News and Announcements
Fr. Jim is Back!
We are looking forward to having Fr. Jim O’Neal back with us this Sunday, June 9. He is back from his travels to Rome and Nova Scotia. As you know, having him with us is a great blessing and he is loved by many. I am grateful for his help, especially in hearing confessions. Welcome back Fr. Jim.
The Fascinating Reason why this Sunday is called the Second Sunday after Trinity
This Sunday, June 9 begins a season of the Church year that is commonly known as Trintytide or the Sundays after Trinity. In the Ordinariate, many of the Sundays are titled in such a way to remind us that time itself is oriented around events and teachings of Christ. These Sundays emphasize that your life and even the way that you keep time, is to be oriented around the one who is at the center of your life, God, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
Different parts of the Church refer to this season in different ways. You may have heard this season called Ordinary Time, by other Catholics, the title of this season often used outside of the Ordinariate. The Sundays of Ordinary Time function to drive home the importance of growth in holiness through the ordinary everyday occurrences of life. We are part of a rich church with many and varied traditions that enrich our faith.
Leased Building Update
Contractor: We are making progress on getting a contractor up to speed and have been having some good conversations and meetings. Thank you for your ongoing prayers.
Signage: I’m excited about the beautiful sign design that we working toward. It has the feel of an English country church and integrates a noble Tudor Arch. The design is not quite finished, but we are getting there.
Help Find Doors: If you have connections to a vintage style doors at a good price, please let me know (or perhaps you would like to donate some of these :-)? Ideally, they are beautiful and remind one of an old Church.
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Nave doors: set of double doors, six feet wide, up to seven and a half feet tall, all wood (no glass) to use as the entrance doors to the nave (where the people sit).
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Entrance door: standard size 36″ vintage looking exterior entrance door that has somewhat of an church feel to it. Could potentially have some glass
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Double doors with glass: these doors will be used for a storage area on the side of the nave. The upper part needs to be glass in order to let in the window light that comes into this space. 72″ x 80″ (standard size)
Finance Update — Thank you for your Open Hearted Generosity!
May Giving: $9,072.38 (general $5,622.93, capital $3,449.45). This does not include smaller funds.
Building Faith | New Home for St. James: Not too much has changed here. I’m waiting to update this until we have more accurate figures from the contractor. The interior designer that we are working with has recommended getting a professional to do the trim work, which is going to increase costs a good amount. Any help that you can provide is most appreciated.
See Picture and Learn More about the Building Project
Reporting Abuse
If you have a reasonable suspicion of abuse, neglect or maltreatment of a child, youth or at-risk adult, report it immediately to the Department of Health and Human Services 1-800-96ABUSE. If the alleged abuse involved Ordinariate personnel, (priests, deacons, employees, teachers or volunteers), after contacting the authorities, please contact the Ordinariate Safe Environment Coordinator, Lynn Schmidt: 907-317-6257, SafeEnvironment@ordinariate.net.
Upcoming Events
June 15 Workday: Join the fun. Help Prep the Building – RSVP for Food
On Saturday, June 15 from 8:30 AM – 12:30 PM prepare for some good honest work, connection, laughter, and BBQ! We will be removing a few walls and doing some light concrete patching at the leased building.
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Tools Needed: saws (circular, reciprocating, oscillating), crowbars, extension cords, stepstool, concrete trowels
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Personal Items: gloves, ear and eye protection, water bottle, a chair, good shoes,
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Don’t come without this: readiness to sweat, get dirty and grow in holiness following the example of Jesus the Carpenter :-).
No tools? No worries. We have you covered. Just come and join us. Please RSVP by this Sunday, June 9: RSVP@stjamescc.org Thanks.
June 24 Holy Burning for Old Bibles and Blessed Items
Join us for an age old tradition of disposing of your blessed items through Sacred Fire on the Feast of St. John the Baptist. On Monday, June 24th at 7:00 pm, I will be presiding over the observance of the Nativity of John the Baptist, which includes a Mass and a traditional ritual involving the disposal of unwanted blessed items through a sacred fire.
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Items to Bring: unwanted religious articles such as Bibles, broken rosaries, holy cards, statues, and similar items. Items suitable for burning will be placed into a consecrated fire, while those unsuitable for burning will be interred in consecrated ground on the church premises.
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No dropping off Items: We are not currently accepting holy objects to be disposed ahead of time. Instead, please bring them with you to the event.
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Rescue Some Nice Stuff: Come early and check out the holy items that are being disposed. You might even find at item or two to rescue or repair to use for your own devotions. I rescued a perfectly beautiful old cross as well as medals the like
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Cold Treats: What could be better than concluding a festive and most likely warm night with a popsicle or ice-cream! St. James will be suppling cool refreshments!
Location: Assumption Catholic Church | 2403 Atlantic Blvd, Jacksonville, FL
Upcoming Learning Opportunities Designed for Non Catholics
I am working with our evangelization guild to bring together four upcoming workshop opportunities that are constructed specifically to help our non Catholic brothers and sisters to better understand the Catholic faith. I’m sharing these with you now, so that you can begin assembling a list of possible people to invite to these two hour, interactive experiences (or maybe you would like to come and check them out yourself). We did something similar last summer that were well attended. The workshops will be held at the Salem Centre. There will be food, so an RSVP is required. More details coming soon. Please let me know if you would like to be on the invite list.
Feast of St. James Parish Dinner | Saturday, July 27, 2024 at 4:30PM
The Feast of Saint James, also known as Saint James’ Day, is a commemoration of our patron saint, James the Greater. We’ll be celebrating the patronage of St. James on July 27th with a parish wide dinner. Don’t miss an evening of fun and camaraderie with your fellow parishioners. Seating is limited. Dinner will be at St. Mary’s Seafood at 8129 Point Meadows Way, Jacksonville, FL. See Brian at the Hospitality table after Mass for ticket and event information.
Other Upcoming Dates
Check out More Upcoming Events at the Website
From the Preacher
Below are the latest homilies that I delivered at St. James. Check them out and share them with a friend. Search “Fr. Mayer’s Preaching & Teaching” wherever you get your podcasts and subscribe.
Many Christians think of their relationship with God to be relegated to the spiritual realm alone, but imagine what it would be like to be able to touch God! This is exactly the gift that Jesus gave to his Church through the Eucharist. Learn about the fascinating history behind the bread and the wine at Mass being transformed at Mass into the body and blood of Christ and why the Lord wanted us to experience him in this way. Learn also how Christians are called to respond to this gift.
There is a Christian teaching that is the source of all other Christian beliefs, the foundation upon which everything else is built. You might think that this is love or service or belief or Jesus’ sacrifice. The truth is that all of these point to a deeper and little understood truth among many Christians. Learn what this doctrine is and why it has and continues to transform the world into a better place.
Listen to this and my other homilies at StJamesCC.org/Homilies or by searching “Fr. Mayer’s Preaching & Teaching” wherever you get your podcasts
