52 SUNDAYS A Guide to Reclaim The Lord’s Day for Faith and Family 2021 By Anita Houghton and Tara Stenger Office of Evangelization Archdiocese of Detroit Excerpts from the Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition © 1970, 1986, 1997, 1998, 2001 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, D.C. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner. L E O F B C A O T N T E N T S ACKNOWLEDGMENTS VI FEBRUARY 28, 2021 69 INTRODUCTION VII MARCH 7, 2021 75 A LETTER TO MARCH 14, 2021 81 FAMILIES FROM MARCH 21, 2021 87 IX ARCHBISHOP MARCH 28, 2021 93 ALLEN H. VIGNERON APRIL 1, 2021 99 HOW TO USE APRIL 2, 2021 105 52 SUNDAYS XI APRIL 3, 2021 113 FEATURING THE APRIL 4, 2021 119 MARTYRS: THE XIX APRIL 11, 2021 123 CHURCH’S HEROES APRIL 18, 2021 129 FAMILY CONNECTIONS: APRIL 25, 2021 135 USING 52 SUNDAYS IN MAY 2, 2021 A FAMILY SMALL GROUP XX 141 SETTING MAY 9, 2021 145 MAY 16, 2021 151 JANUARY 3, 2021 27 MAY 23, 2021 157 JANUARY 10, 2021 33 MAY 30, 2021 161 JANUARY 17, 2021 37 JUNE 6, 2021 167 JANUARY 24, 2021 43 JUNE 13, 2021 173 JANUARY 31, 2021 49 JUNE 20, 2021 179 FEBRUARY 7, 2021 53 JUNE 27, 2021 185 FEBRUARY 14, 2021 59 JULY 4, 2021 191 FEBRUARY 21, 2021 65 JULY 11, 2021 197 JULY 18, 2021 203 DECEMBER 25, 2021 333 JULY 25, 2021 207 DECEMBER 26, 2021 339 AUGUST 1,2021 213 APPENDIX: AUGUST 8, 2021 219 SCRUTINY GOSPELS AUGUST 15, 2021 225 AND PALM SUNDAY 345 PASSION READING AUGUST 22, 2021 231 AUGUST 29, 2021 237 RECIPE INDEX 357 SEPTEMBER 5, 2021 243 BIBLIOGRAPHY 360 SEPTEMBER 12, 2021 249 SEPTEMBER 19, 2021 255 SEPTEMBER 26, 2021 261 OCTOBER 3, 2021 267 OCTOBER 10, 2021 275 OCTOBER 17, 2021 281 OCTOBER 24, 2021 285 OCTOBER 31, 2021 289 NOVEMBER 7, 2021 295 NOVEMBER 14, 2021 301 NOVEMBER 21, 2021 307 NOVEMBER 28, 2021 311 DECEMBER 5, 2021 317 DECEMBER 12, 2021 321 DECEMBER 19, 2021 329 Acknowledgments Thank you to the many contributors to 52 Sundays including Fr. Steve Pullis for his commitment to supporting this endeavor, and the members of the Chancery who contributed activities and recipes especially the Grobbel Family, Laura Piccone-Hanchon, the Frederick Family, the Joyce Family, the Figueroa Family, the McAfee Family, the Hall Family, the Stenger Family, and the Wilson Family. Thank you to Kristi Socha, Beth Spizarny and Malgorzata Purzycka for submitting their suggestions. Special thanks to Sean Calvin, Patty Chase, Rakhi McCormick, Nicole Joyce, and Mary Wilkerson for their feedback and input into this year’s edition of 52 Sundays. Thank you to Nicole Joyce for editing the book. In addition, thank you to the Archdiocese of Detroit Communications team for their design and marketing efforts. 52 SUNDAYS | INTRODUCTION Introduction Dear Families, When our team was preparing the manuscript for 52 Sundays in the summer of 2019, we could have never dreamed nor anticipated what 2020 would bring. The impact of the coronavirus pandemic has been far-reaching for families: loved ones affected by the illness, financial hardships, the closure of churches, schools, and businesses and as a result, big changes in daily routines and home life. Yet, for every low, there is a high, and even this current scenario has a silver lining. Families are spending more time together and the domestic Church, has, by necessity, come alive! With countless families unable to attend Mass in person, parents brought “church” into their homes, and 52 Sundays was there to help them celebrate Sunday! The Church summons Catholic families, in all their shapes and forms, to be stable, loving, and holy environments where Christ can be encountered. 52 Sundays was created to help families reclaim the Lord’s Day for faith and family – to highlight and reflect on the Sunday Gospel, to explore the lives of the saints, to encourage and introduce a variety of structures for family prayer, and to offer suggestions for food and family fun. The response from families who have been using 52 Sundays has been overwhelmingly positive, and it is for this reason that we have decided to publish another edition of 52 Sundays for the calendar year 2021. It is our hope that this resource will continue to help families encounter Christ anew, grow in a life of discipleship, and witness to the power of his love. This year’s edition includes some new features that we hope you find helpful: × A letter to families from Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron × Family Connections: a way to use 52 Sundays in the context of a family small group setting × Featuring the Martyrs of the Church: a weekly peek into the life of a saint that has made the ultimate sacrifice and laid down his or her life for Christ 52 SUNDAYS | INTRODUCTION × Family Challenge: a way for your family to put the Gospel into action × Triduum Pages: reflections and activities for Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday × Recipe Index: a listing of all the recipes that have been included in this year’s edition The domestic Church flourishes when parents understand that the purpose of parenthood is not merely to raise happy and successful adults, but to raise disciples to be bearers of the Gospel to generations yet unborn. No human community is better equipped to do this than the family, and 52 Sundays is here to help you and guide you throughout the next year. May the Lord pour out his blessings upon your family as you grow together as joyful missionary disciples in Christ. Sincerely yours in Christ, Anita Houghton Associate Director of Evangelization Archdiocese of Detroit 52 SUNDAYS | INTRODUCTION A Letter to Families December 2020 Dear Friends in Christ, As we approach the start of this new year, I am glad to see that this new edition of 52 Sundays will be available to the faithful of the Archdiocese as a tool for families seeking to reclaim the Lord’s Day. As I’m sure you’ve heard your pastors emphasize, the role of parents and grandparents in instilling the faith and nurturing the spiritual lives of your children is irreplaceable: as the first teachers of the faith for them, you are uniquely positioned to have a deep impact on your child’s life of discipleship with Christ. And on my part, I know I have heard just as often from parents that while this sounds like a fine ideal, they sometimes feel at a loss in trying to find concrete suggestions of how to do this. That is why I am happy to hear that this book has been of use to many during this last year, and to see this second edition being presented now for 2021. I hope above all that you find these ideas to be a simple and natural way for you to reveal and share with your child a bit of your own faith that you hold so dear. I have confidence that along with the time you spend with your children with the rest of the Catholic community at Sunday Mass, especially in the partaking of the Eucharist, these additional suggestions about sharing meals, prayer, and activities together will go a long way in building a stronger Catholic community in southeast Michigan: our local church fully embracing her mission to evangelize. 52 SUNDAYS | INTRODUCTION I want to thank you sincerely for your efforts. I have found the many beautiful stories of families rediscovering the importance of spending time together this past year to be incredibly uplifting and encouraging for our future as a Church. Please be assured of my own prayers and gratitude for each of you as you continue to take up with work with Jesus. Entrusting you to the intercession of St. Anne, our patroness, and Blessed Solanus Casey, I remain, Sincerely yours in Christ, The Most Reverend Allen H. Vigneron Archbishop of Detroit 52 SUNDAYS | INTRODUCTION How to Use 52 Sundays At different moments in the Church's history, the family has been called the "domestic Church," a term that describes the character and mission of the Christian Family. This section shows how 52 Sundays can help parents build and strengthen the domestic Church. WHAT EXACTLY IS THE DOMESTIC CHURCH? The domestic Church is more than just enduring world around them, and by the way they show the secular culture and hoping to raise kids mercy to others and model social teaching. As who will go to Mass when they grow up. The opposed to parish programs that are geared more domestic Church does on a small scale, what the toward large groups of people, families naturally Church universal does on a large scale; it makes focus on the particular needs of each individual disciples. Therefore, the domestic Church is a member. Families also have natural structures home where family life is completely centered of accountability because of how well family on the lordship of Jesus Christ, where parents members know each other, and because of how who are disciples of Jesus, embrace their role as much time they spend together. Parents, in their leaders to make disciples of their children. The divinely appointed role as spiritual guides, have domestic Church is not so much about what a level of intimacy and trust with their children, family members do; it is a shared way of life that unlike that of a parish volunteer.