If you’re struggling to find the joy of the resurrection and the hope of heaven this Easter, I want to provide some materials that might help you to be joyful and hopeful about where we’re at and where the Lord is leading us. First, look above you. In this picture you see the Queens converts from the Easter Vigil, our largest class in years. There is a national increase in interest in Catholicism. It is happening also in places like France and Ireland where adult conversions are way up compared to year’s past. Read more about the trends here:

Now, let’s watch the story of one convert in particular, a young man from South Africa who freely admits he hated the Catholic Church with a passion, before he ended up joining it with a longing for the history and mystery of Catholic theology, liturgy and the sacraments:

In this season of conversion and First Communions, the following is a 30 minute audio podcast with Fr. Mike Schmitz explaining the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist based on the teachings of the 6th chapter of John’s Gospel. If you have ever wavered or wondered about whether Jesus is really and truly present in Holy Communion, to need to listen to this to the end and share it with those Catholics who are falling and fallen away so they can find their way back to the flock and to the most blessed sacrament of the altar. I think Fr. Mike’s best point is his last one – for 1500 years no one questioned the Real Presence. Everyone believed the same thing. It wasn’t until the Protestant Reformation that this was called into question and we need to prevent that questioning from outside the Church to corrupt what we believe here in the one true Church founded by Jesus himself.

Lastly, how do you feel about the Shroud of Turin being the burial cloth of Christ? It seems like every other week there is a story in the news trying to make us believe or disbelieve its origin. In this YouTube, heavy on technical detail, we see where atheists and non-believers who practice science rather than religion, had no choice but to believe the authenticity of the shroud was proven:

Today, Friday April 10th, is the 75th birthday of the 5th Bishop of the Diocese of Lansing, Most Reverend Earl A. Boyea, Jr. A Bishop since 2002, our Bishop since April 2008, things are about to change. According to the Code of Canon Law #401, upon turning 75 a Bishop must sign and send a letter to the Holy Father offering his resignation (read: retirement). Here is how the Bishop describes in his own words what happens next:

Well, here it is, April 10 in the year 2026, and that means that 75 years ago my parents had their first-born and named him Earl. Nine more were to follow over the years. What is unique about this year is that it calls from me, according to Canon Law, a letter to the Holy Father tendering my resignation from my ministry as the Bishop of the Diocese of Lansing. Perhaps you will be interested in what then happens.

As soon as the letter is received by the papal nuncio (the Holy Father’s representative in the United States), he begins the process of inquiring among various bishops and others about who might be a good successor to this diocese. Usually, each bishop is asked to give three possible candidates and provide appropriate background information about them. After a good number of letters are received and appropriate vetting has been done of various candidates, the nuncio will then submit three names to the Dicastery for Bishops in Rome, where another screening will take place. All of this is accomplished with a high degree of confidentiality.

Then on a given day, usually a Saturday, the cardinal in charge of the dicastery will go to the Holy Father with three names (called a terna) and recommendations. Normally, the Holy Father would accept the first candidate and name him the new Bishop of Lansing. Once that is done, the news is passed to the nuncio, who then contacts the candidate to obtain his acceptance of this new ministry.

We pray in thanksgiving for Bishop Boyea on his birthday and his pending retirement, and we pray the Holy Spirit to find a Good Shepherd for us as his successor.

We will start introducing this prayer at Mass this weekend:

Heavenly Father, Eternal Shepherd, You govern your flock with unfailing care.  We thank you for the leadership of Bishop Boyea and the shepherds who came before. 

We pray now for the future 6th Bishop of the Diocese of Lansing.  Prepare his heart to be a true shepherd after the heart of Your Son, Jesus.  Grant him the wisdom of the Holy Spirit to guide us, the fortitude to lead us in faith, and the compassion to minister to all, clergy and laity alike.

May he be a shepherd who loves his people, a servant who fosters unity and holiness, and a leader committed to mission and evangelization.  Give him strength in his work, that he may lead the Diocese of Lansing closer to you, through the Eucharist and the service of others. 

We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

All are welcome to the Regional Divine Mercy Observance at the St. Joseph Oratory on Sunday April 12. Confessions begin at 2. The program begins at 2:30. The Chaplet will be sung during the great hour ofmercy at 3pm. Please remember – for those seeking the indulgence – any confession you make for 20 days before or after Divine Mercy Sunday counts towards fulfilling the obligations to receive the remission of the temporal punishment due to sin.

Today, Queens installed and introduced AuraCast in the Church, new state-of-the art technology for the heaing impaired. For years, we have been relying on the T-Coil system which depends on wires buried in the floor to pick up our audio signal and broadcast it into some hearing aids. For those who rely on this to hear the Mass, the best T-Coil coverage is by the baptismal font.

AuraCast is for hearing aids equipped with bluetooth technology. We had a parishioner successfully test it with his hearing aids this afternoon. If you are among the hearing impaired, we recommend you seek the advice of your audiologist to see whether your hearing aids will support this new technology and they can also advise you on how best to make use of it.

For those who don’t have hearing aids and can’t hear, ask an usher. We have some handsets and headphones available that may be able to help.

Some member of the Jackson Youth Group will be attending a summer camp in Brooklyn at Camp de Sales this summer. They need to raise $4,000 to help offset the expense and they are inviting us to become Spiritual Stockholders in this project. The youth will be at the Masses next weekend seeking donations to help make it possible for them to attend the camp. Those who invest will be invited to a dinner after the event to hear what the youth gained by attending. The campers will serve the meal and give their testimony while thanking you in person and personally for your support. If you want to prepare your donation ahead of time, mark ‘youth summer camp’ on the envelope or the memo line of the check.

The St. Joseph Shrine, a Catholic historic landmark in the Irish Hills is seeking to raise significant funds to repair and restore their beautiful outdoor stations of the cross that wind down behind the church toward Iron Lake. Fr. Zac Mabee, their pastor, and the tallest priest of the diocese has come up with a unique way to raise this money. You will have to come and see it for yourself. Fr. Joe Krupp will call the game with me at his side providing color commentary. That alone should be worth the price of admission! Use the link below to reserve your seats:

QUEENS PLEDGE TOTALS AS OF 4/10/26:

2026 QMM DSA PLEDGES: $215,768.13

102% OF GOAL, OVER BY $3,912.63

NUMBER OF DONORS: 389 (24% OF 1,600 FAMILIES)

AVERAGE GIFT: $554

What a nice birthday gift for us to send Bishop Boyea’s way as today we officially surpass our DSA goal! Many thanks to the 389 donors! Participation is still low compared to last year, where at the final reporting we had 139 more gifts than we currently do representing 34% of our 1,603 registered households, compared with 24% now. If you are a previous DSA supporter who has yet to record a gift for 2026 please get on board today using the link below or one of the envelopes at the church doors.

A recurring gift option is available to make things simpler for those who are regular supporters of DSA. Checks should be made payable to ‘Queens/DSA’ and put in the offertory or dropped off/sent to the parish office. Please do not send them directly to the Diocese. Every gift is tax deductible.

“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