Category Archives: News

For Maria Cardenas

A funeral Mass for Maria Cardenas will be held at St. Charles church today at 11:00 am. This means that the 1:00 pm Mass at St. Charles is canceled. Please keep Maria and her family and friends in your prayers. Eternal rest grant unto her, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon her.

To view the complete obituary click the link below.

https://michigancremation.com/obituaries/maria-cardenas-2023?utm_source=search&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=standard&cta=fh-website

Liturgical Ministers Needed for Holy Week

We begin Holy Week on Palm Sunday with our usual Sunday Mass schedule at all three churches.  An additional Lector is needed for the reading of the Passion of Lord. Call either parish office to volunteer to Lector for Palm Sunday.

The summit of the Liturgical Year is the Easter Triduum which begins on the evening of Holy Thursday, continuing on Good Friday, and ending at Saturday’s Easter Vigil.  Though chronologically three days, they are liturgically, one day unfolding for us the unity of Christ’s Paschal Mystery, his suffering, death, and Resurrection.  It is one liturgy with two pauses.  It is fitting that this liturgy take place in one location.

We encourage liturgical ministers and altar servers from all three churches to sign up for serving in liturgical roles for these three holiest days of the year.  Please sign up on Sign Up Genius or by calling either parish office.

St. Mary and St. Charles liturgical ministers are assigned. Please see the March schedule to see if you are serving. If you are unable to serve please find a sub to take your place.

Since the Easter Sunday Mass at St. Joseph falls outside of the normal schedule we are asking liturgical ministers to volunteer to serve on Easter Sunday. Click the Sign Up Genius link above to sign up online or call either parish office to volunteer.

Stations of the Cross, Reconciliation & Fish Fry Fridays

A pilgrimage is a journey that people of faith take to a holy place or a place of religious significance.  A pilgrimage is not purposeless wandering. It is a journey with a higher purpose and that purpose is to honor God. 

Not all pilgrimages need to involve long distance travel.  We are making a pilgrimage this Lent to all three of our churches as we pray the Stations of the Cross. We begin at St. Mary for the first two weeks of Lent, then continue the journey the next two weeks at St. Joseph, and end the last two weeks at St. Charles.

In the past going on a pilgrimage involved great hardship because of distance, weather, and unknown territories.  There were no comforts along the way. Maybe we are not used to attending one of our other churches, but it will be a fruitful sacrifice and wonderful way to honor Jesus. 

Join us on this pilgrimage to Triduum at St. Charles! 

Additional Reconciliation Opportunities

ADDITIONAL RECONCILIATION OPPORTUNITIES DURING LENT
Fri., Feb. 23rd at St. Mary ~ 6:00-7:30 pm
Wed., Mar. 6th at St. Charles ~ Noon-2:00 pm
The Light is ON for You
Thurs., March 14th– 5-8pm at St. Charles
The Light is ON for You is an evening of penance available at most parishes in the Diocese.

Fish Fry Fridays

Listen to and Learn the Latin Mass Parts

Click here for a printable copy of the Latin Mass parts.

Panis Angelicus Pronunciation

Panis angélicus, fit panis hóminum,
Dat panis cáelicus figúris términum.
O res mirábilis mandúcat Dóminum,
Pauper, servus et húmilis.

Te, trina Déitas únaque, póscimus,
Sic nos tu vísita, sicut te cólimus;
Per tuas sémitas duc nos quo téndimus,
Ad lucem quam inhábitas.

Sanctus 308-B

Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus, Dominus Deus Sabaoth.
Pleni sunt caeli et terra gloria tua. Hosanna in excelsis.
Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini. Hosanna in excelsis.

Translation:
Sanctus = holy
Dóminus = Lord
Deus = God
Sábaoth = of heavenly armies
Pleni = full of
sunt = are
caeli = heaven
et = and
terra = earth
glória = glory
tua = your
Hosána = praise or adoration
excélsis = the highest
Benedictus = blessed
qui = who
venit = (He) comes
in nómine = in the name
Dómini – of the Lord.

Memorial Acclamation 309-B

Mysterium fidei! Literally: Mysterium = the mystery; fidei = of faith.
The Mystery of Faith!
We all respond:
Mortem tuam annuntiamus, Domine,
et tuam resurrectionem confitemur,
donec venias.
Mortem = death
tuam = Your
annuntiamus = we announce or proclaim
Domine = Lord.
We proclaim Your death, O Lord.
et = and
tuam = Your
resurectionem = resurrection
confitemur = confess.
And confess Your resurrection.
donec = until
venias = come.
Until You Come
The whole acclamation:
Mortem tuam annuntiamus, Domine,                           We proclaim Your death, O Lord,
et tuam resurrectionem confitemur,                               and confess Your resurrection,
donec venias.                                                                              until You come

Agus Dei 313-B

Agnus Dei,                                             Lamb of God
qui tolis peccata mundi,                 who takes away the sins of the world,
miserere nobis.                                   have mercy on us.
Agnus Dei,                                             Lamb of God
qui tolis peccata mundi,                 who takes away the sins of the world,
miserere nobis.                                   have mercy on us.
Agnus Dei,                                             Lamb of God
qui tolis peccata mundi,                 who takes away the sins of the world,
dona nobis pacem.                           grant us peace.

Ash Wednesday ~ February 14th

Guidance on Fasting and Abstinence During Lent

When do I…?

Fast and Abstain:

Ash Wednesday and Good Friday

Abstain:

All Fridays during Lent

Who has to…?

Fast: Catholics who are 18 years of age, but not yet 59, are obliged

Abstain: Observed by all Catholics 14 years– old and older

What is…?

Fast: eating one full meal, as well as two small meals that together are not equal to a full meal

Abstinence: refrain from eating meat

Note: Persons that are exempt from fasting include: the physically or mentally ill, individuals with chronic illness, and those pregnant or nursing.

Come, Follow Me “ The Eucharist, the source and summit of our faith”

Please join us this Friday January, 26th at 6PM as we continue our series with a presentation called: ‘ The Eucharist, the Source and Summit of Our Faith”.  In this presentation we will gain a deeper understanding of the Eucharist by looking at Scripture, the Church Fathers, Church documents, and scientific research. The Eucharist is at the center of our faith and the more that we know, the better we can explain and defend this sacrament to Catholics and non Catholics. This great Gift that is the center of our faith.  We will have refreshments following the presentation.

Catholic High School Interest Survey

Our Catholic Community of St. Charles and St. Joseph-St. Mary is exploring the feasibility of a new Catholic high school to serve our community and surrounding parishes. We would like to gather your opinion and ideas. Your response to this inquiry is very important whether or not you (might/would) consider enrolling your children in this school.

Please complete only ONE INQUIRY FOR YOUR FAMILY and return it no later than December 18, 2023. Use this link to take the survey online. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScGM3MpwtYaK5d-MbZ-IYemuCqoOBS6J28RqzeWVYHAGKEf7Q/closedform

A few things to consider as you complete this inquiry

Catholic Education:   The school will provide a superior Catholic education that empowers every student to develop into the individual God created him/her to be. The school will embrace and exemplify the teaching and tradition of the Church in areas of virtue, life, Scripture, the sacraments and social teaching. A strong Catholic identity will be present in all aspects of the school experience.

Academics: This inquiry looks to gather information to design an academic program that fits the needs of our community. This could be a traditional diocesan, vocational based or a classical education program. This program will be designed, so that current St Charles students and all other surrounding Catholic school, homeschool, and elementary/ middle school programs can easily transition into this new high school. 

Beyond academics: School partnerships will be pursued for co-curricular opportunities to the extent they are available, in collaboration with neighboring public and private schools and/or community organizations.

Cost: For this inquiry, assume that tuition will not be a barrier for you when considering whether you should enroll your child/children. Financial support for families will be offered based on need. Every effort will be made to ensure the school is financially prudent and affordable for all families.

Location: The high school would be located at St. Joseph located in Belding. It would use the current school facility that is already on site. In addition to Our Catholic Community of St Charles and St Joseph-St Mary, the new school looks to serve all surrounding parishes within our diocese including Montcalm, Ionia, and eastern Kent Counties.

Timeline: Realistically, starting a new high school could take 3-5 years. The purpose of this inquiry is to see how many people see this as a need. The more interest that there is, with people willing to help in whatever ways that they can, and lots of prayer, anything is possible with God!

Thank you in advance for your thoughtful response to all the inquiry questions.

We take your privacy seriously. Information collected during this inquiry process is confidential and will be used for the sole purpose of the feasibility study conducted by SaintsCJM and the Office of Catholic Schools for the Diocese of Grand Rapids. Your personal information will not be given to any other party or used for any other purpose.