As part of our new Catholic Family Life initiative, St. Matthew Parish will be hosting a new type of gathering every month called Discipleship & Donuts! All are invited!
On the first Sunday of every month, we will gather first at the 8am Catholic Family Life Mass followed by the Discipleship & Donuts meeting in Feeney Hall. We will have guest speakers, fellowship, and (of course) donuts!
Here are the dates for the next year:
2021: September 12, October 3, November 7, December 5
2022: January 2, February 6, March 6, April 3, May 1, June 5, July 3, August 7
November 7, 2021 — Catholic from a Cultural Perspective
For our third meeting of the year, we had a talk by Brenda Cervantes from a fellow CFL (CCD) family. She talked about how her experience learning the faith is different from her children’s experience, which is something a lot of us can relate to!
We also had a short talk from Jane Walsh, the president of Children of Hope and Faith, telling us about the organization and explaining how the arts and crafts bazaar that was in Feeney Hall benefited the organization.
The handout has links to Advent activities, as Advent will begin on November 28th before we meet again. There are links to Advent calendars, Advent wreath prayers, coloring pages and an Advent chain to print. If you would like color copies of the Advent chain or some battery powered Advent candles, please stop by the parish office as I still have some extras!
If you missed the meeting or would like to hear Brenda’s talk again, here is the link to listen on SoundCloud.
October 3, 2021 — The Holy Rosary
For our second meeting, we had a talk on the Holy Rosary by Sr. Mary Francis, one of the Franciscan sisters at St. Matthew. She talked about why we use beads, who we are really praying to when praying the Rosary (hint: it’s not Mary!), how to pray through the mysteries, and many other wonderful facts about the Rosary! Then we made decade rosaries to take home!
The handout has links to printable coloring pages for all the mysteries of the Rosary, some links to books about the Rosary, and links to mystery meditations to help you pray the Rosary as a family. The second page has a description on how to pray the Rosary.
There was also a sign-up sheet to order a Rosary Popper for $15. If you would like one, I will be placing the order soon. Please email me at staylor@stmatt.net if you would like to purchase one (or more!). You will pay and receive it at the D&D meeting on December 5th.
If you missed the meeting or would like to hear Sr. Mary Francis’ talk again, here is the link to listen on SoundCloud.
September 12, 2021 — Family Prayer
For our first meeting, we had a talk by a parish family about the importance of family prayer, and some wonderful examples on how to pray as a family at home. We went through worksheets with examples of family prayer, grade level prayers, and How to Have a Holy School Year which was filled out by the whole family. We also talked about the covenant for the school year – what is expected from families, and a survey of what families would like from the parish in return.
If you missed the Mass and meeting, please fill out and return the Covenant Form and survey to the parish office. Also please complete How to Have a Holy School Year with your family. It does not need to be turned in, but it is important to do together so that you can make a plan on how and when to pray as a family!