As Catholics, we hold Mary, the Blessed Mother, in very high regard and we are all called to a particular devotion to her. One of the most important devotions to Mary is the Rosary. It provides a way for us to walk through the life and miracles of Jesus' life, honoring Mary for her devotion to God and her faithful motherhood of Christ.

This week's topic can be, at times, a sensitive subject for people on both sides of the equation; however, please bear with me to the conclusion so that we all might gain a little perspective. Children, particularly infants and toddlers, can often be disruptive at Mass by nature of their youth. With five children myself, I have had many experiences over the years, from people asking me not to bring my little ones to Mass to people encouraging me along, and even complete strangers offering to hold my babies to give me a hand.

The Church celebrates the feast of the Guardian Angels in October. This is a good opportunity to not only to acknowledge them, but also to explain why and how they have a very special mission to help each of us to get to Heaven. Then, hopefully with this deeper understanding, each of us might be encouraged to deepen our relationship with our own personal guardian angel, who truly is a dear friend given to each of us by God.

“The whole concern of doctrine and its teaching must be directed to the love that never ends. Whether something is proposed for belief, for hope, or for action, the love of our Lord must always be made accessible, so that anyone can see that all the works of perfect Christian virtue spring from love and have no other objective than to arrive at love.”
- Catechism of the Catholic Church, 25

There is no denying that volunteering for Parish ministry is a great help to the priests and the Parish staff. What most people don’t realize though is that volunteering for Parish ministry is also a great help to your own spiritual life, too!

Your financial contributions to the Parish not only support the Parish but they also help to spiritually feed you.

In last week’s article, I mentioned the cyclical relationship between a Parish and the faithful – our registered Parishioners. The Parish feeds into the faithful and the faithful give back to the Parish and, in turn, are better prepared to fulfill their call to sanctify the world.

In what ways can the faithful contribute to their parish to help create a vibrant and thriving community that effectively spreads the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Now that we have looked at the history of parishes and what a parish should provide to the faithful, it’s time to look at how the faithful are asked to give back.

What should a Catholic parish provide to its people?

Celebrating the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and having the other sacraments of the Church readily available to the people is a priority at Prince of Peace, but did you know that there is so much more we offer our parishioners?

What is a Catholic Parish?

Before going into how to live a Christ-filled life in a Catholic parish, let’s look at what a Catholic parish is and why the Church created parishes. The history of parishes dates to Popes Zosimus (417-418) and Leo the Great (440-461). At that time, parishes were given specific geographical areas by the bishop to ensure the pastoral care of the faithful.