The Pathways Team is moving us forward. Over the last few weeks, we have acquired a name moving forward, St. Gregory the Great Family of Parishes. This is thanks to the hard work of the Church subgroup of the Pathways Team and your participation. The Leadership subgroup of the Pathways Team has met with all three parish pastoral Councils outlining the plan for a joint Family Pastoral Council to be effective in the summer of July 2023. Our Eucharist subgroup has now presented to the whole Pathways Team and myself the plan for moving forward with the daily, holyday and Saturday Mass schedules.

Effective Monday, April 17, 2023, the new daily Mass schedule will be:

Monday through Friday: Guardian Angels 7:30 am.

Monday, Wednesday, Friday: Immaculate Heart of Mary 12 noon

Tuesday, Thursday: St. John Fisher 12 noon

Saturday: Immaculate Heart of Mary 8:15 am

School Masses will remain the same at 8:15 am for GA and IHM. Effective with the 2023-2024 school year, School Masses will be GA at 8:15 am on Tuesdays and IHM at 8:15 am on Thursdays.

Effective Monday, April 17, 2023, the new holyday Mass schedule will be:

Vigil Mass 6:15 pm St. John Fisher

Day Mases: 7:30 Guardian Angels

                    Noon: Immaculate Heart of Mary

                    7:00 pm Guardian Angels

School Masses will remain the same for IHM at 8:15 am and GA at 9:00 am

Effective Monday, April 17, 2023, the Saturday Mass schedule for the family will be:

3:30 pm Guardian Angels Confessions: 2:00-3:00pm

5:00 pm Immaculate Heart of Mary Confessions: 3:30-4:30 pm

This in in conformity with the Archdiocesan guidelines which state:

• Fuller churches lead to more effective use of ministers (lay and ordained).
• There should always be at least 90 minutes between starting times of Masses.

If these guidelines are not being met, parishes are encouraged to look seriously at their weekend Mass schedules and make appropriate changes. The quality of Sunday Mass suffers when there are too many weekend Masses or smaller congregations. The liturgy is always enhanced by a church that is more full than empty, making it easier to have enough lay ministers to celebrate the liturgy well. Likewise, if priests are to be genuinely enthusiastic each time they preside, they normally should not be expected to regularly preside multiple times every weekend. According to Canon Law, a priest should normally celebrate one Mass per day. Bishops can permit priests to celebrate two Masses per day for a just cause, for example, on a Sunday or holyday of obligation, or on a weekday if there is a funeral. Bishops can also permit priests to celebrate three Masses per day on Sundays or holydays of obligation, if there is a genuine and serious pastoral need, for instance, if the priest is responsible for more than one parish.

Thank you for your prayers in this new endeavor.

ANNOUNCED AUGUST 13, 2023

...As our family of parishes continues to build ties that unify us, the Pathways Team has finalized the Mass schedules for Christmas, Easter Triduum, Thanksgiving and civic holidays.

This process has already asked us to step outside of our comfort zone by attending Mass at different churches, starting new traditions, and making new friends.  Frankly, it’s disrupted our status quo. And while disruption may seem like something to avoid, it also can bring us together, strengthen our relationships and allow our support of one another to grow.  We recognize that these changes will require long-standing traditions to evolve, but hope that as a part of our family, you can envision the ties that really do bring us together as a Catholic community.

CHRISTMAS SCHEDULE

Christmas Eve 

3:00                        GA

3:30                        IHM

4:00                        SJF

5:00                        GA

5:30                       IHM

7:00                        SJF

10:00                     GA

MIDN                    IHM

Christmas Day 

9:00                        SJF

10:00                     GA

11:30                     IHM

Triduum

There are changes to the Triduum schedule that the Pathways Team recognizes will be hard because of current traditions, however, change can bring invigoration.  RCIA for all of the parishes has been combined into one program for over a year now and as new members enter into the Church during this time, we hope to show our excitement as a unified St. Gregory the Great family. 

TRIDUUM SCHEDULE

Holy Thursday

7:00                        GA

Good Friday

NOON                      IHM

12:30           GA

1:30                          SJF                    

7:00                          SJF

Easter Vigil

9:00                        IHM

Thanksgiving

In the true spirit of gratitude, we will have one Mass on Thanksgiving for us all to worship together.  This Mass will be at 9:00am and rotate church location each year beginning with Guardian Angels in 2023.

Civil Holidays will be split among the three churches with one Mass for the family. Each Mass will be held at 9:00am.

• Memorial Day: Immaculate Heart of Mary
• Fourth of July: Guardian Angels
• Labor Day: St. John Fisher 

A special thanks to our Pathways Team for their hard work and difficult decisions over the past year. Continue to pray as we strive to form one unified St. Gregory the Great Parish.