Jesus never once referred to himself as a king, but he mentioned the Kingdom of God 126 times in the four gospels.  The Church’s calendar year ends on a high note, celebrating Jesus Christ, the King of the Universe.  His Kingdom, as he said, ‘is not of this world,’ but we are already part of it.  The Kingdom will reach its fulness when the Christ rules in and over all that he has made, that includes each of us. 

Who’s serving who in your relationship with Jesus?  Does he reign in your heart?  In your life?  This coming Advent, let us make room for him there.

The Contemporary Ensemble invites you to a special Praise & Worship Hour in the Church at 7pm this Sunday evening to sing praises to our King!  This is free and open to the public.   

A blessed and Happy Thanksgiving to all Queens parishioners and your families!  Prayers for safe passage for those who will be traveling over the hills and through the woods to Grandma’s house!

O God, when I have food,
help me to remember the hungry;
When I have work,
help me to remember the jobless;
When I have a home,
help me to remember those who have no home at all;
When I am without pain,
help me to remember those who suffer,
And remembering,
help me to destroy my complacency;
bestir my compassion,
and be concerned enough to help;
By word and deed,
those who cry out for what we take for granted.

– Samuel F. Pugh

Before you put that bird in the oven, join us for one of our Thanksgiving Masses.  The Greek word Eucharist means ‘Thanksgiving.’  The Mass is the perfect prayer, it is always a feast and we are forever grateful when Heaven comes down to earth on the altar.  

The Choir will sing at the 6pm Thanksgiving Eve Mass on Wednesday November 27th (this will follow a shortened 5pm Holy Hour).  On Thanksgiving Day, we will have one Mass at 9am.  

At both of these Masses, I invite you to bring non-perishable food items.  These bags of groceries and canned goods will be placed at the altar during the offertory, to feed the hungry across Jackson, and to pay forward the many blessings God has given to us, things we all too often take for granted.    

The parish office will be closed Thursday and Friday to give our staff time to spend with their families.

At Mass this weekend, we will hear from a parishioner who is a Queens and Lumen Christi school parent, a member of the campaign committee and a donor to the campaign.  7 weeks into the S3 campaign, Queens is at 75% of goal, $29,000 shy of $2,000,000 in pledges from 318 donors representing 21% of the parish family.  

THANK YOU TO THE S3 GIVERS!  You give me much to be grateful for as we head into Thanksgiving.  Now, how about the rest of you?  If less than 1/4 of our parishioners can get us 3/4 of the way to our goal, surely the 1,232 remaining households can help us raise the $600,000 we need to get to our campaign target of $2,650,000.  The Diocese is now at $22,000,000 in gifts on its way up to $70,000,000.  

In the Diocese of Lansing, we have 8,500 students enrolled in 28 grade schools and 4 regional high schools with more than 600 teachers.  Nationwide, there are currently 1,700,000 students enrolled in nearly 7,000 Catholic schools with some 150,000 faith-filled teachers.

The campaign funds raised at all 72 parishes of our diocese will go to increase financial aid and scholarships for families using our Catholic schools and giving raises and retention bonuses to Catholic school teachers. 

20% of S3 raised at Queens stays at Queens.  This would be over half a million dollars that we will bank toward the support of the administration and programs of the Jackson Catholic Schools.  Any amount we raise over goal will stay in the parish.   

Please consider the specific gift amount requested as an amount to pledge and pay over time on a schedule of your choosing, not as something you have to give now.  All of us are able to give more when we extend the gift for a period of years. 

If you feel you absolutely cannot give anything close to what Bishop is asking, the alternative doesn’t have to be to give nothing at all, something I am encountering in some of my outreach to donors.  A one-time gift of any size is preferable!  

The Catholic Foundation would love to hear from you if you wish to discuss gifts of stock or real estate, planned gifts or IRA distributions.  I would be happy to put you in touch with them.

I am asking that you place pledge card envelopes in the offertory collection at Mass or drop them off at the parish office.  Please do not stamp them and mail them to the Catholic Foundation.  Checks should be made payable to ‘Stewardship for Saints and Scholars.’ 

This is a ’boutique’ campaign allowing you to make your commitment however you like:  how much to pledge, when to start giving, how often you will be billed, how to pay, etc.  The power is in your hands. 

CAMPAIGN PRAYER

Lord, everything we have is a gift from you. 
You call us to receive your gifts with thanks,  
to develop these gifts fully, 
and to share them generously.
Through the Stewardship for Saints and Scholars campaign
help every young person in the Diocese of Lansing
see your truth, beauty, and goodness;
help families to raise their children in the Faith;
and help parishes make a truly Catholic education
available to all.
May the work of this campaign bear abundant fruit
in the Saints and Scholars you are raising up for the future.
We ask these blessings through Christ our Lord.
Amen.   

Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, pray for us 

Congratulations to Coach Brogan and the Varsity Titans of Lumen Christi for today’s win over Marine City, giving them the opportunity to play yet again for the State Championship at Ford Field in Detroit on Black Friday, November 29th!  Many of these players went to Queens School and attend this parish.  We congratulate all of the players, their coaches and their families for this not unexpected outcome!  Rumor has it they may end up playing Lansing Catholic.  May the best team win!  

Queens has one of the biggest and best bulletins in the diocese.  Our three pages of ads make it so that the parish pays nothing.  Please consult the back of the bulletin and support those who advertise with us when looking for goods and service providers.  I pay for my own bulletin ad thanking our sponsors, as I want to lead by example here.  Thank you to all of our sponsors.  If you have a business and would be interested in placing an ad, please contact our sales rep from diocesan publications, Don Roe:  droe@diocesan.com, 616-340-8580.

One hour still remains open on the Divine Mercy Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration Chapel Schedule:

Monday at 3am  

“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

Queen of the Miraculous Medal Catholic Church

606 S. Wisner St.  Jackson, Michigan 49203

(517) 783-2748  www.queenschurch.com