4680 Nottingham Way, Hamilton, N.J. 08690

Families today face many struggles, both through cultural pressure and through the personal struggles that accompany family life. Despite these struggles — and partly as a result of conquering them — families have a great capacity for love and joy, a joy that is strengthened through the peace and truth found in Christ.  
St. Gregory’s Knights of Columbus Council 7677 invites each family in our parish to consecrate themselves to the Holy Family. They want to revitalize our parish by urging our parish families to devote themselves to the ideal model of familial love set by Jesus, Mary and Joseph and to place their family under the protection of the Holy Family. Your family doesn’t have to be perfect to grow in holiness.  
Preparing for the Consecration to the Holy Family is not a single event. It is choosing a way of life for your family. Through this consecration, each participant is consciously choosing to be a beacon of God’s love through His Church. 
Beginning on Saturday, June 8 and culminating at all Masses on the weekend of June 29 and 30 our parish families are asked to engage in serious and mindful preparation for the Consecration to the Holy Family.  

Here are some suggestions on how your family can prepare for the Consecration:

1. Each family should pray together each day for the week before the consecration. Ideally, this will lead your family to continue the practice, at least on a weekly basis, after the consecration has occurred.
2. Each family might intentionally fast from something ahead of the consecration. This fast should last at least a week leading up to the consecration. It is strongly encouraged to fast from something that would normally be consumed or an activity that is regularly done. Fasting helps to discipline our minds and hearts and moves us to be more focused on God. 
3. Families are encouraged to go to confession before the consecration. 

As a parish family at all weekend Masses on June 29 and 30 we will recite the Consecration to the Holy Family Prayer. Will your family be ready? This consecration holds lasting impacts. Although the time of preparation will end and the consecration has occurred, devotion to the Holy Family continues, and we should always strive to resemble their ideal model of a loving family. 


Consecration to the Holy Family Prayer 

O Lord Jesus, you lived in the home of Mary and Joseph in Nazareth. There you grew in age, wisdom and grace as you prepared to fulfill your mission as our Redeemer. We entrust our family to you. O Blessed Mary, you are the Mother of our Savior. At Nazareth you cared for Jesus and nurtured him in the peace and joy of your home. We entrust our family to you. O Saint Joseph, you provided a secure and loving home for Jesus and Mary, and gave us a model of fatherhood while showing us the dignity of work. We entrust our family to you. Holy Family, we consecrate ourselves and our family to you. May we be completely united in a love that is lasting, faithful and open to the gift of new life. Help us to grow in virtue, to forgive one another from our hearts, and to live in peace all our days. Keep us strong in faith, persevering in prayer, diligent in our work, and generous toward those in need. May our home, O Holy Family, truly become a domestic church where we reflect your example in our daily life. Amen. Jesus, Mary and Joseph, pray for us!