Welcome to the Guiding Star, a monthly newsletter sharing tips and activities to help build and strengthen your Domestic Church. What is your Domestic Church? “The family, is so to speak, the domestic church.” (Lumen Gentium #11) Visit the USCCB website on the Domestic Church for more practical ways to demonstrate and encourage a rich life of faith at home.
Happy Easter! As we enter the month of April, the Church invites us to turn our hearts in a special way toward the Holy Eucharist, the true presence of Jesus Christ among us. In the Eucharist, we encounter not a symbol, but Christ Himself, who gives His Body and Blood for our nourishment, healing, and unity. May this month draw each of us closer to Jesus, truly present with us, and help us become what we receive, His Body in the world.
Divine Mercy Sunday (celebrated the Sunday after Easter) is a beautiful reminder that God’s love and forgiveness are greater than any sin. Inspired by the message given to Saint Faustina Kowalska and established by Pope John Paul II, this feast invites us to trust in Jesus and share His mercy with others. It’s a special day to receive God’s grace through the Sacraments, pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet, and practice kindness, compassion, and forgiveness in our daily lives. Your family is invited to join other Epiphany parishioners on April 12th at 3pm to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet as a community. If you want to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet as a Novena, start on Good Friday and conclude on Diving Mercy Sunday. In addition to being said, this chaplet is often sung or chanted.
The feast of Divine Mercy Sunday would not be complete without an ice cream sundae. Here are 5 sundae recipes for your family to try and enjoy...
April Saints & Feasts
April 2: St. Francis of Paola
April 4: St. Isidore of Seville
April 5: Easter Sunday and St. Vincent Ferrer
April 7: St. John Baptist de la Salle
April 8: St. Julie Billiart
April 11: St. Stanislaus
April 12: Divine Mercy Sunday and St. Teresa of the Andes
April 13: St. Martin I
April 4: St. Isidore of Seville
April 5: Easter Sunday and St. Vincent Ferrer
April 7: St. John Baptist de la Salle
April 8: St. Julie Billiart
April 11: St. Stanislaus
April 12: Divine Mercy Sunday and St. Teresa of the Andes
April 13: St. Martin I
April 16: St. Bernadette Soubirous
April 21: St. Anselm
April 23: St. George and St. Adalbert of Prague
April 24: St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen
April 25: St. Mark, Evangelist
April 26: St. Rafael Arnáiz Barón
April 28: St. Louis de Montfort, St. Peter Chanel, and St. Gianna Molla
April 29: St. Catherine of Siena
April 30: St. Pius V
April 23: St. George and St. Adalbert of Prague
April 24: St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen
April 25: St. Mark, Evangelist
April 26: St. Rafael Arnáiz Barón
April 28: St. Louis de Montfort, St. Peter Chanel, and St. Gianna Molla
April 29: St. Catherine of Siena
April 30: St. Pius V
