The Seven Sacraments of The Church
Christ instituted the sacraments of the new law. There are seven: Baptism, Confirmation (or Chrismation), Eucharist, Penance, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders and Matrimony. the seven sacraments touch all the stages and all the important moments of Christian life: they give birth and increase, healing, and mission to the Christian’s life of faith. There is thus a certain resemblance between the stages of natural life and the stages of the spiritual life. (CCC #1210)
The Sacrament of Baptism
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, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20)
Holy Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, the gateway to life in the Spirit (vitae spiritualis ianua), and the door which gives access to the other sacraments. Through Baptism we are freed from sin and reborn as sons and daughters of God; we become members of Christ and are incorporated into the Church and made sharers in her mission: “Baptism is the sacrament of regeneration through water in the word.” (CCC 1213)
The Sacrament of Baptism is held on the 1st-3rd Sunday of each month after 10:00 AM Mass in St. Joseph Church. Please contact the Parish Office two weeks prior to the child’s birth to schedule the baptism. Baptism Preparation Classes are held on the fourth Sunday of the month after 10:00 AM Mass in the Cry Room. New parents are required to attend Baptism Preparation Class prior to the Baptism of their first child.
Baptism Registration Form
Baptism Sponsor Certification Form
Christian Witness Form
Contact: Parish Office | 337.334.2193
The Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. 13 The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. (Jesus) said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.” (John 20:19-23)
The Lord Jesus Christ, physician of our souls and bodies, who forgave the sins of the paralytic and restored him to bodily health, has willed that his Church continue, in the power of the Holy Spirit, his work of healing and salvation, even among her own members. “Those who approach the sacrament of Penance obtain pardon from God’s mercy for the offense committed against him, and are, at the same time, reconciled with the Church which they have wounded by their sins and which by charity, by example, and by prayer labors for their conversion.” (CCC #1421-1422)
First Confessions are generally held during the 2nd grade year for students. First Confession must be made prior to First Communion. If you are interested in making First Confession of if you would like to learn more about Confession, please contact the Parish Office.
Confessions are heard thirty minutes prior to each Mass and any other time by calling the Parish Office for an appointment.
Parish Contact: Josette LeBlanc | 337.735.4568 | josette@stjoerayne.org
The Sacrament of The Eucharist
I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.” The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us (his) flesh to eat?” Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats 19 my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever.”
(John 6:46-58)
The Eucharist is “the source and summit of the Christian life.” “The other sacraments, and indeed all ecclesiastical ministries and works of the apostolate, are bound up with the Eucharist and are oriented toward it. For in the blessed Eucharist is contained the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself, our Pasch.” By the Eucharistic celebration we unite ourselves with the heavenly liturgy and anticipate eternal life, when God will be all in all. In brief, the Eucharist is the sum and summary of our faith: “Our way of thinking is attuned to the Eucharist, and the Eucharist in turn confirms our way of thinking.” (CCC #1324, 1326, 1327)
First Communion is traditionally made during the 2nd grade school year at St. Joseph. Anyone interested in making this Sacrament should contact the Parish Office.
Parish Contact: Shelby Fuselier | 337.334.2193 | Shelby@stjoerayne.org
Registration: stjoerayne.org/familycatechesis
The Sacrament of Confirmation
Now when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the word of God, they sent them Peter and John, who went down and prayed for them, that they might receive the holy Spirit, for it had not yet fallen upon any of them; they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they laid hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. (Acts 8: 14-17)
Baptism, the Eucharist, and the sacrament of Confirmation together constitute the “sacraments of Christian initiation,” whose unity must be safeguarded. It must be explained to the faithful that the reception of the sacrament of Confirmation is necessary for the completion of baptismal grace. For “by the sacrament of Confirmation, [the baptized] are 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)
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: Announcing Phase One of Moving the Sacrament of Confirmation to a younger age:
By directive of Bishop Deshotel, starting this Fall of 2023, we will begin the transition of Confirmation in 11th grade to the 8th grade.
We will confirm grades 10 and 11 in the Fall, and grades 8 and 9 in the Spring.
Thereafter, everyone will be confirmed in the 8th grade.
IMPORTANT DATES FOR THIS FALL CONFIRMATION PREP (10TH AND 11TH GRADERS)
Sunday August 20, 2023 at 4pm in the Family Life Center – Parent meeting for all 10/11th graders seeking Confirmation
Confirmation classes will be held Sept 10 through November 12, 2023.
A total of 10 classes will be held in the Family Life Center every Sunday at 3:30pm-5:15pm.
All participants are encouraged to attend the 5:30pm Sunday mass afterwards.
Once Confirmation preparation is complete, all are encouraged and expected to move on to the Rayne Youth program held on Sundays after the 5:30pm mass
A mandatory retreat will be held on Saturday November 18, 2023 at Camp Karol in Moss Bluff, LA. Transportation will be provided. This will be a one full-day retreat (tentatively scheduled to depart Rayne at 7:30am and return at 9:30pm)
The Confirmation Mass will be Sunday November 19, 2023 at 2pm. There will be a practice before this ceremony, date/time to be announced later.
Fee: $100
This fee is to offset the costs of the supplies needed for the prep, to hire staff, and pay the expenses of the retreat. If for some reason someone is not able to pay the fee, please contact Fr Brent for assistance.
Kristina Lavergne will be the leader/coordinator of Confirmation prep until we have fully transitioned to the 8th grade. If you have any questions, she can be reached at her email: klavergne@ndpios.com or you can call Fr Brent at the parish office.
Registration:
stjoerayne.org/confirmation
The Sacrament of Matrimony
But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother (and be joined to his wife), and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, no human being must separate.” (Mark 10:6-9)
Sacred Scripture begins with the creation of man and woman in the image and likeness of God and concludes with a vision of “the wedding-feast of the Lamb.” Scripture speaks throughout of marriage and its “mystery,” its institution and the meaning God has given it, its origin and its end, its various realizations throughout the history of salvation, the difficulties arising from sin and its renewal “in the Lord” in the New Covenant of Christ and the Church. (CCC #1602)
Please call the Parish Office six months to a year in advance of the desired wedding date to schedule an appointment with a priest to start the pre-nuptial process and set the wedding date. Only a priest can set a wedding date. For additional information and requirements contact the Parish Office.
More Details Regarding Marriage at St. Joseph:
Marriage Handout
Wedding Policies
Options for First Readings
Options for Responsorial Psalm (if not being sung)
Options for Second Reading
Contact: Deacon Denis | 337.334.2193 | deacondenis@stjoerayne.org
Ashley Primeaux, Marriage Preparation Coordinator | 337.250.2297 | aprimeaux@diolaf.org
The Sacrament of Holy Orders
Jesus went around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and curing every disease and illness. At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them because they were troubled and abandoned, 22 like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.” Then he summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out and to cure every disease and every illness. (Matthew 9:35-10:1)
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. (CCC #1536)
Anyone interested in learning more about the Sacrament of Holy Orders should contact Fr. Brent Smith.
Contact: Fr. Brent Smith | 337.334.2193
The Anointing of The Sick
Is anyone among you sick? He should summon the presbyters of the church, and they should pray over him and anoint (him) with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up. If he has committed any sins, he will be forgiven. (James 5:14-15)
“By the sacred anointing of the sick and the prayer of the priests the whole Church commends those who are ill to the suffering and glorified Lord, that he may raise them up and save them. and indeed she exhorts them to contribute to the good of the People of God by freely uniting themselves to the Passion and death of Christ.” (CCC #1499)
Contact the Parish Office when there is a need for the anointing of the sick for yourself or a loved one. For after hour emergencies, your call will be directed to an answering service.
Contact: Parish Office | 337.334.2193