Vol. 39: No. 02 ~ January 16, 2024

Office of the Bishop

A Limited Number of Free Tickets are Available to Attend the National Eucharistic Congress

Catholics in the Diocese of St. Petersburg have the opportunity to receive a free “full pass” ticket to the National Eucharistic Congress from July 17 through July 21, 2024, in Indianapolis.

The limited number of free tickets were purchased by Bishop Gregory Parkes to assist those who need financial assistance in order to attend this incredible event. The value of each ticket is $360. The tickets do *not* include any other related costs such as travel, housing, and meals. Visit dosp.org/revival to apply for consideration by February 5th.

Promotional graphics for parish bulletins can be found under the Bulletin Announcements section below.

Office of Life, Justice and Advocacy

CRS Rice Bowl and Mini-Grants 

Each Lent, parishes, schools and campus ministries participate in Rice Bowl, the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Lenten program of prayer, fasting, and giving. 75% of the collection is sent to CRS to fund international relief and development projects that prevent hunger and poverty in over 100 countries where CRS is working. The 25% retained by our Diocese is made available for small grants of up to $1,000.00. Diocesan entities may apply for assistance in funding innovative hunger and poverty alleviation efforts, justice education or start-up for CRS projects. Applications are due January 22, 2024. To learn more and download the grant application please go to: Catholic Relief Services - Diocese of Saint Petersburg (dosp.org)

Parishes, schools and ministries wishing to place a new order or increase their order for CRS Rice Bowls may do so here: www.crsricebowl.org. Questions about what is currently on order for your parish or school may be directed to Heidi Varley at lifeministries@dosp.org. 

Office of Stewardship and Development

Community Impact Grant

Applications are now being accepted for the Spring 2024 cycle of the Community Impact Grant Program. This program, funded through donations to the annual End of Year Giving Challenge and administered by the Catholic Foundation of the Diocese of St. Petersburg, will provide awards ranging from $500 to $5,000 to qualifying programs/projects that support Courageously Living the Gospel in one or more of the following ways:

• address a local community issue that assists the underserved and/or rural populations
• focus on establishing or enhancing youth or young adult ministry to increase their encounters with Christ and support the growth of our Young Church
• evaluate, train, and/or implement effective evangelization, Missionary Discipleship, family ministry, hospitality strategies and/or intercultural competency

Catholic parishes, schools or missions, or any recognized ministries of the Diocese may apply. All applications must include a letter of support from the pastor, principal or diocesan representative for the ministry.

Click here to download the Terms and Conditions.

Click here to download the application.

Completed applications should be returned by email to stewardship@dosp.org on or before February 7, 2024 at 5:00 PM. Recipients will be notified before the end of February.

For more information, please contact Meegan Wright, Executive Director of the Catholic Foundation at mwright@catholicfoundation.org.

Office of Worship

Liturgical Ministry Contacts

The Office of Worship is working to ensure that we have the most up-to-date contact information as we seek to provide more efficient and fruitful communication with liturgical leaders throughout the Diocese. Please complete the Parish Liturgical Ministry Update Form at this link at your earliest convenience, so that our office can better serve you and your staff.

Rite of Election Reservation Form

The Rite of Election will be celebrated on the First Sunday of Lent, February 18, 2024, at 3:00 p.m., at the Cathedral of St. Jude the Apostle. All catechumens (i.e. the “unbaptized”) who will receive all three Sacraments of Initiation (i.e. Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist) at the Easter Vigil should be present for the Rite of Election, unless grave pastoral reasons demand otherwise.

Since this is a very crowded event, seating can only be reserved for 1) catechumens and their godparents and 2) the parish R.C.I.A. directors and clergy representatives. Please have your R.C.I.A. director complete this Seating Reservation Form before January 18, 2024 so that the Office of Worship can properly prepare for this important liturgy.

View current information that can be included in parish bulletins here.



Thank you for your continued support and prayers.