St. Philomena Church Trip to See SAMSON

               ST. PHILOMENA CHURCH
              and Touriffic Travel present:

Sight & Sound Millennium Theatre

Lancaster, Pa

           TUESDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2016




The world’s first superhero … the strongest man who ever lived…. He killed a lion with his bare hands and defeated a thousand soldiers … but he’s not a hero because of the strength of his hands, he’s a hero because of the faith in his heart! One of the most captivating stories in the Bible, SAMSON is filled with colorful characters, extraordinary feats of strength, and amazing special effects that your whole family will love. When Samson stands between two colossal columns in a godless temple and starts to push – it’s an immersive scene that literally brings the house down! A message of hope for the wayward, comfort to the weary and the incredible grace of God that enables us to truly be strong in Him!

Daytrip Itinerary:
10:00am         Depart St. Philomena Church via deluxe Celebrity Motorcoach
11:30am         Arrive at Shady Maple. Enjoy a bountiful Smorgasbord Lunch. Lancaster County's     largest smorgasbord featuring authentic Pennsylvania Dutch cooking. You won’t go away hungry! Make sure to visit their spectacular gift shop afterwards.
1:15pm           Depart for the Theatre
2:00pm           Arrive at Theatre – Take your Center Orchestra Seat!
2:45pm           Show begins. Enjoy!
5:15pm           Departure from Theatre
7:00pm           (Approx.) Return Home
                                                            $ 106.00 Per Person
For Reservations, please contact Marie Chenoweth - (610) 622-0972 marie_chenoweth@hotmail.com

Booking Information: Payment is required as soon as possible to confirm your reservation. Sign-up Early!! No refunds unless a replacement is made. Show tickets are non-refundable. Gratuity to driver is included. Touriffic Travel, their employees, representatives and suppliers act solely as agents in arranging for transportation and other services and do not assume any liability whatsoever for injury, damage, loss, death, accident or delay due to any act, negligence or default of any company or person engaged in rendering any services for any tour.

             Make your check payable to St. Philomena Church and remit with coupon to:
                         Marie Chenoweth - 307 Lincoln Avenue - Lansdowne, PA 19050
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Announcing "God Talk" Webinar Series

God Talk 2016/2017

The Heart of Discipleship

Come see and experience God's story and have the Bible and your faith come alive!

            The Heart of Discipleship is excited to present a Christian adult formation series of webinars that will enrich your understanding of the Bible as well as strengthen your relationship with God and others.

            Is God Relevant in your life? The Deacon Carmen J. Viola will be pointing us towards self-discovery and a bigger way of seeing and experiencing God. Let those who have eyes see! Carmen’s webinars will use visuals from his new book as well as images from his trips to Israel to make biblical concepts come alive.  Come join us.  If you sign up before Sept 30^th you will also receive the PDF copy of The Heart of Discipleship for free.

            It has often been said that “a picture is worth a thousand words.” During the Middle Ages, churches used vivid imagery, including stained glass windows and paintings, to tell God’s story. Prior to the modern era, most people could not read or write so they relied on pictures and religious interpreters to understand the Bible. Pictures, for many of us, are still a powerful way to share stories and understand biblical context. 

            The book by Carmen Viola is beautifully illustrated and involves you in the ongoing conversation and narrative of what it means to follow Jesus. The illustrations in this book depict stories from the Bible to illuminate God's word. The images can be viewed by a child one level, while an adult can view the same image and be led into a more complex understanding of the Creator. Often seeing things from a different point of view can give us fresh insight into God's plan for our world and our lives. These stories of the ancient world come alive in pictures and show all of us why God’s word is still important and relevant today.

            What if you could see the world as God sees it – not only with an open mind, but with an open heart? Come! Discover what God has been trying to show us all along. God will meet you wherever and however you are…Right Here, Right Now!

            We invite you to participate in this series of Free webinars and on-line discussions. The Webinars will “go-live” every Monday evening beginning on Sept 26th through on-line invitation.  The time is from 8PM to 9PM.  To sign up please email us at heartofdiscipleship@gmail.com. You will be given an invitation link and the syllabus for the year as well as the free color PDF of the book. Missed seminars can be seen on YouTube at The Heart of Discipleship channel.

Grace & Peace!

Fragile Vessels

Fragile Vessels

 

“We are not human beings having a spiritual experience 

but spiritual beings having a human experience"

- Pierre Telhard Chardin

     We are all fragile vessels created by the potter. We all get cracked and broken occasionally. People hurt us, abandon us, betray us, disappoint us. We disappoint us. And we break. But it is through those fractures, through those breaks that the grace of God can enter in and help heal us. 

     God does not make mistakes. There is a reason for everything even if we do not see it immediately. I have always found that when you reach the lowest point in the valley, that the only way to go is up. And slowly we find our way again. 

    One thing that we all need to remember, as Christian, is that Christ unconditionally forgave us through his sacrifice. He gave us the perfect examples of how we should live our lives in order to reach heaven. I believe that unconditional forgiveness is one of the key examples.

    We need to forgive those who we feel have caused us injury and we need to do it unconditionally with no expectation of recompense.  There is an axiom that ‘Hurt people, hurt people’.  Understanding this we may better understand that the offender may, themselves, have been hurt or are hurting.  Forgiveness to them can have a profound impact on their being and for that matter could have an impact on their future generations. To take forgiveness a step further, most times the only one hurt by your withholding forgiveness is you.  That wound is still open and until you truly forgive, it may never heal.  

     There is also one other individual that we tend to forget when it comes to forgiveness.  We need to forgive ourselves.  We all make mistakes, bad choices even if no one else is aware and we all beat ourselves up time and time again.  We need to forgive ourselves.  The past is the past and we cannot change it.  However, today and hopefully tomorrow could be brighter and more alive if we just let it go….and let God!

 

Grace and Peace,

tom