Eighteen men and women will finally receive sacraments of initiation this Saturday at a Mass livestreamed from the Cathedral. We rejoice with our Elect and Candidates and our Confirmandi, and with the 12 children from St. Matthew's English Children's Faith Formation program who will receive First Communion the following Saturday.

We ask that parishioners please continue to make a regular offertory gift. If you join us for Sunday Mass, please place your Offertory donation in one of the collection baskets at the exits.

We invite you to use electronic giving to set up a recurring donation or to make a one-time gift. If you haven’t yet enrolled in FaithDirect, our electronic giving program, you may do so at St. Matthew's Faith Direct page (Church code DC284). To make an online gift now using PayPal or your credit or debit card, click here.

Msgr. Jameson in last Sunday's homily discusses the Gospel story that, for him, stands alone in its power to puzzle, and even to shock. Read the homily, or watch the video of the Mass that was livestreamed from the Cathedral.

Celebration of Sacraments of Initiation  

On Saturday, August 22, the Memorial of the Queenship of our Lady, Msgr. Jameson will celebrate a special Mass at 11am for our RCIA Elect and Candidates, our Confirmandi, and their sponsors and families, concelebrated by Fr. Timothy Kesicki, SJ. Three Elect will celebrate Baptism, Confirmation and the Eucharist, two will make their Profession of Faith for Full Communion, and 14 Catholics will be Confirmed. Watch the livestream of the Mass. Read more.

One of our Elect in the Spanish RCIA received the Sacraments of Initiation at a special Mass last month. All our RCIA members and Confirmandi have waited patiently for these celebrations, delayed by the pandemic. Please keep them in your prayers.

Archbishop Gregory will celebrate a special Mass at 4pm on Saturday, August 28 marking the 57th anniversary of the historic March on Washington. All are invited to join via livestream. Auxiliary Bishops Mario Dorsonville, Roy E. Campbell, and Michael Fisher will concelebrate. Archbishop O’Boyle offered the invocation at the 1963 March, where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. See the Catholic Standard article.

On Saturday, August 29, 12 children from our English Children’s Faith Formation program will receive their First Holy Communion at a special Mass to be celebrated at 11am by Fr. Benson. Ten children prepared in St. Matthew's Spanish Children's Faith Formation program received their First Holy Communion in July. Please keep all our children and their families in your prayers.

Find reflections for the coming week.

Monday, August 24 (St. Bartholomew)

Tuesday, August 25 (St. Louis, St. Joseph Calasanz)

“Even so, on the outside you appear righteous, but inside you are filled with hypocrisy and evildoing. Woe to you, . . . you hypocrites.”

Thursday, August 27 (St. Monica)

Friday, August 28 (St. Augustine)

Saturday, August 29 (St. John the Baptist)

“When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.”Invest

Come, enjoy the peace and beauty of the Cathedral and the joys of the Eucharist weekdays at our 12:10pm Mass. This week's celebrants are Msgr. Jameson and Fr. Benson. Doors open 30 minutes before Mass.

The sacrament of reconciliation is celebrated in the North Conference Room by appointment. You may leave a message at the rectory office at 202-347-3215 to schedule a time. A priest will return your call and provide further details. Please note that social distancing is observed and masks are worn. Read more on the sacrament.

Spiritual direction is an ancient form of Christian listening and accompaniment. We provide and refer those interested to qualified spiritual directors who may be clergy, vowed religious, or laypersons, for monthly conversations. Contact Theresa Prymuszewski for more information.

Couples interested in celebrating the Sacrament of Marriage at the Cathedral should review our guidelines for weddings. The next step is to leave a message with the rectory office at 202-347-3215. A priest will return your call to discuss marriage preparation and wedding scheduling. Please contact us at least 9 months before your proposed wedding date. 

Baptism preparation now can be completed online using Baptism MATTERS from Renew International. To receive a baptism application and information on signing up for online preparation, parents should email the Baptism Coordinator. Godparents also may sign up for the online preparation. Read more about Baptism MATTERS.

RCIA is a process for those wanting to explore the Catholic faith and become fully initiated members of the Church. If you are an unbaptized adult who would like to become Catholic, an adult baptized in another Christian denomination who wishes to profess your faith as a Catholic Christian, or a baptized Catholic who would like to complete your initiation in the Catholic Church, we invite you to our virtual Inquiry sessions, Wednesday evenings at 6pm. Contact Theresa Prymuszewski for more information. Our next session is August 19.

This fall, St. Matthew’s Children’s Faith Formation will look very different as we start the year using an online video platform. Our catechists (teachers) will be instructed in the use of this platform. We also are calling forth “helpers” who would be the second adult in the video classroom with the catechist. If you enjoy sharing your faith with our “young Church” and are interested in serving as a catechist or helper, please contact Theresa Prymuszewski.

St. Matthew's Social Justice Advocacy & Education ministry team recently shared on social media that the U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is increasing the citizenship application fee by 80% and adding a first-ever fee for asylum seekers. Let's spread the word about the October 2, 2020 effective date of these and other USCIS fee hikes to those who might be planning to apply for immigration benefits. Find more information.

Email St. Matthew's Social Justice Advocacy & Education ministry if you have questions or are interested in joining this ministry team.

Our parish Monday morning ministry to the homeless has continued, with proper precautions, through these months of the pandemic. We serve our guests outdoors, in front of the Cathedral. How can you help?

To help in any of these ways, please contact Norma Canedo.  

For more local volunteer opportunities, see Catholic Charities' Fall Call for Volunteers.

Organist Colin MacKnight inaugurates the fall 2020 portion of the newly resumed Cathedral Great Organ Concert Series with a recital on Wednesday, September 30 at 12:40pm, open to the public and livestreamed from the Cathedral on our YouTube Channel. Come, bring a friend, and enjoy this 40-minute program in person, or watch live or later.

On Sunday, October 25 at 3pm, enjoy a special all-Liszt concert on both the Great Organ and the Steinway Concert Grand Piano. Details will be available shortly.

Cathedral Young Adult Coffeehouse is a peer ministry for those in their 20s and 30s that meets virtually on Sundays at 7:30pm (*NEW LATER TIME - you can attend 5:30pm Mass and still make the session). Want to join in? Click here to download and join the CYA Slack group where there's always a conversation. A link to join the online session is sent out via Slack each Sunday.

Watch for Fr. Hurley's occasional Saint of the Day videos. This past week he spoke about St. Bernard of Clairvaux, honored on August 20.

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