commandments is inspired by our true love for God expressed in our loving service to our brothers and sisters.
- Fr. Poli, sss




Four Easy Ideas
for a Lenten Devotion
Don't just give something up this Lent—
add a spiritual practice to go deeper in your relationship with the Lord.
Here are some ideas.
- Go to Mass. Make the commitment to add a Friday Mass (or Monday, or Tuesday . . . ). Even if your parish can't host the Stations of the Cross or a fish fry, you can still come together for a community devotion.
- Make a holy hour. If you don't regularly go to Eucharistic adoration, start spending an hour (or thirty minutes) each week in front of the Blessed Sacrament.
- Reflect on the Sunday readings. One way to keep our minds focused on Lent and preparation for the Resurrection is to reflect on the Sunday Mass readings.
- Get kids involved. Help them understand why we make Lenten sacrifices and why Easter is so important. Teach kids the Lenten story and get them thinking about why Jesus died for us.
Fill-In The Blanks - to make this Lent a reflective & sacrificial one.
I will sacrifice_________________________________
in order to grow in_____________________________.
Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned.

Bring Christ into Our Homes
Everyone is welcome to join the Parish Religious Ed Families in their Faith Formation!
Join the Parish Religious Ed Families in Faith Formation as their “Bring Christ into their Homes” plan. Only Sacrament seeking students need to register for the program. Enjoy the time spent in each activity.
- Step 1 Use your monthly calendar (located below) and pray the scripture for the month.
- Step 2 Visit the parish youtube channel and watch the video about the Theme of the Month
- Step 3 Keep a log or short journal/notes on each activity using the following questions:
Who participated in the activity?
Were you able to identify the presence of God there?
MARCH FAITH FORMATION CALENDAR
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God;
have faith also in me.” - John 14:1
Everyone is wecomed to join the Parish Religious Education Families in their Faith Formation Year.
View and/or print pdf

