Holy Year 2025 “Pilgrims of Hope”

The theme is an invitation to share the hope of the Christian faith with the world, which is suffering from the effects of war, poverty, climate change, and the COVID pandemic. The theme also encourages people to reignite their faith and share it with others.

Pope Francis’s message: Pope Francis said that the word “pilgrim” makes people think about walking, and that he wishes people to always be on the move and keep moving forward in life. He also said that the Jubilee should be an opportunity to be renewed in hope.

The Holy Year of Jubilee is an event that takes place every 25 years in the Catholic Church. The idea behind the Jubilee year is to allow the faithful to start afresh with a clean slate.

Holy Year Prayer

Father in heaven, may the faith you have given us in your son, Jesus Christ, our brother, and the flame of charity enkindled in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, reawaken in us the blessed hope for the coming of your Kingdom. May your grace transform us into tireless cultivators of the seeds of the Gospel. May those seeds transform from within both humanity and the whole cosmos in the sure expectation of a new heaven and a new earth, when, with the powers of Evil vanquished, your glory will shine eternally. May the grace of the Jubilee reawaken in us, Pilgrims of Hope, a yearning for the treasures of heaven. May that same grace spread the joy and peace of our Redeemer throughout the earth. To you our God, eternally blessed, be glory and praise for ever. Amen.

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Called by Name

Sunday, January 12th iwas Called by Name Sunday! Bishop Caggiano is asking us to identify faithful young men (ages 16-40) who exhibit qualities of leadership and service, and who may be open to the priesthood. To submit names, please visit https://www.bridgeportpriest.org/called. Men you submit will receive a letter of encouragement from Bishop Caggiano, an invitation to a special dinner, and support from our Vocation Team. Thank you for your participation in this important campaign!

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Adult Confirmation

We are reaching out to adult parishioners (18 years and older). We are sharing with you a call for all those who have not received the Sacrament of Confirmation. In the Diocese of Bridgeport, we have a tradition to offer the Sacrament in our parish on the Feast of Pentecost (June 8, 2025) For further information. Contact Msgr Ryan (msgrryan@olgstratford.com).

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Thank You!

A special note of thanks to the Women of Grace and the Knights of Columbus who hosted our Parish Sunday Coffee on December 29th. The gathering shared a cup of coffee, pastry and a lot of friendship. Thank you to our parish Confirmation Teens! Theyprepared the House Blessing packets for our Feast of the Lord’s Epiphany. More than 300 packets were taken by our families.

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Liturgical Volunteers

As the new year is ahead of us, we are in need of volunteers for our Sunday 11:30 am Mass. Can you assist us as Readers, Eucharistic ministers, and greeters. If interested contact Cathy Nucera.

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Please Support Our Future Priests

Bishop Caggiano would like to remind us all to consider participating in the Seminarian Appeal. The formation of our future priests is a critical responsibility for our Diocese, and we rely heavily on the support of generous donors like you to make this possible. The cost of educating and training a seminarian for the priesthood has risen to over $60,000 annually, and it is becoming increasingly challenging to meet these expenses without additional assistance from our faithful community. Please support our future priests who will serve our communities for many years to come! Please give at https://www.bridgeportpriest.org/give

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Diocesan Vocation Prayer

Heavenly Father, renew your presence among us through the gift of the ministerial priesthood, through which we are given the gift of the sacraments, most especially the Eucharist. Grant courage to those whom you are calling to serve at your altar as priests, 20 that they may receive your call with generosity and respond with their whole hearts. May the stewards of your mysteries grow in number and persevere in holiness of life. We ask this through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

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Lord’s Kitchen – The volunteers from Our Lady of Grace Parish will be serving the meal at the Lord’s Kitchen on Monday, January 27, 2025. We ask our parish family to keep our volunteers in their prayers as they take care of those who are in need. Our volunteers also ask the help of parishioners by donating bars of soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, and toilet tissue. We are accepting monetary donations to assist with the meal. expense! The collection buckets will be available the weekend of January 11th and 12th receive your donations. The buckets will be placed outside the rectory garage.

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Question of the Week – January 12th–The Baptism of the Lord

Pleasing to God

And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.” (Luke 3:2)

Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7 • The servant of the lord                                                               Acts 10:34-38 • Peter’s discourse; the good news of peace
Luke 3:15-16, 21-22 • Baptism of Jesus

Adults: Do you think that God was “well pleased” by your actions in recent weeks? Why?

Kids: What good thing could you do this week that would be pleasing to God?

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We would like to thank our on–line donors for their support of our parish. We would like to ask our donors to check their accounts. We have noticed that your credit card may have expired or you have changed account numbers. Your financial support to our parish are important! Please call (203) 377–0928 x113.

Click on “On-Line Giving Button” on our website or by clicking this link, https://www.osvhub.com/olgstratford/funds. For customer assistance please call 1-800-348-2886 choose option 1 or the Parish Office at (203) 377-0928 x113.  To insure the proper date for your donation, we will be announcing each month the second collections and their dates: January 18/19 – Hope for the Future; January 25/26 – Church in Latin America

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CallingPost – Please watch for our calls each Friday night at 7pm. If you wish to receive our parish CallingPost call 203–377–0928 X113.

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Our Lady of Grace Social Media – You can view Sunday mass on the website, Facebook or YouTube!

Please Like and Follow  Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church Stratford CT on Facebook!

Our Lady of Grace Roman Catholic Church Stratford CT. Please subscribe to our channel.

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