I. Grandparent’s Day:  The wonderful vocation of being a grandparent, is Sunday, September 9th. It’s not a Hallmark Card thing, it actually came to be through the efforts of one very dedicated woman, Marian McQuade, that President Jimmy Carter proclaimed it a national holiday on August 3, 1978. The church celebrates Grandparents Day on the Feast of Saints Joachim and Anne (July 26), parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary and, of course, grandparents of her Son, Jesus. How grandparents can serve and influence their grandchildren: Do my grandchildren see me as a person of faith? Will they grow up associating a cross or other symbol of faith with me? Do I tell my grandchildren stories of hope and faith from my past? What story of faith do I still need to tell them? Should I consider writing it down for them? Do I celebrate holidays in a purely secular way, or do my grandchildren see my faith and hope reflected in the way we celebrate Christmas and Easter? Am I working to cultivate my ultimate hope by sharing my faith with others who can encourage me to believe more fully and more deeply? (Susan M. Erschen, “Guide to God for Grandparents” (www.osvcatholicbookstore.com). Grandparents, you are a tremendous influence on the development of faith of your “grand”-children!

II. Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year:  It ushers in the ten days of Repentance (the Days of Awe) culminating on the major day of fast on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Our Jewish brothers and sisters prepare for Rosh Hashanah a week ahead of time with petitionary prayers added to the Sabbath ritual. This High Holiday is also known as the Day of Judgment, reminding the faithful of the day when God will open the Book of Life and Death. Although the origin of this tradition may have been adopted from the Babylonians, the rabbis imbued it with Jewish significance as the anniversary of the day on which the world was created, or of the day on which humanity was created. It begins on September 9th and spans two days.

III. VOCARE (Latin for “Call”) 2018:  Friday, September 14—VOCARE is an annual celebration of vocations to priesthood and religious life in the Diocese. This fundraiser with a speaker and dinner at the Owensboro Convention Center is our fifth annual VOCARE. The Diocese strives to make sure that any man being called by God to serve as a priest, deacon or religious, or any woman being called to religious life, has that opportunity, no matter their status in life or their financial situation. It is foremost a celebration of those people who support us in our spiritual lives.  Tickets are on sale now for individual seats or whole tables of eight. Please visit https://owensborodiocese.org/vocare/ for more information.

IV. Come Celebrate 92 Years—Anniversary Dedication Celebration, Saturday, September 15th:  Remember to mark your calendar for our Dedication Anniversary on September 15;  join us for Mass at 5:00 pm. Bishop William Medley will be our celebrant. We will conclude downstairs with a BBQ dinner with the fixins’ and the “Raffle Drawing” immediately following. Please turn in all tickets and money by September 10. THAT’S THIS MONDAY!! Remember there will be prizes for the TOP SELLERS and lots and lots of winners for those cash prizes and those three great trips.  If you would like more tickets, or if you haven’t picked up your packet yet, ticket packets are available at the church doors or office. The prizes for our raffle are great again this year—good luck to all! Many thanks to everyone who has returned their RAFFLE TICKETS and money. Thank you for your support of our parish! Let’s celebrate 92 years in this third church building dedicated to St. Stephen, deacon and Martyr!

V. Mandeville Mission Trip: We currently have five people signed up for our trip. We need to have at least seven participants to be able to go. Prayerfully consider making this Mission Trip to Jamaica. October 6-13, Fall break. Contact Deacon Richard 270/852-8343 or myself. Deadline is Monday, September 10th!

Temporary restrooms are OPEN! Located by the ramp in the back parking lot. It is handicap accessible. Call the office with questions.

VI. Exultation of the Cross: This feast began as a commemoration of a unique event: the miraculous finding of the True Cross by St. Helena, the mother of Emperor Constantine. Early in the fourth century, Helena journeyed to the Holy Land to see the place of the Lord’s Crucifixion. She found the place and tore down a temple she found there, honoring the Greek goddess Aphrodite, and she began to build a new basilica in honor of Christ. As they began to lay the foundations, the remains of three crosses were discovered, but they did not know which was the true Cross. The Cross of Christ was eventually revealed when a dying woman was healed after touching one of the crosses. The Cross immediately became an object of veneration. The Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher was completed on September 14, the month and day that the Church in both East and West observes the Feast of the Exultation of the Cross. Masses at the Cathedral will be celebrated at 7:00am and 12:05pm.