The Week of February 27

March 6 Updates will be posted on Monday

Now

Prayer and Fasting for Ukraine

Bishop Vásquez is asking the faithful of the Diocese of Austin to join Pope Francis in marking this coming Ash Wednesday as a day for prayer and fasting not only for the beginning of Lent, but also, for the end of war in Ukraine. Bishop Vásquez explains, “I join our Holy Father in petitioning all people to pray for an end to the war and aggression in Ukraine! And may our brothers and sisters who are experiencing upheaval know the loving presence and protection of the Mother of God in their suffering.”

St. Mary’s Lenten Reflections

Our Lenten Reflection series is back! Our students and staff have written reflections for every day from Ash Wednesday through Divine Mercy Sunday. You can have these emailed to you each morning by signing up at aggiecatholic.org/lentenreflections.

Ash Wednesday Hospitality

Ash Wednesday is one of our most popular days for Mass attendance. Students, if you’d like to show our friends wonderful hospitality by serving as a greeter, consider signing up for one of our Masses or Ash Services. aggiecatholic.org/ashwednesdaygreeter

Visiting Religious - Sr. Fidelis Marie Lanowich, OSB

Sr. Fidelis Marie Lanowich, vocations director for the Missionary Benedictine Sisters will be visiting St. Mary's this week and will be offering spiritual direction and accompaniment sessions for students. If you wish to sign up, please visit this link.

Monday

Last Day to Return Blessed Palm Branches

If you have blessed palm branches from previous Palm Sundays, please consider returning them to St. Mary’s. These blessed palms will be burned down and used to make the ashes that will be distributed on Ash Wednesday. You can return them to the bin at the entrance to the church.

Tuesday

Connect Team Member Applications

Connect 2022 Team Member Applications will be open this Tuesday. If you’d like to help welcome next year’s incoming students home to St. Mary’s by serving as a small group leader, cook staff member, hype team member, or working behind the scenes, apply online! aggiecatholic.org/connectstaff

Catholicism 101
7:30 PM, JPII Event Center

Want to learn more about what Church teaches about marriage? Join us this Tuesday at 7:30 PM in the Event Center as we discuss the Sacrament of Marriage.

Final day for Mission Donation Drive

Tuesday is the last day to donate Mission Trip items for our Honduras and South Texas teams. They may be placed in the bins in the back of the Church or by the receptionist desk. For more details, visit aggiecatholic.org/donationdrive

Wednesday

Ash Wednesday Times

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of then Lenten season. All Ash Wednesday Masses will be held at St. Mary’s, and Ash Services (Liturgy of the Word and distribution of ashes without Communion) will be held at Rudder Theater on campus.

Masses at St. Mary’s

• English: 7:00 AM, 12:00 PM, 5:30 PM, 7:30 PM

• Spanish: 7:30 PM (JPII Event Center)

Ash Services at Rudder Theater

• 10:20 AM, 12:45 PM, 5:45 PM

Ash Wednesday Special Collection
World and Home Missions

This combined collection will benefit areas in the Church that are greatest in need, including Black and Indian Missions in the U.S. This special appeal also helps Catholic communities in Latin America, Africa and Central and Eastern Europe, by underwriting evangelization, religious education, education for future priests, and training for lay ministers. Please be generous!

Other News

The Oratory
Starting March 9

This Lent, learn more about how to pray! Fr. Chris will be leading a new series called "The Oratory" which takes place every Wednesday during Lent at 4:40 PM. We'll begin with a 20 minute talk on prayer followed by 30 minutes of prayer time in the church before the 5:30 PM daily Mass. The first day will be on March 9 (the Wednesday after Ash Wednesday).

A few spots left for Next Step

We still have space for two couples and 5 single people. Next Step is an 8-week course geared towards dating couples who are discerning marriage. This class will meet on Wednesdays from 7-9 PM starting on March 23. We'll have room for one small group of single students that are still interested in what the course has to offer. $100 per couple or $50 for a single person. aggiecatholic.org/next-step

The Pursuit

Did you know? St. Mary's has a ministry called The Pursuit for students who experience same-sex attraction or gender dysphoria. The Pursuit provides a supportive and formative community of fellow students striving to live a virtuous life. Participation in this ministry is confidential. For more information, contact Fr. Chris Smith by emailing thepursuit@aggiecatholic.org or by visiting aggiecatholic.org/thepursuit

Church Construction Updates

More drone footage and pictures are available on the website! aggiecatholic.org/newchurch

St. Mary’s Podcasts

St. Mary’s hosts a few podcasts for some Catholicism on the go. If you want to hear homilies from the weekend, check out our Aggie Catholic Homilies podcast. For talks like those heard at Magnify, check out our Aggie Catholic Talks podcast. And for some great conversation between Fr. Chris and some of our students, check out Verso L’alto.

St. Mary’s Discord

Looking for a place to catch up with other Aggie Catholics? Join the St. Mary's Discord! Think GroupMe, but with channels/rooms (so you can mute the areas you're not interested in). Plan hangouts, talk about shows, look for housing, trade sports passes, and more! Follow this link to join!

Local Service Opportunities

We have plenty of volunteer opportunities available to serve our local community during the semester. If you are a student at Texas A&M or Blinn and are interested in helping out our local community, visit our sign up page to join us!