A WONDERFUL LIFE Words are inadequate to express my gratitude for last Sunday.

It is somewhat difficult to describe the experience, but I am reminded of a classic, fictional movie that is often shown around Christmas: It’s a Wonderful Life. To shake Jimmy Stewart from his despair, he is shown the affect of his life.

Relative and friends, parishioners from here and from former parishes were all gathered at the Liturgy and at the party. In addition, there were cards, notes and letters from those and many others. All of these told stories of experiences we have shared. The party, the Liturgy, the comments and the written cards and letters are very humbling yet very gratifying. All of them tell the true story of a wonderful life! Thank you!!

MANY, MANY THANKS I am very grateful to all those who were responsible for preparing all the food, for serving it and cleaning up. There were so many and I will probably never know everyone involved, but I sincerely want to thank all of you!

I would like to specifically thank those involved in planning the events of Sunday over the last several months: Katie Barazsu, Jan Carpenter, Eileen Denhard, Chris Kovanda, Barb Lanigan, Donna Lorenz, Sandy Oliver, Sandy Phillips, Laura Rector, Christine Reid, Marilyn Rhadigan, Debbie Romanelli, Judy Scharf, Jean Schultz, Char Turowski and Sue Weir. I especially want to thank Kay Thurmon and Sr. Maryetta who coordinated all the festivities. Thanks, too, to Diane Kubus who worked on the Liturgy and Mary Mahar who worked with the younger volunteers. Thank you, thank you.

VACATION I will be leaving this Sunday evening for a special 25^th Anniversary vacation. Fr. Jim McDougal and I will arrive in Rome by noon tomorrow. After dinner with another priest from our diocese in Rome and a good night’s sleep, we will be leaving for Madrid, Spain on Tuesday morning. (Fr. McDougal is starting a three-month sabbatical in Rome, so we are going there to drop off most of his additional luggage to lighten the load.)

We will be sightseeing in Madrid and the surrounding area then driving to Seville in the south and taking in the sights there. Since both of us enjoy history, I doubt that we will have any trouble filling the day.

I am grateful to our very competent staff who take care of things in my absence and to those who will help my nieces take care of my sister.

I’ll be back for the Liturgies on Feb 15\16.

Fr. Dave Howell

"And suddenly there will come to the temple the Lord whom you seek…" For Malachi, this terrifying appearance corrected a problem. The priests of the temple needed correction, so God prophesied that the Lord Himself would appear to set things right. In what places or circumstances are you aware of the presence of holiness? How do you respond to that awareness?

Jesus freed those who through fear of death had been subject to slavery all their life. Because He comes from God and shares our humanity, Jesus can offer the perfect sacrifice. It is precisely Christ’s complete identification with us, in human suffering that proves the effectiveness of His sacrifice. What are the habits of sin that enslaves you? What steps can you take to embrace the freedom that Jesus offers?

Anna gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem. Redemption has arrived. Now it is our turn to bring God’s blessing into the world. How are you a messenger of redemption to others?

There is a certain urgency in today’s gospel as Jesus calls His first disciples — Andrew and Simon, James and John. Each one follows Jesus immediately, unhesitatingly abandoning nets and boats and father and fellow-workers. To what is Jesus calling me — at this moment, in these circumstances? What will I need to abandon in order to follow Him?

The Finance Council

Sunday, Jan. 26 Diane Kubus

Monday, Jan. 27 Ginger Smith, Richard Hauck

Betty Horka

Tuesday, Jan. 28 Christine Reid, Kathy Riccardi

Wednesday, Jan. 29 Ron Clark

Thursday, Jan. 30 Sharon Linck

Friday, Jan. 31 Kim Keller, Cindy Sultana

Saturday, Feb. 1 Theresa Wolterman, Andrea

Nashar

A "Sense"ational Thank You to everyone who donated eyeglasses and hearing aides. We collected just over one hundred items!! Your generosity will bring someone a better glimpse of God’s world!!

DATES TO REMEMBER

Catechists/aides and CLW Leaders are reminded about dinner and the evening of reflection over at the rectory this week. You are also asked to make sure you have your forms in for Souper Saturday here next weekend!

I ask for your prayers for our Catechists, Aides and our Leaders of Children’s Liturgy of the Word (Sundays at 9 &11 they are the ones who lead our younger brothers and sisters out and proclaim to them the Sunday Readings). This week we are having retreat nights for them to reflect on and think about what sharing the Word and Works of God mean to them! They all volunteer their time and talents to lead over 750 youth a week in all our various programs!

I would also like to share with you how fantastic our 9^th gr. confirmation class and the leadership crew from the youth group are! They helped as servers and cleaners for Fr. Dave’s dinner and reception last Sunday. These youth served, cleaned, scraped, picked up and just kept going and going in their helping. They did it all for Fr. Dave and with smiles the whole time! Parents, if your youth was one of our helpers last week, you should be very proud of them and give them a hug! (Sorry kids, I know you think you are too old for a hug, but you deserve it!) Thank you all!

Just a reminder about snow days from the Parent Handbook: If Brighton area schools are cancelled due to bad weather our Faith Formation classes will also be cancelled. In case Religious Education is cancelled during the sch
day, we will notify the radio station WHMI (93.5 FM) and we will try to call the local schools. We will also notify your child’s catechist and aide and they will try to call your home. (It may be a good idea for you to have the phone number of your child(ren)’s catechist at home!)

Tonight we will be going to Old St. Pats for a Super Bowl Sunday party with 100 other teens. We will join together to watch the game, eat and meet new people. We will meet at St. MM at 5:30pm and return at 10:30pm.

Thank you for donating to our annua
uper Bowl Sunday collection. Some of the money collected will be donated to Catholic Relief Service, who supplied the programm
for our Hunger Awareness Retreat last weekend.

There is still time to sign up for the ski trip scheduled for February 14-16. The cost for the weekend lodging and food is $60; rentals and lift tickets are extra.

If you are interested in participating in the workweek program organized by the National Relief Network (NRN), there is an information meeting February 20, at 7:30 pm. Come and find out what the program is all about. Looking ahead, our trip is scheduled for July 20-26.

We will be donating an hour’s time Tuesday January 28 at the Livingston County Food Pantry from 4 — 5 pm. A sign up sheet is in the gathering area. Space is limited so make sure you sign up soon.

Margaret Callaghan

TONIGHT, Sunday Jan. 26^th, is the first in a series of six workshops on environmental issues held here at Saint Mary Magdalen. The series is entitled SUSTAINABILITY: HOPE FOR THE EARTH. We will begin tonight at 6 p.m. NANCY SEUBERT, coordinator for The Center for Justice, Peace, and Sustainable Living in Monroe will address the subject "SUSTAINABILITY AND SPIRITUALITY". Nancy's talk will lay the foundation for the following workshops.

Community Life Team is hosting the evening Saturday, Feb. 1st at 7:30pm (in the lower level of the rectory). All adults of the parish are invited! If you don’t know how to play Euchre, come and learn… its lots of fun! Sign up in the gathering area.

During Lent, the faith formation program we will be using as a Parish is the Renew faith sharing groups. You will have a variety of ways to sign up for a group. We will be in need of more facilitators since we will have more groups participating. Please let us know if you could fill that role.

A holy hour of prayer for our Parish in Renew will be held Monday, February 17 in the evening. Plan to attend whether you are in a sharing group or not. More information will be forthcoming.

Sister Joyce Hoile

A small Christian community will help change the way you view the world, enabling you to see the people in it with "Christian eyes". The group will help you become more attuned to the needs, issues and opportunity to grow in your understanding of those with "different" life stories. Sign up for RENEW begins Feb 1/ 2 AND CONTINUES FOR 3 WEEKS. The season of RENEW begins March 2nd. Any questions, contact Cary Schmidt 810-229-1788 or Laura Rector 810-220-3720

If you would like to have a Liturgy celebrated for a special intention, please call the parish office to make arrangements. A contribution is usually made to pay for the cost of the bread and wine and all the other items that are needed for the celebration of the Liturgy.

Taking Charge of Fibromyalgia: Saturday, January 25th from 10 AM - 4:30 PM at Burton Manor (a workshop for healthcare professionals, patients and families). This is sponsored by the Chronic Illness Coalition and presented by Dr. Carol Beals MD. A $10.00 fee for the general public & $27.00 for health care professionals (4.8 CEUs). Call Gary Bimberg, Esq. (800) 675-0613 for more information.

Parish/Congregational Nurse Preparation Course through University of Detroit Mercy at St. Joseph Mercy Canton Health Center will begin March 11 thru May 13 on Tuesday evenings from 6 — 9 PM. The cost is $415.00 (36 CEUs). Please call Joyce Gonda (810) 632-7961 for more information. The registration deadline is February 24th

The next blood drive at St. Mary Magdalen is set for Friday, January 31 from 1 — 7pm. The need for blood has increased. Also needed are volunteers to work the drive. If you are willing to donate blood and/or work the drive, both sign up sheets are in the gathering area. Thank You!!!

All adult Lectors, Eucharistic Ministers, Ministers of

Hospitality, and Music Ministers are invited to attend

Monday, February 24 from 7 - 9pm in the social hall.

Please mark your calendars and sign up beginning

next week in the gathering area.

Yours is a share…

DRIVERS NEEDED — Please sign up to deliver our parish food contributions to St. Anne’s Catholic Church (SA) or Brown Evangelical Mission (BEM) in Detroit. Weekly deliveries are made on Sundays, after the 11 a.m. Mass. The sign up schedule for the months of February through April will be in the Gathering Space. If you have questions, please call Marilyn Farrington 810-229-2871. The hungry of Detroit thank you!

Will offer a spiritual weekend for widowed, divorced, and separated persons February 7, 8, 9, 2003 in Jackson, MI. at the St. Joseph Center, 1000 E. Porter Street. Designed to help those among us who are wounded by the loss of a spouse, the weekend is gently guided by a trained team of peers. It is a time for working through grief and moving on to a new beginning in life. Pre-registration is required. For more information, please call Mary Jo, to 810-229-0040.

In celebration of Catholic Schools Week, St. Joseph School at 425 E. Washington in Howell is hosting an Open House/Ice Cream Social/Book Fair for families of current and prospective students on Wed. Jan 29 from 6-8pm. For more information call 517-546-0090 ext.200

New Familly Information Night will be Wed Feb 19 from 7 — 8:30pm. St. Thomas School is for children in grades K-8. Kindergarten is a full day program with a half-day option. Before and after school care is available. Registration applications will be accepted that evening. For more information call (734) 769-0911.

Approved Plumbing & Heating

Nationally known advocate, author and presenter, Marietta Jaeger Lane will speak Monday, January 27 and share the story of a parents’ nightmare: the kidnapping and loss of a child, as well as her spiritual journey during that period. She will touch on what God has taught her about forgiveness, and the Scriptural parallels relevant to each of us today. Join us 615-730 pm in the church (St. Joseph in Howell). Call Linda 552-0818 for more info. Not suitable for children.

Will be offered at St. Thomas the Apostle Parish Center, Ann Arbor. Wednesday, Feb 12 — April 2 from 7-9pm. Facilitated by Kathleen Boyd, David Green, and John Swantek. For more information call Virginia Mikola 734-994-9194

Retrouvaille is helping couples put the pieces back together and rebuild loving relationships. If your marriage is tearing you apart, if is there little or no meaningful communication, if are you considering separation or divorce, we believe Retrouvaille can help. The next weekend is Feb. 14-16 at St. Francis Retreat Center in DeWitt, Lansing. For further information, call 517-669-6631