August 31, 2025
Being active within a parish community does not only mean attending and serving at Holy Mass. There are other ministries where one can assist or participate. Prayer groups within the parish include the Rosary Makers, Legion of Mary, Rosary Leaders, Prayer Chain, adorers at Adoration. The parish office can assist with getting more information and contacting leaders of each group. The Religious Education office looks for individuals to lead a class, teach a class, and assist the leaders in each class. Perhaps a once-a-week ministry is not for you. There are ministries which meet when needed and ministries that may only need your participation once or twice a year. Some examples of these ministries are: the Bereavement Committee who sets up the food for funeral receptions; preparing a meal one Saturday evening for the Life Teen, baking a cake for the cake walk at the Fiestas; being a Mayordomo assisting with fundraising and upkeep of the church; to name a few. Watch the bulletin. Call the office. Talk to people involved in ministry. Being an active member of a parish means taking an active role in it. Just as the lay person in the pew is a liturgical minister, so the person who attends parish functions is a lay minister. Pray about it and then find your ministry. Remember we give of our time, talent, treasure… Have a good week in the Lord, Gay Snell
August 24 2025
The last, but certainly not the least, liturgical ministry is the Music Ministry. The function of the Music Ministry is to lead the faithful in song. They lead us in singing the parts of Holy Mass. They lead us in the opening and closing hymns, as well as the hymns at the Offertory and during distribution of Holy Communion. The Music Ministry is open to anyone and requires weekly attendance at practices. Each Mass at San Clemente has its own choir, each with a choir director. Directors are given the option to sing the parts of Holy Mass in Latin, Spanish, or English. They are also given direction on which hymns to choose each week. In addition to a director and members, a choir may also have an accompanist (guitar, piano, or organ) and a Cantor. The documents of the Second Vatican Council call for and give direction to singing at Holy Mass and encourage the faithful to participate. Cantors are specially trained to chant the Responsorial Psalm during the Liturgy of the Word. They are included in the Opening Procession with the Lectors. Cantors normally lead the Responsorial Psalm from the Ambo and thus need to be in a State of Grace to receive Holy Communion. Choir members are lay persons desiring to lead the faithful in song, thus giving back to God the gift He has given. If you are called to this ministry, contact the choir director or call the parish office. Gay Snell
August 17 2025
The ministries of Altar Server, Lector, and Extra-ordinary Minister of Holy Communion serve at liturgy primarily in the Sanctuary. The Altar Servers serve mainly at the Altar. The Extra-ministers of Holy Communion also serve at the Altar since they handle the Blessed Sacrament. Lectors serve in the Sanctuary, but their ministry takes place at the Ambo. There are other liturgical ministries outside of the Sanctuary. The individuals who meet the faithful as they enter the church are liturgical ministers as they too assist with liturgy. They are part of the ministry of Ushers/Greeters—those who welcome us into the church, open doors for us, assist with processions, ring the church bells, put out the bulletin, and straighten the church after each liturgical celebration. This ministry is open to all those willing to serve. It is common for there to be one head usher at each celebration to assure there are enough ministers to assist. This person may also ring the bell before Holy Mass or make sure someone is assigned to ring the bell. Some training is required, such as how and when to ring the bell and how to assist those who may need help. They assist those with walkers or wheel chairs. They make sure Holy Communion is taken to anyone who is unable to walk forward to receive. They open the doors for those coming in as well as for the ministers processing out of the church after Holy Mass. They keep an eye out for anyone who may become ill or need assistance. After Holy Mass they check the church for trash and put up all the kneelers. They make sure all outside doors are closed as Holy Mass begins and after all have left. If you are called to this ministry, check with the head usher at the Mass you attend or call the parish office. Gay Snell
August 10 2025
Friday, August 15 is the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This feast commemorates Our Blessed Mother being taken into heaven, body and soul, at the end of her life on earth. It is a truth of faith proclaimed infallibly as dogma by Pope Pius XII in 1950. By the 5th century, a feast called the Memorial of Mary was already being celebrated on August 15 in the Eastern Church. Early Christians believed Mother Mary “fell asleep” at death and rested until she awoke in heaven. Rome adopted the feast in the 7th century and its title became Assumption. It was also known as the Feast of the Dormition. In the West, from the very beginning, it focused on Mother Mary’s bodily assumption into heaven. In Europe kings dedicated their crowns to her, pageants and parades were held, gifts were brought, plays were performed, hymns were sung…all in praise to the Blessed Virgin Mary. It is through the Blessed Virgin Mary’s Assumption that we see, as Jesus promised, that we, as humans, have a place in heaven. This is one of many feasts in honor of Our Blessed Mother. She was chosen by Jesus to be his Mother and given to us as our Mother as he was dying on the Cross. She was protected from Original Sin and she gave her “yes” at the Annunciation. Pray for us now and at the hour of our death… Gay Snell
August 3 2025
The Eucharist is the Source and Summit of the Christian Life. “The altar, around which the Church is gathered in the celebration of the Eucharist, represents the two aspects of the same mystery: the altar of the sacrifice and the table of the Lord. This is all the more so since the Christian altar is the symbol of Christ himself, present in the midst of the assembly of his faithful, both as the victim offered for our reconciliation and as food from heaven who is giving himself to us.” (CCC 1383) In the Liturgy of the Eucharist, the bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Jesus. We continue to do as Jesus commanded at the Last Supper and receive His Sacred Body and Precious Blood. The ordained (the ordinaries) are given the privilege of distributing Holy Communion to the faithful. The United States has an indult in place that allows lay ministers to assist with distribution. They are called Extra-ordinary Ministers of Holy Communion. As with the Altar Servers and Lectors, these ministers are trained—in how to safely and reverently distribute the Body and Blood of Jesus, how to purify and cleanse the vessels, how to set up the trays. And again, because their ministry is not only in the Sanctuary but also because they are handling the Blessed Sacrament, they must be in a state of grace. “The Lord addresses an invitation to us, urging us to receive him in the sacrament of the Eucharist: ‘Truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.’” (CCC 1384, John 6:53) At each Sunday Mass, two ministers are designated as captains. They set up the trays with the vessels before Holy Mass, take the trays with the vessels back to the sacristy after Holy Communion, cleanse and purify the vessels, and then put them away to be ready for the next Mass. Gay Snell
