CORRECTED
Our Parish mailing address is:
195 Amicks Ferry Road, Chapin SC 29036
Sign-up HERE to bring up the Gifts at Mass
Sign-up HERE for all Liturgical Ministries
If you need help please contact the parish office at 803.345.3962
or Fr. Dennis Willey at 843.834.5447.
Dear Friends,
Prayers Needed! Please pray for Deacon James Chin, Michelle and all the Chin Family. Deacon James has been diagnosed with Leukemia and has begun chemotherapy. His doctor promises to have him back to church soon. Until then he will be avoiding large gatherings. We ask for God's healing touch and strength to support him, Michelle and all the Chin family through his treatments. St. Peregrine, pray for Deacon James and for all those who are battling cancer!
This Sunday is the First Sunday of Lent.
My apologies for mistakenly sending out my draft email to "ALL" yesterday. It was meant only for my dedicated group of proof readers! This is the corrected version for the start of Lent that is meant for everyone to read!
During Lent, Fridays are Lenten Family Fridays with a Meatless Dinner in Saint Andrew Hall at 6:00PM followed by the Stations of the Cross at 7:00PM. All families are invited to make a special effort of sacrifice and prayer together as a family during Lent.
REMINDER: Fridays during Lent are days of abstinence from meat. Ash Wednesday & Good Friday are days of fast and abstinence. LENTEN REGULATIONS
During LENT, Father Dennis and Father Morey will be in the Confessional every Thursday to hear Confessions. Mark your Calendars! Lenten Confession schedule:
Thursdays: 6, 13 (Fr. Dennis only), 20 and 27 March, 3 and 10 April - 6:00PM to 7:30PM.
First Fridays: 7 March and 4 April (only Fr Dennis) - 10:00AM-11:30AM.
First Saturday: 5 April - 10:00AM-11:30AM.
Regular Saturday Confessions: 8, 15, 22, 29 March and 5 and 12 (only Fr Dennis) April - 3:00PM-4:30PM.
First Friday, 7 March, is a bit different because of the Lenten Family Friday & Stations of the Cross beginning that Friday. Adoration begins with Exposition just after Friday Mass and will end with Benediction after the Stations of the Cross.
The Women's Club and Knights of Columbus are on the Plaza after all Masses this weekend to promote their Spring Social and 40 Cans for Lent respectively.
There are several flyers of upcoming events for you to consider:
Catholic Appeal of South Carolina (CASC) 2025:
(As of 28 February)
2025 Goal: $57,941.
Total Raised to date: $24,107.
Percent of Goal: 42%.
Pledged - not yet received: $6,089.
97 Families have made one time gifts and/or pledges.
Participation Rate: TBD
Bishop Fabre has once again challenged all parishes in the diocese to exceed 25% participation. We will provide a participation rate in the near future once the diocese gives us additional information. You can learn more about the CASC and make a donation or pledge online by following this LINK.
Bicentennial Campaign
The Diocesan Bicentennial Campaign is coming to an end this year. If you made a pledge, now is the time to check to see if your pledge has been fulfilled. Currently there is $82,313 in unpaid pledges to be redeemed. If you can't fulfill your pledge please let me know so that we can update our records. If you did not give to the Bicentennial Campaign but would like to do so we can still accept gifts or pledges! We thank all those who made one time gifts or pledges to the Bicentennial Campaign.
Some brief reminders:
There is 8:00AM and 10:30AM Hospitality this weekend hosted by the 8:00AM Bakers of Fellowship and the Knights of Columbus respectively!
Pray for peace in the world and for protection from storms and other natural disasters.
Peace and all good,
Fr. Dennis
PADRE'S PICK
A weekly series of videos to watch (or listen to) that I recommend for every parish household and family! What better way to prepare for the upcoming Lenten Season than to listen to a sermon by Bishop Barron on the "Confession - Our Basic Training".
The entire Word on Fire Library is also available. Just click the white "play" arrow to begin or follow the link to access the library.
PARISH FINANCIAL UPDATES
Last Sunday's collection was $22,819! This is the time of year where we see large, once a year, gifts. Many are from parishioners who give yearly from investments that have Required Minimum Disbursements. There is a significant tax advantage when RMDs are given directly to a charity like the Church. Check with your financial advisor if you have RMDs and would like to reduce your tax burden. We are currently in a good place financially. Thank you for your continued generosity to the parish.
The weekly financial report is available HERE. We remain deeply grateful for your generosity.
In the coming months I will share additional information about Planned Giving and how your estate planning can support the mission of Our Lady of the Lake far into the future! You can also visit Stewardship & Mission Advancement - South Carolina Catholic at the Diocese of Charleston's website to learn more.
Please remember that every gift to the church helps, no matter the amount. We emphasize equal sacrifice - NOT equal giving! We ask that all registered households give what they can to support the ministry of the Church. We are always THANKFUL for your generosity and support!
THANK YOU!!!
Do you give online using your credit card? If so, our vendor now allows you the option to add the processing fee to your gift. Please consider making this change and strengthen the power of your gift.
CHILDREN'S ENVELOPE ARTWORK
We encourage all our parish children to use their envelopes at the Sunday Morning Masses. Children can make a monetary donation or just write something on the envelope; a good deed, a prayer, artwork, etc. Father Dennis will hold a basket and invite the children to come forward at the appropriate time. If you have forgotten an envelope or need more, they are available in the Narthex.
CAMPUS CONSTRUCTION UPDATES
Check out the new Campus Signage to help direct visitors (and all of us) around our parish campus! This is only the first phase of our new campus signage. This project is a multiphase project which should make it easier for all of us and visitors to navigate our campus.
We are exploring an in house solution to the question of movable Altar Rails for our sanctuary. More information to come in the near future! To understand some of the benefits of installing movable Altar Rails at Our Lady of the Lake please read this ARTICLE.
Future plans for the fountain in front of the church are to extend the plaza in front of the church with pavers so as to include the area around the fountain. We will raise funds to complete this project by selling pavers to be inscribed with family names, in honor of, or in memorial. We are very close to finalizing pricing for the pavers.
JUBILEE OF HOPE
The Year 2025 is a Jubilee Year in the Catholic Church. Pope Francis declared the Jubilee of Hope on 9 May, 2024. He invites all the faithful to be Pilgrims of Hope during this Jubilee Year. You can learn more about being a Pilgrim of Hope at the USCCB Website. There is so much to talk about during a Jubilee Year that it is hard to know where to begin. To start, I encourage you to read about Indulgences for the Jubilee Year. I promise to share more information in the coming weeks. “Hope does not disappoint” (Rom 5:5)!!!
Jubilee Pilgrimage Site in the Diocese of Charleston:
The Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Charleston has been designated as the only site in the Diocese of Charleston where a pilgrim may obtain the special
Jubilee Indulgence. The indulgence is subject
to the usual conditions: sacramental confession,
reception of Holy Communion, prayers for
the intentions of the Pope, and total detachment
from all sin, including venial sin. Please see the Jubilee Guide for details about visiting the Cathedral.
NOTES OF IMPORTANCE FROM
THE DIOCESE
Year of Evangelization
Bishop Jacques Fabre-Jeune, CS, kicked off the five-year plan for the Diocese of Charleston, called Via Fidelis, at the beginning of Advent, 1 December 2024.
Our first year's theme is Proclaim the Faith - a Year of Evangelization!
The bishop has given each month a focus to challenge us to grow in our faith. As we prepare ourselves to enter deeper into this evangelization year of Proclaim the Faith, we are asking all the faithful to keep in prayer Via Fidelis, your parish and the entire diocese as we work to spread the Word of God in our state.
You can read more about Via Fidelis in our monthly articles in The Catholic Miscellany: Via Fidelis. Attached are the monthly activities calendar for 2025 and our prayer card.
Additional resources and videos may be found online at charlestondiocese.org/via-fidelis.
A Wonderful Opportunity brought to you from St. Clare of Assisi Catholic Church, Daniel Island, SC:
Sunday, 30 March at 4:00PM:
Floriani, a four-man a cappella group specializing in Gregorian and Byzantine chant, will give a free concert at St. Clare's. A free workshop for your choir members and others will be offered Saturday morning, March 29. More information is forthcoming.
Check it out!
VISIT the Catholic Miscellany
For the most up-to-date information from the diocese visit: charlestondiocese.org/events.
Read the MARCH CARITAS; the Diocesan Monthly E-Newsletter.