St. Stephens Church Bulletin (Issue 6)

ISSUE 6 - St. Stephen’s Knanaya Catholic Forane Church, NY ST. STEPHENS CHURCH BULLETIN INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Vicars Desk 1 Thanksgiving 2 CCD Updates 3 Upcoming Events 4 Caroling Schedule 4 VICARS The pilgrims after a year of sur- great celebration of Christmas DESK vival in this country they thanked and for welcoming the child Jesus God together with the natives in to our homes, let us bless all Dear friends in Christ Jesus, and so thus began the thanksgiv- our homes in the Carol season. ing days. Now it is the time for We have to get ready with the Greetings…… the reunification of all the fami- carol hymns and praises to reach lies who are working and residing out to all our families. We are fast approaching in different parts of the country. to the days of Thanksgiving and Let us also prepare ourselves for We have Dei Verbum Bi- other Holidays. It is the time for this great days. ble quiz for all the pre- registered us to thank the Lord for all the members on Sunday December blessings we have received these Sunday, November 24th is 1st. Questions on the Gospel of years of our life. We remember our 7th anniversary of our church. St. Mark prepared by diocese will the early pilgrims to this country How much adversaries we had to reach us shortly. and how they were thankful to undergo all these years to bring God for having safely landed in the church to the present scenar- Wishing you all great thanksgiv- this beautiful country. The na- io. It is really the hard work of all ing holidays and praying for you tives of this country, though they of us. Let us thank God for having all… were resistant at first sight to the able to accomplish so, and pray pilgrims but after a while they unceasingly to the Almighty for Fr. Jose Tharackal, Vicar. really taught the pilgrims how to His continuous support for our survive in this new found land. church. In preparation for the 7th Anniversary of St. Stephens Knanaya Catholic Forane Church, New York | Nov 2012—2019 Page 1

St. Stephen’s Knanaya Catholic Forane Church Bulletin THANKSGIVING Jiffy Thadathil “Feeling thankful without saying it, is like preparing a gift and not giving it” CCD Teacher St. Stephens Knanaya Catholic Forane Church, NY Today we live in a world where Thanksgiving eling the sidewalks and raking the leaves. is about that big Turkey and Pumpkins, Christmas is about decorations and gifts and Easter is about the 3. I am thankful for my friends who pushed me to egg hunts and bunnies. Our focus in on the material- move forward in life, pulled me up when I was down istic things rather than the importance of the day it- and held me tight when I needed them the most, and self. Isn’t Thanksgiving a day to give thanks to the my teachers who helped me become what I am to- Lord and to the people around us? Isn’t Christmas a day. day to celebrate the birth of infant Jesus? Isn’t Easter the day to rejoice, for the Lord has risen from the 4. I am also thankful… death? a) For the good times of laughter and joy. In history, we celebrate this day for the purpose of b) For the worst mistakes committed- for we learnt a giving thanks to the Native Americans for welcoming lot from it. the English families with generosity and kindness. For us, it is the day where the families and extended fam- c) For the job- more than a means to make money, it ilies gather and spend the day in a very intentional was a way to help people. way. Today the world sees negative light especially through hate crimes, mass shooting, terrorist attacks d) For the freedom you have in this country-, it costs and natural disasters. Identifying the things that we many men and women their lives to get even basic are thankful for provides a beacon of hope and per- things in the under developed countries. spective amidst the pervasive darkness. It is im- portant to reflect inwardly and recognize positive e) For those who have made a positive impact in your forces in our lives. life- remember that person who made you better person. It can be your family member, friend, teach- Let us take some time to be in solitude and remem- er, coach, pastor or a random person on the street. ber all things that we are thankful for and write a beautiful “Thank you” letter remembering all the inci- f) For nourishment-, we are blessed with plenty of dences we had this year. Here are a few to start food. Show thanks by sharing your food with the about… needy. Donate to the support groups who feed the hungry. 1. I am thankful for my family. My parents may not be the perfect ones, but they truly are the two people g) For your life- If God protected you and kept you who sacrificed their entire life for me. My siblings safe, it is for a bigger purpose. To serve God and taught me what sharing is and we cared for each oth- mankind, be a channel of peace and to make the er even when after we fought from time to time. My world a better place to live in. childhood would not be merrier and my life would not be beautiful without their sacrifice. Together we Remember, FEELING THANKFUL WITHOUT SAYING IT are blessed with a beautiful home with lots of happy IS LIKE PREPARING A GIFT AND NOT GIVING IT. Let us and sad moments. prepare ourselves for the best Thanksgiving this year. 2. I am thankful for my family and friends for bringing food for us while we were sick and watching the kids when needed, my neighbors who helped us by shov- Page 2

St. Stephen’s Knanaya Catholic Forane Church Bulletin CCD UPDATES Lissy Vattakalam Principal, CCD St. Stephens Knanaya Catholic Forane Church, NY Knanaya Region CCD program Director, Rev. Fr. Joseph Adoppillil made a visit to our Church on Nov 11th, as part of his visit to all churches in USA. He went to all CCD classes to get to know the teachers and stu- dents. He briefed us on the upcoming activities and thoughts and ideas to improve the CCD programs at the national level. CCD children celebrated All Saints day on Sunday November 3rd. Most of the younger kids dressed up as different Saints. They were all asked to say why they chose that particular saint, importance of the saint and why they like that saint. It was impressive to see how much they learnt from this. The church level Bible quiz was conducted by the Youth Ministry of St. Stephens Church. Many kids partici- pated in the competition along with the adults group. In kids group, Francis Thadipuzha and Mark Vatta- kalam tied in the first place and Alisa Akkamparambil grabbed second prize. In adults group, Sheeba In- chanattu won first prize and Synamma Puthenkandathil got second prize. Francis Thadipuzha and Mark Vattakalam also represented our Church at the Forane level Bible quiz held in Philadelphia on Nov 9th. Congratulations to all for their hard work and we are proud of all those who participated in this Bible quiz competition at our Church. Francis Thadipuzha Mark Vattakalam Alisa Akkamparampil Sheeba Inchanattu Synamma Puthenkandathil Page 3

St. Stephen’s Knanaya Catholic Forane Church Bulletin UPCOMING EVENTS Dei Verbum diocesan level Bible Quiz CHRISTMAS CELEBRATION Gospel of St. Mark. Christmas Celebration of Knanaya Later the contestants will have Catholic Ministry of New York Forane Zonal & Diocesan level Bible quiz. will be held at St. George Syro Malabar $10 registration fee for individual. Catholic Church located at 408 Getty Ave Paterson, NJ 07503 on Saturday December 21st 2019, 5:00 PM. Koodarayogam Date St. Anthony’s Saturday November 30th St. Mary’s Sunday December 1st Friday December 6th St. Stephen’s Saturday December 7th St. Sebastian’s Sunday December 8th St. Jude’s Friday December 13th Saturday December 14th St. Joseph’s Sunday December 15th St. Thomas St. Pius the Xth All parish members are invited to Caroling lead by each Koodarayogams. On Friday December 20th rehearsal for Forane X’ mas celebrations will be held at church. On Sunday December 22nd at 6 PM we will doing X mas Caroling to those houses we could not go on the above dates. SSKCFC Bulletin Fr. Jose Tharackal, Vicar EDITORIAL Anoop Mukalel, P.R.O. BOARD Abraham Thervalakattayil, Meryl Kallickal Simjo Edappara Page 4