Missouri Life Caravan

Applications are being accepted for the annual Missouri Life Caravan to Washington, D.C., Thursday-Saturday, Jan. 20-22. Buses will leave from various sites in the St. Louis metro area the morning of Jan. 20. The caravan will meet at the Basilica of Saint Louis, King of France (Old Cathedral) before departing for Washington, D.C., to participate in the 49th annual March for Life. The group will travel overnight and arrive in the nation’s capital the morning of Jan. 21. From there, Missourians will have the chance to meet with senators and congressional representatives from Missouri before attending the march. The group will leave after the march and travel overnight, arriving back in St. Louis on Jan. 22. For cost information or to register, see www.missourilifecaravan.org.

The March for Life also will be livestreamed on Jan. 21. See marchforlife.org/ national-march-for-life/.

‘Science and the sacred’ exhibit

The Saint Louis Art Museum will present “Paintings on Stone: Science and the Sacred 1530-1800,” an exhibition examining a tradition long overlooked by art historians — artists’ use of stone surfaces in place of panel or canvas to create stunning portraits, mythological scenes and sacred images. Developed in Rome by the Venetian painter Sebastiano del Piombo (1485-1547), the practice of painting on stone took hold in the 1530s and 1540s, and flourished for the next 100 to 150 years. The exhibit opens Feb. 20 at the Saint Louis Art Museum. For more information, see www.slam.org.

Silent retreat

“Come to the Quiet,” a silent guided retreat, will take place Jan. 7-9 at Mercy Conference and Retreat Center in Frontenac. Led by Dawn Stringfield, executive director of Mercy Conference and Retreat Center, the retreat will have minimal structure, and will be guided rather than preached or directed. Optional sessions are offered to help participants connect with the silence within. Participants may meet with the retreat director for informal spiritual companioning. Registration deadline is Monday, Jan. 3. To register or find other upcoming events, see mcsl.retreatportal.com/events.

Holy Hour for vocations

A Holy Hour to pray for priestly and religious vocations will take place from 7-8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 7, at the Monastery of St. Clare, 200 Marycrest Drive in south St. Louis County. The monastery is located off Telegraph Road; the entrance sign is next to the Goddard day care center.

Annual Aquinas lecture

Scholar Denys Turner will explore the question of Thomas Aquinas’ relevance today for the 38th annual Aquinas Lecture. Sponsored by Aquinas Institute of Theology, the lecture will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 27, at Aquinas Institute of Theology, 23 S. Spring Avenue in Midtown St. Louis. The event is free and open to the public. Turner is the Horace Tracy Pitkin Professor of Historical Theology Emeritus at Yale University. He has taught several subjects, including contemporary philosophy of religion, metaphysics, ethics, political and social theory, medieval philosophy, theology, and medieval mysticism. Additionally, Turner has written on Thomas Aquinas and applies his teachings to current issues. For more information and to RSVP, visit ai.edu/aquinaslecture.

World Marriage Day

Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski will celebrate a Mass for World Marriage Day at 2:30 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 13, at the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis. All married couples are invited to attend and celebrate the gift of marriage. Designated on the second Sunday of February, World Marriage Day honors husband and wife as the foundation of the family — the basic unit of society. It salutes the beauty of their faithfulness, sacrifice and joy in daily married life. The idea of celebrating marriage began in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, in 1981, when couples encouraged the mayor, the governor, and the bishop to proclaim St. Valentine’s Day as “We Believe in Marriage Day.” The event was successful and the idea was presented to and adopted by Worldwide Marriage Encounter’s national leadership.

Catholic girls schools unite for justice

Representatives from nine all-girls Catholic schools in St. Louis participated in the first St. Louis Catholic Girls Schools Unite for Justice event, held in November at St. Joseph’s Academy. The two-day event was based on the Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice Virtual High School Track, which engages students in current social justice issues and a connection between faith and justice through speakers, workshops, prayer and more. Students participated in Mass at St. Matthew the Apostle Parish, followed by a walking tour of the Ville, a historic Black neighborhood in St. Louis. They also participated in a service project at Annie Malone Children & Family Services, assembling 65 Thanksgiving dinner baskets for families. The schools intend to make it an annual event.