Greetings!
Please mark your calendars and join our next meeting: Thursday, October 22 at 6:30 pm in the Cash Counter Room, through the parish library. Use the handicapped entrance to the church and we will have signs to guide you to the room.
Need motivation to serve? I highly recommend reading Willy Escobar’s
Open Letter on Why Do We Serve — a beautiful message that captures what we are seeking to achieve in launching a Social Outreach Committee at St. Ann. You may also be interested in reading
Willy's comments on Cardinal McElroy’s homily on September 27, the World Day of Migrants and Refugees. Willy is the Social Justice Coordinator at the Cathedral of St. Matthew, and a source of inspiration to me.
On Sunday I attended an interesting discussion of
Magnifica Humanitas, the latest in the
Catholic Social Teaching Fellowship Series at St. Matthew's Cathedral. They convene every second Sunday of the month. I missed last month’s presentation on the Church’s teaching on the Economy, but they have started audio recordings of the sessions, so if you are interested, you can
tune in to this one.
As I mentioned in my last update, we are building a list of St. Ann parishioners who would like to receive occasional updates about
Cabrini Ministry to assist them in their efforts to support the immigrant community.. If you are interested, please contact Lisa Madden at lamadden47@gmail.com.
Monsignor Watkins will celebrate the first Friday Mass at
Seabury at Friendship Terrace on November 5 at 2 pm. I plan to join this one and would love to have others join. The residents really like having us there. The Mass is very brief, so if you have just an hour to spare, you will have plenty of time to chat with the residents.
There is a lot going on over the coming weeks at St. Ann.
Cardinal McElroy will join our Mass at 11 am this Sunday, the 18th, and there will be a Meet and Greet in the Undercroft immediately afterwards.
Boy Scout Troop 100 will host a Food Drive on October 24 with the goal of feeding 400 families.
Also, the Catholic Church dedicates the month of October to the Holy Rosary.
Did you know that a small group prays the Holy Rosary Monday through Friday, immediately following the noon Mass at St. Ann?Included below are opportunities for action, service, learning, and fellowship directly related to St. Ann, along with
NEW opportunities and upcoming events.
Opportunities that are ongoing are listed here — these have been announced in previous updates.
If you have suggestions for additions or questions about anything, please let me know. I would really love to hear from you!
Debbie Grieser
St Ann Catholic Church
Social Outreach Coordinator
volunteer@stanndc.org
Service1.
Support our immigrant community. Interested in joining a list of St. Ann parishioners who would like to receive occasional updates about
Cabrini Ministry volunteer needs, as well as information about opportunities to provide financial support for this work. Contact Lisa Madden at lamadden47@gmail.com.
2.
Support parishioners and community members who are experiencing isolation. This may be simply a weekly telephone call, or could be periodic in-person visits, depending on your availability. Contact Sal Selvaggio, selvaggiosal@gmail.com
3. Faith, Food & Fellowship is hosted by
AU Catholic every Tuesday night during the academic year. Students gather for Mass and dinner to connect with Christ and with each other. FFF attracts 40-50 students each week. Please consider preparing or purchasing a meal, or a partial meal by using
SignUp Genius. Contributions should be delivered to the Kay Spiritual Center at AU by 6:30. Your generosity makes a tangible impact in the lives of students, who come hungry and searching. Jesus conducted much of his ministry through dinner table conversations, and AUCatholic seeks to imitate the Master. If you have questions, you can reach out to Allie Vega at campusministry@aucatholicdc.org
Learning1.
NEW: Church of the Little Flower in Bethesda is hosting a
40 Days Dinner & Speaker Event on Sunday, October 25 at 6 pm. Guest Speaker Janis Clarke will address Building a Pro-Life Family Culture.
2.
NEW:
Help End Chronic Homelessness in DC: The Way Home Campaign is hosting Advocacy Training on Thursday Oct. 22 at 6:30 pm at the Cathedral of St. Matthew’s North Conference Room, 1725 Rhode Island NW.
3.
NEW: Next in the
Series of Catholic Social Teaching Fellowship Series at St. Matthew's Cathedral : Sunday, Nov. 8 at 12:15 (after the 11am Mass) details to come later. All are welcome! St. Matthew's is at
1725 Rhode Island Ave NW, look for their North Conference Room.
4.
NEW: T
he Catholic Labor Network will host a national webinar on Thursday, November 12th celebrating the 40th anniversary of the USCCB’s Economic Justice for All. Speakers include Fr. David Hollenbach, SJ, who contributed to writing the document, which emphasized the impact of racism and discrimination on the ability of Blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans and other racial minorities to improve their economic status. It restated that racism is “a sin that divides the human family, blots out the image of God among specific members of that family and violates the fundamental human dignity of those called to be children of the same Father.” See the full line up of speakers on
this flyer. Registration will be available
online here.
5.
NEW: Open House at the
Friendship Place Welcome Center on Saturday, November 14 from 1-3, 4713 Wisconsin Ave, NW. Details are
here.
Fellowship1. St. Ann Ministries are Kicking Off for the Fall. They include groups that address
Mental Health,
Cancer and
Adult Faith Formation. Meetings begin this week, but they go on year-round. It is never too late to join or spread the word.
2.
St. Ann's Gather & Grace Dinner Groups: a place to make new friends and develop new links that might aid efforts to serve God and man more effectively. With small groups, each couple or single person hosts a meal in their home. You can serve whatever you wish at your home, using paper plates or fancy plates. The essence, the ministry and the blessing of Gather & Grace is the ageless “sharing a meal,” not the meal sophistication. Sign up through the link above.