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 COFFEE AND DONUTS ‘AND MORE’ THIS SUNDAY: The Parish Life Commission invites to coffee and donuts in Vincentian Hall this Sunday morning following the 7:30, 9 and 10:30am Masses. Outside Vincentian Hall, help yourself to free Catholic books and media that are free gifts. There is one simple rule – you can’t bring them back! These are leftovers from the library at the parish office which is open for parishioner use during regular office hours, Mon – Fri, 8am to 4:30pm.  THE 39TH ANNUAL MEN’S CLUB TRUCK RAFFLE is coming up on Saturday November 5th in the Queens School Gym to benefit Queens School. The first prize is $10,000 and every tenth number pulled wins a prize. Truck Raffle tickets will be on sale during coffee and donuts this weekend. Dinner tickets are $150 per couple. Cash, check, credit or debit card accepted.  TOOTSIE ROLLS AND KofC MEMBERSHIP DRIVE: Bring some cash to Mass this weekend to make a donation to the Knights’ Columbus Day Tootsie Roll Drive to support Special Olympics and the needs of the intellectually challenged. Knights will be at all the doors after Mass. Council 609 is also sponsoring a membership drive. Any Catholic male aged 17.5 and up is eligible and should be an active member of the Knights of Columbus. Come visit the KofC display after Mass. They will be handing out 300 free rosaries made by council member Dale Wallace and his wife of 77 years, Mary.  SHOP ‘n SHARE: Don’t forget to bring your brown bags filled with food for the hungry to Mass this weekend. There will be people at the doors to receive your donation so you don’t have to sit with it during Mass. Shop ‘n Share envelopes can still be found around the church for those who didn’t shop but who might be willing to make a donation of cash or check. Thank you to the Social Justice Commission for their hard work in making this event happen.  SUNDAY OCTOBER 9 PUBLIC ROSARY: Join us at 2pm in Horace Blackman Park in downtown Jackson this weekend for the Annual Public Rosary and Eucharistic Procession. Bring a chair and a rosary and God will do the rest!  PROPOSAL 3 – READ IT FOR YOURSELF: On the ballot, you see a 95-word summary of the proposed constitutional amendment. Click on this attachment to read the full text of the amendment, including a commentary about what each section means. Share this with others: https://mcusercontent.com/2f1b094cff6af8c06dee3de81/files/4735cbcf-9460-c3bd-06b1-472d7aa2900a/Proposal_3_Explanation.pdf Citizens to Support MI Women and Children is the coalition formed by Right to Life and The Michigan Catholic Conference to fight back, but they are being outspent. Please consider making a donation to bolster their ability to buy tv ads which are most expensive leading up to an election: www.supportmiwomenandchildren.org/donate/   A HOME RUN FOR LIFE: On Tuesday October 4th in Arlington, Texas, New York Yankee Outfielder Aaron Judge entered the history books in the top of the 1st inning against the Rangers when he broke Roger Maris’ 61 year old American League Record of 61 home runs batted in a single season. Aaron Judge is an impressive 6’7″ tall. He is also adopted. His mother gave him up at birth. He was raised in a loving home by Wayne and Patty Judge. Aaron recently spoke about his adoption, and he said something that I believe is so inspirational as we Fight Like Heaven against Proposal 3: “Some kids grow in their mom’s stomach; I grew in my mom’s heart. She’s always shown me love and compassion ever since I was a little baby.” Pray that more people will step up to be foster parents and consider adopting children who need a loving home. When compared to abortion, adoption is indeed the loving option. Who knows what the child you take in might grow up to be or do? Catholic Charities of Jackson, Lenawee and Hillsdale Counties is always in need of people willing to be trained for foster care: https://catholiccharitiesjlhc.org/foster-care-adoption/  ‘NO ON 3’ RALLY ON THE CAPITOL STEPS: While 1,000 women will be at the Catholic Women’s Conference on Saturday October 15th at the Lansing Center, a hopefully larger crowd will gather up the road on the steps of the Capitol Building from noon – 3pm that same day for a Prayer Rally to Defeat Proposal 3. This event is co-sponsored by the Archdiocese of Detroit and the Diocese of Lansing. Street parking is free in downtown Lansing on weekends.  QUEENS TO HOST DIOCESAN TOWN HALL: Are you or someone you love on the fence about Proposal 3 or even think you might vote yes? Are you concerned that women will not be able to get the vital life-saving care that they’ll need in cases of ectopic pregnancies or miscarriage? Do you have questions and would like to hear from doctors, lawyers, or just someone who aligns better with your political convictions, people that aren’t on the Right? Please attend and bring friends and relatives to The Diocesan Town Hall Meeting scheduled in Queens Church on Tuesday October 18th at 7:00pm and get clarity on what Proposal 3 will mean for the State of Michigan. EQUIPPING LIFE WEBINAR VIDEO: On September 29th, Queens was a host site for The Equipping Life Webinar, featuring leaders from the church, medical and legal communities discussing the ramifications of Proposal 3. You can watch a rerun of the program here: https://www.dioceseoflansing.org/lay-equipping-webinar  TAKING IT TO THE STREETS: ProtectLifeMI invites adults to come to St. John School for training for Proposal 3 Door Knockers. This will take place every Saturday until election day. The hope it to knock on thousands of doors in and around Jackson. This is the Schedule for October 8, 15, 22, 29 and November 5: 8:30 Breakfast and Training 9:30 Morning Door Knocking 12:30 Lunch and Training 1:30 Afternoon Door Knocking 4:30 – 5pm Prizes and Dismissal Show up or sign up: Haili Gusa – haili@protectlifemi.org.  YARD SIGNS are still available at Church. They are free. Please display them prominently at your home or business. WHY ALL THE FUSS? I am sure some of you are getting tired or annoyed with all this Proposal 3 talk. This is no laughing matter. This article details polling that shows that nearly two-thirds of Catholic voters in Michigan will vote YES on Proposal 3: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-09-22/most-catholics-in-michigan-support-adding-state-abortion-protections?leadSource=uverify%20wall Archbishop Allen Vigneron writes: “To vote in favor of this proposal would be to actively participate in the promotion and expansion of the intrinsic moral evil of abortion.” This is not a political issue. This is existential. It is about humanity. If we don’t stand for something, we are likely to fall for anything and this proposed amendment is bad for our state. It is hard to be ‘Pure Michigan’ if we become a mecca for abortion tourism if we pass the most permissive abortion laws on the planet. We are not just fighting against something, we are fighting for something – something far more important than any of us may realize. Unless or until the right to life is guaranteed for all people, then every other right remains under threat.  BLOOD DRIVE OCTOBER 17TH: Please head over to the Fr. Murray Center at St. Johns to give the gift of life during the next Knights of Columbus American Red Cross Catholic Community Blood Drive on Monday October 17th from noon – 6pm. “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” Jesus, protect and save the unbornFr. Tim MacDonald Pastor |