Saint Joseph Parish: $1,707.00 from the Sunday envelopes; $97.00 from the second collection (plate); $278.00 from the Dues envelopes; $149.00 from the loose. Thank you.

Saint Vincent DePaul Parish: $1,311.00 from the Sunday envelopes; $134.00 from the second collection (plate); $42.00 from the Catholic Relief envelopes; $27.00 from the Building Maintenance envelopes; $2.00 from the Retired Religious envelopes. $134.25 from the loose. Thank you.

EDWARD ANDREW LUSHIS,
a member of St. Vincent dePaul Parish, died on Saturday, 7 February.
Born on 28 October 1918, he was 90 years old.
He is one of the four children of the late Andrew and Anna (Radzavage) Lushis.
Edward was baptized in St. George Church, Shenandoah, on 31 October 1918.
He married Frances Walakonis on 12 May 1946 in St. Vincent dePaul Church, in the presence of Father Daumantas.
Frances is deceased as also are his two sisters and one brother: Helen Lushis Mizzer; Theresa Lushis Kurzinsky; Alfred Lushis.
Edward has a son: Gareth C. Lushis.
He has two granddaughters: Leigh Ann Lushis Brame; Jennifer Lushis Fetterolf.
He has three great-grandchildren: Russell E. Lushis; Hanna J. Fetterolf; Olivia R. Fetterolf.
Edward was a Marine who fought on Iwo Jima. He earned his First Lieutenant rank on the battlefield. He was awarded two Purple Hearts. We honor his memory and his deeds. He was semper fidelis --- and the nation is indebted to him.
There was a Mass of Christian Burial for Edward in St. Vincent dePaul Church on Wednesday, 11 February.
The interment will take place in Arlington National Cemetery.

Eternal rest grant unto Edward, O Lord, and let the perpetual light shine upon him. May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Notes: (1) There are some discrepancies in the records in regard to Edward’s exact date of birth. Such discrepancies are not unusual. Record keeping was a bit more casual in years gone by. I think the 28 Oct 1918 date is the most reliable. I obtained it from St. George Parish, Shenandoah. (2) The spelling of Edward’s last name also admits of some ambiguity. In the marriage record of St. Vincent dePaul Parish, the name is spelt Luishis. (3) The maiden name of Edward’s mother was originally Radzeviciute. There is a note in the baptism record that the name was “Americanized” to Radzavage. (4) Edward’s wife’s maiden name is spelled Walaconis in the marriage register.

PLEASE PRAY FOR a gentleman who died on Thursday, 29 January. Peter L. Palestis, age 50, a resident of Shenandoah, is one of the four children of the late James and Angeline (Ranieri) Palestis. His brother, Salvatore Palestis and his sister, Debora Ann Palestis Harris, are deceased. His brother, James Palestis, is a member of St. Joseph Parish.
The interment of cremains took place on Monday, 9 February, in the parish cemetery in Fountain Springs.

Eternal rest grant unto Peter, O Lord, and let the perpetual light shine upon him. May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Well, boys and girls, I CANNOT TELL A LIE! Why can I not tell a lie? Because next Sunday, 22 February, is you-know-whose birthday (GW) and he never told a lie and it’s also the day of the great Chinese auction!
It will be held in the St. Vincent dePaul Parish Hall (in the old school). Doors open at 12:00 noon. A packet of tickets costs $15.00. We are looking for donations of baked goods. Also, if you are a “crafty” person, you can call and ask to have a “crafts table”.
See you there!

BISHOP MARTINO REBUKES SENATOR CASEY
More evidence of the chasm between the political agenda of the Democratic Party and the moral teachings of the Catholic Church!
The Bishop of Scranton wrote a letter to Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) in which he rebuked him for his pro-abortion vote against the Martinez amendment, which was an attempt to keep taxpayer money from being used to perform abortions in countries that receive aid from the USA.
I read the Bishop’s letter and found one sentence to be of particular interest:

Your failure to reverse this vote will regrettably mean that you persist formally in cooperating with the evil brought about by this hideous and unnecessary policy.

Note the use of the word “formally” in connection with “cooperating with the evil”.
Do you know what this means?
It means that Senator Casey will have committed a grievously immoral act if he does not reverse his vote.
Do you know what this means for the ordinary citizen?
It means that using one’s vote in such a way as to promote abortion is in itself a grievously immoral act — even if the voter says that he or she is personally opposed to abortion --- as Senator Casey says.

THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION IS NOT NEW. It is well known to the priests and the laypersons most directly involved in the parish restructuring process that has been going on in the Diocese of Allentown. More to the point, as far as local interest is concerned, it is well known to the members of the Girardville portion of the Committee for Region V of the (former) North Schuylkill Deanery. These are: Annetta Whitecavage and Jim Neary (for St. Joseph Parish); Mary Miller and John Gregis (for St. Vincent dePaul Parish); Fr. Edward B. Connolly (for both).
Here are the Criteria for Parish Restructuring, as taken from a memo issued by the Office for Synod Implementation on 18 September 2007:

CRITERIA FOR PARISH RESTRUCTURING

A. Each pastor will be assigned to only one parish.
B. No new mission chapels or worship sites shall be established. Existing mission chapels and worship sites may remain in use, only with the recommendation of the Diocesan Pastoral Council and Episcopal approval.
C. The desired proportion of priests to people is 1 to 2,400.
D. When a merger or consolidation occurs, consideration must be given to the financial status of each of the original parishes so that, where feasible, the goal of establishing a fiscally sound parish is achieved.
E. The process of restructuring shall be conducted with an emphasis on territoriality, i.e. the parishes resulting from mergers or consolidations shall be erected as territorial parishes with new boundaries.
F. When a merger of parishes is indicated and one of the existing sites will be retained, the process to determine which church building is to be retained must consider at least the following items:

1) The physical condition of the church building.
2) The size of the church building (relative to the combined average Sunday Mass attendance of the combined parishes).
3) Accessibility for the physically disabled (and where it does not exist, the feasibility of making it accessible).
4) Parking.
5) Location of the church building in relation to membership of the parish.
6) Location of the church building in relation to existing support buildings (rectory, parish office, school, gymnasium, etc.)
7) The size and condition of the existing support buildings.

G. When a consolidation of parishes is indicated, the process to determine which church building is to be retained must consider at least the following items:

(Same seven items as listed above)

H. When a merger or consolidation occurs, the demographic factors of the area shall be taken into account, including the median age of the proposed restructured parish, and any population shifts that are taking place or will take place in the near future.

We encourage members of St. Joseph Parish and St. Vincent dePaul Parish to read the seven criteria listed above. Engage in some good old fashioned cogitation, meditation, conversation and, if the Spirit moves you, even some levitation. Try to avoid exacerbation, remonstration and frustration. Most of all: Think about how they might apply to our local situation.