If you haven't heard about changes in the Roman Missal, read about them here. You can find a summary list of the changes to the mass here.

OLL is considering establishing a Men's Cornerstone Board and would like your input (and potential participation)! We are meeting to discuss the matter on Monday, February 13th at 7:30pm in the Chapel.

Open for discussion:

• Potential Board Members
• Roles and Responsibilities for Board Members
• The future of Men's Cornerstone

If you can not attend the meeting but are interested in participating or nominating a Cornerstone Brother for the board, please email Billy Ward (Cornerstone IX Lay Director) at wardcounseling@gmail.com.

Join us this Lent in...Living The Eucharist

You are invited to:

• Deepen your Catholic Faith
• Strengthen your family and faith community
• Live more fully as a disciple of Jesus every day
• Experience the Mass in a more powerful or meaningful way

Living the Eucharist presents dynamic opportunities for spiritual growth and has something for everyone — weekly groups for adults which meet for one hour at a variety of times and locations, family activities which may be done at home at your own schedule, or individual devotional readings. Come participate in the way most meaningful to you or your family. All materials will be a gift to you from Our Lady of the Lake Parish.

Sign up weekends: January 21-22, 28-29, and February 4-5. Do participate! It will enrich your faith and your life! 

Fill out the sign-up form and return it to the rectory or in the collection basket.

For more information please contact coordinator of Small Faith Sharing Groups, Joe Mortara at 973-239-9047 or jpmortara@aol.com, or visit the website www.LivingtheEucharist.org.

Please see the announcement in today’s bulletin about the three remaining Open Houses at OLL School this month and about the special January 29, 2012 Family Mass and Blue Ribbon Award ceremony.  Please tell your family, friends and neighbors about our upcoming Open House, and please join us at this special Family Mass.  Spread the word about our wonderful parish school!

The Events Calendar page is finally updated! (What, you say? Yes. Updated.) Check the Events Calendar page to say current on upcoming events at OLL.

Please know that our Family Mass offers the opportunity for all families to celebrate God’s presence and draw strength from this, without being anxious about the impact of their children’s distracting noises or behaviors. All families should consider themselves at home.

Our next Family Mass will be Sunday, February 5, 2012 at 9:00am. We look forward to seeing you at our Liturgy and hope you will join us in the cafeteria immediately following Mass to enjoy some breakfast treats!

INSIGHT Retreat — Our annual Insight Retreat will be held on March 9-11, 2012.  Information and registration forms are available on the website.  Registration is on a first come first serve basis.

Souper Bowl Sunday — On Saturday Feb. 4 and Sunday Feb. 5 after all masses, the youth group will be collecting monetary donations for a local charity.

Upcoming Youth Group Meetings: 7:30-9:00pm (7:00pm Adoration in the church)

• February 6th
• February 13th  —  Battle of the Sexes

Upcoming Leadership Council Meetings: 7pm-9pm January 30th

Visit the Youth Ministry section of this site for the Newsletter and other downloads!

Tuesdays, 9:30am – 11:30am Lake School Auditorium (use Lakeside entrance -- please just knock on the door.)

Time for Tots is an informal group of Moms and Dads who get together while our children play. We all know the winter months can be long, when you can't get your small children out the door to burn off some energy. Time for Tots allows your children to get out of the house and play with other children, while giving you some much needed "adult time."

There is no sign up or cost involved. Feel free to drop by any time.

Please call or e-mail Carli Crinion 973-433-7249 or carcrin@gmail.com with any questions.

"Blessed are they who mourn for they shall be comforted"

Our Lady of the Lake’s Bereavement Ministry offers a comfortable and safe environment where those who are grieving the loss of a loved one, may seek support from others who are experiencing a similar loss.

Sessions are held on alternating Tuesdays, September through June, at 7:30pm in the OLL rectory.  A modified summer schedule is also offered.

If you would like some company on your journey or would like to experience God’s grace as you walk this difficult path, please contact one of our facilitators, JoAnn Palmisano 973-585-7278 or Joan Stern 973-239-9113 for more information.  

Your presence is always welcome! 

Next Meeting: January 31 at 7:30 Rectory

If you know someone us is unable to get to mass due to illness and would like to receive Holoy Communion, please contact the rectory at 973-239-5696.  We have a group of dedicated parishioners who visit the sick and homebound on a weekly basis and bring the Sacrament.

Our Lady of the Lake Pastoral Council is happy to announce a new ministry. The Pastoral Council has taken on the mission of trying to help bring together people seeking employment, with those who have job opportunities. To help bring these two groups together, we have launched a new LinkedIn group: "OLL Verona". If you are interested in joining this group in the hopes of finding a job, or if you would like to post an opening you have, or know of, please take the following actions:

• If you are already a member of LinkedIn, simply request admission into the OLL Verona group. Go to Groups, search for "OLL Verona" and join the group. Once a member, you will have full access to all job postings and discussion areas. It may take a day or so to complete the admission process.
• If you are not a member of LinkedIn, simply create an account (at www.LinkedIn.com) then request admission into the OLL Verona group as listed above. If you have any questions about this program, please feel free to send email to OLL_Lists@comcast.net.

Children's Liturgy of the word is celebrated at 9:00 Mass on Sundays except when Family Mass is scheduled. A reading, gospel, homily, act of faith, prayer of the faithful and joyful hymn at the children's level are presented in an interactive fashion.

At a recent liturgy, we described Jesus' age transition over the last few Gospels. Jesus was an infant at Christmas, age 12 when preaching at the temple for Holy Family Sunday, and was 30 years old at his Baptism by St. John. We opened with the question, "How old was Jesus on Christmas Day?" The expected response was 'newborn'. The first answer was "everlasting" followed by "2009" and "very old". The children truly do create the homily!

While discussing the dove as Holy Spirit, an anology was made by one child to the Home Alone 2 movie. One friend had 2 doves and gave one to his best buddy as forever friends, just like we are with Jesus.

When asking why white was worn at baptism, responses included, "God likes that color", "it's like the color of heaven", "it's the color of angels" and "the soul leaves the body and is probably white". Children were asked to check their baptismal date and celebrate it each year in a spiritual way.

Thank you for sharing your faith and allowing the children to continue to develp it.

In order to ensure you receive updates on all events happening at OLL, we encourage you to subscribe to OLL's electronic events email system. Simply complete the form you'll find here and hit submit -- that's it! Once subscribed, you will receive exciting updates about future events at OLL.

Next Collection: Sat and Sun, February 4-5 (at each mass)

St. John's Soup Kitchen is located at St. John's Church on Mulberry Street, Newark across from the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. The kitchen feeds approximately 400 people a day. The food is prepared early in the day. The volunteers serve the food at 11:30am.

The people being served are not inside the kitchen. Rain or shine, snow or sunny the people are served outside in a fenced-in area. They are very grateful for whatever they receive.

On the second Tuesday of each month, a group of OLL volunteers car pool to St. John's to help out at the Soup Kitchen by serving meals to these 400+ people. We leave at 10:50 am and return by 2PM. We park in a fenced-in area with attended parking (it is safe) and we invite you to join us. It is a very rewarding experience. If you are interested, call Ida Emma at 973-239-7034 or Nancy Canavan at 973-239-9472.

Most needed items:

• Canned Beans (kidney, white etc.)
• Canned Soup, Cereals, Rice
• Coffee and Tea
• Canned Peas, String Beans

Oktoberfest 2011 was another HUGE success! Thank you to all who made it out to join the party or supported the cause in any way!

The first OKTOBERFEST 2011 PHOTOS HAVE ARRIVED!

Have photos or videos from the night you'd like to share? Please upload your best 5 to 10!

So, what have the local website had to say about Oktoberfest and Kinderfest?

• Verona Patch - Oktoberfest Held at Our Lady of the Lake
• New Jersey Hills - Our Lady Of The Lake Hosts Second Annual Octoberfest
• Verona Patch - Kinderfest Rocks Our Lady of the Lake
• My Verona NJ - Under The Big Tent, A Big Event For Kids