Do you know the difference between a Catechumen and Candidate? Both are persons participating in the Right of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA). A Catechumen specifies a non-baptized person preparing for full membership in the Catholic Church through Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Communion. Candidates are previously-baptized persons seeking full communion with the Catholic Church through Confirmation and Holy Communion. This Saturday, April 3rd, we will baptize one Catechumen and then, along with nine Candidates, confirm and welcome them into the Catholic Church and our parish through Holy Communion at the Great Easter Vigil at 9 pm in the Church. This is a beautiful liturgy full of ritual and meaning. If you've never been to an Easter Vigil before, please consider joining us in person or online (on our website, Facebook page, or our YouTube channel) for the 2021 Easter Vigil as we prepare to welcome 10 new members of the Catholic Church.

A group of volunteers from our St. Vincent de Paul (SVDP) group came in on Saturday, March 20 to make meals for the homeless camps in downtown Kalamazoo in our kitchen. SVDP continues to help those who need assistance with utility shut-offs, evictions, and special circumstances. We appreciate all the volunteers who are the hands and feet of God during these troubled times, especially those who are able to help others in need. May God continue to bless our SVDP group in their ministry! If you would like to donate to the SVDP group, please grab an envelope from the Narthex by the main doors and use the SVDP drop box for donations. Thank you!

Dear Parishioners, In any Lenten Season, it feels like a great accomplishment when we reach Palm Sunday and Holy Week. This is one of those weeks where we walk with Jesus along the Road to Calvary, but in doing so, we discover that the Lord has been walking with us all the time. During Holy Week 2021, as I mentioned in my column last week, a few of our familiar customs and traditions during the Mass and on Good Friday will not be the same as in past years (due to the Pandemic). For those who are able to join us during the liturgies of Holy Week, we look forward to seeing you. Overflow will be available in Marian Hall in case we need it. We will be offering additional times for confession on Good Friday and Holy Saturday. On Good Friday, we will be doing the “Drive-in” confessions in the parking lot immediately following the Good Friday Service. On Holy Saturday, we will be having confessions at the normal 11:00 am-noon time slot. Please pray for our Catechumens and Candidates as they prepare to celebrate and receive the Sacraments at the Easter Vigil. I always look forward to this night as this is the primary time each year that we welcome people into the Church. I hope and pray that you will have a Blessed Holy Week. Please check the schedule in the bulletin and on our Website and Facebook page as to the times that we will have Masses for Holy Thursday, the Good Friday Service, and for the Easter Vigil, and Easter Sunday. Thanks for reading! Fr. Mark

As a Church, we pray for one another that the Lord continues to bless, guide, strengthen, and console us. One incredibly beautiful and ancient way we can pray for someone is to have a Mass offered for that person. It is a holy and devout practice to have Masses offered for a loved one, living or deceased. Masses may be offered on any day, but many offer them on a birthday, anniversary, or for a special need. To learn more about Mass Intentions, or to schedule a Mass Intention online, visit our website at https://stcatherinesiena.org/massintentions. Please click on the article title to view the Mass Intentions for March 28 - April 4, 2021.

The Lenten season is marked by two very distinct liturgical omissions. Neither the hymn known as the Gloria (Glory to God in the Highest) nor the Alleluia verse sung before the Gospel is permitted during the entire 40 days of Lent (with a few small exceptions). Why is that? First of all, the Gloria is a hymn that celebrates the coming of the Lord using words from the angels at Christ’s birth. The Church during Lent returns in spirit to a time when the people of God were in exile, waiting for the Messiah to come and save them. It is a similar season of expectation as is Advent, but instead of awaiting Christ’s birth from the womb of Mary, the Christian people await Christ’s second “birth” from the womb of the sepulcher. Secondly, following this same spirit of exile, the Church joins Moses and the Israelites as they wander in the desert for 40 years. It is a time of agony and purification, one where the faithful join together in saying, “How shall we sing the Lord’s song in a foreign land?” (Psalm 137:4) The word “Alleluia” is rooted in a Hebrew expression that means “praise the Lord” and is thus omitted during Lent. For more information, please click on the article title.

Members of the Linens Guild care for the linens, purificators, and corporals used at Mass each week. This includes home laundering, bleaching, and ironing the linens, which members pick up and return to the church each week. We are always looking for help in this ministry. Commitment is for a month-long period. Depending on the number of volunteers, it may be only one month per year. If you are interested in this ministry or have any questions, please contact Marianne Verner at [email protected] or 978-2340. May God Bless our Linen Guild for their time and sacrifice for this ministry!

Dear Parishioners, I need to take a minute and explain our capacity issues. It’s wonderful to see people coming back to Mass, but in recent weeks, even with our overflow area, we are having to turn people away and telling them to come back for another Mass time. As capacities start to open up in other places (restaurants, etc.), I am being asked many questions about church capacity. These are the diocesan protocols that continue to govern us right now: 1) 6-foot social distancing. 2) Need to wear masks. 3) Cleaning. With our curved pews, we cannot do every other pew as we would not be in compliance with the social distancing rule. We have added space in the overflow area in Marian Hall by packing up the parish library and putting it into storage. As a staff, we have also looked at some ways to add a chair here and there. The only other option we might have is to open another Mass time in the gym until some of these other things are relaxed. As we have announced at Masses the past few, please come early to get a seat. Or you may even want to consider a different Mass time (as the 11:00 am Mass fills up quickly). Please give some thoughts on all these things as you plan your Mass time for the weekend. After living through the past year with many different changes, here is a quick summary of what to expect for Holy Week liturgies and Masses: (and yes, Holy Week begins next weekend!) Palm Sunday: Yes, we will have palms! However, they will be self-serve and a table will be set up with the blessed palms on them for you to take home. In many parishes, a procession is typically done on Palm Sunday to remember when Jesus entered Jerusalem. Because social distancing and other practices are in place, the congregation will not be able to process for Palm Sunday. Holy Thursday: The washing of the feet will be omitted this year. There will still be time to pray privately before the Blessed Sacrament at the conclusion of Mass. Good Friday: The Veneration of the Cross will be altered this year to only the presider kissing the Cross. Those who wish to venerate the Cross, they will be asked to bow or to kneel before the Cross. Holy Saturday: Those who are to be baptized and/or receive the Easter Sacraments of Confirmation, and their First Communion, will do so. Due to safety protocols, the congregation will not be able to gather outside the Church for the lighting of the Easter fire. Easter Sunday: We will celebrate Easter Sunday the same way we have been able to celebrate our Sunday Masses. All safety protocols and cleaning will be in place and overflow will be available in Marian Hall. An additional Mass will be celebrated in the gym at the 11:00 am time slot. Our Easter schedule of Masses is posted on this page of the bulletin. Thanks for reading! Fr. Mark

As a Church, we pray for one another that the Lord continues to bless, guide, strengthen, and console us. One incredibly beautiful and ancient way we can pray for someone is to have a Mass offered for that person. It is a holy and devout practice to have Masses offered for a loved one, living or deceased. Masses may be offered on any day, but many offer them on a birthday, anniversary, or for a special need. To learn more about Mass Intentions, or to schedule a Mass Intention online, visit our website at https://stcatherinesiena.org/massintentions. Please click on the article title to view the Mass Intentions for March 20-28, 2021.

We would like to extend a warm St. Catherine's welcome to all our new members for the month of February 2021. We're glad you're part of our St. Catherine's Family! In addition, we wish to extend a warm welcome to our Parish family to those baptized in the month of February. Welcome, and Congratulations! Please click on the article title to see our February New Members and Baptisms.

Dear Parishioners, We find ourselves at the halfway point of Lent this week (Laetare Sunday), and in our readings, we will start to see how our Lord’s Passion will soon be upon us. These final weeks of Lent can often remind us all of the difficulties we might face personally with work, difficult relationships, family issues, or health problems. Often we like to accompany and walk along with Jesus on the Way of the Cross. But we are also able to see how Christ will be with us every step of the way if we just let Him walk these difficult journeys with us. He will help us through any suffering or difficulty. Please watch our website, Facebook page, and now our Flocknote communications from the Parish to let everyone know what to anticipate for Palm Sunday, Holy Week, and Easter Sunday. Talking with my brother priests, we are certainly happy to celebrate these final weeks of Lent with you this year in-person (versus having to be home for several months last year). It just wasn’t the same for you or us. There may still be Covid restrictions and safety protocols in place, but we will still be able to gather and pray during the holiest time of the Church year. Many people have asked questions about the Catholic Church's position on the now-available COVID-19 vaccines. In summary, both the Pfizer vaccine and the Moderna vaccines are morally permissible. Please read the letter from the Bishop (click on the article title or visit https://bit.ly/BishopsCOVID19March2021) for more information. Thanks for reading! Fr. Mark

As a Church, we pray for one another that the Lord continues to bless, guide, strengthen, and console us. One incredibly beautiful and ancient way we can pray for someone is to have a Mass offered for that person. It is a holy and devout practice to have Masses offered for a loved one, living or deceased. Masses may be offered on any day, but many offer them on a birthday, anniversary, or for a special need. To learn more about Mass Intentions, or to schedule a Mass Intention online, visit our website at https://stcatherinesiena.org/massintentions. Please click on the article title to view the Mass Intentions for March 13-21, 2021.

Thank you to everyone who has joined us on Flocknote! The response to this new communications tool has been tremendous, and we hope you’re enjoying all the fabulous resources available to you in the Word on Fire ENGAGE program through Flocknote. This includes free access to many of Bishop Barron's popular video programs and study materials like “Catholicism”, “The Sacraments”, “The Mass”, and much more. Please also check out the various groups available to you through Flocknote. We now have a “Parish News” group specifically for News & Announcements and our weekly digital newsletter, and a Spirituality group for those who are interested in receiving special messages 1-2 times per week with spiritual reflections, prayers, videos, readings, and other spiritual enrichment. We also have general groups for many of our individual ministries and ministry areas, so you can sign up to receive updates in just the ministry areas that interest you. To get started with Word on Fire ENGAGE, go to https://Flocknote.com/stcatherinesiena, login to the Flocknote dashboard, and look for the orange "Visit WoFDigital.Org" button. Once you login to Word on Fire Digital, you can browse any of Bishop Barron's video programs and download related study materials. For more information about joining Flocknote, please click on the article title or visit http://bit.ly/JoinSCSFlocknote.

We’re happy to have a great group of parishioners who take the time to welcome new members to our parish. Despite the obstacles of COVID-19, they continue to dedicate their time to calling or mailing new (or current) members to extend a warm welcome or check on how they are doing. When the pandemic is over, they will continue to host events and opportunities for new members to meet with current members and grow in their faith at St. Catherine’s. Keep your eye on the bulletin, our website, and Facebook for future events hosted by our Welcome Committee. Our Welcome Committee is always looking for current parishioners to help with their ministry. If you can make a few phone calls a month or send out letters as needed, please contact the Front Office at [email protected] or 327-5165 for more information.

We're very excited to announce that our parish is now using Flocknote, a communications tool for churches, to stay connected with our parishioners via email and text. We've also created individual Flocknote groups for many of our ministry areas to allow individual groups to easily share group-specific information with one another. Joining us on Flocknote is easy! You can text JOINSCS to 84576 or go to https://stcatherinesiena.flocknote.com using your web browser (or just click on the article title to go directly to the Flocknote sign up page). Fill out the simple form with your name and contact information and click "Sign Me Up". That's it! If you already have a Flocknote login, just click on the "Login" button on the same screen to access your account. You can also download the Flocknote app from your app store and use Flocknote that way! For more information about Flocknote and how it works, please see the flyer on our website: http://bit.ly/AboutFlocknote. Once you join Flocknote, you'll also be able to use Bishop Robert Barron's Word on Fire ENGAGE program, which includes access to many of Bishop Barron's popular video programs and study materials. To get started, go to https://Flocknote.com/stcatherinesiena, login to the Flocknote dashboard, and look for the orange "Visit WoFDigital.Org" button. Once you login to Word on Fire Digital, you can browse any of Bishop Barron's study programs for free! Each week (usually on Friday afternoon), we'll send registered Flocknote members our parish newsletter with our latest announcements and information on upcoming events. On the Flocknote platform, we can easily send quick messages, conduct surveys, request signups for events, share reflections and video content, and more. Over the coming weeks and months ahead, we'll start using Flocknote to help connect our parish together in multiple ways. Stay tuned for more information!

Dear Parishioners, After a couple of weeks of Lent have passed, I always ask the question: Have I become a better person? We all know it helps us if we can measure progress like this. Yet, if we don’t see progress, we know that we need to do better. Where do you find yourself as we begin this Third Week of Lent? One way that we can make progress and keep on track is confession. Confession keeps us honest with ourselves. If we go to confession on a regular basis, then it helps us to see where we are going or what we need to do in order to be that better person. As we begin March and inch closer to Spring, I hope that the weather will improve on the days we priests are out in the parking lot hearing confessions. A couple of those February Saturdays were pretty cold! Despite this, we were always out there to hear confessions. If you see a car out there where you expect to see us standing, we are just warming ourselves up a bit. During this month of March, all four of your priests are planning to help with confessions. Another liturgical season is going by without a Penance Service. Please join us every Saturday, in the area in front of the rectory, for Drive-in Confessions from 11:00 am-Noon. We will be adding some additional times when we arrive at Holy Week. Thanks for reading! Fr. Mark

Many people have asked questions about the Catholic Church's position on the now-available COVID-19 vaccines. The Michigan Bishops have released an updated statement to include all now-available vaccines, including the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. In summary, both the Pfizer vaccine and the Moderna vaccines are morally permissible. For complete information, please click on the article title to read the statement from our Michigan Bishops about the COVID-19 vaccines or visit http://bit.ly/BishopsCOVID19March2021.

As a Church, we pray for one another that the Lord continues to bless, guide, strengthen, and console us. One incredibly beautiful and ancient way we can pray for someone is to have a Mass offered for that person. It is a holy and devout practice to have Masses offered for a loved one, living or deceased. Masses may be offered on any day, but many offer them on a birthday, anniversary, or for a special need. To learn more about Mass Intentions, or to schedule a Mass Intention online, visit our website at https://stcatherinesiena.org/massintentions. Please click on the article title to view the Mass Intentions for March 6-14, 2021.

Holy water is water blessed by a priest. It’s a “sacramental” or sacred sign that the faithful remember to sanctify each moment of life and live the paschal mystery (the process that Jesus went through to save humanity from sin). Many modern-day Catholics use Holy Water to remember their repentance of sin, protection from evil, and a reminder of their own baptisms. Our Front Office has a supply of Holy Water available for anyone who would like to take some home. The Front Office is open Monday through Friday from 10 am until 12 pm. Please stop by and see us if you would like some Holy Water.

As we welcome everyone back to in-person Masses, we need more Ushers and Sacristans to help us with Masses. (Our Priests have had to Usher several Sundays to help out, oftentimes before the Mass they are presiding!) If you are able to help on a weekend or two a month, please contact our Front Office at [email protected] or call 327-5165. Thank you for considering helping us!

Marriage is a place of refuge in a world filled with all kinds of emptiness. The Church looks to marriage as the fundamental unit of our Church, calling the family the domestic church. We regard marriage as a sacrament. We would like to recognize our Parishioners who are about to celebrate an upcoming Milestone Anniversary (10, 25, 50, or 75 years). In a time where many couples struggle to make it through marriage, we want to celebrate those with success stories! We have a list in our Parish data system, but we don’t want to miss anyone. Let our Front Office know at [email protected] or 327-5165 if you have a Milestone Anniversary you would like featured in an upcoming bulletin and on our website/Facebook. Thank you!