Have you ever wondered what exactly people do within our parish? Throughout the next year, we are going to share stories from the staff about what a typical day looks like for them. We will also share stories from parishioners about their experience on a committee or being involved with an activity in our parish. Today we will hear from Kate Tyler our Pastoral Associate: "The joy and challenge of being a Pastoral Associate is how different each day looks. The only tasks that are ever the same each day is taking care of emails and phone calls. It is a blessing to be able to have a job that is as unique as the people in the parish. It is truly a pleasure to serve God and his children. Here is a just a brief summary of one Monday in the life of the Pastoral Associate: I begin & end each week by walking throughout the Church to straighten up the materials by all the doors. I collected the Liturgical Ministers sign in sheet to contact any ministers who did not check in or did not get a sub to assist with Mass that weekend. I made copies & scans of the scripture readings for our Lectors and emailed them out or left them to pick up in the sacristy so they can prepare to proclaim the Word of God for the coming weekend. I checked out a few Catholic youtube pages to find a new worth watching video to share on the parish website as well as the parish facebook page. I tweeted information on our parish twitter page. I touched base with Emily about our plan for the Becoming Catholic Gathering & we finalized any details that we still needed to work on. As part of the Pastoral Care Team, I went to St. Luke's/Unitypoint and Mercy Hospital to visit parishioners. Our pastoral care team has coordinated at least one St. Matthew's member to visit those in the hospital each day of the week. It is a great pleasure to pray and talk with parishioners no matter what is happening in their life. I started working on the planning details for the Mass of Remembrance on Thursday November 2 which is All Souls' Day. I left work for a bit of family time & dinner together before returning to set up for our Becoming Catholic Gathering. Each Monday night Emily & I work together to lead a group of individuals who are interested in learning more about the Catholic faith. We coordinate all the details but the night is truly lead by the Holy Spirit. We spend much of the time in prayer & having small group discussions. At the end of the night I turn off all the lights and lock the doors. Each day of the week and each week may have similar tasks to get done but there is always different needs that I am responsible for taking care of. I have the great blessing of working together with every staff member at the Parish which includes the School & ECC. If I had to pick one word to describe a day in the life of a pastoral associate, it would be Grace. God blesses me with the gifts I need to serve Him each day and I get to bring His Love & Grace to all those I journey with each day.
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Mary knows the pain of a pierced heart.This month is dedicated to Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows. A lot of the time we see Mary as someone full of joy, and rightly so! She is often depicted with a peaceful face, radiating with love for her blessed Son. We might forget her deep agony as she watched her Son, the Savior of the World, be tortured and crucified. Maybe some of you know the pain of loosing a child. I'm sure it is a pain deeper than most ever have to know, but Mary has gone through it. Her heart was and is so closely unified to Christ's that she did not escape His suffering, but endured it with a 'Yes' to God's will just as she did in her Fiat.
Prayer to our Sorrowful Mother for a particular graceO, mother most holy and sorrowful, Queen of Martyrs, you who stood by your Son as He agonized on the cross; by the sufferings of your life, by that sword of pain that pierced your heart, by your perfect joy in heaven, look down on me kindly as I kneel before you, sympathizing with your sorrows and offering you my petition with childlike trust. Dear Mother, since your Son refuses you nothing, ask of His Sacred Heart to mercifully grant what I ask, through the merits of His sacred passion, along with those of your sufferings at the foot of the cross. Mother most merciful, to whom shall I go in my misery if not to you who pities us poor sinful exiles in this valley of tears? In our name, offer Jesus but one drop of His most precious blood, but one pang of His loving heart. Remind Him that you are our sweetness, our life and our hope, and your prayer will be heard. Amen
Honoring Mary's SorrowsThere are many ways to honor Mary's Seven Sorrows during the month of September. Here are a few ideas for you and your family to try out! Click each one to find out more! -Emily Gignac, Director of Faith Formation
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