Dear Parishioners and Friends of St. Mary’s of the Lake:

 In March 2018, a new obligatory Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church, was added to the Liturgical Calendar. It will be celebrated annually on the Monday after Pentecost. (This year, that falls on Monday, May 21, 2018.). Below is the Letter from Bishop David Ricken regarding this new Memorial.   FR. PHIL

April 19, 2018
Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Earlier this year our Holy Father, Pope Francis decreed that a new obligatory
Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church, be inscribed
(added) to the General Roman Calendar of the Catholic Church for the Monday
following Pentecost Sunday. This feast day will now be celebrated annually, as a
Church, beginning this year, on Monday, May 21, 2018. You will find attached an announcement and resources from the United States Conference of Catholics Bishops and our Office of Divine Worship. This attachment provides the new texts and instructions for the celebration of Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours for the Memorial.

As we continue on our journey of discipleship formation, this new celebration provides us a wonderful opportunity to reflect upon the Blessed Mother’s role within the life of the Church, not only in its beginnings following the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, but also ongoing today. In his decree establishing the Memorial, Pope Francis expresses he has added this celebration to the Church’s calendar, ‘having attentively considered how greatly the promotion of this devotion might encourage the growth of the maternal sense of the Church in the pastors, religious and faithful, as well as a growth of genuine Marian piety.’ Brothers and Sisters, let us turn to Mary under her title, as Mother of the Church, while we continue to grow closer to her son, Jesus Christ, who is “head of the body, the
church.” (Colossians 1:18). If you should have any questions in preparing for this celebration, please contact the Office of Divine Worship via phone at 920-272-8341 or email at [email protected]
I thank you for embracing this new Memorial in our liturgical calendar, and I pray that God blesses you with His very best in this Eastertide, as I remain.

Sincerely yours in Christ,
[s] The Most Rev. David L. Ricken, DD, JCL Bishop of Green Bay

 The month of May is ‘the Month of Mary.’ You are encouraged to participate in ‘A Novena to Mary in May’ to honor the Blessed Virgin (every TUE & THU at 9am) and to ask her to pray for us before God. Also: Have you made reservations for a special Pilgrimage to Holy Hill in Hubertus, Wis. July 12, 2018? This Pilgrimage has been especially planned as part of our Centennial celebration.
FR. PHIL