Local Jubilee Pilgrimage

As part of the 2025 Jubilee year, all Saint Monica and Sacred Heart parishioners are invited to participate in a parish family pilgrimage on June 28th! We will be traveling to Saint Peter Catholic Mission in Suquamish, one of five local sites approved as pilgrimage locations for the Archdiocese of Seattle. There, we will celebrate Mass together, participate in Adoration and prayers needed to gain the Jubilee indulgence, partake in a bring-your-own picnic lunch, and have an opportunity to pray at the grave of Chief Seattle, the namesake of our archdiocese.

If you would like to participate in this local pilgrimage, please complete this form to let us know that you will be coming. There are two options for transportation:

• Option One: A charter bus will be leaving Saint Monica at 9AM and arriving back around 4PM. The trip is about a 2 hour drive in each direction. Seats are limited and we are asking people to pay $35 for a round trip seat on the bus. We will be praying the Rosary together on the way to the pilgrimage site, and the Divine Mercy Chaplet on the way back.
• Option Two: You are welcome to drive your own vehicle to the pilgrimage site and/or take the ferry and meet us there. Please arrive by 11:00AM for Mass.

Other Important Information: There is no outdoor seating at the location for the picnic lunch. Participants are invited to bring seats for themselves, or blankets to sit on. Please bring your own lunch, there will be room on the charter bus for lunch bags. 

Click here to view the Archdiocese of Seattle page on the jubilee year.

If you have any questions, please contact Tony Brooks at the St. Monica Church office (tony@stmonicami.org).

Clergy: Answerable to God or State

Archbishop Paul D. Etienne

May 4, 2025

Towards the end of this year’s legislative session, the Washington State Legislature passed a bill (SB5375) making all clergy mandatory reporters of abuse, with no exemptions for the privileged communication between priest and penitent during the Sacrament of Reconciliation. This means that by Washington State Law, Catholic clergy are now required to violate the seal of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, better known to many as confession. On Friday, May 2, 2025, Governor Ferguson signed the bill into law.

This weekend at Mass, the first reading was from the Acts of the Apostles. After the apostles were arrested and thrown into jail for preaching the name of Jesus Christ, St. Peter responds to the Sanhedrin:

“We must obey God rather than men.” (Acts 5:29)

This is our stance now in the face of this new law. Catholic clergy may not violate the seal of confession – or they will be excommunicated from the Church. All Catholics must know and be assured that their confessions remain sacred, secure, confidential and protected by the law of the Church.

The Catholic Church agrees with the goal of protecting children and preventing child abuse. The Archdiocese of Seattle remains committed to reporting child sexual abuse, working with victim survivors towards healing and protecting all minors and vulnerable people. Our policies already require priests to be mandatory reporters, but not if this information is obtained during confession.

Click here to read the archbishop’s full statement online.

For the latest news and statement from the Archdiocese of Seattle please visit their newsroom webpage at archseattle.org/news-and-events.

Joy and Blessings for New Pope Leo XIV

Archbishop Paul D. Etienne

May 8, 2025

SEATTLE, May 8, 2025 – We share the joy of people around the world as we welcome Pope Leo XIV as our new Holy Father. Let us pray the Lord fills him with the peace and consolation of the Holy Spirit in these first and early days of his pontificate. Since the Lord has chosen him as the Universal Shepherd of the whole People of God, may we now support him with our prayers and unity.

Pope Leo XIV is an amazing choice as the next successor of Peter. The name chosen tells us he will put the social teachings of the Church at the heart of this pontificate. I have found this man in my brief encounters to be humble, affable, confident and competent in carrying out his responsibilities. We have hopeful and bright days ahead!

We are also immensely grateful to the cardinals who so prayerfully entered the conclave process – a process that is both divine and human - to select the successor of St. Peter. By listening to the movement of the Holy Spirit and their own prayer and discernment, they elected Cardinal Robert Prevost and demonstrated for all of us how we are to live our baptismal calling, in the presence of God.

Click here to read an article by Northwest Catholic on the election of Pope Leo XIV.

The 2025 Annual Catholic Appeal

Together In Faith is the theme of this year’s Annual Catholic Appeal. The Annual Catholic Appeal funds ministries and services for your local Catholic community across Western Washington. This combined effort of parishes and the Archdiocese of Seattle ensures the availability of outreach ministries, Catholic education, faith formation, administrative services for parishes and much more! Please prayerfully consider how you can participate in helping our parish be a light to others.

The archdiocese has set our parish 2025 ACA Goal as $185,639. Donations received over this amount will be returned to the parish as a rebate for the parish project. This year our parish project will be Grounds Maintenance and Beautification. Our parish 2025 ACA Stretch Goal is $250,000.

By now, most of you will have received a letter from our Archbishop about the ACA. Thank you to those of you who have already replied with your 2025 ACA gift or pledge! If you are ready to make an ACA gift, you can do so today by visiting archseattle.org/GiveACA.

Knights of Columbus Family of the Month May 2024

Each month, the St. Monica’s Knights of Columbus Council selects one parish family that models Christian family values and visibly lives them every day. The May Family of the Month is the Maricich family. The Knights ask the nominated family some questions so we as a parish can get to know them better:

How long have you been a Parishioner at St. Monica’s? We became parishioners at the end of 2005 until we moved back East in 2008. After moving back and deciding on a high school for our eldest we re-joined as parishioners in 2021.

What is it about St. Monica’s that keeps you coming back each Sunday? We love the community at St. Monica's! After being away from the parish for 13 years, there were several parishioners that welcomed us back, even remembering our names. We value the time we spend together with our friends and family in this community, both during the Mass and visiting after. 

Tell us a little about your family. How many kids do you have , their names, where they attend school? Gabe and Marisa will celebrate 20 years of marriage in the fall. Our family is blessed to be a part of St. Monica's School where they love their teachers and friends, and this year we have all six of our kids enrolled from pre-K through high school! Filomena is in pre-K, Luka is in 1st grade, Anthony is in 4th grade, Lily is in 7th grade, Petar is in 9th grade, and Matteo is in 12th grade. We are so thankful for the dedication and compassion of the teachers and the classical Catholic curriculum that is taught here!

Are you or your family involved in the Parish or school? And if so, how? Between all 8 of us we definitely dip into several of the ministries at the parish and the school: Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, CYO sports (even the adult softball team), Walking with Purpose women's bible study, Vacation Bible School, Altar Serving, School Mass Choir, Coffee and Donuts, Monica's Table, student leadership roles, volunteering for school events, I think that might be it ;) 

Can you tell us one thing your whole family loves doing when you have time? Anything that involves sunshine! We enjoy being outdoors and playing backyard wiffle ball games, frisbee, spike ball, and swimming. 

What things do you do as a family to keep Christ in your home? Over the years we have gradually built our Domestic Church and added things when we could. We do nightly prayers as a family, regularly celebrate solemnities and saint's feast days, and talk about the seasons of the liturgical year. Our feast day food traditions are always a favorite that the kids look forward to year after year, like our Mary cake on the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and homemade pretzels during Lent. 

Thank you Maricich family for being part of our parish community!

May flowers for Mary

May is the month dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Throughout the month, Catholics give special recognition and honor to her through various celebrations and devotions. At St. Monica, a statue of Mary will be displayed in the sanctuary during the month of May. Parishioners are invited to bring flowers at any time and leave them in front of the image. Vases will be provided and maintained until the end of May. 

The Easter Season

But wait, there’s more! Easter doesn’t end after Sunday. The Season of Easter lasts all the way until June 8, when the Church celebrates the Feast of Pentecost. The Archdiocese of Seattle has put together a webpage for Easter (archseattle.org/Easter) where they provide information on the Feasts and Solemnities of the Easter Season. This page also provides ideas for additional ways you can celebrate the joy of Easter in your daily life.

Registration for this Summer’s Vacation Bible School is now open!

Come spend a while on the Nile! Registration for Vacation Bible School (VBS) is now open! Join us this summer as we adventure through ancient Egypt. Your child will join an Egyptian family and meet Old Testament hero, Joseph, as he journeys from prison to the palace of Pharaoh. This weeklong program includes fun, faith-filled activities, and games, and like Joseph, your child will learn that God gives each of us hope, unique abilities, wisdom, forgiveness, and family. VBS will be held at St. Monica Catholic Church on June 23-27. Please register early, space is limited. We are still recruiting volunteers (both teens and adults) to help put on this great program! Learn how YOU can help this year with VBS! Click here to access our VBS webpage where you can register or sign up to be a volunteer! If you have any questions, please contact Melissa Stewart at faithforward@stmonicami.org.

Archdiocese of Seattle's 175th Anniversary

The Archdiocese of Seattle is celebrating its 175th anniversary this year from January to May. We will mark this anniversary with special Masses and with a “Season of Service”. Learn more about the 175th anniversary at archseattle.org/175.

The first of the special anniversary Masses with the Archbishop will take place on January 25, 2025 at 11AM at the Proto-Cathedral of St. James the Greater, Vancouver.

History of the Archdiocese for 175th Anniversary

In honor of the Archdiocese of Seattle’s 175th Anniversary, a video has been released which briefly outlines the history of our local church community. Visit vimeo.com/1050898649 to watch this video.

Prayer in honor of the 175th Anniversary:

Lord Jesus Christ, you are the beginning and the end, Lord of time and history. We give you thanks for this local Church, and for these 175 years of faith and challenge. Give us the grace we need to respond to the needs of our time with wisdom and compassion. Make us one in mind and heart, and show us how to love all people as you love them. You who live and reign for ever and ever. Amen.

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us. Holy Angels of God, pray for us. St. James, pray for us. St. Kateri Tekakwitha, pray for us. St. Frances Cabrini, pray for us. All holy men and women, pray for us.

Season of Service

To help celebrate the 175th anniversary of the Archdiocese of Seattle, the archdiocesan team is inviting you to join Catholics across Western Washington to volunteer together as the living Body of Christ through the Season of Service from March to May 2025.

During this time, let’s come together to volunteer 175,000 hours to recognize our legacy of faith – and demonstrate our commitment to serving others. Participate in this program by serving others and logging your hours on the Season of Service webpage.

You can join service opportunities in our parish and school ministries. Additionally, there are more than 50 volunteer opportunities that you, a group of friends or family can sign up for on the Archdiocesan website. Together let’s serve and volunteer 175,000 hours by May 31! For more information on the Season of Service and to log service hours, please visit archseattle.org/seasonofservice.

Upcoming Events and Opportunities

We've put together a page of our upcoming events and other Catholic events from around the Archdiocese of Seattle. Click here to check out what's going on in our community and discover new ways to engage in parish life!

Scam Email Warning

The parish staff wants to warn parishioners that someone has been sending emails pretending to be Father Nagel, parish staff members, and our former pastor, Father Freitag. Scam emails typically say that Father is "in need of help" ask if "you are available for an errand" or just asks the recipient to "please respond concerning a sensitive matter". These emails (or texts) are a scam and should be deleted whenever they are received. Legitimate emails from parish staff members will always be sent from an email address ending with "@stmonicami.org". If you have any questions, feel free to contact the parish office directly at parishoffice@stmonicami.org

Sunday Homily Video Recordings

Did you have trouble hearing father's homily at Mass? Or maybe you'd just like to listen to it again? For convenience, we re-upload our Sunday Mass homilies as videos. Each Sunday's homily is typically uploaded by the Wednesday following the weekend Masses. All homily videos are uploaded to youtube, and on our website’s homily page. Looking for a past homily? Our homily page also features an index of our previous Sunday Homilies.

What about weekday Masses? While we don't process separate videos for our daily Mass homilies, they can be watched within the full recordings of our daily Mass livestreams. Browse past livestreams on our Youtube page: www.youtube.com/@stmonicami/streams.

Mass Livestreams? St. Monica livestreams one Mass each day of the week. It can be beneficial to watch weekday Masses via livestream when your schedule does not allow you attend in person. Sunday Mass livestreams are a great resource for parishioners who’s health prevents them from attending Mass. We also recommend watching the livestream if you are unable to attend Mass due to illness. For more information about Mass livestreams, visit our livestream page.

Please note that the general obligation to attend Mass on Sundays (or Saturday Vigil Mass) and Holy Days of Obligation was reinstated (CIC, can. 1247), as of December 8, 2021.