Parish Newsletter

March 29, 2023

Staying Connected

Dear Friends,

Recently I received some very difficult news; difficult for me, for CTK's St. Vincent de Paul and for the poor. I was heartbroken and deeply saddened. The Superintendent of Schools of the Diocese of Oakland wrote:

“Bishop Barber has asked that I look into incidents at or around Christ the King Food Pantry that have, according to reports, been in proximity of school children as parents are picking up their children after school. The incidents described involve concerning behavior of food pantry patrons.”

And so, I was asked to suspend our St. Vincent de Paul operations at Christ the King, and I have done so as of last Friday.

Over the past years, we have had folks occasionally walk onto our campus anytime of the day and their conduct can make people feel uncomfortable. They are folks with mental, emotional, and other challenging issues. Last week we had two instances back-to-back. So, I understand the situation. Our children - and everyone - need to be protected. After I arrived here, I built a fence around the school, even against the wishes of some of our parishioners who said we were separating the school from the church. I did it because I do care deeply about protecting our children, not only from vagrants, but even from others who would want to disturb the school in any other way, including folks accidentally driving cars onto the lawn or the play area when children are outside. 

I know this is not good news for our St. Vincent de Paul. We will explore with you and the St. Vincent de Paul volunteers what we can do for the poor and the mentally/emotionally challenged. When one door closes, another opens. Please do not give up hope. It has to do with the poor, so please do not say, ‘I can’t serve outside our sacred grounds.’ True love, sacrificial love is borne out when we have to go an extra mile, and we are doing it to protect our children and to serve the poor.

We will explore other options including working with other St. Vincent de Paul Conferences in Concord, Walnut Creek and Pittsburg. We will explore how we can continue to take care of the poor, mindful that we have about 22,000 visitors every year. Thank you for generously donating $235,000 last year to our St. Vincent de Paul. Thank you for donating nearly $80,000 towards keeping folks in their own homes during the pandemic. My only desire is to do more in the days to come.



I am personally struggling as a pastor because it is hard for me to imagine a church community where the poor, the challenged have no access Monday through Sunday. Our nation has rejected them to the streets. Nobody wants them in their backyard. I see the cops removing them from shop fronts and parks. That is the reason why they often gravitate towards churches. Because they believe we won't throw them out. In this sense, it does pain me, and I am deeply broken. I trust in God, and He will show us a way to serve. We will work together as a parish community and we will thrive. 

I want to share the story I told you this past Sunday:



We called him Stinky George. He was a homeless man, unemployed, and often sick. He would occasionally show up at church. He liked the air conditioning, the pot-luck lunches, and the communion wine. On this particular Sunday he sat down right in the front pew. “Do you smell it, too?” someone asked a neighbor. “Yes.” “Well, what is it?” Gradually folks moved away, leaving him alone in the pew.

If I am honest, really honest, I would have said, “That is the smell of homelessness and poverty. That is the smell of hunger and loneliness. That is the smell of alcoholism and illness. That is the smell of one who has no place to bathe and in many ways no reason to bathe. That is the smell of mental illness. That is the smell of death.



Every day we smell death and every day we have the opportunity, by the grace of God, to change and be changed, to unbind and be unbound, to let go and be let go.



I sometimes wonder what happened to Stinky George. More often I wonder what would have happened if I had followed Jesus’ words rather than my nose. What would have happened if I had invited George to lunch one day? What if I had helped George find an AA meeting, and the social services that could have provided medical care, a place to live, and food to eat. What if I had said, “George, tell me the stories you are always telling, but that I have never listened to. I want to know you and your life.” What if when it came time to exchange the sign of peace I put my arms around him, pulled him close and said, “The peace of Christ be with you.” I wonder what I would have unbound in George. I wonder what George would have unbound in me.

"Unbind him, and let him go. This is the holy work to which we are called. This is the joyful task set before us by Christ. No longer shall we be onlookers to death and destruction. No longer shall we be bystanders to bigotry or plight. Christ has called Love and Justice out of the tomb. It is up to us to unleash them in a world that yearns for healing and hope."

Fr. Paulson

Fr. Paulson's Easter Letter with the Easter Schedule can be found here.

Movie and Soup Night

“The Passion of the Christ”

Tomorrow Evening! Thursday, March 30 at 6:30pm

St. Stephen Parish Hall

Come for Lenten Soup (free) and watch the movie: "The Passion of the Christ" on March 30th at 6.30pm (after the 6pm Mass honoring our Mother of Perpetual Help).

This will be held at St. Stephen. Introduction will be given by Rabbi Roberto Graetz, Rabbi Emeritus from Temple Isaiah, Lafayette. He will speak about anti-Semitism in the movie as well as in Christianity in the United States. He will stay for the entire movie and answer questions at the end.

Please note: We will not have rosary or mass at CTK this Thursday (tomorrow). Instead the 6pm mass will be moved to St. Stephen for tomorrow only.

There will be no 8am mass tomorrow (Thursday) at St. Stephen Church.

Christ the King/St. Stephen Church

Adult Faith Formation

Lenten Series 2023

Our Adult Faith Formation Lenten Series

Continues this Week!

Our Lenten Scripture Study continues this Friday, March 31 at 10am

in the Ministry Center Chapel.

Our next Lectio Divina (Divine Reading) of the upcoming Sunday readings

Please note new date: Tonight! Wednesday, March 29 - 7pm to 8pm

in the Parish Hall.

Palm Sunday - April 2

4pm - Saturday Mass

7:30am, 9am, 10:30am & 4pm - Sunday

Holy Thursday - April 6

   7pm Mass

 St. Stephen Church - 7pm Mass

Good Friday - April 7

12pm - Taize Prayer Around the Cross

1pm - Stations of the Cross

1:40pm - Preaching on the Passion

2pm - Liturgy of the Lord’s Passion

6pm - Liturgy of the Lord’s Passion

St. Stephen Church - Stations of the Cross - 6pm

Easter Vigil Saturday - April 8

7:30pm Mass

St. Stephen Church - 7:30pm Mass

 Easter Sunday Masses - April 9

7:30am, 9:00am, 10:30am - In the church

9am & 10:30am - Children/Family Mass - Outdoors

No 4pm Mass

St. Stephen Church - 9:30am

Þ Please bring your own chairs for the outdoor masses.

Þ Livestreaming links to our services can be found at ctkph.org.

Þ 10:30am Easter Sunday Mass will be livestreamed

Please Return Your

CRS Rice Bowls!

You can drop off your CRS Rice Bowls in the baskets located in the back of the church.

Or you can bring them to the

parish office through Holy Week.

Please do not drop them off on Easter Sunday.

Thank you for your support!

Our thanks to Ushers who have already used the

Sign-up Genius to sign up for the

Lenten and Easter Masses.

We still need ushers for:

Holy Thursday: April 6th - 7pm Service;

Good Friday: April 7th - 6 pm service,

Saturday Easter Vigil Mass: April 8th - 7:30pm

Easter Day: April 9th - 7:30 am mass; 9 am both indoor and outdoor masses; and the 10:30 am outside mass. (The outdoor masses especially need help.) 

I’ve attached the link to the Sign-up Genius for you to use to sign up for the various Usher time slots mentioned above. 

You can use the Sign-up Genius by clicking here.

Although the Sign-up Genius is the preferred method of enrolling for an open usher slot, if you're in need of assistance, I’d be happy to enroll you for the selected masses. Just email me with your preferred mass or masses.

Jack Murphy:  jmurph818@aol.com  

Dear CTK Religious Education Families,

A beautiful CTK RE Easter tradition is the flowered cross. It is displayed at outdoor Easter masses, and then inside the church for as long as the flowers last. The best part about the cross is that it is created by YOU! RE CTK families provide multi-colored roses, Gerber daisies and sunflowers that reflect the beauty of God’s entire creation. (Please bring only these varieties, as thicker stems are needed for proper attachment to the cross.)

This beautiful activity lends itself to the involvement of children, who bring and attach their favorite flowers to the cross. When children proudly show others the flowers that they have attached, it is a moment of joy and of prayer for all.

The flowered cross will be assembled on Holy Saturday, April 8, from 10:00 AM until 1 PM. The “bare” cross will be on the patio in front of the church, waiting for you to attach your floral contributions. If your children are attending the Knights of Columbus Easter Egg Hunt, which is scheduled the same morning, please bring your flowers to the church patio before or after that event. We can hardly wait to see the beautiful cross you create this year!



See you on Holy Saturday morning!

Join us for the

CTK Scholastic Book Fair

April 2nd-6th



Encourage reading by letting kids shop for the books they want to read. 

Choosing their own books empowers kids and inspires them to become bolder, prouder, and stronger readers.

The book fair starts on Palm Sunday in the Parish Hall – 9:45a to 12:30p

You’ll find faith-building books, new bestsellers, beloved classics plus exclusives only from Scholastic.

Online sale open March 31 thru April 13

Visit our website for details. Can’t wait to see you there! 

In the Parish Hall

Palm Sunday 4/2 9:45am to 12:30pm

Mon, Tue, Wed 7:00am to 5:30pm

Thursday 4/6 7:00am to 2:00pm

Annual Easter Egg Hunt

Saturday, April 8th on CTK’s Lawn Area

The annual Easter Egg Hunt is back again this year at CTK! The Knights of Columbus are holding their CTK Easter Egg Hunt so come join us for a morning of fun and excitement on the lawn.  

The Easter Bunny will be arriving at 10am and the Easter Egg Hunt will follow our usual schedule: 10:15 am for 1-4 years old, 10:45am for 5-7 years old and 11:15am for 8-10 years old.  Bring your Easter baskets, get a picture with the Easter Bunny, participate in the Easter Egg Hunt, and enjoy some refreshments and games as we celebrate Easter weekend.  Please bring a canned good to donate to charity.  We look forward to seeing everyone!   

Congratulations to our newly baptized.

Welcome to Christ the King and St. Stephen Family!



Parents: Melissa & Luiz

Baby: Lorenzo Joao

Palm Sunday

Welcome to our weekly reflections on

the Sunday Scriptures.



Matthew’s “Hosanna” and “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord” are proclaimed at every Catholic Mass at the Sanctus (“Holy, holy”) at the beginning of the Eucharistic Prayer.  Read More

Read the Bishop's Letter and the Frequently Asked Questions addressing the response to the harm caused by clergy sexual abuse. The letter and information can be found by clicking Here



The April, 2023 Issue of the Catholic Voice is online.

The Our Lord of Pardon Prayer Group will begin a 9-day novena during the month of April at 7:00 pm. The Divine Mercy Novena will begin on Good Friday, April 7, and end on Saturday, April 15. To obtain the zoom link and password, please contact Imelda Santos (925-623-7340) or Efrain Salvosa (925-698-6530). We hope you will join us at this novena.

To donate a one-time/on-line donation.

Or regular and/or second collections.

2023 Bishop’s Ministries Appeal

The Bishop’s Ministries Appeal is an annual campaign to generate funds to cover the costs of the Diocese of Oakland’s ministries, programs, and services. It is a direct appeal to the people of the diocese, urging their support in the form of a pledge or a gift to supplement the ministry budget.

Envelopes and brochures are also available in the back of the church.

 You can click here to donate.

CTK Finance Results Summary

2022 - 2023

As referenced at last weekend's mass, the 2022-2023 finance results slides can be found here.

If you have any questions or concerns please email finance@ctkph.org.

Readings for Sunday Mass Here

Links to our services (live or archived) can be found at ctkph.org

or by clicking the Facebook or YouTube images below.

Ongoing Services

Sacrament of Reconciliation - Private Confessions every Saturday from 3pm to 3:30pm, in the church.

Drive-Thru Holy Communion - Every Sunday 11:30am to 12 noon, in front of the church.

Thursday Mass - 6pm - Honoring our Mother of Perpetual Help, Rosary begins at 5:40pm, in the church. Worship Aide Here  (Also livestreamed).

Lord Jesus, during these weeks of Lent I have walked with you as you made your way from Galilee to Jerusalem. In a few days, I will wave my palm branch and shout my “Hosannas” to you as my king. But what will I do when your fate becomes clear? Will I run at the first sign of trouble in the Garden? Or will I stand with you, as John did at the foot of your cross? Lord, you know my weakness, the fickleness of my faith under pressure. I take heart in your forgiveness of those timid apostles… and trust that you will forgive my fickleness. For this I praise you…. my only hope of salvation. Amen