Stewardship & Development Office News

The Assembly of Catholic Professionals provides a unique formational opportunity for Catholic lay professionals to grow in faith. ACP serves as a Catholic community forum for developing our faith and our work toward a common cause. Quarterly luncheon meetings feature speakers who share experiences and discuss relevant topics and challenges facing today’s lay Catholic. Attendees enjoy the benefits of fellowship, networking and formation with a special focus on our identity as lay believers and community leaders.

Today we will take up the annual collection to support Christians in the Holy Land. Our contributions assist the Franciscan friars and others in housing and feeding the poor, providing religious formation and education, maintaining shrines and parishes, and conducting pastoral ministry in the land where our Lord walked. As a pontifical collection requested by the Holy Father offers a direct link for all of us to help maintain a Christian presence in the Holy Land.

The annual Red Mass will be held Sept. 26 at 6 p.m. at St. Mary Cathedral in Austin. The Red Mass is a Mass of the Holy Spirit celebrated annually at the opening of the judicial year. All are welcome. This 13th century European custom marked the opening of the parliament and received its name from the red color of the vestments worn by the celebrant and the scarlet robes worn by the Lord High Justices. Today, many cities around the U.S. hold the Red Mass annually in celebration of the legal profession. This is a Mass of the Holy Spirit celebrated annually at the opening of the judicial year. All involved with the legal community are invited to attend. Father Sean DeWitt, a diocesan priest currently working at the Apostolic Signatura in Rome, will be the presenter. A reception will follow the Mass in the Bishop’s Hall. Visit www.austindiocese.org/red-mass for more information.

The Peter’s Pence Collection is taken up worldwide to support the most disadvantaged – victims of war, oppression, natural disasters and others in need of emergency assistance. Pope Francis has asked us to “care for those who are in need of attention, understanding and help, to bring them the warm closeness of God’s love through tangible actions of sensitivity, of sincere affection and of love.” The Holy Father uses the Peter’s Pence Collection to strengthen dioceses, religious orders and struggling communities of faith when they need it most.

Today is World Mission Sunday and we hold a special collection for the Society of the Propagation of the Faith. Think for a moment what your faith means to you…what it means to you right now to be united with Christ in the Eucharist and with our parish family in Christ. Think of what the loving service of the church would mean to a refugee family on Sunday, an abandoned child in India, the poorest migrants right here in our own diocese. On World Mission Sunday we unite with Catholics throughout the world in a special commitment to the missionary task that we all share. Please be generous.

The annual meeting is an opportunity to learn more about The Catholic Foundation. This year our annual meeting will be held virtually. This years speaker will be announced soon.

The Collection for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) provides funding for groups that make lasting change and uplift the poor in the United States. CCHD grants improve education, support economic development, and help communities provide housing in low-income neighborhoods. Help us continue to defend human dignity and aid those living on the margins of society. Please be generous.

Welcome to #iGiveCatholic 2020! The Diocese of Austin is taking part in this Giving Day dedicated to Catholic philanthropy on #GivingTuesday, December 1. Now in its sixth year, we are thrilled to participate with 38 other arch/dioceses and foundations nationwide to raise funds for our parishes, schools, and ministries.

The Assembly of Catholic Professionals provides a unique formational opportunity for Catholic lay professionals to grow in faith. ACP serves as a Catholic community forum for developing our faith and our work toward a common cause. Quarterly luncheon meetings feature speakers who share experiences and discuss relevant topics and challenges facing today’s lay Catholic. Attendees enjoy the benefits of fellowship, networking and formation with a special focus on our identity as lay believers and community leaders.

Today, hundreds of religious communities lack enough savings for retirement and eldercare. Aging religious need your help. Thousands of senior sisters, brothers, and religious order priests spent years working in Catholic schools, hospitals, and agencies—often for little pay. Their sacrifices leave their religious communities without adequate savings for retirement and eldercare. Your gift to the Retirement Fund for Religious collection helps provide prescription medications, nursing care, and more. Please give to those who have given a lifetime. Please be generous.

A special collection will be taken up in this Mass to support family and pro-life activities in the Diocese of Austin. These include: Annunciation Maternity Home in Georgetown, Our Lady of the Angels Maternity Shelter in Temple and the diocesan Pro-life Activities and Chaste Living Office. Please be generous in your support of this most worthy cause.