St. Michael the Archangel Pastorate
Sacred Heart, Remington
Sts. Peter & Paul, Goodland
St. Augustine, Rensselaer
Friday Flocknote -November 25th, 2022
Father Joshua Bennett, Missionary Pastor fr.jbennett@dol-in.org
Marie Oliver, Director of Operations marieoliver@parish.dol-in.org
Kris Dobson, Coordinator of Continuing Formation and Evangelization kdobson@parish.dol-in.org
Sarah Hall, Coordinator of Youth Religious Education shall@parish.dol-in.org
Natalia Brady, Administrative Assistant for the Pastorate nbrady@parish.dol-in.org
Nancy Goodwin, Bookkeeper for Sacred Heart & Sts. Peter and Paul ngoodwin@parish.dol-in.org
A Message From Our Pastor
“Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.” – Psalm 122
Today begins the season of Advent in the Church. This year, Advent is the longest it can be, since Christmas falls on a Sunday; so, we have the most days to prepare for Christ’s birth. The two-fold character of Advent is a time of preparation for not only the Solemnities of Christmas, in which the First Coming of the Son of God to humanity is remembered, but also a time when, by remembrance of this, minds and hearts are led to look forward to Christ’s Second Coming at the end of time. For these two reasons, Advent is a period of devout and expectant delight.
Advent is a time to recall the cry of the early Christians: Marantha! “Come, Lord Jesus!” The Latin root of the word Advent “adventus” literally means “arrival or coming”, as we prepare for the coming of the Lord. The season of Advent is broken into two parts, the first part being where we have focused, as we have the past few weeks, on Jesus’ coming again at the end of time. Then on December 17th, we shift our focus to the second part of Advent and to the Christ’s first coming at his birth in Bethlehem and begin to pray “O come, o come Emmanuel.” It is important that we do not ignore this first part of this season and rush into Christmas preparations too soon. Advent is also the beginning of the new year in the life of the Church, and it is fitting that we start our new year’s celebration by making ready for Jesus’ second coming. This is why it is customary to wait until December 17th, at the earliest, until decorating for Christmas, at which, even then, we should still reserve some of our decorations for the celebration of Christmas itself.
Another aspect of Advent is the solemn and penitential nature of the season. Decorations are removed from the churches and the color Violet is used, to remind us of the need for forgiveness in our lives as an essential part of preparing for Christ’s coming. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches:
Christ instituted the sacrament of Penance for all sinful members of his Church: above all for those who, since Baptism, have fallen into grave sin, and have thus lost their baptismal grace and wounded ecclesial communion. It is to them that the sacrament of Penance offers a new possibility to convert and to recover the grace of justification. The Fathers of the Church present this sacrament as "the second plank [of salvation] after the shipwreck which is the loss of grace." (Paragraph 1446)
We also celebrate, during Advent, the great Holy Day of Obligation, the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, on December 8th. Not only is this an obligatory day of prayer and worship for Catholics, but it is this title, Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, that Pope Pius IX placed the United States under her patronage in 1847, making this not just any great feast, but the Patronal Feast for our nation, as well as our Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana, which was also consecrated under her protection.
During Advent the Church joins in singing the praises of the Blessed Virgin Mary to the Marian hymn “Alma Redemptoris Mater”, asking for her prayers during this time of anticipation for the coming of our Lord:
Loving mother of the Redeemer,
gate of heaven, star of the sea,
assist your people who have fallen yet strive to rise again,
to the wonderment of nature you bore your Creator,
yet remained a virgin after as before,
You who received Gabriel's joyful greeting,
have pity on us poor sinners.
gate of heaven, star of the sea,
assist your people who have fallen yet strive to rise again,
to the wonderment of nature you bore your Creator,
yet remained a virgin after as before,
You who received Gabriel's joyful greeting,
have pity on us poor sinners.
As we look to this new year that will be full of changes in our pastorate, some exciting and some sad, we ask the loving Mother of God to help us to keep our eyes and hearts focused on Christ and His glorious comings into the world, which bring about our eternal salvation. Through these prayers and the intercession of Our Lady, I pray we are drawn deeper into the mystery of her son’s presence in our lives and gift of the Real Presence in the Most Blessed Sacrament which is the enduring and lasting gift of Emmanuel – God With Us – who remains with us in the Eucharist until the day when He will draw us to Himself and death and sin will be destroyed forever.
Fr. Bennett
Sacred Heart of Jesus – Have Mercy on Us
Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception – Pray for Us
Sts. Michael the Archangel, Joseph, Peter, Paul, Augustine – Pray for Us
Youth Ministry Grades PK-12
November:
27th No meetings due to Thanksgiving Break
30th St. Augustine PK-12 meet
December:
4th Sts. Peter & Paul and Sacred Heart
K-12 meet @ Fulcher Center 9:45-10:45 ET
4th SH CYO meets to make cookies @ 10:45 am
7th SA PK-8 meet for Faith Formation
PITs meet @ 6:30 pm
11th Sts. Peter & Paul and Sacred Heart
K-12 meet @ Fulcher Center 9:45-10:45 ET
11th St. Augustine Youth Mass @ 10:00 am CT
Knights of Columbus
End of the Month Breakfast
Sunday, Nov. 27th
from 8 to 11:30am CT
We will be serving biscuits and gravy, breakfast casserole, pancakes and sausage. This is a free will offering.
Dine in or carry out (219) 866-9938
Fish Fry
Friday, Dec. 2nd from 5 to 7pm CT
Serving pollack, bluegill, cod, tilapia, shrimp and chicken strips with choice of potato and choice of coleslaw or apple sauce. Hush puppies have been added to the menu.
Dine in or carry out (866-9938)
Sacred Heart
Christmas Clothesline
Items will need to be returned to church by Dec 11th.
If you would like to purchase
an item please text
Barb Federer @ (219) 863-0594
No Coffee Hour
November 27th
Share the Warmth Service Project
St. Augustine School's annual SOCK AND BLANKET DRIVE is here again! If you have gently used blankets or adult socks, please consider bringing them to St. Augustine Catholic School this month. We will donate all collected items to St. John's Garden Door Ministry, where they will be used to support homeless men and women in the Indianapolis area. Thank you in advance from the school and Father Rick Nagel for your support and item donations!
St. Augustine Christmas
Giving Tree
The St. Augustine Christmas Giving Tree is located near the McKinley entrance to the church and paper ornaments are ready to be picked up. Stocking-shaped ornaments are for children’s material needs. Bell-shaped ornaments are for prayer intentions and/or cards. For material needs, please return the wrapped gift with tag attached to the tree or parish office
no later than December 11.
Gifts may be returned earlier.
Thank you to all who participate!
Please contact Chris Scheurich (219) 866-2650 or the Parish Office.
Guide to Confession
Before Confession
During Confession
Rite of Penance and Reconciliation
Greeting: The priest will welcome you; he may say a short blessing or read a Scripture passage.
Sign of the Cross: Together, you and the priest will make the Sign of the Cross. You may then begin your confession with these or similar words:
“Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. It has been (give days, months, or years) since my last confession.”
“Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. It has been (give days, months, or years) since my last confession.”
Confession: Confess all your sins to the priest. If you are unsure what to say, ask the priest for help. When you are finished, conclude with these or similar words:
“I am sorry for these and all my sins.”
Penance: The priest will propose an act of penance. The penance might be prayer, a work of mercy, or an act of charity. He might also counsel you on how to better live a Christian life.
Act of Contrition: Say an Act of Contrition, expressing sorrow for your sins and resolving to leave sin behind and live in the light!
Absolution: The priest then blesses you in the person of Christ as he says the prayer of Absolution which frees you from your sins.
St. Michael the Archangel Pastorate Advent/Christmas Schedule
Penance Services
12/14 – 6:30PM CT – North Pastorate @ St. Augustine (Spanish Confessions Available)
12/21 – 6:30PM ET – South Pastorate @ Sacred Heart, Fulcher Center
Additional Weekly Confession Times
Saturday Afternoons before 4:30pm CT Mass (3:45-4:15pm CT) – St. Augustine
Sunday Morning after 10:00am CT Mass – St. Augustine
Extended Eucharistic Adoration
12/2 – St. Augustine – First Friday After 8:30am Mass until 5:00pm CT
12/4 – Sts. Peter and Paul – After 8:30am Mass until 3:00PM ET
12/14 – St. Augustine – Holy Hour and Benediction during Penance Service
Immaculate Conception – Holy Day of Obligation Masses
12/7 – 6:30PM ET – Sts. Peter and Paul
12/8 – 8:15AM CT – St. Augustine (School Mass)
12/8 – 6:30PM CT – St. Augustine
Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
12/12 - 6:00pm CT - St. Augustine (Bilingual Mass)
Late Days of Advent – “O Antiphons”
12/17 – O Wisdom (O Sapientia)
12/18 – O Sacred Lord (O Adonai)
12/19 – O Flower of Jesse’s stem (O radix Jesse)
12/20 – O Key of David (O clavis David)
12/21 – O Radiant Dawn (O Oriens)
12/22 – O King of all the Nations (O Rex gentium)
12/23 – O God is With Us (O Emmanuel)
Church Decoration for Christmas
12/18 – 11:00AM CT – St. Augustine
12/22 – 11:00AM CT – Sts. Peter and Paul
Christmas – Holy Day of Obligation Masses
12/24 – 5:00PM ET – Sts. Peter and Paul
12/24 – 6:30PM CT – St. Augustine
12/25 – 12:00AM CT (Midnight Mass) – St. Augustine
12/25 – 10:00AM CT – St. Augustine
Christmas Week
12/26 through 12/30 – NO MASS
Mary Mother of God – Holy Day of Obligation Masses
12/31 – 4:30PM CT – St. Augustine
1/1 – 7:30AM CT – Sts. Peter and Paul
1/1 – 10:00AM CT – St. Augustine
January 3rd, 2023, resume normal daily Mass Schedule
Other Important Dates:
January 8th: Epiphany
January 9th: Baptism of the Lord
February 2nd: The Presentation of the Lord, Candlemass
(Blessing of Candles at special Mass time @ 5:30pm CT Mass at St. Augustine)
February 22nd: Ash Wednesday
Mass Intentions
One of the traditions of the Catholic Church is to pray for the deceased. If you are interested in scheduling a mass intention in 2023, please contact Natalia in the pastorate office at (219) 866-5351 or nbrady@parish.dol-in.org
Open Office Hours
Pastorate Office at St. Augustine
318 N McKinley Ave., Rensselaer IN, 47978
Tuesdays & Thursdays from 12:30-5:30pm CT
Father Bennett & Marie Oliver will be available throughout the week by appointment, please call ahead (219) 866-5351
Sacred Heart Mailing Address P.O. Box 159, Remington, IN 47977
(219) 261-2302 - Remington/Goodland
