VOL Parish Weekly Bulletin July 24, 2016 | Page 2

July 24, 2016 Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Views From The Pews 2 Did You Know? Pat asks, “Can we spread the pews out a little? They are too close together. The way they currently are, it is uncomfortable to kneel. We can access only about the first half of the kneeler. The lower half of the kneeler is flat from use; but the upper half, which cannot be accessed, is still plush.” “Based on requests from our recent parish survey, we are currently exploring the cost of replacing the padding on the pews. We will now explore your request as well. Everything, of course, depends on costs.” Claudette writes, “I heard that the pope said most marriages are invalid. What does he mean by that? “A marriage is sacramental and valid only if each member of a couple fully understands what a sacramental marriage requires. In response to a question from an audience member at a pastoral conference in the Diocese of Rome, Pope Francis said he believes, even though young people say in their marriage vows that sacramental marriage is ‘indissoluble’, they actually don’t believe that marriage is ‘for life’. And, because they get married thinking a sacramental marriage can be ended if it becomes an ‘inconvenience’, the marriage is invalid. The pope’s thoughts were off the cuff and are not an official Church position.” In a recent national poll, only 34% of American Catholics said they rely on church teachings as a guide on what to do about difficult moral questions. Fr. Mike Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults Are you or someone you know interested in becoming Catholic? If you answered “Yes” then please read on... In August we will begin our next class for adults interested in learning about the Catholic faith using the Rite of Chr istian Initiation of Adults or RCIA. These classes are for the un-baptized, those baptized in another Christian faith who wish to become Catholic, and for baptized Catholics who have not yet received the sacraments of First Communion or Confirmation. If you are interested in registering or need additional information, please call the Pastoral Center at 347-2203. R.C.I.A. begins in August and will be held upstairs in the Pastoral Center. Fr. Mike CCD REGISTRATION Registrations WILL NOT be accepted on the first night of CCD. Days of Mercy every Wednesday at Visitation of Our Lady Church 5:15 pm - 6:15 pm Confessions & Divine Mercy Chaplet 6:30 pm Evening Prayer or Mass* 7:15 pm Adult Faith Formation *Mass will be celebrated on the following evenings: September 14, November 2 & November 16 All public school and non-Catholic private school students residing in or registered in VOL Parish should enroll in our CCD program to receive ageappropriate faith formation essential for spiritual growth and the reception of the sacraments. Information about the CCD program and new student registration forms can be found on the VOL website at www.vol.org. Returning student registration forms will be mailed out this week. I will be accepting registrations in the teachers lounge on August 2nd, 3rd & 4th from 4 - 7 p.m. The deadline to register for CCD is August 4th. A late fee will be added after that date. Registration will NOT be accepted on first night of class ~ NO EXCEPTIONS!! Jenny Doskey Director of Religious Education