OneLife LA

Walk, Festival, & Requiem Mass

Saturday, January 18

Cursillo Homeless Ministry

Third Saturday of the Month (January 18)

Our Cursillo Community serves the homeless in nearby cities every third Saturday of the month.  They cook hot meals in their homes; and they provide those hot meals and brown-bag lunches (with meat sandwiches and other goodies) to 150-200 homeless people who live on the streets in Pomona and neighboring cities. 

To find out how you can help with this ministry, please contact Amy Siacunco at (909) 861-7106 or Tony Shatola at (909) 525- 8771.  

Sunday Masses at 1:00 p.m.
for Families with Children

(every Sunday from January 12 through June 22)

St. Denis has a Family Mass at 1:00 p.m. every Sunday (through June 22).  These Family Masses are specifically for families with children in grade 8 and younger, with the children actively participating in all parts of the Mass, including:

            ●  singing in the Children’s Choir;
            ●  serving as altar servers;
            ●  proclaiming the Word of God;
            ●  helping the ushers take up the collection;
            ●  bringing up the bread, wine, and other gifts to the altar; and
            ●  gathering around the altar for the Eucharistic Prayer. 


Every other week, the homily is “child-centered,” with the children sitting down with the priest or deacon to discuss the Gospel.  

On alternate Sundays, the homily is “parent-centered,” with the priest or deacon sitting down with parent volunteers to discuss how the Gospel relates to their everyday lives and to the challenges of raising kids in 2025.

Furthermore, on the Sundays when the homily is “parent-centered,” we have Children’s Liturgy of the Word to help the children better understand the Mass readings.  For Children’s Liturgy of the Word, the children, after the Introductory Rites, go with catechists to the Hall, where they read and discuss the three Mass readings; and they also recite the Apostles’ Creed and pray a simplified Universal Prayer.  Then, they return to the church to participate in the Offertory.

The schedule for the Family Masses is set forth below:

All are welcome—and bring your children and grandchildren who are in grade 8 or younger!

Bible Study Group

Thursdays, 7:15-9:00 p.m. 
  in the Hall (Rooms D & E)

Bible Study Group will be taking a break and will be returning Thursday, January 23rd. 

After finishing their study of the Gospel of Mark, St. Denis’s Bible Study Group is studying the Gospel of John.  The weekly meetings are on Thursdays from 7:15-9:00 p.m. in the Hall (in Rooms D & E).  This is a full immersion in God’s word because, at each meeting, everyone actively participates in reading and studying the Gospel.

The group is led by a facilitator (Jack Ruehlman), who guides and encourages participants on their journey through Sacred Scripture.  By actively studying and living in God’s word, we hope to draw closer to the Lord and enter into an intimate relationship with Him—a relationship that will renew and transform our faith, our life, and our love for one another and His Church. 

The Bible Study Group uses the New American Bible (revised edition), which is available on the U.S. Bishops’ website (Bible.USCCB.org/Bible).  However, we recommend using a physical Bible, which can be purchased at the meetings of the Bible Study Group or at the Pastoral Office (which is open from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday and Wednesday through Saturday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Sundays, and is closed on Tuesdays).  

All are welcome.

Youth Gathering (4:00 p.m.) & Life Teen Mass (5:30 p.m.)

Sunday, February 9

(and on the second Sunday of every month thereafter)

Sunday Youth Gathering 
February 9 at 4:00 p.m. in the Hall

On the second Sunday of every month, St. Denis has a Sunday Youth Gathering at 4:00 p.m. in the Hall.  At the Sunday Youth Gatherings, the teens socialize, enjoy refreshments, learn about the faith, and prepare for the Life Teen Mass.  The Sunday Youth Gathering is for all teens in high school, even those who are not enrolled in Teen Confirmation and those who have already been confirmed. 


Life Teen Mass
February 9 at 5:30 p.m. in the church

On the second Sunday of every month, St. Denis has a regular Life Teen Mass at 5:30 p.m. for all teens in high school.  These Life Teen Masses have contemporary music, which is led by our Youth Mass Band (piano, percussion, keyboard, guitar, and other instruments, plus our Youth/Young Adult Choir).

At these Life Teen Masses, the teens actively participate in every part of the Mass, including:

           ●  serving as ushers and altar servers;
           ●  singing and playing instruments in the Youth Mass Band;
           ●  proclaiming the Word of God;
           ●  sitting down with the priest or deacon to discuss the readings; and
           ●  bringing up the bread, wine, and other gifts to the altar.


These Life Teen Masses also are livestreamed simultaneously to our YouTube channel and Facebook page.

All teens are invited to attend the Life Teen Masses and to sit together in the front rows of the two center sections of pews.

Together in Mission 2024

Annual Appeal

In 2023, the Together in Mission Annual Appeal raised $13.2 million, which was distributed to 62 poor Catholic parishes and 71 poor Catholic schools throughout the Los Angeles Archdiocese.  

The recipient parishes and schools used the funds to invest in new roofs, freshly painted walls, upgraded electrical systems, and new security systems to protect parishioners and students.  In addition, the recipient schools used the funds to buy new textbooks and give students access to the latest technology, thereby preparing them to succeed in our modern world.

Last year, 370 parishioners and families from St. Denis contributed $142,378 to Together in Mission; and, thus, we exceeded our parish goal of $121,273.  Thank you so much for your generosity and for helping us to reach and exceed our goal.

Archbishop José Gomez now invites every Catholic to make a new commitment to Together in Mission for 2024.  This year’s cumulative Together in Mission goal for the archdiocese is $16.9 million; and our parish goal is $123,892. 

This year’s theme is “Be Imitators of Christ,” which was carefully chosen by Archbishop Gomez.  We imitate Christ when we do our best to help the needy—e.g., by providing necessary funds to the poorest parishes and schools so that they can serve their needy parishioners.

In 2024, please be an imitator of Christ by making a generous gift today!  Your support gives our struggling parishes and schools much-needed hope.   

Please note that you do not have to donate any money now.  Instead, we are asking every household and family to make a new pledge this year to Together in Mission.  You can then take the rest of the year to fulfill your pledge.  

You may make a pledge in any of the following ways:
(1)  with the information that was mailed to your home;
(2)  with the pledge envelopes that are available in the pews and the vestibule of the church;
(3)  by visiting TIMGive.org
(please pull down the menu and select St. Denis Parish); 
(4)  by scanning with your phone the QR code near the above picture; or
(4)  by calling 213-397-0682.

However you make your pledge, please be sure to identify St. Denis Parish as your parish so that St. Denis will be credited with your pledge and donation.

Thank you for supporting Together in Mission.

For more information, please watch the following video:

Current Bulletin

Sunday, January 12

Distribution of the 
 Precious Blood of Christ

St. Denis has resumed distributing the Precious Blood of Christ at all of our Masses.  However, to minimize the spread of germs, we are using a method called “intinction,” wherein a minister dips the Body of Christ (the consecrated host) into a cup of the Precious Blood (the consecrated wine), and then places the Body and Blood of Christ onto to the tongue of the communicant.  For details about the benefits of intinction, please read this informative 2018 article, which was co-written by a Catholic priest (with a Ph.D. in biology from Stanford) and a physician. 

Please note that Jesus is fully present in the consecrated host; and we do not have to receive the consecrated wine in order to receive the fullness of Christ in the Eucharist.   


Process for distributing Holy Communion 

At Communion time, everyone is invited to come forward in the Communion procession and to proceed down an aisle to the first Communion minister, who will be distributing only the Body of Christ.  

If you are Catholic and have no serious unconfessed sins, you have the choice to receive only the Body of Christ, or to receive both the Body and Blood of Christ via intinction, as described below. 

Procedure for those who want to receive only the Body of Christ

The procedure for receiving only the Body of Christ has not changed.  When you reach the first Communion minister, you may receive the consecrated host on your hand or on your tongue in the usual way, and then return to your seat.  For a more detailed description, please click here.  


Procedure for those who want to receive the Body and Blood of Christ

When you reach the first Communion minister, please bow your head as a sign of reverence, and then go around the first Communion minster to the nearest intinction minister, who will be holding a specially designed Communion vessel, which combines a ciborium with the consecrated hosts and a cup with the consecrated wine. (Please see the photo above.)  

When you reach the intinction minister, please bow your head as a sign of reverence. Then the intinction minister will dip a consecrated host into the consecrated wine. The minister will say, “The Body and Blood of Christ”; and you should reply, “Amen.” We say “Amen” to affirm that we believe that the consecrated host that is dipped into the consecrated wine is Jesus’s real Body and Blood.

Please open your mouth and extend your tongue outside of your mouth so that the intinction minister doesn’t have to put his or her fingers into your mouth in order to place the Body and Blood of Christ on your tongue.  And please don’t close your mouth until the minister has withdrawn his or her fingers.

After receiving the Body and Blood of Christ, you may make the sign of the Cross and return to your seat.

If you are not Catholic, or if you have a serious (mortal) sin and have not gone to Confession, please come forward for a blessing.  When you reach the first Communion minister, please bow your head as a sign of reverence.  Then, to indicate that you want a blessing, please cross your hands and forearms over your chest as you approach the first Communion minister, who will pray that God will bless you.  After receiving the blessing, please return to your seat.


When you return to your seat after receiving Holy Communion or a blessing, please remain standing to show that you are united with all those who are still receiving Communion.  If there is music, please join in the singing to praise and thank God.  Here at St. Denis, the practice is to remain standing as a sign of reverence until the Eucharist has been returned to the chapel and the priest has sat down. 

Called to Renew Capital Campaign

May 2024 Update

Thank you to everyone who made a pledge in 2023 to the Called to Renew capital campaign, which aims to renew St. Denis Parish and all of the parishes in the Los Angeles Archdiocese over five years.  By God’s grace and thanks to the generosity of parishioners, St. Denis’s parishioners have pledged $2,042,910 to the campaign and have paid $391,725. At St. Denis, the funds will be used for the projects that are outlined here.  

St. Denis has immediate access to 50% of the funds that have been paid; and in future years, we will have access to an additional 25% of these funds.  Furthermore, if St. Denis raises more than our parish goal of $1,735,000, then 100% of the funds raised above the goal will be retained by St. Denis.  

Currently have access to $195,862, which is 50% of the funds that have been raised thus far.  Our first project will be to upgrade and modernize in the coming months the church’s heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system, which currently does not work properly.

Guided by the Construction Department of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, St. Denis recently signed a contract for $110,000 with a vendor for this project.  (The exact timetable will be determined when the vendor has all of the materials on hand.)  The scope of this project is described below:

Furnish the Building Management System (BMS) with HVAC Direct Digital Controls (DDC) system control devices for the following:

A.  (1) Heating hot water system with (1) boiler and (2) pumps;
      (1) Chilled water system with (1) chiller and (2) pumps
      
Furnish new sensors and control devices as required for proper operation, including:

• supply and return water temperature sensors
• DDC controller
• New chilled and hot water control valve assembly with electric actuators
• Start/stop/status/alarm control and monitoring

B.  (16) Fan coil units

Furnish new sensors and control devices as required for proper operation, including:

• supply and return air temperature sensors
• DDC controller
• New chilled and hot water control valve assembly with electric actuators
• Start/stop/status/alarm control and monitoring
• Thermostat with LCD display and local set-point adjustment capabilities
• Economize damper actuators for FCU14 and FCU16

C.  Cloud-based WEB access EMS   
   
Furnish new supervisor for BMS system, including:

• Open BACnet controller
• Enable secure network configuration for SaaS services (Software as a Service)
• Web-based monthly Software as a Service (SaaS)
• Furnish and install cloud-based BMS access with remote monitoring and adjustment, user-friendly graphical user interface, and capability for remote notification of system alarms via E-mail or text message

Thank you for pledging to Called to Renew and for fulfilling your pledges.  When enough additional funds have been paid, we will begin our second project, which is to renovate the men’s and women’s restrooms in the church. 

If you have not yet made a pledge to Called to Renew, you can pledge online by clicking here.  When filling out the online pledge form, please select “St. Denis Parish – Diamond Bar (P469)” from the pull-down menu for “Parish” so that St. Denis will be credited with your pledge and will receive the money that you will donate.

If you have questions, or if you would like to donate an IRA, stocks, bonds, or other assets, please contact St. Denis’s Business Manager (Amy Siacunco) at (909) 861-7106 ext. 119; and she will help you.  Donating appreciated assets may reduce your taxes, but you should consult with your tax professional. 

Called to Renew
Capital Campaign

Thank you to everyone who has made a pledge to the Called to Renew capital campaign, which aims to renew St. Denis Parish and all of the parishes in the Los Angeles Archdiocese over the next five years.  By God’s grace, and thanks to the generosity of those who pledged, St. Denis has reached its pledge goal.  

St. Denis will use the money that is raised to improve much of our physical plant, as described below.

Church

• Renovate the men’s and women’s restrooms 
• Replace the carpeting with more durable flooring (luxury vinyl tile) 
• Paint the interior and exterior of the church 
• Refinish and repair the exterior doors 
• Thoroughly clean the marble tiles and fix broken tiles 
• Repair the kneelers 
• Modernize the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system to be more energy efficient 

Courtyard
  

• Install shade sails to create shaded areas
• Provide outdoor seating areas with tables where people can gather
• Create a safe, outdoor play area for kids
• Create a mobile “St. Denis Café” to offer a range of hot and cold foods 
• Upgrade the lighting and sound system 
• Replace the rotted trellises around the courtyard 

Other Outdoor Areas 
  

• Create an outdoor hang-out space for teens
• Enhance the landscaping – e.g., by using more drought-resistant plants and a drought-friendly irrigation system
• Fix the retaining walls, which are deteriorating

  
Pastoral Office Building 
 

• Renovate the receptionists’ office 
• Refinish and repair the second-floor wooden overhang 

Potthoff Hall 
 

• Replace the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system with a modern, energy-efficient system
• Replace the leaky roof  

Because we have reached our pledge goal, 100% of the money raised above our goal will be returned to St. Denis so that we can make additional improvements.  Therefore, if you have not yet made a pledge, please take home one of the pledge cards from the pews, fill it out, and return it the following week in a collection basket or box.  

Please consider donating $1 per day, which is about $30 per month.  Over the course of five years, $30 per month can really add up and will total $1,800.  

Maybe you can afford a little more and are able to donate $2 per day or about $60 per month, which will total $3,600 over five years.  

Perhaps you can afford $3 per day or about $90 per month, which will total $5,400 over five years.  

Whatever you can afford, please pledge that amount; and then please fill out a pledge card from the pews and return it in a collection basket or box.  


If you prefer, you also can pledge online by clicking here.  When filling out the online pledge form, please select “St. Denis Parish – Diamond Bar (P469)” from the pull-down menu for “Parish” so that St. Denis will be credited with your pledge and will receive the money that you are donating.

If you have questions, or if you would like to donate an IRA, stocks, bonds, or other assets, please contact St. Denis’s Business Manager (Amy Siacunco) at (909) 861-7106 ext. 119; and she will help you.  Donating appreciated assets may reduce your taxes, but you should consult with your tax professional.

  
On behalf of Archbishop Gomez and St. Denis’s Called to Renew campaign volunteers, thank you to everyone who has already pledged and who has returned a pledge card. 

Potthoff Hall
Renovation & Expansion

Figure 1

From a previous capital campaign from 2009-2014, St. Denis has $2.5 million in an Archdiocesan investment pool to renovate and expand Potthoff Hall.  In June 2022, Fr. John began meeting regularly with a working group of parishioners about the renovation and expansion.  In October 2022, they started a formal “Hall Renovation & Expansion Committee,” which includes three architects, a general contractor, and other parishioners, each of whom has been actively involved at St. Denis for over 10 years.  The Committee is now working with construction professionals from the Archdiocese to develop a plan that fits our budget.

The current plan for renovating and expanding the Hall is described below.  The plan was developed after much consideration about the needs of the parish and in consultation with those who use the Hall, including Religious Education, Teen Confirmation, Adult Faith Formation, and the major ministries. 

According to the current plan, we will demolish the wing with Rooms D & E and the bathrooms, and will replace it with a new, larger wing, which is illustrated in the plan view (see Figure 1 above). The new wing will consist of a new secondary Hall, larger men’s and women’s accessible restrooms that meet the current code, and two large storage rooms, because St. Denis lacks sufficient storage.  

The secondary Hall will be substantially larger than our current Rooms D & E, with the height of the secondary Hall matching the two-story height of the existing main Hall.  In addition, the new wing will be at the same floor level as the main Hall for a contiguous look and flow; and the restrooms will be directly accessible from both the main Hall and the secondary Hall, so that people will not have to go outside to use the restrooms.  (For events in the courtyard, these restrooms will have exterior doors that can be unlocked so that people can access the restrooms from outside of the building without having to enter the main Hall or the secondary Hall.)

The main Hall and the secondary Hall will be separated by a retractable wall.  For our largest events, the retractable wall will be open; and the main Hall and the secondary Hall will function as one large space.  At other times, the retractable wall will be closed to separate the main Hall from the secondary Hall, so that two relatively large events can happen simultaneously in these spaces without interfering with each other. The secondary Hall will be able to function independently of the main Hall because it will have a separate, dedicated exterior entrance (see Figure 2 below) and its own kitchenette, plus direct access to the restrooms (as described in the preceding paragraph). 

The remainder of Potthoff Hall will be substantially renovated with all new energy-efficient windows and window shades, new flooring, new wiring, new plumbing, new lighting, new paint, new doors, a new covered exterior courtyard entrance (see Figure 3a and Figure 3b below), a new roof, and a new heating & air-conditioning system. 

Please note that the current plan probably will have to be revised for various reasons, including the limitations of our budget.  We hope to have the plan finalized and approved by the archdiocese, outside architects, and the City of Diamond Bar in the next 6-12 months, with construction beginning by May 2024 and ending by May 2025.

In the coming months, we will keep you informed about any changes to the plan and the timeline.

Figure 2



Figure 3a



Figure 3b