St. Stephen’s Faith for Life team invites you to a retreat on Saturday, January 26, 8:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m. in FCC 4,5, and 10.  Join us!

Our topic will be Conversion and Evangelization in Today’s World. The retreat includes Mass and adoration. You will have an opportunity to pray, grow deeper in your relationship with Christ, enjoy fellowship with other parishioners, and eat a wonderful lunch provided by the Knights of Columbus. Meet new friends and catch up with old ones!

Visit the Faith for Life adult enrichment events webpage for details!

Come support our parish and school for our 20th Anniversary Gala on March 2, 2019 while enjoying mouth-watering cuisine, dazzling wines, signature drinks, musical entertainment, and silent, hurricane, and live auctions.  Nationally known auctioneer Karen Sorbo will return to St. Stephen to bring bidding excitement to the Hurricane and Live Auctions.  ONLINE BIDDING FOR THE SILENT AUCTION WILL RETURN!!

Get all the details on Mardi Gras web page .

Fall decoration cleanup at Calvary Cemetery is currently complete.
During the cleanup, staff removed all items except for one plant stand per grave site containing one pot of flowers. Unsightly arrangements will be removed.
One wreath for the Fall/Christmas season may be placed on the plant stand and removed by April 1, 2019.
Thank you for helping to keep our cemetery beautiful!

Alpha is an opportunity to explore life and faith in a friendly, open and informal environment. NO pressure. NO follow-up. NO charge! It’s FREE!

Alpha runs in churches, coffee shops and in homes all over the world. Typically, Alpha has around 10-11 sessions. Alpha will include FOOD, a short video/talk and time at the end where you can share your thoughts.

St. Stephen’s Church will be offering Alpha in the Catholic context late winter/spring 2019.  You are also invited to bring a friend or two and they don’t have to be Catholic to join Alpha…all are welcome!

Learn more about Alpha at St. Stephen .

Archbishop Bernard A. Hebda announced May 31, 2018 that the Archdiocese had reached an agreement with survivors of sexual abuse to resolve the bankruptcy that had been filed in January of 2015. The agreement both provides compensation to survivors and resolution of all related claims against individual parishes.

Read the letter from the Archbishop (PDF).
Bankruptcy Settlement Question and Answer sheet (PDF).

From Thomas J. Abood, Chair, Archdiocesan Reorganization Task Force and Archdiocesan Finance Council:  On Thursday, June 28, 2018, the Archdiocese and the Unsecured Creditors Committee filed a joint Plan of Reorganization which marks an important step in effectuating the recently announced $210 million settlement. The key element of this plan is that it is a consensual agreement among all parties working to resolve the bankruptcy and bring a measure of financial justice to those who have been harmed while also allowing this local Church to continue in its mission.

Read the full statement on the archdiocesan website.

Regular Mass Schedules: Mondays – Saturdays: 8:00 a.m. (with some exceptions for Holy Days or Holidays), Saturdays: 5:00 p.m. (except the Easter Vigil), Sundays: 8:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m. (en español) and 6:00 p.m. (No 6:00 p.m. Mass for Easter, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Eve/Day).

Visit the Mass times page for special liturgy schedules for holidays and Holy Days.

American Sign Language (ASL) Interpreter: Saturday: 5:00 p.m.

La Misa en Español: Domingo a las 12:30 p.m.

Sacrament of Reconciliation: Saturdays 3:30-4:30 p.m. and Wednesdays at 7:00 p.m. (except holidays and Holy Days)

Televised: QCTV Comcast cable channel 15 (Recorded Mass of the previous weekend) Sundays: 2:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m.

For those who do not have cable, there is a Mass that is televised on “antenna” TV at 11:00 a.m. on Channel 45 or 5.2.  That particular Mass comes from the Diocese of St. Cloud.

OFFICE HOURS:

Academic Year:  Monday and Thursday – 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.;  Tuesday and Wednesday – 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. when Faith Formation is in session, otherwise closing at 5:00 p.m.;
Friday – 8:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.;  Saturday – 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.;  Sunday – 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Summer:  Monday through Thursday – 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.;  Friday – 8:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Saturday – 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.; Sunday – 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

In the fall of 2016 a team was formed to develop a Strategic Plan that flowed from and supported our mission statement to “Seek, Love, and Serve Jesus Christ”. In the late winter/early spring of 2017 the Strategic Planning Committee held three listening sessions and posted a survey online to allow them to gather the valuable feedback of parishioners.

St. Stephen’s Church is happy to present the strategic plan document to guide the parish as we move into the future.

Strategic Plan Document (printable PDF)

We are listening and responding to the input of our parishioners and want to keep you informed of the parish’s implementation progress.

The banners hung in the church will be reminders of the eight key initiatives that will be our guide in the years to come.

Some highlights of improvements/additions include:

• Benches have been added in the hallways so that seating is available for parishioners and guests.
• High resolution security cameras have been added in the parking lots.
• The parish mission statement, Seek, Love, and Serve Jesus Christ, has been stenciled on the wall above the doors in the Gathering Space.
• The youth ministry program has been revamped and will have consistent Wednesday evening youth group nights in addition to special events each month.
• A full time staff person has been designated to serve as Marketing and Communications Coordinator.

We are committed to updating parishioners about the implementation process through bulletin articles, the e-newsletter, Facebook, and parish website.