This Wednesday, August 15th, is the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven, a holy day of obligation. On this day we honor our Blessed Mother who has experienced the fullness of redemption by being raised body and soul into heaven.

All the feast days of Mary mark the great mysteries of her life and her part in the work of redemption. The central mystery of her life and person is her divine motherhood, celebrated both at Christmas and a week later (Jan. 1) on the feast of the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. The Immaculate Conception (Dec. 8) marks the preparation for that motherhood, so that she had the fullness of grace from the first moment of her existence, completely untouched by sin. Her whole being was filled with divine life from the very beginning, as she was being prepared for the exalted role of mother of the Savior. 

The Assumption completes God’s work in her since it was not fitting that the flesh that had given life to God himself should ever undergo corruption. The Assumption is God’s crowning of His work as Mary ends her earthly life and enters eternity. The feast turns our eyes in that direction, where we will follow when our earthly life is over. Keeping that thought in mind, the opening  prayer for the Mass during the day reads: “Almighty ever-living God,  who assumed the Immaculate Virgin Mary, the Mother of your Son, body and soul into heavenly  glory, grant, we pray that, always attentive to the things that are above, we may merit to be sharers of her glory.” 

 We ask Mother Mary to intercede on our behalf, that we may come to know and love her Son, Jesus Christ, the Savior of the World; and that we may someday merit to be sharers of her glory in heaven.

Besides celebrating the Solemnity of the Assumption of Blessed Virgin Mary, the Indians also celebrate their Independence Day on August 15, Independence from British rule since 1947. Secondly all the Indian Pallottines belong to the Province of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, (ABVM) so it is our Province feast as well. So it is one celebration for all Catholics, two celebrations for all Indians and three for Pallottines belonging to ABVM Province. Happy Feast to All.

Holy Day Masses will be celebrated on Wednesday August 15 at 8.30 am and 7.00 p.m. 

Blessings,

Fr. Socorro

Prayer To Our Lady, Assumed Into Heaven

Immaculate Virgin, Mother of Jesus and our Mother, we believe in your triumphant assumption into heaven where the angels and saints acclaim you as Queen. We join them in praising you and bless the Lord who raised you above all creatures. With them we offer you our devotion and love. We are confident that you watch over our daily efforts and needs, and we take comfort from our faith in the coming resurrection. We look to you, our life, our sweetness, and our hope. After this earthly life, show us Jesus, the blest fruit of your womb, O kind, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary. Amen

Faith Formation 2018-19

Registration forms for Faith Formation classes for the 2018-19 school year can be found on the table in the back of church or on the parish website at www.stvalentineparish.usunder Faith Formation. We ask you to register early so we can order books and supplies.

If you have any questions please call Bonnie in the Parish Office at 313-532-4394 x101 or email [email protected]

Thank you!

Protecting God’s Children Workshop

St. Valentine Parish will be offering a Protecting God’s Children Workshop on Saturday, October 6th beginning at 9:00 a.m. sharp and ending at 12:00 noon in the School Library.

If you are interested in attending you must register on line. Please use the following format when registering.

Go to the Internet. In the address line type: www.aodonline.org On the right hand side of the page, click  on Protecting God’s Children, this will take you to the  link labeled Register for Training—Protecting God’s Children. Follow the instructions to register.

All adults who work or volunteer with children in the School, Faith Formation Program, Sports Program, and other activities in our parish MUST attend a Protecting God’s Children Workshop and have a Criminal Background Check. 

The Society of St. Pius X was founded by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre who was an outspoken opponent to the changes in the church as a result of Vatican II. Since 1975 this society has not been in full communion with the Holy See.  Over the years there have been repeated attempts by Pope Paul VI, Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI and now Pope Francis to heal this rift and bring the members of the Society of St. Pius X back into union with the church.  To date these attempts have been unsuccessful and thus for the time beingthe Society of St. Pius X remains in canonical irregularity with the Roman Catholic Church.

 Please note….

The Society of St. Pius X has established a number of churches in Southeast Michigan. In their signage these churches identify themselves as Catholic Churches even though they are not in full communion with the Roman Catholic Church. In 2015, the Year of Mercy, Pope Francis announced that the faithful would be able to receive valid sacramental absolution from priests of the SSPX.  And in 2016, trusting in the good will of these priests to strive for the recovery of the full communion in the Catholic Church, extended this faculty until further notice.  ((Misericordia et Misera #12)    

The following is a listing of churches of the Society of St. Pius X in the Archdiocese of Detroit:

St. Joseph Catholic Church, Armada

  St. Anne’s Catholic Church, Livonia

The following churches, not part of the Society of St. Pius X, are also not in full communion with the Roman Catholic Church:

    Our Lady Queen of Martyrs Church, Fraser

    St. Joseph Catholic Church, Wayne

    St. Dominic Chapel, Highland

    St. John XXIII Independent Catholic Church,  Wyandotte

Holy Cross Polish National Catholic Church, Hamtramck

All Saints PNCC, Sterling Heights

Resurrection PNCC, Temperance

Our Savior PNCC, Dearborn Heights

St. Anthony Cathedral, Detroit

Latin Mass…Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite

 Out of concern for the faithful who were yearning to celebrate the Eucharist according to the older Rite…Tridentine Rite….Pope Benedict XVI in his Apostolic Letter, “Summorum Pontificum”, extended permission for the celebration of the Eucharist according this Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite.  Catholics who wish to worship according this form should attend parishes in the Archdiocese of Detroit in full communion with Rome who are offering this form.  A list of these parishes can be found on the Archdiocese of Detroit website…www.aodonline.org. 

Pray for unity……  All the faithful are encouraged to continue to pray that God will bring the Society of St. Pius X and all other churches into full communion with the Roman Catholic Church so that we may all be one.

Taken from the AOD Worship News

Stewardship Thoughts

Today, in St. John’s Gospel, Jesus ties His instructions on the Eucharist to the Book of Exodus. Christ proclaims to the crowd that their ancestors ate manna in the desert from God the Father, not Moses. Jesus professes in the Gospel that He is the “Bread of Life.” Those who accept His invitation and come to Him will never hunger or thirst, as they will be spiritually filled. In Ephesians, St. Paul instructs us that, through Christ, we will gain a fresh, spiritual way of thinking. As faithful stewards, we acknowledge Jesus’ true presence in the Eucharist as translated from the Greek meaning “thanksgiving.” We believe the Eucharist to be the true Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity, of Christ. We stand in awe and gratitude for this tremendous gift, which opens our hearts to holiness. Plan to attend a Eucharistic Adoration and Benediction service at your parish or a regional “Awaken” service to experience Christ’s peace and joy.

Women’s Retreat

Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say Rejoice! Come rejoice and be refreshed in the Lord this October at our Women’s Retreat at St Paul of the Cross! What a wonderful theme to have this year! Registration is now open online. Our weekend dates are October 19-21. For further information contact Colleen Masserang at 734-754-0718 or call St Paul of the Cross Retreat Center at 313-535-9563 and ask for Cathy. 

Thank goodness our Tiger trip did not get rained out on Friday, July 20th, our bus came with the happiest driver ever, LA Williams, we filled the bus and then said our prayers thanks to Fr. Kishore, we started out with some stats questions on our way to Detroit. We had some pictures taken of the group and then entered the stadium, we did get floppy hats as the giveaway that day. Everyone had  to make a choice on the wonderful foods and beverages that were around the park. As game time grew closer we all met up in Section 215 and had a great time, for some of the group this was the first time they ever went on one of our Tiger trips, for some this was the first time they were in Comerica Park, we hope you all come back again, it was great to see families and friends that met up to come to the game. Unfortunately the Tigers lost 1-0 to the Red Sox, but in the end the fireworks were great and then we headed on back to the St. Valentine parking lot. It was a fun filled evening, hope you can join us next year!

Cecilia Gallagher