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Ministries
Eucharistic Ministers
The Second Vatican Council established the Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist to assist priests in the distributing the Precious Body and Blood of Christ to the faithful during the Mass and to reach out to those who are ill, hospitalized or homebound. What a great honor it is for a catholic to have the opportunity to share the Blessed Sacrament with fellow Catholics. Eucharistic Ministers perform the Corporal Works of Mercy by praying for, and with those to whom they minister.
LectorsProclaiming the Word of God is central to the promotion of Catholic faith. These men and women take on the Ministry of Lector as persons of good faith, eager to serve their fellow Catholics by proclaiming the Scripture readings both at daily and Sunday Masses and on other special occasions and Holy Days. The person who is performing this ministry should be able to speak clearly and distinctly and should be comfortable speaking from the lectern.
Altar ServersAltar Servers are young men and women as well as adults who assist the priest at Mass and during prayer services, baptisms, and other times when the community gathers in prayer.
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Greeters
Greeters welcome people as we gather to worship. Greeters assist people who may have special needs, invite people to present the offertory gifts, and provide general information in response to parishioner questions.
Ushers
These men and women take up the collection, distribute bulletins at the end of Mass, and generally help to maintain the good order of our Liturgies.
Bereavement
This ministry provides a valuable service to families and friends during a difficult time of dealing with the death of a loved one. Here at St. Michael’s members of our ministry will attend the funeral mass, have a Mass in their honor, send cards throughout the first year, and invite family members to attend and light a candle once a year, when we hold a Mass for the faithfully departed.
Music Ministry
Music has been an integral part of the celebration of the Eucharist since the early days of the church. Talents are welcome in all areas of music ministry including instruments and vocals.
Cantor Ministry
Leaders of song who are confident vocalists looking to share God’s Word through song. They also have a strong understanding of the liturgical celebrations.
Faith Formation
Faith Formation or “catechesis” is not just for children or teens. As an esteemed term in Christian tradition its purpose is to make a person’s “faith become living, conscious and active, through the light of instruction.” It is a lifelong process for the individual and a constant and concerted pastoral activity of the Christian community. At St. Michael’s we offer weekly instructional programs for our children to receive First Eucharist. We also have Adult Faith Formation Programs as well.
Liturgical Ministry
The Committee is concerned with the liturgical, sacramental, and devotional life of the parish. The Committee is responsible to the pastor to:
- plan the liturgical and sacramental life of the parish; implement liturgical planning by the committee and its ad hoc subcommittees
- assess and evaluate all programs sponsored by the Liturgy Committee
- ensure the recruitment, training, formation, coordination, communication with, and scheduling of lay liturgical ministers
- encourage the participation of parish youth and young adults in liturgical celebrations and ministries
- develop and implement parish-level liturgical policy and implement diocesan and national liturgical policies.
Evangelizaton Ministry
The Evangelizaton Ministry works to promote evangelization within the parish and between parishes. The group plans events that invite people to become a part of the spiritual community of the parish. Evangelization has different implications depending on our relationship to Jesus and his Church. For those of us who practice and live our Catholic faith, it is a call to ongoing growth and renewed conversion. For those who have accepted it only in name, it is a call to re-evangelization. For those who have stopped practicing their faith, it is a call to reconciliation. For children, it is a call to be formed into disciples through the family's faith life and religious education. For other Christians, it is an invitation to know the fullness of our message. For those who have no faith, it is a call to conversion to know Christ Jesus and thus experience a change to new life with Christ and his Church.
Media Ministry
The Media Ministry brings the voice of the parish to its geographical area through social media networks. The objective is to interact and build community, raise awareness of the parish and its activities, and provide content to inspire, educate, and evangelize. This aims to result in parish growth and a renewed image of the Church. A social media minister would be responsible for creating video, voice, visual and text content, selecting third party content to redistribute, and responding to comments and messages. This ministry includes the parish web site and social media channels, like the YouTube channel, Facebook page, bulletin, announcements, and the outside electronic sign.
Organizations and Committees
Parish Council
The council’s primary gift is practical wisdom. The council is made up of parishioners who have a vested interest in the life and development of the parish and want to help the Pastor in this regard.
Finance Committee
Canon Law requires that each parish have a finance committee. The finance committee acts in an advisory capacity to assist the Pastor in the administration of the parish goods.
Rosary Society
Members of the Rosary Society strive to exemplify a Christian way of life under the direction of their parish priest, and dedicate their time and resources to carrying out their mission of word, worship and service to their parish community. St. Michael’s Rosary society is responsible for many charitable events and the cleaning and decorating of the church altar. They also are responsible for St. Michael’s Bingo and many other fundraisers for the church throughout the year.
Activities Committee
The function of the Activities Committee include events that do not occur routinely and that require advanced planning. Some examples include fund raising events, like festivals, pierogi sales, dances, spaghetti dinner, picnics, social gatherings, community outreach programs, like coat, clothing, eye glasses, or electronics collection for the less fortunate members of our community. Once the program activities have been identified, it is the responsibility of the Activities Committee members to bring them to successful fruition, by reserving the date for the activity, obtaining required permits, advertise, and purchase all necessary materials, etc.