I want YOU individually to come to this

Hey everyone,

I hope you’ll consider coming to this 4-part FREE series on the Theology of the Body on June 11, 18, July 2, & 9 @ 1-4pm or 6:30-9:30pm @ Holy Family in the Reide Room. This is to build momentum about the upcoming “MADE FOR MORE: Visions of the Promised Land” in September @ St. Patrick that St. Luke / St. Rita are co-hosting! This is powerful and I want you personally to come!

Please read this below to be inspired as much as I was! Wow!

God bless you!

John

PS – Sign up here!

https://www.familyrenewalproject.com/event/intro-to-theology-of-the-body-a-4-part-series/

Training Series

Theology of the Body + YOU!

May 30, 2019/0 Comments/in Catholic BlogsFamily Renewal ProjectTheology of the BodyThings to do for Catholics /by Haley

Hey everyone, summer is beginning, the days are growing long and the warm nights are perfect for hanging out with friends, discussing and debating the important things of life. You might have heard that the FRP team is excited about a huge event coming to Louisville in September called Made for More!  It will be a multi-media experience, involving all the senses and directing our hearts, souls and minds to reflect on the creation of the world, the Creator and the significance of being created HUMAN.

In preparation for this event, we are offering a four part series based on St. John Paul’s teachings.  Not often available locally, we want to be sure to invite YOU!

By learning about John Paul II’s Theology of the Body, you will have the answer to the questions:

1)    What does it mean to be human?

2)    How can I live my life in a way that will satisfy the deepest longings of my heart?

Sadly, the world and our culture seem to be unaware of the beauty and goodness that is naturally in created reality!  We no longer allow ourselves to contemplate this mystery and be wowed by the fact that we humans are made in God’s image, having been given divinized bodies.  Instead, we have accepted the lie that our bodies are separate from our spirit, which is another way of saying that all that is spirituallyexciting, beautiful and meaningful is totally unrelated to what the physical body finds exciting, beautiful and meaningful.

This is a grave error and a complete distortion of the magnificent order God created from the beginning of the world!  Subsequently, some of us find ourselves aimlessly wandering from one idea to the next, or one relationship to the next, in search of the truth, in search of a love, goodness, or beauty that satisfies that deepest ache and longing – and we never find it!

This 4-part introductory series is free of charge and includes video presentations each week by Christopher West, followed by discussion and reflection.  Many people leave the series wondering “Why hasn’t anyone told me this before?”

Why?  Because no one understood and explained it this way before!  St. John Paul II’s teachings are a gift!

There is a tidal wave of cultural change sweeping America and the world.  Many feel lost, swept up in fear, seeing only confusion and uncertainty.  Now, with JP II’s help, we dive deeper into the mystery of creation itself.  Using Scripture as his guide, JP II helps us to see the absolute goodness and beauty of God’s creation of man and woman from the very beginning, and our ability to image God in love in a way we have never heard of before!   It is stunning, and it will take your breath away!

I hope you do not delay!  Get out your planners, check your calendars!  Then, please, sign up for Introduction to Theology of the Body to learn and hear for yourself what God had in mind when He created YOU!!

WHO:  Cathy Blandford and John Sohl have been trained at the Theology of the Body Institute in Philadelphia and will facilitate the discussions.

WHERE:  Holy Family Parish, Poplar Level Road, Reide Room.  (Look for signs)

WHEN:  Tuesdays June 11, 18 and July 2 and 9. Choose afternoon 1:00 – 4:00 PM; or evenings 6:30 – 9:30 PM.

SIGN UP: https://www.familyrenewalproject.com/event/intro-to-theology-of-the-body-a-4-part-series/

 

Made for More: Visions of the Promised Land

World renowned speaker and author Christopher West, along with critically acclaimed musician, Mike Mangione, are coming to Louisville (St. Patrick) on September 18th with an all new event called MADE FOR MORE: VISIONS OF THE PROMISED LAND.
St. Luke & St. Rita are sponsoring this event. Tickets will sell out, so get your tickets now in the parish offices or on the parish websites. You will not want to miss this awesome and inspiring event! See the bulletin for more info, or contact John Sohl.

Tickets are only $20, please buy them quickly! This is an event bigger and more important than anything I could ever invite or ask you to attend. This will serve as a launching pad for future endeavors, hopes, and dreams for ALL OF US–in our families, in our communities, in our jobs, and in our small groups. Everywhere and everything will be affected by this experience.

M4M Poster

Day 1 & 2 | Embarking with OPEN Baggage, Part 2

Day 1 & 2, PART 2 – The Anti-Fiat (Closed Baggage)

Suddenly, in the midst of my grogginess, I awoke to Mary, Caryn, and Ed’s concerns about our bus’s misfortune. Apparently, a police officer had just pulled us over to inform us that luggage had been flying out of the bus all over the interstate because our side hatchway had opened up unexpectedly. Sadly, “that other guy” (Leo!) hadn’t closed it hard enough and after a few hours of jangling back and forth, the door finally jangled loose and opened up long enough for our cooler full of food, Caryn’s backpack, and poor Jacob Cantrell’s luggage to be violently cast into the darkness.

Driving back the 15 miles wasn’t easy, but with an express Novena in the Memorare and a Glory Be for a successful search (prayed beforehand!), we received the gift of recovering some of the food and Caryn’s bag, though still without recovering Jacob’s luggage.

It was a bittersweet moment, though at the time we didn’t know who’s luggage we had lost, for the only recovered item from that bag was the broken handle that would have wheeled Jacob’s Pokemon t-shirts safely into his hotel room. Oh that boy is a gift, and what an incredible gift he became for us when despite his loss and our worries, he maintained a joyful and open spirit to whatever the Lord had in store for him! Mary and Caryn quickly came to his aid and raced to the nearest store to buy him some new shirts and other clothing items (that’s it’s own hilarious story!) From there, they hiked uphill both ways in the snow to get back before everyone went to sleep after the pizza dinner. And yet, Jacob was patient and unconcerned the whole time! Truly, the gift of detachment I think is what Jacob gave us by the end of Day 2, for that is the only preliminary grace we could require in our own utter abandonment to divine providence.

If we truly wished to live the Will of God, and thus enter into Heaven, then a spirit of total openness and positive detachment was necessary—or our joy could never fully come to us!

So often, we get lost in the complexities of grasping, as if we could ever resolve the deep ache for Infinite Love. Rather, we condition ourselves to hiding, suppressing, or deceiving, which only perpetuates the complexities, thus leading to an infinite ache of constant emptiness. Instead of being filled with the Ultimate Fullness in our docile attitude and eager heart, we let our perceptions and speculation dictate our emotional lives. If we can learn how to channel these passionate desires for beauty, then surely our lives will become more stable and more peaceful.

Arriving in D.C. after a wonderful and much needed breakfast at Cracker Barrel (where Bradley refused to do his 50 pushups as agreed!)—was extraordinarily somber. Fellowship immediately gave way to Solidarity with the Jewish people as we encountered the National Holocaust Museum for the first time in recent memory. Mike Swearingen’s contingency of pilgrims from DeSales (my alma mater) was among the throngs of pilgrims ahead of us streaming into the museum, through the security, up the elevator, and at last within the bowels of historical and yet prophetic symbolism to what has now become the greatest Holocaust in human history: Abortion.

Suddenly, I was emotionally back in college 2011 during my own first experience of the March for Life Pilgrimage as I simultaneously prepared for my first trip overseas and by airplane to the great city of Madrid later that August for World Youth Day. Suddenly, I was staring wide-eyed at the powerful imagery of the empty shoes, and my heart sunk to the very doorway of my inaccessible Eden by which beauty had not yet been fully redeemed, and yet there was a glimpse nonetheless!

Margaret Sanger, through her horrific agenda and eugenic infamy akin to the evils of Adolf Hitler himself, actually provided us with the fuel for creating perhaps the most sustainable and profound culture of life that could have ever existed. While walking through the turtle-paced halls of the Holocaust Museum, we learned a powerful truth. The Nazis burned thousands of books in book burning “ceremonies” during the early years of Hitler’s regime. Among those books were the writings of Albert Einstein, Helen Keller, Karl Marx, Sigmund Freud, and Margaret Sanger herself—and we wondered to ourselves how such destructive voices in the 20th century like Marx, Freud, and Sanger could have been lumped into the poetry, artwork, and intellectual achievements of so many others. How could such an evil as Hitler’s intolerance have possibly not recognized the “comradery” in those other voices of division and relativism? Ah, and that’s where we found the key that would unlock this mystery of America’s deepest issues.

In the very literature of the museum exhibit on the Nazi’s book burning ceremonies was the enshrined reality of our own propaganda’s hold on cultural evils. The following quote comes directly from the plaque at the Holocaust Museum: “Writings by the American women’s rights activist Margaret Sanger were destroyed, as were those by Helen Keller.”

How could such a woman who made it her life’s goal to throw off the “chains” of what many see as the reproductive burden of femininity ever be deemed a champion of women’s rights? How could abortion ever be considered a right for anyone in this world? And yet, through such subtle verbal engineering, the shrine set in our nation’s capital to ensure we never repeat such atrocities has actually enshrined within it the very assumption that would perpetuate something far worse?

Funny that she was placed next to Helen Keller, a woman who due to a childhood sickness lost both her sight and her hearing yet overcame them to become an equally influential feminist in the 20th century. Unfortunately, it is this loss of vision and obstinate refusal to hear or embrace truth that brings about a rejection of Eternal Life itself! God sends none of us to Hell, nor does He make us deaf or blind to the grace it would take to embrace Heaven. Rather, through our free will, we choose for ourselves our eternal destination. We either cut ourselves off from divine providence by attempting to control our destiny, or we open ourselves up to divine providence by embracing God’s control over His destiny for us. Every single one of us has that choice, and perhaps the greatest grace by which we can recognize this reality comes from the silence of those empty shoes and the great potential that so many rejected in the name of “progress.”

Indeed, the Holocaust was a cleansing, but not in the way the Nazi’s envisioned. God instead, through the slow passage of time, awoke within us a great ache for human dignity and a restoration of the human person. St. John Paul the Great’s Theology of the Body was a direct response to this evil rejection of love, and the glory of God that is resulting from this beautiful Gospel lens is manifesting itself in the Pro-Life Generation of today’s American young person. Each of these students, teenagers and young adults alike, are encountering first-hand the effects of birth control’s intolerance and realizing its direct connection to manipulation, fear, and societal devastation. Margaret Sanger was not a woman’s rights activist. She embodied the anti-Fiat in it’s most extreme form, and brought with it human devastation beyond anything this world has ever seen.

Praise God for His providence and sovereignty over human suffering, for this is beyond any one person or group’s ability to untwist or abolish. In fact, for decades, the pro-life movement has come to understand this truth in profound ways—for despite our human efforts, as we have tirelessly worked to compel the world to overturn Roe v. Wade, change our laws, and reform our hearts about contraception and abortion—it has felt unheard and/or purposefully sabotaged by the mainstream media and special interest groups. Yet, we know, based on Salvation History and the depth of our heart’s desires, that we will discover and recover God’s original purpose—but without going back in time. We aren’t asking God for a cure, we are asking diligently for a healing, so that we can thoroughly understand why we have fallen to this terrible lie and given into fear instead of seeing the truth and trusting God’s deliverance!

Mother Mary, come to our Aid! Crush the sabotage of the world’s diabolic mockery and give us your Son’s Divine Life in the Eucharist! And suddenly, we recognize what you did for us that evening. After we left the Holocaust Museum around 1:30pm (waiting on Assumption HS and Ed Harpring to get back to the bus), we made the drive to the most highly anticipated Vigil Mass for Life we’ve ever encountered. In the wake of the sexual abuse scandal, in the midst of this abortion-wounded culture, the Circle of Life with the whole Archdiocese of Louisville experienced the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass with 10,000 other pilgrims at the National Shrine of the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception.

 

In Christ, for Love & Life!

The Fellowship of the Fiat, ArchLouWYD2019

Day 3, PART 2 | The Spiral of Intimacy

Day 3, PART 2 – The Spiral of Intimacy
Fr. Joe Rankin—my pastor, mentor, boss, and friend—told me this about youth ministry and evangelization in general that I’ve never forgotten. Paraphrased of course, “Sharing the Gospel is like inviting people into a funnel. You have some people at the top, others farther down in, but you can only invite them in. You can’t pull them in.”
That funnel is a spiral of intimacy, and whether or not you know your faith catechetically or not—we are all in some way peering into the depth of that spiraling love. Some of us have never seen or encountered Jesus in the Eucharist, either in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass or in the profundity of Eucharistic Adoration. Others have been around such beauty all their lives; they’re even constantly and consistently taught the logic and lordship of Jesus in the Eucharist—yet still—an authentic, humble, and messy encounter has alluded them! Still others experience moments of deep mystical union with Our Lord, but in the ebb and flow of life find themselves lulled into a subconscious complacency as the noonday devil of acedia strikes.
Oftentimes we find ourselves lost in our own traumas, our own desire for healing—that we forget the real reason for our pilgrimage on earth, at the March for Life, at World Youth Day. The real reason for our trip to the March for Life is NOT to protest Roe v. Wade in order to overturn it. Boldly, I say it again. The real reason for our trip to the March for Life is NOT to protest a political issue.
Rather, the real reason for our trip to the March for Life is to pray to Jesus Christ and encounter His peace in hopes to find inspiration, motivation, and an unshakeable joy of unity and momentum that no darkness of abortion, abuse, or abandonment can overcome.
Through the trauma of Abortion, I believe our world has found a new understanding of the healing of the Eucharist. What started as a protest has been transformed into a prayer. What started as a death march has finally started to be seen as a victory march. Tens of thousands? Try hundreds of thousands who keep coming year after year without fail to see the Promised Land. Last year, to witness President Trump on video and Vice President Pence speak live at the National March for Life (the first time a sitting President has ever addressed the March) was powerful, and from his cooperation came the keystrokes of Christ’s ultimate purpose for Roe v. Wade. The declaration of Sanctity of Human Life Day was enshrined in our American story, giving us only a matter of time before we see it enshrined in our Constitution.
His words from last year are as follows, for the momentum we started last year has only snowballed into a more powerful calling this year:
President Donald J. Trump Proclaims January 22, 2018, as National Sanctity of Human Life Day
Issued on: January 19, 2018
Today, we focus our attention on the love and protection each person, born and unborn, deserves regardless of disability, gender, appearance, or ethnicity. Much of the greatest suffering in our Nation’s history — and, indeed, our planet’s history — has been the result of disgracefully misguided attempts to dehumanize whole classes of people based on these immutable characteristics. We cannot let this shameful history repeat itself in new forms, and we must be particularly vigilant to safeguard the most vulnerable lives among us. This is why we observe National Sanctity of Human Life Day: to affirm the truth that all life is sacred, that every person has inherent dignity and worth, and that no class of people should ever be discarded as “non-human.”
Reverence for every human life, one of the values for which our Founding Fathers fought, defines the character of our Nation. Today, it moves us to promote the health of pregnant mothers and their unborn children. It animates our concern for single moms; the elderly, the infirm, and the disabled; and orphan and foster children. It compels us to address the opioid epidemic and to bring aid to those who struggle with mental illness. It gives us the courage to stand up for the weak and the powerless. And it dispels the notion that our worth depends on the extent to which we are planned for or wanted.
Science continues to support and build the case for life. Medical technologies allow us to see images of the unborn children moving their newly formed fingers and toes, yawning, and even smiling. Those images present us with irrefutable evidence that babies are growing within their mothers’ wombs — precious, unique lives, each deserving a future filled with promise and hope. We can also now operate on babies in utero to stave off life-threatening diseases. These important medical advances give us an even greater appreciation for the humanity of the unborn.
Today, citizens throughout our great country are working for the cause of life and fighting for the unborn, driven by love and supported by both science and philosophy. These compassionate Americans are volunteers who assist women through difficult pregnancies, facilitate adoptions, and offer hope to those considering or recovering from abortions. They are medical providers who, often at the risk of their livelihood, conscientiously refuse to participate in abortions. And they are legislators who support health and safety standards, informed consent, parental notification, and bans on late-term abortions, when babies can feel pain. These undeterred warriors, many of whom travel to Washington, D.C., every year for the March for Life, are changing hearts and saving lives through their passionate defense of and loving care for all human lives. Thankfully, the number of abortions, which has been in steady decline since 1980, is now at a historic low. Though the fight to protect life is not yet over, we commit to advocating each day for all who cannot speak for themselves.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 22, 2018, as National Sanctity of Human Life Day. I call on all Americans to reflect on the value of our lives; to respond to others in keeping with their inherent dignity; to act compassionately to those with disabilities, infirmities, or frailties; to look beyond external factors that might separate us; and to embrace the common humanity that unites us. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this nineteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord two thousand eighteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-second.
DONALD J. TRUMP

The fact that I said “snowballed” was not even intentional, and yet—how many years has it snowed and utterly overwhelmed us as our storied pilgrimage on earth has peaked year after year at the March? On the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, it was a freezing blizzard. In 2016, they dubbed it “Snowpocalypse”, and yet—I believe in the sacrificial offering of the Mass proclaimed on that altar made of snow, Christ enacted His Supreme Power over the Supreme Court.
The throngs of pilgrims was almost inestimable. A beautiful sign reading “We March with Baby Steps” was spotted up ahead of us in the spiraling funnel of intimacy down Constitution Avenue. Oh indeed, it was quite intimate as we became more and more jam packed by the minute before things opened up for us enough to breathe again. Listening to the yearly witnesses like Abby Johnson and other former abortion clinic workers, seeing the Knights of Columbus’ powerful contribution to the movement in the form of countless ultrasounds for Pregnancy Centers, and then seeing the great Commissioning as we began our sojourn to the steps of the Supreme Court was breath-taking. No wonder we couldn’t breathe for a time.
Once it opened up though, some very important moments were given room in our hearts, and what moments they were!

In Christ, for Love & Life!

The Fellowship of the Fiat

 

 

Day 3, PART 1 – Mass with the Archbishop

Friday, January 18, 2019
Day 3 | “We March with Baby Steps”

Part 1 – Mass with the Archbishop

Too many moments placed one after another with faulty internet and inconsistent blogging habits made for a much less “in the moment” reflection, and so with the daily notes I took from our profound experiences in D.C. and Panama, I take back up the reflection from the Fellowship of the Fiat.

After an intense first full day in D.C.—complete with a closing pizza dinner at the Arlington Court Suites and an actual place to shower for once—we knew we’d have some semblance of rest in time to pick ourselves back up for another full day of intensity. Usually, the morning of the March for Life consists of attending the Verizon Center Arena with thousands of young people and hundreds of priests and seminarians for a massive mega-Mass for Life all over again at 6 or 7am, but after several years of seeing the Mass get earlier and earlier without a lot of substantive fruits, we as an Archdiocese worked tirelessly (and by we, I mean Ed Harpring!) to schedule Archbishop Kurtz and all our represented schools, churches, and youth groups for a personal Mass at Our Lady of the Holy Rosary at 9am before the March for Life.

Without a big plan for music or servers or lectors or anything, we knew the humility and simplicity of it all would be breath-taking. No, it was NOT a haphazardly thrown-together event with ignorance or indifference ruling over the liturgical norms; rather, a beautiful symphony of collaborative gifts were brought forth for the glory of God in that simple little Liturgy. As Archbishop Joseph E, Kurtz, DD approached the Sanctuary, I was blessed with the opening chant in honor of Our Lady who made this powerful moment possible: “Oh Holy, dwelling place of God! Oh Holy Temple of the Word. Oh Holy Mary, Holy Mother of God!”

It was glorious to watch David Vest and Bradley Holt serve in the cassocks and surplices provided by that intimate and traditional parish. Archbishop’s Homily was historic and I was seized with joy to witness a moment none of us could have planned or foreseen on our own. As our pilgrim leader courageously and humbly granted us the gift of his presence, we witnessed the meeting place of Heaven and Earth with our very own eyes in a very concrete and visible reality.

As Archbishop unpacked the Gospel for us in his homily, Immaculata Classical Academy finally arrived from the throngs of pilgrims and entered the sanctuary in droves. Walking into the left-hand side of the sanctuary, they filled the remaining void of the seating, and we realized the profundity of their placement. Directly on the opposite end of the sanctuary sat Sacred Heart Academy filling the right-hand side, with all the other schools and churches represented in the middle! Thus, in one clear and finite moment, the Immaculate Heart of Mary (symbolized in Immaculata) and the Sacred Heart of Jesus (SHA) were joined in the one-flesh union of Archdiocesan Salvation History.

If that’s confusing, don’t worry—we were astounded ourselves, for the fear of the Lord was quite apparent during that time. To be utterly struck with wonder and awe in the face of God’s perfect love for us was beyond our own understanding, and I will not speculate or try to understand it fully. We simply remained fixated on the Word Made Flesh as Archbishop brought forth the Incarnation through his active receptivity to Christ’s work within him! Holy Communion became heavenly then as Holly Ray, a senior at Sacred Heart and long-time Circle of Life vocalist brought her gifts to the altar of sacrifice, singing the Salve Regina and other sacred hymns as we were consumed with Divine Love in those moments of sacred silence.

I cannot describe to you further the importance of that moment for our Archdiocese, for the anti-Fiat with all the individualized agenda’s and personalities that have struggled to witness this vision over the decades were transformed and regenerated into the one Fiat of Our Lady without blemish. Truly, our pain and suffering, disfunction and sin that has ever felt too much to overcome or ignore for the sake of unity seemed to melt away in the face of God’s grander purposes. Who cares if we don’t get along with every single person at Mass or in church or in another school, community, or group?! Regardless of our personal wounds, we can witness a healing and deep-seated redemption provided we embrace said suffering for the sake of this United Front of Beatific Providence!

THAT perspective is what Christ granted me as I witnessed and met every person face to face as I handed them the Holy Eucharist next to Archbishop Kurtz. Indeed, it was an honor to be an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion in that moment Lord Jesus, for I could not have reflected on these sacred moments more effectively without such a grace.

It was a tiny “baby step” that we can all tuck into our hearts for the coming years of continued growth and spiritual grace, but it certainly began said thousand-mile journey into the Promised Land of milk and honey! No wonder everyone wanted a picture of the whole group with the Archbishop afterward (as well as individual shots on the steps of the church!) to remember this moment forever. Then, with most everyone moving toward the big moment at Centennial Mall, I myself was graced with a concise 4-6 minute encounter with the Archbishop in a video interview that opened the door for a profound question that can only be unpacked in the next part of this segment in the grander pilgrimage saga!

What is the difference between Abortion & the Eucharist?

Day 1 & 2 | Embarking with OPEN Baggage, Part 1


Part 1 – Beginning the Journey

Welcome to the Year of the Fiat! What better way to begin such a glorious new year in our Lord’s Kingship than with a beautiful awareness of His Blessed Mother’s perfect receptivity to Redemption? Such an openness to God’s Will of course is exactly why she becomes the perfect example for us to emulate, and I believe it’s why we have embarked on this exciting journey to World Youth Day in Panama. If you are joining us on the blog, then please feel free to share and reflect with us in prayer during our incredible journey. Otherwise, let Mary’s great Fiat for which all of Heaven so greatly yearned wash over you more deeply in these pilgrim reflections. Continue reading “Day 1 & 2 | Embarking with OPEN Baggage, Part 1”

Live Love Louisville – Sat, Apr 14 @ 11am-2pm

April 14, 2018 @ 11am-2pm – “Live Love Louisville” will be a community-wide festival hosted by Louisville’s Pro-Life Future & the Circle of Life Youth Ministry. This festival will occur with three main features: People, Peace, and Prayer. By addressing difficult issues within a family environment, we hope to reach people in a way they can understand and accept. Our short-term goal is to close the last abortion clinic in Kentucky. Our longterm  goal is to build a permanent culture of life in America by uniting the pro-life community like never before. Our display of shoes will spell out the word “LOVE” & “LIFE” for all to see. That evening @ 7pm we will end in a candlelight prayer procession there at the Walking Bridge to raise awareness about the issues facing our community.

Make sure to come out for our first ever Pro-Life Festival on the Waterfront at the Walking Bridge on Saturday, April 14 @ 11am-2pm. This will be in partnership with various non-profit organizations–imagine tailgating and parish picnic / prayer service rolled into one! Built on people, peace, and prayer–this is sure to be an experience you will never forget!

Bring your shoes in until the end of the month for our  big display!

Click HERE for more information!

Paperwork for Ignite & Mission Trip!

Everyone,

Hoping this reaches you!

  1. The paperwork for both Ignite Your Torch AND the Catholic Heart Work Camp Mission Trip is finally posted and ready to go!
  2. Don’t forget to come to Stations of the Cross @ St. Luke again this Friday at 7pm, and then again next HOLY THURSDAY to watch the “Passion of the Christ” in the sanctuary during after-Mass Adoration…all at the Circle of Life Center @ St. Luke.
  3. LIVE LOVE LOUISVILLE – Sat, Apr 14 @ 11am-2pm at the Walking Bridge. Live Music, Food, Games–come to the Pro-Life Festival to remember! All day long after the main events to raise awareness and build community.
  4. TALENT SHOW – Send me your name, talent, song, routine, etc no later than Friday, March 30 @ 3pm if you would like to be in the Talent Show! A deadline extension only for those on a case-by-case basis! We are doing THREE shows this year, on Fri-Sun, April 27-29. circleoflifeyouth.com/crescendo for more information.
  5. Go to circleoflifeyouth.com/calendar for more opportunities and upcoming events!

In Christ, for Love & Life!

John Sohl, CYM

The Circle of Life Youth

502.428.6757

Calendar is UP!

Hey Everyone,

If you hadn’t noticed, I’ve had some trouble with the website lately because it stopped sending blog posts to our email recipients. I reverted back to Instagram posts, etc. for the last several months until I could find time to fix this technical glitch or let it fix itself. Here’s hoping this works!

FIRST — The Circle of Life CALENDAR for all of 2018 is finally out! 

This Calendar is subject to change, but one big note is that we are permanently moving the middle school and high school meetings to the 2nd Friday of each month. Middle schoolers will meet from 4:30-7pm and High school will meet from 6:30-7pm. The 30 minutes in between middle and high school will be social time, etc.

SECOND — Pay attention to special events like Saints Alive (Fall 2018), Stations of the Cross (Fridays at 7pm during Lent), Crescendo Talent Show (April 27-29), and more! Also, and perhaps most importantly, this shift is part of our longer term goal of inspiring a more Discipleship Focused Youth Ministry, including the G.A.P. Families!

THIRDIgnite Your Torch and the Catholic Heart Work Camp MISSION TRIP are coming up this summer! Unfortunately, because they butt up right next to each other, each young person is going to have to pick between the two experiences. The deadline for ALL paperwork and initial deposits ($100 each) will be Friday, March 23, 2018 @ 3pm. Write checks to “St. Athanasius” and mail to 5915 Outer Loop, 40219.

FOURTH — Live Love Louisville is coming faster than you realize! Send in your new and gently used shoes and be prepared to help make this the biggest event we’ve ever been privileged in working on, all through God’s good graces! Saturday, April 14 @ 11am-2pm, but be prepared to stick around the whole day for games, service, and prayer!

With that, contact our Discipleship team with any questions:

John Sohl, DC/CYM — 502.428.6757 or john.sohl@outlook.com

Mary Whitfill, Discipleship Leader — 502.383.3295 or mwhitfill4170@gmail.com

Shane Weppler, Discipleship Leader — 502.593.3324 or jwepp91@gmail.com

Kristin Ballard, Discipleship Leader — 502.296.5916 or kspike25@twc.com

Our Instagram Account is Active Again!

Good evening everyone!

Don’t forget about next Friday, October 13th — Our Lady of Fatima Celebration at 7pm, St. Luke. We will be saying the rosary processing by candlelight around the Treasure Island neighborhood after a simple Holy Hour in the church. Come prepared for a night worthy of remembrance!

Also, be sure to check out our Instagram account for regular updates as well. @circleoflifeyouth and hopefully, our WordPress Posts will be auto-posting to Instagram from now on as well!

Click HERE for our latest information concerning our upcoming opportunities!

In Christ, for Love & Life!

John Sohl, CYM

The Circle of Life Youth

502.428.6757