St. Anastasia Roman Catholic Church
From the Office

 Here’s hoping you all had as wonderful an Easter as I did. Aside from the beautiful liturgies of which the Easter Vigil is my favorite, I love the decorations on the altar and the way it all fits together; it was a very moving and spiritual experience, but I’m also glad the season only comes once a year. 

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

   In the 1940’s and 1950’s, Catholic social services agencies operating as part of the Detroit Archdiocese were established in southeast Michigan. Through the  decades since, the dedicated staff and volunteers of these agencies have brought hope and healing to countless numbers of God’s people. Through adoption services, foster care, senior services, individual and family counseling, and other services, our Catholic social services agencies help change lives for the better every day. Performing works of Christian charity such as these is an essential dimension of Christian discipleship, and is part of answering the Universal Call to Holiness.

Good things come to those who wait.” That was surely the case for Mary Magdalene. She became the first one to see the resurrected Jesus.

The Easter Gospel recounts the discovery that Jesus is risen. Peter and John see that Jesus’ bindings are on the ground and the burial cloth is folded and has been laid on the bench. After considering all this evidence, they go home.

But Mary stays alone at the tomb. She encounters the two angels who speak to her. Then Mary sees the man standing there. At first she does not know who He is.  But then He speaks her name, and she instantly recognizes Him.

This one facet of the Gospel is filled with teaching. It reminds us that we must love Jesus and be willing to wait patiently for Him.  We must be willing to discover Him appearing to us through others. We must be open to find Him in ways that we have not imagined in our own limited expectations. We must long to hear Him speak our name.

Happy Easter blessings,
Deacon Ron

As you may have heard or read, some of the words of the prayers of the Mass have been revised. The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments has approved revisions in The Roman Missal, the book that the priest uses to pray the words of the Mass. With the other dioceses in the United States, our parish will begin to pray the revised texts of the Mass on the First Sunday of Advent in 2011, November 27, 2011. This third typical edition of The Roman Missal was issued by Pope John Paul II in 2000. After it was published in 2002, the work of translation began. During this translation a different model was used than after the Second Vatican Council, so some of the words that we proclaim at Mass have been changed. The United States is not the only country making these changes. The words prayed in the Mass are being revised around the world, no matter what language is spoken. By the nature of the language in some parts of the world, though, the revisions are less extensive.

HAPPY EASTER!!! – Alleluia!

It is nice being able to proclaim that again. We have spent the last 40 days in preparation for this moment. Let the Easter celebrations begin. First off, welcome to all of the 15 adults and 7 kids who experienced the Sacraments of Initiation at the Vigil! Bask in what it is that the Lord has done. We are so glad that you are now an official part of the community of St. Anastasia and the  entire Church. 

Palm Sunday is a shocking day. The streets of Jerusalem are filled with   Hosanna – shouting, branch waving adorers.  We hear later that those same streets were filled with people shouting, “Crucify him!” How many of those in the first crowd were also in the second?  In the Passion we hear of Judas, who betrays Jesus, who is, indeed, plotting his betrayal even as they were sharing a holy meal. But Judas isn’t the only betrayer. There were his friends who cannot watch one hour with him; cowardly Peter, who denies him three times and finally the disciples who abandon him to save themselves.

We want our heroes to be victorious; our martyrs to be pure; our leaders to be more trustworthy than ourselves; our loved ones to be exactly who we think they are. We want ourselves to be the only person we present to the world, the bright, full of light self. We don’t even want to imagine that we would have been part of that second crowd, in Jerusalem, shouting those vile words, “Crucify him!”

Have a blessed Holy Week,
Deacon Ron

Most people have events or happenings that they dub the “Rite of Spring”….in the Catholic Church most think that Rite is Easter and as a Deacon I do as well…but as a Business Manager that Rite is called the CSA. We launched last week, actually about 3 weeks earlier than the AOD wanted us to as we wanted to avoid any issues with 1^st Communions, but also to give us and you a little more time to achieve the goal that has been set for us. It is a hefty goal – $250,462 – but St. Anastasia has always comes through.  We also decided to have you pick up your cards in the Social Hall as opposed to the costly mass mailing we’ve done in the past. The cards will be available after each Mass this weekend and then after Easter. We will not have the cards available during any of the Holy Week Liturgies. If you forget to pick up your card, you can always pick it up by dropping by the office and asking for either Patricia Ullmann or me. Returning the pledge card is easy as well – put it in an envelope marked CSA in the collection, mail it to Patricia’s or my attention, or drop it by the office in a sealed envelope. Reminder: when filling out the pledge card  be sure to only keep the small tear off portion for your records, return the rest of the card to us. May God bless you as you consider you participation in this year’s CSA campaign.

The seemingly simple and utilitarian action of bringing forth gifts and setting the table is actually a profound moment in the Mass. The spiritual meaning of this action is that the faithful are offering themselves along with the gifts in this Eucharistic celebration.

HOLY WEEK – Lent is almost over. It will end on Thursday of this week. That is when we begin the shortest and one of the most powerful liturgical  seasons (the Triduum). The liturgies celebrated throughout this week take a heck of a lot of planning and practice. Why? We only celebrate them once a year. As humans, we have a tendency to avoid things that are “different.” Therefore, there are many who have never experienced the wonders of this awesome week. 

Reconciliation

• Tuesday following the 7:00 a.m. Mass
• Wednesday from 6:00 –7:30 p.m.

Vicariate Reconciliation Services

• Monday, April 18 at 7:00 p.m.
  Shrine of the Little Flower
• Tuesday, April 19 at 7:00 p.m.
  St. Hugo of the Hills

Exposition of the Eucharist

• Each Wednesday of Lent beginning immediately after the 9:30 a.m. Mass.
• Benediction at 8:00 p.m.

Holy Thursday

• 7 p.m. Mass of the Lord’s Supper – Altar of Repose in the chapel until midnight

Good Friday

• 12 p.m. Stations of the Cross
• 1 p.m. Tre Ore Service
• 7 p.m. Tenebrae Service

Holy Saturday

• 11 a.m. Blessings of Easter Food
• 8 p.m. Easter Vigil

Easter Sunday Masses

(Please note there was an error in one of the bulletin listings; these are the correct times.)

• 7:45 a.m.
• 10:15 a.m.
• 12:45 p.m.