Godparents who belong to another parish should obtain their certification from their home parish and have it sent to us. Sponsor-certification forms for each godparent must reach our parish office no later than two weeks prior to the scheduled Baptism.
Lastly, parents are required to attend a Baptismal Preparation Session -- a one-time obligation that is not required for subsequent children.
Marriage
If you or a family member is facing a serious illness or is of advanced years, please call the office to arrange for a pastoral visit.
If this is the first time you are experiencing the loss of someone close to you, you may not know what to do or where to begin. This is where the Lazarus Ministry can be of service to you. The members of the Lazarus Ministry can help you to plan the funeral Mass and be there to support you as you move through the bereavement process.
Some of the ways that the Lazarus Ministry attends to the bereaved are as follows:
- First Response and Basic Needs
- Funeral Mass Planning
- Follow up Support
- Annual Memorial Mass
- Referral to Long-Term Bereavement Groups
To learn more about the Lazarus Ministry of St James the Less, please speak with Pat Moke, the Lazarus Ministry Director, or call the rectory at 732-521-0100.
- Old Testament Readings
- Additional Options for the Easter Season
- New Testament Readings
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Job 19:1,23-27
Wisdom 3:1-6, 9 (Short Form)
Wisdom 3:1-9 (Long Form)
Wisdom 4:7-15
Isaiah 25:6a, 7-9
Daniel 12:1-3
A reading from the Book of Job
Job answered Bildad the Shuhite and said:
Oh, would that my words were written down!
Would that they were inscribed in a record:
That with an iron chisel and with lead they were cut in the rock forever!
But as for me, I know that my Vindicator lives, and that he will at last stand forth upon the dust;
Whom I myself shall see: my own eyes, not another's, shall behold him;
And from my flesh I shall see God; my inmost being is consumed with longing.
The word of the Lord.
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A reading from the Book of Wisdom
The souls of the just are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them.
They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead; and their passing away
was thought an affliction and their going forth from us, utter destruction.
But they are in peace.
For if before men, indeed they be punished, yet is their hope full of immortality;
Chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed,
because God tried them and found them worthy of himself.
As gold in the furnace, he proved them,
and as sacrificial offerings he took them to himself.
Those who trust in him shall understand truth,
and the faithful shall abide with him in love:
Because grace and mercy are with his holy ones, and his care is with his elect.
The word of the Lord.
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A reading from the Book of Wisdom
The souls of the just are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them.
They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead; and their passing away
was thought an affliction and their going forth from us, utter destruction.
But they are in peace.
For if before men, indeed they be punished, yet is their hope full of immortality;
Chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed,
because God tried them and found them worthy of himself.
As gold in the furnace, he proved them,
and as sacrificial offerings he took them to himself.
In the time of their visitation they shall shine, and shall dart about as sparks through stubble;
They shall judge nations and rule over peoples, and the LORD shall be their King forever.
Those who trust in him shall understand truth,
and the faithful shall abide with him in love:
Because grace and mercy are with his holy ones, and his care is with his elect.
The word of the Lord.
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Wisdom 4:7-15
A reading from the Book of Wisdom
The just man, though he die early,
shall be at rest.
For the age that is honorable comes not
with the passing of time,
nor can it be measured in terms of years.
Rather, understanding is the hoary crown for men,
and an unsullied life, the attainment of old age.
He who pleased God was loved;
he who lived among sinners was transported–
Snatched away, lest wickedness pervert his mind
or deceit beguile his soul;
For the witchery of paltry things obscures what is right
and the whirl of desire transforms the innocent mind.
Having become perfect in a short while,
he reached the fullness of a long career;
for his soul was pleasing to the LORD,
therefore he sped him out of the midst of wickedness.
But the people saw and did not understand,
nor did they take this into account.
The word of the Lord.
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Isaiah 25:6a, 7-9
A reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah
On this mountain the LORD of hosts
will provide for all peoples.
On this mountain he will destroy
the veil that veils all peoples,
The web that is woven over all nations;
he will destroy death forever.
The Lord GOD will wipe away
the tears from all faces;
The reproach of his people he will remove
from the whole earth; for the LORD has spoken.
On that day it will be said:
"Behold our God, to whom we looked to save us!
This is the LORD for whom we looked;
let us rejoice and be glad that he has saved us!"
The word of the Lord.
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Daniel 12:1-3
A reading from the Book of the Prophet Daniel
In those days, I, Daniel, mourned
and heard this word of the Lord:
At that time there shall arise
Michael, the great prince,
guardian of your people;
It shall be a time unsurpassed in distress
since nations began until that time.
At that time your people shall escape,
everyone who is found written in the book.
Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake;
Some shall live forever,
others shall be an everlasting horror and disgrace.
But the wise shall shine brightly
like the splendor of the firmament,
And those who lead the many to justice
shall be like the stars forever.
The word of the Lord.
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A reading from the Acts of the Apostles
Peter proceeded to address the people in these words:
“In truth, I see that God shows no partiality. Rather, in every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to him.
You know the word that he sent to the Israelites as he proclaimed peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.
He commissioned us to preach to the people and testify that he is the one appointed by God as judge of the living and the dead.
To him all the prophets bear witness, that everyone who believes in him will receive forgiveness of sins through his name.”
The Word of the Lord.
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A reading from the book of Revelation
I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.”
“Yes,” said the Spirit, “let them find rest from their labors, for their works accompany them.”
The Word of the Lord.
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A reading from the book of Revelation
I saw a large white throne and the one who was sitting on it. The earth and the sky fled from his presence and there was no place for them.
I saw the dead, the great and the lowly, standing before the throne, and scrolls were opened. Then another scroll was opened, the book of life.
The dead were judged according to their deeds, by what was written in the scrolls. The sea gave up its dead; then Death and Hades gave up their dead. All the dead were judged according to their deeds.
Then Death and Hades were thrown into the pool of fire. (This pool of fire is the second death.) Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the pool of fire.
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
The Word of the Lord.
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A reading from the book of Revelation
I saw a new heaven and a new earth.
The former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and the sea no more.
I also saw the holy city, a new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,
“Behold, God’s dwelling is with the human race.
He will dwell with them and they will be his people, and God himself will always be with them as their God.
He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain, for the old order has passed away.”
The One who sat on the throne said,
“Behold, I make all things new!
I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.
To the thirsty I will give a gift from the spring of life-giving water.
The victor will inherit these gifts, and I shall be his God and he will be my son.”
The Word of the Lord.
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A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
Hope does not disappoint,
because the love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the holy Spirit that has been given to us.
For Christ, while we were still helpless,
yet died at the appointed time for the ungodly.
Indeed, only with difficulty does one die for a just person,
though perhaps for a good person one might even find courage to die.
But God proves his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us.
How much more then, since we are now justified by his blood,
will we be saved through him from the wrath.
Indeed, if, while we were enemies,
we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, how much more, once reconciled, will we be saved by his life.
Not only that, but we also boast of God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have now received reconciliation.
The Word of the Lord.
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Romans 6:3-4, 8-9
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
Brothers and sisters:
Are you unaware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus
were baptized into his death?
We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death,
so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead
by the glory of the Father,
we too might live in newness of life.
If, then, we have died with Christ,
we believe that we shall also live with him.
We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more;
death no longer has power over him.
The word of the Lord.
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Romans 8:14-23
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
Brothers and sisters:
Those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear,
but you received a spirit of adoption,
through which we cry, Abba, "Father!"
The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit
that we are children of God,
and if children, then heirs,
heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ,
if only we suffer with him
so that we may also be glorified with him.
I consider that the sufferings of this present time are as nothing
compared with the glory to be revealed for us.
For creation awaits with eager expectation
the revelation of the children of God;
for creation was made subject to futility,
not of its own accord but because of the one who subjected it,
in hope that creation itself
would be set free from slavery to corruption
and share in the glorious freedom of the children of God.
We know that all creation is groaning in labor pains even until now;
and not only that, but we ourselves,
who have the firstfruits of the Spirit,
we also groan within ourselves
as we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.
The word of the Lord.
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A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
If God is for us, who can be against us?
He did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all,
how will he not also give us everything else along with him?
Who will bring a charge against God's chosen ones?
It is God who acquits us. Who will condemn?
It is Christ Jesus who died, rather, was raised, who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us.
What will separate us from the love of Christ?
Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword?
No, in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us.
For I am convinced that neither death,
nor life, nor angels, nor principalities,
nor present things, nor future things,
nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature
will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The Word of the Lord.
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A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
None of us lives for oneself, and no one dies for oneself. For if we live, we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord; so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's.
For this is why Christ died and came to life, that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living. For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God; for it is written:
''As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bend before me, and every tongue shall give praise to God. "
So then each of us shall give an account of himself to God.
The Word of the Lord.
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A reading from the first Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians
Christ has been raised from the dead,
the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.
For since death came through a human being,
the resurrection of the dead came also through a human being.
For just as in Adam all die, so too in Christ shall all be brought to life,
but each one in proper order: Christ the first fruits; then, at his coming, those who belong to Christ.
The Word of the Lord.
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1 Corinthians 15:51-57
A reading from the first Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians
Brothers and sisters:
Behold, I tell you a mystery.
We shall not all fall asleep, but we will all be changed,
in an instant, in the blink of an eye, at the last trumpet.
For the trumpet will sound,
the dead will be raised incorruptible,
and we shall be changed.
For that which is corruptible must clothe itself with incorruptibility,
and that which is mortal must clothe itself with immortality.
And when this which is corruptible clothes itself with incorruptibility
and this which is mortal clothes itself with immortality,
then the word that is written shall come about:
Death is swallowed up in victory.
Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?
The sting of death is sin,
and the power of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God who gives us the victory
through our Lord Jesus Christ.
The word of the Lord.
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A reading from the second Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians
We know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus
will raise us also with Jesus and place us with you
in his presence.
Everything indeed is for you,
so that the grace bestowed in abundance on more and more people may cause the thanksgiving to overflow
for the glory of God.
Therefore, we are not discouraged;
rather, although our outer self is wasting away,
our inner self is being renewed day by day.
For this momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison,
as we look not to what is seen but to what is unseen;
for what is seen is transitory, but what is unseen is eternal.
For we know that if our earthly dwelling, a tent,
should be destroyed, we have a building from God,
a dwelling not made with hands, eternal in heaven.
The Word of the Lord.
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Philippians 3:20-21
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Philippians
Brothers and sisters:
Our citizenship is in heaven,
and from it we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
He will change our lowly body
to conform with his glorified Body
by the power that enables him also
to bring all things into subjection to himself.
The word of the Lord.
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A reading from the first Letter of Saint Paul to the Thessalonians
We do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters,
about those who have fallen asleep so that you may not grieve
like the rest, who have no hope.
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose, so too will God, through Jesus,
bring with him those who have fallen asleep.
Indeed, we tell you this, on the word of the Lord, that we
who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord,
will surely not precede those who have fallen asleep.
For the Lord himself, with a word of command, with the
voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God,
will come down from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them
in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.
Thus we shall always be with the Lord.
Therefore, console one another with these words.
The Word of the Lord.
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A reading from the first Letter of Saint John
See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God.
Yet so we are.
The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
Beloved, we are God's children now; what we shall be has not yet been revealed. We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
The Word of the Lord.
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