St. Michael Parish is a vibrant, loving and supportive community. Just as we are called to serve our Lord, we’re called to serve one another, and to that end, we have many opportunities within the parish through which you may share your gifts and talents!

Please read through the various areas of ministry and see where you may be called to serve. To learn more about a ministry, please contact the Parish Office by phone at 781-275-6318 or by email at [email protected] and you'll be put in touch with a ministry coordinator.

Altar Society

Members of the Altar Society (also known as the Liturgical Environment Committee) attend to the maintenance and cleanliness of the physical appurtenances of the Mass, including the altar, the small altar linens, the sanctuary itself, and the holy-water fonts. Cleaning of areas not covered by custodial care is done every week by two parishioners and a more thorough cleaning is conducted each spring and fall.

Arimathea Society

The Arimathea Society is a ministry of consolation to those suffering the loss of a loved one—consolation rooted in the hope which comes from the saving death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Members of the Society help grieving families prepare for the Funeral Masses of their loved ones, and are available to the bereaved throughout all parts of the funeral. The Society helps the family to plan the readings and music for the Funeral Mass. It also assists parishioners who wish to pre-plan their own funeral liturgy or who have family members die in another parish or at a distance.

Bedford Community Table/Pantry

St. Michael Parish is one of several churches and civic organizations in our town which have joined together to provide a dinner meal each week at an open Community Table, for whomever wishes to partake. Older citizens of the town—as well as families and persons in need—enjoy the convenience and availability of a hot dinner in a sociable setting. The Community Pantry, located in the Town Center building {the yellow building} at 12 Mudge Way, stocks nonperishable food for distribution upon application, and is open Thursdays from 4:30 to 6:00 pm. If you have questions about the BCT, please contact the Town Center directly at 781.275.4880.

Catechists

Our Religious Ed catechists play a vital role in creating a proper and solid faith foundation for the children of our parish. Are you prepared to share in the mission work of the church by walking in and sharing the faith, and teaching the Good News to our elementary, middle or high-school students? Then we would love to have you as one of our catechists.

Christian Service Committee

This committee works to assist local families in need to get through financially difficult times, especially at Thanksgiving and Christmas, often in cooperation with other churches and organizations. Food, clothing, toys and other items can be supplied following guidance from clergy, social workers, and school nurses. This work is done confidentially, respecting the privacy of those aided. Parishioners participate through their contributions of food and clothing and from time to time their contributions to special collections earmarked for this work. Due to the confidential nature of this work, committee membership is small, and appointments are made through the Pastor.

Cursillo/Ultreya

An international movement, Cursillo serves those who wish to deepen their faith and commitment to Christ through apostolic action, prayer and study. A short course in Christianity (the Cursillo) introduces new participants to a way of Christian Life. Subsequent group meetings (the Ultreya) provide reinforcement and further formation in living as an active member of the Church. Watch the weekly church bulletin for news of the next Cursillo to be scheduled. Monthly Ultreya meetings are held in the parish hall.

Gardens + Grounds Committee

This committee works to maintain and improve the beauty of the church grounds. Its members plan, plant, and maintain the gardens around the church and rectory, including perennial plantings for long-term landscaping.

Knights of Columbus

The Knights of Columbus is a fraternal order of Catholic men committed to charity, unity, fraternity, and patriotism. It is marked by fidelity to the Catholic Church, to their community, to their country, and to their fellow man. Their many activities and fundraisers aim at church, family, and youth. They work in support of the Pro-Life cause and raise funds for charitable works and youth scholarships. Their recent activities have included a communion breakfast for the Confirmation class, fundraising on Bedford Day with a food booth, a Tootsie Roll drive to aid handicapped children, a Pancake Breakfast on Mothers Day, and various special functions. Membership is open to practicing Catholic men 18 years or older.

Mom-to-Mom

Mom-to-Mom is a Biblically-based program to educate, encourage and equip women for parenting. The program also fosters the growth of wholeness in women, intellectually, relationally and spiritually. It features video lectures, guest speakers and small-group interaction. The program is conducted here by Bedford-area women from diverse backgrounds with children of all ages. It runs from September to April.. A program fee covers materials. Child care can be arranged with advance registration.

Pine Street Inn Ministry

Pine Street Inn, a shelter in Boston, provides services to over 2000 individuals a day. These services include food, medical care, shelter, outreach, education, job training, permanent housing, and transitional support for those guests ready to move beyond the shelter. St. Michael Parish is one of many parishes providing support to the Pine Street Inn. Our parishioners donate food, clothing and household items, and travel into Boston on the first Thursday of each month to help serve the evening meal for the guests of the Inn. St. Michael Parish meets its commitment every month, and everyone is invited to support this all-volunteer program by donating, baking, driving and/or serving dinner. 

Prayer Shawl Ministry

St. Michael's Prayer Shawl ministry creates shawls over prayer and fellowship to be blessed by Fr. Peter and presented to those struggling with a serious illness, undergoing medical procedures, needing comfort after the death of a loved one, or welcoming a new child into the world. These shawls bring enormous comfort and support to those who receive them. Meetings take place after the 9:00am Mass on the first and third Mondays of each month (meetings are rescheduled when they fall on a holiday).


Religious Education

St. Michael’s Religious Education program, with a student enrollment of over 400, supports the families of this Church as they bring their children to a commitment in faith to Jesus, our Lord and Redeemer. A full description of the program may be found on our Religious Education page. The program is implemented by approximately 150 parishioners who serve as catechists, grade coordinators, and supporting personnel. 

Respect Life Committee

This committee, responsive to the call of our Archbishop, acts to foster within our church community and beyond a sense of the enormous sanctity of human life, our awesome gift from God. By prayer, publicity, and works in support of life in all its human stages, it holds up the insights of science and the teaching of the Church that conception marks the beginning of human life which then lies in God’s province until a natural death. They stand against the malice of abortion and euthanasia in concert with other Catholic parishes and other churches. Regular activities of this group include: monthly meetings (occasionally with a speaker on life issues), the annual Boston Respect-Life Walk, Mothers Day flower sale fundraiser for an unwed mothers home, weekly Respect Life inserts in the church bulletin, Pennies-for-the-Unborn collections at the church doors, and a nine-month “spiritual adoption” program of personal prayer for an unborn child ending with a parish baby shower for clients of Heartbeat, a near-by pregnancy help center.

Special activities have included letter-writing campaigns on political issues, and formation of a legislative telephoning group of parishioners who call to influence legislation bearing on life issues.

Rite for Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA)

This is a parishioner-directed program of catechesis/formation for unbaptized persons wishing to become Catholic, baptized Protestants/Orthodox Church members wishing to be received into full Communion with the Church, baptized Catholics who have not received First Communion/Confirmation who wish to return to the Church. The committee works with our priests in the presentation of our Catholic faith. By sharing faith conviction, spiritual insights, and enthusiasm for their life within the Church, they help others who are exploring to come to a sense of what a Catholic faith commitment could mean to them, and in many cases, to make that commitment for themselves.

Saint Michael Women's Club

The Women’s Club provides a devotional/social forum for building community among the women of St. Michael’s Church. They present varied monthly programs of interest to the membership. Recent programs have included spiritual videos, care packages for military serving overseas, a floral arrangement class, a pot-luck supper, and an end-of-year banquet. Meetings are scheduled for the first Monday of the month from October to May.

St. Vincent de Paul Society

The St. Vincent de Paul Society is an international Catholic organization of lay persons founded in 1833. Through parish-based conferences, the Society offers confidential help to individuals and families experiencing temporary financial hardship due to illness, unemployment, etc. If you are a parishioner or friend of St. Michael Parish in need of the St. Vincent de Paul Society's assistance, please call the Parish Office at 781-275-6318 and ask for Extension 222.

Visitation Ministry

Visitation ministers are people already commissioned as Special Ministers of the Eucharist who bring the Holy Sacrament to elderly and shut-in parishioners in their homes and at the Carlton-Willard Village retirement community. After the celebration of the Eucharist (daily and weekends), the visitation ministers are sent forth by the priest with his blessing to the ailing and confined as a link between them and the Church in celebration, to bring to them the support and consolation of our Lord in the Eucharist. This ministry also sponsors the annual Lazarus Day Mass offered on the Saturday after All Souls Day as a consolation for grieving families who have lost a loved one during the year. The visitation ministry sends get-well cards to ill and hospitalized parishioners, sympathy cards and Christmas cards to grieving families, birthday cards to those who it visits regularly, birthday cards to parishioners on their 80th birthday, and cards to children on the first anniversary of their baptism. Visitation ministers are appointed by our pastor. There are three or four meetings of this ministry during the year.

Seasons of Hope

If you have experienced the death of a loved one and are searching for meaning and consolation, we invite you to join a Seasons of Hope group here at our Parish. Season of Hope is a Christ-centered group where we will be able to share and learn from each other as we walk together in faith on our own unique journey of grief.
Our Lord assured us that those who mourn are blessed and that they shall be comforted. Season of Hope helps us come together to share in God’s love. With the support of our faith community, we give voice to our unique journey of grief and find healing and spiritual growth.

Seasons of Hope is centered on Jesus Christ and grounded in the healing wisdom, traditions, and practices of the Catholic Church. It has four stand-alone, six-week seasons and journals that explore mourning through scripture, prayer, reflection activities and faith sharing. Participation in all four seasons is a popular option but is not required.

Whether your loss is recent or long ago, if you are searching for Our Lord in the midst of your grief, Seasons of Hope can help. It is a nurturing link to the Church, the Almighty, and people of faith who truly understand what it means to be broken-hearted.

Come and be comforted!
The next session of Seasons of Hope will run, September 17, 24 and October 1, 8, 15 and 22. For more information or to sign up, please please e-mail [email protected] or call Pat at 781-275-6318, X230.

Women of Grace