Category: Parish News & Events

St. Michael de Sanctis: Saint of the Day for Friday, April 10, 2020

Michael de Sanctis was born in Catalonia, Spain around 1591. At the age of six he informed his parents that he was going to be a monk. Moreover, he imitated St. Francis of Assisi to such a great extent that he had to be restrained. After the death of his parents, Michael served as an apprentice to a merchant. However, he continued to lead a life of exemplary fervor and devotion, and in 1603, he joined the Trinitarian Friars at Barcelona, taking his vows at St. Lambert’s monastery in Saragosa in …

Prayer for Christian Families: Prayer of the Day for Friday, April 10, 2020

(By Pope Pius XII)
O Lord, God of goodness and mercy,
Who in the midst of an evil and sinful world
hast presented to the society of the redeemed
the Holy Family of Nazareth
as a spotless mirror of piety, justice and love,
behold how the family is being undermined on all sides,
every effort being made to desecrate it
by stripping it of faith, religion and morals.

Regard the work of Thy own hands.
Safeguard in our homes the domestic virtues,
for these alone will …

Holy Thursday – Evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper

Reading 1 Ex 12:1-8, 11-14

The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,
“This month shall stand at the head of your calendar;
you shall reckon it the first month of the year.
Tell the whole community of Israel:
On the tenth of this month every one of your families
must procure for itself a lamb, one apiece for each household.
If a family is too small for a whole lamb,
it shall join the nearest household in procuring one
and shall share in the lamb
in proportion to the number of persons who partake of it.
The lamb must be a year-old male and without blemish.
You may take it from either the sheep or the goats.
You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month,
and then, with the whole assembly of Israel present,
it shall be slaughtered during the evening twilight.
They shall take some of its blood
and apply it to the two doorposts and the lintel
of every house in which they partake of the lamb.
That same night they shall eat its roasted flesh
with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.

“This is how you are to eat it:
with your loins girt, sandals on your feet and your staff in hand,
you shall eat like those who are in flight.
It is the Passover of the LORD.
For on this same night I will go through Egypt,
striking down every firstborn of the land, both man and beast,
and executing judgment on all the gods of Egypt—I, the LORD!
But the blood will mark the houses where you are.
Seeing the blood, I will pass over you;
thus, when I strike the land of Egypt,
no destructive blow will come upon you.

“This day shall be a memorial feast for you,
which all your generations shall celebrate
with pilgrimage to the LORD, as a perpetual institution.”

Responsorial Psalm Ps 116:12-13, 15-16bc, 17-18.

R. (cf. 1 Cor 10:16)  Our blessing-cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ.
How shall I make a return to the LORD
for all the good he has done for me?
The cup of salvation I will take up,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
R. Our blessing-cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ.
Precious in the eyes of the LORD
is the death of his faithful ones.
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid;
you have loosed my bonds.
R. Our blessing-cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ.
To you will I offer sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and I will call upon the name of the LORD.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
 in the presence of all his people.
R. Our blessing-cup is a communion with the Blood of Christ.

Reading 2 1 Cor 11:23-26

Brothers and sisters:
I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you,
that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was handed over,
took bread, and, after he had given thanks,
broke it and said, “This is my body that is for you.
Do this in remembrance of me.”
In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying,
“This cup is the new covenant in my blood.
Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup,
you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.

Verse Before the GospelJn 13:34

I give you a new commandment, says the Lord:
love one another as I have loved you.

Gospel Jn 13:1-15

Before the feast of Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come
to pass from this world to the Father.
He loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end.
The devil had already induced Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, to hand him over.
So, during supper,
fully aware that the Father had put everything into his power
and that he had come from God and was returning to God,
he rose from supper and took off his outer garments.
He took a towel and tied it around his waist.
Then he poured water into a basin
and began to wash the disciples’ feet
and dry them with the towel around his waist.
He came to Simon Peter, who said to him,
“Master, are you going to wash my feet?”
Jesus answered and said to him,
“What I am doing, you do not understand now,
but you will understand later.”
Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.”
Jesus answered him,
“Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance with me.”
Simon Peter said to him,
“Master, then not only my feet, but my hands and head as well.”
Jesus said to him,
“Whoever has bathed has no need except to have his feet washed,
     for he is clean all over;
so you are clean, but not all.”
For he knew who would betray him;
for this reason, he said, “Not all of you are clean.”

So when he had washed their feet
and put his garments back on and reclined at table again,
he said to them, “Do you realize what I have done for you?
You call me ‘teacher’ and ‘master,’  and rightly so, for indeed I am.
If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet,
you ought to wash one another’s feet.
I have given you a model to follow,
so that as I have done for you, you should also do.”

– – –
Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Choosing to be Deliberate

Please don’t get me wrong, more than anything, I wish I could go to Mass tonight. Tomorrow, I will be wishing I could join my Church family in kissing Jesus’s feet and venerating the cross of his suffering and death, the cross of my salvation. I will miss beginning our Easter Vigil together, that moment of anticipation before it starts when we are chilled by the Michigan Spring twilight, eager for the warmth of the sacred fire. Sometimes you don’t properly appreciate what you have until you have to go without. 

But I have to admit; I am kind of excited by the opportunities present in this time of social isolation. In going without our usual Liturgical Celebrations in our communal church, we can’t gather and watch as the priests, deacons, choir, and servers enact the Mass and other Liturgies on our behalf. We have to actively choose how we will commemorate these three most Holy Days. We have to bring our participation back to our homes, our domestic church. 

The Holy Triduum is not three days of different liturgies. It is one liturgy that takes place over three days (with breaks built in!). In a time when we are set apart from one another physically, we can spiritually set apart these three days from all the others. In a time when the days are starting to run together, and friendly memes remind us to change from our day pajamas to our night pajamas, we can consciously and deliberately choose to make these days stand out.

This year, in ways that reach back to the roots of Catholicism, we choose how to participate, and it may be as simple as dressing up for dinner tonight and reading the Gospel before starting and discussing it during dinner. 

It may be that as a family, we choose to wash each other’s feet. We can say with our words and our actions, “Christ washed his disciple’s feet in an act of love, service, and humility. I wash your feet because I love you as Christ loves us.” 

Maybe, when we recall how Jesus instituted the Mass through the Last Supper, we can remember that in order to participate in the Mass, we need priests. Priests are men who love God so much that they are willing to forgo their own families so they can be Fathers to us. We can thank God for these priests, who, in all their messy humanity, make it possible for us to transcend time and space and be present at the Last Supper. They need our prayers. 

Perhaps, we can make some unleavened bread. When we give thanks for it, we can make a spiritual communion opening up our hearts just like we should each time we meet at the altar. 

This is the evening when Jesus prayed in the garden, instead of heading to bed, maybe we can take some time to sit in the silence and keep him company. 

And maybe, just maybe, we can deliberately allow ourselves to be humbled through this time of social isolation so that when we return to the communal church we won’t be the same people we were when we last left it on the unsuspecting Sunday in March. Maybe next time we will sit in the front row so we can be as close to Jesus as possible. Maybe we’ll arrive early and stay late so as to spend as much time as possible with Jesus. Maybe we’ll listen more closely to the words of the Eucharistic Prayer and be led more deeply into the liturgy. Maybe we will remember that even after this time of separation is over the Catholic Church is the church of “both/and” and we will maintain our immersion in our faith in both our domestic church and our communal church. 

However you spend these next three days, please know that you are in my prayers. May God keep you and your family safe. 

If you would like some ideas on entering into the Holy Triduum more deliberately, please feel free to visit our school website at www.sttwaylandmi.com where we have collected resources from all over to guide you. 

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Sheryl delights in being the number 1 cheerleader and supporter for her husband, Tom who is a candidate for the Permanent Diaconate in the Diocese of Kalamazoo. They are so grateful for the opportunity to grow together in this process whether it is studying for classes, deepening their prayer life or discovering new ways to serve together. Sheryl’s day job is serving her community as the principal for St. Therese Catholic School in Wayland, Michigan. Since every time she thinks she gets life all figured out, she realizes just how far she has to go, St. Rita of Cascia is her go-to Saint for intercession and help. Home includes Brea, a Bernese Mountain dog and Carlyn, a very, very goofy Golden Retriever.

St. Waldetrudis: Saint of the Day for Thursday, April 09, 2020

Also known as Waltrude or Waudru, she was the daughter of Saints Walbert and Bertilia and sister of St. Aldegunus of Maubeuge. Marrying St. Vincent Madelgarius, she became the mother of saints Landericus, Madalberta, Adeltrudis, and Dentelin. When her husband chose to become a monk about 643 in the monastery of Hautrnont, France, he had founded, she established a convent at Chateaulieu, around which grew up the town of Mons, Belgium.

Wednesday of Holy Week

Reading 1 Is 50:4-9a

The Lord GOD has given me
a well-trained tongue,
That I might know how to speak to the weary
a word that will rouse them.
Morning after morning
he opens my ear that I may hear;
And I have not rebelled,
have not turned back.
I gave my back to those who beat me,
my cheeks to those who plucked my beard;
My face I did not shield
from buffets and spitting.

The Lord GOD is my help,
therefore I am not disgraced;
I have set my face like flint,
knowing that I shall not be put to shame.
He is near who upholds my right;
if anyone wishes to oppose me,
let us appear together.
Who disputes my right?
Let him confront me.
See, the Lord GOD is my help;
who will prove me wrong?

Responsorial Psalm 69:8-10, 21-22, 31 and 33-34

R.    (14c)  Lord, in your great love, answer me.
For your sake I bear insult,
and shame covers my face.
I have become an outcast to my brothers,
a stranger to my mother’s sons,
because zeal for your house consumes me,
and the insults of those who blaspheme you fall upon me.
R.    Lord, in your great love, answer me.
Insult has broken my heart, and I am weak,
I looked for sympathy, but there was none;
for consolers, not one could I find.
Rather they put gall in my food,
and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
R.    Lord, in your great love, answer me.
I will praise the name of God in song,
and I will glorify him with thanksgiving:
“See, you lowly ones, and be glad;
you who seek God, may your hearts revive!
For the LORD hears the poor,
and his own who are in bonds he spurns not.”
R.    Lord, in your great love, answer me.

Verse Before the Gospel

Hail to you, our King;
you alone are compassionate with our errors.

Or
Hail to you, our King, obedient to the Father;
you were led to your crucifixion like a gentle lamb to the slaughter.

Gospel Mt 26:14-25

One of the Twelve, who was called Judas Iscariot,
went to the chief priests and said,
“What are you willing to give me
if I hand him over to you?”
They paid him thirty pieces of silver,
and from that time on he looked for an opportunity to hand him over.

On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread,
the disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Where do you want us to prepare
for you to eat the Passover?”
He said,
“Go into the city to a certain man and tell him,
‘The teacher says, “My appointed time draws near;
in your house I shall celebrate the Passover with my disciples.”‘“
The disciples then did as Jesus had ordered,
and prepared the Passover.

When it was evening,
he reclined at table with the Twelve.
And while they were eating, he said,
“Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”
Deeply distressed at this,
they began to say to him one after another,
“Surely it is not I, Lord?”
He said in reply,
“He who has dipped his hand into the dish with me
is the one who will betray me.
The Son of Man indeed goes, as it is written of him,
but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed.
It would be better for that man if he had never been born.”
Then Judas, his betrayer, said in reply,
“Surely it is not I, Rabbi?”
He answered, “You have said so.”

– – –
Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Surely it is not I, Lord?

When it was evening, he reclined at table with the Twelve.
And while they were eating, he said, “Amen, I say to you, one of you will betray me.”

Deeply distressed at this, they began to say to him one after another, “Surely it is not I, Lord?”

As we read today’s Gospel, we find the beginning story of Judas’ betrayal. He seeks out the chief priests and says to them, “What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?”. Thirty pieces of silver are his reward. The story goes on to the Twelve celebrating the Passover with Jesus. He tells them that one of them will betray him and the eleven answer, “Surely it is not I, Lord?”. Judas answers, “Surely, it is not I, Rabbi?”

Yes, Judas betrayed Jesus. Yes, he lied to Him, too, at the Last Supper. But what does this have to do with us? Well, I think all of us know the story of Judas Iscariot. We know it and shake our heads as we hear how he chose the love of money over loving Christ. We know how his story ends, and it breaks our hearts. I believe Jesus calls us to ask, when have we responded, “Surely it is not I, Lord?”. Have there been times in your life where you have chosen the silver? This is definitely unique to each individual person, but where have you betrayed the Lord? Where have you said no to His love or to the prompting of His Spirit? I know for myself, I can look at Judas and feel much sorrow for him. He loved the silver more than he loved the Lord. I can also look into my own heart and reflect on my own sins and mistakes throughout my life and pinpoint all the times that I, too, loved something more than I loved the Lord. In this Holy Week, may we turn our hearts with true repentance back to Jesus. May we love Him more than anything or anyone in our lives. We know the story, and we know that Judas could have written a different ending to his story if he had repented. May we do what Judas did not, may we run back to the Father and be embraced by His love and mercy. I pray that we all embrace the cross and resurrection in a new way this Easter, that we may receive the love and mercy He longs to give us. Amen.

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Briana is the Pastoral Minister at St. Mark Church in Cleveland, OH. She is also a district manager at Arbonne. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Theology and Catechetics from the Franciscan University of Steubenville, OH and is excited to use these skills to serve the Church. “My soul has been refined and I can raise my head like a flower after a storm.” -St. Therese

St. Julie Billiart: Saint of the Day for Wednesday, April 08, 2020

St. Julie (Julia) Billiart was born in 1751 and died in 1816. As a child, playing “school” was Julie’s favorite game. When she was sixteen, to help support her family, she began to teach “for real”. She sat on a haystack during the noon recess and told the biblical parables to the workers. Julie carried on this mission of teaching throughout her life, and the Congregation she founded continues her work. Julie was the fifth of seven children. She attended a little one room …