CATHOLIC FAITH AT HOME RESOURCES

for our STELLA MARIS

Family of Parishes

including:

St. Thomas More, St. Bernadette,

St. Mary & St. Peter

January 7

THE EPIPHANY

JANUARY 7

In this Sunday’s Gospel,

the baby Jesus still sleeps in the manger,

wrapped in his swaddling clothes, with parents,

cattle, oxen, and shepherds his only audience.

But the Gospel’s focus is not on the Christ child nor the scene in the stable,

but on those who seek him, the wise men and Herod.

As the baby sleeps, the heavens have provided a sign,

for those who have eyes to see, that a history-making king has been born.

The magi have studied the signs, have seen them and recognized them,

and have managed to follow the star,

first to Herod in Jerusalem,

and before long to Christ himself in Bethlehem.

The good news is here: the newborn King is born.

He will shepherd us and bring us peace.

But the question is: how will we respond?

Will we, like the wise men, dedicate our lives to seeking him,

so that we know him when we find him?

Will we offer our gifts, our very selves to him, to do him homage?

Or will we find that we turned out to be more like Herod than we imagined?

This week’s readings are beautiful, and also discomforting.

Christ has come into the world and into our lives.

We should be changed, we should get moving, we should seek him out.

Are you?

Click the link below to view activities and facts about the Epiphany:

EPIPHANY FACTS AND ACTIVITES

Click the link below to watch Fr. Chris Alar explain the Epiphany:

EPIPHANY: WHAT WE NEVER LEARNED

NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS FOR 2024

The promises we make to ourselves on January 1st

are called “New Year’s Resolutions” for a reason.

They’re not “January Resolutions,”

because they’re meant to inspire lasting change.

And if you want to cultivate new prayer habits

and grow in faith in 2024,

you need a plan that’s doable instead of overwhelming.

Fr. Kauth will give you practical advice for building

a stronger prayer life and set you on a path

for success that continues long after January ends.

Click the link below to begin "I Firmly Resolve:"

I FIRMLY RESOLVE

RECOMMENDED

RESOLUTIONS

FOR

CATHOLICS

Looking for some inspiration as we approach 2024?

Katie Yoder asked America’s favorite Catholic leaders,

authors, and speakers for their ideas.

Click the link below to read their suggested resolutions for Catholics:

RESOLUTIONS FOR CATHOLICS

BIBLE BASICS

WITH JOHN BERGSMA

In this episode, Dr. Bergsma summarizes the beginning

of the calendar, connecting Ordinary Time

with the Baptism of Our Lord.

Dr. Bergsma navigates through the Epiphany of Our Lord,

the Second to Fourth Sundays in Ordinary Time,

and the Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children.

The importance of St. Paul’s Conversion on January 25th

is highlighted, emphasizing its impact on our continual conversion.

The episode wraps up with a Biblical Joke,

insightful answers to audience questions,

and a recap of liturgical living for January.

Click the link below to watch Dr. Bergsma's January Bible Basics:

BIBLE BASICS WITH JOHN BERGSMA

WHAT IS

CHRISTIFIDELES LAICI?

What does it actually mean to

be a lay person in the world?

How are we to serve God, His Church,

and His world?

How are we to reach holiness?

A lot of the answers we hear can be boiled down

to one of two overall takes:

1. The laity can just sit back and do the bare minimum.

Most of the work is for the bishops, priests, and religious.

- OR -

2. The laity needs more authority and power and we

really don’t need these bishops and priests telling us what to do.

For years, there has been extreme confusion

about what it means to be a lay person,

which is why Pope St. John Paul II wrote Christifideles Laici.

This is his Apostolic Exhortation on the Mission and

Vocation of the Lay Faithful and it has gone largely unread!

In it, he shows how the lay life is central to God’s plan for the world.

Click below to sign up for reflections on Christifideles Laici

so that you can discover what the Church actually teaches

about the mission and vocation of the lay faithful:

WEEKLY REFLECTIONS ON Christifideles Laici

NOVENA PRAYER

THE

SURRENDER

NOVENA

Begin the new year by surrendering to Jesus

all of your problems, stresses, worries, fears,

and anything else weighing you down.

The Surrender Novena is a popular devotion

that many Catholics participate in annually as a way

to begin anew with the coming of a brand new year.

STARTS: whenever you want

FEAST DAY: pray for nine days

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Click below to watch a video of the Surrender Novena.

THE SURRENDER NOVENA

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Click below to print a copy of the Surrender Novena:

PDF COPY OF SURRENDER NOVENA

SPECIAL PRAYERS

PRAYER FOR

THE

NEW YEAR!

A Prayer for the New Year is a prayer expressing gratitude

to God for His blessings and asking for His continued

guidance, grace, wisdom, strength, and courage

in the new year ahead, entrusting all our plans

and dreams for the coming year to His will and purposes.

† A Prayer for the New Year 2024 †

Dear Heavenly Father,

As we stand on the threshold of a new year,

we come before You with hearts full of gratitude

for the blessings of the past and hope for the future.

We lift our voices in prayer, seeking Your divine

presence and guidance in the days that lie ahead.

Lord Jesus, we thank You for the gift of life

and the countless blessings You have bestowed upon us.

As we enter into this new year, we humbly ask

for Your abundant grace to be upon us.

Grant us the wisdom to make righteous choices,

the strength to face challenges, and

the courage to follow Your path.

Heavenly Father, we pray for the precious gift of peace

in our lives and in the world around us.

May Your peace, which surpasses all understanding,

guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Let Your calming presence be felt in our

homes, communities, and nations.

Bring reconciliation where there is discord,

understanding where there is confusion,

and unity where there is division.

Lord, we also lift up our physical and mental well-being to You.

In the name of Jesus, we ask for Your healing touch

to rest upon those who are facing illnesses

or challenges to their health.

Strengthen their bodies, comfort their spirits,

and grant them the assurance of Your love and care.

May the year ahead be marked by a

renewed sense of vitality and health.

We entrust our plans, dreams, and aspirations

for the coming year into Your hands, O Lord.

May everything we do be guided by Your will

and directed towards Your glory.

Help us to be a source of love, compassion,

and encouragement to those around us.

In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.

For Peace in the Middle East

Click the link below for several prayers for Israel

and also a list of the names of the hostages!!

PRAYERS FOR ISRAEL AND HOSTAGES NAMES

NATIONAL EUCHARISTIC REVIVAL

NEW WEEKLY INFO

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NEW DETAILS NOW AVAILABLE

The wait is over! A daily schedule for the National

Eucharistic Congress is live on our website.

You can now explore what this incredible

experience will look like day by day.

Preview the options for impact sessions in the morning

that speak to your particular vocation and mission.

Then, get excited for the dynamic revival sessions,

when the whole assembly will gather in Lucas Oil Stadium

to experience the power and love of Jesus.

These sessions—and the soon-to-be-announced

afternoon breakout sessions—

will be led by the expansive list of faithful speakers

who will join us in Indianapolis this summer.

Scroll through the updated schedule to

see many powerful opportunities for

encounters with Christ through prayer and the sacraments.

Click the link below for EVENT schedules:

EVENT SCHEDULES

Click the link below for IMPACT Sessions:

IMPACT SESSIONS

Click the link below for the SPEAKERS list:

SPEAKERS LIST

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Mary, the First Tabernacle

Our dear Heart of the Revival friend and contributor Katie Bogner

recently published a children’s book,

All about Advent & Christmas:

Sharing the Seasons of Hope & Wonder with Children.

She has a beautiful article related to the book about

Mary as the First Tabernacle and a gorgeous coloring page

she developed with artist Shari Van Vranken, available for free.

What a perfect way to help the little ones in our lives

make a connection between Jesus in Mary’s womb

and in the Eucharist .

Click below to download this FREE coloring page:

FREE COLORING PAGE

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In the Streets

Another major moment in the Revival:

National Eucharistic Pilgrimage

one of the largest Eucharistic pilgrimages in history!

We will process with our Eucharistic Lord on 4 routes,

departing from our nation's north, south, east, and west edges.

These branches will meet in Indianapolis in July 2024

for the National Eucharistic Congress.

To see the four routes, and intercessor for each, click below:

NATIONAL EUCHARISTIC PILGRIMAGE ROUTES

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If you see a link on your device's screen that says,

"View entire message”,

please click that link to continue seeing the entire newsletter.

REGISTRATION INFO FOR THE CONGRESS

WILL YOU BE THERE, TOO?

You can join us!

July, 2024

for the 10th National Eucharistic Congress.

Directly experience the fruits of your intercession and

see its impact around the country.

Click the link below to REGISTER:

REGISTRATION FOR 10TH

NATIONAL EUCHARISTIC CONFERENCE

QUIZ! FOR THE WEEK

Who are the Fourteen Holy Helpers?

Scroll down to find the answer!

HUMOR

HIGHLIGHT

Great Homily

A woman approached the priest after the homily,

and thanked him for his discourse.

"I found it so helpful," she said.

The priest replied:

"I hope it will not prove as helpful

as the last homily you heard me preach."

"Why, what do you mean?" asked the astonished woman.

"Well," said the priest,

"that homily lasted you three months."

GOSPEL READING REFLECTION

For January 7, 2024

EPIPHANY

Mt. 2:1-12

GROWING IN HUMAN UNITY

These magi understood the Christ child to be the king of the Jews. Learned Jews testified that this messiah would be sent by God to shepherd and rule Israel.

As Peter would say to the upright and God-fearing pagan, Cornelius, “God shows no partiality, but in every nation any one who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him” (Acts 10:34-35). These pagan magi were acceptable to God because they feared God and did what was right. They were led by God’s power to Christ and brought gifts to him and his family—to Mary and Joseph—as Isaiah and the psalmist foresaw.

Even though we are not pagans but members of God’s family through Baptism, we too bring our gifts, whatever they are, and lay them at the feet of Christ and his family, the Church.

We do this out of gratitude, because of the good that God has done for us. And we bring our gifts in a spirit of service for anyone in need.
As the Psalmist foresaw, “he shall rescue the poor when he cries out, and the afflicted when he has no one to help him. He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor; the lives of the poor he shall save.
Christ gives to the world what the world needs but he gives it through human instruments. We are those instruments.

The Church is the sacrament of human unity. This means the Church is both a sign of human unity and the means by which this unity is realized. This unity is the community or communion or friendship or fellowship or family or even marriage among the human beings joined to Christ through his Church.

God’s will is to “gather all his children into the unity of the Church.” These children of God are first the Jews and then later the Gentiles. (CCC 60)

SCOTT HAHN'S

MASS READINGS REFLECTION

Click the link below to hear Scott Hahn reflect on

the EPIPHANY:

" NEWBORN KING"

REFLECTION ON THE EPIPHANY READING BY DR. HAHN

ANSWER TO QUIZ

Who are the Fourteen Holy Helpers?

The Fourteen Holy Helpers are fourteen saints

that are collectively invoked against various ailments and dangers.

Devotion to the Fourteen Holy Helpers began

in 14th-century Germany, which was suffering

under bubonic plague.

Called the “Nothelfer”—“Helpers in Need” —in German,

devotion to them eventually spread to other countries.

Here they are:

St. Acatius - 4th c. Greek captain in the Roman army. Some say he was crowned with thorns. Eventually beheaded. Invoked against headaches.
St. Barbara - 3rd c. Virgin-martyr killed by her own father. Lightning struck him as punishment. Invoked against lightning and fire.
St. Blaise - 4th c. Armenian martyr-bishop. Cured a child choking on a fishbone. Invoked against throat ailments.
St. Catherine of Alexandria - 4th c. Egyptian virgin-martyr famous for her learning. Invoked by lawyers and against diseases of the tongue.
St. Christopher - “Christ-bearer.” 3rd c. Martyr who carried the Christ Child across a stream. Invoked against travel dangers and sudden death.
St. Cyriacus - 4th c. Roman deacon-martyr. Cured Diocletian’s daughter, possibly of blindness. Invoked against eye diseases.
St. Denis - 3rd c. Missionary to France. Bishop of Paris. Martyred by beheading. According to legend, at his martyrdom he picked up his head and walked; hence he is often pictured with his head in his hands. Invoked against demonic attacks and headaches.
St. Erasmus (Elmo) - 4th c. Italian martyr-bishop. Tortured by having his intestines pulled out. Namesake of “St. Elmo’s Fire,” electric phenomenon that precedes a storm at sea. Invoked against stomach ailments (and a favorite of sailors).
St. Eustace - 2nd c. General in Trajan’s army. Saw a stag with a cross between its antlers. Converted with wife and kids. Burned alive in an oven. Invoked against fires.
St. George - 4th c. Soldier under Diocletian. Killed a dragon. Saved a princess. Died a martyr. Invoked against skin diseases and palsy.
St. Giles - 7th c. Athenian monk. Founded a Benedictine community in France. Told Charles Martel to go to confession. Invoked against crippling diseases.
St. Margaret of Antioch - 4th c. Virgin-martyr. Converted by her holy nurse. Shepherdess. Invoked by women in childbirth and against kidney diseases.
St. Pantaleon - 4th c. Doctor employed by the emperor. Nailed to a tree then beheaded. Blood, preserved in Ravello, Italy, liquefies every year. Invoked by doctors and midwives, and against lung diseases.
St. Vitus - 4th c. Sicilian. Converted by his Christian nurse and her husband. All three martyred together. Invoked against paralysis, nervous diseases, and epilepsy.