Advent Resources

November 30, 2024 / CL / News

We have gathered some resources to help you and your family celebrate Advent.

Blessing Advent Wreath

Blessing the Family Christmas Tree

Blessing Christmas Ornaments

Advent Resources from the US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB)

More Advent Resources…

Celebrating Advent as a Family – here are several ideas for how you can celebrate Advent.

A favorite idea I took from the above is: Advent Angels – At the beginning of Advent each family member can blindly pick a name of another member of the family and become his or her Advent angel. Prayers, sacrifices and acts of kindness can be offered and exercised daily. During the Christmas season small homemade gifts can be exchanged between the ‘angels’. This prolongs the joy of Christmas, encourages creativity and teaches children (and adults) to discover unique talents they can share with others.

CHRISTMAS NOVENA

This novena is a unique prayer for the last nine days of Advent, beginning on December 16th and ending on Christmas Eve. It will help you to prepare your heart for the Nativity of the Lord. The prayer is:

Hail, and blessed be the hour and moment
At which the Son of God was born
Of a most pure Virgin
At a stable at midnight in Bethlehem
In the piercing cold
At that hour vouchsafe, I beseech Thee,
To hear my prayers and grant my desires
(mention request here)
Through Jesus Christ and His most Blessed Mother

Novena Meditations

Catholic Men’s Conference 2025

November 27, 2024 / CL / KofC, News

Gather in fellowship with hundreds of other men ages 14 and above to hear from dynamic speakers about How the Lord wants to IGNITE your spirit to live as a faithful Catholic in our post-Christian world.

This conference is not meant to simply ignite your Faith for a day, but to invite men across the diocese to build strong Christian communities in their homes, parishes, and workplaces that burn with zeal for the Lord.

Join us to connect with other Catholic men from around the state, hear from nationally renowned speakers, spend time in prayer and adoration, engage with exciting Catholic ministries, and celebrate Mass with Bishop Boyea!

Watch as NFL Super Bowl Champion, Matt Birk, invites you to join him at Ignite, the Diocese of Lansing Catholic Men’s Conference, which is being held in Ypislanti, Michigan, on Saturday, March 22, 2025. As well as Matt, other speakers include:

Dr. Jonathan Reyes: Senior advisor with the Knights of Columbus, known for his work in Catholic social justice and education.

Peter Herbeck: Director at Renewal Ministries, evangelist with a passion for faith renewal and missionary outreach.

Father Joe Krupp: A dynamic priest from the Diocese of Lansing and media personality, offering a relatable perspective on living Catholic values.

The Most Reverend Earl Boyea: Bishop of Lansing, who will celebrate Holy Mass and offer his insights on faith in today’s world.

The event is organized in conjunction with the Knights of Columbus and will take place at the Gervin GameAbove Center in Ypsilanti, MI, from 9AM to 5PM. The conference welcomes men ages 14 and up.

* To register and learn more, go to: www.michigancmc.org.

Religious Ed News

November 26, 2024 / CL / News, Religious Ed

Religious Ed News

On Tuesday, December 3, children in K-8 received a visit from St. Nick – the third century bishop of Myra (now Turkey), who talked t children of the 21^st century. Many things are the same, he said. Poor people, hurting people, and souls in need of Jesus’ love existed then and now. St. Nick’s parents died and left him an abundance of wealth, and he explained he chose to give away his money, help people and love others. St. Nick encouraged the Good Shepherd people to model their actions and choices after Jesus’ command to “Love one another.” He asked students how they could do that? Answers included: share who Jesus is with others, stop bullying, pray more, go to church, show kindness, look for ways to be generous, receive the Eucharist, and remember to put Jesus first in all your decisions. After St. Nick’s presentation he passed out a spiritual keepsake and led the children into the Family Life Center where they found their shoes filled with gold coins and other goodies. Praise to the Lord for St. Nick’s servants’ heart and his generous role modeling of the standard of gift-giving in the name of remembering Jesus’ birth.

Special thanks to the catechists, parishioners and donors of treats and assistance in filling shoes. More thanks to Gloria Polzin for sewing the St. Nick costume worn by Deacon Bryan, who portrayed St. Nick so lovingly and patiently.

Religious Ed Registration Form (print and fill out)

2024-2025 Religious Education Calendar

Online Registration Form

Men’s COR Meeting

September 7, 2024 / CL / KofC, News

The Knights of Columbus empowers Catholic men to live their faith and serve their family, parish, community, and country.

Why? Because families need strong husbands and fathers, and the world needs courageous witnesses to Jesus Christ. Through Cor, men will be formed and sharpened as disciples of Jesus, who are committed to serving him and willing to boldly live and share their faith. It is the mandate of every Catholic man to bring Jesus to a broken world. To live his faith and engage in this mission, every Catholic man needs a strong relationship with God that is rooted in prayer and the sacraments. Catholic men need to proactively invest in their ongoing faith formation, to be a part of a dynamic brotherhood that supports, sharpens, and strengthens them to be holy men, husbands, and fathers, and to engage in the mission of the Church.

The mission of the Cor is to refocus Catholic men on Jesus Christ and to form and strengthen them in faith and virtue through a brotherhood committed to prayer, formation and fraternity. The goal of each Cor gathering is to provide the opportunity for men to encounter Christ, to pray together, to be formed in their faith, and to strengthen their bonds of brotherhood, preparing them for courageous leadership and the mission of Evangelization for their families and communities.

Meetings are every other Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. in the Knights of Columbus Hall.

See what men are saying about it in the film below:

Ways You Can Take Action

July 17, 2016 / CL / No Category

Please Urge the Senate to Approve the Conscience Protection Act!
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ACTION! With voices all over Michigan and all over the country encouraging its passage, the U.S. House of Representatives approved the Conscience Protection Act this week by a 245-182 bipartisan vote. The measure allows for health care providers and payers to protect their rights in court should they be forced to participate in abortion. Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York and Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore, the respective chairs of the pro-life and religious liberty committees at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), applauded the vote and urged continued action as the bill moves forward to the U.S. Senate. Please send a message to the senate now: http://www.micatholic.org/advocacy/catholic-advocacy-network/vv/?vvsrc=%2fCampaigns
Please Urge Congress to Approve the First Amendment Defense Act!
The First Amendment Defense Act (H.R. 2802, S. 1598) would bar the federal government from discriminating against individuals and organizations based upon their religious beliefs or moral convictions that marriage is the union of one man and one woman or that sexual relations are properly reserved to such a marriage. Please send a message now: https://www.votervoice.net/USCCB/Campaigns/43794/Respond

Download our Parish App!

January 22, 2015 / CL / No Category

At Good Shepherd we are pursuing new opportunities to foster a stronger parish life and better engage the New Evangelization. As a part of these efforts we are happy to announce that Good Shepherd now has it’s own app for Apple and Android phones.

Our new app will allow us to send you useful and important messages throughout the week regarding our parish life and events, and allow you to reply to messages or RSVP for events.

There will be no need for parishioners with smart phones to remember to silence their phones before Mass. The app will send you a reminder to silence your phone 20 minutes before the Mass you select. Many more great features will be a help to all of us, such as, daily Mass readings, Catholic news, prayers and prayer reminders, quick access to online tithing, Confession reminders, and our weekly bulletin.

So, be sure to download the app by visiting myparishapp.com or searching for myparish on your phone’s app store, or text APP to 55321 and stay connected with us all week long.