Water With Blessings will be one of the charities benefiting from Party for a Cause on Saturday, Feb 8 from 7-10:30 pm at Saints Pizza Pub and Skybar at 131 Breckenridge Ln. The $10 cover charge will go to the charity you choose (think Water With Blessings). Food and drink will be available for purchase and music will be provided by The Remedy of Louisville. Come & join the party!

With Judy Ribar Saturday, February 15, 9am – 3pm / Loft #1 St. Gabriel, 5505 Bardstown Road “Clutter clarity is more than just cleaning out closets. It is also looking within at what needs to be let go, to be healed, in order to live life more freely.” Ribar Register by emailing: becky.woodrow@yahoo.com by Feb. 7th. Can’t email? Call Therese at 239-5481 x311. Please indicate dietary needs. $30 fee covers continental breakfast, lunch, and speaker. Make checks payable to St. Gabriel. Mail or drop off to St. Gabriel, 5505 Bardstown Road, Louisville, KY 40291. Deadline to register is Feb 7th. Checks are due before or on Feb 15. Note: Deadline is Feb. 7th.

Location: Fern Bowl, 5518 Bardstown Rd. Saturday, February 29th, 6:00 pm, $21/player Awesome raffle prizes; 5 players per team/lane; minimum age is 18. Please arrive by 5:30 pm to sign in! Forms are located in the back of church. Signup form and all entry fees need to be turned in to Pam Mullins or school office by February 14. Checks can be made to JPIIA. Any questions, feel free to call Pam at 502-239-7018.

Parents are invited to a special presentation by Roy Petitfils, who will unpack the growing epidemic of teen mental health issues and share practical tips on what parents can do to help our youth. This presentation will be held on Wednesday, January 29, 2020, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Saint Xavier High School (1609 Poplar Level Road). Roy Petitfils is a Catholic author, speaker, and psychotherapist in private practice who has more than 25 years of experience ministering to youth and young adults in parishes, dioceses, and schools. More about Roy Petitfils and his work can be found at https://roypetitfils.com/.

Have we got a plan for you!!! Research has now shown that exercise can help slow the progression of many neurological conditions such as Parkinson’s. Specifically, Rock Steady Boxing Program is now being offered every Monday and Wednesday here at BPBC as a joint effort between the St. John Paul II parish and BPBC. Because of the recent generous collaboration of these communities, this free ministry is opened to all every Monday and Wednesday from 9:30 am to 10:30 am or 11:00 am to 12 noon. A Rock Steady certified instructor leads the program in specific exercises that benefit Parkinson’s people. Free equipment is available also so there’s no excuse to not give this a try! You don’t have to be a member of either church. All are welcome!! For more information give Doug or Ann Pifer a call ASAP at 502-491-3388 or just come to the Educational building to join us.

If you have decided that you want to make exercise part of your weekly routine consider joining us at the Buechel Park Baptist Church (2403 Hikes Lane) every Tuesday and Thursday from 9:15 am to 10:15 am as we loosen up our joints and flex our muscles! Most exercises are done in the comfort of a chair and are specifically meant for the needs of “mature adults!” This program is sponsored by the Francis Center, a ministry of St. John Paul II and welcomes all! Call Donna Kenney at 502-262-1017 for more info or just come join us!!

Fern Bowl @ 5518 Bardstown Rd see pdf for more details

Dine in or Carry out. We offer Baked and Fried Fish, Rolled Oysters, Shrimp, and PLENTY of side items for you to choose as well as a variety of desserts.

Our Parish Target: $29,500 Thanks to those who have already responded with a gift to the 2019 Catholic Services Appeal. To date we have raised $28,499 (97%) toward our goal. There is still plenty of time to respond with a gift to this year’s Appeal. Gifts can be made through our parish office, or online at www.ArchLou.org/CSA.

Archbishop Kurtz is back for new episodes of Conversations! January features a discussion between Chancellor Dr. Brian Reynolds and Archbishop about Archbishop’s time away being treated for cancer and a conversation with Superintendent of Schools Leisa Schulz about Catholic schools and how our schools reach out to children with special learning needs. Archbishop also welcomes special guest Charles Leis, President of EdChoice KY, to talk about the work of EdChoice KY and scholarship tax credits.

An Update on the Water with Blessings organization” is the title of a speech to be given by Sr. Larraine Lauter, OSU, Executive Director of the organization. This will be at the next Serra Club meeting, which will be held at 11:45 am, on January 6, at the Golden Corral, 4032 Taylorsville Road. The Serra Club promotes religious vocations. The luncheon cost is $12 for members and $15 for non-members. For more information, call Chuck Lynch at 244-2752

Saint Meinrad Archabbey, Seminary and School of Theology has been educating and forming Church leaders in the Benedictine tradition for the Archdiocese of Louisville and the world since 1854. This weekend our parish has the opportunity to hear more about their important work for the Church from a monk of Saint Meinrad. Over the years, 88 active and retired priests, 26 Permanent Deacons, and 230 lay ministers in our archdiocese have graduated from Saint Meinrad. In addition, countless high school students have been formed in faith and prepared for liturgical ministry through Saint Meinrad’s “One Bread, One Cup” program. After this weekend, Archabbot Kurt Stasiak OSB will be sending a letter asking for your financial support to continue their efforts. Please consider becoming a partner in their work and please remember to pray for them and for more vocations to the priesthood, permanent diaconate, vowed religious life, and lay ministry. To learn more about Saint Meinrad text “Prayer” to 812-682-0988 or visit www.saintmeinrad.edu.

Join us as we celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. 5:30 am Mananitas (morning prayer in church). 7:00 pm Mass followed by a Fiesta at 8:00 pm in the Gym. Posadas will begin December 18 and end Christmas Eve, December 24. Please join us in Barth Hall.

• Last week we had the Blessings of the Candy Canes at our school mass. • This week will be our pre-kindergarten and kindergarten Christmas program at 8:00 am on Wednesday, December 11 in our community center. • Please say a prayer for our Academy students who will be taking the Catholic High School Placement Test next Saturday, December 14. We are thankful that families continue to choose a catholic education in secondary school for their children. We pray that our students have calm nerves and brave spirits as they use this opportunity to show how hard they have worked and how much they have learned at John Paul II Academy. Go Titans!

The tree is up and filled with gift tags to choose. Please return your gifts unwrapped with the tag attached and place under the tree. We are not shopping for a specific child, so if you can’t find the item, make a comparable substitute. Forgot the tag, what would you want if you were a kid again? Don’t forget the batteries.

The Peace Light (www.peacelight.org) is coming to Louisville! Soon the Peace Light will be lit from a lamp that burns in Bethlehem at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. The light will travel from the Holy Land through Europe and on to the United States. The Peace Light will be on display at the Swope Scout Center of the Boy Scouts of America, 12001 Sycamore Station Place from December 16-20. You are welcome to come to light a lamp and bring the Peace Light to your church or home. Saint Edward Parish (9608 Sue Helen Drive) will have the Peace Light in the Church vestibule the last weekend of Advent to share with the parish. Thereafter, it will be used during the Christmas season and finally to relight the sanctuary lamp before the Most Blessed Sacrament. We invite you to share in this simple, yet profound gesture of unity and peace throughout the world. Check out the website: www.peacelight.org for more information.

• Mrs. Mayrose, a fifth-grade parent, shared with us about her October trip to Our Lady of Lourdes and the Chapel of the Miraculous Medal in France. • Our third graders are learning about the relationship between multiplication and division. • On Wednesday, December 4 we will have the Blessing of the Candy Canes at our school mass. • Our fourth and fifth grade Quick Recall team is practicing and preparing for their new season.

Monday, December 2, 6:30-8:00 pm Mary Queen of Peace, 4005 Dixie Hwy. 502-448-4008 All are welcome!! Fr. Philip-Michael Tangorra, S.T.L., JCL Learn how to prepare yourself for a Holy Life through the Sacraments of the Church! This 1-day parish mission is meant to bring you closer to the sacraments as you prepare for the celebration of the birth of our Lord and Savior.

Parish Council is preparing a Christmas dinner for the residents of the St. Bartholomew apartments on December 9. We don’t have much time to collect items for their gift bags. (Lotion, lip balm, tissues, soaps, playing cards, dice, to name a few.) There are 3 male residents. A box will be by the St. Anthony statue. Parish Council would like to give the gift bags to the residents at dinner on December 9. Thanks so much.