Dear Friends in Christ,
Here are a few updates from our parish for the week of August 29, 2021.
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1) Family Formation at SJA |
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This year at St. Joan of Arc, we are moving into a new exciting family faith formation model. This is something we've been interested in pursuing, and with prayer, the prompting of the Holy Spirit, and a little help from Covid-19, we feel the Lord is directing us with great purpose to move in this direction. Watch the informational video below and follow the link for details, dates, and registration. Our program is for students in grades K-8.
Important note - students entering 7th grade this year will also begin preparing for their Confirmation for 2023.
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If you have a financial need or are unable to pay in full at this time - please contact Kristine Hass at khass@sjascs.org.
Also - if you feel you are being called to be part of this program as a helper or a catechist - please email Mrs. Hass or call the Faith Formation office at 586-772-1282. We'd love to have you!
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2) School GALA: October 16, 2021 |
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THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT
THE GALA THIS YEAR:
- The event is on Saturday, October 16, 2021. We’re returning to LOCHMOOR CLUB in GPW! And we’ve shifted this year’s event to the Fall.
- The Gala is our largest fundraiser to benefit the school.
- Attend or buy raffle tickets to support this event.
- We need your donations. Contact the School or Parish Center to learn how to donate Silent and Live Auction items.
- There’s a spot for you. Join the Gala Planning Committee or volunteer to help the night of the Gala.
- We ENCOURAGE everyone to dress in their favorite Bavarian attire for this year’s Gala. There will even be a BEST OUTFIT CONTEST!
CONTACT US:
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3) Catholic Services Appeal 2021 |
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Dear Friends in Christ,
In St. Paul's Letter to the Colossians, he urges them, "Whatever you do, do from the heart (Col. 3:23)." These words are particularly meaningful since he wrote them from prison, facing persecution and hardship. The faith community at Colossae was facing its own hardships as they strove to live the life Christ called them to whatever the circumstances. Being rooted in the Lord would serve them well as they continued to grow as a faith community, and as the Church continued to grow throughout the world.
The theme of the 2021 CSA is FUEL THE MISSION. The mission is simple, to make Christ's kingdom present in our day to the many people of Southeast Michigan. That mission cannot be fully accomplished unless it is fueled with human and materially resources.
Our CSA goal this year is just slightly more than $217,000. Anything raised above the goal will return to the parish, while any shortfalls must be covered by the parish. Thus, your support is greatly needed and appreciated.
Your gift helps support men who are discerning a vocation to the priesthood. It impacts youth, family, and young adult ministries to help people at all stages of life grow in faith. It helps Catholic schools continue to form the next generation of leaders and disciples. It helps our food pantries and soup kitchens feed and clothe the poor. Your gift brings Jesus to Southeast Michigan in a very real and tangible way.
You may have already received a mailing from the Archdiocese of Detroit. If you did so, please make a contribution to the CSA as indicated in that mailing. You can also easily give by visiting: csa.stjoan.church or by clicking on the button below.
Also available at the Church exists and at the Parish Center are general CSA brochures and envelopes that can be used to make a contribution to the CSA.
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4) This Sunday's Readings - August 29, 2021 |
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5) Jeff Cavins: Encountering the Word - Reflections on the Sunday Readings |
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In this week’s Encountering the Word video, Jeff Cavins offers a reflection for the Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time. |
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6) Grow+Go for the 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time |
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Grow+Go, content is designed to help you understand what it means to be an evangelizing disciple of Christ. Using the Sunday Scriptures as the basis for reflection, Grow+Go offers insight into how we can all more fully GROW as disciples and then GO evangelize, fulfilling Christ's Great Commission to "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." (Matthew 28:19) The concept behind the weekly series is to make discipleship and evangelization simple, concrete, and relatable.
Click on the button or image below to download a PDF copy of this Sunday's Grow+Go.
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7) Giving to SJA: I'm truly grateful for all of your support of SJA during this pandemic. Your support means so much. The increase in electronic giving has been tremendous. Giving electronically, whether on a one-time or recurring basis is pretty simple. For more information on online giving, please click on the following button.
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8) This Week's Edition of TALLer Tales |
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Sticking to the Day Job: One day, I’ll learn to stick to my day job! It’s when I wander off into these other territories that I often get myself in trouble! But then again, it gives me “food” for my bulletin articles.
I’ve been on the hunt for some FireKing fireproof lateral filing cabinets for my AOD job. I had my nephew J.J. scour Facebook Marketplace to see if he could find anyone in the area that had some to sell. J.J. is my Facebook Marketplace guru. Eventually, we found three of these filing cabinets at a warehouse in Livonia. When new, these FireKing filing cabinets cost about $4,000 each, which doesn’t include an extra delivery charge of maybe $500. Because they are fireproof filing cabinets, they are extremely heavy and cumbersome to move.
Well, my nephew found a place with THREE of these filing cabinets, and they were willing to give me all three for $750!! Talk about a massive deal. So I jumped on this one right away. First, we tried to get a moving company to help, but that didn’t work out. So, I did the next best thing: I decided we would rent a U-Haul and do it ourselves. I didn’t want to accomplish what I was supposed to be doing, so a little “field trip” to get three 970 pound filing cabinets sounded like a fabulous afternoon excursion!
I then had to drop the bombshell news to my “cohorts in crime,” Deacon Tom and Tony Latarski (who works on our AOD Team at the Parish Center), that “WE” were going to get these ourselves. God bless them. They’re ALWAYS willing to do “OTHER DUTIES” as assigned. Deacon Tom got the U-Haul all worked out, and we made arrangements with Tony to meet us at this warehouse in Livonia, which was close to where he lives.
When we arrived at the warehouse, Deacon Tom and I pulled the U-Haul up to the loading dock. Tony eventually found us and joined in on the fun. Just as we got out of our trucks and were trying to figure out which loading dock door to use, a torrential rainstorm hit. We finally decided on this particular loading dock bay, and I started maneuvering the U-Haul into position. Because I couldn’t hear Deacon Tom or Tony yelling at me about how far down this ramp I could go, I kept getting in and out of the truck to see things for myself. With all of the rain, I was getting mighty wet.
Eventually, I got the truck positioned correctly in the loading dock bay. Thankfully, the three filing cabinets were on dollies, so “WE” thought this would be easy. With the help of Deacon Tom and Tony (let’s just call them the Strasz and Latarski Logistics Firm), we carefully positioned the truck’s ramp on the edge of the loading dock. We now had a straight path from the loading dock to the truck, but at an incline that was quite precarious because of the heavy rain. Even on a dolly, moving a 970-pound item down a ramp wasn’t going to be easy. So, with the help of the warehouse employee where we bought the cabinets, the three amigos started to maneuver the first filing cabinet down the ramp. I wish we had a video of our work. We were doing fine until we hit a solid indented line on the loading dock floor, which brought the dolly to a screeching halt but almost sent the filing cabinet on a trajectory to crash onto the ramp. This wasn’t getting any easier. By this point, I looked like I had been standing out in a torrential rainstorm for about a half-hour, only because I HAD BEEN standing out in a torrential rainstorm for about a half-hour. I was also hungry and was running out of ideas of how this was going to work. I figured that since I came up with the brilliant idea to do this ourselves and was doing all the driving, it was up to Strasz and Latarski Logistics to figure out the rest of it.
By the time we got this first cabinet onto the truck, we still had two others behind it waiting to be moved. By this time, I was already starting to “check out” on the solution-generating part of this field trip and just wanted to get it over with! Deacon Tom and Tony were now scouring the warehouse for wood or cardboard we could use to get our dolly beyond the indentation so we could continue moving the filing cabinet down the ramp and onto the truck. We FINALLY had it rolling, and then we hit ANOTHER indentation where the ramp intersects with the truck. UGH! I was now wetter than wet and just wanted to go home! But, Strasz and Latarski Logistics weren’t giving up. We moved more heavy cardboard into place, gave the dolly another running start, and it finally made its way onto the truck. One down, two to go, and no one got hurt!
We eventually got all three cabinets on the truck, and I’m sure the employee of this warehouse was happy to see us leave. She was very kind and was also helping us, but it was now almost an hour since we had arrived. With all three of these filing cabinets now on the truck, we used a bunch of ratchet straps to secure them into place. Strasz and Latarski Logistics decided that Bugarin Trucking ought to return to SJA by way of 8 Mile Road rather than I-96 to prevent any catastrophe with the potential of one of these cabinets moving or falling over inside the back of our U-Haul. I was now thoroughly soaked, hungry, and totally “checked out.” I didn’t care HOW we were going to get home. I just wanted to go home.
So, my soaking wet self hopped into the driver’s seat, and Deacon Tom joined me up in the passenger’s seat. We sent Tony home because we got word to Dina at the Parish Center that we would need help upon our return. She got on it right away.
Now, we had some new problems. First, we had to figure out how to get these filing cabinets OFF the truck and into Deacon Tom’s office. With the help of Jason Gerard, who came over to help, and Father Andrew, we maneuvered each of them off the truck and into close proximity of where they would finally land. THEN, we had to figure out HOW we would tip these filing cabinets off their dolly and have them land in the exact place they would finally rest. I was brain dead and out of ideas (remember, I checked out long before); I just wanted to go home and get out of the soaking wet clothes I was now in for about two and a half hours. We tried to use a hydraulic jack to help us, but that kept slipping. Thankfully, I was running out of time and had to run off to another appointment, so I left the mess and said, “SEE YA, send me pictures when it’s all done!” Strasz Logistics then employed Dawson, Gerard, Ruvolo, and Zeppelin Labor and Engineering to finish the task! They got it all done. And Father Andrew dutifully sent me pictures of the finished product. What an afternoon!
As I was leaving (escaping), I passed by Dina’s office, who watched this entire event unfold from start to finish. As I was running out the door, I heard her proclaim, “Maybe next time we should upgrade to something more than just ‘Three Grandpas and a Truck.’"
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Enjoy the week. Know of my prayers!
In Christ,
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9) Tire Tracks in the d’Arc |
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Dad Takes One for the Team: Last Sunday afternoon after we were done with masses, I called my parents. Sunday afternoon is most typically the time I call, and when I’m most likely to find them home. By then, it’s evening in the UK. My mom loves her Sunday BBC period dramas on TV (which I usually interrupt) and my dad is rarely away from home around a meal time! On this occasion, my dad answered the phone, as he usually does. We talked for a while about this and that. He mentioned that he’s seen an increase in attendance at his church lately as the covid situation improves…. “We’re back up to 13 now!” he said.... Yes, it’s a very small church! One Sunday service, 13 people. My dad usually passes the time of day and then pretty quickly passes the phone off to my mom, always asking, “well, do you want to speak to your mother?” (as if I’m ever going to say no!) My dad’s not much of a talker. This has been especially true lately and he and my mom have been cooped-up at home and there isn’t really much news to share. But on this call, I was noticing that my dad seemed quite conversational. We’d been talking for about 15 minutes and he still hadn’t handed the phone over to mom. Then the truth came out. “Well, your mother’s not home. She’s visiting.” They live in a retirement community of apartments now and my mom was visiting a neighbor.
My dad went on, “She went to see a neighbor. She’d been gone an hour and a half now! I’m going to call her and ask what’s for tea (my dad’s reference to dinner – ever led by his stomach.) He continued: “Y’ know, that lady (the neighbor) came to see her (my mom) the other day, but she wasn’t home. But she stayed anyway and talked to me. She talked to me for hours! I just kept saying the same thing over and over! She didn’t seem to mind. I didn’t know what else to say! So now she (mom) has gone to visit her (the neighbor)... and I’m hungry. We bought some tea-cakes (Yorkshire-speak for bread buns with raisins) the other day. I think I’m going to toast those. I hope they’re not moldy.” … Sometimes talking to my dad by phone is like listening to a Seinfeld episode on tape.
All I could do was laugh and commiserate my poor dad and his aching stomach. Now keep in mind that we had just finished the 12pm mass and St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians was still on my mind, “Husbands, love your wives… a man shall leave his father and his mother
and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” At this point, all I could do was to say, “Dad, I wish we’d had this conversation before today’s masses. There's no doubt… you married your wife’s friends! You just might have to make your own dinner!”
Doctor’s Orders: I met with a lady at the Parish Center on Monday who was struggling with a couple of difficult situations in her life. It was all very unfair to her, but life is often that way. We talked for a while and I did what I often do at first in this situations, not dissimilar to talking to my dad. I just listened. I let her talk. That is often a good part of what people need. They are struggling with something and just an opportunity to express it and let someone else know that they are struggling with this. But after a while I commended her for her attitude. As she described these two different situations, she also laughed about them. “What else can you do?” she asked, rhetorically. We talked for a little while, and since I had a notepad and pen in front of me, so I said, like a doctor I’m going to write you a prescription. “Oh, I don’t like drugs,” she said. “It’s not drugs,” I replied, and I scribbled a note for her, folded it in half and pushed it across the desk. She read it and started laughing. The note was nothing original. I’ve told many people the same thing. It was a phrase the late Bishop Morlino of Madison, Wisconsin used to say to himself every morning when he woke-up, before his feet even hit the floor: “Everybody I meet today is crazy; and I am not the Messiah!” I told the lady to “read this with food 1x every day.”
There’s a lot of freedom to be found in realizing that the world is not fair, people will not always think, speak and act rationally. At some point in your day someone may make an unreasonable or even irrational or impossible demand for your time, abilities or generosity. None of us are Jesus and none of us is able to satisfy all these unreasonable demands all the time or should even expect ourselves to be able to. Accept this, laugh at the ridiculousness of the demands and expectations, and then go about doing your best, knowing that that is all Christ asks of us. The degree to which you cannot fulfill those demands, well, defer those things to Jesus, pray for the person and move on. And just as importantly, “find the funny” in the unreasonableness of it. Replace the frustration with the funny! If it was a reasonable demand, that’s one thing, but if it’s not, don’t allow it to derail you.
Zoom-zoom: This week I heard a priest recounting a zoom meeting he had had with a parish group. He was the youngest participant by a long way, so the group made him the host and he handled the technology. An older gentleman had a question during the meeting, but his microphone was on mute. The priest told him, “we can’t hear you.” So the man repeated his question, still muted, now with hand gestures. Same result. He tried again, now shouting and red in the face. Repeatedly he was told that he needed to unmute himself as he couldn't be heard. So finally the man leaned into the camera, super close and yelled once more. Still inaudible, he stood-up and walked away from the meeting. No doubt the man was frustrated, but the group found light relief in the moment and the priest concluded… “dialog is good, but silence is golden.”
What’s Wrong With My Squirrel?: I seem to have a ridiculous number of squirrels in my back yard. It feels like a war zone whenever I walk under the oak tree, which overhangs most of the yard: “Bombs away!” as the squirrel throw acorns down. I’ve worked out the hours that the squirrel keep. Peak squirreling happens around 5pm. By 7pm, they are mostly gone wherever squirrels go for the evening. I was sitting out there early Sunday evening and saw a peculiar squirrel going to great lengths to bridge the gap from the oak tree to the trees at the back. Most of them run through the canopy or across the lawn or across the top of the fence, but this squirrel was clinging to the vertical boards of the fence, in and out of the posts and electrical conduit, scrambling across 25 ft of fence before jumping onto the mulch under the tree. I wondered if it was overthinking it. Wouldn’t running across the lawn be easier? Grass allergy? A friend of mine decided it was a good analogy—it took the longest path, it wasn't the easiest way, but it got there. We do that with God sometimes, she said. We make it hard for ourselves…. But get there!
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You are in my prayers this week.
Fr. Andrew
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10) Words on the Word: August 29, 2021 - Food for the Hungry!
When capitalism and neighborly outreach come together, the result can be a beautiful thing.
The Detroit News reported a few weeks ago on the efforts of a woman and her niece to operate a vegan-based “mobile café.” But the business model for this particular food truck is not typical; here, they charge those who can afford to pay for their fare, in order to make money that can be used to prepare food for those who cannot afford to pay.
“I come from outreach ministry,” the entrepreneur/Samaritan is quoted in the story as saying, “so charging for food was weird to me and it took a minute for me to ascertain my worth.
“But people in the suburbs and stuff, they can afford the elite veganism that I offer. So we sell it to them, and we feed the people in the city of Detroit, or wherever. We don’t discriminate.”
What a unique and refreshing perspective; one that creates a win for everyone involved. Those with the means can purchase outstanding food. Those without the means can benefit from receiving the same outstanding food.
“I’m not trying to get rich,” the woman went on to say. “I just want to feed people. Yes, we sell food, but each plate we serve has a purpose…it’s to give back to somebody who can’t afford to pay.”
That admonition to help our neighbors is within each of us, we’re reminded in today’s second reading.
“Humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you and is able to save your souls,” St. James writes. “Be doers of the word and not hearers only, deluding yourselves. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their affliction and to keep oneself unstained by the world.”
© 2021, Words on the Word
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11) Ascension Presents with Father Mike Schmitz: |
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How to See God in Everything, Everyday (and How to Respond)
“It is good to guard the secret of a king, but gloriously to reveal the works of God, and with fitting honor to acknowledge him.” – Tobit 12:7
How often do you acknowledge the works of God? How often do you recognize what he’s doing in your life? In this passage from Tobit, the Archangel Raphael is encouraging us to pay attention to the works of God—not only in our lives, but in the lives of those around us. He is constantly present, even in our most mundane tasks. But how often do we notice his works, note his presence and goodness, and declare it to the world?
Today, Fr. Mike encourages us to acknowledge the presence of God in our lives through 3 steps: noticing, noting, and declaring.
This is just an introduction to discovering God in your everyday life. To go deeper, check out Danielle Bean’s new book, Whisper: Finding God in the Everyday.
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12) FORMED Pick of the Week: |
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Our parish has a subscription to FORMED, a premier online platform filled with over 4,000 Catholic studies, movies, audio dramas, talks, e-books, and even cartoons for our children. FORMED has content from over 60 apostolates, including Augustine Institute, Ignatius Press, and the Knights of Columbus, with material that is professionally produced, engaging, and solid in its catechism. Best of all, this material is free to you because of our parish subscription.
You have easy access to all of the material on FORMED to support your own faith journey and that of your family members.
You can enjoy FORMED on your computer or on your television with an inexpensive Roku device or Apple TV. You can even listen on your phone as you commute to work or do chores.
To gain access to all of FORMED’s content, follow these simple steps:
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Go to https://signup.formed.org/
- Enter our parish’s zip code 48080 or enter St. Joan of Arc
- Enter your name and your email address
That’s it! You’re in. Now you can get the free FORMED app for your phone by searching FORMED Catholic in your app store.
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Are you looking for a one-stop app for prayer and meditation? Look no further than Hallow. Hallow is an awesome prayer app. Hallow is a Catholic prayer and meditation app that helps users deepen their relationship with God through audio-guided contemplative prayer sessions. The app launched 2 years ago and is already the #1 Catholic app in the world.
We have a number of parishioners who are already using the app and loving it (my mom being one of them and she is on the app most of the day). Great for praying alone or together with your spouse/family, Hallow truly has something for everyone, no matter what you are going through (see below for their different content categories).
Hallow is free to download and has tons of permanently free content, as well as a premium subscription, Hallow Plus.
To get started, simply click the button above/below to activate your free account on the Hallow website. Make sure to select “Sign Up with Email” when registering. For step-by-step instructions, you can visit this process guide. Enter the code stjoanofarcmi to obtain a discount on individual pro plans.
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14) This Week on St. Joan of Arc LIVE: |
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This week's LIVE Stream
Schedule at St. Joan of Arc:
Monday (August 30):
7:00 AM - Mass
Tuesday (August 31):
7:00 AM - Mass
Wednesday (September 1):
7:00 AM - Mass
Thursday (September 2):
7:00 AM - Mass
7:00 PM - Holy Hour (Praise and Worship Music)
Friday (September 3):
7:00 AM - Mass
Saturday (September 4):
4:00 PM - Mass
6:00 PM - Mass
Sunday (September 5):
8:00 AM - Mass
10:00 AM - Mass
12:00 PM - Mass
Please note that all of our masses and events can be accessed through the ARCHIVE section of our Live stream page if you are not able to watch it live!
We also have our own ROKU Channel. Search for "CATHOLIC" in the ROKU channel store, and you will find SJA's channel. A Fire TV Channel is also available.
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15) SJA's Bulletin for August 29, 2021 |
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Click on the image below
to download a copy of our
Bulletin for August 29, 2021
The 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
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Weekly bulletin: Sending the bulletin has been greatly received by so many people. IF you are getting the bulletin online and would prefer that it not be mailed to your home, please click on the button below to be removed from the mailing list.
At the same time, if you are NOT getting the bulletin and would prefer to get it, click on the same button and ask to be ADDED to the list.
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Read the latest from the DETROIT CATHOLIC
Click on the image below.
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