THE SACRAMENTSBaptismCommunal Baptisms are celebrated after the 12 noon Mass on the First Sunday of the month. All families seeking baptism for their child should be registered and active members of Holy Family Parish for at least 3 months prior to the date of the baptism. There are several other requirements for baptism:
1. Parish Registration Card -- For information about registration, go to our About page and read Being Part of Holy Family. 2. Baptism Registration Application 3. Birth Certificate for each child to be baptized 4. Parents and godparents must attend a Baptism Preparation Class prior to the Baptism. 5. Godparents must provide a letter from their Catholic parish stating they are active, participating Catholics. 6. There may be other requirements depending on your child's special circumstance. Call the Parish Office at 335-2385 to arrange your child's baptism. BAPTISM MINISTRY Parishioners who volunteer to lead the required Baptism Preparation Class help parents and godparents understand the spiritual importance and the physical process of the Sacrament of Baptism. Baptism classes are offered once a month. If you feel called to participate in this ministry, please contact the parish office at 335-2385. |
This icon shows Jesus Christ, our Eternal High Priest.
Christ is blessing us while holding open a Gospel page which reads, "I am the Good Shepherd. I know my sheep and they know my voice. The Good Shepherd lays down His life for His sheep." To emphasize this statement, the gold pelican over His heart represents self-sacrifice. The border contains an altar and grapevines, representing the Mass. The secondary icons in the border are of Melchizedek, the ideal priest-king, and St. Jean-Baptiste Vianney, the patron saint of parish priests. |
Reconciliation, Holy Communion, and Confirmation
Children prepare for these Sacraments by attending religious education classes. Go to our Religious Education page to learn how to register or volunteer as a Catechist.
Adults also prepare for these Sacraments by attending religious education courses. Go to our RCIA page to find out how to register or volunteer on the RCIA/RICA team.
If you or a loved one is checked into a hospital or a nursing home, please register as a Catholic. When you do so, a Eucharistic Minister will know to bring you Holy Communion. Eucharistic Ministers also visit the homebound. Holy Family priests will visit those in the hospital, in nursing homes, and at home for confessions. Please call the Parish Office at 335-2385 for more information or to arrange for a visit.
Adults also prepare for these Sacraments by attending religious education courses. Go to our RCIA page to find out how to register or volunteer on the RCIA/RICA team.
If you or a loved one is checked into a hospital or a nursing home, please register as a Catholic. When you do so, a Eucharistic Minister will know to bring you Holy Communion. Eucharistic Ministers also visit the homebound. Holy Family priests will visit those in the hospital, in nursing homes, and at home for confessions. Please call the Parish Office at 335-2385 for more information or to arrange for a visit.
Holy Matrimony
Marriage preparation must be completed to fulfill the guidelines set by the Diocese of Palm Beach. At Holy Family, a parish priest, deacon, and rehearsal coordinator work together to prepare couples for the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony. The parish priest and deacon will provide spiritual guidance to the engaged couple while the rehearsal coordinator will help them develop plans for their wedding. Couples will need to meet at least four to six months before their anticipated wedding date so that specific preparations and necessary documentation may be outlined. Please call Holy Family's Parish Office to arrange for a meeting (335-2385).
ANNULMENTS
If an annulment of a previous marriage (Catholic, non-Catholic, or civil) is needed, please contact a deacon at 335-2385 for more information and assistance.
ANNULMENTS
If an annulment of a previous marriage (Catholic, non-Catholic, or civil) is needed, please contact a deacon at 335-2385 for more information and assistance.
Holy Orders
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PRAYER FOR VOCATIONS
Father, you call each of us by name and ask us to follow you. Bless your Church by raising up dedicated leaders from our families and friends in the Diocese of Palm Beach who will generously serve your people as sisters, brothers, deacons and priests. Inspire us as we grow to know you, and open our hearts to hear your call. We ask this in the name of Jesus, Our Lord. Amen. |
The Diocese of Palm Beach's Office of Formation for Permanent Deacons oversees and provides support to men and their families with the discernment of the call to Holy Orders.
Single men who are discerning the call to become priests should contact the Diocese's Office of Vocations. The contacts for Religious Men and Women are also listed on the Diocesan website.
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PRAYER FOR A SEMINARIAN
God our Father, thank you for calling [name] to prepare for priesthood. Grant him the grace to grow closer to You through daily prayer. Help him form his personality as a credible witness to others. Bless him while he studies Your word and the teachings of the Church, and give him a generous heart to serve Your people. We ask this through Your Son, Jesus Christ, our great High Priest. Amen. |
PRAYER FOR PRIESTS (by John Cardinal O'Connor)
Lord Jesus, we your people pray to You for our priests. You have given them to us for OUR needs. We pray for them in THEIR needs.
We know that You have made them priests in the likeness of your own priesthood. You have consecrated them, set them aside, anointed them, filled them with the Holy Spirit, appointed them to teach, to preach, to minister, to console, to forgive, and to feed us with Your Body and Blood.
Yet we know, too, that they are one with us and share our human weaknesses. We know too that they are tempted to sin and discouragement as are we, needing to be ministered to, as do we, to be consoled and forgiven, as do we. Indeed, we thank You for choosing them from among us, so that they understand us as we understand them, suffer with us and rejoice with us, worry with us and trust with us, share our beings, our lives, our faith.
We ask that You give them this day the gift You gave Your chosen ones on the way to Emmaus: Your presence in their hearts, Your holiness in their souls, Your joy in their spirits. And let them see You face to face in the breaking of the Eucharistic bread.
We pray to You, O Lord, through Mary the mother of all priests, for Your priests and for ours. Amen.
Lord Jesus, we your people pray to You for our priests. You have given them to us for OUR needs. We pray for them in THEIR needs.
We know that You have made them priests in the likeness of your own priesthood. You have consecrated them, set them aside, anointed them, filled them with the Holy Spirit, appointed them to teach, to preach, to minister, to console, to forgive, and to feed us with Your Body and Blood.
Yet we know, too, that they are one with us and share our human weaknesses. We know too that they are tempted to sin and discouragement as are we, needing to be ministered to, as do we, to be consoled and forgiven, as do we. Indeed, we thank You for choosing them from among us, so that they understand us as we understand them, suffer with us and rejoice with us, worry with us and trust with us, share our beings, our lives, our faith.
We ask that You give them this day the gift You gave Your chosen ones on the way to Emmaus: Your presence in their hearts, Your holiness in their souls, Your joy in their spirits. And let them see You face to face in the breaking of the Eucharistic bread.
We pray to You, O Lord, through Mary the mother of all priests, for Your priests and for ours. Amen.
Anointing of the Sick
When the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick was called Extreme Unction and administered only as the last of the "last rites," it had come to be seen as a sign of impending death, and as such, was not always as welcomed as it should have been. The rites of the sacrament were revised in 1972 (Sacram Unctionem Infirmorum) so that they were brought into conformity with the ancient practice of the Church when the sick were anointed more commonly to supply the grace needed to those who were struggling with serious illness. This sacrament consists of the priest placing his hands on the patient and anointing him or her with blessed oil while praying a short prayer.
At Holy Family Catholic Church, the Sacrament of Anointing is every other month at the Healing Mass and every month at the Padre Pio Mass. If you are seriously ill, anticipating surgery, or weakened by advanced age, please take advantage of the scheduled celebrations. A family member may also call the Parish Office (335-2385) on your behalf and arrange for a priest to administer the sacrament to you at home or in the hospital.
At Holy Family Catholic Church, the Sacrament of Anointing is every other month at the Healing Mass and every month at the Padre Pio Mass. If you are seriously ill, anticipating surgery, or weakened by advanced age, please take advantage of the scheduled celebrations. A family member may also call the Parish Office (335-2385) on your behalf and arrange for a priest to administer the sacrament to you at home or in the hospital.
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As Catholics, we believe in the resurrection of the body-- you say you believe this every time you say the Creed during Mass or during the Rosary prayers. Because of this, a body cremated after death needs to be treated in the same way that a body not cremated after death is treated: it must be buried. Ashes and bone fragments cannot be scattered in the air, over land, or in the sea; they cannot be divided up among family members or friends; they cannot be kept at home or placed in lockets or other mementos. Ashes must be stored in a burial container and placed in a sacred, Church-approved place, such as a cemetery, where they can be either buried in the ground or placed in a niche. Remember, "the dead body isn't the private property of relatives, but rather a son of God who is part of the people of God" (Cardinal Gerhard Mueller). Faithful Catholics believe in the resurrection of the body and must do everything to avoid appearing pantheistic or to be a proponent of naturalism or nihilism. In 1963, the Vatican explicitly allowed cremation as long as it didn't suggest a denial of faith about resurrection.
Click here to see the official instructions released by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. |
A word about burial and cremation... |
Papal Blessing: A Unique and Cherished Gift
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Did you know...
You can obtain a certificate from the Vatican for an Apostolic Blessing for any of these sacraments: 1. Baptism, First Communion, Confirmation 2. Marriage 3. Wedding Anniversaries* (10, 25, 40, 50 , 60 years) 4. Priestly Ordination and Anniversaries 5. Religious Profession and Anniversaries 6. Secular Consecration 7. Ordinations of Permanent Deacons In addition to the sacraments, you can receive an Apostolic Blessing for these occasions: 1. Birthdays (18, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100)* 2. for simply celebrating being a faithful Catholic individual* or family* The asterisk (*) indicates the need for the nihil obstat or approval of ecclesiastical authority. Sometimes the Bishop needs to approve the request, but oftentimes the Pastor can. Bring your completed request form (see below) to the Parish Office before mailing it out, and we will help you get the approval. The nihil obstat is a written declaration that the persons receiving the papal blessing are practicing Catholics. |
Send your request for a Papal Blessing to:
Elemosineria Apostolica - Office of Papal Charities Parchment Office 00120 Vatican City Because of the great volume of requests, and because papal blessings are prepared in different foreign languages, errors are not uncommon. Allow two to three months for your request to be processed. The blessing is a gift from the Vatican, but there are costs incurred which should be your gift back. The typical donation ranges from approximately €13-€25 for the parchment paper and calligraphy work plus approximately €10-€30 for shipping (i.e., approximately $15-$28 plus $11-$34). The donation should be made after you receive the Papal blessing and should be made via a bank transfer (the banking coordinates will be sent to you in the same parcel as the parchment) directly to the Vatican's Office of Papal Charities. For more information, see the Office of Papal Charities website. |
Requests must be made only by regular post or by fax. E-mail or phone requests are not accepted.
The written request should include:
- the first name, last name, and address of the person making the request;
- the first name and last name of the person(s) for whom the blessing is being requested;
- the reason or occasion prompting the request (see the list to the right);
-when the blessing is requested for the celebration of a sacrament, a religious profession, or an anniversary: the date, the name of the Church, and the address are required;
-the address of where to send the parchment
Use our form for convenience. The file is 3 pages long; use only the page that you need.
PRINT AND HANDWRITE: TYPE ONTO, RESIZE, AND PRINT:
The written request should include:
- the first name, last name, and address of the person making the request;
- the first name and last name of the person(s) for whom the blessing is being requested;
- the reason or occasion prompting the request (see the list to the right);
-when the blessing is requested for the celebration of a sacrament, a religious profession, or an anniversary: the date, the name of the Church, and the address are required;
-the address of where to send the parchment
Use our form for convenience. The file is 3 pages long; use only the page that you need.
PRINT AND HANDWRITE: TYPE ONTO, RESIZE, AND PRINT:
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