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IN THIS ISSUEJAN/FEB 2022BLESSED SACRAMENTCATHOLIC CHURCH tart 2022 with a3SClean Spiritual Slate New Year Brings4ANew Opportunitiesas We Engage withOur Faith and Parish6 Stewardship:New Year’sResolutions ompass Ministry:7CHelping Families andFostering Hope in OurCommunityCATHOLIC SCHOOLS WEEK2 022 :Celebrating Catholic Education in Grand Island and BeyondBlessed Sacrament Parishstudents attending GrandIsland Central Catholic Schoolwill be celebrating CatholicSchools Week from Jan.30 through Feb. 4 with theopportunities to take part in aspecial Mass, adoration, andservice projects to benefit theircommunity.A highlight of the week will bethe celebration of Mass by BishopJoseph G. Hanefeldt, open to notonly the students but also to thepublic.“This is always a highlightof Catholic Schools Week,” saysJordan Engle, the Principalof Central Catholic andSuperintendent of the Dioceseof Grand Island Schools. “Thebishop and I will travel to all theCatholic schools in the diocese tocelebrate Mass. We also will havea full day of adoration at GrandIsland Central Catholic. Therewill be decorations in the schoolgym with an altar. We usuallyhold adoration by candlelight,and there may be music. It is abeautiful experience.”Catholic Schools Weekholds special significance forMr. Engle, with both he and hiswife receiving their educationin Catholic schools. They aremembers of Resurrection Parish.“Catholic schools wereimportant for our lives andformation as Catholics, parents,husband, and wife,” he says.“They are very meaningful.”The education received atcontinued on page 2
BLESSED SACRAMENT CATHOLIC CHURCHCATHOLIC SCHOOLS WEEK 2022continued from front coverCatholic schools emphasizes thedepth and value of our Catholicfaith. The students experienceformation to enable them tobecome disciples of Christ.Although volunteers are notrequested to help with CatholicSchools Week, Mr. Engle doesoffer an invitation.“The Mass is open to thepublic and adoration is open,as well,” he says. “It’s a greatopportunity to come and worshipand see for themselves what ourCatholic school is about.”Information about the Massand adoration will be announcedin our bulletins.Catholic Schools Weekholds special meaning for RobCzaplewski, a Blessed Sacramentparishioner and member of theGrand Island Central CatholicBoard of Education. Although hedid not attend Central Catholic,his daughter attended all sevengrades and graduated in 2018.He is currently serving hissecond term on the board.“My wife and I have alwaysbeen involved with schools, asvolunteers, and we feel it’s betterfor parents to be involved in theirchildren’s education,” Rob says.“At Central Catholic, they relyon volunteers a lot, whether it’sathletics or fine arts. So, I thinkpart of me wanted to be involvedin the daily activities in the shortterm, and in the long term, tomake sure the school was wellrun and had a vision for thefuture, and to make sure it wouldbe around for other families.”Rob and the other boardmembers will be invited to thevarious Catholic Schools Weekactivities at Central Catholic. Asa former Central Catholic parentand as an active board member,Rob looks forward to CatholicSchools Week each year.“Obviously, a child can have awell-rounded education,” he says.“Our school is well-known as agood school in academics andathletics, and fine arts. There arefamilies who believe that havinga faith-based education is part ofa well-rounded lifestyle. To havea church-based education isimportant for developing a childinto an adult.”By being active on the CentralCatholic board, Rob is able toserve in stewardship by giving ofhis time and talents.“I’m a very active boardmember,” he says. “I’ve beenon other community boards inmy life and there are a varietyof board members. Some arethere for the status, but the mostactive and the most involved getthe most done. I don’t want tojust sit at a meeting. I want to beactive in my community, school,and church community, someonewho can be part of planningand doing and developing, andmaking things better in theshort and long term. To me,stewardship is taking an activityand being part of it.”
JAN/FEB 2022A Letter From Our PastorSTART 2022 WITHA Clean Spiritual SlateDear Parishioners,e were all taught in schoolthat the month of Januarygets its name from Janus, theancient Roman god of doors andgates. His image was alwayscarved or painted with two faces,one looking forward and theother backward. This reflected, ofcourse, that you can go either outa door or in through one. Fromthis very specific function, hisrole was generalized to include allbeginnings and new endeavors.Because of Janus’ place inthe Roman pantheon, it seemednatural to the Romans to namethe first month of the civil yearafter him. (The Church yearbegan back with the First Sundayof Advent, you’ll remember.) Andalthough we no longer worshipthe pagan gods of the ancientRomans, the name has stuckdown the centuries.But we’re not immune tothe human instinct that movedthe Romans to name the firstmonth after Janus. His doublecountenance, facing forwardand backward, reflects how weapproach the coming of eachnew year.The last week of the old yearfinds the newspapers and TVprograms giving a glance backat the past year (“the 10 best, orworst, movies of ” and such)along with predictions of whatthe new year will bring. MyWpersonal favorite is always “the10 worst predictions” for the yearjust ending.Just like the secular worlddoes — Janus-like — we bothlook back at our own successesand failures, happy events,and sad ones, during the yearjust ending, and forward to thenew year as we prepare ourresolutions.When we reflect back onthe blessings we’ve received,our hearts should be filled withgratitude, for blessings therewere, no matter how difficultthe year has been. But for mostof us, there have been failuresand failings, too. That calls forrepentance, and perhaps a trip tothe confessional — but God, whomakes “all things new” (Rv 21:5),will then give us a clean spiritualslate with which we may begin thenew year.I’d like to challenge you toinclude your grateful response toGod as you make your resolutionsfor the new year. You don’thave to wait until you fill out acommitment card to decide thisis the year when you’re actuallygoing to attend Mass once aweek in addition to Sunday (orbegin worshiping every Sundayif you haven’t been doing so) orto pray the Rosary every weekor to begin regular prayers withyour family. Include in yourresolutions how you are goingto get involved in some ministryin the parish or some service tothe community, and then do so.Decide to become more faithfulin your financial stewardship ifyour treasure commitment is lessthan it should be. Look forwardto the new year and bring Christand His Church to the center ofyour resolutions. Then see whata good year it will be, with God atthe center!Have a happy, and holy, NewYear.Sincerely yours in Christ,Fr. Martin EggingPastor
BLESSED SACRAMENT CATHOLIC CHURCHNew OA NEW YEAR BRINGSAS WE ENGAGE WITAnew year is alwaysan opportunityto reset and realignin all areas of life —our faith included!In 2021, a worldwidesynod process begancalled For a SynodalChurch: Communion,Participation andMission. In early 2022parishioners will beinvited together toshare experiences andthoughts related towalking together aschurch. The results ofthis process will be sentto the diocese wherethey will be compiledwith results from otherparishes. Then, sincethis is a worldwideprocess, all will begathered and presentedat the general assemblyof the Synod of Bishopsin October 2023. Inkicking off the synodprocess, Pope Francishas asked that we alllisten deeply to the HolySpirit.Participating inone of the upcominglistening sessions aspart of the synod is justone of many ways wecan use 2022 as a wayto deepen our faith.“We will look athow we can journeytogether in faith inthe Church,” says Fr.Marty Egging. “We willbe trying to get broadparticipation. Thereare no right or wronganswers. It’s aboutstopping and openingour minds to see howwe travel together intothe future.”Outside of thesynod, Fr. Marty asksthat we all look at ourcontinued on page 5“We will look at how we can journey together in faith in the Church.We will be trying to get broad participation. There are no right orwrong answers. It’s about stopping and opening our minds to seehow we travel together into the future.” — Fr. Marty Egging
JAN/FEB 2022Op portunitiesTH OUR FAITH AND PARISHlives and determine wherewe might grow in faith in2022. In particular, he looksto reengage those who havedrifted away in the last fewyears.“We want to truly begin tobuild a church that makes thekingdom of God come alive,”he says. “This is going to takesome elbow grease and kneepads — work and prayer.”Fr. Marty wants allparishioners to consider wheretheir place is at the table ofour Lord. There are so manyministries in which we canengage at Blessed Sacrament.It’s about taking time, inprayer, to find what may bethe best fit for you.“Start by finding aministry that intrigues you,”Fr. Marty says. “Then, askto join. The hardest partis dialing the phone to sayyou are interested. Join aquilting group. Become anExtraordinary Minister of HolyCommunion or a greeter. Thesimpler, the better.”Fr. Marty says that, often,we can talk ourselves out ofbeing involved. We might thinkwe don’t have the time, or wearen’t “good enough.”“There’s really no one goodenough,” he says. “Jesussays, ‘Come and follow me.’He didn’t say, ‘Follow me andnever fall down.’”For nearly two years, ourcommunity has faced variousforms of separation due tothe COVID-19 pandemic.Fr. Marty wants everyone toconsider the faith they havebuilt at home and bring it backto the community at BlessedSacrament. Consider how youmight grow, whether throughprayer, attending daily Mass,or trying out a Bible study —either virtual or in-person.But don’t take on too much,so that your goals remainattainable.“Instead of saying, ‘Iam going to start going todaily Mass every day,’ if youhaven’t been regularly going,try committing to go to oneweekday Mass per week,” Fr.Marty says. “Make your goalrealistic. Consider maybeattending the noon weekdayMass, Tuesday to Friday.”Fr. Marty Egging alsosuggests that we mightconsider new or differentways we can pray. Considergetting a group together topray Morning Prayer at 8a.m. Priests and religiousall around the world are allpraying — your prayers canjoin with theirs.Let’s use 2022 as a time to grow in faith! Take time to pray about a ministry that may interest youand get involved. Please visit www.blsachurch.net to see all the ministries offered at Blessed Sacrament.
BLESSED SACRAMENT CATHOLIC CHURCHSTEWARDSHIP:New Year’s ResolutionsThe new year has arrived,and we have all beenbusy making — and trying tokeep — our list of New Year’sresolutions. Many of us chooseresolutions geared toward healthand fitness. After all, possessinggood overall health is critical toour well-being. Others may tryto avoid a particularly bad habit.Maybe you need to quit smokingor stop swearing. Still, many ofus plan things we have alwayswanted to do, but never getaround to doing.As the days of Januarycontinue onward, however,many of us find the inspirationof keeping our good-intentionedresolutions fading fast. By theend of the month, most of ushave given in to our temptationsand returned to our old ways.We are only human, right?Discouraged by this yearlyfailure, many of us don’t evenbother making New Year’sresolutions anymore, especiallyif we feel like we won’t succeed.Maybe our failures lie in bothhow we make our resolutionsand what resolutions weactually choose. What we needto understand is the “root” ofour resolution. For example, ifyou resolve to eat less candyto drop those recently addedholiday pounds, is the “root”of your resolution a selfish one— wanting to look better sinceyou overindulged? Or, are yougenuinely seeking to stop givingin to each “sweet tooth” cravingby practicing mortification— giving up of a personalpleasure to glorify God? If the“root” is a selfish one, only tobenefit yourself, then it is oftendifficult to keep in the longrun. However, if we are tryingto glorify God, our missionis much more important andworth keeping.Tying your New Year’sresolutions into the principlesof stewardship — giving of yourtime, talent and treasure back toGod — is a great way to ensurethat the “root” of your resolutionis right on track! For instance,resolving to pray each eveningbefore going to bed glorifiesGod, brings you peace beforeslumber, and allows you to growin your relationship with Christ.The “root” is pure. Your desireto keep it will be stronger andmake it easier for you to keep.In the same way, resolving toreturn your talents to God byhelping others in need is anexcellent choice in creating aselfless resolution with the right“root.” Furthermore, resolvingto re-evaluate your financesis also extremely important,and the beginning of a newyear is a great time to do it.Are you giving back to Godout of gratitude for all He hasgiven you? Or are you merelydropping a dollar or two in thecollection basket just to feelgood about yourself?If you are not where youwould like to be as a goodsteward — either with sharingyour time, talent or treasure —you can resolve to do better. Anew year provides the perfectopportunity to start anewand become the good stewardthat God desires each of us tobecome. And when we chooseselfless things that build Hiskingdom instead of ours, we aresure to not only stay on track,but to succeed!
JAN/FEB 2022C OMPASS M INISTRY:Helping Families and Fostering Hope in Our CommunityThe dignity of the familyis foundational tobuilding a culture of life. Itcan be discouraging to seethe brokenness in our owncommunities, and wonderinghow we can help can beoverwhelming. The hope,however, is in realizing that astruggling family often needsonly a little support, spirituallyand materially, to find theirown hope and move forward.At Blessed Sacrament, we areprivileged to be able to serve ourcommunity through a networkof churches that participate in aministry called Compass.Mary Anne Hinchey is thepoint person for Compassat Blessed Sacrament andhas found this ministry to beincredibly meaningful.“These are our neighbors,”Mary Anne says. “They could bethe family next door. I think weneed to be aware of the needs inour neighborhood. Grand Islandis a small town. Most of thefamilies we’ve helped have beenwithin one or two miles of thechurch. They need to know wecare for them.”One goal of Compass is toprevent families from beingbroken apart by providingessential assistance before theyreach a crisis. Compass workswith the Department of Health(From left) Barbara Binfield, Mary Anne Hinchey,Rich Stobbe and Delores Yostenand Human Services to identifyneeds, and local churches workwith Compass to provide forthose needs. Blessed Sacramenttakes on one family each monthwith the goal of stabilizing theirfamily environment.“I have found in thissituation that people areembarrassed to ask for help,”Mary Anne says. “They don’tknow how to ask or where togo. This program really helpsfacilitate that for them.”continued on back cover
BLESSED SACRAMENT CATHOLIC CHURCH518 W. State StreetGrand Island, NE 68801(308) 384-0532www.blsachurch.netCompass MinistryMary Anne and the ChurchResponders at BlessedSacrament receive requests forhelp from Compass each month,then they discuss what they canoffer to a family.“We don’t spend a lot ofmoney, probably our average is 300 each month,” Mary Annesays. “We just feel that beingable to personally intercede witha family each month is really agift for us.”Blessed Sacrament has beencontinued from page 7working with Compass sinceFebruary 2021. The first familywe served needed a car seat fortheir toddler, and the ChurchResponders were able to provideone item that made a hugedifference for the family. Overthe last year, we have helpedfurnish a family’s kitchen, paid abill for a family recovering froma house fire, gifted a crib andbaby items to a teen mother infoster care, provided numerousbeds and clothes to families, andmuch, much more.“There’s always a sadnessand then a joy when the need ismet,” Mary Anne says.Blessed Sacrament has about10 Church Responders and thegroup primarily communicatesover email to discuss, gatherresources, and plan for thefamily they are helping. MaryAnne would love to see BlessedSacrament’s group grow to apoint where we can help morefamilies each month.If you are interested in serving as a Church Responder for Compass, please contactMary Anne Hinchey in the parish office at 308-384-0532, or stop by the office Mondaythrough Thursday before 1 p.m. Donations may be dropped off at the parish office.
prayer, attending daily Mass, or trying out a Bible study — either virtual or in-person. But don’t take on too much, so that your goals remain attainable. “Instead of saying, ‘I am going to start going to daily Mass every day,’ if you haven’t been regularly going, try commit
