March 3, 2026

Lent at Saint Josephine Bakhita Parish

March 3, 2026

Daly Lenten Notes

This week the Gospel passage is the life-changing conversation Jesus has with a Samaritan woman at a well. She’s focused on one thing: water. That’s her immediate need. What she doesn’t realize is that Jesus is already there, waiting for her.

Jesus tells the woman that the water He gives will become a spring within her, welling up to eternal life.

We thirst for God, and nothing in this world can replace Him. But here’s the amazing part: Jesus also thirsts for us. That’s why God never stops seeking us.

If you’re tired of searching for happiness in all the wrong places, Jesus is offering you living water today, the living water of God’s love. It already belongs to you through Baptism. Let it refresh you and allow it to change you.

Saint Joseph Medal of Appreciation

I am very happy to announce that David Mikol is the Saint Joseph 2026 Medal of Appreciation from our parish. David, his wife Irene, and their family have called our parish their spiritual home for many years. David currently serves as the Grand Knight of The Knights of Columbus and has generously served the parish in many different ministries over the years.

When you see David please congratulate him on this well-deserved honor. The Award Ceremony will take place on Sunday, March 15, 2026, at 2:30 PM at the Cathedral of Saint Joseph. The prayer service will not include the celebration of Mass. All are welcome to join us.

A Note About Our Sunday Mass Schedule

Beginning Palm Sunday, we will be adjusting our Sunday morning Mass time at St. James Church from 11:00 AM to 11:30 AM. This decision was approved unanimously by our Pastoral Council. This change will allow Deacon Michael, Rochelle, and me more time to greet parishioners after the 9:00 AM Mass, travel to St. James, and properly welcome our community there before Mass begins. We believe this extra time for personal connection honors the spirit of hospitality that is at the heart of our parish life.

Yours In Christ,

Fr. Shawn

Click Here to See All We Have Planned for Lent

March 8, 2026

4:00 PM at Saint James

9:00 AM at Saint Elizabeth Seton

& livestreamed

11:00 AM at Saint James

Lent Prayer & Devotions

Pray the Stations of the Cross

The Stations of the Cross invite us to use all our senses as we reflect prayerfully and walk intentionally with Jesus through his suffering, death on the cross and resurrection.

Attend the Stations of the Cross

Friday Evenings

5:30PM at St. James

Team Bakhita Wins Big in the Souper Bowl of Caring!

The temperatures outside may have been freezing, but the warm hearts of our Confirmation families and parishioners could have melted mountains of snow on Super Bowl Sunday.

As totals of food items and soup pot donations were being counted, the anticipation grew. What we witnessed was nothing short of extraordinary — a powerful reminder of what happens when we come together and put our faith into action.

Thanks to your generosity, over $6,000 was collected in the soup pots held by our Confirmation candidates. These funds will provide hot meals for the homeless and help restock pantry shelves that were in desperate need of refilling.

The friendly competition between the two Confirmation classes was the closest in recent memory! The Spring Confirmation class edged out a victory by just 6 points. But truly, the real winners are those who will benefit from all the items donated.

The Confirmation candidates, their families & teachers donated an incredible 2,012 grocery items, including:

507 boxes of pasta
172 cans of fruit
242 packages of cookies
160 jars of peanut butter & jelly
216 boxes of cereal
450 cans of soup
265 cans of tuna

When we contacted the Catholic Worker House, who had especially requested children’s cereal, they told us every child who attends their Saturday morning program will now go home with a box of cereal.

Imagine that. A simple box of cereal becoming a treasured gift.

You have touched countless lives through your generosity. May God bless each of you for the difference you are making in the lives of so many.

Carl Bach and Tom Deasy delivered several car loads of groceries collected through the Souper Bowl of Caring to St. Elizabeth House/Mercy Housing on Friday, February 27, 2026.

Saint Josephine Bakhita

Faith Sharing Group

All are welcome to join the Saint Josephine Bakhita Faith Sharing Group. Our next meeting will be on Tuesday, March 17, 2026. We meet in person, at St. Elizabeth Seton Church, from 10:30 AM -12:00. March’s Discussion will focus on the Beatitudes of Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth; and Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. We conclude with various types of prayer petitions. We meet on the third Tuesdays of the month from now to June 17, 2026. We also have a Charismatic Prayer Group that is led by Kristie Bilcharz. This group meets on Zoom on the first Tuesdays of the month. And, there is also the Awakening Retreat on Saturday, June 6, 2026 from 10:00 AM -5:00 PM. This will be at Saint Elizabeth Seton Church, registration for this will be posted by the end of March. If you have questions about both groups and the Awakening Retreat, please contact Michael Lonergan at 860-638-7080 or at Mikelonergan53108@sbcglobal.net. I will forward your information to Kristie regarding the Charismatic Prayer Group.

Daily Mass

Mon-8:30AM @ Seton

Tues-8:00AM @ St. James

Thur-8:00AM @ St. James

Fri-8:30AM @ Seton

Evening Prayer

Join us for evening prayer Monday - Friday at 5:00 PM on our parish Facebook Page. All are welcome!

Reconciliation

Fr. Shawn welcomes all to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation on Monday evenings at 5:30 PM at St. Elizabeth Seton.

Lent Almsgiving

Your Change Can Change Lives

Catholic Relief Services (CRS) rice bowls have been a long-standing tradition in many families. It began with a simple idea to have a simple supper during lent and put the savings or any spare change in the rice bowl. This simple gesture can help fight hunger in so many places and ways.

Please consider taking home a rice bowl and making it part of your family tradition. We will collect the rice bowls on weekends up to the week after Easter. We have counters ready to add up the change and bills!

Thank you for changing lives this Lent!

Other Fun Tidbits

Celebrate St Patrick's Day With Us!

St Patrick’s Day Dinner

Join the Knights of Columbus for our annual St Patrick’s Day celebration featuring a traditional corned beef dinner with all the fixings and dessert.

Saturday, March 14

4:00 - 7:00 PM

St James Parish Center

Tickets on sale February 14 - March 8. Take out dinners will be available. Adults: $20.00 - Children (under 12): $12.00

Family Special (2 adults & 2 children (under 12): $52.00

Note: NO tickets at the door

For more info call Dave 860-726-3585.

Give Blood

The American Red Cross needs blood donors — and you can help! All eligible donors are encouraged to schedule an appointment for our next blood drive, hosted at the Parish Center at St. James Church on Thursday, March 5 from 1:00–6:00 PM. Call 1-800-RED-CROSS or visit redcrossblood.org to register.

Palm Crosses for Sale

The Knights of Columbus will be taking orders for Palm Crosses after every Mass at both our St. James and St. Elizabeth Seton campuses. Palm Crosses will be available for pickup after every Mass on Palm Sunday. The cost is $13. For questions, please contact David Mikol at (860) 726-3585.

Olympic Champion

We are so proud to share that our own parish Trustee, Kathy Miehlke, was in Milan, Italy cheering on her niece and goddaughter, Megan Keller, as Team USA faced Canada in the Women's Ice Hockey Gold Medal Game at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Megan, who serves as Captain of the Boston Fleet in the Professional Women's Hockey League, scored the game-winning goal in overtime to give the United States the gold medal — her third Olympics and a truly golden moment! Kathy's parish family was right here at home cheering along with her, so proud of both Megan's extraordinary achievement and Kathy's joy in witnessing it firsthand. Congratulations to Megan, Team USA, and Kathy's family!