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!

The 9th-12th grade retreat that had been planned to take place at Camp Gray on December 6-8 has been cancelled.

The start date is December 27 (start noon on Friday)- 29 (ends 3:30 on Sunday). TEC (Together Encountering Christ) is centered on the Paschal Mystery of Christ. Our Shepherd Bishop Donald Hying has also centered his 'Go Make Disciples' initiative on that same theme. TEC is especially designed to help us grow in our love for Christ and our Holy Catholic Church. It is an amazing experience for any age who are young at heart and at least 15 years of age. Regardless of your present walk in our Catholic Faith, you will be rejuvenated. This is also a 'shout out' to those of you who have already experienced a TEC retreat and would like to help out. Fr. Greg Ihm will be our Spiritual Director. Jeff Jackson is the lay Director and can be reached at 608.778.6027 Or [email protected] More information about TEC can be found at www.MadisonDiocese.org/TEC

We are so excited to be back with you all at the Kalahari this February 7-9, 2025. Frassati Fest is a retreat weekend open to all high school students in the Diocese of Madison hosted at the Kalahari Resort in the Wisconsin Dells! It's a weekend of encountering the Lord, building friendships with teens from across the Diocese, and bonding as a pastorate community! Weekend highlights include: engaging speakers, Adoration and Confession, Mass with Bishop Hying, waterpark time, Saturday night dance party, and more! If your pastorate is bringing a group, then you will register directly with your parish leader. If your pastorate is not attending, go ahead and fill out the google form below. Caroline will send you paperwork to attend as a Lost Sheep individual! The cost for individuals (teens and adult chaperones) attending with a pastorate group is $260. (Pastorates are welcome and encouraged to arrange fundraisers to help bring down the cost.) If you are a Lost Sheep, the cost is $280 per person. The hard deadline will be Friday January 3rd. We will not be able to accept any registrations past that day, so please make sure to get in touch with your parish leader or submit your Lost Sheep registration before then!

A Moment with the Bishop: Go Make Disciples, our diocesan-wide evangelization initiative, is who we are and what we do as baptized followers of Jesus Christ. It is our participation in the perennial mission of the Church. Into the Deep is our strategic planning effort to realign our resources so that we can better accomplish and live out this mission, both now and for generations to come. As we continue on the path of coming together into new combined parishes, it is vital that we keep our eyes and hearts on our Go Make Disciples initiative and the six fundamental objectives guiding all our efforts as missionary disciples: Grow Everyone’s Relationship with Jesus through prayer, sacrament, and study of Scripture. Reclaim Sunday as Sabbath by making the Sunday Eucharist front and center and by rediscovering holy leisure with family and friends. Evangelize by engaging others in the Faith and speaking about the reason for our hope in Jesus Christ. Focus on Youth by connecting with young people and helping them become fully committed to Christ. Call Forth New Leadership by inviting new people to step up and share their talents and gifts. Reach Out to the Community by serving the needs of all and witnessing to the Love of Christ by deed and charity. Jesus is our Master and Teacher, our Redeemer and Savior who has conquered the power of sin and death forever. Together, let us renew our commitment as both disciples and evangelizers by falling more deeply in love with Jesus and by going forth with confidence and joy to build the kingdom of God and to strengthen the Church here in our local diocese of Madison. Let's bring everyone we know home to Jesus Christ and His Church!

Family Faith Formation & High School Program For the last two years our west county parishes have carried out a Family Faith Formation program, where whole families come together once a month to learn about our Catholic Faith and prepare to carry out lessons at home. This year SS Andrew-Thomas will begin as well. We will have identical programs for families from the River Ridge School District to meet on the first Wednesdays at St. Mary's School in Bloomington, and for families from St. Charles and SS Andrew-Thomas to meet at SS Andrew-Thomas School or St. Charles School on alternating second Wednesdays of the month, from 6:00 to 7:30pm. Families are welcome to enroll in either program at their preference as well as to attend sessions at either site based on their convenience. We will also begin a High School Youth program for 9th-12th grades to meet on the 4th Wednesdays at St. Clement in Lancaster from 7:00 to 8:30pm starting September 25, a requirement for 9th graders preparing for Confirmation - though for families who may have difficulties arranging transportation, 9th graders may attend their local Family Faith Formation meeting on 1st or 2nd Wednesday. Our first Family Faith Formations meetings in September will be Orientation where we describe the program in detail. Schedules can be found on our Website. For further questions please contact Fr. Mark Miller.

Religious Education for K-8th grades begins on Wednesday, September 18. K-6th starts at 6:00 PM and 7-9th starts at 7:00 PM. Registration forms for K-6th are available at the church entrances as well as being emailed to last year’s Rel. Ed. Families, for more information, please contact Rebecca Dean, [email protected].

Bishop Hying sees the essential need for the Catholic Church to embrace evangelization, first for all of us who belong to the Catholic Church, then to reach out to others to hear the message of Christ. He has outlined four simple, but essential way for us to encounter Christ more fully and be transformed by his grace. All Catholics are encouraged to grow in holiness and deepen of their faith.