Thank you to all of those who came out to pray last night at candlelight adoration at St. Patrick. It was another beautiful night of prayer in the midst of this Lenten season. Know of our prayers for you as we enter into these final weeks of preparation before Easter.
Please keep in prayer our catechumens and candidates who are preparing to enter the Church on Easter. We look forward to welcoming so many new Catholics into our community.
This coming Wednesday, March 20th, we are holding a meeting at St. John the Baptist at 7:00pm for current 9th and 10th graders and their parents regarding our plans for next years' Confirmation preparation. (There will be a similar meeting next month at St. Patrick in Lodi on April 17th at the 9th grade RE class.)
- Fr. Joe and the Pastorate 18 Staff
At Mass this past weekend, we announced the great news that Bishop Hying has given the name St. Maximilian Kolbe to our pastorate.
We are sharing a few links below, as well as a brief biography at the bottom of this email, so you can learn a bit more about his inspiring life.
- A Man for Others - Book
- The Life of St. Maximilian Kolbe - Gabi After Hours Video
- The Story of St. Maximilian Kolbe's Death - Chris Stefanik Video
The holiest days of the year are just two weeks away. You will find here the plans in the pastorate for Holy Week and the Easter Triduum. To help you get ready for these important days, we would recommend the following videos from Fr. Mike Schmitz!
Please note that incense will be used at the following liturgies:
- Mass of the Lord's Supper (Holy Thursday)
- Easter Vigil Mass
- 8:00am - Easter Mass at St. Michael
- 9:00am - Easter Mass at St. Mary of the Lake
Any interested adults from Pastorate 18 are welcome to join in our ongoing study of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
This study takes place on Sundays from 11:45am - 1:15pm in the school library in Waunakee. To get to the library, enter through the cafeteria doors (the eastern entrance on 3rd St.).
Fr. Simon will be teaching the next class on the fourth pillar of the Catechism (Prayer) this coming Sunday:
- Sunday, March 17th - Christian Prayer
HS Teen Lenten Series
Dates for the spring series of High School formation are here! Any high schoolers are welcome to join on the following dates this spring. The Teen Series takes place on Sundays in the parish office/rectory living room from 11:30am - 1:00pm.
During Lent, our series will focus on some of the big questions about life: Who am I? Why a God? Am I saved?
- March 17 - Lent
- March 24 - Lent
- April 7
- May 5
Return - Lenten Book Study
All adults in Pastorate 18 are welcome to a small group study and discussion with the book Return by Fr. John Burns on Tuesday mornings during the season of Lent this year. Return is a book that will help you reorient your mind and heart this Lent so you can more fully experience the joy of Easter - Christ's victory over sin and death. For more information, contact Eileen Daley.
Gathering Room at Saint John the Baptist Church
Tuesdays, February 13 - April 2
Tuesdays, February 13 - April 2
9:15 - 10:00am
HS Volunteers for BT Gala
Blessed Trinity's Annual Roseanne Mills Gala will take place on Saturday, April 27. We are so excited to celebrate our school and our honoree, Judy Pulvermacher, with a Magnificent Masquerade! We are in need of volunteers during the week leading up to the event as well as help the night of. If you know of a high schooler who wants to give a little extra back to the church, or you have time in your schedule to share your talents, please let Mrs. Zepp know at azepp@btcatholic.us.
Dane Fish Fry
Join the hundreds of other happy families that come to partake in one of the best Fish Frys in the Midwest this Lent at St. Michael in Dane! The Fish Fry is available TOMORROW NIGHT (March 15th) by Drive Thru from 4:30 - 7:00PM. Keep an eye out in the drive thru line, as the priests of Pastorate 18 take turns handing out the numbers!
Bingo Nights
Bingo Nights at St. Mary of the Lake are happening this spring! Take a look at the schedule below and come on out for this great community event.
St. John Fest - Save the Date
Save the date for St. John Fest! June 14th and 15th will be days packed with community, music, great food, and celebrations for the 150th anniversary of St. John the Baptist. Information on sponsoring St. John Fest can be found below!
Purchase SCRIP Gift Cards
Purchasing gift cards through SCRIP is a great way to support our Pastorate and especially our schools. Your daily purchases (gas, groceries, and dining out) could all be benefiting the great mission of passing on our Catholic faith to future generations.
- Scrip orders for March through St. John the Baptist will be placed on March 18th. Please email your order to Kim at kpiazza@stjb.org or by phone at (608) 849-5121 x136 by March 18 by 10:00am. You will receive another email letting you know when your will be ready to be picked up.
- To learn about Scrip and purchasing through Blessed Trinity, email scrip@btcatholic.us or talk to Alicia (Blessed Trinity's school principal) or Teri (Blessed Trinity's secretary).
To get in touch with someone in the pastorate or submit something for a future newsletter, send us an e-mail and we will make sure it gets to the right person or someone who can best answer your question.
The cross is the school of love. - St. Maximilian Kolbe
An Excerpt from Humans of Heaven
St. Maximilian Kolbe was known by the Nazis at Auschwitz as Prisoner 16670. The prisoner who was heard singing Marian hymns from his prison cell while the guards tried to starve him to death.
The priest who would endure beatings for hearing confessions and celebrating Mass with smuggled bread. The martyr who volunteered to die in place of a stranger. He is known in the Kingdom of God as Saint Maximilian Kolbe.
Rajmund (Raymond) Kolbe was born in dun'ska Wola, Poland on January 8, 1894. His parents were both Catholic and passed onto him a strong devotion to the Virgin Mary.
When he was 10 years old, he asked his Mother Mary what was to become of him. She answered by appearing to him and offered him two symbolic crowns. The white crown represented a life of purity and the red crown symbolized martyrdom. Rajmund told her he would accept both.
He entered the Conventual Fransiscan seminary at age 16 and was ordained in 1918, taking the name Maximilian Maria. While studying in Rome, he founded the Militia Immaculatae (MI) Catholic evangelization movement. It aimed to fight against the spread of Freemasonry and to draw people closer to the Sacred Heart of Jesus through total consecration to the Immaculate Virgin Mary. Their motto being "Through the Immaculata to Jesus".
The Mi movement grew rapidly through a monthly magazine called the Knight of the Immaculata, eventually reaching one million readers every month. In 1927, as the demands of this publication grew, Maximilian founded a large apostolic center near Warsaw called Niepokalanow, the "City of the Immaculata". He established another City in Japan in 1930, and spent significant time as a missionary there.
Kolbe returned to Poland in 1936 and by 1939, the Nazis had taken over the country. He used his centers to shelter an estimated 3,000 Polish refugees and to distribute anti-Nazi publications. Kolbe was arrested for this in February 1941 and shipped to Auschwitz where he continued his priestly ministry.
He died by lethal injections on August 14, 1941 after offering to take the place of a condemned prison mate who had a young family at home. He was beatified in 1971 and canonized by John Paul II on October 10, 1982 in the presence of Franciszek Gajowniczek, the man he gave his life for.