St Mary of the Lake Church

06/12/2026

ATTENTION: PARENTS OF CATHOLIC TEENS!

If your teenage son or daughter is interested in deepening their faith and wanting to discover more about what it means to be a Catholic in this highly secular world, then Teen D.E.E.P. is the retreat for them — July 29 through August 1, 2026.

This retreat is for teens who have completed 9th grade to entering 12th grade.

D.E.E.P. is an acronym for Discipleship, Eucharist, Evangelization, and Prayer. This retreat was developed to help attendees go "deeper" in their faith, by developing a closer relationship with the Lord, Jesus Christ by focusing on the removal of the vices that stand in the way of that relationship and striving to live the virtues which counteract those vises.

There is a strong emphasis on building that relationship with Christ through knowledge of the Catholic Faith, the Sacraments, and the points of the acronym — Discipleship, Eucharist, Evangelization and Prayer.

The D.E.E.P. Retreat is presented by Catholic priests, deacons and religious, with support provided by Catholic laity. To sign your teenager up today, call Saint Charles Center at 337-855-1232, Monday through Friday, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

06/05/2026

06/04/2026

Quo Vadis will be held June 26 to June 28, 2026 at Camp Karol Retreat Center in Moss Bluff.
This retreat gives young men who will be in high school to age 25 the opportunity to discern where the Lord is calling them. The retreat is filled with prayer, talks, recreation and fellowship with some of the priests and seminarians from our Diocese, as well as other young men from our area.

06/02/2026

Calling all high school student including incoming freshmen!! Participate in prayer, praise, and pizza on Thursday at Our Lady of Prompt Succor in Sulphur, 1109 Cypress St, Sulphur, LA 70663. See you there at 6:30 pm.

06/02/2026

PRAYER FOR PROTECTION DURING HURRICANE SEASON

O God, Master of this passing world, hear the humble voices of your children. The Sea of Galilee obeyed Your order and returned to its former quietude.
You are still the Master of land and sea. We live in the shadow of a danger over which we have no control; the Gulf, like a provoked and angry giant,
can awake from its seeming lethargy, overstep its conventional boundaries, invade our land, and spread chaos and disaster.
During this hurricane season we turn to You, O loving Father.
Spare us from past tragedies whose memories are still so vivid and whose wounds seem to refuse to heal with passing of time. O Virgin, Star of the Sea, Our beloved Mother,
we ask you to plead with your Son on our behalf, so that spared from the calamities common to this area
and animated with a true spirit of gratitude, we will walk in the footsteps of your Divine Son
to reach the heavenly Jerusalem, where a stormless eternity awaits us. Amen.

05/28/2026

JOIN US ON THE COAST THIS SUNDAY!

Bishop Glen John Provost will be the celebrant for the “Mass to Avert Storms” at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday, May 31, ahead of the 2026 Hurricane Season that begins on Monday, June 1. The annual Mass will take place at Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish Life Center, 5250 West Creole Highway, Cameron, LA 70631.

Immediately following, a vehicle procession will travel a short distance to the Historic Shrine of Our Lady Star of the Sea, 135 Our Lady Road, in Cameron, where the Litany of Loreto and the Prayer for Protection during Hurricane Season will be recited. The Shrine has been granted the privilege of inserting the invocation of “Star of the Sea” in the Litany.

The Shrine enjoys, with papal approval, the same spiritual privileges as would a pilgrimage to the Basilica of Saint Mary Major in Rome, one of the four major basilicas in the Eternal City. The pilgrimage provides a plenary indulgence with the fulfillment of certain requirements, including recent confession, reception of Holy Communion, prayers for the Holy Father, and the recitation of the Creed.

05/28/2026

JOIN US ONE WEEK FROM TODAY!

Monsignor Harry D. Greig invites you to join him on the occasion of his 50th Anniversary of Priestly Ordination on Thursday, May 28, 2026. He will celebrate a Mass of Thanksgiving at 5:30 p.m. at Our Lady Queen of Heaven Catholic Church, 3939 Lake Street. Immediately following, all are welcome to attend a reception in his honor at OLQH Family Life Community Center graciously hosted by Monsignor Daniel Torres and the Parish Staff.

Monsignor Greig was ordained on May 28, 1976, for the Diocese of Lafayette, with his first assignment as Associate Pastor (1976-1980) at St. Margaret of Scotland Catholic Church in Lake Charles and later as Administrator for a short time in 1986. Other parish assignments include Our Lady Queen of Heaven Catholic Church (Pastor, 1991-1995), Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception (Rector, 1995-2003), and St. Mary of the Lake Catholic Church in Big Lake (Pastor, 2003-2017).

In addition to pastoral duties, Monsignor Greig was named the first Vicar General and Chancellor under Bishop Jude Speyrer when the Diocese of Lake Charles was established in 1980. He later served as Administrator of the Diocese (June 2005 to April 2007) while waiting for the appointment of Bishop Provost. He also served three years in Rome, Italy (1988-1991) for the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

“I have been blessed these past 50 years to be a priest in, first, the Diocese of Lafayette, and later in the newly formed Diocese of Lake Charles,” said Monsignor Greig. “Many cherished memories come to mind. I have been privileged to celebrate the sacraments, especially the Eucharist, with many of you. It has been a joy to be part of your lives, and I am grateful to God for His call to share in the priesthood of Jesus Christ.”

READ MORE:
http://www.lcdiocese.org/3-news/4066-monsignor-greig-to-celebrate-golden-jubilee-of-priesthood

05/27/2026

Today, May 27, is observed as Ember Wednesday. The Diocese of Lake Charles, through the Office of Liturgy, offers suggestions as to how to observe the Ember Day.

PRAYER
• Consider attending Mass today.
• Make an effort to pray more than usual offering a Rosary or a period of time before the Lord in the Tabernacle for the intention of healing for victims of abuse, the strengthening of Christian faith, and the reparation and repentance of sins by clergy.

FASTING
• Catholics in the United States are especially encouraged to abstain from meat on all Fridays throughout the year, in remembrance of the day Christ died for our salvation, and to observe fasting during the weekdays of Lent. Both fasting and abstinence are, however, obligatory on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday. Abstinence from meat is further required on the Fridays during Lent, unless a solemnity falls on a Friday. Consider extending this to the Wednesday and Saturday of the Ember Days.
• Consider a small absence (omitting sugar from coffee, drinking water, etc.) as a way to observe the call to penance.

REMAINING EMBER DAYS IN THE YEAR 2026:
• Summer: May 27, 29, and 30
• Fall: September 16, 18, and 19
• Advent: December 16, 18, and 19

05/20/2026

Today, we congratulate Father Charles McMillin on the 24th anniversary of his priestly ministry. Father McMillin was ordained on May 18, 2002. He is retired and assists at St. Theodore Catholic Church in Moss Bluff and St. Pius X Catholic Church in Ragley.

"The priest is not his own. He is a man who must pour himself out daily. Hope is what fills him again when he feels empty”. — Venerable Fulton J. Sheen

PRAYER FOR PRIESTS
Gracious and loving God, we thank your for the gift of our priests. Through them, we experience your presence in the sacraments.

Help our priests to be strong in their vocation. Set their souls on fire with love for your people. Grant them the wisdom, understanding, and strength they need to follow in the footsteps of Jesus.

Inspire our priests with the vision of your Kingdom. Give them the words they need to spread the Gospel. Allow them to experience joy in their ministry. Help them to become instruments of your divine grace.

We ask this through Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns as our Eternal Priest. Amen.