Bulletin: 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time 10/8/23
SAINT CHRISTOPHER CATHOLIC CHURCH
39 West 200 South, Kanab UT 84741
Office: (435) 644-3414 [Please leave a message and we will respond as quickly as possible]
stccc@kanab.net
WEBSITE: kanabcatholicchurch.org
Sacramental Minister: Rev. Richard T. Sherman, Kanab, UT
SATURDAY VIGIL MASS 5:30 PM (Suspended Indefinitely)
SUNDAY MASS: 9:00 AM
MASS DURING THE WEEK MONDAY – SATURDAY: 8:00 AM
CONFESSIONS BY APPOINTMENT
NOTE: If you have a sacramental emergency after parish office hours, please call 435-673-2604 for assistance.
Social Hour after Sunday Mass – Coffee, juice and bagels or muffins are served up along with some fabulous conversation.
Our next OPEN-DOOR SATURDAY is October 21, 2023 from 10:00 AM-Noon. If you have friends or relatives that are interested in the Catholic faith, or are thinking of returning to the Church, please tell them about us and have them stop by. We would love to meet with them! OPEN DOOR is scheduled every first and third Saturday of the month.
Bishop Robert Barron’s book, This is My Body: A Call to Eucharistic Revival. We will continue a parish discussion on Wednesday, October 18 at 6:30 PM. We’ll be covering the last chapter and any other questions and comments.
FINANCIAL REPORT: October 1, 2023: Offertory: $1156; Donations Mail: $100; R&I: $180. Thank You!!
You can also donate on-line at kanabcatholicchurch.org
Diocesan Development Drive –. Our parish goal this year is $8,800 and we have now paid in $5383 with an additional $971 pledged: 72%. 14 out of a total 57 households have participated. We only have $2446 to go. If half of all remaining households contributed, each would only need to pay $112. About $14 per week for the rest of the year. Pay it all at once, now, and you won’t have to even think about it. Thank you!
PRAY FOR HEALING: Pam Grant, Doug Ingram, Mary Stogsdill, Victims of Natural Disasters. Our Wounded Veterans. If you have specific prayer requests, please leave us a phone message or send us an email. We will get your intentions on the list. We also remember all the sick and infirm at our daily Masses.
Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament: Thursday from 4 to 5:00 PM.
Community Rosary: After the Monday morning Mass
Fall Parish Picnic THANK YOU to all who prepared, worked the grill and tables, all who cleaned up and all who attended last Sunday’s picnic. It was a very nice get-together and we look forward to more in the future.
October is Pro-Life Month and during the month we will be exploring many of the social factors that have led us to this point where aborting children is ‘normalized’. The Office of Marriage, Family Life and the Respect Life Commission have many ways to help us change our deadly culture. See their website: https://www.dioslc.org/offices/marriage-and-family/marriage-and-family-resources.
Diocesan Development Drive:
We are almost at the end of the year and we are still $2446 (or 28%) short of our goal of $8800. Only 25% of our registered households have contributed to this larger goal of supporting the mission of the Diocese of Salt Lake City. It’s important to remember that we simply don’t function way out here in Kane County without LOTS of administrative and pastoral services that come from our operations at the pastoral center in Salt Lake. We are a global Church with a global mission and we are all connected. Like most parishes, a relatively small percentage of parishioners at St. Christiopher’s accept the responsibility of ministry and funding. Somehow, we are not getting across the importance of the Catholic Church’s role in the nation and world which is a larger five-day conversation. If you haven’t given, please make a donation soon. You can do so online at https://www.dioslc.org/ddd or simply give a large handful of money to Fr. Rick and he will make sure it gets to the right place. To those who have already donated, THANK YOU AGAIN.
Parking Lot Repairs – As mentioned in previous bulletins, St. Christopher’s is planning on some repairs and improvements to our parking space around the church and rectory. These improvements are necessary due to just normal wear and weathering but especially to help facilitate easier and safer access to those having mobility issues. Cost estimates have come in at $72,000 range. We are initiating a special building fund account for this project to avoid draining our savings which could be needed for any number of other unanticipated expenses. In general, our overall plant and facilities are in excellent condition and we strive to maintain the high standards that have already been set. Please talk to Fr. Rick if you think you may be able to help with this important project.
Homily Reflection
“What more was there to do for my vineyard that I had not done? Why, when I looked for the crop of grapes, did it bring forth wild grapes? Is. 5:4
“Therefore, I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that will produce its fruit.” Mt. 21:43
These readings from today’s liturgy seem particularly jarring and we need to be able to ‘read the signs of our times through the light of faith’ (Eucharistic Prayer V-III). As we see the numbers of young Catholics dwindling nation-wide as well as other places throughout the globe, I’m tempted to ask, “Then to whom will the Kingdom of God be given?” The Catholic Church seems to be most dynamic in parts of Africa and Asia, but it’s hard to imagine them being able to lead and pull the global mission that Jesus has given us in modern times.
I can confidently say (on most days), that the Catholic Church in the United States, and even waaaaay out here in Utah, is in the process of a strong surge. As more people lose confidence in our many secular institutions, they will gradually turn to the pursuit of developing deeper spiritualities which are necessary to actually ‘become one body, one spirit in Christ’. Our pastoral planning efforts are definitely pointing to an emphasis on marriage preparation as faith formation… staring in 2nd grade. Much progress has already been made in developing the structures and vision for a more restorative and life-giving religious experience.
Reflection Questions
-What type of ‘wild grapes’ have been growing out of control in the Church’s vineyard over the past 50 years? How did you experience the results of the ‘wild grapes’ over the decades of your life?
-To whom will the Kingdom of God be given in order to produce good fruit?
-To what role might we be called to participate in the rebuilding of God’s Kingdom?
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“God is not satisfied with appearance. God wants the garment of justice. God wants his Christians dressed in love.” St. Oscar Romero