St. Christopher Catholic Church
1225 S. Wilson Rd.
Radcliff, KY 40160
Phone: 270-351-3706
Fax: 270-351-2843
Email: church@stchristopherparish.org
Web site: www.stchristopherparish.org

November 2007

Dear People of St. Christopher Church:

The year 2008 will mark the 50th Anniversary of the establishment of St. Christopher Church on August 25, 1958. The parish was established under the title of “St. Christopher, Martyr”. A “Golden Anniversary” Committee is now being formed to plan the events to mark this important milestone in our parish life. There are tentative plans for an updated Parish Directory with pictures from the parish history. We are looking into commemorative items such as coffee mugs and glasses. The culmination will be the “Golden Anniversary Mass” on Saturday, September 13th at 5:00 p.m. with Archbishop Kurtz. Following the Mass there will be a dinner and program in the gym of the former school. Mark your calendars now for Saturday, September 13th.

The busy time of the year is now upon us and soon we will be into the “holiday rush”. In the midst of all the business, don’t let your spiritual life slip. It’s easy for us to let this happen, and when it does, we loose sight of the Reason for all of our business and preparation. As you can see in this edition of our newsletter, the parish is offering many opportunities to help you keep your focus in the weeks ahead. We must, however, apply our free will, and part of this is the proper management of our time. Take control of your calendar and don’t allow your calendar to control you. Set your priorities and be willing to say “no” to even some good things. We’re not God. We can’t do everything!

Please keep this newsletter for easy reference in the months ahead. Let us be grateful for God’s abundant blessings upon us and our parish. And may we show our gratitude by lives of generous service to others.

Sincerely in Christ,


Rev. Dennis Cousens
Pastor

Schedule of Masses for
Christmas, The Nativity of the Lord:
Christmas Eve, Monday, December 24th:
5:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m.
Christmas Day,
Tuesday, December 25th:
10:00 a.m.
New Year’s Day, January 1st is the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, and a Holy Day of Obligation. The schedule of Masses will be as follows:
New Year’s Eve,
Monday, December 31st:
7:00 p.m. Mass
11:30 p.m. Mass,
proceeded by a Holy Hour
from 10:30 to 11:30 p.m.
New Year’s Day, Tuesday, January 1st
10:00 a.m.
If you are looking for an alternative to the usual New Year’s Eve parties of drinking and debauchery, welcome in the New Year by being in church for Eucharistic Adoration and Mass at 11:30 p.m. There are tentative plans for a simple “New Year’s Morning Breakfast” in the Church Hall following the 11:30 p.m. Mass.


UPCOMING EVENTS

Schedule of Masses for Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 22nd – There will be TWO Masses on Thanksgiving Day: 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m.
- There will be music at both Masses.
- You are invited to bring with you the bread and wine you will have for your Thanksgiving Dinner. There will be a special blessing of these after Holy Communion.
- You are also invited to bring with you one or more cans of food to be given to the needy of our community.
Plan on attending Mass to give thanks to Almighty God for the abundant blessings you have received. Nourish your souls with the Bread of Life before nourishing your bodies with turkey and dressing and cranberries and pumpkin pie and etc.

The Monthly Sale of Religious Articles continues to be held following all of the Masses on the second weekend of the month. In preparation for Christmas, there will be sales on both the weekends of December 1st and 2nd and December 8th and 9th. Make certain that your home has an Advent Wreath and candles, a nativity set and religious Christmas decorations. All of these and more are available at these monthly sales.

Saturday, December 8th is the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary and a Holy Day of Obligation for all Catholics. On this Holy Day Catholics are obliged to attend Mass just as they do for Sunday. There will be two Masses for this Holy Day:
- 7:00 p.m. on Friday, December 7th
- 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 8th.
The Immaculate Conception as the patroness of our beloved country should be most dear to the heart of every Catholic in the United States.

The 18th Annual National Night of Prayer for Life will be observed at St. Christopher Church on the night of Friday, December 7th. Here are the details:
- Following the 7:00 p.m. Mass for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, there will be Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament until 12:00 Midnight.
- You are invited to sign-up for an hour of adoration. The parish Youth Group will be present from 8:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. and the Knights of Columbus will be present from 11:00 p.m. to Midnight. Sign-up sheets are at the main doors of the church.
- Join together with Catholics across our country in prayer to end abortion and in reparation for sins against the Gospel of Life.

The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe will be celebrated on Wednesday, December 12th. There will be music and special prayers to Our Lady. Bring flowers to place before her statue.

A Christmas Story Trivia Night –How do you pronounce the word “FRAGILE”? Test your knowledge of the people and events of this classic 50’s holiday movie. Here are the details:
- This event will take place on Saturday, December 8th, following the 5:00 p.m. Mass. It should get under way around 6:20 p.m. or so.
- The parish will provide a lasagna dinner with salad. Participants are asked to bring desserts and drinks. There will be a basket for donations to help cover the cost of the meal.
- The evening will begin with a short trivia quiz with easy questions. The movie will be shown while we eat.
- At the end of the meal there will be quiz with more difficult questions to test how well you watched the movie.
- There will be prizes for the winners. (No…a leg lamp is NOT one of the prizes!)
- Registration is necessary for purposes of food preparation. Flyers with registration forms are at the doors of the church.

The Annual Seniors Christmas Luncheon will be on Saturday, December 15th beginning at 12:00 Noon. There will be food and games, and perhaps even a visit from St. Nick. All “seniors” are invited. Come and bring your friends.
Confessions in Preparation for Christmas – Confessions are heard every Tuesday from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in conjunction with

 

Eucharistic Adoration. On Tuesday, December 18th there will be three priests available for confessions. A good, thorough and honest confession should be part of everyone’s Advent preparation for Christmas.

End of the Year Gifts – At this time of the year many people like to make a special gift to the parish or catch up on their tithing for the year. If you are planning on doing so, please do not put this donation in the Christmas collection. This entire collection goes to the Archdiocese for Catholic Charities. Put your special donation in the collection basket on a Sunday prior to Christmas or mail in to the parish office. Donations to our Building Fund are especially needed at this time.

The Annual “Living Nativity” will be on Sunday, December 23rd at 7:00 p.m. in the gym of the former school. This will be proceeded by “Light Up for Christ” - the lighting of an outdoor Christmas Tree and Nativity scene, and procession to the gym for the “Living Nativity”. Following the presentation of the Story of the Birth of Jesus, there will be:
- Refreshments served by the Youth Group
- A Christmas Trivia Contest with prizes for the winners of different age groups
- Drawing for a door prize – a 10-piece, 6¼” Heritage Nativity Set – at the end of the evening. However, you must be present to win this door prize.

“Bless the Baby Jesus” – Again this year you are invited to bring the Infant Jesus from your home nativity sets to church for a special blessing. A relic of the crib of Jesus will be used with this blessing. This year’s blessing will be at the weekend Masses of December 22nd and 23rd.

March for Life in Washington, DC – You are invited to travel to the March for Life in Washington, DC, January 20th to 23rd. For more information, call Jerry Durbin at 502-231-2349 or the Right to Life office at 502-895-5959.
World Marriage Day will be observed on the weekend of February 2nd and 3rd. All married couples will be invited to renew their marriage vows. There will be a special blessing for married couples. Couples celebrating their 25th, 30th, 40th, 50th and above anniversary in 2008 will receive a commemorative certificate from the parish. Watch the bulletin for further details.

PARISH NEWS
Mr. Dean Sears – Parish Administrator email: dsears@stchristopherparish.org

Our parish Master Plan for Projects Development is under way. This plan will be our “blueprint” for buildings and grounds development and improvements over the next several years. Our most pressing need, was the completion of the rectory expansion and remodeling. This has been completed and Fr. Cousens is now in the new rectory! The next part of the Master Plan to implement is the expansion of the upper parking lot for those who need more accessible parking close to the church building. A bid has been accepted and work will begin very soon (if not already begun). Future parts of the Master Plan to implement are an addition of a “gathering space” on the front of the church building, improvements to the main drive entrance from Wilson Road through the complex, possible outdoor Stations of the Cross, Crucifixion Scene, and other outdoor devotional spaces. We are beginning to explore the possibility of renovating the former school building for a Parish Life Center/Parish Office complex. It would need to be remodeled quite a bit, but this project would be much more economical for the parish than building a new structure. All of these projects will be developed and completed as the prioritized need dictates and as funds are available.

Parish Registration Update
Our current census data indicate that over the past two years we have 88 new households registered in the parish. We currently have 349 households registered, which represent a total of 842 parishioners that are actually registered here at St. Christopher Church.

Finances
St. Christopher Church currently has a little more than $100,000 in savings and on loan to the Archdiocese of Louisville. The rate of interest earned each month on this account is quite good. As we realize the Master Plan for Projects Development we will draw upon our Parish Building Funds account. The bid that was accepted to expand our accessible parking lot was a little over $56,000. Our Building Fund and Capitol Improvement envelopes are helping us grow that account to cover this expense. As always, tithing remains an area of continued need for our parish. Please prayerfully examine the ways you give to your parish. Are you contributing 5% - 10% of your annual income that God has gifted you?

Parish Income
Collections & Unrestricted Gifts $74,133 85.35% $78,250 82.58%
Archdiocesan Collections $0 0.00% $0 0.00%
Restricted Gifts & Income $6,811 7.84% $750 0.79%
Fundraising $0 0.00% $2,750 2.90%
Grants $0 0.00% $452 0.48%
Religious Education & Youth Ministry $0 0.00% $456 0.48%
Misc. Revenues $5,917 6.81% $12,095 12.76%
Total Income $86,860 100.00% $94,754 100.00%

Parish Expenses
Archdiocesan Collections $0 0.00% $750 0.80%
Restricted Fund Expense $2,344 2.43% $700 0.74%
Salaries & Benefits $48,856 50.71% $48,623 51.74%
Operational Expenses $10,100 10.48% $12,557 13.36%
Facility Expenses $27,244 28.28% $21,582 22.97%
Assessments & Grants Paid $6,157 6.39% $7,357 7.83%
Religious Education & Youth Ministry $889 0.92% $1,626 1.73%
Hispanic Ministry Expense $750 0.78% $750 0.80%
Miscellaneous Expenses $0 0.00% $25 0.03%
Total Expenses $96,339 100.00% $93,970 100.00%

Net Income (Loss) ($9,479) $784

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION NEWS
Mrs. Susan Barefoot, OPA, DRE Phone 270-351-8777

Religious Education Center
The Religious Education Center is still in need of donations for our Holy Family Statue. We are $1,200.00 short of our goal. We would like to be able to order the statue and have it in place by Spring. If you would like to donate put your donation in an envelope and write for Holy Family Statue on the front of the envelope and give it to either Mrs. Barefoot, put it in the mail slot of the Religious Education Center or you can drop it off at the Parish Office.

Religious Education
We finished another classroom this summer. This room will be used for meetings, RCIA or Adult Education. Our first class began on Sunday, September 9th. We have 59 students registered from preschool through eighth grade. The children are enjoying their classes and they are eager to learn more about their faith.

Sacramental Program
The second grade children will receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation on Saturday, December 1st, at 10:00 a.m. They are busy preparing for this sacrament. There will be no Confirmation this year. Confirmation for the 7th grade and above will be in 2009.

Adult Bible Study
We are studying “Touching the Mysteries: Scripture and the Rosary.” This class will end on November 26th. Our next study will be on Israel’s Story (Part One) and will begin on December 3rd.

RCIA
RCIA will be conducted on an individual basis this year. Anyone interested in learning more about the Catholic Faith and possibly becoming Catholic, please contact Mrs. Barefoot at 351-8777. A course of instruction will then be arranged for you.

YOUTH NEWS
Mrs. Helen Ohmes Phone 270-351-3706

St. Christopher Youth Program has gotten off to a good start. The Middle School Youth (7th - 8th grade) and the High School Youth meet bi-weekly from 6:30 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. on Sunday evenings. The youth group meetings are located in the outside classroom with the blue door. Youth Ministry helps the teenagers to stay grounded in their Catholic identity and to grow in their Catholic faith by continuing to incorporate fun with learning thereby developing faith based friendships with their peers.

Events thus far in addition to the Sunday meetings
- Kicked-off with an Ice Cream Social.
- September 29, six High School Youth and six adults prayed in front of the abortion mill in Louisville.
- September 30, the High School Youth had a luncheon fundraiser after the 11:00 a.m. Mass to raise money for the youth to participate in the 35th Annual March for Life in Washington, D.C. in January 2008. Amount collected was $471.
- October 13, youths from both groups attended 5:00 p.m. Mass and invited parishioners to gather around Mary outside to pray the rosary with them in celebration of the 90th Anniversary of Fatima. After the rosary, the youth had pizza and watched the

 

Fatima movie in the Youth Room.
- October 14, had guest speaker Bruce Sullivan share his conversion story
- October 28, Holy Pumpkin Apostolate: both Youth Groups carved holy pumpkins in the Youth Room during regular meeting time.
- October 31, both Youth Groups helped with and participated in Saints Alive!
- November 10, six High School Youth and eleven adults, along with Archbishop Kurtz, prayed in front of the abortion mill in Louisville.

Upcoming events in addition to the Sunday evening meetings
- November 21 & 22, both Youth Groups will help with the preparation and packaging of the annual Community Thanksgiving meal.
- December 1, the High School Youth plan to work a concession for an auction at the school gym; funds raised from this event will go towards the March for Life in Washington D.C. in January 2008.
- December 23 at 7:00 p.m. help with the Living Nativity in the school gym, the Youth Group will serve refreshments afterwards.
- January 20 – 23, 2008, the High School Youth will participate in the March for Life in Washington, DC. They are raising funds for their trip. About $1,200 is needed. Currently, they have raised $691.00. If you would like to make a donation toward this cause, place it in an envelope marked “Youth Fundraiser”. Checks can be made out to St. Christopher Church and dropped off at the parish office or in the collection plate.