PARISH MINISTRIES

“Let us build a house where hands will reach beyond the wood and stone to heal and strengthen, serve and teach”

The gift of Christ in our lives is a gift we are called to share.  St John Neumann parishioners have created and nourished ministries and events that share our love of the faith both within and beyond our parish.

As a community of faith, we realize that this gift of knowing Christ in our life is something that must be shared. In the various organizations and ministries of our parish, we try to be of service to others so that they, too, can come closer to the Lord.

We welcome and invite you to join these vibrant aspects of our life at SJN!

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Alcoholics Anonymous
AA District Office . . . . . . . . . . 215-574-6900
Alcoholics Anonymous is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength, and hope with each other so that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from alcoholism. The only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. At St. John Neumann, we meet Wednesday nights from 8:00 to 9:00 P.M. in the Rectory Meeting Room.  The meeting room entrance is off the parking lot.

H.O.P.E. Ministry
Helping Other Parishioners in Emergency is the ministry of taking care of our parishioners in times of need. This includes taking trips to the doctor, therapy sessions, banking, or food shopping within the suburbs.

Interfaith Hospitality Network
Our parish is part of the Interfaith Hospitality Network, rotating with other churches and synagogues, for a week at a time, to create a homelike setting for displaced families. Parish volunteers set up and take down separate cubicles for each family, with a common living room area, in the parish center. Acting as hosts, they provide company and Christian fellowship for the guests, dinner each night of the week, and transportation as needed. Parishioners volunteer on a regular basis, or whenever they are able. All are welcome to participate in this ministry.

Manna Program
The Archdiocese maintains food pantries throughout the six counties, and each year in May we are asked to contribute nonperishable foods to fill those cupboards for the summer months. Large carryall bags are provided at the church doors and are also sent home with the school children. Parishioners are encouraged to return the bags to the rear of the church, on a given Sunday, with their food contributions. Volunteers from the Delaware County Food Pantry come to collect the bags in their vans.

Meals to Feed the Poor
Our parish supplies our sister parish, Our Mother of Sorrows, with frozen dinners.  Our parishioners fill individual aluminum trays with meat or fish, a starch and vegetable, and sometimes bread and dessert.  The trays are covered, labeled, and put into plastic bags, frozen, and transported to the school kitchen or church freezers.  Approximately 400 meals are supplied to the homebound each week.

Operation Rice Bowl
During Lent, our parish participates in the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Operation Rice Bowl. Its goal is to alleviate hunger in the world. Each family, before Lent, is encouraged to take a small cardboard “rice bowl” which includes a donation envelope and a Lenten calendar which explains the needs that can be served by the family’s sacrifices. Parents and children keep the “bowl” in a prominent place in the dining room and are reminded by it to put in offerings that involve self-denial for love of God and of the hungering peoples throughout the world. At the end of Lent those offerings are brought to church or school, the totals counted, and checks sent to the CRS.

Red Cross Blood Drive
Each year the parish responds to a Red Cross invitation to sponsor a blood drive.  The Parish Center is made available and a parish staff representative serves as liaison to facilitate the service.  Parishioners are encouraged to donate blood.  Donor forms are available in advance.  Parish volunteers call donors to remind them of the date and time.

Respect Life Committee
This Pro-life group is concerned with the preservation of life from conception to natural death.  This committee sponsors the annual bus trip to Washington, D.C., on the anniversary of the 1972 Supreme Court decision to legalize abortion in the U.S.; Respect Life Sunday; the sale of roses for life; the Bake sale; and organizes letter-writing campaigns when special votes are needed for pro-life legislation.

St. Vincent de Paul Society
The Saint Vincent de Paul Society collects food and clothing for the poor and needy of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia.  They have been instrumental in helping our sister parish, Our Mother of Sorrows, set up their own Saint Vincent de Paul Society, and provide ongoing assistance and counsel for it.  Also, they provide and serve a roast beef dinner on Martin Luther King Day and a summer barbecue for the men at St. John’s Hospice in Philadelphia.

School Ministry at Our Mother of Sorrows
This outreach provides a Junior Great Books program, an Enhanced Math Program, and a Testing Skill program for the students of our sister parish, Our Mother of Sorrows.  Also, there is an annual school supply collection and fundraiser for the “wish list” for this school in West Philadelphia.