Dear Friends in Christ,
Here are a few updates from our parish for the week of November 28, 2021.
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1) Advent in 2 Minutes: As we enter into this Advent Season, it's helpful to know what Advent is all about. Here is a quick 2-minute video on the meaning of Advent from Busted Halo.
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Consider creating or purchasing an Advent Wreath for your home. It is most appropriate that you gather as a family to bless the Advent Wreath as we begin our Advent journey. Click on the picture to download a PDF copy of a blessing that you can use at home.
"Traditionally, Advent wreaths are constructed of a circle of evergreen branches into which four candles are inserted, representing the four weeks of Advent. Ideally, three candles are purple and one is rose, but white candles can also be used.
"The purple candles in particular symbolize the prayer, penance, and preparatory sacrifices and goods works undertaken at this time. The rose candle is lit on the third Sunday, Gaudete Sunday, when the priest also wears rose vestments at Mass; Gaudete Sunday is the Sunday of rejoicing, because the faithful have arrived at the midpoint of Advent, when their preparation is now half over and they are close to Christmas.
"The progressive lighting of the candles symbolizes the expectation and hope surrounding our Lord’s first coming into the world and the anticipation of his second coming to judge the living and the dead." (from the usccb.org website)
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3) Advent Resources:
There are a ton of Advent resources online. Here are a few to consider:
A parish in Iowa has a pretty comprehensive link to a ton of online Advent resources. Click HERE to access their Advent page.
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4) Join us for a Special Holy Hour - Thursday, December 16 at 7PM |
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5) Calling all Children for Two Special Christmas Events! |
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Children of the parish are invited to participate in and share their joy during two upcoming events:
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A special Holy Hour with Nativity Night - 7 pm, Thursday, Dec 16 [Grades K and up for angels and Grade 2 and up for a few other roles. Practice is at 4 pm, the same day in the church. Children of all ages are welcome to attend.] The evening concludes with a special visit from St. Nicholas!
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Christmas Children's Choir (led by our music director Ms. Catherine Thomas) for 4 pm mass on Christmas Eve, Friday, December 24 [Grades 2 and older. There are three practices, all at 11am - on Saturday Dec 4th and 18th, and Thursday, December 23rd.]
Sign-ups for each are below.
There's also a spot for parent help. (All parent/adult volunteers must have taken Protecting God's Children.)
Note - when you use the sign-up tool, your name will appear first - please just add your child's name and age after under "sign-up someone else." God bless you!
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Nativity Night - December 16 at 7 PM
Children 5 and older are invited to be angels to fill our church with light! We also need parent help for the rehearsal and event. You must have taken Protecting God's Children.
Help Needed:
Angels
Wise Men (grade 2 and older)
Shepherds (grade 2 and older)
Parent Helpers (must have taken Protecting God's Children)
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Christmas Children's Choir
Directed by our music director Catherine Thomas. Practices are Dec 4, 18, and 23 at 11 am. Grades 2 and up. We also need a few parents to commit to helping.
Help Needed:
Choir
Parent Help (must have taken Protecting God's Children)
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6) Annual Memorial Mass Video |
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Every November during our Annual Memorial Mass we show a video with the names and pictures of those who went home to the Lord from our parish over the past year. The entire Memorial Mass is a very moving experience and is certainly a highlight of the entire year.
I often get comments that it would be nice to post the video for all to see. We often don't always know the names of those who have died but we know them by sight. So, for those who would like to watch the video, please click on the link below.
The video starts out with the names of our pastors, associate pastors, deacons, and religious staff who have died over the years. The video is about 20 minutes and provides a great opportunity to pray for these souls who have gone home to the Lord.
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
and let perpetual light shine upon them.
May they rest in peace. Amen.
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7) SJA Giving Tree Project 2021 |
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"Giving Tree” is a special charitable project designed to match the generosity of our parishioners with the needs of our community during the Christmas holiday. The project serves 100% local individuals who may otherwise not receive a gift at this special time of the year.
After a one-year pause due to the worldwide pandemic, St. Joan of Arc Parish is proud to continue this tradition of gift-giving. Some things will be a bit different this year to accommodate social distancing and remote Mass attendance. But our commitment to the families and individuals helped by our Giving Tree project has not waivered.
HOW IT WORKS:
1) PURCHASE GIFT CARD(S): Buy plastic* gift card(s) valued from $15-30 (per card). You may purchase more than one, but please make sure limits fall within per-card limits $15-$30.
* tangible gift cards please, no electronic vouchers. Please make sure cards have been activated at the retailer that issued the card.
STRES ACCEPTED: Meijer, Walmart, Target, and Amazon
WHERE TO BUY: At the named retailer, at most drug & grocery stores or online.
LET US PURCHASE THE GIFT CARDS FOR YOU: You may also donate this year via our online giving platform by clicking on the button below and indicating the amount you would like to donate. We will take care of the rest.
2) PLACE GIFT CARD(s) IN AN ENVELOPE: Place the gift card(s) in an envelope. The envelope may include a Christmas greeting card, but this is not required. Mark on the envelope (directly or with a pasted note) “GIVING TREE” along with the quantity, store name, and value of the gift card(s).
3) TAKE THE GIFT ENVELOPE(S) TO A DESIGNATED DROP SPOT:
DEADLINE December 5, 2021: Bring your marked envelope(s) to the Parish Center Office during office hours, or place it in the locked collection boxes in the Sr. Carol Center or the Parish Center Lobby.
WHAT HAS CHANGED FOR 2021: Unlike past years where we accepted tangible gifts such as toys and clothing, the Giving Tree will accept only gift cards this year. This decision is to make it safer and easier for our parishioners to participate. It will also make the program more flexible for our charity agencies, who are also challenged with logistics and health protocols at this time.
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8) SJA's CSA Update as of November 28, 2021 |
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I am grateful to those who have already contributed to CSA 2021. As of today, we have $193,951 in pledges and gifts toward our $217,002 goal ($185,664 has already been paid thus far toward our total pledged amount). This amount represents gifts from 571 families (we have 3,286 families registered). We have thus achieved 89% of our goal!
Here is a breakdown by gift range:
$2,500+ (7)
$1,000+ (35)
$500+ (47)
$250+ (109)
$100+ (216)
$75+ (16)
$50+ (72)
$25+ (42)
$10+ (24)
$0+ (3)
As stated above, the easiest way to give is electronically by clicking on the button above. If you wish to give by check, feel free to contact the Parish Center and we will mail out an envelope and related material.
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9) This Sunday's Readings - November 28, 2021 |
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10) Jeff Cavins: Encountering the Word - Reflections on the Sunday Readings |
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In this video, Jeff Cavins explains the readings for the First Sunday of Advent. These readings prepare us for the coming of the Lord at Christmas, as well as his Second Coming at the end of time. In this holy season, Catholics are reminded to prepare our hearts to receive the Lord; so that we will be ready to welcome him not only at Christmas, but at every moment in our lives.
Readings for the First Sunday of Advent:
Reading 1: Jeremiah 33:14-16
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 25:4-5, 8-9, 10, 14
Reading 2: 1 Thessalonians 3:12—4:2
Gospel: Luke 21:25-28, 34-36
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11) Grow+Go for the 1st Sunday of Advent |
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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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12) 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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13) This Week's Edition of TALLer Tales |
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First Impressions and Ancient Monsignors: Around this time each year, I lead a couple of workshops on Protecting God’s Children, Safe Environments, and Appropriate Boundaries in Ministry to the seminarians at Sacred Heart Major Seminary. This task falls on me because of my “AOD related job.”
Given that I have been doing these workshops for many years, I know the drill. I usually get an email from the Vice-Rector or Dean about what room I will utilize so I’m ready to go when I arrive at Sacred Heart. I usually just arrive and do my thing. But this year was different as there was a new “sheriff” in town. More on him later.
One of our parishioners, Sharon Ozark, who is part of the AOD staff working with me at the Parish Center, handles all the coordination and communication with the staff at the Seminary for these three workshops. It gets complicated because I just don’t show up with binders and things; I always … surprise, surprise … utilize every bit of technology I can. My technology requests for my presentations get rather complicated, so Sharon makes sure I have all the passwords and access I need. To complicate things a bit more this year, two of the deacon seminarians had to join us by Zoom.
The new “sheriff” in town, a young priest from the Diocese of Lansing, Father Pieter van Rooyen, the Director of Graduate Seminarians, is now in charge of these Formation Saturdays. He is responsible for making all the arrangements with the various presenters. Given my technology needs, now made more complex because I had two joining me by Zoom in the classroom, required Father Pieter to get more involved to make sure everything went off without a glitch.
As I approached Sacred Heart Major Seminary for my first workshop, I got a text from Father Pieter that he would meet me at the door and accompany me to my designated classroom. “WOW,” I thought to myself. “This is pretty impressive. Someone is going to meet little ol’ me at the door and walk me to my classroom!” Suddenly, I felt a bit important.
After parking my car, I gathered a banker’s box containing my binders and handouts, as well as my briefcase. I also remembered last minute that we were required to wear masks at the Seminary out of precaution for the entire community. So, while balancing all of the stuff I had in my hands, I put on a mask. Right away, my glasses fogged up! UGH! I didn’t have any of those mask nose strips that help alleviate the fogged-up glasses issues, nor did I have any of that anti-fog spray. I tried looking above the fogged-out area as I walked up to the Seminary’s main entrance, but it wasn’t working too well. I’m sure I looked like the absent-minded ancient Monsignor if anyone was watching me.
Once I got to the steps, Father van Rooyen was dutifully there to welcome me. If you’ve ever been to Sacred Heart Major Seminary, you know that once you get inside and ascend the few steps to the main floor, there is a large welcome/receptionist desk that prominently occupies the space. Given that my hands were full, I wanted to place the banker’s box and my briefcase on the desk to greet Father van Rooyen. After all, I wanted to make a great first impression! WELL, as I went to place my things on the welcome desk, I, unfortunately, ran straight into the large plexiglass partition they had positioned in front of the desk! UGH! I couldn’t even see it because my glasses were still somewhat fogged up. I was glad no one else was around to laugh at me! “Monsignor, here, let me help you,” Father van Rooyen exclaimed. Now I was REALLY feeling like that ancient Monsignor. He helped me “recover” from hitting the plexiglass partition and took the banker’s box out of my hands. It was clear I needed help!
We then walked down to my assigned classroom. Now the classrooms have a plexiglass partition around the instructor’s podium. As I was setting up my stuff, I gracefully accomplished tipping over the entire plexiglass partition around the podium. Good heavens, I had no excuses this time as my glasses were no longer fogged up. Father van Rooyen came to my rescue AGAIN and quietly repositioned the fallen plexiglass partition without saying anything. I felt like a total fool. I’m sure Father van Rooyen was thinking, “And, we’re letting this guy give a two-day workshop to our seminarians … maybe I should stay here and see if he can handle all of this by himself?” Some first impressions I made! But I guess this is what happens when you become an ancient Monsignor!
Advent Resources: Yikes! What happened to July? I can’t believe we’re already into the season of Advent! Even though the sights and sounds of Christmas are all around us, we still need to remember the beautiful and grace-filled season of Advent. Amid all the hustle and bustle, Advent calls us to embrace stillness and quiet as we prepare for the birth of Christ the King.
There are MANY things you can do to help your Advent journey. You can read the reflections in the Little Blue Book from the Diocese of Saginaw or the daily devotional Word Among Us (these are available at the Church entrances and the boxes outside). You could pick up a spiritual book. You could spend time before the Blessed Sacrament during adoration on Thursdays. You could get the Magnificat Advent Companion, download the Halo app, start listening to Fr. Mike Schmitz’s The Bible in a Year daily podcast, or take a look at the offerings from FORMED.ORG. You could attend one of our reconciliation services. You could make it a goal to attend mass more frequently. You could make it a goal to pray as a family or pray by yourself each evening. Do something different during Advent to help you on your pilgrimage toward Christmas and beyond.
Given all of the available resources to help us on our Advent journey, we really have no excuses for not doing SOMETHING! The biggest challenge or hurdle we have is not being serious about sitting down and coming up with a game plan for Advent. The game plan should also be realistic, much like what we say about our Lenten practices so that we don’t end up feeling like a complete failure when we don’t carry through on every aspect of our plan and then stop doing everything. Don’t let Advent just come and go as if it just “gets in the way” of Christmas! Come up with a game plan for Advent. Get your hearts ready for the birth of Christ. You’ll be glad you did so!
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Happy Advent. Enjoy the week. Know of my prayers!
In Christ,
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14) Tire Tracks in the d’Arc |
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Prepare for the King: Maybe in the minds of children, it’s been Christmas since sometime about November 1st. Maybe you put up your tree before, or at, Thanksgiving. It’s been Christmas in the stores since Halloween, and on TV, they are telling us “it’s the most wonderful time of the year” all year round, no matter the season. In all this, have we left anything for Jesus?
Imagine if you were just told that 30 or 40 of your closest friends and family somehow got the idea that you are hosting Thanksgiving at your house this year… and by the way, they will all be arriving in fifteen minutes to celebrate this special day and they’re coming ready to feast…. 40 people! Would you feel ready? Would you be able to show yourself to be a good host? Might someone leave disappointed at the end of the day and might you be embarrassed? You would, of course, want to be prepared. You’d want time to check everything is in order and your house is clean so you may present yourself well to your guests.
Years ago, I was frequently around at the house of some friends when their kids were very young. It was around the time that the first Lion King movies were released, so I saw those movies on TV a lot. I loved the song, “Be Prepared,” partly, I admit, because it was sung by British actor Jeremy Irons in his “bestest” British accent, and I thought I could imitate it pretty well. In the movie, the song is delivered by the evil lion, Scar, singing about his plot to kill his lion brother and take-over as king of the pride.
The theme is certainly menacing, but there are a good few lines in the song that should also speak to us as we begin Advent and a new Church year:
It's great that we'll soon be connected,
With a king who'll be all-time adored
Of course, quid pro quo, you're expected
To take certain duties on board.
This is why we must not simply end the month of November and run to Christmas. The whole season of Advent has a purpose to it—there are things we are expected, as Catholics, to do. One year I tried to get through the 4 Sundays in Advent without using the word “prepare” because it can sometimes sound like a cliché. But it’s absolutely a “reason for the season.” It’s a chance to ready ourselves for the coming of the King, who we proclaimed last Sunday as King of the Universe. And if that’s taken lightly or even ignored then we won’t have the chance to comprehend what Christmas is about, beyond the gifts, feel-good songs on the radio and good food.
Advent is my favorite season in our Church year. I know people love Christmas music, but if you ask me, Advent has the best hymns! There is a building sense of anticipation of a great joy to come. Doesn’t a planned vacation at the end of your workweek give you something to look forward to? And doesn’t it give you time to prepare – to buy sunscreen, to hold your mail, to clear out the fridge, to obtain currency, etc? It gives time for reflection on what needs attention to make the vacation a success and the return home smooth.
Advent is that time of not only passively waiting, but of actively reflecting – what in my life needs attention so that I might welcome Christ, the Savior into the world and into my life, my family, my home, my heart and not have reason to be embarrassed at what He will find there, i.e. our spiritual unreadiness due to a lack of preparation. There is probably something in our spiritual readiness for all of us to attend to. We have 4 weeks to reflect and work on this.
Maybe we could prepare for Sunday Mass better by looking over the readings early in the week, even as a family. Then when we hear them, we will be better immersed in their meaning, rather than the words. Maybe talk about them as a family. Perhaps you might check the formed.org website for the weekly reflection on the readings. Maybe it’s been too long since you accepted God’s free gift of mercy in the Sacrament of Confession. While there are a lot of opportunities for confession during Advent, why wait? It’s good that people seek out confession at this time of year and at Lent, but let your focus be on the desire for God’s mercy and forgiveness, rather than devotion to a calendar. Certainly, if it’s been a while, Advent could be the beginning of a new “good habit” for you of making use of the sacrament year-round.
Maybe this advent you might schedule some time to attend some of the Advent activities in the parish, outside of Sunday Mass.
Attending to your own and your family’s spiritual well-being is the most important preparation you will make over the next month, more important than any of the wonderful festivities you plan to attend. As enjoyable as they are, they will mean so much more if your true joy comes from knowing that you have prepared a place for the infant in your heart and you are truly honoring His glorious arrival at Christmas, when He is ad venire (Latin = to come) into our world. Happy Advent!
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You are in my prayers this week.
Fr. Andrew
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15) Words on the Word: November 28, 2021 - Wake Up
We’ve reached the time of year where our energy levels are declining along with the amount of daily sunshine.
It’s an annual thing for many folks. We have a harder time waking up in the morning, and, especially, staying awake into the evening because there’s so little natural light.
For those of us getting a little older, perhaps, the phenomenon may be even more noticeable.
And throw in something like jetlag, as an example, and it can be particularly acute.
As embarrassing politically as the circumstance was a few weeks ago, how many people, for example, couldn’t identify with the picture of the president dozing off during the opening comments at an international conference?
For the record, he probably told people he was just momentarily “resting his eyes.”
The point is, it can be easy in the rush of life – and in the absence of regular sunshine – to become a little drowsy, a little slower on the uptake, a little less attentive to the things that really matter.
The good news is, this season of Advent is specifically intended to help shake us out of that stupor and to remind us that the Lord is coming in this much-anticipated Christmas season.
“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap,” Jesus tells his disciples in today’s gospel passage from St. Luke.
“For that day will assault everyone who lives on the faith of the earth. Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man.”
Christmas is just four weeks away. Are we awake to the wonderful possibilities that await?
© 2021 Words on the Word
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16) Ascension Presents with Father Mike Schmitz: |
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How to Receive a Gift Well!
Do you know how to receive a gift? It’s not as easy as it sounds. It might sound like gift-giving is the lesson to learn, but receiving can be so much more difficult—and just as important.
Today, Fr. Mike gives us 4 steps to successfully receive the gifts all around us.
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17) 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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19) This Week on St. Joan of Arc LIVE: |
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This week's LIVE Stream
Schedule at St. Joan of Arc:
Monday (November 29):
7:00 AM - Mass
Tuesday (November 30):
7:00 AM - Mass
Wednesday (December 1):
7:00 AM - Mass
Thursday (December 2):
7:00 AM - Mass
Friday (December 3):
7:00 AM - Mass
Saturday (December 4):
12:30 PM - Baptism of Gianna E. Peterson
1:30 PM - Baptism of Lily C. Peeters
2:30 PM - Baptism of Maeve VanGorder
4:00 PM - Mass
6:00 PM - Mass
Sunday (December 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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20) SJA's Bulletin for November 28, 2021 |
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Click on the image below
to download a copy of our
Bulletin for November 28, 2021
The 1st Sunday of Advent
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21) Weekly Bulletin Mailing List |
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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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