Dear Holy Spirit,

For many years, Holy Spirit School was blessed with an excellent pre-kindergarten program. Many of our children were a part of this program, and they received outstanding preparation for kindergarten. To better serve the needs of families and to continue fulfilling the mission of “growing” students in faith, knowledge, and community, the school decided that in the 2023-24 school year, the introduction of a transitional kindergarten program would strengthen the school community and enhance the academic development of our youngest coyotes.

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November is the month when we celebrate All Saints Day. We not only recognize the saints that have been canonized in the Catholic church, but also the saints who are unnamed – maybe a relative, friend or someone we briefly encountered in our life. This is why on November 2nd, we pray for all souls, because even the souls in purgatory have a chance to become an unnamed saint. When we pray for souls, it helps those souls be purified and enter the holies of holies. After all, the word saint in Latin is “Sancti” meaning “Holy One” and this is what the Catholic Church calls us to - holiness.

Since November starts with the feast of All Saints, I would like to share a story of how one of the saints performed a miracle in my life. The image you see is a relic of St. Martin De Porres. It is a piece of his bone, and the relic was given to me as a gift from my mom when I entered the seminary in 2012. Before this, I cared nothing about this relic, but my mom would always share this story with me. When I was a baby, she had worn one of the four relics she had of St. Martin De Porres. One day, she was carrying me in her arms. She looked down and there I was nibbling on her pendant. She paid no mind because that is what babies do. Little did she know I somehow found a way to pry open the case and ate the bone right off the fabric of the image. This story stays with me because I know that the relic and intercessory of this saint are truly present in my life with an indescribable connection to God’s plan and why these occurrences happened the way it did.

The relic stayed with me in my room at the seminary on my prayer altar during the last two years of my studies at Mundelein Seminary in Illinois. I had a difficult year. I would not be able to be ordained as a transitional deacon, because I did not complete two required classes. Although I did take summer courses to make up the courses that year, an unexpected miracle happened. I was given the date, November 3, 2018, for my ordination to the order of transitional deaconate. November 3^rd is also the feast day of St. Martin De Porres, the feast of the Saint whose relic I ate when I was a baby. I have kept his relic with me throughout the years of my calling to the priesthood.

 St. Martin De Porres, Pray for us!

Peace,

Fr. John

Second Collection – Catholic Campaign for Human Development

Next weekend, November 18-19, there will be a second collection to support the Catholic Campaign for Human Development. More than 37 million people in the United States live in poverty. This collection supports programs that empower people to identify and address the obstacles they face in bringing permanent and positive change to their communities.

Christmas Scripture Study

Dear Alpha Participants:

At the end of Alpha Part I, many of you indicated an interest in either Scripture Study or an Advent prayer series. We are offering the following which includes both. This will be helpful In preparing for Christmas.

The three-session Scripture study is on The Infancy Narratives of Jesus. It explores the stories of the conception and birth of Jesus in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. The sessions for this study are on Tuesday Nov. 14, Tuesday Nov. 28 and Tuesday, Dec 5th from 7-8:30pm in the Be Still Room in the Parish Hall. If you are interested in joining, please contact Merry Reardon at merry.reardon@dsj.org by Sunday, November 12th.

Advent Wreaths by USCCB 

Advent (from, "ad-venire" in Latin or "to come to") is the season encompassing the four Sundays (and weekdays) leading up to the celebration of Christmas and marks the beginning the Church's liturgical year. 

The Advent season is a time of preparation that directs our hearts and minds to Christ’s second coming at the end of time and to the anniversary of the Lord’s birth on Christmas day.  

Advent devotions including the Advent wreath, remind us of the meaning of the season. Traditionally, Advent wreaths are made of a circle of evergreen branches into which four candles are inserted, representing the four weeks of Advent.  Ideally, three candles are purple, and one is rose, but white candles can also be used.  

The purple candles symbolize the prayer, penance, and preparatory sacrifices and goods works undertaken at this time. The rose candle is lit on the third Sunday, Gaudete Sunday, when the priest also wears rose vestments at Mass; Gaudete Sunday is the Sunday of rejoicing, because the faithful have arrived at the midpoint of Advent, when their preparation is now half-over and they are close to Christmas. 

The progressive lighting of the candles symbolizes the expectation and hope surrounding our Lord’s birth into the world and the anticipation of His second coming to judge both the living and the dead. 

The use of the Advent Wreath is a traditional practice which has found its place in the Church as well as in the home. The blessing of an Advent Wreath takes place on the First Sunday of Advent or on the evening before the First Sunday of Advent. When the blessing of the Advent Wreath is celebrated in the home, it is appropriate that it be blessed by a parent or another member of the family. 

Advent Wreath making will be Sunday Dec 3rd from 10am-1:00pm in the Parish Hall. Please RSVP by clicking here.For any questions, please contact Merry Reardon at: merry.reardon@dsj.org

Turkeys and Tarps

If you have not had a chance to donate to our Turkeys and Tarps drive, please consider doing so!

For over 25 years our Holy Spirit community has been a ray of hope to the many clients at Sacred Heart Community Services. As the holidays quickly come upon us we again are asked to help those in need. We have the opportunity to provide a turkey, chicken or ham dinner to brighten the season for families in need. As we gather around our table to give thanks we are ensuring that they also have something to give thanks for.

We will be collecting donations from Monday, October 30th, through Sunday, November 12th. A donation of $20.00 supports one holiday dinner, which feeds 12-18 people, or provides two tarps for our Survival Sacks ministry. This year, you can donate in person, after Mass this weekend, or online by clicking here. Select "Turkeys and Tarps" under "funds" to make your donation.

Please be as generous as you can, as there are so many in our community who are in need. If you are not able to participate, we ask for your continued prayers for our brothers and sisters at Sacred Heart.

Together, we can make a difference.

Volunteer Opportunities

Thanksgiving at Sacred Heart

Open your hearts during the holidays and help out at Sacred Heart Community Service’s Holiday Programs.

Your hands are needed to fill food boxes with ingredients for Thanksgiving dinner, stack food boxes, and help distribute food to customers for the upcoming holidays.

Signups for food packing and distribution are now open. It is one spot per person and you must sign up every person who is participating. If a sign up date is full and you want to still volunteer, please contact Mary Jane Vitkovich at mjvitkovich@hotmail.com.

To register for food packing, please click here.To register for food distribution, please click here.

Saints in the City 2023 – Congratulations Hayden

Each year, the Diocese hosts the Saints in the City awards celebration. Each parish honors one youth who displays a love of Christ and shares that love through service, involvements in ministry, and nourishment of their own personal faith. This year marks the 9th annual celebration.

This year’s nominee is Hayden Youn. Hayden is a huge part of parish life in that she regularly attends Mass, participated and held leadership positions in Edge and 3sixty, and has served on both mission trips to Texas and Nicaragua. Congratulations Hayden!

Texas Mission Trip 2024

Registrations are now open! The Texas Mission Trip is scheduled for February 18-24, 2024. The trip marks its 10th anniversary of our National Mission trip, the 8th in San Augustine, Texas. Adults and youth as early as the 6th grade can serve. It is a great way to put faith into action. For more information, visit our website or contact Row David – row.david@dsj.org. Click here to register.

Tryouts for this year’s Christmas pageant will be on Thursday November 30th at 4:30pm in the church. All children ages 5-12 are welcome to participate in the pageant, those in 2nd grade and up can try out for speaking parts. All children who want to participate must come to tryouts.