The Catholic Parishes 

of Stoughton 

Thank you for your pledge of support!
 
The Immaculate Conception Capital Campaign is off to a GREAT start with many families pledging their support! We are approaching $350,000 pledged of our $500,000 goal!       
We will need everyone’s help to reach our goal. No gift is too small! Most people are spreading their pledges out over two, three, and even four years. We need to reach our goal in
order to start all of the repairs of the
lower church hall, kitchen, bathrooms, handicap accessibility, etc.

Would you please consider
supporting this effort?
,
There are still Commitment Envelopes
located at the entrance way of the Church.
You can also pledge right online! It only
takes a few minutes…

1. Go to www.stoughtoncatholic.org 
2. On the top of the website you will see an option for “Online Giving.” 
3. Select the Immaculate Conception
Online Giving link. 
4. Select “Create a  “New Account.”
5. Follow the step by step forms
to create an account. 
6. Connect your online account to either your bank account or credit card. 
7. Choose “Give a Gift” and select the
“With One Voice Campaign.” 

8.  Select the “Pledge” option, enter in the total amount of your pledge (which can be 
spread out over four years), the
monthly payment amount, and the date 
         you want the payments to start.                  

9. Press confirm and you are done! Your pledge payments will come out each
month directly from the bank account
or credit card you selected.

You can also contact the Business Office to make an appointment for us to help walk you through the online pledge system.
 

Saint James Parish
Capital Campaign Update!

Over the winter months capital campaign information for Saint James will start to be released. The official kick off for the
Saint James “With One Voice” Capital Campaign
is scheduled for the Fall of 2018!!

Peace be with you! 

Welcome to the Catholic Parishes of Stoughton. We are a Roman Catholic community of faith, nourished by the Eucharist and committed to living out our faith in service to others. It’s our hope that no matter where you are on your life’s journey, you will find a home here. Please join us as we worship our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the source of all our faith, hope, strength and joy.

                       Peace and blessings!
                       Fr. Joe Mazzone
                       Pastor of St. James & Immaculate Conception 

 
“It is good to give thanks to the LORD, to sing praise to your name, Most High, To proclaim your kindness at dawn and your faithfulness throughout the night.” Psalm 92: 2-3
 
These are the first words from today’s Responsorial Psalm and how true they are. My friends, we have so much to be thankful for. God has blessed the Catholic Parishes of Stoughton abundantly. Despite our many challenges — finances, aging buildings in need of repair, an aggressively secular culture — we remain vibrant communities of faith, committed to building God’s kingdom and sharing His Word.  To all who have given so generously of their time and their gifts, to all who in their own way are helping to stabilize our finances, you have my deepest gratitude. May God bless you for all that you do.
 
When I arrived in June of 2014, the two parishes has a combined total of thirteen Sunday Masses, significantly higher than any other parish collaborative in the Archdiocese of Boston. Fr. Eduardo celebrated three Masses in Portuguese and Fr. Derek and I split the remain ten Masses between us (five apiece.) As you can imagine, this schedule was unsustainable. It meant that, in some cases, our priests had to literally run from one parish to another to celebrate Mass. We had great difficulty finding coverage when our priests were away. (This continues to be a problem.) We were unable to spend any significant quality time with our parishioners. For a priest, I can tell you, this is particularly painful. We knew the schedule had to be changed and asked your input on how the new schedule might look. Multiple things had to be considered: the Religious Education schedule, choir schedules, etc. but in the end we came up with a schedule that, though imperfect, seemed to work for the time being. In the autumn of 2015, I wrote you all a letter in which I stated, “It seems that we have all adjusted to the new [Mass] times. We have seen an increase in Mass attendance at both parishes and this is a very promising sign. I must remind you, however, that further changes will be necessary in the future.”  It is for that reason I am writing you this letter.
 
Beginning the weekend of July 7/8, the new Mass schedule will be as follows:
 
St. James:       Saturday @ 5PM
                        Sunday @ 9:30AM
 
Immaculate Conception:         Saturday @ 4PM (English), 7PM (Portuguese)
                                                Sunday @ 7:30AM (English), 9AM (Portuguese), 10:30AM (English)
                                                                        5PM (English), 6:30PM (Portuguese)
                                                           
Essentially, St. James will be maintaining its summer schedule throughout entire year. Immaculate Conception will be combining its 10:15AM Mass and 11:30AM Mass into one 10:30AM Mass. All other Mass times remain unchanged. This will accomplish multiple things. It will cause less rush between Masses on Sunday. This is a real issue at Immaculate Conception in which our 9AM and 10:15AM Masses are put under significant time constraints. It will allow our priests to spend more time with our parishioners after Mass and make it much easier for us to find coverage when our priests are away. It will also allow more of you to meet each other and pray with each other, an otherwise challenging task when people are spread out over so many morning Masses.
 
I know change is difficult and it may take some time to adapt to the new schedule (which has the full support of both parish councils.) The new schedule will mean that St. James’ Religious Education classes which normally took place after the 8:30AM Mass will now begin at 8:30AM and lead into the new 9:30AM Mass. Choir schedules will be slightly changed (more information on this will be coming soon) as well as the frequency of the children’s homily at Immaculate Conception. If we focus on Jesus, however, I trust all will work out well in the end. May God bless all of you. 

Fr. Joe
 

The Catholic Parishes of Stoughton 2018 Catholic Appeal campaign is off to a wonderful start! Saint James has 85% of their goal already pledged, and Immaculate is at 101%! The early outpouring of support from so many helps sustain the important ministries that make the Catholic Parishes of Stoughton a vibrant place of worship. If you have yet to give, please pick up a pledge form at the back of the church or   visit bostoncatholicappeal.org. Thank you for your prayers and support.
 
On behalf of Cardinal Sean and the many beneficiaries of the Catholic Appeal, thank you for completing your pledge payments. Every gift is important and appreciated.

Saint James
2018 Goal - $39,357.00
Pledged - $33,624.00
85% of 2018 Goal
In pew envelopes
247% of 2018 Goal

Immaculate Conception
 2018 Goal - $45,886.00
Pledged - $46,515.00
101% of 2018 Goal
In pew envelopes
179% of 2018 Goal

The CORI Process for Parishes
 
Who needs a CORI check?
The Archdiocese of Boston requires that all clergy, including those not serving in a parish, and all parish staff (full and part-time), together with all volunteers (18 years of age and older) who minister to or have the potential for unmonitored access to children, youth, elderly or the disabled, undergo a CORI check. A “CORI check” is an individual’s submission of his/her completed CORI Request Form to the Parish Coordinator in accordance with this Policy. Examples of those ministries which must undergo a CORI check, include, but are not limited to: Ministries to the Dying, Music Ministry, Religious Education, Parish Health Care, Youth Ministry, and Parish-chartered Boy Scout/Girl Scout Troops. If a pastor/administrator has a question with respect to which volunteers have the potential for unmonitored access to children, youth, elderly or the disabled, he should contact the Office for Background Screening.
When to have a CORI check
All clergy, and all parish staff (full and part-time) together with all volunteers (18 years of age and older) who minister to or have the potential for unmonitored access to children, youth, elderly or the disabled will undergo an annual CORI check. All such individuals are required to have a CORI check prior to their employment or volunteer service. It is the responsibility of the pastor/administrator of each parish to ensure that an individual, who is required to have a CORI check in accordance with this policy, does not commence his/her employment or volunteer service prior to the completion of the CORI check.

http://www.bostoncatholic.org/Offices-And-Services/Office-Detail.aspx?id=12320&pid=1470

2018 CORI FORM - ENGLISH
/documents/2018/3/CORI%20Form%20-%20FY18.pdf

2018 CORI FORM - PORTUGUESE
/documents/2018/3/CORI%20Form%20-%20Portuguese.pdf