NEWS & EVENTS
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WE ARE HIRING!
We are currently looking for a High School Confirmation and Youth Group Coordinator. This position works directly with the Faith Formation Office Manager and the Pastoral Associate in providing religious education that supports the mission of our parish. The High School Confirmation and Youth Group Coordinator successfully manages the curriculum, volunteers, and the implementation of programs that support the teachings of the Church and encourage opportunities for involvement in parish life. To learn more, please visit: https://www.catholicsofpleasanton.org/employment-opportunities.html |
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BENEFIT CONCERT FEATURING CELICIA THENDEAN
Pianist Celicia Thendean, a highly talented 16-year-old from Pleasanton, will give a piano recital on February 1 at Saint Augustine Church to benefit the Alan Hu Foundation, a local organization that works to promote mental health in our children and adolescents. alanhufoundation.org Celicia has won international piano competitions and has soloed with orchestras throughout the US and in Italy. She will be joined at this concert by her sister Chiara on violin, and church music director and pianist Ira Stein. The concert will feature works by Chopin, Liszt, Bach and Haydn, and a piece for 8 hands and 1 piano! Tickets may be purchased online here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=AS2D8RKSKRHTN Tickets are also at the door for $15. Children are free! |
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OPEN HOUSE AT ST. MICHAEL SCHOOL
St. Michael's school is having an open house! If you've been thinking about enrolling your children at Saint Michael School...January 26 is the date to save to learn more! For more information, please visit: https://www.smsliv.org/ |
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56TH ANNUAL CRAB FEED & RAFFLE
Sponsored By The Knights of Columbus Council 6043 Saturday, February 8 @ 5:30 PM St. Augustine Hall No Host Cocktails 5:30 PM - 7:00 PM Dinner 7:00 PM & Dancing 9:00 PM The Crab Dinner includes the following: Cooked and Cracked Crab for one-person, green salad, pasta, rolls, lemon wedges, and cocktail sauce. Beer, wine, soda and water are available to purchase. There is a $10 corkage fee for outside wine. Raffle Tickets for some great prizes will also be sold. Cost $75 per adult or child This year will include an optional drive through pick up from 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Dinners are for crab only (no steak) and will not include pasta. Cost $75 per prefixed meal for one. Purchase your tickets on-line https://knights-of-columbus-council-6043-875353.square.site No tickets will be sold at the door. Substitutions will be made if crab is not available. Steak only available upon request when tickets are purchased. No exchanges at the door. This fundraising event is very important to the Knights of Columbus council. It is our largest fundraiser, and it will provide us with the means to support many of our tri-valley charities. Thank you for your support! |
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LOS ANGELES FIRE DISASTER RELIEF
Special Second Collection Next Weekend With many lives and thousands of homes and businesses lost, the damage caused by these fires in Los Angeles is devastating. More than 35,000 acres have burned and the estimated financial cost is 50 billion dollars and rising. We will have a special second collection next weekend at all Masses to support the relief effort. "Please keep praying for all those suffering in the wildfires sweeping through southern California. My heart goes out to our neighbors who have lost their homes and livelihoods. Let’s pray for them and let’s pray for our firefighters and first responders. May God keep all of our brothers and sisters safe and bring end to these fires! – Archbishop Gomez If you would like to make a contribution online, please visit: https://onrealm.org/catholicsofpleasanton/give/now. Please make sure to choose "Disaster Relief" from the dropdown menu. |
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MEN’S DAY OF REFLECTION
Hope & The Eucharist - Saturday, February 15 St. Elizabeth Seton Church 8:30 AM - 4:00 PM Breakfast & Lunch Led by Fr. Mark Wiesner Come to this Day of Reflection and hear how Hope and the Eucharist work together to help us on our pilgrim journey to the Father! HOPE: “The sure and confident expectation of receiving what God has promised us!” EUCHARIST: The Holy Eucharist is the “source and summit of the Christian life!” Sponsored by The Knights Of Columbus Council 6043 Questions? Please contact: Tony Soby 925-963-9721 Dennis Maurice 925-963-7616 |
$250 per person Single Occupancy (SOLD OUT)
$235 per person Double Occupancy $145 Commuter (SOLD OUT) PRICE INCLUDES FOUR MEALS Check-in at 4:00 pm Friday | Check-out at 8:00 pm Saturday Questions? Please contact Lanette Wessel or Anne Marie Gallagher. |
CCOP WOMEN’S RETREAT
FAITH, HOPE & LOVE FEBRUARY 21-22, 2025 SAN DAMIANO RETREAT CENTER Join us for a retreat in a beautiful and sacred space for a time of prayer, faith sharing, fellowship and spiritual development. This is a wonder opportunity to meet and connect with women from our CCOP community! Our Retreat Leader Margaret Riley Margaret began ministry in 1980 as a youth minister at her home parish while attending UNLV. Discovering there was much she needed to learn about the Catholic faith; She transferred to the Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio and obtained a degree in Theology and a minor in Education. Several years later, she joined the Franciscan Sisters in Redwood City, CA. She was with them for almost 9 years and continues to be in close relationship with the Sisters. Since 1989 M has been a Lay Ecclesial Minister for the Arch diocese of San Francisco and the Diocese of Oakland. She has joyfully served the church as DFF (Director of Faith Formation, Youth minister, sacraments coordinator, leading retreats for parochial schools, middle school and high school groups, and directing Confirmation programs. M was part of the staff here at CCOP as the Sacraments Coordinator from 1997 until 2006. M ministered at St. Charles as a director of Faith Formation, Sacraments and VBS for 14 years and St. Mary in Walnut Creek for 3 year. In 2004 M received a Masters degree in Pastoral Ministry at the GTU ~ The Franciscan School of Theology in Berkeley. One of M greatest joys is being a certified Spiritual Director since 2009. She went through a 3 year certification program from the Spiritual Direction Institute founded by the Mercy Sisters of Burlingame, CA. otherwise known as SDI. Margaret joined the Spiritual Direction team at San Damiano in 2018 and continues to minister at San Damiano working on retreats and Spiritual Direction almost full time. M side hobbies (joys) is making cards from photos taken on her hikes, dog sitting, movies, (greatest joy) doting over her 20 nieces and nephews and 28 great nieces and nephews. |
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WINGS
Women In God's Spirit Thursday, January 23, 2025 9:30 am in Borromeo Hall Christine Moore Words of Love for a New Year Join poet and educator, Christine Moore, for a beauty-filled conversation and opportunity to consider what words of love are most important to you and your family. Set a tone of renewal and joy for 2025 and consider the power of poetry in each of our lives. Christine grew up in rural Sonoma County surrounded by nature. Her childhood was spent primarily outdoors, where she learned the joy and fragility of life. Christine holds an MFA in poetry from the University of San Francisco and has written professionally for more than 20 years. Her poems have appeared in Pasadena Review 26: C A journal of poetry and poetics and her chapbook Lent Words was published by Quillkeepers Press in January 2024. Moore is a mom, wife, journalist, creative writing instructor, cancer survivor and certified sommelier. Moore and her three siblings established Teac Mor in 2006, a micro boutique winery and she cohosts the series Wine & Word. Moore is an active member of St. Simon Parish in Los Altos and Facilitator of a women’s group in her community. Questions: Janet Schott 925-373-9346 or Cindy Kline 925-724-7636 www.stcharleslivermore.org/wings |
Questions? Please contact the organizer, Belinda, at 724-679-7450 or [email protected]
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YOU ARE INVITED TO JOIN A PILGRIMAGE! WALK THE CAMINO!
Spiritual Guide - Fr. Mark Wiesner Walk the most Sacred and Revered Pilgrimage Route in the World We will also visit Madrid, Lisbon, Fatima, Santarem and Finisterre! FULFILL THAT DREAM NOW! What's Included?
$4499 per person from San Francisco 2 Dates Available!
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MARDI GRAS BINGO & LIGHT LUNCH
Saturday, February 8 Charity Fundraiser Sponsored By St. Michael’s Golden Friends and Italian Catholic Federation Br. 285 Come join us for a fun Mardi Gras themed Bingo! Doors Open 10:00 AM - BINGO Starts 10:30 AM 326 Maple St. Livermore, CA St. Michael’s Church Hall There will be No seating assignments, seating is 1st come 1st served. $15.00 per Bingo Card and Lunch $10.00 for additional Bingo Cards TK-8th grade $5.00 Partial Proceeds benefit ICF local Catholic Charities. RSVP by Tuesday, February 4th noon. Any questions, Suzanne [email protected] Golden Friends Virginia [email protected] ICF |
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OFFICES CLOSED
In observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, all parish offices will be closed on Monday, January 20. There will be no 12:10 pm Mass at St. Elizabeth Seton, either in person or live streamed, and no Eucharistic Adoration. Parish offices will reopen on Tuesday, January 21. |
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WELCOME TO THE CATHOLIC COMMUNITY OF PLEASANTON!
Have you been coming to Mass, but haven't had a chance to ask questions or to register? The Welcome Team would be happy to answer any questions or just say "Welcome". This Sunday, and every third Sunday of the month, the Welcome Team has a table (next to the donuts). Stop by for a welcome bag and info on some of our parish ministries and upcoming events. We look forward to meeting you! |
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DRESS A GIRL AROUND THE WORLD!
Consider this an invitation to make simple dresses for girls in third world countries! We meet once a month and our next Sew-Fest is January 22 from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM at Holy Cross Lutheran, 1020 Mocho St., Livermore We need all kinds of help, sewing, ironing, cutting; bring your sewing machine or serger, iron, ironing board, scissors, along with your helping hands! You can come for as long as you want--an hour or all day! (Please bring a bag lunch if you plan to stay all day!) We are always accepting cheerful cotton fabric donations! If you can't make the Sew-Fest but would like to sew, please contact us for kits that you can sew from home. Questions? Suzanne Beck, 925-352-8447 or [email protected]. |
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UPDATE ON DIOCESAN BANKRUPTCY
Bishop Barber Provides An Update On The Bankruptcy Case For Our Diocese Dear faithful Catholics and friends of the Diocese of Oakland, May the peace and love of our Lord Jesus Christ continue to be with each one of you! Today, I want to update you on the progress we have made since May 8, 2023, when the Roman Catholic Bishop of Oakland (the Diocese) made the difficult but necessary decision to seek bankruptcy protection. The effect of California state law AB 218, which temporarily revived the statute of limitations for sexual abuse claims, meant we did not have the resources to simultaneously defend the claims made against the Diocese for abuse which happened decades ago, and to provide adequate compensation to abuse survivors, as well as to continue to fulfill our mission to serve God and His people. Thus, the Diocese filed bankruptcy because we believe this process is the best way to support a compassionate and equitable outcome for abuse survivors, while we continue to spread the Gospel and provide essential services and support so crucial to our parishioners and communities. We believe we have made significant progress toward that goal. Regrettably, it has been necessary for the Diocese to sue our insurers, so they will satisfy their moral and contractual responsibility to pay covered claims and assist contributing to a settlement. This pursuit now involves more than a dozen different insurers and a court-ordered mediation process and is a key component of a potential settlement in bankruptcy. Second, over the last seven months, we have been engaged in mediation with the group of survivors appointed by the bankruptcy court, through mediation with their counsel and representatives. We are also separately mediating with representatives of our insurers. Each mediation is overseen by court-appointed mediators, with the goal of reaching a settlement which may then be approved by the bankruptcy court. We are working toward a bankruptcy court deadline of Nov. 8, 2024, through which the Diocese has the exclusive right to file a plan of reorganization with the bankruptcy court, pursuant to which the Diocese would seek to compensate the survivors. The details of these negotiations are confidential pursuant to an order of the bankruptcy court, and the process remains extremely difficult. The bankruptcy case has required a tremendous amount of effort including making necessary court filings and production of reams of documents and information about the Diocese. The financial burden of being a debtor in bankruptcy is also tremendous. We believe progress is being made. Still, I must stress to you that a settlement in the bankruptcy case, if we are able to achieve it, will necessarily involve shared sacrifice – there is no way around this. Nothing can undo or excuse the terrible suffering the survivors have endured following the deplorable conduct of their abusers. We are hopeful the survivors nonetheless recognize the Diocese is working in good faith to try to compensate them fairly and equitably. I believe this kind of settlement is the right thing to do. A settlement in the bankruptcy case is not guaranteed, and much work remains. Therefore, I ask you, my brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus, to join me in praying for a successful conclusion to this process. Please pray for the survivors; for those in our Diocese working so hard now to keep children safe; for our team working to resolve the bankruptcy case fairly and justly; and for me. This is a time of purification for our Church and Diocese. We are committed to the mission Christ has entrusted to us: to bring His message of love, mercy, and salvation to the people of the East Bay. We trust in the promise Christ made to us at His Ascension: "I will be with you all days, until the end of the world." It is His Church; and the power of His love will prevail. I thank you, the priests, religious, and laypeople of our Diocese for your generosity, fidelity, and good will. On this feast day of the Holy Rosary, we ask Mary, Queen of Heaven, to intercede for us with her Divine Son. Yours sincerely in Christ, The Most Reverend Michael C. Barber, S.J. Bishop of Oakland For more information, please visit: https://oakdiocese.org/chapter-11 |
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NATIONAL EUCHARISTIC REVIVAL
Our world is hurting. We all need healing, yet many of us are separated from the very source of our strength. Jesus Christ invites us to return to the source and summit of our faith—his Real Presence in the Holy Eucharist. Watch the video to learn more about the exciting journey ahead and how you can be a part of it! To learn more, please visit: https://www.eucharisticrevival.org/ |
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PHISHING SCAM
Once again, along with many other parishes in the Oakland diocese and beyond, CCOP continues to be targeted by scammers impersonating Fr. Mark via BOTH email and text messages, asking for money, gift cards or simply a response. There were a number of reports today in particular. THESE EMAILS OR TEXTS ARE NOT FROM FR. MARK. PLEASE DO NOT RESPOND. If you receive one of these emails, please mark it as spam or simply delete it. If you receive one of these texts, simply delete it. Response only encourages more attacks. You will only receive email from Fr. Mark from his catholicsofpleasanton.org email address. He will not text you directly. Please contact Michael Harmon, [email protected] if you have any questions. |
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A QUIET PLACE TO PRAY
ST. AUGUSTINE CHURCH DAILY: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM St. Augustine Church is open daily from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. to give you a quiet place for prayer. |
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RCIA: COME & SEE
Are you feeling like you might want to experience full initiation into the Catholic Faith? The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) is the process that adults complete to receive the Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist. Now is the time. Please contact Matt Gray at (925) 202-5425 or [email protected]. |
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