Sacramental Life

Baptism is a rite of washing with water as a sign of religious purification and consecration. In the New Testament, the significance is seen more clearly. John the Baptist was sent by God to spread the news of the coming Messiah—Jesus Christ.

John was directed by God (John 1:33) to baptize those who accepted his message. John’s baptizing is called “a baptism of repentence for the firgiveness of sins.” Mark 1:4. Those baptized by John acknowledged their sins and professed their faith that through the coming Messiah they would be forgiven. Baptism then is significant in that it represents the forgiveness and cleansing from sin that comes through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Baptisms in are held on Saturdays and Sundays throughout the year. Attendance at Baptismal Preparation class is mandatory if it is the baptism of the first child.

In order to schedule a baptism, please call our Rectory. 

Penance is a sacrament institued by Christ in which forgiveness of sins committed after baptism is granted through the priest’s absolution to those who with true sorrow confess their sins and promise to satisfy for the same.

It is a sacrament because it is an outward sign to impart grace to the soul. The grace conferred is deliverance from the guilt of sin and, in the case of mortal sin, from its eternal punishment. The confessions is made to a duly ordained priest with requisite jurisdiction and with the power to forgive sins which Christ granted to His Church.

Confessions are held before all Weekday and Weekend Masses, as well as every Saturday afternoon from 3:00 to 4:00 PM. A priest is always available in the Rectory and no appointment is required. We only ask that you please call ahead, if possible.  

The Sacrament of Holy Communion is the third of the Sacraments of Initiation because it beings us into the fullness of our life in Christ. In Holy Communion, we are eating the True Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, without which “you shall not have life in you”(John 6:53). Receiving Holy Communion worthily brings us graces that affect us both spiritually and physically.

Spiritually, our souls become more united to Christ, both through the graces we receive and trough the change in our actions that those graces effect. Physically, frequent Communion relieves us of our passions. By receiving Christ’s Bosy and Blood, our own bodies are sanctified, and we grow in our likeness to Christ.

Sacrament of First Holy Communion is offered through our Religious Education Program. Please contact the Parish Rectory or Judy Banasiak our CCD coordinator. 

The sacrament of confirmation completes the sacrament of baptism. If baptism is the sacrament of re-birth to a new and supernatural life, confir- mation is the sacrament of maturity and coming of age. The real confession of Christ consist in this ‘that the whole man submits himself to Truth, in the judgment of his understanding, in the submission of his will and in the consecration of his whole power of love . . . To do this, poor-spirited man is only able when he has been confirmed by God’s grace’ 

Confirmation is a true sacrament instituted by Christ and different from baptism. It is administered by laying-on of hands and anointing with chrism accompanied by prayer. The chrism is blessed by the bishop and the bishop administers the sacrament. All baptized persons can and should be confirmed. The effect of the sacrament of confirmation is to give strength in faith and for the confession of faith and to impress an indelible character.

God created man and woman out of love and commanded them to imitate his love in their relations with each other. Man and woman were created for each other. “It is not good that the man should be alone. I will make a suitable partner for him. . . . The two of them become one body” (Gn 2:18; 24). Woman and man are equal in human dignity, and in marriage both are united in an unbreakable bond.

Jesus brought to full awareness the divine plan for marriage. In John’s Gospel, Christ’s first miracle occurs at the wedding in Cana. “The Church attaches great importance to Jesus’ presence at the wedding at Cana. She sees in it the confirmation of the goodness of marriage and the proclamation that thenceforth marriage will be an efficacious sign of Christ’s presence” (CCC, no. 1613).

By their marriage, the couple witnesses Christ’s spousal love for the Church. One of the Nuptial Blessings in the liturgical celebration of marriage refers to this in saying, “Father, you have made the union of man and wife so holy a mystery that it symbolizes the marriage of Christ and his Church.”

The Sacrament of Marriage is a covenant, which is more than a contract. Covenant always expresses a relationship between persons. The marriage covenant refers to the relationship between the husband and wife, a permanent union of persons capable of knowing and loving each other and God. The celebration of marriage is also a liturgical act, appropriately held in a public liturgy at church. Catholics are urged to celebrate their marriage within the Eucharistic Liturgy.

Arrangement must be made with one of our priests at least six months before the date of the wedding. Confirm desired date at the church before making other arrangements. At least one of the engaged persons (or their parents) must be a registered and active parishioner of St. Priscilla. Weddings are not scheduled on Sundays.