Welcome to St. Thomas Aquinas

Mission Statement We, the Roman Catholic family of  St. Thomas Aquinas, formed by Word and Sacrament, are a welcoming, Eucharist-centered, and culturally diverse faith community.  Together, we answer our baptismal calling to worship God, grow in holiness, and share our faith in Christ by loving and serving others.

Special Liturgies 

Vocations Spotlight

Hello to the family of St. Thomas Aquinas parish! My name is Joe Diaz and I am a parishioner here at St. Thomas.  On August 10th of last year, I became a Candidate for the Permanent Diaconate, along with 17 other men of the Diocese of Charlotte.  I am currently in my second year of Diaconate and have two more years before, by the grace of God, I am ordained into the Permanent Diaconate. 
 
My wife, Carol and I met while attending Glassboro State College in NJ.  We were married in 1977 after graduation.  We stayed in NJ while I completed additional college courses in Computer Science.  We moved to Houston, TX for my first job in computer programming.  My job then took us to Pittsburgh, PA and to Charlotte 17 years ago.  
  
We found a home here at St. Thomas and became parish members in 2001. The more I attended Mass, the stronger my desire grew to formally join the Catholic Church.  After much prayer and soul searching, I joined the RCIA program in 2002.  I came into full communion with the Catholic Church on January 12, 2003.  I continued participating in the RCIA program for a number of years as a Sponsor and Team member.  I am also active as an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion, Lector, Helping Hands Ministry and with the Room in the Inn team here at St. Thomas Aquinas.  Read more...

Building Update

Over the past several months, parishioners from the various commissions have actively participated in the “Create” phase of our proposed facility expansion project. This group has been actively involved in pursuing various design suggestions under the guidance of our architects. By continuing to follow our vision goals, the group has determined our top parish priority focuses on meeting the varied parish program needs, while ensuring building flexibility. The group also determined site layout, accessibility, spiritual, and aesthetic characteristics are also key priorities.

The group design consensus includes the development of a larger chapel and parish hall, functional parish offices, and several rooms varied by size and functionality. The group also supported the redesign of traffic flow, the need to increase parking spaces, improve parishioner accessibility to the church and new facilities, and maintain parish grounds that provide comfortable surroundings. With the design phase being substantially completed, the Building Committee is now focused on finalizing the design, developing financial estimates, and determining the most appropriate building plan. We will continue to keep you informed of our progress toward meeting ourgrowing parish needs.

Growing in Faith and Theology

Programs Offered at St. Thomas Aquinas and Area Churches

Plan to join your fellow parishioners and others across the diocese for on Tuesdays in February as the Growing in Faith and Theology program (GIFT) comes to our own Aquinas Hall with one of the premier speakers in the diocese, Fr. Frank Cancro.  Dates are:  February 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th.

Fr. Cancro, a canon lawyer and pastor of Queen of the Apostles parish in Belmont, will speak with us about Gettin' the Word on the WORD (made Flesh, that is). Who is Jesus? Who is Jesus Christ for you? Who is Jesus for us as Catholic believers. In this course, we will study the development and the diversity of our understanding of Jesus as a person of history and as the Anointed One.

This survey course in Christology will guide us through the life and ministry of Jesus, his miracles and teachings and the church's unfolding history and faith which contributed to the understanding of and belief in Jesus the Lord. Registration information and brochures are available in the narthex of the church.  Course fee is $30.00.

In addition to this program, seven other adult religious education courses will be offered in February at area churches.  Complete course listing and details are available here. You can drop off a completed registration form with a check made payable to GIFT c/o St. Matthew Church in an envelope marked GIFT to our parish office. Any questions, please contact Kathy Johnson at kjohnson@stacharlotte.com or 704-455-6688. 

Listen to Homilies On-Line

Recordings of homilies from St. Thomas Aquinas are now available on our website!   Each week, you can listen to our priests and deacons as they reflect on the Word of God.  Hear a homily that you may have missed -- or listen again to one that you found particularly meaningful.  Past homilies can be found here.
 
          January 22, Fr. Steve            January 15, Fr. Remo            

          January 8, Fr. Steve             January 1, Fr. Remo                        
 
                  

On-Line Giving

Please consider participating in a new program designed to simplify weekly giving at St. Thomas Aquinas.  Electronic Giving will enable every household or individual to make their church offering using electronic funds transfer (EFT).  You may already be using EFT to pay your mortgage, car payment, insurance and utilities through an automatic withdrawal from your checking or savings account.

There is no cost to you for this new giving option.  If you are currently giving on a weekly basis, you will no longer need to write out 52 checks a year or prepare 52 envelopes.  And, when travel, illness or other circumstances prevent you from attending Mass at STA, this program will allow your weekly offerings to continue on an uninterrupted basis.

To participate in the Electronic Giving program, please click here: 

If you have questions and would like more information, contact Cheryl Eckert in the parish office.