On April 7th, join the Body of Christ in a procession down E. Washington Street, beginning at 3 pm at Petaluma United Methodist Church (410 D St.) and ending at St. James Catholic Church (125 Sonoma Mountain Pkwy). Call Sheila Almquist (707-775-7973) or email Stephen Morris (stephenmichaelmorris@gmail.com) for more information.
Thursday, April 27th at St. James Parish. Social time begins at 6 pm. Program begins at 6:30 pm. Contact Joanne Ferris at jferrispetaluma@gmail.com or call 707-481-6431.
Dear Fellow Parishioners, Two weeks ago, I began my informal âtourâ of the Mass with the development of the entrance procession, and described the normal order of the procession, beginning with the thurifer (incense-bearer) and ending with the clergy celebrant. Last week, I continued the discussion of incense with the huge swinging thurible (censer) in […]
My Dear Parishioners, Last week, I began my general pastoral explanation of the Mass with the purpose and order of the entrance procession: Incense, cross, candles, deacon with Book of the Gospels, clergy, presiding celebrant. One of the most colossal examples of a thurible (âincense burnerâ) is the âBotafumeiroâ (literally, âsmoke expellerâ) hanging in the […]
Dear Fellow Parishionersâ Over the next several weeksâ or however long it takes– I would like to do something Iâve been thinking about for some time, which is to provide a general outline and explanation of certain features of the Mass. For many of us âcradle Catholics,â there are some things we learned long ago […]
Dear Fellow Parishioners, At the risk of leaving someone out, I would like to thank the many members of our parish community who each played their part in making our first celebration of Easter in two years a memorable and beautiful one. Our Flower Committee plans Easter, weeks in advance and swings into action on […]
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————– Dear Fellow Parishioners, First, I would like to thank all those who helped prepare and celebrate Palm Sunday. As on most any other Sunday, we had six Masses with six different musical settings. Even in a simplified form, it still takes a small army of people to prepare the palms and make it all […]
Holy Week is now upon us. Lent, and Holy Week in particular, resonate deeply with nearly all of us. The Lenten symbols and practices (Friday abstinence, Stations of the Cross, abstaining from reciting the Gloria or speaking âAlleluiaâ in the church, etc.) are imprinted in our hearts. One of the most memorable customs I remember […]
Nearly past the mid-Lent mark, we rejoice with you on this Laetare Sunday of Lent. Our redemption is at hand and God’ mercy is endless! On this Holy Sunday, we share our second Vespers hymn that we sing: O Jesus Christ, From Thee Began. The text contains the sentiments of every Christian soul during this […]
One of my strong memories growing up was reading the Picture Book of the Saints. I loved their stories and it was through that book I picked my patron Saint, St. Teresa. During the extra time Iâve had at home this past year, Iâve spent more time reading and in prayer. I would like to […]
Our parish mission statement identifies St. Vincentâs as a Eucharist centered people who, as the Body of Christ, live our faith in word and deed by sharing our time, talent, and treasure to support one another and serve those in need.
This website is intended not only to provide you with the information you need about our parish but also to help us build up our life as a community and so help us in our mission. It provides a way for us to connect with each other; and we invite you to use it to share stories, to learn about whatâs happening and whatâs coming up, and to provide information you think we all need to hear. This site will evolve as our parish evolves; it belongs to all of us. I hope you find it helpful.
This hymn speaks to the atmosphere, design, and heart of St. Vincentâs parish: there is a place here for everyone. In fact, you are not only welcomed, but needed! As we explore and expand our ideas of just what a Church community is, we recognize first that pivotal life events occur in church: weddings, baptisms, First Communion, Confirmation; but, we also find that we need community in order to be a Spirit filled Church where we praise God, share our faith, and help one another by way of fellowship, and the numerous ministries available to all parishioners. Through our stewardship, the gift of our time and talent, there is a wonderful opportunity to give and receive, to make friends, to help friends, to see how our talents are a gift from God made for sharing. We are bonded to a group of people with whom we already have at least one thing in common, and that is our faith. It is our hope that you will use this community website to build bridges and connect with one another, and see that each of us, too, is a gift from God meant to be shared.