WORSHIP
Our Customs:
Our Worship is Traditional, Scriptural, and Sacramental. The expression of the Catholic faith with Anglican Patrimony has been approved and promulgated by the Holy See. We celebrate the Tridentine Mass in English with adaptations from the English rite, which demonstrates our Catholic Faith, Anglican Patrimony, and Evangelical Witness. If you are new to liturgical worship you may find some of the customs in our services unfamiliar. You will also find some variation of customs from parish to parish. It would be our pleasure to explain to you the symbolism of our worship. One general rule of thumb for our worship is that we stand to praise God, sit for listening to instruction, and kneel to pray.
What to Expect:
Expect to be greeted with a warm welcome. Service Bulletins and Hymnals will be available to participate in the worship. Come as you are, and together we are strengthened in faith to serve God, our Families, and our Community.
Holy Eucharist:
The center of our worship is the Holy Eucharist, also called Holy Communion, the Mass, the Lord's Supper, and the Divine Liturgy. It is the service specifically commanded by our Lord Jesus Christ in the New Testament. The Eucharist joins our offering of worship to Christ's offering of Himself upon the cross for our redemption. As He promised, (Matthew 26; Mark 14; Luke 22; John 6; I Corinthians 11), Jesus is truly present under the outward species of the consecrated Bread and Wine, to infuse our lives with the spiritual strength of His life.
Baptism:
Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life. Our Lord has said, "I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. (John 3:5)." The outward and visible sign or form in Baptism is Water; wherein the person is baptized, In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. The inward and spiritual grace in Baptism is a death unto our sins, and a new birth unto righteousness; whereby we are made the children of Christ's grace. Baptism is a Sacrament of initiation that is the consecration of the child (or person) into the Catholic and apostolic faith as a member of the Body of Christ and the life-long commitment to be His disciple. Baptism can be arranged for infants, children, and adults.
Confirmation:
The Sacrament of Confirmation, also referred to as the Laying-on-of-Hands, is necessary for the completion of baptismal grace. In the early days of the Church, the sacrament of Confirmation was conferred immediately after Baptism. However, over the centuries, Confirmation has become a right of passage for those baptised as young children or adult converts to affirm the promises and vows of their Baptism. The gift of the Holy Ghost is the Christian's strength to continue in the faith and life as a disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ. The fruits of the Holy Ghost are "love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance" which holy virtues are instilled within those who are faithfully confirmed. Children who were baptised as infants prepare to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation at an appropriate age of discretion, in the course of faith formation either in parochial school, or a class with their priest or deacon. Similarly, adults prepare with their priest or deacon. The Bishop is entrusted to administer this sacrament.
Penance:
The Sacrament of Penance, also referred to as Confession or Reconcilation, is the humbly approach to God to confess one's sin and seek His mercy and absoultion, and at the same time, be reconciled with the Church which they have wounded by their sins and which by charity, by example, and by prayer labors for their conversion. Our Lord instituted the Sacrament of Penance when "He breathed on them [His Apostles], and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained (John 20:22-23)." We are futher instructed by Apostolic teaching that we are to faithfully confess our sins so to be healed from our unrightesness (James 5:16; 1 John 1:9). Confessions can be heard before Sunday Mass, or by appointment by giving direct notice to our priests.
Anointing of the Sick:
The Sacrament of Unction, commonly referred to as Anointing of the Sick, is best explained by St James who wrote, "Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him (James 5:14-15)." Our Lord healed those who were physically sick and spiritually vexed, and gave this sacred power and authority to His Apostles to do so also (Matthew 10:8). The graces of Unction are strength, peace, and courage to endure, in a Christian manner, the sufferings of illness or old age; the forgiveness of sins, if the sick person was not able to obtain it through the sacrament of penance; the restoration of health, if it be God's will; and the preparation for passing over to eternal life. Please give direct notice to our priest if you are in need of a hospital or home visit due to illness.
Matrimony:
The Sacrament of Matrimony is an "honourable estate, instituted of God, signifying unto us the mystical union that is between Christ and his Church: which holy estate Christ adorned and beautified with his presence and first miracle that He wrought in Cana of Galilee, and is commended of Saint Paul to be honourable among all men." Matrimony is not merely an expression of human love, but is the union of man and woman as one with Christ in His divine love.
Holy Orders:
The Sacrament of Holy Orders is the vocation of men, called of God, to give their life to Christ and His Church. Those ordained are conformed within their soul to the identity of Christ so to serve the mission of the Church. Our Lord entrusted the mission of the Church to His Apostles, through the Imposition of Hands, so that His apostolic ministry shall continue until the end of time. Holy Orders is a threefold ministry: episcopate, priesthood, and diaconate. Each order is entrusted to particular duties to serve God and His people. The Bishop is entrusted to administer this sacrament.