Its going to be another amazing night. This year our theme is Kentucky Derby. As always, the attire is optional, but if you decide to partake in the fun theme, you will be awarded a FREE Drink Ticket. All are welcome to come and support our amazing school. The night will consist of cocktails, dinner, photo booth, music, live and silent auction. Get your bids ready and come join us for some fun! Festivities start at 6pm, located in the basement Dining Hall at St Clement Catholic Church

Children are a great gift to us. One way families can find support for the moral and academic formation of their children is in a Catholic school. Below are just few of the reasons why we value our Catholic school: *There is weekly Mass and special feast days where the children are more involved in the liturgy and regular prayer is a part of the school day. *There is a regular religion class several times each week so the children can come to understand the rich tradition and teachings of the Catholic faith. *Our Catholic School has a strong family feel and students are welcomed, and feel safe and comfortable while being challenged to grow and mature according to God’s plan for each of them. *Teachers help the children connect the Catholic faith with all other learning and work with parents for the good of children. Thank you to all of our wonderful parishioners, benefactors, and volunteers who make Catholic education in our area possible. Thank you to all of our dedicated teachers and staff who share their knowledge and faith each day with our students. Thank you to our parents and families who made the decision to entrust St. Mary’s School with the education of their children. May God continue to bless our students, families, and schools as we give thanks for the great blessing of Catholic school. Please contact the school or parish offices to learn more about enrolling your child(ren) in our excellent school.

We are looking for a few good men/women who like to bake to help make desserts for our Youth Nights in Lancaster. The next gathering would be January 29 at 7:00 p.m. Please contact Leigh Boorn via email [email protected] if you can help. Thank You in Advance!

THANK YOU for your generous support of St. Clement Scrip Wars, with your help we surpassed our goal of $130,000, reaching $186,000 in scrip sold and the students will enjoy an all-school ice-cream party!

SS. Andrew-Thomas School will be having a Chili Cook Off fundraiser on Wednesday, Jan. 29, 5-7 PM. Call 608-763-2120 if you would like to enter your chili in the contest, entry fee $10.

Still considering a New Year’s resolution? Decide now to take part in one of Grant Co. Right to Life’s upcoming 2025 activities! 1. Pray for GCRTL’s efforts to bring a Safe Haven Baby Box to Grant County. 2. Help plan a movie night! Join a team to bring the full-length documentary, Unthinkable, by former PP clinic director, Abby Johnson, to a Grant Co. theater. (Or donate to offset costs.) 3. 2/4/25: Participate - from anywhere – in a 6 p.m. GCRTL Zoom meeting. Call for log-in info. 4. 3/1/25: Volunteer at a GCRTL table at a late a.m. Platteville Public Library Involvement Fair. 5. 4/5/25: Attend a free WI RTL Pregnancy Help Center conference in Wausau. By 3/21/25, register at https://www.classy.org/event/2025-pregnancy-help-center-spring-conference/e626057 . 6. Participate in a group to distribute small gifts to nursing home residents. Consider making a walker bag or lap blanket for residents. (GCRTL will provide materials.) For more info., text or call Marge at 608.732.0850 or email [email protected] (NEW address!)

Other Religions This week in our continuing series on evangelization tips we're talking about evangelizing people who belong to other religions. When you encounter a person who is of a non-Christian religion, it can be challenging to know how to convince them of the divinity of Jesus and the truth of the Catholic Church. We first have to remember that it is God who does the real work in the heart, while we only offer points for consideration. Perhaps a place to start is with the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle, who once stated a universal truth that, "All men by nature desire to know." Despite all of our differences, one thing brings together non-Christians who believe in God. To some degree, all of them desire "something greater." When sharing the Gospel with non-Christian believers in God, there are many arguments that you can use in a discussion. Here are a few: 1) Lord, Liar, Lunatic or Legend, 2) prophecies, and 3) miracles and private revelation. The Lord, Liar, Lunatic, or Legend argument, developed from C.S. Lewis' "trilemma," makes the case that Jesus can't be simply a good moral teacher if He is not also God. He has to be lying about being God, which would make Him evil, or must be crazy to proclaim such a thing, which makes him unfit to be God. Or He's simply a legend, that is, people in the early church exaggerated accounts of Him, making Him a deity. While this argument doesn't prove that Jesus was God, it does narrow down things. When carried on to its conclusion, it shows that the best explanation for Jesus' life was that He is divine. That is, the deity of Christ (while not irrefutable) has more explanatory power than the other available options. The argument from prophecies shows that biblical prophecies have come to fruition and reveal a God who loves us and wants us to know Him. The Virgin Birth is one such prophecy which is mentioned in Isaiah 7:14. It is fulfilled in the Incarnation of Jesus, born of the Virgin Mary (Matt. 1:18-23; Luke 1:26- 38). This is just a starting point ... there are numerous more. The argument from miracles and private revelation shows God's continual care and providence for His people in the present. A final point: personal testimonies and stories add to these arguments by presenting a sincere witness to the Faith. This evangelization tip was brought to you by St. Paul Street Evangelization. Take our course, One Good Reason for Non-Christian Believers at evangelizationschool.com. ©Copyright St. Paul Street Evangelization 2024

To the Family Promise Staff, Volunteers and Board Members, Thank you so much for everything you have done for me and my family over the last six months. You have touched our lives in ways you will never know. When we came into this program, we were in a really bad time in our lives. I felt so low [and] broken. You guys helped me build myself back up. You gave all of us hope and peace of mind. Thank you for giving us what we needed and more. I will cherish the memories made and the lessons learned. You made me not only a better person, but a better parent. God bless all of you and everything you do for the families in this county that are in need. Thank you again!”

Are You Looking For A Rewarding Summer Job Working With Children? Little Chargers Daycare in Cassville (a part of St. Charles Church) is looking to hire enthusiastic young people to provide care and activities for youth ages 2 years old - 12 years old. If interested, contact Kari Kelley, 608-725-5595. This is a great opportunity for a summer job.

Everyone is invited to attend St. Mary's Lasagna Supper at St. Mary School on Saturday, January 25 from 4:30-7:30 p.m. There will also be a Silent Auction and classroom displays.

THANK YOU to everyone who supported the Scrip Push! The goal was $30,000 and $69,700.00 in Scrip was purchased! The St. Mary's students will enjoy a pizza and movie party hosted by the Home & School Association.

Thank you to everyone who generously gave donations for the flowers and decorations and to everyone who worked to make our church look beautiful during the Christmas season. We are deeply grateful for your support of our parish! God bless.

Thank you to everyone who generously gave donations for the flowers and decorations and to everyone who worked to make our church look beautiful during the Christmas season. We are deeply grateful for your support of our parish! God bless.

Thank you to everyone who generously gave donations for the flowers and decorations and to everyone who worked to make our church look beautiful during the Christmas season. We are deeply grateful for your support of our parish! God bless.

Thank you to everyone who generously gave donations for the flowers and decorations and to everyone who worked to make our church look beautiful during the Christmas season. We are deeply grateful for your support of our parish! God bless.

Thank you to everyone who generously gave donations for the flowers and decorations and to everyone who worked to make our churches look beautiful during the Christmas season. We are deeply grateful for your support of our parishes! God bless.

The 2025 St. Clement Parish calendars are here and can be picked up in the back of church. We wish to extend a big Thank You to Rita Schmitz and Katie Miles of Homeward Bound for once again supplying our calendars for us. This year’s calendars have been donated by them in memory of their dear husband and father, Greg Schmitz, co-owner of Homeward Bound. Greg was a fabulous man of faith, joy and love to family, friends and so generous in our parish and community. Thank You Rita and Katie for your generosity!

This week in our continuing series on evangelization tips, we’re talking about evangelizing Protestants with One Good Reason. While we certainly have a lot in common with our separated brethren, there’s a lot that makes us different too. We need to strive for genuine Catholic ecumenism … promoting unity among the world's Christian Churches. Here’s a quote from a document of the Second Vatican Council that helps describe how we should practically approach this ecumenism: “Catholics, in their ecumenical work, must assuredly be concerned for their separated brethren, praying for them, keeping them informed about the Church, making the first approaches toward them … But their primary duty is to make a careful and honest appraisal of whatever needs to be done in order that its life may bear witness more clearly and faithfully to the teachings and institutions which have come to it from Christ through the Apostles.” (Unitatis Redintegratio, Ch. 1, Par. 4) You might still be wondering, what does this ecuminism look like in everyday life, applying the One Good Reason technique? Here are two examples: Maybe you’d like to focus on the beauty, truth, and mystery of the Most Holy Eucharist. You could say something like, “One good reason I’m Catholic is that we have the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist. During the words of consecration, we believe that He becomes present under the appearances of bread and wine. We then consume Him, which means His divine presence lives inside of us. Having Jesus in me keeps me on the path to heaven.” Or how about the sacrament of penance? Here, you might say something like the following: “One good reason I’m Catholic is that I can go to Confession. Jesus established this sacrament in John 20:23, saying to the apostles, ‘If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’ He knew that we’d need to unload our transgressions to another human being, and hear the words of forgiveness … so he allowed the priest to stand in as a representative of Christ.” These are just a couple examples. However you approach it, just make sure to remain charitable without straying from the truth. This evangelization tip was brought to you by St. Paul Street Evangelization. Take our course One Good Reason for Protestants at evangelizationschool.com.