Regrettably, the email and texting scams continue.  I can’t count how many times this week I have been informed of this.  Sadly these online scams do not represent a hack of my phone, my email account or the parish census.  All of those avenues have been checked and re-checked.  This is a matter of online criminals reading church bulletins and websites, gathering contact information wherever they can, and then pretending to be me to entice you into spending money. 

Every pastor I have spoken to experiences the same thing.  I contacted the police and I was told that the perpetrators are likely overseas and outside of U.S. jurisdiction preventing them from taking action.

I can only repeat – if it looks fake or fishy, it is.  Don’t open the message or respond to it, and under no circumstances spend the money.  Credit card companies will not reimburse you.  

I have one email address:  frtim@queenschurch.com.  Unless the message you receive comes from that address, delete it, report as junk, spam or phishing. 

I usually do not use my cell phone to contact parish members so  I would likely not text you or call you from any number but the parish office.  I am sorry I can’t do more to prevent this.  Hopefully if everyone stops opening the messages and writing to those who send them, they will lose interest and stop. 

Since I am not being hacked, just impersonated, there really is little to gain by letting me know either.  Just disregard it and pray for those who think this is a worthy endeavor.   

Friday January 30, 5pm – 9:30pm (includes dinner)

Saturday January 31, 8:00am – 4:45pm (includes breakfast and lunch)

The cost is $15 per participant.  This includes a book and your meals.  The church is covering most of the costs associated with this.

This retreat is designed to help people at any stage of their spiritual journey to go deeper into their faith and grow closer to Jesus Christ. It provides an opportunity to for people to recommit themselves to Christ. There are several short talks, which lay out the salvation story (called the “kerygma”), followed by small group discussion at tables with 6-8 people.  Relevant passages of scripture and the Catechism of the Catholic Church are also discussed.

The second half of the retreat is designed to help people learn to pray better, not just by academic talks “about” prayer, but by actually praying.  There are practical exercises (including four prayer times in addition to Mass) and helps to begin and to continue a personal prayer life.

This retreat format of talks followed by small group work/discussion is also helped by a workbook which will be provided to all participants.  Each participant will be encouraged to join a discipleship group following the end of the retreat.  Please sign up soon so we can get a head count for meals and order the correct number of books.

THE WEEK OF PRAYER FOR CHRISTIAN UNITY begins this weekend.  The urgent need for unity among Christians is greater than ever.  While Jesus founded only one Church when he gave the keys of the kingdom to Peter our first pope, the Center for the Study of Global Christianity suggests that there are currently more than 45,000 different denominations of Christianity on twenty-first century planet earth.  All Catholics are Christians.  Not all Christians are Catholic.  There are signs of hope.  The number of Christians converting and coming home to the Catholic Church is on a historic rise, especially in America.  The number of Catholics attending Mass is on the rise once more. 

Some of our separated brethren in other denominations are becoming disillusioned with the leadership or lack thereof in their congregations, some of whom are often unable to agree on issues regarding gender, marriage, sexuality, life issues and abortion.  The Catholic Church endures because of her embrace of the Natural Law and Absolute Truth, meaning the truth is not whatever we make of it, but what God has revealed to us through Creation and Christ, and knowable by us with the use of faith and reason.  Join me in praying that those who have a deep longing for truth, beauty and goodness and who feel bewildered in their current church might come home to the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church founded by Jesus. 

WORD OF GOD SUNDAY is next weekend January 24 – 25.  This feast was instituted by the late Holy Father Pope Francis seven years ago to draw attention to the profound link between the Catholic faith and Sacred Scripture.  The Mass is the highest form of prayer in the Catholic Church and the Mass is a biblical prayer.  So many of the hymns, prayers and responses are taken directly from the pages of the Bible.  Let’s all pay more attention at Mass and hear God speaking directly to each of us, collectively and individually.  A more fervent and fruitful praying of the Mass can only help to increase our desire to immerse ourselves in the Word of God and the mysteries of our faith. 

THURSDAY JANUARY 22ND marks the 53rd anniversary of legalized abortion in the United States with the passing of Roe v Wade in the U.S. Supreme Court.  Even though Roe was overturned a few years ago, it was too late to save the nearly 70,000,000 unborn American children who lost their lives before they even really began.  When Proposal 3 passed in 2022, abortion across all nine months of pregnancy with no restriction became enshrined in the Michigan State Constitution.  Michigan now ranks among the most permissive states in all of the country when it comes to abortion access.  Our work is not finished.  The fight has really only just begun.

Thursday the 22nd is set aside by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops as a Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children.  You could participate by attending daily Mass, spending some time praying in the church or adoration chapel, offer a rosary, or a fast from food or technology for part of the day.  Jesus, protect and save the unborn. 

MILESTONE MARRIAGES will be blessed at the 11am Mass on Sunday February 15th, the weekend of Valentine’s Day.  Invitations were sent to the couples with milestone anniversaries that we have been tracking through our census.  Our honored guests are treated to a catered luncheon after the Mass.  Please contact the office if your anniversary year meets the criteria and you would like to be our guest.  

THE WARMING PROJECT sponsored by the Social Justice Commission is coming up January 31 – February 1st.  Please gather new and gently used winter wear for those struggling to keep warm during the coldest days of Michigan winter.  This is a great time of year to find clearance sales on such items in the stores.  There will be large bins at each church entrance to receive your donation.

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teaching” (Heb 13:8-9).

Fr. Tim MacDonald

Pastor