Week of January 14, 2024

1) 9 Days for Life Novena - January 16 - 24, 2024

Catholics nationwide are invited to pray “9 Days for Life,” an annual Respect Life novena starting Tuesday, January 16.

In the Catholic Church, a ‘novena’ consists of prayers over nine successive days, and this particular novena is an opportunity for prayer and reparation in observance of the annual Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children on January 22.

Participants may access the novena and also subscribe to receive the daily prayers by email or text message in English at 9daysforlife.com or in Spanish at respectlife.org/9-dias-por-la-vida.

Sponsored by the Committee on Pro-Life Activities of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the novena began in 2013 in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade—the Supreme Court decision that made abortion legal throughout the United States. While the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization returned the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives at federal and state levels, continuing efforts are needed to protect children and their mothers from the tragedy of abortion. This is the twelfth year the novena is taking place. Since the novena began, it has reached hundreds of thousands of people in over one hundred countries spanning six continents.

The overarching intention of the novena is the end to abortion. Each daily prayer intention highlights a related topic and is accompanied by a reflection, educational information, and suggested daily actions.

To sign up please click the button below:

2) Rachel's Vineyard

Rachel's Vineyard weekends for healing after abortion are offered throughout the year in locations across the United States and Canada, with additional sites around the world. Rachel’s Vineyard is a ministry of Priests for Life.

The program is an opportunity to examine your abortion experience, identify the ways that the loss has impacted you in the past and present, and helps to acknowledge any unresolved feelings that many individuals struggle with after abortion. Because of the emotional numbness and secrecy that often surrounds an abortion experience, conflicting emotions both during and after the event may remain unresolved. These buried feelings can surface later and may be symptoms of post-abortion trauma.

Married couples, mothers, fathers, grandparents, and siblings of aborted children, as well as persons who have been involved in the abortion industry have come to Rachel's Vineyard in search of peace and inner healing. The weekend is a lot of work but yields a fruitful harvest for all who are willing to labor there. To learn more, watch the video below and click on the button below the video.

3) Walking with Mother's in Need

Driven by the nationwide United States Catholic Conference of Bishops’ Walking with Moms in Need initiative, the Detroit Walking with Moms in Need initiative is a partnership between the Archdiocese of Detroit and Catholic Charities of southeast Michigan, which equips and assists Catholic parishes and parishioners in raising awareness about resources that assist pregnant and parenting moms in need. The initiative seeks to make each parish in the Archdiocese a place where moms and their babies are welcomed and supported and where the dignity of every human life is upheld and valued.

Through Walking with Moms in Need, Catholic parishes and communities "walk in the shoes" of local pregnant and parenting women to connect them with the help they need.

As members of the Body of Christ, we are called to help moms in difficult circumstances, and we should know how we can best support them. While not trying to turn Catholic parishes into pregnancy centers, we can support local pregnancy centers where they exist. We can also find and share other resources with pregnant and parenting women that will serve them and the young lives entrusted to them.

What does it really mean to walk with moms in need? Watch this 5 Minute Video

4) Rescue Project Returns One Week from TUESDAY

5) Walking with Purpose Women's Bible Studies

Join women of our parish in the Sr. Carol Center for a coffee and to learn about the fruits of these beautiful weekly Catholic Bible studies written especially for women. All women are welcome and invited to bring a friend. Each group is doing a different study. Feel free to drop in on the first session. There's always an open seat.

Beginning January 8th, the 7 pm evening group will start a 22-week program: Discovering our Dignity. Women of the Old and New Testaments were as flawed and broken as we can be, yet the power of God worked in their lives. Discovering Our Dignity will allow you to learn from their experiences and uncover ways to deal with unwanted circumstances and deferred hopes.

On January 22nd, the 10 am morning group is starting an 11-week look at Fearless and Free, a Bible study based on the book of Ephesians. This study is ideal for those who long for wholeness of heart and are in need of freedom from past wounds. So many of us are wrestling with the reality that life isn’t easy, even when we are doing the right thing.

No previous experience is needed.

6) Presence: The Mystery of the Eucharist - After ALL Masses again next weekend!

Although the Eucharist appears to be simple bread and wine, it is actually the "source and summit" of the Christian life. Presence: The Mystery of the Eucharist explores the truth and beauty of Christ's real presence in the Eucharist, from its origins in Sacred Scripture to its profound role in the life of the Church and her members. it is the crescendo of the entire story of salvation.

Learn about the truth and beauty of Christ's real presence in the Eucharist, from its origins in Sacred Scripture to its profound role in the life of the Church and her members.

Next week, we will show the final episode,

If you missed Episode ONE or TWO, you may watch it by clicking one of the links below.

7) New Men's Fellowship Bible Study

8) Ascension's Bible and Catechism App

9) Holy Hour on Thursdays

10) This Sunday's Readings: January 14, 2024 - The 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

11) Sunday Reflections by Jeff Cavins

In this week’s Encountering the Word video for the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Jeff Cavins teaches us how to better discern if and when God is calling us. The readings are:

First Reading: 1 Samuel 3:3B-10, 19

Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 40:2, 4, 7-8, 8-9, 10

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 6:13C-15A, 17-20

Alleluia: John 1:41, 17B

Gospel: John 1:35-42

12) Bishop Barron's Sunday Sermon

The Voice of Conscience



Friends, we commence now with the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, and our first reading is one of my favorites in the Old Testament: the account, in the First Book of Samuel, of the call of Samuel, who as a young man hears the voice of the Lord for the first time. In the history of salvation, in the lives of the saints, occasionally God really does speak in a voice that can be heard, but I think what’s being described here is the word of God in the voice of the conscience, and what to do when we hear it.

13) Grow+Go

14) Giving to SJA:

I'm truly grateful for all of 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.

15) This Week's Edition of TALLER Tales

Twas the “Night” Before Christmas: Yes, ‘twas the “night” before Christmas, when all through the Church, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. The wreaths were all hung by the balcony with care, hoping the Christmas crowds would soon be there. The parishioners soon came and were nestled in their pews with visions of at least some snow on Christmas despite the 50 degrees that warmed the air. There was lots of talk of Christmases gone by when fire alarms, broken pipes, no boilers, and alarms marked the day. There were even remembrances of a Christmas Eve “long ago” when Monsignor had to be awoken from his long winter’s nap to celebrate the Midnight Mass! We all laughed and remembered, but Monsignor was confident THIS would be the year everything would go off without a single mishap!

WRONG!

As I often say around here, “Someone should fire the I.T. Director (meaning me).” I do try!

Last Christmas, I changed all the smart plugs that all our Christmas trees and wreaths are plugged into. That necessitated some reprogramming on my part of all the schedules controlling these devices. I was hyper-focused on the wreaths because, for some reason, the plugs in the “trough,” as I like to call it (the space above the Stations of the Cross where the electrical and air ducts run throughout the Church), don’t often play well. For some reason, those smart plugs don’t always get a good Wi-Fi connection, and without the Wi-Fi connection, they will not get the “command” to turn off or on at the appropriate times. Of course, I find this maddening, and I spend way too much time trying to make it work.

Well, I had everything in order, and I even told several people that I made sure the wreaths would work and that I changed the timers to turn off at 11:59 so they wouldn’t go off in the middle of the 10:00 PM mass on Christmas Eve. Before I made the change, the timers were set to go off at 11:00 PM.

As I celebrated the 10:00 PM mass, everything seemed to be going remarkably well. I was breathing a sigh of relief, thinking I could finally mark at least ONE Christmas where NOTHING went wrong. Right after communion, as we sat and were singing “Silent Night,” I sensed it got a bit dimmer behind me. I turned and saw one of the trees had gone dark. I then turned in another direction and saw a couple more trees had gone dark. UGH. I was so irritated. I looked at the clock on the wall and saw it was 11:00 PM. I immediately knew I had forgotten to change the programming of the Christmas Tree lighting group. I got it right with the wreaths but forgot to change all the trees in the sanctuary. I tried to pull out my phone to put them back on, but it was too late, and my fumbling would have been too obvious! I purposely didn’t say anything about it at the end of Mass, hoping people didn’t notice. But little did I know that MOST of the Christmas trees had gone dark.

As we were saying goodbye and “Merry Christmas” as people were exiting the Church, one person, let’s say his name was Joe S., and he was instrumental in helping with last year’s broken pipe mess in the middle of the Christmas Eve 10:00 PM mass, said, “Not bad Monsignor! No flood. No broken pipes. Only wayward Christmas tree timers. When I saw it was exactly 11:00 PM when the lights went out, I knew the problem!” “You noticed,” I asked (not realizing how many trees went out). Joe responded, “It was pretty obvious. But not bad considering what happened last year!” Then, with a tip of his hat, he said, “Merry Christmas!”

Well, so much for a “perfect Christmas.” I do try! Better luck next year! I’m changing those timers right now. Otherwise, I’ll be writing about it again next year!

Family Life: Perils to Avoid … Pearls to Embrace: Two weeks ago, on the Feast of the Holy Family, I preached and wrote in my bulletin article about some contemporary challenges to family life. I listed three “perils” that quickly come to mind: 1) embracing wrong priorities, 2) being overscheduled, and 3) problems with addictions. The list is much longer, but these three certainly top it.

It’s easy to rattle off the perils. Every family has their own list of people or things that hinder their ability to become a holy family. It would be a great exercise as a family to discuss those things that become obstacles or hindrances for the whole family from growing in holiness. Every one of us is a “saint in training,” but many things get in the way. And we can’t let those things get in the way of what is needed or required for us to become the saints God wants us to be. And, if you take me up on the challenge to have this conversation as a family and you have children at home, pay attention to what they have to say. My experience is that they are sometimes more astute and brutally honest about what prevents the family from praying more often or attending Mass each weekend!

But what about the “pearls,” those items that help a family grow in holiness? They could be things like praying together, spending time together, etc. It becomes a challenge to embrace the pearls. You may want, for example, the idyllic scene of gathering on Sundays for a family meal or always going to Church together. But then someone or something gets in the way of that plan, and you give up trying to make it happen when those obstacles present themselves repeatedly. You should never stop trying to embrace whatever pearls you think will strengthen your family, even if only a few members are participating. If you want your family to gather each Saturday/Sunday for Church and then you want to follow that with a quick meal afterward, then do it and be consistent! You may not always have 100% attendance, but if you remain consistent in inviting everyone to Church and then talk about the fun you had afterward at brunch or dinner, eventually you’ll get the others to learn they are missing out on something, and they’ll want to join you.

Maybe you want to gather for a family game night during the week after dinner. Make it happen and be consistent. Perhaps you find ways for the whole family to gather and pray, whether by reflecting on the upcoming Sunday readings or praying the rosary. Maybe you make it a plan to reach out and do an act of kindness regularly as a whole family for an elderly relative or even a neighbor you know who is often alone. My plea is that you should never give up on your plans or dreams of accomplishing whatever your family needs to accomplish to grow in holiness or be strengthened as a family. Be consistent (set regular reminders on your phone) and make embracing the “pearls” you’ve identified for your family an absolute priority in 2024.

Enjoy the week. Know of my prayers!

In Christ,

16) Along the Way with Father Adam

A Historical Look at Eucharistic Adoration

Eucharistic Adoration has existed since early times. From the 3rd century, the early hermits (solitary monks) reserved the Eucharist in their cells (rooms). The immediate purpose of this reservation was to enable the hermits to give themselves Holy Communion. But these hermits were too conscious of what the Real Presence was not to treat it with great reverence. 

As early as the Council of Nicea (325 AD) we know that the Eucharist began to be reserved in the chapels of monasteries and convents. The sacred character of the Eucharist was recognized and the place of reservation was set apart.

 One of the first unmistakable references to reserving the Blessed Sacrament is found in a life of St. Basil (who died in 379). Basil is said to have divided the Eucharistic Bread into three parts when he celebrated Mass in the monastery. One part he consumed, the second part he gave to the monks, and the third he placed in a golden dove suspended over the altar. 

Because of controversy regarding belief in the Real Presence, the 11th Century began a “Eucharistic Renaissance.” From then on, devotion to the Blessed Sacrament reserved in the tabernacle became more and more prevalent in the Catholic world.

In 1226 King Louis VII of France had the Blessed Sacrament exposed in the Chapel of the Holy Cross in gratitude for a victorious battle. The throng of adorers was so great that the bishop decided to have the adoration continue day and night. It was uninterrupted until 1792, during the French Revolution. Perpetual adoration resumed in 1829. It is important to note, that this amazing achievement of centuries of perpetual contact with Christ in the Eucharist was not a mandate, but an organic result of the faith in that community and its belief in the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist.

Pope Urban IV instituted the Feast of Corpus Christi in the thirteenth century. When establishing the feast, the Pope stressed the love of Christ who wished to remain physically with us until the end of time. He commissioned St. Thomas Aquinas to compose the Liturgy of the Hours for the Feast Day, and from that we were given our adoration hymns: O Salutaris Hostia, Tantum Ergo Sacramentum, and Panis Angelicus – hymns we still sing today. Aquinas realized that without the Real Presence there would be no real sacrifice nor real communion. Aquinas assumed that God became man so He might offer Himself on Calvary and continue to offer Himself in the Mass. He became man that He might give Himself to the disciples at the Last Supper and continue to give Himself to us in Holy Communion. 

By the sixteenth century, every aspect of Catholic belief in the Holy Eucharist was challenged by the Reformers. One response to such a challenge was the development of the Forty-Hours Devotion. The devotion consisted of forty hours of continual prayer before the Blessed Sacrament exposed.

Many years late, in 1917, Pope Benedict XV enshrined in Church law that all churches should participate in a solemn exposition of the Blessed Sacrament at least once per year.

Building on the teaching of his predecessors, Pope John Paul II has come to be known as the Pope of the Real Presence. In one document and address after another, he has repeated what needs repetition for the sake of emphasis: "The Eucharist, in the Mass and outside of the Mass, is the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, and is therefore deserving of the worship that is given to the living God, and to Him alone" (Opening address in Ireland, Phoenix Park, September 29, 1979). 

The underlying theme of the Church's Eucharistic teaching is the fact of "Christ's consoling presence in the Blessed Sacrament. His Real Presence in the fullest sense; the substantial presence by which the whole and complete Christ, God and man, is present" (Pope John Paul II, September 29, 1979). 

Once this fact of faith is recognized, it is not difficult to see why prayer before the Blessed Sacrament is so efficacious. It explains why, without a second thought, Catholics have simply referred to the Real Presence as the Blessed Sacrament. It is a Sacrament, or better, it is the one Sacrament, which not only gives grace but contains the very source of grace, namely Jesus Christ.

Jesus is waiting for you in the Most Blessed Sacrament. 

Join us for Eucharistic Adoration every Thursday at 7 p.m. in the Church!

Blessings!

Fr. Adam

anowak@sjascs.org

17) Ascension Presents: Father Mike Schmitz

Have You Forgotten What God Has Done For You?

God commands his beloved people all throughout scripture: “Remember.” And this command continues to resound for us today.

Remember the good that God has done for you. Remember the times he has delivered you. Remember when you thought you had nothing left but he gave you strength.

Today, Fr. Mike beseeches us to remember in the darkness what God has revealed in the light, and to never forget what he’s done for us.

18) Words on the Word: January 14, 2024 - Don't Worry

Now here’s something ironic: 

A recent study conducted in Sweden found that hypochondriacs – those who worry they are ill, but are not – nevertheless often end up dying earlier than those who are not hypochondriacs. 

The study, featured on a website that reports on research of this kind, tracked 42,000 people over the course of 20 years. It found those who worried about illness and death typically died about five years earlier than those who did not.

Reasonable people, of course, might ask how one particular variable – how much worrying someone did about their health – could be correlated to their death. The report, alas, did not address that particular question, but did go on to advise non-hypochondriacs to consider taking seriously the concerns of their worrywart friends and family.

Regardless of the particulars – and even the veracity of the study findings – perhaps we can use this news item as a reminder that the middle-ground is a good place to occupy.

Needless worry about our health is neither advisable nor productive. It leads to nothing useful. On the other hand, we are, to be sure, called to take care of our bodies, treating them with the respect God intended, and using them for good.

“Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ?” St. Paul asks in today’s second reading from his first letter to the Corinthians. “But whoever is joined to the Lord becomes one Spirit with him.”

So, what are we to do?

“Avoid immorality,” the reading continues. “Every other sin a person commits is outside the body. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been purchased at a price.

“Therefore, glorify God in your body.”

© 2023 Words on the Word

19) This WEEK on FORMED:

20) Hallow App:

21) Mass Intentions for the Week:

Monday, January 15, 2024, Weekday (Green) 

7:00 am, Johnny Spath

Tuesday, January 16, 2024, Weekday (Green)

7:00 am, Leonard Lefevre

Wednesday, January 17, 2024, Saint Anthony, Abbot (White)

7:00 am, For the deceased members of the Calisi Family who died in the month of January

6:00 pm, Pamela Gervasoni

Thursday, January 18, 2024, Weekday (Green)

7:00 am, Joseph Calus

Friday, January 19, 2024, Weekday (Green)

7:00 am Gerald Valeck

Saturday, January 20, 2024, Vigil for the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Green)

4:00 pm, Grace and Sam Valenti, Geraldine Rogier, Bonnie Batche, Rosemary Mieras, and Special Intentions for Lou Giannopoulos, the J. Champine Family, the Thomas Family, for Alison Reslow, Pam Haisenleder, Lorraine Jonas, and Linda Frank.

6:00 pm, Denise Allosery

Sunday, January 21, 2024, The Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Green)

8:00 am, For the Intentions for St. Joan of Arc Parishioners

10:00 am, Joseph Paluzzi Jr.

12:00 pm, Kathryn Pierce-Kaspzyk, Maureen Anderson, and Special Intentions for Alison Reslow, Pam Haisenleder, Lorraine Jonas, and Linda Frank.

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

This week's LIVE Stream

Schedule at St. Joan of Arc:

Monday (January 15)

7:00 AM - Mass

10:00 AM - Funeral for Shirley Curcuru (Read Obituary HERE)

12:00 PM - Funeral for Richard Coatney (Read Obituary HERE)

Tuesday (January 16):

7:00 AM - Mass

8:30 AM - Mass

Wednesday (January 17):

7:00 AM - Mass

6:00 PM - Mass

Thursday (January 18):

7:00 AM - Mass

7:00 PM - Holy Hour

Friday (January 19):

7:00 AM - Mass

10:00 AM - Funeral for Gary Bezy (Read Obituary HERE)

Saturday (January 20):

12:30 PM - Baptism of Margaret Barri Webb

4:00 PM - Mass

6:00 PM - Mass

Sunday (January 21):

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 14, 2024

24) Weekly Bulletin Mailing List

25) Detroit Catholic