Catholic Community of St. Jude at 409 Wilson St., DeWitt, MI 48820 US - Home
Welcome! We hope you find valuable information here about our parish and the many programs and activities that we offer to enrich the lives of our parishioners and the community.
Please take a moment to visit the Events tab to the left which contains a full calendar of events this week and coming events, plus a downloadable monthly calendar. We hope you enjoy your visit and check back often
to stay up to date on the life of our parish.
Articles featured this week:
Vacation Bible School is almost Here!
Peter's Pence Collection next wekeend
Peter's Pence Collection next wekeend
The Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin mary into Heaven
Good Financial News
6PM Mass Schedule for the Summer
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Vacation Bible School is Almost Here!
Our parish Vacation Bible School will take place very soon—August 10, 11, 12. Space is limited, so make sure to register your child/ren soon. We’re also still in need of a few volunteers. Registration and contact information can be found on page 5 of today’s bulletin.
At the same time that Vacation Bible School for young people will be taking place here, I will be leading Summer Scripture Days for adults at St. Francis Retreat Center.
Peter’s Pence Collection Next Weekend
Next weekend, August 7 and 8, the annual Peter’s Pence Collection for the works of the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, will be taken at all the Masses. The Peter’s Pence collection provides funds to the Holy Father which he can disburse as he chooses to use them in his role as shepherd of the Universal Church. Often, he chooses to use them to assist in evangelization efforts to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ or to respond in a timelymanner to assist victims of natural disasters around the world.
Special envelopes for the Peter’s Pence collection are included in your booklet of envelopes. For those who use the on-line giving system, there is fund available at the electronic giving website for you to make your gift. Everyone’s generous support is greatly appreciated.
The Solemnity of the Assumption
of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven
Every few years a solemnity such as this falls on a Sunday and so displaces a Sunday in Ordinary time. Such is the case this year, as we celebrate the Assumption of the Virgin Mary into Heaven, on August 15. Attending Mass on Saturday evening, August 14, or Sunday morning, August 15, fulfills both our Sunday obligation as well as the obligation to attend Mass for the Holy Day. The Feast of the Assumption is also a holy day of opportunity to come together and celebrate Mary’s greatest feast, her Passover.
After the horrors of the Second World War, after the death camps, after the first use of nuclear weapons, we Christians needed to remind ourselves of the holiness of creation. In 1950, Pope Pius XII declared what Catholics had long believed to be true: after Mary’s death, God raised her body. She now lives with God forever. On the Assumption Day we rejoice that this broken world will one day be made new again. The barren, the poor, the unloved, and even the dead will be raised into glory.
Assumption Day is sometimes thought of as Mary’s “harvesting” into heaven. This is a day to thank God for the bounty of growing things. We remember Mary’s song of praise from the Gospel of Luke, “The Lord has lifted up the lowly. The Lord has filled the hungry with good things.”
Good Financial News!
Good Financial News!
We just closed the books on the fiscal year 2009-2010. That year, which ended June 30, 2010, resulted in a small surplus of just over $2000. (An up-to-date financial summary is included in the bulletin each week alongside the summary of the weekly collection.) Given the size of our parish budget and the state of the economy, that we managed to achieve a surplus of any size is very good news. The biggest news has been everyone’s response to the parish debt reduction campaign and the difference it is making. Since we began the debt reduction campaign in the fall of 2009, we have managed to reduce the outstanding balance on the church mortgage from $456,000 to $299,650. This puts us on track to have the mortgage debt retired in about two years.
A more detailed parish financial statement will be available later in the year. My thanks to everyone for their ongoing and generous support of our parish community and its many ministries!
No Sunday Evening Mass Now Through September 12
The Sunday evening Mass is on summer vacation. It will return the Sunday after Labor Day, September 12.
Explore the Rainforest at VBS August 10, 11 & 12th
Sign up Now!!
Space is limited!!
Help is needed!
Join us for VBS!!
On Line Giving
The online giving program continues to grow as families discover how easy and convenient it is for making your parish contributions. The process is very flexible and allows you complete control of your contributions while providing you the ability for immediate reporting of all your parish donations.
A vision of Heaven
As Dale McKay was facing death, he spoke to writer Nancy Schertzing about his feelings and his hopes for heaven. Later, Nancy spoke with Dale's widow, Ellen, who shared the joy of their marriage and the moving experience of Dale's death. Their story is filled with love and hope that speaks to all of us.
Part 4: How to Be a Dynamic and Evangelizing Parish
Two very different parishes show what it takes to be both energetic and spiritual.