Next weekend, we begin the Annual Catholic Appeal for the support of the many charitable activities sponsored by the Archdiocese of St. Louis. Pledge / gift cards will be available in the gathering area of Church after each Mass. Please stop by the table and make your pledge to this appeal. The people of Immacolata parish have always been most generous to this annual appeal. I trust that the same will be true this year. Your cooperation and support is certainly most appreciated.

Every year, every family in the Archdiocese is asked to subscribe to the St. Louis Review, the official newspaper of the Archdiocese. Your paid subscription helps to cover the cost of the Review which is offered to every household in the parish. I thank all who have subscribed during the past couple months for the coming year. As per the policy of the Archdiocese, all families who have contributed at least $100 to the parish during the past year (2007) will also be included in this weekly mailing. If for some reason you do not wish to receive the Review or if you do not presently receive this newspaper and wish to receive it, please contact the parish office.

      Please remember those who are receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation on Tuesday evening, April 8, at 7:30 p.m. Archbishop Burke will be the principal celebrant and confirm each of the candidates. We welcome Archbishop Burke to our parish and we rejoice with those who will be confirmed that evening.

As a final preparation for receiving this sacrament, our students participated in a Retreat Day  on Sunday, April 6 and joined the parish family at the 5:00 p.m. Mass on Sunday evening.

May the Peace of the Risen Lord be with you!

The staff of the Church of the Immacolata wishes you a blessed Easter season.

St. Louis Archbishop Raymond Burke shares some thoughts on how to live holy week:

Holy Week cannot be for us like any other week but must be marked with the deepest sentiments of gratitude and love, expressed, above all, by our participation in the Sacred Liturgy. Too easily, we may permit the busyness of our lives to keep us from the Christian celebration of Holy Week. Our love of Christ and our communion with Him, however, draw us to observe Holy Week by giving our heartfelt participation to the Sacred Liturgy and by setting aside times of silence and prayer at home or in visits before the Blessed Sacrament.

Our observance of the forty days of Lent has been directed to making us ready for the celebration of Holy Week, so that the strong grace which comes with the commemoration of the events of our salvation may be poured forth into our souls and reach into every dimension of our lives. Commemorating, with Christ, His Blessed Mother and all the saints, the events of the Sacred Triduum, we contemplate the mystery of His life within each of us.

Read more at the archdiocesean website: www.archstl.org

Dear Friends,

I encourage you to participate fully with us in each of the ceremonies of the coming week. These celebrations speak to us as the people of God making our journey with Our Lord Jesus Christ through this life to eternal life. Welcome!

You can find complete details at: www.immacolata.org/holyweek

In Jesus our Savior,

Msgr. Walter Whited, pastor