Worship & Music

Stations of the Cross

Andrew J. Macirowski - Pastoral Coordinator for Worship & Music / Principal Organist Worship@stmaryscoltsneck.org Music@stmaryscoltsneck.org

The Way of the Cross has its roots in the early centuries of the Church as pilgrims would walk the Via Dolorosa (the way of sorrows) in Jerusalem, tracing the route Jesus would have taken from his trial to his crucifixion. During the 15th and 16th centuries, Franciscans in Europe began to build outdoor shrines to duplicate the experience found in the Holy Land.

While the number of stations has varied widely (as few and 7 and as many as 30) the tradition of saying prayers and chanting at each station has continued through the centuries, and eventually the 14 stations we know today came into fashion. There were still variations, and in response to this, Pope Saint John Paul II instituted the Scriptural Way of the Cross in 1991 as a means of unifying (at the very least) the events which each station depicted.

Some communities pray a 15th station, depicting the resurrection, but this is contrary to the underlying message of the stations especially during Lent, which is to meditate on the suffering of Christ and his sacrifice for our sins.

In the Roman Catholic Church, the devotion may be conducted personally by the faithful, making their way from one station to another and saying the prayers, or by having an officiating celebrant move from cross to cross while the faithful make the responses.

There are several published versions of the way of the cross, and we have some available in the chapel on the side altar for your use during Lent. We have also published the times for communal stations of the cross at our cohort parish of Saint Catharine in Holmdel. While the stations may be prayed at any time, Friday is considered the penitential day and when they are prayed most often, especially the Fridays of Lent.

Lenten Regulations - Guidelines of the Universal Church

The Catholic Church in the United States requires of us as baptized Catholics to observe the following: Thedaysoffast(onlyonefullmealperday)andabstinence(nomeat)areAshWednesday(February 22)andGoodFriday(April7).AllotherFridaysofLent(March3throughMarch31)aredaysof abstinence(nomeat).

Fast consume only one full meal. Water may be taken throughout the day

Abstinence– consume no meat; this obligation prohibits the eating of meat but not eggs, milk products or condiments of any kind, even though made from animal fat.

Baptized Catholics between the ages of 18 and 59 are obliged to fast and those from the age of 14 are also obliged to abstain

Those who are automatically dispensed from fast and abstinence regulations outside the age limits noted above include: the physically or mentally ill, especially individuals suffering from chronic illnesses such as diabetes. Also included in the dispensation are women who are pregnant or nursing. In all cases, common sense should prevail and ill persons should not further jeopardize their health by fasting

Allareencouragedtoembracethesepracticesaspartofourspiritualjourney.

Saturday 4PM

Ministry Schedule: Third Sunday of Lent

Saturday, March 11th - Sunday, March 12th

Altar Server Cantor Reader 1 Reader 2 EMHC

Alexander Lennon Sophia Lennon Carly York Kathy Maher Charles Young

Sunday 8AM

Server Needed Server Needed Carly York Rita Duenas Anthony Bongiorno

Sunday 10AM Gabriella Penczak Carly York Reader Needed Mary Ellen Griffin

Sunday 12PM

Jonathan Stubbs Gonzalo Sevillano

Carly York with choir Richard Gerbino T Mullin

Speak with a Priest

 Struggling with a life event and in need of spiritual assistance?

 Want to celebrate the Sacrament of Penance outside the normal Confession times?

 Trying to find your way back to engagement with the Church?

 Discerning vocation?

 Looking to complete your Sacraments of Initiation and wish to chat about the journey?

St Mary is offering the opportunity for parishioners to chat with a priest who is only indirectly engaged with the parish. If interested please contact Fr Mike Walsh by phone 732-780-2666 x205 or email frmike.walsh@stmaryscoltsneck.org

Organ Host - Emily Santangelo

Tabernacle Host - Louise Habrack

Tabernacle Host - Susan Murphy

Alternate - Irene Weller

Organ Host - Mary Aiello

Tabernacle Host - Mike LaCava

Tabernacle Host - Rosanne LaCava

Alternate - Marsha Grigoli

Organ Host - Maureen Geiger

Tabernacle Host - Dawn Reinhardt

(swap requested)

Tabernacle Host - Heidi Lohn

Alternate - Linda Dickinson-Pancila

Organ Host - Patricia Gesner

Tabernacle Host - Minister Needed

Tabernacle Host - Minister Needed

Alternate - Monica Barr

Lenten Holy Hours & Stations of the Cross

Lenten Holy Hours

March 8 - 7PM - St Catharine

March 15 - 7PM - St Mary

March 22 - 7PM - St Mary

March 29 - 7PM - St Catharine

Stations of the Cross, St. Catharine

Friday evenings at 7:30 pm March 3, 10, 17, 31

Julia CullenPastoral Coordinator of Faith Formation / Religion Education

ReligiousEd@stmaryscoltsneck.org

732-780-2666 X 309

As we continue prayerfully during this time of Lent, we invite all to our Lenten Penance & Reconciliation service on the 26th of March at 3pm. All 7th & 8th graders are required to attend; all others are welcome and encouraged to join. Summer registration is still open for the month of July-the August session is closed as it is at capacity. We thank all RE families for taking advantage of early registration. Please check out our new and improved website!

Rose FarrowCoordinator of Faith Formation / Youth & Adult Catechesis

YouthRE@stmaryscoltsneck.org

732-780-2666 X 310

Faith Formation Calendar

5 & 6 March 2023

Confirmation Prep Class

19 & 20 March 2023

Confirmation Prep Class

26 March 2023

Lenten Penance and Reconciliation 3pm

MANDATORY FOR ALL 7th & 8th graders

2 April 2023

Palm Sunday Weaving INTERGENERATIONAL beginning at the 10am mass, continuing in Madonna Hall

Religious Education Parent & Student Volunteer Sign-ups: Lenten Penance & Reconciliation (day of volunteers) LINK

Easter Egg Hunt (set up crew, volunteer at event, clean up crew) LINK

7th and 8th Grade Service Hour Sign-ups: Easter Egg Hunt LINK

Summer Intensive (July Virtual or August on Campus) LINK

Summer Intensive Religious Education Early Registration/ Re-Registration IS OPEN for incoming Grades 1-6

July 17-28 Virtual program 9am to 12pm

August 7-18 On Campus program 8:30am to 12:30pm

Classes are first come, first serve. Classes will be closed when capacity is met.

Register Here for the summer intensive program. Link can also be found on the website homepage.

Soccer And A Broken Reservoir

In the Dry Corridor of Honduras, climate change causes persistent drought, making farming nearly impossible. With support from Catholic Relief Services, Rony, a farmer, repaired an old reservoir and installed a new irrigation system to improve his harvests. Now Rony can send his son to a soccer academy to pursue his dream of becoming a professional player. How can you work like Rony to support others’ needs and dreams? Visit crsricebowl.org to learn more. Please collect your offerings during Lent in the Rice Bowl provided. At the conclusion of Lent count the total offering, write a check to St Mary Parish for the total amount indicating CRS Rice Bowl in the memo line and drop it in the offerings box by April 16. Alternatively you can make a donation online at https://goo.gl/VFak28. Thank you for supporting Catholic Relief Services.

8th grade Confirmation Sponsor

Certificates are being collected in the parish office. All Confirmation paperwork is due by April 30.

Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults

Congratulations to Miranda Mason, Diana Weber and Shawn Woodward who participated in the Diocese of Trenton Rite of Election at the co-cathedral of St. Robert Bellarmine.

Please keep them and our candidate for Confirmation Gianna Innucci, in your prayers as they enter into their final stages of preparation to enter into full communion with the Catholic Church at the Solemn Easter Vigil.

For more information read The Monitor article and visit the picture gallery at: https://trentonmonitor.com/Content/News/ Local-Coverage/Article/ProspectiveCatholics-take-next-step-in-their-journey-offaith-/4/22/33233

My Dear Parishioners:

Today we celebrate the Second Sunday of Lent. Former astronauts commented about how the excitement of going into space dwarfed the fear of danger, but the fear was there nonetheless. This is the risk of venturing forth. Jesus commands the disciples to “Rise, and do not be afraid.” The journey of discipleship has its dangers (temptations/ridicule) but we still venture forth on the journey to eternal glory. We trust in God’s guidance (given through Law, prophets, teachings of Jesus, gospel living modeled by others) and surrender ourselves into God’s hands. All we need do is listen. Listening to God can come through the readings and homily on Sunday. It can come through our own practice of taking some time every day to read God’s word in Scripture. It might come through the guidance we seek in spiritual direction. There are many ways God makes known the divine will for us. Listening means all these things but, most importantly, it means that we keep our eyes focused on the vision of Jesus transfigured and know that God, in great love and divine mercy, intends that we share in that same glory. We cannot lose sight of Jesus himself.

As we continue our journey through this Season of Lent consider participating in daily mass in our parish. This is an awesome way to deepen our prayer life and get to know other parishioners. Remember in your prayer those who are preparing for the Sacraments of Initiation this year. This is a special time of grace for all of those who are discerning full communion with the Roman

Catholic Church within our particular parish. In the coming weeks we will be inviting parishioners to take on various roles in the celebrations of Holy Week, The Paschal Triduum and Easter. Please be generous in responding yes to these invitations. Our community prayer is the responsibility of all of us. We are so blessed to be a community that is welcoming and prayerful. Let us continue to build upon these aspects of our life together so that we might continue to welcome new members as well as those who are returning to our community.

We will host several opportunities in the Church for parishioners and guests to come and spend some time before the Most Blessed Sacrament. I am grateful to all those who helped to prepare the day, those who served as guardians throughout the day and all who participated. It is a beautiful custom of our Catholic Church to enrich our spiritual lives. We are hosting these Holy Hours in cooperation with Saint Catherine, Holmdel.

Thank you for your feedback and comments as we kick off the 2023 Annual Catholic Appeal. It is so very important that each of us participates as our means allow. It is one of the ways we can support His Excellency, The Most Reverend Bishop of Trenton as he guides us in our journey of faith. Please make your pledge/gift this week so that our parish can demonstrate our solidarity with the Bishop. Have a great week. Let us remember one another in prayer. Happy Sunday. Peace.

Father Jeff