Week of January 12, 2025

1) New Walking with Purpose Women's Bible Study Series

2) Operation REACH OUT

3) Want to become Catholic? Want to be baptized? Do you need to be Confirmed? Learn More about the Catholic Church

4) High School Youth Group

5) School Open House

6) Blood Drive

7) Ascension's Bible and Catechism App

It's Here: The Bible & Catechism App!

The word of God and the complete teachings of the Catholic Church. Answers and commentary by Fr. Mike Schmitz, Jeff Cavins, and other experts. Video, audio, and textual commentary. Right on your phone.

8) Holy Hour on Thursdays

9) This Sunday's Readings: January 12, 2025 - the Baptism of the Lord

10) Sunday Reflections by Jeff Cavins

The Baptism of the Lord

Jeff Cavins offers his insights on the readings for this Sunday, The Baptism of the Lord:

First Reading: Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7

Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 29:1-2, 3-4, 9-10

Second Reading: Acts 10:34-38

Gospel: Luke 3:15-16, 21-22

11) Bishop Barron's Sunday Sermon

Why Was Jesus Baptized?

Friends, the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord is exceptionally important. All four Gospels talk about it, and John the Baptist is a kind of door we have to go through to understand Jesus properly. What was John the Baptist doing in the desert? Why did the Messiah, the Lord, go to him for a baptism of repentance? And why do we still spend time with this strange, puzzling, and even embarrassing event?

12) Grow+Go

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 the button or image below to download a PDF copy of this Sunday's Grow+Go.

13) Giving to SJA:

I'm truly grateful for your support of SJA. 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.

14) TALLer Tales

CHRISTMAS THANKS: I wish to extend my appreciation and thanks to all who helped with the Christmas liturgies and environment this year. The Church and the Sr. Carol Center looked AWESOME! While the Church certainly looked AWESOME, it was also AWESOME to see the crowds in Church. We haven’t seen that many people at ALL of our liturgies since before COVID. The 4 PM Christmas Eve liturgies were packed with standing room only. Even the 12:00 PM Mass on Christmas Day was packed!

Many people helped get us ready for Advent and Christmas, but I would like to single out a few individuals who went above and beyond to make it all so memorable for all of us!

First, I would like to give a massive shout-out to Fr. Rich for all his work designing and creating all the most spectacular Advent and Christmas decorations that decorated our sanctuary. I don’t know what we would do without him!

Second, I would like to give another massive shout-out to John Umlauf, Dina Ciaffone, John Benoit, Pete Ciaravino, and Casey Zalewski, who helped put up all the wreathes and Christmas Trees and took direction from Father Rich to make it all happen!

I’m grateful to Anne Melise, and her adorable mother, Ilona Higgins, for all their work in painstakingly tending to all our plants and flowers in Church year-round. Can you imagine watering all those poinsettias?

I’m grateful to those who contributed to the flower collection. Your contributions help us buy some of the most beautiful plants and flowers. Thank You!

I’m grateful to Humble Landscaping Services, which was hired to put up all the lights outside this year. They did a phenomenal job! We got plenty of compliments for how beautiful the lights outside looked.

I’m grateful to Charlie Kaiser and Pete Ciaravino, who helped decorate the Athletic Field with lights. The light display on the field is always spectacular. You may have noticed they added more lights to their creation this year!

I’m grateful to Catherine Thomas Trudell, our Director of Music Ministries, and to Kristine Hass, Eleonore Ellero, the Children’s Choir, the Adult Choir, and all the musicians and accompanists who assisted with all the music during the Christmas season. The music was phenomenal and truly enhanced our Christmas liturgies!

I’m grateful to Kristine Hass, Mary Garofalo, the parents, and, most especially, the little angels who participated in our O Holy Night children’s program and the Children’s choir on Christmas Eve. Watching the little ones sing or take part in retelling the story of Christ’s birth brings great warmth to any heart!

I’m grateful to Amy Pattie, Charlie Kaiser, our teachers, and administrators for all they did to help our school children keep focused on Christ as the reason for the season. In addition, I’m grateful to Lisa Mangan, who led our school Christmas Music Program, and all the students who participated in these great annual traditions at SJA School.

I’m grateful to Maria and Larry Krzesowski, Debbie Bigham, Jeanne VanEgmond, and Sandy McMann for all their work in making the annual Memorial Tree a reality. Maria and Debbie spend countless hours machine embroidering the ornaments that decorate the annual memorial tree to honor those who have gone home to the Lord over the past year. Rachel Gerard and Jeanne VanEgmond ensure all the names and dates are super accurate before and after the ornaments are made.

I’m grateful to Kristine Hass, Steve Hysick, Ed Raybaud, Dina Ciaffone, Fr. Bob, and Jim and Marsha Jenkins for all their work handling the cameras for our streaming. I’m grateful to Kristine Hass, Catherine Thomas Trudell, Fr. Bob, Kathy Kalich, Mary Pat Brennan, Ida Abdelnour, Brian Wotta, and Jackie Bugarin-Scheuer for handling the technical and practical aspects of the slides in Church that display our songs and responses.

I’m grateful to Dina Ciaffone, Vern Dave, John Benoit, Pete Ciaravino, and Casey Zalewski for their extraordinary work in getting the outdoor Nativity set into place and for ensuring the Church and Sr. Carol Center are spotless for all our Christmas liturgies. John, Pete, and Casey also go out of their way on Christmas Eve and Day to show up between our Masses to ensure everything is spotless for the next liturgy. And then God bless Vern for opening up and getting the lights on in Church and School as early as 4:30 or 5:00 each morning.

Speaking of the outdoor Nativity set, I continue to be grateful to the Art and Mary Ann Van Elslander family for gifting us the beautiful Nativity set that once decorated their front lawn on Lakeshore! That precious gift enhances our front lawn for all to see. I’m grateful to the Allemon Family for donating all the bales of hay that were used in the Nativity enclosure.

I’m grateful to Mary Garofalo and her team, who helped in the Kitchen and ensured all our Advent and Christmas receptions and gatherings were extra special. They do extraordinary work!

I’m grateful to Dina Ciaffone, Rachel Gerard, Jackie Bugarin-Scheuer, Kathy Kalich, Mary Pat Brennan, and Patty Kesner for their hard work and efforts in taking care of the flurry of requests that came through the Parish Center during Advent and especially during the days leading up to Christmas. It’s hard to keep track of the comings and goings of people (and boxes) and all the requests, but they do a phenomenal job and always do it with warm hearts and great smiles.  

I’m grateful to my team of family members who, shortly after our Christmas Eve dinner, helped place all 2,000 tea lights outside during the 6 PM mass. We’ve done this now for five years in a row. I’m grateful to Mark and Sharon Dichtel, who took last year’s tealights and helped prepare them for this year. We’ve never used them more than once before! We were all surprised that the 2023 lights were still good enough to use in 2024!

I’m grateful to Kristine Hass and Dina Ciaffone for all their hard work in creating and editing the special Christmas edition of the bulletin. The Christmas edition of the bulletin is created to be a tool for outreach and evangelization for all our visitors and guests, besides having the usual weekly information everyone is accustomed to seeing in the bulletin.

Speaking of stuffers, I’m grateful to those who give their time to prepare the bulletin to be mailed weekly to 900 families. That list includes Rachel Gerard, Ida Abdelnour, Barb Hendrick, Mary Pat Brennan, Kathy Kalich, Sue Mulrenin, Tony Latarski, Patty Kesner, Judy Deneweth, and Laura Sorget.

I’m grateful to the lectors, extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, and our team of God’s Door Keepers for their dedication and extraordinary ministry to all who came to SJA over the Christmas holidays.

And, finally, thank you to Fr. Bob, Fr. Rich, Deacon Dominick, and Deacon Tom for their extraordinary ministry around the altar of the Lord with the marathon of liturgies we had this year! We are so grateful for the team we have at SJA!

Our liturgies were prayerful and beautiful and led us to a deeper relationship with the Lord. It took a lot of people working together to make it all happen. It was another magnificent Christmas at SJA! THANK YOU!

Now You See Him … Now You Don’t; A Little Health Update: This coming Friday, I’ll be undergoing foot reconstruction surgery. Yes, you read that right … foot reconstruction surgery. Doesn’t that sound like fun? Not really! While I’ve read all the technical terms describing what’s about to be done to my foot, I’ve decided to spare myself of knowing all the details by Googling or watching YouTube videos about it.

Dr. Paul Fortin … who is considered THE best foot and ankle surgeon … will be handling the surgery. He's been very honest, even blunt, about what I’m facing. This won’t be a simple surgery, and it’s going to be painful. On top of that, he’s made it very clear that the success of this surgery depends heavily on my ability to follow his post-op instructions to the letter. UGH!

What does that mean? Well, it means 10 to 12 weeks of being completely non-weight-bearing on my right foot. For the first two weeks, I’m essentially homebound with strict orders to minimize movement. After that, I’ll transition to using an iWALK device (you can bet that’ll give me plenty of material for future bulletin articles) or possibly a combination of a walker with the iWALK, knee scooter, and crutches. Eventually, I might graduate to a walking boot for another four weeks. It all depends on how my bones heal and how my foot and ankle respond to the new hardware.

Long story short, I don’t expect to make any in-person appearances for the next three weeks. BUT I’m already plotting ways to Zoom or video-call myself into Church to make announcements at Mass, visit classrooms, or crash some meetings. Why? Because that’s just me! 

The Parish Center Staff, on the other hand, is a little uneasy about this whole “downtime” situation. They figure the first two weeks may give them a bit of peace, but after that, they’re bracing themselves for the inevitable royal pest phase. Imagine all the projects I’ll be dreaming up!

Now, how did I end up here? It all started ten years ago, the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. After finishing a meeting with a school parent, I didn’t realize my foot had fallen asleep. When I stood up to walk the parent to the door, I ended up flat on my face … or more accurately, flat on my foot … and broke it in three or four places. At the time, the doctors didn’t think surgery was necessary; they believed the bones could heal without it.

Fast forward to two years ago, and I started noticing that the top half of my right foot swelled up every day. I saw several doctors and specialists, went through numerous tests and procedures, but no one could quite pinpoint the issue.

Then I met Dr. Fortin. It only took him a quick glance at my x-rays to figure out the problem. It all stems from the improper healing of my breaks ten years ago, compounded by the wear and tear my foot endures daily. And to top it off, my size doesn’t exactly help matters. By the end of most days, my right foot is incredibly swollen. People often assume I must be in pain. Truthfully, I’m not always in pain. Of course, when I tell people I’m not in pain, there’s always a select group, mostly my mom, sisters, Fr. Rich, Dina, and a few others, who are quick to say, “Maybe YOU are not in pain, but it’s painful watching you try to walk.”

And so, Friday kicks off a new chapter of healing. I already foresee plenty of bulletin articles in the pipeline about this experience, especially once I start navigating life for 3 months with the infamous (and new) iWALK device! Wait until you see pictures of this thing! More on that next week!

Keep me in your prayers, and I’ll be sure to keep you posted as things progress.

Enjoy the week. Know of my prayers!

In Christ,

gmb@sjascs.org

15) Voiland's View

Our church – the Catholic Church – is a sacramental church. We have seven Sacraments: Baptism, Penance, Holy Eucharist, Confirmation, Holy Matrimony, Holy Orders, and Anointing of the Sick. No other religion has this number of sacraments. Nor do other religions that have practices resembling our Sacraments understand them in the same way we do – with the exception of Baptism, in some cases. The Sacraments are fundamental to our practice of Catholicism. We believe that is it through the Sacraments that we attain eternal life. Our focus on the Sacraments makes us very weird in the eyes of the rest of the world.

Our sacramental life draws us into the mystical aspects of human existence that make a lot of people uncomfortable. To live a life that embraces the profound mystery of supernatural realities forces us to sometimes answer hard questions with, “I don’t know.” We have to admit that to embrace faith in Jesus Christ has us living with one foot in the world and the other in divine life. Faith faces us with unknowns that only the Holy Spirit can help us manage. This inability to explain things in human terms is quite unpopular in our highly technical, “scientific” world. So, things like religious sacraments don’t go over well. Even among Christian religions, Catholic mystical practices push us believers to the social fringes. If only we would “just stick to the Bible,” others say, things might be more unified.

Much of Protestantism tries to reign in our ‘crazy’ Catholic ritual expression of Christianity. We have certainly heard the term, sola scriptura (scripture alone), or maybe seen the description “Full Bible Church” on the sign of a little church we pass by. The message there is that everything we need to achieve eternal salvation with God is laid out right there in the Bible – if only we would study it and do it! To which we Catholics say, “Nope.”

Certainly, Holy Scripture is the inspired word of God. It is the inexhaustible source of written communication from God that guides us continually into deeper relationship with him. Indeed, we need it for our salvation. But we need more than Scripture. We need the source of Scripture. We need the Word himself – Jesus. Which means we need the Sacraments. So, what exactly is a sacrament?

The Catechism of the Catholic Church says this: “The sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us” (1131). This is an excellent definition of a sacrament. But to distill it down a bit more, we could say that, “a sacrament is a visible sign of God’s invisible grace, instituted by Christ for our salvation.” Even more simply: a sacrament is a way for us to receive God’s grace. “God’s grace” is the operative term here. And here’s the kicker: without God’s grace, we’re not getting into heaven. Period. That’s precisely why the Catholic Church is a sacramental church.

“Grace is favor, the free and undeserved help that God gives us to respond to his call to become children of God, adoptive sons, partakers of the divine nature and of eternal life. Grace is a participation in the life of God” (CCC1996-7). We can think of grace as a little piece of God himself, given to us to enable us to get to him. We receive those “bits of God” every time we receive one of our Catholic sacraments. Our Sacraments are not the only means of receiving God’s grace, but Sacramental grace is unique and powerfully effective. When we sin, we diminish God’s grace within us by turning our back on him and doing our own selfish will instead of God’s loving will for us. Reception of the Sacraments brings us back into proper relationship with God and strengthens us to stay ever more strongly in union with him.

The beauty of our sacramental Catholic life is that living the Mysteries of Faith lets God be God. We acknowledge that we are not in the driver’s seat. God is – whether we like it or not. The trouble with any religion that we define is that it becomes a self-serving head game. Even if the standard we take is “the Bible alone,” the truly inspired word of God, we make it about ourselves. 

When we individually decide Scripture’s interpretation, instead of the Church’s lived interpretation of it throughout time, we make it about us instead of its Author. Such behavior is an ego trip. As well-intentioned as we might be, we’re cruisin’ for a bruisin’. God and his Church are too big for us to get in his way without getting hurt.

God doesn’t want his children to be hurt. He gives us himself over and over again in his Sacraments. They are a readily-available opportunity for us to taste the goodness of God’s divine life while we are right here on earth. Jesus himself was baptized to bless the waters of the Sacrament of Baptism and he showed us how to do it. He gave us his very self to consume at his Last Supper. He instituted all of the seven Sacraments to embrace us with his divine love. 

Praise God for his generosity! Praise God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – at all times, in all ways!

Fr. Bob

rvoiland@sjascs.org

16) Ascension Presents: Father Mike Schmitz

Christian Stoicism (Can You Be a Stoic Catholic?)

Stoicism has its roots in Ancient Greece and Rome (300 BC) but it's seen a resurgence on social media in recent years. Stoic virtues like prudence, fortitude, and self-control can be very attractive, and Christians might wonder, "is Stoicism compatible with my faith?"

The answer is: yes and no. Fr. Mike breaks down the good and true aspects of Stoicism—and he also uncovers where it falls short, and only Christianity can bridge the gap.

17) Words on the Word: January 12, 2025 - National Priorities

As we get closer to Inauguration Day (one week and counting), people are getting either extremely anxious (excited) or anxious (worried), depending on their beliefs and priorities, about the new presidential administration.

Pundits and media are gearing up for the good, the bad and the ugly of what the change will bring.

One media outlet a few weeks ago did a deep-dive analysis of the major initiatives the incoming president will pursue, how they will potentially impact the various people and groups involved, and how fast such changes can be expected.

Meanwhile, headlines continue to be dominated by remarkable changes and upheaval in governments around the world, from Europe to right across the border in Canada.

Ultimately, changes are occurring and will continue to occur, as they always have, and there’s little most citizens can do to impact the change and its ripple effects, other than to continue to pray – as we always have – that politicians and leaders keep the common good at the forefront of their decisions and actions. 

“In truth,” we hear St. Peter say in one of the options for today’s second reading from Acts, “I see that God shows no partiality. Rather, in every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to him.” 

The promise, then, come what may, is that it’s ultimately God who is in power, and it’s ultimately God’s perfect plan that will win.

“Fear not to cry out and say to the cities of Judah: Here is your God,” we hear from Isiah in one of the options for today’s second reading. “Here comes with power the Lord God, who rules by a strong arm; here is his reward with him, his recompense before him. Like a shepherd he feeds his flock; in his arms he gathers the lambs, carrying them in his bosom, and leading the ewes with care.”

© 2024 Words on the Word

18) This WEEK on FORMED:

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:

• 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.



19) 52 Stories: Good News from Spirit Juice Studios

Prepare to be Inspired

Spirit Juice Studios is blessed to work with countless Catholic organizations, dioceses, parishes, and schools. We get to help them tell their powerful stories about all the good stuff that is happening within the Church. Sign up for 52 Stories so we can share them with you! You’ll meet the unsung heroes of the Catholic Church, discover the stories of holy women and men around the world, and witness miraculous moments of God’s grace in everyday life.

In a world full of bad news, these stories will give you 52 reasons to believe that God is working through the Catholic faith to transform lives through His love and mercy. Sign up today!

The Rock of Christendom

The Catholic Church has lived, grown, and prospered for over 2000 years. This is the story of her founding. In partnership with the Halo Foundation and Fr. Mitch Pacwa, Spirit Juice Studios brings this story to life, through dynamic storytelling, reenactments, and on-location filming in the Holy Land.

20) Hallow App:

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.

21) Mass Intentions for the Week:

Monday, January 13, 2025, Weekday; Saint Hilary, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (Green/White)

7:00 am: A Special Intention for Dr. Keith Khalil

Tuesday, January 14, 2025, Weekday (Green)

7:00 am: Christopher Damm

Wednesday, January 15, 2025, Weekday (Green) 

7:00 am: Felipe Aleta 

6:00 pm: Johnny Spath

Thursday, January 16, 2025, Weekday (Green) 

7:00 am: A Special Intention for Joe Schotthoefer

Friday, January 17, 2025, Saint Anthony, Abbot (White)

7:00 am: Jerry Valeck

Saturday, January 18, 2025, Vigil for the 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (White)

4:00 pm: Germaine Bryan, David Damm, Bonnie Batche, Janet Babbish, the deceased members of the Calisi Family who died in the month of January, A Special Intention for Linda Dunn, and the living and deceased members of the J. Champine Family

6:00 pm: Raymond Strussione

Sunday, January 19, 2025, Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Green)

8:00 am: The Intentions of SJA Parishioners

10:00 am: A Special Intention for Dana Test

12:00 pm: Joseph Paluzzi, Daniel M. Bommarito, Frank Doetsch, Concetta (Tina) Calisi, and a Special Intention for Linda Dunn

22) This Week on St. Joan of Arc LIVE:

This week's LIVE Stream

Schedule at St. Joan of Arc:

Monday (January 13)

7:00 AM - Mass

Tuesday (January 14):

7:00 AM - Mass

Wednesday (January 15):

7:00 AM - Mass

6:00 PM - Mass

Thursday (January 16):

7:00 AM- Mass

10:00 AM - Funeral for Dr. Thomas Sloan (Read Obituary HERE)

12:00 PM - Funeral for Charlotte Power (Read Obituary HERE)

7:00 PM - Holy Hour



Friday (January 17):

7:00 AM - Mass

Saturday (January 18):

12:30 PM - Baptism of Sylvia S. Fresard

1:30 PM - Baptism of Viviana Marie Chapman

4:00 PM - Mass

6:00 PM - Mass

Sunday (January 19):

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 cannot 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.

23) SJA's Latest Parish Bulletin

Click on the image below

to download a copy of the bulletin

for January 12, 2025

24) Weekly Bulletin Mailing List

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.



25) Detroit Catholic