Hello, St. Clement parishioners & friends!
We have lots to share with you this week, so settle in and read on!
Please bring your Go Life Mobile Medical baby bottles back to church this weekend. Thanks to all those who have helped by handing out and receiving baby bottles!
Several priests will be available to hear confessions in English and/or Spanish this coming Tuesday 8 Apr starting at 6:30pm.
Our Outreach Ministry is seeking applicants for its Commodity Supplemental Food Program. This is separate from our regular food pantry. If you are 60 years of age or older and would like to apply for assistance, contact the parish office or Outreach staff to see if you meet the financial guidelines.
Do you own a local business and want to advertise in our weekly church bulletin? We offer a range of advertising spaces! Visit https://www.4lpi.com/ad-creator-studio for more details!
Calendar Notes:
- Fridays of Lent: Stations of the Cross in English at 6:30pm; Lenten meal at 7:00pm; Stations of the Cross in Spanish at 7:30pm
- this coming Tues 8 Apr at 6:30pm: parish penance service
- Sunday 13 Apr: Youth Group outing – dinner & Tenebrae at Holy Family Cathedral
- Tuesday 15 Apr: Please pray for the priests of our diocese as they gather for their Lenten Day of Prayer before the Chrism Mass at which they will renew their priestly promises.
- Sunday 27 Apr: last Sunday catechism classes + First Holy Communion retreat
- Sunday 4 May: First Holy Communion at 10:30 Mass in English and 1:30pm in Spanish
Holy Week
Holy Week is just around the corner! Next weekend we will celebrate Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion. At the 5pm and 8am Masses, we will begin the liturgy in the church. At 10:30 and noon Masses, we will begin in the Marian Center and process into the church. Palms will be blessed and distributed at all Masses that weekend.
When you come to Mass this weekend, the statues will be veiled. Why? Here’s an explanation.
The Use and Significance of Palms
Crafting with holy palms is a meaningful tradition rooted in the Christian faith, especially among Catholic and Orthodox communities. It is a way for the faithful to extend the spiritual significance of Palm Sunday into their daily lives.
1. Biblical Roots of Palm Sunday
Palm Sunday commemorates Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem, as recorded in the Gospels (Matthew 21:1-11, Mark 11:1-10, Luke 19:28-40, and John 12:12-19). The crowds laid palm branches before Him, shouting “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” The palms symbolize victory, peace, and Christ’s kingship.
2. The Tradition of Blessed Palms
After Palm Sunday Mass, the distributed palms are considered sacramentals, meaning they are blessed and should be treated with reverence. Many believers take them home, using them as reminders of their faith and Christ’s journey to the cross.
3. Crafting Sacred Symbols
Many families and church communities weave palm fronds into various religious symbols:
- crosses representing Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection
- crowns reminding us of the crown of thorns placed on Jesus’ head
These crafted symbols are often displayed in homes, placed near crucifixes, or kept in prayer spaces until the following Ash Wednesday when they are traditionally burned to make ashes for the next Lent.
Since blessed palms should not be discarded in the trash, they are usually returned to the church to be burned and used for Ash Wednesday the following year. This cycle symbolizes the connection between Christ’s triumph (Palm Sunday) and our repentance (Lent).
On Palm Sunday, hand-crafted palm crucifixes like these pictured will be on sale for $10 each. This is separate from the distribution of palms at the Masses.
Holy Week is the high point of the Church’s liturgical year, celebrating the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The week that unfolds from Palm Sunday will include liturgies that are celebrated only once a year. They include:
- Tenebrae · Sunday 13 Apr · 7:30pm · Holy Family Cathedral (St. Clement youth will go as a group and have dinner beforehand) · all welcome
- Chrism Mass · Tuesday 15 Apr · 5:30pm · Holy Family Cathedral · all welcome · At this Mass, the oils which will be used for sacraments including Baptism, Confirmation, Ordination, and Anointing of the Sick will be blessed by the bishop and distributed to the parishes. The priests of the diocese will also renew their oaths of fidelity to the bishop. Before the Chrism Mass, the priests will gather for a day of prayer.
- Mass of the Lord’s Supper · Thursday 17 Apr · 6pm in English · 7:30pm in Spanish · This article by Fr. Stephen Gadberry discusses the aspects of Holy Thursday’s liturgy as well as the Chrism Mass, which is traditionally offered on Holy Thursday but often moved to earlier in Holy Week for practical purposes. Mass does not end on Holy Thursday evening; rather we will form a procession to take the Blessed Sacrament to an altar of repose in the Marian Center, where the faithful may pray in adoration until midnight. There is a sign-up sheet for adorers to ensure coverage the entire time. If the sign-up sheet is full, come anyway!
- Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion · Friday 18 Apr
- Stations of the Cross in English 3pm · in Spanish 7:15 followed by the Good Friday liturgy
- Liturgy of The Lord’s Passion at 6pm in English
- An article about Good Friday’s liturgy (not Mass)
- Easter Vigil · Saturday 19 Apr · 8:30pm (no other liturgies offered this day)
- Easter Sunday · Sunday 20 Apr · Mass at 8am & 10:30am in English & 12:30pm in Spanish · The parish will host an Easter egg hunt for all children ages toddler through 11 after the 10:30 Mass. Bring your Easter baskets!
As a sort of “heads up,” incense will be in use at some of the liturgies of Holy Week.
weekly times for Confession and Eucharistic Adoration:
Sacrament of Reconciliation:
- Thursdays from 6:30 to 7:15pm
- Saturdays at 4pm
- by appointment
- *this coming* Tues 8 Apr at 6:30pm (multiple priests available)
Eucharistic Adoration:
- Thursdays from 6:30 to 7:30pm
- Saturdays from 8 to 9am
- briefly following each Mass on the first weekend of the month
Jubilee Year of Hope
- The next stop on the Jubilee Year of Hope pilgrimage is *tomorrow* Sat 5 Apr at 10am at St. John University Parish in Stillwater. The theme is Health Care Workers – Sick & Suffering.
- The diocesan website has a page with suggested Jubilee-related activities in keeping with the monthly themes as well as a page with additional Jubilee engagement activities
- A Mass on Saturday 26 Apr celebrating the 25th anniversary of Our Lady of Clear Creek Abbey has been added to the Jubilee pilgrim site schedule.
- Tenebrae on Palm Sunday evening at Holy Family Cathedral
- The pilgrimage of the seven churches on Holy Thursday: Participating parishes will host the altars of repose for quiet prayer and adoration with our Lord from 8pm to midnight - Holy Family Cathedral, Church of Saint Mary, Church of the Madalene, St. Philip Neri Univ. Parish, St. Francis Xavier, Christ the King, St. Pius X.
🕯️ Oremus pro invicem Let us pray together for these loved ones, all those who have no one to pray for them, and each other:
- Our Holy Father, Pope Francis
- Dave Paulson
- Amanda Dentist
- James S
- Geovanny
- Paul
- Vickey Nash
- all those preparing to receive sacraments soon and their catechists, sponsors, and families
- the sick and suffering of our parish & our loved ones and those who love and care for them
- the holy souls in purgatory, all those near death, and all who are grieving
- all those listed in our book of prayer intentions
We invite folks to send names (first only are fine!) to include on a list of people for whom to pray, such as the sick and suffering of our parish. If you’d like to add a name to the prayer list (yours or someone else’s *with their permission), please email that info to Bonnie at music@stcbixby.org. If anyone should be removed from the list above, please let Bonnie know.