Weekly Update December 15 to December 21, 2024

Announcements

• Christmas Vigil Mass will be December 24th at 4PM. Don't miss our brief Children's Nativity Pageant/choir during the vigil Mass!  
  • And join us at 3:15pm on the loft if you would like to help sing traditional Christmas carols during Mass. Everyone is welcome - the more the merrier!
• The parish office will be closed December 24th-27th and January 1st. 
• No coffee and donuts after the 10AM mass on December 22nd and 29th. 
• Our Children's Church program is thriving, and we're excited to welcome new volunteers! If you love working with children and want to help them grow in their faith during the 10 AM Mass, we invite you to join our team. Contact Kelly Curry at [email protected] or click here to learn more and sign up.
• Gift Card Giving Wreath: Support our Open Door Lunch Ministry by purchasing and donating a Kroger or Walmart gift card for our unhoused neighbors. Take a tag from one of the wreaths located on the side or front doors of the church. Return them to the office or to Fr. Richard with the receipt or amount purchased written on top of card. Thank you for your generosity.
• New ways to give/donate to our parish (click here for details): donate from your IRA or from shares of your stock in a taxable brokerage account. 

ReminderS/Updates

• Please consider donating to our Winter Coat Drive by December 29th! We need coats and jackets, hats, gloves, scarves, and blankets. The collection barrel is in the narthex, by the stairs to the choir loft.

• HELP FEED Your Neighbors AT the CATHOLIC ACTION CENTER

  This Saturday, December 21st. St. Paul purchases and prepares a meal for 150 people on the third weekend of every month. Contact Susan Brown to help: [email protected] | 859-536-0571
• St. Paul's LGBTQ+ Ministry and Fortunate Families group invite you to our Christmas Party! Wednesday, December 18, 6 - 8PM. LGBTQ+ Friends, Family, Allies; ALL are welcome!
• Christmas Plant Memorials: If you would like your loved ones memorialized in our Christmas bulletin and on our parish website this Christmas, please fill out the red form found at the side entrance of the church. A ten-dollar ($10) donation for each family name you would like listed is appreciated, as you are able. 
• From our Laudato Si' Action Team:  Artificial Christmas trees: Those with city service can break down their artificial trees and place them next to your green trash cart at the curb on your regular collection day. Artificial trees in good condition can be donated to the Habitat for Humanity ReStore. Visit lexingtonrestore.com for details. 
• Kroger Community Rewards: Just by shopping at Kroger, our quarterly report amounted to $406.60. Thank you to all who have linked their Kroger card! Please follow the instructions (click here) to link your card (our linking number is "JA381")

Events

• Bible Study will continue Tuesday, December 17th at 6PM in Brossart House.
  • Will resume January 7th, 2025, after a two-week break. 
  • We are using The Great Adventure program: "Unlocking the Mystery of the Bible" by Jeff Cavins and Sarah Christmyer published by Ascension Press.
  • We are discussing 1 & 2 Kings, Ezra, Nehemiah, Jeremiah, and Hosea.
• LGBTQ+ Ministry's Christmas Party! Please join us at 6PM, Wednesday, December 18 to celebrate and support our LGBTQ+ Friends, Families, and Allies. ALL are welcome!
  

Drives and Fundraisers

• Our Winter Coat Drive is ongoing! We need coats and jackets, hats, gloves, scarves, and blankets. The collection barrel is in the narthex, by the stairs to the choir loft.
• The 7th annual Steeplechase Dinner Fundraiser - a five-course dinner with a flight of wine at Tony's of Lexington - is Monday, January 20, 2025 at 5:30pm. Tickets available now.
• Gift Card Giving Wreath: Support our Open Door Lunch Ministry by purchasing and donating a Kroger or Walmart gift card for our unhoused neighbors.
  

A MESSAGE from Dcn. Steve hester

My dear friends and fellow Christians, 

As the Apostle Paul says, "rejoice in the Lord always, again I say rejoice." 

I rejoice every day I'm at St. Paul. This parish is everything the Gospel teaches. "Whoever has two cloaks should share with the person who has none. And whoever has food should do likewise," is the standard at St. Paul's. 

This community loves, accepts, welcomes, and cares for anyone and everyone. We rejoice in Christ's love here at St. Paul, and it is a truly wonderful experience.

I rejoice that I have been able to be a part of it, that the Holy Spirit led me here. And I rejoice that the Spirit continues to lead each of us to follow the Gospel no matter where God's plan leads us. 

I have found that the only difficult part is that God's plans for me often involve a suitcase. It is with excitement, and sadness, that I tell you I have accepted a job in Vermont. It is a wonderful opportunity in a safe space for my family, and I am very excited for this new adventure. 

I will miss each of you, the light you each share with the world, and the wonderful witness to the Gospel that is Historic St. Paul. You will always be my home parish and will hold a special place in my heart. 

Thank you for all the love and goodness that you have showered on me and my family during our time here, and I ask for your continued prayers as I begin a new chapter in my life. 

I love you and miss you already! 

Peace, 
Dcn. Steve

From the Pastor

In the Book of Revelation we read the words, “…and I heard a great voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people.’” On this Third Sunday of Advent (Gaudete Sunday), let us rejoice in the coming Christmas mystery that God did become man and dwell among. He is Emmanuel, God with us and we are his people. This is truly cause for rejoicing. 

In the heart of Jesus, 
Fr. Richard

Trip spotlight: Shrines of Mary Pilgrimage to Medjugorje, Fatima and Lourdes

Bilingual pilgrimage (English and Spanish) with Fr. Richard Watson, Pastor of Historic Saint Paul Catholic Church, and Deacon Ramon Alfaro. Where: Medjugorje, Fatima, Lourdes Trip Dates: June 11-20, 2025 Cost: $4,999.00 Airfare and ALL-Included To register, please contact (855) 842-8001 or (508) 340-9370. You can also view details and register online (click here).

Ministries/services

Open Door Lunch Ministry

For the month of November, we gave out 594 lunches! 

Thank you to all who have volunteered and donated

If you would like to donate, we accept lunch related items such as: water, chips, cookies, soft fruit (bananas, grapes, oranges), cupped fruits, crackers, snack bars, etc. You may bring these donations to the office between 9:00 AM —4:00 PM Monday-Friday or when you come to Mass on the weekend.

The Little Mountain School

We have raised $33,091.05 with our coffee sales for the Little Mountain School in Guatemala. Thanks to all who are now sponsoring a child at The Little Mountain School. Several of the children featured on our website and in the bulletin are now receiving financial support from your generosity. A sponsorship provides an opportunity for a child to receive an education. Blessings to all for your kindness and prayers. 

HELP FEED Your Neighbors AT the CATHOLIC ACTION CENTER

St. Paul purchases and prepares a meal for 150 people on the third weekend of every month. Contact Susan Brown to help: [email protected] | 859-536-0571