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CMG Connect

The Diocese of Charlotte is enhancing its Safe Environment program with new, comprehensive policies and procedures updated for today’s issues and needs. Among other updates, the diocese has shifted from Virtus to a streamlined platform called CMG Connect. CMG Connect will combine all of our Safe Environment screening, onboarding, and training in one place for all clergy, employees, and volunteers.

All who volunteer or work in the Diocese of Charlotte will need to be set up and certified through CMG Connect.

Existing Virtus Users: If your Virtus account contains your email address, please look for an email from the diocese or your local Safe Environment coordinator with instructions for how to access your new CMG Connect account.

New Volunteers: Please contact your local parish’s Safe Environment coordinator for further instructions or you can visit https://charlottediocese.org/offices/safe-environment/ to register as a new volunteer.

 

Questions? Please contact your local Safe Environment coordinator, Lisa Hornung, at lisah@stmattthewcatholic.org. You may also contact the Diocese Safe Environment Office at safeenvironment@rcdoc.org.

A Biblical Walk Through the Mass

This five-session program will be led by Father Davis on Thursdays starting Feb. 15th.

It will be held in the Banquet Room (main campus) from 7 – 8 pm. The cost of the class is $25.00, which includes the workbook.

Discover the Beauty and Riches of the Mass

The Mass is nothing short of amazing. Through it, we encounter God in the most intimate way possible as we hear him speak to us in the Liturgy of the Word and as we receive him Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity in the Holy Eucharist.

The words, the gestures, and the rituals of the Mass are rich in meaning. Everything we say and do in the Liturgy is steeped in biblical language. A Biblical Walk Through the Mass explores the extraordinary biblical roots of the Liturgy and reveals what it all means and why it all matters. This fascinating tour of the Mass will renew your faith and deepen your love for and devotion to the Holy Eucharist.

“Dr. Sri’s best-selling study program, A Biblical Walk Through the Mass, has been a blessing for thousands over the past decade. We need to recommit ourselves to the central act of our faith with passion and joy. This marvelously written aid will help us join ourselves to the Lord as he offers himself to the Father in the Sacrifice of the Mass.”

— Most Reverend Charles J. Chaput

OFM Cap., archbishop emeritus of Philadelphia

 

 

If you have any questions about this program or registration, please reach out to Alle Juda, allej@stmatthewcatholic.org.

Thank you so much and we are excited to have you join this beautiful study during Lent.

 

Welcome to Lent

Each week during Lent, we are pleased to offer a variety of ways to join us on our parish journey. Connect with us for one, some, or all of our Lenten opportunities. Please take a minute to watch the video below and then click on the link to our Lent webpage, Our Lenten Journey, for more information on how we can journey toward Lent together. We hope to see you!

Father Balkey Welcomes You to Lent
Kick Off Your Lenten Journey with Father Davis

Wildcat Fund

Support and Donate to the St. Matthew Catholic School Annual Wildcat Fund

We invite you to join us in Educating Saints and Scholars by donating to the 2023-2024 Wildcat Annual Fund. This year’s goal is to raise $70,000 to provide our exceptional teachers with even more support, upgrade our technology to new heights, and ignite a fresh wave of enthusiasm in our Catholicity and cultural development efforts, making this our best year yet! Gifts of all sizes make an immediate difference and are tax-deductible. Last Year’s Wildcat Fund was a HUGE Success! Meeting our goal meant we could purchase a high-tech audio system, fund professional development for our staff, and foster Catholicity with our special spring meal-packing event. We are grateful for your support of the Wildcat Annual Fund and our school. Your gift will help us to continue our mission to provide an atmosphere of faith and love where Jesus is alive and where students will be able to develop spiritually, intellectually, emotionally, physically, and socially.

Click the video to watch a special 2023-2024 Wildcat Annual Fund kickoff message from St. Matthew Catholic School Principal, Kevin O’Herron.

Made for Heaven: Lenten Study 2024

Join Fr. Agustino Torres, CFR—founder of Corazón Puro—on a multimedia Lenten journey inspired by St. Francis. Begin the season with a vow of poverty and end at Easter with a heart free from the desert of sin and open to love, serve, and care for others. A life of simplicity and poverty orients you toward God’s love and reminds you that you are made for heaven. In six transformative weeks, you will learn how to allow the Holy Spirit to move in your heart through a new theme each week.
 
Class times:
 
Main campus:
 
Mondays, Feb. 12 – March 25
7 – 8 pm
in the banquet room
 
Thursdays, Feb. 15 – March 21
9:45-10:45 am
in the banquet room
 
Waxhaw campus:
Wednesdays, Feb. 14 – March 27
10 am to noon

2023 Electronic Tax Statements for Charitable Contributions

2023 E-Tax Statements are available to all parishioners on request. Please email your request to Lisa Rickher at lrickher@stmatthewcatholic.org and include your name, family envelope number, and your email address.

St. Matthew parishioners who received an E-Tax Statement last year will automatically receive their 2023 Tax E-Statement before the end of January 2024 provided your registration information has been updated with any changes.

2023 Tax Statements will be mailed by the end of January 2024 to those parishioners not receiving an E-Tax Statement.

Volunteers Needed: Pastoral Care Ministry

We are in need of volunteers for our Pastoral Care Ministry. Holy Communion is a grace-giving sign of God’s constant, faithful love. As people of God, we need to share that grace-filled love with those who are unable to come to church. We are in need of volunteers to bring the Eucharist to our parishioners who are homebound, hospitalized, or restricted to a nursing facility. This ministry is vital to ensure that those who are sick are aware of our love, and even more importantly, keeping them connected to the sacramental life of the Church.
 
Please contact Father Davis if you are interested in serving in this very special ministry at bdavis@stmatthewcatholic.org or 704-543-7677 x1067.
 

A Friendly Note to the Parents of Our Young Children

Relax! God put the wiggle in children; don’t feel you have to suppress it in God’s house. All are welcome!

  • Sit toward the front where it is easier for your little ones to see and hear what’s going on at the altar. They tire of seeing the backs of others’ heads.
  • Quietly explain the parts of the Mass and actions of the priest, altar servers, choir, etc.
  • Sing the hymns, pray, and voice the responses. Children learn by copying you.
  • If you have to leave Mass with your child, feel free to do so, but please come back. As Jesus said, “Let the children come to me”
  • Remember that the way we welcome children in church directly affects the way they respond to the church, to God, and to one another. Let them know that they are at home in this house of worship.

To other members of our parish:

The presence of children is a gift to the church, and they are a reminder that our parish is growing!

Please welcome our children and give a smile of encouragement to their parents. If you see a parent struggling, please offer to help them!