We are very excited to announce that we will have new St. Stephen t-shirts! You can pre-order your shirt from August 9 – August 24, in the Narthex on Mass weekends, or at the office during weekday hours.
T-shirts will be $15 each. Cash or check are preferred.
Shirts can be picked up at the church on the weekends of September 13/14 and September 20/21.
Everyone loves the beauty and innocence of a baby. As an expression of that love, you are invited to spiritually adopt a child who is newly conceived in August. Not all babies make it to birth. Sadly, many lose their lives to abortion. These are the babies you are being asked to “adopt” simply by praying for him or her each day.
While this child will remain unknown to you, God knows who the child is, but in the world to come, it is hoped you will meet this child whose life was spared by your prayers. Many people have found that naming “their child” helps to keep them focused on the reality that their prayers are helping to save a particular baby from the harm of abortion.
The second Sunday bulletin of each month from August to May will describe “your baby’s” development. In May, we will celebrate the “births” of our spiritually adopted babies by collecting baby items to be donated to a local pregnancy center.
Learn more at: SpiritualAdoption.org
Our St. Stephen Council of Catholic Women and Knights of Columbus are coordinating our summer School Supply Drive. Please support children in our local schools by dropping off donations in the church narthex on the weekends of July 19/20, July 26/27, and August 2/3. We are in need of the following items:
Be sure to look out for school supply sales and BOGO’s when shopping and visiting stores. Your donations will bless and support children at Keith Elementary, Layer Elementary, Winter Springs Elementary, and Indian Trails Middle schools. Thank you for your generosity!
On Sunday, June 22, the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi), we will gather as 100 Hearts for the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus. We will begin our time of prayer with Exposition and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament at 2:00 PM in the church. Prayer will conclude at 3:00 PM with the Litany of the Blessed Sacrament and Benediction. All are invited to attend and together offer worship to the Lord in the Eucharist. Let’s aim to have 100 people – 100 hearts – or more present for this special hour of prayer on Corpus Christi.
As we approach Pentecost, we ask the Holy Spirit to fill our lives with God’s good gifts and to renew his love in us. The Pentecost novena, or 9-days of prayer, is one such way we can ask the Lord for renewal and strength. We can spiritually unite ourselves to the time the apostles prayed and waited for the outpouring of the Spirit upon them following the Ascension of Jesus. The Pentecost novena begins on Friday, May 30, and ends on Saturday, June 7.
Use the button below to find the Holy Spirit/Pentecost Novena provided by Hallow. Come, Holy Spirit!
On Thursday, May 8, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was elected as the next pontiff of the Catholic Church. Leo XIV was born in Chicago and worked as an Augustinian missionary in Peru. He is the first Pope from North America. We pray that his pastoral leadership will guide our Church and continue to shine the light of the Good News to all.
Thank you to everyone who donated to the Lenten Alms collection. The organizations we supported were astounded by your generosity. The Culture of Life Ministry promotes the dignity of each individual from conception to natural death, whatever their situation is in life. Thanks to your support, we donated to organizations serving the disabled (mentally and physically), the elderly, the incarcerated, the homeless and the abused. You are the living embodiment of the Corporal Works of Mercy.
Our Capital Campaign – Honoring our Past, Envisioning our Future – will help to fund the much needed repairs and renovations that we have been doing in our Church Building Envelope Project. Learn more with the link below:
This year, parishioners are invited to bring in their own palms to be distributed and used in the celebration of Palm Sunday, April 12 & 13. Like the residents of Jerusalem who picked palms to welcome Jesus into the city, let’s also collect local palms and join in praising the Messiah on Palm Sunday. We will be collecting palms starting on Saturday, April 5, at the 5pm Mass, through Wednesday, April 9.
Please follow these guidelines for bringing your palms:
We are also asking for volunteers to help cut palms on Friday, April 11 at 1:00 PM. Please bring a pair of utility scissors and gloves!
