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A BRIEF LOOK: PARISH POLICIES & INFORMATION |
Baptisms | Marriage | Godparents & Sponsors | Funerals | Cremation
Sick Calls, Emergencies, Hospital Visits | Last Rites |
Baptism
Celebrated on the third and fourth Sunday of each month, (unless otherwise specified). On the third week the celebration is after the 11:00 am Mass. On the fourth Sunday, it is within the 11:00 am Mass. First time parents are required to attend a Baptismal Preparation Session held on the second Monday of each month at 7:00 PM in the Parish Office. To make arrangements for a baptism
and register for the Session, please call the Parish Office.
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Marriage
Arrangements must be made with one of the parish
priests at least one year in advance to allow time for
proper preparation, This includes three meetings with the
priest (or deacon) plus attendance at the diocesan approved
preparation sessions (Pre-Cana or Engaged
Encounter). Our parish secretaries can check dates for
availability but cannot reserve them.
If either party has been previously married and divorced,
an official church annulment of the prior marriage must be
obtained before a date can be reserved and preparation
sessions begun.
The stipend for the use of the Church, required paperwork,
etc is $400.00 with a $200.00 discount for registered
parishioners who regularly support the parish. For nonparishioners,
the fee is $800.00. The fee is payable at the
time the date is set and is deposited into regular parish
accounts; it is not a gift for the priest or deacon. The
stipend for musicians must be negotiated directly with
them. A gift for altar servers and the priest or deacon is
customary at your discretion.
There are no restrictions concerning the religious
affiliation of members of the wedding party, including the
witnesses (best man, maid/matron of honor). However, all
music must be approved for the Church use. Most secular
music is not permitted.
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Godparents (Baptism) and Sponsors (Confirmation)
Before you ask someone to be a Godparent or sponsor, or
before accepting this honor, please consider the following:
Godparents and Sponsors are people of faith who so
exemplify what it means to be a member of the Church that
they inspire (or hope to inspire) the one they are
sponsoring and will support that person in his/her journey
of faith. To be considered eligible, certain conditions must
be met, which is why the Church insists that a certificate of
eligibility, obtained from the prospective
Godparent/sponsor’s home parish, be provided prior to
the celebration of the sacrament.
The applicant must be formally registered in a parish. If
we don’t know you, how can we testify that you are
eligible? Furthermore, the applicant should make his/her
own request, since their role as a sponsor is to witness
to the child their own personal commitment to Christ
and His Church.
Applicants must be 1. fully initiated (That is, they have
received the sacraments of Baptism, Eucharist and
Confirmation), 2. practicing members of the Church
(regularly attend Mass and are active in the parish), and 3.
at least 16 years of age. The pastor can dispense from the
age minimum, provided that the applicant meets these
sacramental requirements.
Where we run into the most difficulties is if the applicant is
married. We cannot issue a certificate of eligibility to a
married person if the marriage is not valid in the
Catholic Church. For a marriage to be valid, a sanctioned
Catholic priest must have performed it or, if celebrated
outside the Church, with a formal dispensation granted by
the local Bishop. Civil marriages of those performed by
non-catholic religious officials without a formal
dispensation are not valid in the Church.
For the applicant in an invalid marriage to receive a
certificate of eligibility, the marriage must first be
convalidated by a renewal of vows before a sanctioned
priest and two witnesses. If either spouse had a prior
marriage that ended in a divorce, regardless of where that
first marriage took place, the Church must formally annul
the prior marriage before a convalidation can be
celebrated.
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Funerals
One of life’s unpleasant realities is dealing with death – our
own, and that of our loved ones. While our understanding
of death continues to grow, our faith concerning its
outcome remains consistent: that it is overcome, defeated,
destroyed by the power of God in the Resurrection of Jesus
Christ.
How Christians have celebrated the mystery of death has
evolved over the years. In our own time, we have seen
many changes that have left many confused about what
can and should be done, and what should be avoided.
The
following may clear some confusion:
• A VIGIL SERVICE of prayers, readings from Scripture
and intercessions may be offered during the viewing of
the body if this will take place the evening before the
funeral Mass/burial.
• A MASS OF CHRISTIAN BURIAL is celebrated the day
the body is to be buried (unless cremated remains will
be interred on another day). All baptized Roman
Catholics are entitled to a full Mass of Christian
Burial, regardless of the level of faithfulness to
Church practice by the deceased or their families.
Only those under an official edict of censure by the local
bishop or the Pope may not receive a Funeral Mass. In
such an extreme case, a Funeral Service Outside of the
Mass may be celebrated with the permission of the local
Bishop.
• A RITE OF COMMITTAL are prayers offered at the
graveside (or place of internment).
• A custom grown in popularity is to have a viewing of the
body (either at a funeral home or in the church) followed
immediately by the funeral Mass and burial. In this case,
there is no vigil prayer service.
• As with weddings, music for funeral liturgies must be
approved for Church use. Most secular music is not
permitted.
• One of our Comfort Ministers will be contacted to help
the bereaved family prepare for the funeral service.
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Cremation
Cremation of the body is an acceptable practice among
Catholic faithful. However, the teaching of the Church
still clearly prefers the burial or internment of the
body as more in keeping with the dignity of the human
body as a temple of the Holy Spirit; a body that was
washed and anointed in baptism and confirmation, fed
with the Body and Blood of Christ, and anointed in
Sacrament of the Sick.
If possible, cremation should occur sometime after the
Funeral Mass and the remains interred at a later time.
However, cremated remains may be present at the Funeral
Mass and interred afterward. In keeping with respect for
the human body, cremated remains are to be buried or
interred in a proper cemetery. They are not to be kept
in homes or sprinkled over land or water.
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Sick Calls/Hospital Visitation/Emergencies
If you know of any parishioner who is homebound and would like to regularly receive Holy Communion, we are happy to make
arrangements for periodic visits by a priest and lay Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion. Catholic residents of longterm
care facilities within our parish boundaries are likewise visited regularly.
If a loved one is admitted to any hospital, please contact the hospital’s Pastoral Care office. Each hospital has an assigned, fulltime
Catholic chaplain who will be certain to administer the sacrament of the sick and arrange for regular reception of Holy
Communion. Our parish priests try to visit hospitalized parishioners as well, as their schedules permit.
In the event of any emergency, a parish priest can be summoned to the stricken parishioner’s home. Once en route to a
hospital, however, please request hospital personnel to immediately contact the chaplain.
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Last Rites (Annointing of the Sick)
Technically speaking there is no such thing. At one time, what we practice now as the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick was
offered only when a person was near death. This is why it was called, “Extreme Unction” (anointing in extreme circumstances)
and commonly referred to as “last rites.”
Today, any seriously ill or infirmed person can be anointed at any time; death need not be imminent. Persons scheduled for
surgery likewise may be anointed before entering the hospital. The chaplain normally anoints all persons admitted to the
hospital, particularly in an emergency. But when death becomes imminent, summon a priest immediately if you know the
dying person has not been anointed (the chaplain, if the person is in a hospital; a parish priest if s/he is at home or a care
facility within the parish boundaries).
If s/he has been anointed, however, there is no need for “last rites.” The dear one has already been graced with the sacrament
and is spiritually disposed to enter the presence of God.
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