Preparation for the Sacrament of Baptism is conducted on the last Saturday of each month from 10:00am to 12:00pm. Please register in advance with Steve Brown to attend preparation.
Information on the Importance of Baptism:
The Catholic Church has recognized the importance of Baptism since Jesus himself was baptized and then instructed His disciples to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Mt 28:19).
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (#1213), Holy Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, the gateway to life in the Spirit and the door which gives access to the other sacraments.
For Parents: At Baptisms we rejoice over the gift of new life both in your family and in the family of the Church. As a child is brought into the Body of Christ, it is important to know the child will truly be raised as a member of the Church. The law that governs the Church (Canon 868.1,2) requires the minister to have a well-founded hope that the infant will be reared in the Catholic Faith. Lacking such a hope, the Baptism is to be deferred until such hope can be had. Each Pastor must apply this requirement as best he can. At St Thomas More, if parents are registered for at least three months and attending Mass as shown by the recorded contributions, the Baptism can be scheduled without delay. If parents are not active parishioners, we will defer the Baptism until they become active parishioners.
Baptisms by visiting clergy or in other parishes: The Pastor of the parents is responsible for the Baptism of his parishioners often sharing that role with his parochial vicar and any deacons assigned to the parish. On an individual basis, we will consider requests for visiting priests or deacons to baptize at St Thomas More. Baptisms to take place away from the home parish of the parents need permission from the home parish pastor. Contact Deacon for more info.
Sponsors: Godparents have a special role in the life of the baptized. It is an honor to share the parents’ role of leading children to live and know the Christian Faith. Technically, the law of the Church requires only one sponsor, but there are usually two. If there are two, one must be male and one female (Canon 873). Sponsors must be Catholics who have been Confirmed, made their First Holy Communion, and are practicing the Faith. They should be at least 16 years of age. Since only one Catholic sponsor is required, the second person may be a Christian who is not Catholic serving as a Christian Witness to the Baptism and may assume the ceremonial role of a sponsor. If from outside St Thomas More, then a letter of good standing from the Godparent's parish must be sent directly to St Thomas More.
Children’s Names: Traditionally, Catholic children were to be given the name of at least one saint at Baptism. The law today states that no name foreign to a Christian mentality may be given. We strongly urge parents to include a saint’s name for your child. Even if you do not want the saint’s name as a part of your child’s legal name, we can include it in the Baptism ceremony and insert it parenthetically in our records and on the Baptism certificate. Your children deserve patron saints as role models and intercessors. At some future date they will get to learn about their patrons. Many popular names have saintly origins and if parents want to know if a particular name is associated with a saint, they can research on the internet or inquire at our office.
Contact Deacon Steve Brown at [email protected]
The greatest of the seven sacraments is the Holy Eucharist. The Catholic Church teaches that in the Eucharist, Our Lord Jesus Christ, true God and true man, is really present under the appearances of bread and wine. Our Lord is not merely symbolized by the bread and wine; nor is he present only through the faith of those present.
Rather, the two material things, bread and wine, are completely changed into the body and blood of Jesus Christ, leaving behind only their sensible appearances. Thus, through the words of consecration spoken by the priest, Jesus, without ceasing to be present in a natural way in heaven, is also present sacramentally, body, blood, soul and divinity, in many places throughout the world.
The Eucharist is not only a sacrament but also a sacrifice. In it Jesus, acting through the priest, makes present again in an unbloody manner the sacrifice which he offered once for all by shedding his blood on Calvary. In Holy Communion, by obeying Jesus' command to eat his flesh and drink his blood, the faithful are also united spiritually with Jesus himself, and they unite their own prayers, works and sufferings to his perfect sacrifice.
Contact Deacon Steve Brown at [email protected]
Entry into the Christian life begins with the sacrament of Baptism and continues with First Holy Communion. The Sacrament of Confirmation "completes" the "sacraments of Christian initiation" whereby the Christian is "more perfectly bound to the Church and are enriched with a special strength of the Holy Spirit. Hence they are, as true witnesses of Christ, more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith by word and deed." (CCC #1285)
The church community of St. Thomas More offers regular Confirmation classes during the academic year for high school students, college students and adults.
Contact Deacon Steve Brown at [email protected]
The Sacrament of Penance, also known as Reconciliation or Confession, may be one of the most misunderstood things about the Catholic Church. Only God’s grace can heal a soul wounded by sin which is why Jesus gave us spiritual healing in the form of the Sacrament of Penance (John 20:22-23).
Confession allows us to know ourselves better and brings us peace. Absolution also carries a strengthening grace which helps us resist sin in the future and live more saintly lives.
“Those confessionals scattered about the world where men declare their sins don’t speak of the severity of God. Rather do they speak of his mercy. And all those who approach the confessional, sometimes after many years weighed down with mortal sins, in the moment of getting rid of this intolerable burden, find at last a longed-for relief. they find joy and tranquility of conscience which, outside Confession, they will never be able to find anywhere.”
— John Paul II, quoted in In Conversation with God: Advent and Christmastide
Saturday - 3:30 - 4:20 PM
Sunday - 4:00 - 4:50 PM
Confession available 30 MINUTES before Daily Mass (Monday- Thursday), and SUNDAY Masses
Outside of these times, please contact the office to make an appointment.
Contact Fr. Williams at [email protected]
Christian spouses, in virtue of the sacrament of Matrimony, whereby they signify and partake of the mystery of that unity and fruitful love which exists between Christ and His Church, help each other to attain to holiness in their married life and in the rearing and education of their children. By reason of their state and rank in life they have their own special gift among the people of God.
From the wedlock of Christians there comes the family, in which new citizens of human society are born, who by the grace of the Holy Spirit received in baptism are made children of God, thus perpetuating the people of God through the centuries. The family is, so to speak, the domestic church. In it parents should, by their word and example, be the first preachers of the faith to their children; they should encourage them in the vocation which is proper to each of them, fostering with special care vocation to a sacred state. (Lumen Gentium, no. 11)
Our Diocese recognizes the importance of careful discernment that must take place between man and woman prior to entering the Vocation of Marriage. Accordingly, our Diocese requires that the instruction and preparation for the Sacrament of Marriage begin at least six months before the anticipated wedding date in order to help facilitate the process of vocational discernment by faithful Christian men and women.
Some basic questions before marriage...- Are you ready to spend a lifetime helping another person reach heaven?
- Are you open to the gift and blessing of children?
- Will Christ be the center of your marriage?
Please Contact Fr. Williams (please allow at least 6 months prior to your Wedding date to prepare with Fr. Williams and staff).
Contact Deacon Steve Brown at [email protected]
Holy Orders is the sacrament through which the mission entrusted by Christ to his apostles continues to be exercised in the Church until the end of time; thus it is the sacrament of apostolic ministry. It includes three degrees: Episcopate, Presbyterate and Diaconate.
The word Order in Roman antiquity designated an established civil body, especially a governing body. Ordinatio mean incorporating into an Ordo. In the Church there are established bodies which Tradition, not without a basis in Sacred Scripture, has since ancient times called “taxeis (Greek) or “ordines”. And so the liturgy speaks of the ordo episcoporum, the ordo presbyterorum,and the ordo diaconorum. Other groups also receive this name of ordo: Catechumens, virgins, spouses, widows, and so on.
Integration into one of thebodies in the Church was accomplished by a rite called ordination, a religious and liturgical act which was a consecration, a blessing or a sacrament. Today the word ordination is reserved for the sacramental act which integrates a man into the order of bishops, presbyters or deacons and goes beyond a simple election, designation, delegation or institution by the community, for it confers an indelible nature and a gift of the Holy Spirit that permits the exercise of a “sacred power” (sacra potestas) which can only come from Christ himself through his Church.
Contact Fr. Williams at [email protected]
Anointing of the sick, known to many older Catholics as Extreme Unction, is administered to bring spiritual and even physical strength during an illness, especially near the time of death, but not exclusively. It is likely one of the last sacraments one will receive. When the recipient is physically able, he or she is encouraged to incorporate the sacraments of Reconciliation and Eucharist with the anointing, depending on circumstances.
Like all the sacraments, holy anointing was instituted by Jesus Christ during his earthly ministry. The Catechism explains, “This sacred anointing of the sick was instituted by Christ our Lord as a true and proper sacrament of the New Testament. It is alluded to indeed by Mark, but is recommended to the faithful and promulgated by James the Apostle…” (CCC 1511; Mark 6:13; Jas 5:14-115).
Contact Fr. Williams at [email protected]
If you need a priest after hours due to serious illness or injury, please call (803) 814-4377. You can leave a message on this number for Fr. Williams.
For non-urgent cases, call the church office at (803) 799-5870, or email Fr. Williams at [email protected]