Assumption Catholic Church

06/17/2026

Any guesses?

06/14/2026

You did well this week! This is indeed incense - -there are different types, brands, and scents that we choose from. Some are more colorful - this particular one is very pretty.

The use of incense in the ancient world was common, especially in religious rites where it was used to keep demons away. In Judaism, incense was included in thanksgiving offerings. The Lord instructed Moses to build a golden altar for the burning of incense (cf. Exodus 30:1-10).

We do not know exactly when the use of incense was introduced into our Mass or other liturgical rites. At the time of the early Church, the Jews continued to use incense in their own Temple rituals, so it would be safe to conclude that the Christians would have adapted its usage for their own rituals.

The purpose of incensing and the symbolic value of the smoke is that of purification and sanctification. Psalm 141 says, "Let my prayer come like incense before you; the lifting up of my hands, like the evening sacrifice.”

In the General Instruction of the Roman Missal incense may be use during various parts of the Mass to incense the altar, the Gospel, offerings, priest & people.

The usage of incense adds a sense of solemnity to the Mass. The visual imagery of the smoke rising to the heavens and the smell remind us of the transcendence of the Mass which links heaven with earth. ⁽ᴱᵂᵀᴺ⁾

06/14/2026

Livestream of this Sunday's 9am Mass.

Fr. Joseph Chamblain, OSM - PresiderJune 14, 2026REPRINTED / P...

06/10/2026

This week's . You may have to use your imagination and smoke out some sort of guess.

Hint: It is not popcorn or trail mix.

06/09/2026

Some of you may be receiving strange emails today saying they are from Fr Joe. They are spam. Please ignore them.

06/08/2026

Here is the answer to last week's

It is the Holy Water font, as many of you guessed. We sign ourselves primarily as a reminder of our Baptism, and also because we are entering sacred space after coming in from the outside, secular world.

The font is typically placed near the entrance because, just as we enter the Christian faith through Baptism, so, too, do we enter the church by renewing our entrance into the Church.

06/07/2026

O precious and wonderful banquet, that brings us salvation and contains all sweetness! Could anything be of more intrinsic value? Under the old law it was the flesh of calves and goats that was offered, but here Christ himself, the true God, is set before us as our food. What could be more wonderful than this? No other sacrament has greater healing power; through it sins are purged away, virtues are increased, and the soul is enriched with an abundance of ever spiritual gift. (St. Thomas Aquinas)

Know that in this bread is the body of Christ which hung upon the cross, and in this cup, the blood of Christ which flowed from his side. Take, therefore, and eat his body; take and drink his blood
- and you will become members of his body.

Eat this sacred food, so that your bond of unity with Christ may never be broken. Drink this sacred blood, that price he paid for you, so that you may never lose heart because of your sinfulness
- and you will become members of his body.

06/07/2026

Join our livestream for today's Mass for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ.

Fr. Eugene Smith, OSM - PresiderJune 7, 2026REPRINTED / PODCAS...

06/03/2026

You see this item right when you walk into church....