A Thanksgiving Feast

On Tuesday the Kindergarten students from St. Columbkille Catholic School came together for a Thanksgiving Feast. With the help of parents who prepared and served a meal, our students were able to celebrate being together in the same spirit of the first Thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Reading at Thanksgiving

Yesterday, before school break, the second graders at St. Columbkille Catholic School did some public readings with a Thanksgiving theme.

 For our great audience we say ....

Afterwards there was a chance to enjoy treats and

 hang out before our six day Thanksgiving break.

Get your Miraculous Medal this evening

The night of July 18-19, 1830 a child woke up Sister (now Saint) Catherine Labouré, who was a novice in the community of the Daughters of Charity in Paris. The child then took her to the chapel where she met with the Virgin Mary and spoke with her for several hours. 

At one point, Mary told her, “My child, I am going to give you a mission.” 

During evening meditation on November 27, 1830, Catherine saw Mary standing on what seemed to be half a globe and holding a golden globe in her hands as if offering it to heaven. On the globe was the word “France,” and our Lady explained that the globe represented the whole world, but especially France. It was a time of great difficulty in France, especially for the poor and unemployed. Streaming from rings on Mary's fingers, as she held the globe, were many rays of light. Mary explained that the rays symbolize the graces she obtains for those who ask for them. But some of the gems on the rings were dark because the rays and graces were available but no one had asked for them. 

The vision changed showing Mary standing on a globe with her arms outstretched and dazzling rays of light still streaming from her fingers. Framing the figure was an inscription: O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.

The vision turned and showed the design of the reverse side of the medal. Twelve stars encircled a large "M" from which arose a cross. Below are two hearts with flames arising from them. Thorns encircle one heart and a sword pierces the other.
 
Mary asked Catherine to, “Have a medal struck upon this model. Those who wear it will receive great graces, especially if they wear it around the neck.” Catherine told her confessor everything that she saw and got his help to carry out Mary's instructions. She didn't tell this to anyone else until shortly before her death.

The first Medals, approved by the Church, were made in 1832 and were distributed in Paris. Devotion spread rapidly as people began it the “Miraculous” Medal. 

The Miraculous Medal is not a “good-luck charm”. Rather, it is a great testimony to faith and the power of trusting prayer. Its greatest miracles are those of patience, forgiveness, repentance, and faith. 

Tonight, after the 5:30 p.m. Mass, members of the Legion of Mary will distribute free medals to everyone there.

Delivering Thanksgiving Meals

Last night people came to help deliver Thanksgiving 

Meals to families who would otherwise be without.

 Families picker up cards with addresses

 where they would deliver the meals.

 Although there were directions, many

 started to map it out themselves.

 There were treats, hot chocolate and

 coffee for those getting ready.

After getting instructions, Deacon Lauber led

 the group in prayer and blessed the food.

The food was then distributed to families ...

 ... who hauled them to their cars ...

... for deliveries to the families.

Thank you to everyone who helped!

More on Souls and Goals

As previously mentioned, Fr. Vogel was recently in St. Louis to compete for the...

... Souls and Goals Soccer Cup.

The game designed to show that priests and men studying for the priesthood take part in normal activities with joy and drew over 1,000 spectators.

Before the game, The Carmelite Sisters of the Divine Heart of Jesus led the teams and the crowd in evening prayer.

In the game, Kenrick-Glennon Seminary Lions soccer team (who play in the CYC's adult soccer league) faced Clergy and Co., a team of priests and a few of their friends.

 It was a tight game that was scoreless at halftime...

... but the seminarians pulled at a 2-0 win in the end.

You can read more about this in the St. Louis Review. They were the source of the pictures shown above.

Ending the Year of Faith

Today's Feast of Christ the King ends the Year of Faith proclaimed by Pope Benedict XVI. The closing Mass in St Peter’s Square included exposition, for public veneration, of the bones of St. Peter. Eight bone fragments were in an open bronze reliquary displayed to the side of the altar.

In 1971, Paul VI was given an urn containing the relics, which were kept inside the private papal chapel inside the Apostolic Palace and exhibited for the pope's private veneration each June 29, for the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul. Sunday marked the first time they were shown in public.

During the ceremony, the Pope – the 265th successor of Peter – held the closed reliquary for several minutes in silent prayer while choirs sang the Nicene Creed in Latin. The bones, which were discovered during excavations of the necropolis under St Peter’s Basilica had never been displayed in public.

“When Jesus is at the centre, light shines even the darkest moments of our lives; he gives us hope,” Pope Francis said in his homily.

At St. Columbkille, to mark the end of the Year of Faith we are renewing our Baptismal Promises.

Renewal of Baptismal Promises: (replaces Creed)

Priest:

Brothers and sisters,
through the Paschal Mystery
we have been buried with Christ in Baptism,
so that we may walk with him in newness of life.
And so, as the Year of Faith comes to an end,
let us renew the promises of Holy Baptism,
by which we once renounced Satan and his works
and promised to serve God in the holy Catholic Church.

(Congregation should be standing.)

And so I ask you:

Priest:  Do you renounce sin,
          so as to live in the freedom of the children of God?
ALL:  I do.

Priest: Do you renounce the lure of evil,
          so that sin may have no mastery over you?
ALL:  I do.

Priest:  Do you renounce Satan,
          the author and prince of sin?
ALL:  I do.

Priest: Do you believe in God,
          the Father almighty,
          Creator of heaven and earth?
ALL:  I do.

Priest: Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
          who was born of the Virgin Mary,
          suffered death and was buried,
          rose again from the dead
          and is seated at the right hand of the Father?
ALL:  I do.

Priest: Do you believe in the Holy Spirit,
          the holy Catholic Church,
          the forgiveness of sins,
          the resurrection of the body
          and life everlasting?
ALL:  I do.

Priest: And may almighty God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
          who has given us new birth by water and the Holy Spirit
          and bestowed on us forgiveness of our sins,
          keep us by his grace,
          in Christ Jesus our Lord,
          for eternal life.

ALL:  AMEN.

Fr. Michael Dodd

Fr. Dodd is a Columban priest who has been able to fill in countless times when our priests were at conferences or out of town. A native of Ireland, he was fond of telling the students at the school Masses that he is the national spokesman for Irish Spring.

Fr. Dodd recently wrote: "I am returning to Ireland to be closer to my aging and ailing siblings and also involve myslef on a part time basis in the fundraising ministry of the Columbans over there. I'm aging too -- 77 on my next birthday."

Fr. Dodd is a missionary priests who served in Korea as well as working in the national office in Bellevue. We thank him for his service to God as well as our parish as he returns to his homeland.

National Catholic Youth Conference

 

The 2013 National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC)

 is underway in Indianapolis. We are represented there.

 

Tonight's Keynote speak is Jackie Francois, who has been to our parish. If you go to NCYC website, you can see streaming video of her keynote address.

These sessions can be watched tomorrow from the same site.

Saturday, November 23

• 8:00 a.m. CST: General Session 3 (Ansel Augustine)
• 10:45 a.m. CST: Workshop D20—What Your Teen Wants You to Know...But Doesn't Tell You! (Roy Petitfils)
• 7:00 p.m. CST: Closing Session and Mass (Archbishop Joseph Tobin, presider and homilist)