Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Happy Feast Day! While the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul is January 25, our parish celebrates its patronal feast this weekend so that as many people as possible can be present to thank God for our patron, our parish, and all parishioners who continue to fulfill our mission of Forming Disciples in Christ in Community and Proclaiming the Gospel! To honor our feast day and also show our devotion to the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, we will have adoration and Solemn Benediction following all Masses this weekend. To further honor our feast, this year we have something new - a St. Paul Parish Novena.

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Our Patronal Feast Day Our parish celebrates the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul, January 25, as our feast day. Since it is our parish feast, the celebration is moved to the nearest Sunday, which will be next Sunday January 23. That is also our annual parish Eucharistic Devotions, so we will have time of adoration and Benediction after the Masses.

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Merry Christmas! Don’t stop saying Merry Christmas for we are still in the Christmas season! Maybe even throw in a “Happy Epiphanytide!” to people in the checkout line? I grant that one might get you a few looks, but don’t be afraid to continue sharing the joy of the season as Christ the Savior is revealed to us.

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Merry Christmas! And Happy Feast of the Epiphany! Don’t stop saying Merry Christmas for we are still in the Christmas season! Maybe even throw in a “Happy Epiphany” to people in the checkout line? Don’t be afraid to continue sharing the joy of the season as Christ the Savior is revealed to us.

This year New Year’s Day falls on a Saturday but is not obligatory for attendance at Mass. Masses will be: New Year’s Eve (Extraordinary Form) December 31 at 5:30pm New Year’s Day (Ordinary Form) January 1 at 10:00am

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Merry Christmas! And Happy Feast of the Holy Family We had the full four weeks of Advent this year and I hope it was a joyful time of penance and expectation for everyone. Entering more deeply into the preparation disposes us to enter more into the Feasts of the Christmas and Epiphany Seasons. Thank you to all the volunteers who helped decorate and make the Church so beautiful. Don’t be afraid to keep those trees and decorations up - Christmas is just beginning!

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, “Heart of the Shepherd” Pledge Weekend Thank you to all who have sent in your pledge cards for the Heart of the Shepherd Campaign. As I mentioned last week, we have exceeded the goal, but now the work and patience begins. I will keep you updated as payments come back to the parish. In the meantime, I will begin setting up committees for the different projects we are looking to do. We will post updates as we move forward on each of them. On behalf of the bishop and the seminarians and priests and many others who will benefit from your generosity, I thank you.

St. Paul Parish Rectory Office will be closed on Christmas Eve (12/24)

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Happy Gaudete Sunday - Rejoice! As we wear rose colored vestments and light the rose candle on the advent wreath today, we celebrate Gaudete Sunday which means rejoice - we are halfway to Christmas! Also, as we rejoice the church’s liturgical law allows for the organ to be played (moderately) today so as to prepare us for the final stretch of penance and expectation before Christmas.

This year Christmas Day falls on a Saturday, which makes things interesting. Christmas Eve is a Friday thus the regular 4pm Confessions and 5:30 Mass are canceled. Masses will be: Christmas Vigil (Ordinary Form) at 4pm on December 24 Midnight Mass (Extraordinary Form) Christmas Day (Ordinary Form) at 10am As per instruction from the diocese, there will NOT be Saturday evening confessions or Mass on December 25.

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, “Heart of the Shepherd” Pledge Weekend Thank you to those who attended the Mass for Vocations and Reception on November 18. At the time of this writing due to the early generosity of a number of parishioners, we have already made our goal of $165,000 in pledges! 65% of that ($107,000) is returning to the parish for local projects. But there is more!

The Heart of a Shepherd initiative is an extraordinary endeavor designed to strengthen and better meet the needs of the Saint Mary and Borromeo Seminaries, its seminarians, and our newly-ordained and retired clergy. In addition, this effort will aid our parishes in recovery from the economic impact of the pandemic.

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, “Heart of the Shepherd” Pledge Weekend Thank you to those who attended the Mass for Vocations and Reception on November 18. At the time of this writing due to the early generosity of a number of parishioners, we have already made our goal of $165,000 in pledges! 65% of that ($107,000) is returning to the parish for local projects. But there is more!

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Continuing to Move Forward with the 9:30 Extraordinary Form Mass This past summer Pope Francis promulgated a motu proprio regarding the celebration of Mass in the Extraordinary Form, essentially granting bishops more direct oversight of where and when this Form can be celebrated in their respective dioceses. At the same time, the pope also included a number of specific restrictions. Each bishop is implementing this differently depending on the local needs.

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Ad Orientem for Feast of Christ the King through Advent The past couple of years we have highlighted a particular liturgical gesture at Mass during the Advent season. You may remember that “ad orientem” means “toward the East.” It refers to the orientation of our worship of God at Mass. One of the dimensions of the celebration is of course how Christ is present in the midst of the community that He has assembled.

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Candles for the Faithful Departed Like we did last year candles are available to show our prayers for the faithful departed. The cost is $8. The candle will have the name(s) of the person (people) one is remembering. The candles will be on display at the Sacred Heart Shrine on Nov. 20 after the 4:30 Mass when we will bless the candles and light them. They will remain lit throughout the following week, and then on Friday November 26, the 8:30 Mass will be offered specifically for those remembered by the candles. To purchase a candle, fill out the form printed in the bulletin and either drop it off at the rectory or place it in the collection basket in an envelope marked “Memorial Candle.”

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Priesthood Sunday This weekend we will give thanks to God for establishing the holy priesthood for the upbuilding of the Church. Our Diocese is blessed that we have a diocesan seminary where men are trained as priests within our home diocese. Our bishop is showing continued faith in our seminary as he is investing further resources in it to provide holy priests for the future.

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Priesthood Sunday Next Week Next weekend we will give thanks to God for establishing the holy priesthood for the upbuilding of the Church. Our Diocese is blessed that we have a diocesan seminary where men are trained as priests within their home diocese. Our bishop is showing continued faith in our seminary as he is investing further resources in it to provide holy priests for the future.

Encouraging the Culture of Encounter with Jesus Christ, His Church, and All People Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Prayers after Mass - For Protection of Life October is Respect Life month, and we live in a world where the gift of life is actively threatened in many ways. Because the “Culture of death” has so infiltrated our culture, the temptation is to become numb to it or unconsciously (and even consciously) to avoid it in polite company. Sadly, this response is somewhat understandable due to the sheer magnitude of this evil. The reality overwhelms and paralyzes us; we do not want to admit that in our country, the land of the free, we have killed over 65 million innocent children.

Training for all new and current Altar Servers will be held in the church Saturday, October 23rd from 9:00 a.m. to 12noon. Training will cover both Ordinary and Extraordinary Forms of the Mass. Parents of servers are encouraged to attend if possible. Questions, contact Hanna Lidderdale or Joe Guzi