Pray for your fellow St. James parishioners each day during this Lenten Season! I ask each of you to pray an Our Father, Hail Mary, and a Glory be for your fellow parishioners. Offer those prayers for them that they might have the fortitude and grace to persevere in their Lenten exercises of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. We are in this together as one parish family of faith. We can assist each other with our prayers.
RCIA
Last Sunday, we had the Rite of Sending at the 11:30 AM mass in which the sponsors testified that the five Catechumens and the eight Candidates for reception into full communion were prepared and ready to complete their journey into the Catholic Church. Afterwards, we had a little lunch and then the Catechumens went to the Cathedral Basilica to participate in the Rite of Election with Bishop Stephen D. Parkes.
At the Easter Vigil, we will receive at least 15 people into the Church! Seven will be baptized and eight will make a profession of faith and receive the Sacrament of Confirmation. Then, they will rejoice with us in Holy Communion receiving the Body and Blood of Our Lord Jesus! What a blessing! What an honor for our St. James family! Please keep them all in your prayers.
Lumen Christi Adoration Chapel and Our Lady of Mercy Statue
As I mentioned last week, we will be refreshing and repainting the Lumen Christi Adoration Chapel. Your assistance in this $32,000 project is needed. You will receive a letter with the artist’s renderings in the mail soon. Be on the lookout also for it in the Bulletin.
Mr. Fougerousse will pick up the Statue of Our Lady of Mercy Statue and bring it to his studio where he will repair and repaint it. Meanwhile, we will repaint the entryway to the Conference room from the breezeway where it will be. When everything is finished, we will plan a blessing of the statue and a renaming of the room – Mercy Conference Room. I would like to purchase a few paintings or images for the conference room to adorn the walls. I will let you know what I am planning.
Thank you for all that you do to build up the Kingdom of God and our parish community of faith! I will see you in church or we will meet in our prayers for each other, at the least.
May the Lord bless you and your families abundantly this Lent!
~ Fr. Daniel Firmin