Happy Retirement, Flora!

As you may be aware, our long time Parish Secretary, Flora Sittnick, is retiring after 18 years of service to St. Paul Parish.

Flora's last day was Tuesday, November 22nd.

Thank you, Flora for your dedication to our parish over so many years. Thank you for your good work and your patience, kindness, good humor, thoughtfulness, dedication and your impressive attention to detail!

We will miss you. Enjoy your retirement!

God bless.

Click here to see a few photos from Flora's retirement gathering with the parish staff.

2022-2023 Pastoral Council

Thank you to all who expressed interest in serving on our Pastoral Council.

Five new members of the 2022-2023 Council were recently selected, and an installation ceremony was held last week.

Click here to see photos from the ceremony and click here to see a listing of all members of the 2022-2023 Council.

We are so grateful for all who volunteer to serve our parish and our community.

Upcoming Holy Day

Thursday, December 8th is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, a Holy Day of Obligation.

Mass schedule:

Vigil Mass - Wednesday, December 7th

4:00pm

Holy Day Mass - Thursday, December 8th

7:00am, 8:45am*, 12:00pm, and 7:00pm

All Masses are at St. Paul Church

*School Mass - All Are Welcome

Oh Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you.

This prayer is inscribed on the 'Miraculous Medal' worn by Catholics around the world. Where did it come from?

"I saw the Most Blessed Virgin near the painting of St. Joseph. She was of medium height, but of such extraordinary beauty that it is utterly impossible for me to describe her..." Click here for the full story.

Resources:

Militia of the Immaculata website

MI film

Christmas Wafers

Now that Advent has arrived, the oplatek ("o-pwa-tek") Christmas wafers are available on the table in between the two wings of St. Paul Church as well as in the Parish Center. (Free will donations are gratefully accepted.)

Click here to read about this Christmas tradition celebrated by many families of Polish and Slavic ancestry.

Keeping Christ in Christmas (and Advent)

Our ushers will be handing out copies of the Magnificat Advent Companion book after Masses this weekend. Be sure to take one home!

"If you long for the nearness of God in your life, this invaluable little booklet promises to bring you ever closer to the One who promised: I am with you always (Mt 28:20)."

Here are a few additional resources to help you enjoy a meaningful and spiritual Advent season:

• 3-Minute Retreats from Loyola Press invite you to take a short prayer break right at your computer. "Take three deep breaths and remember that you are in the loving presence of God, who is with you as you continue your journey of growth and discovery.... " more

• Visit our parish website for daily or weekly reflections from Bishop Barron.

• Download the Hallow Prayer and Meditation app. (Click here to enjoy Hallow's commercials.)

• Sign up for Dynamic Catholic's Best Advent Ever and receive short, inspiring videos in your inbox every morning for free to help you focus your day on what matters most.

• Click here to learn about the Advent colors... not red and green, but violet and rose!

Sacrament of Reconciliation

The Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession) offers a beautiful opportunity to receive God's forgiveness and mercy.

We encourage all parishioners to find time for Confession during this season of preparation.

Mercy Mondays:

Confession and Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament from 7-8pm on December 5, 12 and 19.

Saturdays:

Confessions every Saturday from 8:30 to 9:30 am and again from 3:00 to 4:00 pm.

Click here for a printable Guide to Confession from bustedhalo.com.

Saints of the Season

The feast days of many popular saints occur during Advent. Among them are Saint Andrew - Nov. 30, Saint Nicholas - Dec. 6, Saint Ambrose - Dec. 7, and Saint Juan Diego - Dec. 9 and many more.

"St. Andrew was the very first disciple called by Our Lord... Andrew is the one who convinced his brother, Simon, to become Jesus' disciple....Now we know Simon as Peter, the first pope"

The most popular tradition associated with St. Andrew's feast day is The Christmas Novena which begins on November 30th. Click here to learn more about St. Andrew and this beautiful tradition.

Saint Nicholas: "One man, so famous, he's everyone's saint... " How much do you know about Old Saint Nick?! Learn about 'Santa Clause' in this Formed.org production Saint Nicholas: The Real Story.

Reminder: St. Paul parishioners have FREE access to Formed.org. Sign up today for great digital content! To create a new account, click on this link and then select "Sign up as a parishioner". Type in "St. Paul Kensington CT" and follow the simple prompts.

Christmas Greenery

Friendly reminder to all who ordered Christmas Greenery:

Items may be picked up this week, Friday, December 2nd from 2pm-6pm on the Parish Green. Thank you for supporting this fundraiser!

Lighting of the Green

Our annual Lighting of the Green will be held on Saturday, December 3rd after 4pm Mass.

Help light up the Parish Green by ordering a luminary to display your special personal message.

Click here for a printable Luminary form, or click here to order online!

Concert and Greccio

Our annual Christmas Concert and Greccio will be held on Sunday, December 18th at 5:00pm in St. Paul Church.

We hope you will join us for this special night featuring our Children's Choir, Exultations, our St. Paul Parish Choir and a Live Greccio performance.

Breakfast with Santa

The Msgr. Thomas L Greylish Council of the

Knights of Columbus will sponsor Breakfast with Santa again this year!

Sunday, December 11

8:30am to 12:00pm

St. Paul School Gymnasium

Visit with Santa, take pictures, and enjoy fun activities! Free-will donations accepted.

Click here for a printable flyer.

Angel Tree

The 2022 Angel Trees are now up at both St. Paul & Sacred Heart Churches.

All are invited to take an Angel (or two) from the tree, purchase and wrap the gift noted on the back of the Angel, and return the gift, with the Angel attached, by December 11th.

The gifts will be distributed to several local organizations including the Klingberg Family Center, Worthington Manor Retirement Center, Ledgecrest Health Care Center, CCARC, and more.

Many of the gifts listed on the Angels were specifically requested by clients/residents at these local facilities.

The Angel Tree Project will also support the Boxes to Boots organization this year. 

Click here for more details.

Quilt Raffle

Our Quilters' Group will hold the drawing for their Quilt Raffle on Wednesday, December 7th.

Online ticket sales will close on Monday, December 5th at noon. Click here to purchase raffle tickets online.

Thank you to all who have supported this fundraiser. Good luck!

Proceeds from the sale/raffle of items made by our parish Quilters' Group are used to benefit our parish and school and for outreach to the community during the holidays.

Note: The Quilters' Group will also have a booth at the American Legion Craft Fair which will be held on December 10th from 9am to 1pm.

Religious Ed

Our Religious Ed program coordinated our first Children's Mass on November 20th. We were so happy to see so many families in attendance, and the student helpers did a wonderful job!

Click here to see photos.

The next Children's Mass is scheduled for Sunday, December 11th at 9:00am.

Please join us!

Looking for a good family movie for Christmas? Have you seen The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey? The movie is based on the book by Susan Wojciechowski.

"Jonathan Toomey is the best woodcarver in the valley, but he is always alone and never smiles. No one knows about the mementos of his lost wife and child that he keeps in an unopened drawer..."

Click here to watch the trailer, or click here for a read aloud story version.

40 Days for Life

Thank you again to all who so generously supported the 40 Days for Life Collection of Baby/Maternity items! Donations included diapers, toiletry items, bathtubs, strollers, pack-n-plays, clothing, baby books, formula and so much more. Thank you notes we have received from the pregnancy centers will be included in an upcoming bulletin.

Click here to see photos of the drop off at the pregnancy centers and other pictures from the 40 Days for Life campaign.

Save the date for the March for Life:

January 20, 2023!

To get involved or learn more about our Culture of Life Ministry, please email Ashley at respectlife@stpaulkensington.org.

Additional resources:

• Family Institute of CT
• Respect Life
• Focus on the Family: Pro-Life Arguments Explained

Scripture Study

Our Scripture Study group held their wrap-up session for Genesis-Part One on November 15 with 33 people in attendance. Fr. Michael gave an excellent lecture, summarizing the first 25 chapters of Genesis which dealt with the creation stories and the ancestral stories

of our Father in faith, Abraham. 

The group will be studying Genesis-Part Two beginning in March which deals with chapters 26-50 in Genesis.

An information/ registration meeting will be held in early March for those who want to learn more about the study.

Women of Faith

All women of the parish are invited to join our Women of Faith group.

The next meeting will be held this week, on Thursday, December 1, 2022. The evening will begin with Eucharistic Adoration at 7pm in St. Paul Church. Following Adoration, please join us in the Church Hall for reflection and to share the many joys of the Advent Season.

For more information, please visit our Women of Faith page or email Cheryl, Lynn and Karen at womenoffaith@stpaulkensington.org

TMIY!

Our That Man Is You! men's group continues to meet on Saturday mornings at 6:30am.

New members welcome!

Click on the image to watch the video about the "All Things New" program for this semester.

HomeFront

Our Parish Social Action Committee has started planning the 2023 HomeFront project. Applications are now available for individuals/ families who are interested in receiving help maintaining their home.

HomeFront is a community-based home repair program that helps homeowners who are financially unable to maintain their homes. Repairs are made by sponsoring teams of volunteers at no cost to the recipients, primarily in a one-day effort.

The 2023 day is the third weekend of May.

More information and applications can be found at the church entrances and on the HomeFront website.

Knitters Needed

Our Social Action Ministry is looking for volunteers to knit winter hats for children.

Thank you to all who have already donated hats!

There is still a need for youth sized hats for children ages 10 through 17. The hats will be donated to the Underground New England. There is yarn at the church available to anyone interested in helping. All finished hats can be placed in the plastic bins located near the elevator entrance of St. Paul Church. Any questions, please call Cheryl Pagano at 860-218-3177.

The Underground New England (UGNE) is a grass-roots, faith-based initiative dedicated to ending sex trafficking and sexual exploitation throughout CT and New England.

Saint Paul School

SPS is accepting applications for the 2023-2024 academic year!

Visit our website or contact our Admissions Director, Kelly Esposito, to learn more!

To download an application, click here.

If you would like to support Saint Paul School on 'Giving Tuesday', click here for information and a printable form. Thank you!

And if you're looking for an excuse to eat out or for a fun way to support our parish school... Dine In or Take Out at The Avenue in Berlin on Tuesday, December 6, and support the 8th-grade class! Mention Saint Paul School and a portion of sales will be donated back to the school.

IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD...

Men's ACTS Retreat

The ACTS Retreat team at St Luke's Parish in Southington (formerly St. Dominic Church) is sponsoring a Men's Retreat from January 26-29, 2023 at Our Lady of Calvary Retreat House in Farmington.

Click here to view the flyer.

OLC Retreat

Our Lady of Calvary Retreat Center will also host an Advent Retreat Day on December 7th from 10am to 2pm.

Why not begin the Advent season with a day of prayer?

Click here to learn more about this event which will explore stories from Scripture that frame the Advent season and remind us again that God is most often found in the most simple and ordinary moments of daily life.

Caroling and Living Nativity

At the Shrine of Lourdes in Litchfield, a Carol Sing will be held on Saturday, December 10th at 7:30pm in the Grotto and a Living Nativity will take place in the Grotto the following day, Sunday, December 11th at 2:00pm. The Grotto Gift Shop will be open during these events.

Click here for details.

Catholic High School

Considering Catholic High School for your child? Our local Catholic High Schools offer an excellent education and so much more.

Contact them today to schedule a visit.

Ask about financial assistance!



• East Catholic High School
• Mercy High School
• Northwest Catholic High School
• Sacred Heart Academy
• St. Paul Catholic High School
• Xavier High School