To download a PDF copy of the Chalking of the Doors flyer, please click on the image below. | |
2) What Became of the Magi After Visiting Jesus? Their Amazing Forgotten Story | |
From Church POP: The Magi have a short but memorable place in the Gospel story. After Jesus was born, magi from the east follow a star to Bethlehem, offer the newborn King their three gifts, and then return home without revealing to Herod where they found Jesus (cf. Matt. 2).
That’s it. They drop out of the story. Scripture doesn’t even tell us exactly how many of them there were.
But where the Gospel story ends, the tradition of the Church takes over.
Read More HERE
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3) New Walking with Purpose Women's Bible Study Series Starts this Week | |
Several years ago, I came across this short video that uses the words from an 1854 Christmas Eve sermon by Charles Spurgeon, a young English Baptist preacher. The video is only 4 minutes and is a good and simple reflection of the power that Christ gives us through his birth as Immanuel.
Using Spurgeon's words from that Christmas Eve sermon, an original score, and a collection of animated paintings, this Christmas video illustrates the wonder of the ages, God with us.
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5) Want to become Catholic? Want to be baptized? Do you need to be Confirmed? Learn More about the Catholic Church | |
7) High School Youth Group | |
8) 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.
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The Ascension App Includes:
The full text of the Great Adventure Catholic Bible with color coding interwoven throughout so you can immediately recognize where you are in the story of salvation history.
The full text of the Catechism of the Catholic Church with The Foundations of Faith color-coding built in.
Every episode of Bible in a Year with Fr. Mike Schmitz for easy access and cross-referencing with your reading plan and Scripture.
Every released episode of the Catechism in a Year podcast with Fr. Mike Schmitz so you can easily stay on top of your daily readings.
Summaries, the exact wording of Fr. Mike’s daily prayers, and extra content for every single episode of Bible in a Year.
Over 1,000 commonly asked questions about the Bible with answers right in the text from experts like Fr. Mike Schmitz, Jeff Cavins, and others.
An interactive reading plan for both podcasts that tracks your progress.
Notes and bookmarks so you can quickly pick up where you left off and write down your reflections and prayers along the way.
…And we're just getting started. More to be announced soon!
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9) Holy Hour on Thursdays | |
10) This Sunday's Readings: January 5, 2025 - the Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord | |
11) Sunday Reflections by Jeff Cavins | |
Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord
In this week's Encountering the Word video, Jeff Cavins draws our attention to the Epiphany of the Lord and the universal significance of this wonderful celebration.
First Reading: Isaiah 60:1-6
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 72:1-2, 7-8, 10-11, 12-13
Second Reading: Ephesians 3:2-3A, 5-6
Alleluia: Matthew 2:2
Gospel: Matthew 2:1-12
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12) Bishop Barron's Sunday Sermon | |
Science Points to God
Friends, we’re all familiar with the story of the three wise men, which has been depicted in thousands of Christmas cards. And there is something romantic and charming about it. But on this great Feast of the Epiphany, I want to develop an important angle of the story very much on the minds of many people today—namely, the whole problem of religion and science.
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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 the button or image below to download a PDF copy of this Sunday's Grow+Go.
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14) 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.
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You Asked the Wrong Team: Sometimes, I wish I had a master checklist for all the pre-Christmas Mass “stuff” I need to accomplish. It’s usually all up in my head but only comes to light … or spills out from the recesses of my mind … when I’m in the middle of something else. One task that didn’t quite go as planned was organizing the collection process for our Christmas Masses. With the large crowds, we pass collection baskets instead of relying on the boxes in the Gathering Space. The boxes work well for most of the year, but baskets are more practical with the sheer number of attendees on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
When I explained to Father Bob how we manage to get enough volunteers to pass the baskets at each Mass (we needed at least eight for every Mass), I had a “brilliant” idea. I decided to create an instruction sheet for every volunteer at each Mass—eight individual sheets, specifying the volunteer’s number and the section they were responsible for. The idea was to hand out these sheets as people agreed to help. It sounded great in theory, but my execution fell short. The instruction sheets needed more detail. People had questions, and some didn’t realize they’d been assigned to a specific section. While watching this play out in real-time during the Masses, it became clear the plan wasn’t working well.
After one of our Christmas Day Masses, as I greeted parishioners, one approached me and said, “You know, Monsignor, you had NO WOMEN taking up the collection.” I initially got a bit defensive, explaining that the volunteers were randomly picked as they entered the church. I assured her it wasn’t intentional. But she continued, “Don’t worry. Just listen. Our section was visited three times, and I had to help the men figure out where to go next.” Just then, another female parishioner chimed in, agreeing with her. The first woman smiled, laughed, and added, “Had there been some women on the team, it would’ve been done right the first time, and there wouldn’t have been any confusion.”
At this point, I couldn’t help but laugh too. It reminded me of a Christmas plaque I bought on one of my trips to the U.P. It said, “Three Wise Women … would have asked for directions, arrived on time, helped deliver the baby, brought practical gifts, cleaned the stable, made a casserole, and there would have been Peace on Earth!”
Okay, okay, I’ll take the blame here! The lack of perfection was totally my fault. I have a year to rewrite those instruction sheets and refine the process. Maybe next year, I’ll start the project earlier than the morning before Christmas Eve! I do try, honestly. But perhaps I need some wise women to help me turn what’s in my head into instructions that actually make sense. Clearly, that’s a skill I still need to perfect!
Family Life: Perils to Avoid … Pearls to Embrace: Last weekend, we celebrated the Feast of the Holy Family. We usually picture the Holy Family in the context of the peaceful manger scene, but we forget all the ups and downs they experienced as a human family. It wasn’t always easy for them. And it’s not always easy for us! Yet every family is called to be a HOLY family, and the Holy Family should give us hope and encouragement as we try to follow their example. While it may not be easy, it certainly is possible if you’re willing to avoid the perils that obstruct the holiness of a family and if you are willing to embrace the “pearls” that lead to healthy family living.
This week, I’ll focus on the perils that obstruct the holiness of a family. This list could be quite long, but I’d like to highlight three points that immediately come to mind: 1) Embracing wrong priorities, 2) Being overscheduled, and 3) Problems with addictions.
Embracing wrong priorities: Unfortunately, we live in a culture that often challenges or ridicules those who keep faith and family as top priorities in their life. Our culture says that many things “outweigh” these fundamental priorities. Faith and family NEED to be at the top of our list. Our actions as individuals and as families need to be directed by the keeping of these essential priorities in our lives. I am amazed how many excuses I hear as to why people chose not to attend Sunday liturgy or why families don’t gather on weekends like the “good old days.” The excuses run the gamut from “I’m just too busy,” “This was my only free day to get anything done,” or “My kid is on this traveling sport’s team, and it’s really important to him/her, and we simply couldn’t find time to get to Mass.” I’m equally amazed how many families don’t find time to eat a common meal at least once during the week. Eating a common meal together without all the electronics is vital for family bonding.
If you were to list your priorities, would faith and family be number one and number two on the list?
Being Overscheduled: One doesn’t have to look too far to realize we’re way overscheduled. We go from event to event to event without even thinking about how being that overscheduled takes a toll on us. We add so much to our day that our lives become unbalanced, overly stressed, and absolutely unhealthy. We run out the door without eating breakfast because we have to get someplace. We go to bed late and wake up early because we have something to do. The list goes on and on. At some point, we have to sit down and acknowledge that we can’t take on the whole world. It’s okay to say NO. That simple little word can help us start living a more balanced life.
Problems with Addictions: You don’t have to look too far to realize that addictions to alcohol, drugs, and other substances are on the rise. Then there are the addictions to pornography and immoral sexual behavior. While this list of addictions isn’t exhaustive, it highlights several addictions that contribute significantly to the destruction of family life.
I often tell people that we have to do all that we can to protect our “house,” that is, our physical and spiritual person, from the insidious attacks of Satan. Protecting our “house” means doing all we can to make sure we don’t fall into temptations or grow weak enough to fall into Satan’s traps. We are most vulnerable to Satan’s attacks when we are hungry, angry, lonely, or tired. Without thinking and without any determination of will, one can fall because the “moment was right.” We must fortify our house so we don’t fall even to the slightest temptation. As the saying goes, “Give Satan an inch, and he will become a ruler!” Christ has to be our all. If there is something that even in the slightest way isn’t Christian or Christ-like, we need to refrain from it with all our might lest we get driven down the wrong road (and it can happen so quickly).
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Enjoy the week. Know of my prayers!
In Christ,
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With the New Year upon us, the thought of starting it with a clean slate is mighty appealing. The desire for a start fresh at the beginning of a year motivates many new resolutions. We resolve to wipe away those things that have bogged us down in the past, so we can thrive and improve our lives. One area in many of our lives that could use some clean-up and revitalization is forgiveness of past sins against us. Improving our forgiveness of others provides a powerful opportunity to greet the new year with a fresh start and to move forward in our relationships with God and others. The problem is, forgiving is hard to do. We need help to do it well.
Two examples of extraordinary forgiveness offer insight into how we ourselves might become better at forgiving. St. Stephen (whose feast we just celebrated on December 26th) and Jesus challenge and enlighten us when we witness their ability to forgive. Both of these men said essentially the same thing as they were in the process of being murdered: from the cross, Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do,” and as Stephen was being stoned to death, he cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” Wow . . . imagine that. In the midst of their painful deaths, they both beseeched God to forgive their murderers.
We struggle to forgive others for far lesser offenses against us than killing. Not to say that lesser violations against us are not significant. We don’t need to be physically attacked to be deeply wounded. Deep harm can be inflicted as well through betrayal of a relationship that was thought to be sacred and respected. Family members who suddenly turn on each other for worldly gain at the expense of their family bonds cause a wound that is tantamount to shedding blood – the severing of family blood-ties that God intended to be permanent. In the same way, friends who once saw each other as sisters or brothers can become inflamed over spoken words, that may or may not have been intentional, only to be divided by a wall of hostility that can’t seem to be torn down.
Most often, our inability to forgive others tears apart our relationship with God, too. We know well that God wants us to forgive. We hear the Scriptural instruction of Jesus that we should “forgive not seven times, but seventy times seven times!” In the Our Father, the prayer of all prayers, Jesus tells us to ask the Father to “forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.” We know forgiveness is a big deal to God. We know in our hearts, too, that forgiveness is a gracious act that we want to be able to give and receive. We also know we are not always so good at it. We then tend to feel like losers as Christians – we are so un-Christlike. But not so fast. Maybe we are simply depending too much on our own abilities to forgive and not enough on God’s help.
Think again about what happens with Jesus and St. Stephen as they forgive their murderers. As they pray for their adversaries, they both know death is imminent. They are on their way to the Father. They are physically helpless against their attackers. Jesus is nailed to a cross, suffocating under his own weight. Stephen is incapable of stopping an endless barrage of stones pummeling his body. They are at the point of surrender. And surrender they do – TO GOD, their FATHER. They do not surrender to hatred. They do not demand the destruction of their persecutors. They do not panic for feeling abandoned by God. They lean into the relationship with God that they have depended on all their lives. And they ask for forgiveness for those who are trespassing against them. They are able to do this because of their union with the Father. They are not consumed by their worldliness.
The lesson we can learn about forgiveness from Jesus and Stephen is that there is a divine element needed for us to forgive. We are not able to do it all on our own. We experience a certain helplessness in our ability to forgive others. We need supernatural help to succeed. If we expect ourselves to come up with the full means to forgive like Jesus or St. Stephen, we will fall short.
We have an additional window into what Christlike forgiveness looks like when we see parents forgiving their children – children who may not want forgiveness, or see a need to be forgiven. In love, parents want what is good for their children. They want moral justice for their offspring. And, at the same time, parental love is full of mercy. They want their children to be saved and to go to heaven – no matter what. Healthy parental love is like God’s love for us. He is our Father. He is always willing to forgive, if we are willing to turn to him and ask. In fact, he has forgiven us already through the shed blood of his Son. We need only accept the gift of Jesus’ redemption.
Christ shows us a new and deeper way to forgive others by inviting him into the process. God provides us a level of letting go that we cannot produce on our own. Sometimes, forgiveness calls for us to give more than we’ve got. If we turn to Christ, he will provide the rest. Letting God in to help us is a smart and liberating thing to do.
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17) Ascension Presents: Father Mike Schmitz | |
Prayer is a Battle: Strategies for Victory
When we read the lives of the saints it can appear like prayer comes so easily to them; almost as if they were soaking in a hot tub of grace. But then when we go to pray we are confronted with the harsh reality that “Prayer is HARD.” It can feel much more like struggling to swim laps in an Olympic sized pool.
Today, Fr. Mike shares some wisdom from the fourth Pillar of the Catechism of the Catholic Church: Our Life in Prayer.
“Prayer is both a gift of grace and a determined response on our part. It always presupposes effort. The great figures of prayer of the Old Covenant before Christ, as well as the Mother of God, the saints, and he himself, all teach us this: prayer is a battle. Against whom? Against ourselves and against the wiles of the tempter who does all he can to turn man away from prayer, away from union with God. We pray as we live, because we live as we pray. If we do not want to act habitually according to the Spirit of Christ, neither can we pray habitually in his name. The “spiritual battle” of the Christian’s new life is inseparable from the battle of prayer.”
Catechism of the Catholic Church 2725
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18) Words on the Word: January 5, 2025 - Government Giveth and Taketh Away | |
Taxes and their associated benefits are one of those things that, as Americans, we (mostly) just shrug and deal with. As much as we might try to influence tax laws or mitigate the impact our tax bills have, the dial likely only shifts a little bit. And as much as we might work with experts or invest time in understanding “the system,” there’s only so much influence we have on the services we receive.
It’s interesting then, that a new government commission known as the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, is poised to start cutting what it determines to be wasteful government spending. The goal, it says, is to lower taxes for all.
That’s easier said than done, of course, and media everywhere is weighing in on whether and how this could work, and what the impacts to ordinary citizens might be.
Publications from Mother Jones to Barrons have run stories exploring, for example, the impact on such disparate agencies as prisons and health, and on many citizens’ most critical touchpoint, Social Security. And, of course, there’s no way everyone will be happy with the outcome.
The bottom line, if one chooses to look at it this way, is that we “gift” the government our tax money. And the returns we receive are … well, up to each person’s point of view.
Far more profound are the gifts we offer to God.
“They were overjoyed at seeing the star,” we hear in today’s gospel passage from St. Matthew. “And on entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.”
What they, and we, receive in return is incalculable.
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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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20) 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!
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Keep Christ in Christmas
Produced by the Knights of Columbus, this short video expresses the true meaning of the Christmas season and shows the Knights of Columbus’ work honoring Our Lord’s birth.
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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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22) Mass Intentions for the Week: | |
Monday, January 6, 2025, Christmas Weekday; Saint Andre’ Bessette, Religious (White)
7:00 am: Tina Calisi
Tuesday, January 7, 2025, Christmas Weekday; Saint Raymond of Penafort, Priest (White)
7:00 am: Scott Souva
Wednesday, January 8, 2025, Christmas Weekday (White)
7:00 am: Fr. Edward J. Mitchell
6:00 pm: Jerome Rogier
Thursday, January 9, 2025, Christmas Weekday (White)
7:00 am: Anna Fazi
Friday, January 10, 2025, Christmas Weekday (White)
7:00 am: A Special Intention for the Tina Calisi Family
Saturday, January 11, 2025, Vigil for the Baptism of the Lord (White)
4:00 pm: Bonnie Batche, Sophie Rupinski, Joel Byrne, Joe Basirico, Tina Calisi, and a Special Intention for the living and deceased members of the J. Champine Family
6:00 pm: Dennis Lex
Sunday, January 12, 2025, Baptism of the Lord (White)
8:00 am: The Intentions of SJA Parishioners
10:00 am: Kenneth A. and Mary P. Smith
12:00 pm: George J. Bugarin, Tina Calisi, and a Special Intention for Christine Bugarin
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23) This Week on St. Joan of Arc LIVE: | |
This week's LIVE Stream
Schedule at St. Joan of Arc:
Monday (January 6)
7:00 AM - Mass
Tuesday (January 7):
7:00 AM - Mass
10:00 AM - Funeral for Rachel Allemon (Read Obituary HERE)
1:00 PM - Convalidation/Wedding of Dorian & James Kirejczyk
Wednesday (January 8):
8:00 AM - Mass
10:00 AM - Funeral for Dennis McCarthy (Read Obituary HERE)
Thursday (January 9):
7:00 AM- Mass
7:00 PM - Holy Hour
Friday (January 10):
7:00 AM - Mass
Saturday (January 11):
12:30 PM - Baptism of Joseph A. Fabian
1:30 PM - Baptism of Nora A. Radatz
4:00 PM - Mass
6:00 PM - Mass
Sunday (January 12):
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.
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24) SJA's Latest Parish Bulletin | |
Click on the image below
to download a copy of the bulletin
for January 5, 2025
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25) 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.
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Read the latest from the DETROIT CATHOLIC
Click on the image below.
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