I pray that you had a wonderful and relaxing summer enjoying special time with your families and friends. It’s hard to believe that school has resumed. I began teaching my Introduction to Canon Law course on Tuesday. It’s back to lecturing, grading, and meeting with my graduate students!
I’d like to shout out a tremendous THANK YOU to Cecilia Newbill (chairperson) and Denisa Lynk who did an excellent job with the parish picnic. It was a wonderful gathering of parishioners last Sunday. And the many hands that helped with clean-up was also appreciated! The 2025 picnic is scheduled for Sunday, 24 August.
This is a joyous weekend for the Congregation of Holy Cross. On Saturday, five men will profess their Perpetual Vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart (Notre Dame). On Sunday, four of them will be ordained to the transitional diaconate at the Basilica by Bishop Patrick Neary, C.S.C. of the Diocese of St. Cloud, Minnesota. Those men will be ordained to the priesthood on Easter Saturday. I ask you to pray for them as they begin their ministries in Indiana, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. David will be a dorm rector at Notre Dame. Ricky will work in Campus Ministry at King’s College (PA). Aaron will work in Campus Ministry at Stonehill College (MA). Br. Bobby will teach at Holy Cross College (IN). And Noah will work at Holy Cross Parish where I live. I’ve had the pleasure of teaching these men and am so very proud of them as they make a commitment to a life of service.
Please take the time to read through the announcements. There are a few temporary schedule changes as well as new parish programs beginning this month. I’m grateful to all who have volunteered their time to each of these parish ministries. The parish will only grow and increase its ministries if people step up to share their talents. A community is more than attending Sunday Mass. Please consider offering some of your time volunteering with a parish ministry, the Soup Kitchen, or the St. Vincent de Paul Society. A few announcements: Mass Schedule … The one Sunday Mass at 9:30 will continue through the month of September so that the Parish Pastoral Council can discuss it at their meeting in mid-September. We will then have a parish vote.
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd … During the month of September, the Atrium sessions will be held from 8:30 – 9:30 a.m. in the parish basement. August Donations …. Totaled $ 7417.34. Your generosity and the sharing of your treasures will assist our parish as we commence various programs this month.
After School Tutoring … Is free and will be offered every Thursday from 3:30 – 5:30 p.m. in our parish hall. For more information, please contact Michael Busk at (574) 216-6577.
Mobile Key … Employees, Soup Kitchen volunteers, and St. Vincent de Paul Society volunteers who need access to the parish for their ministry have been in the process of meeting with Micah Towery or Dan Mandell to download the app for the mobile key to the parish center door. If you fall into one of those categories and haven’t met with Micah or Dan to download the key, please see either of them after Mass on Sunday and they will walk you through the very quick and easy process. You will need to have your phone with you! The plan is to rekey the glass doors the second week of September, which will then render all existing keys unusable.
High Tea … The Knights of St. Peter Claver, Ladies Auxiliary, Our Lady of Kibeho, Court 416, cordially invites you to High Tea, our first fundraiser, to be held on Saturday, September 14 from 1-3 pm at St. Augustine Parish. Tickets are $20 a person or a table for six can be purchased for $100. If you cannot attend, donations are always welcomed. See any member to purchase tickets or email us at: [email protected]. Tickets are for-sale until September 7 or when all the tickets are sold. Jubilee Anniversary Mass and Reception … All couples who are celebrating their 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, 65th, or 70th wedding anniversary this year, along with their families, are invited to attend the Jubilee Anniversary Mass with Bishop Rhoades on Sunday, Sept. 8, at 11 a.m. at St. Matthew Cathedral. A ticketed reception will follow in the school gym. Anniversary couples will receive a commemorative certificate and two free tickets to the reception. Additional reception tickets for family and friends may be purchased for $10 each. Children ages 10 and younger may attend the reception at no charge. To register, go to diocesefwsb.org/anniversary-masses.
Taizé Service … A diocesan-wide Taizé Service will be held at 7:30 p.m. on September 19 at St. Matthew Cathedral. Join Bishop Rhoades and fellow Catholics praying for the upcoming Synod on Synodality being held at Vatican City during the month of October.
St. Augustine Men’s Group … is an anonymous gathering for those men who struggle with sexual addiction. For more information visit diocesefwsb.org/Augustine or email [email protected] … Brochures are located on the table in the gathering space. This is a diocesan group and NOT a parish ministry. Confidentiality is assured!
Pope’s Intention for the Month of September … For the cry of the earth. We pray that each one of us will hear and take to heart the cry of the Earth and of victims of natural disasters and climactic change, and that all will undertake to personally care for the world in which we live.
Saint of the Week … St. Theresa of Calcutta (05 September). Mother Theresa was born on 26 August 1910 in Skopje, then part of the Kosovo Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire. In 1950 she founded the Missionaries of Charity that had over 5,750 sisters active in some 120 countries as of 2023. Her congregation oversees homes for those who are dying of various diseases. It also runs soup kitchens, dispensaries, mobile clinics, children’s and family counseling programs, as well as orphanages and schools. Her sisters profess “wholehearted free service to the poorest of the poor.” Mother Theresa received a number of honors, among them the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979. She died on 05 September 1997 at the age of 87. She was canonized on 04 September 2016 by Pope Francis and inscribed in the liturgical calendar for the United States in 2022.