Commissioning Eucharistic Ministers & Lectors: November 2022

This year on the First Sunday of Advent, Eucharistic Ministers and Lectors will be commissioned at every Mass.   These volunteers serve our parishioners through these ministries that are so essential to our parish’s celebration of Mass, as well as to the faith of those who are homebound or in nursing homes.  

The Catechism of the Catholic Church (1324-1327), states that, "The Eucharist is "the source and summit" of the Christian life. The Presence of Christ in the Eucharist is the heart of our parish community, and nurtures us as members of the Body of Christ.  We receive His Presence in the Eucharist and are called to bring His presence to others. 

St. Pius X is blessed to have so many members of our faith community who choose to support the parish when responding to their call to serve.  If you ask them about their experience fulfilling their roles in these ministries, it's inspiring to see how their service has touched their lives and deepened their faith.  Some of the testimonials of those who serve in these ministries are included to help you understand the blessing these ministries are and perhaps help you in discerning where and when God may be calling you to serve. 

Testimonials:

“For me to be able to bring Jesus to my homebound brothers and sisters is very humbling.  Those I have served in the past and even now, love Jesus and they yearn for Him! I do nothing.  I am just the transporter.  Jesus is their Hope, Jesus is their Balm, Jesus is their Fulfillment.  

As for me, I have built a relationship with my homebound brother and sisters.  I try to make them feel that they are important to me, because they are.  Sometimes I am privy to seeing their frustrations, their loneliness, their sadness, their pain, their loss of community.  Sometimes I'm privy to seeing their courage, their hope, their gratitude, their love, and their fortitude.  They all have carried big crosses, some still do.   I can't solve their problems, but I hope that my little visit bringing Jesus in the Eucharist assists them in their daily challenges as they fight the Good fight.”

Carla Montesano

"What a sacred privilege it is to bring the Body of Christ to our neighbors who are unable to attend mass yet long to receive Him in Holy Communion. It is immensely satisfying seeing the joy in their faces when receiving Christ under their roof. I am reminded that every intimate moment spent with Jesus will always be life changing."

Rafael Perez

“I would accompany my parents, Millie and Bill Stroderd, to bring Eucharist to nursing homes when I was young. I loved watching them interact with the residents.

So when Jesse Gary one morning in 2013, at 6 am Holy Mass (our priest was absent!) celebrated a Communion service with us and asked after if anyone would be interested in the Nursing Home ministry - I saw it as a sign from God!! With tears in my eyes with the memories of this wonderful ministry - I said yes.

Until the Covid break, once a month our group was assigned to Maison de Lafayette and Garden View. There were 4 or 5 of us each time. Mr. EC Sibille would conduct the communion service while we went to resident rooms to bring Eucharist.

When Evelyn Landry asked me if I would be interested in bringing Jesus to Garden View on Tuesday mornings at 10 - I was so excited.

There are 12 regulars who are saying a rosary in the chapel when I arrive at Garden View. I also bring Jesus into the room of 5 or 6 residents.

It makes me cry to think of the thanks I receive each time I bring Eucharist to those wonderful men and woman. One woman is 102 years old!!!!! I am so unworthy of their praise - being a sinner and all. But....perhaps when my time comes, God will look at the many, many graces He has bestowed on me for this ministry and say:

‘Welcome my child, I know you.’"

Michela Camel

“When I think of the gifts in my life, the opportunity to bring the Eucharist to the Homebound and residents of the Nursing Home is by far my greatest blessing. When I hold the Eucharist and say the words, “Behold the Lamb of God…” and grasp the fact that I am holding the body of Christ and sharing Him with others, I am truly humbled. And the people, Homebound or Nursing Home residents, are so appreciative! Their eyes light up with longing and hunger to be fed. They express gratitude each and every time we meet. Praying with many who are quietly and quickly moving to meet our Lord, I sense a peaceful yearning for they know soon they will be with their God. How truly blessed I am to witness such Faith.  I feel anointed by the Holy Spirit each time I visit “my people” and I continually pray for the worthiness to serve in such a way. I am ever so grateful to truly be a member of the Community of the Body of Christ.”

Millie Migues

“Bringing communion to a homebound person is one simple way that I can serve others during this season in my life ...working full time...with an empty nest. It is a very humbling experience to serve our parishioners who have the desire to consume the Eucharist to bond to us-the church-the body of Christ- when they are unable to join us physically in the celebration of the mass. My hope and prayer in my small action is to quell any doubts about God's presence in their life and to bring Him to them to gain strength to bear any pain they are in and the courage to keep being Christ's light in this world.

Every time I enter a home I serve on a regular basis, I receive thanks and expressions of gratitude, but the gift comes back to my heart three-fold!”

Yvette Davis

“I volunteered to be a Home Bound Eucharistic minister to serve my community and to work on my faith and prayer life. I take the Holy Eucharist to people in assisted living, memory care and the hospital.  There is a dedicated group of people in assisted living who gather each week to receive the Eucharist. We recite the prayers, receive the Body and Blood of Jesus and I usually finish with the prayer of the day and highlight the Saint of the day or a Feast day or Memorial Day.  It is humbling to bring Jesus to people in memory care who are suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. It is inspiring to see them recite the Lord’s Prayer and the joy they express after receiving the Eucharist.  Bringing the Eucharist to people in the hospital is a different experience. I usually bring the Eucharist to approximately 30 patients on Thursday mornings. It is amazing that each room is so different even though the rooms are exactly the same. It is because the people and families are all different. I never know what to expect when I open the door. It can be emotional. There is a lot of suffering in the hospital. Often I can tell that the patient has not received Jesus in a long time and their mother or wife will get emotional to see them say the Lord’s Prayer and open to their faith.  I can truly say that I am humbled and blessed to be entrusted to bring Jesus’s Body and Blood to people in need and the emotion, joy and thanks the people give back to me is deepening my faith and prayer life.”

Clay Young

“Being allowed to share His True Presence as a Eucharistic Minister and to proclaim His Word as a lector are two of the greatest privileges I will ever experience. To know that, despite all my failings, Christ can still use me to serve Him, has brought me such joy and deepened my faith immeasurably.”

Katie Martin

Bringing the Presence of Christ to others is every person’s mission.  Whether we feel called to serve in one of the parish's many ministries or elsewhere, it is our call to be the presence of Christ.  May we become who we receive.

For more information about these ministries, please contact:  Donna Lemaire at [email protected] or 337-232-4656 ext. 3886.