Life’s River receives ACA grant
The Annual Catholic Appeal presented a $50,000 grant to Life’s River, a new shelter for families in the Franklin County community of Washington. The grant was presented at a ribbon cutting and blessing April 30. Pictured with Archbishop Mitchell T. Rozanski are Life’s River
founders Anne McPherson and her husband, Greg Hoberock. The shelter, which was developed in partnership with Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of St. Louis, will provide short-term housing for families, while also connecting them with case management services. To read more about Life’s River, see stlreview.com/3y3GKLG.
Abortion ballot
initiative update
More than 380,000 signatures were delivered to the Missouri Secretary of State May 3 in support of a proposed amendment to alter Missouri’s constitution to create a right to legal abortion. Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, a group of organizations in support of abortion access that is behind the ballot initiative, needed to collect signatures from at least 8% of legal voters in six of the state’s eight congressional districts, meaning a minimum of 171,592 valid signatures. The Secretary of State’s office is expected to distribute copies of the signatures to local election authorities to verify signatures. Once signatures are verified, the Secretary of State will determine whether there are enough valid signatures to place the petition on the ballot for the next general election. To stay updated on the ballot initiative, visit the Missouri Catholic Conference at mocatholic.org/abortion or the archdiocesan Respect Life Apostolate at stlrespectlife.org.
Monthly pro-life Mass
The monthly Pro-life Mass and Rosary hosted by the archdiocesan Respect Life Apostolate (formerly the Helpers of God’s Precious Infants Mass and Rosary) will be celebrated at 8:15 a.m. Saturday, May 18, at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, 2 Seton Court in St. Charles. The Rosary will be prayed before Mass. Prayers will be offered on behalf of women and men facing unplanned pregnancies and for a greater respect for all human life, especially the unborn child. The monthly Mass will be celebrated at different churches around the archdiocese. The next one will be celebrated at 8 a.m. Saturday, June 15, at St. Ambrose in St. Louis.
Art exhibit at SLU
The Saint Louis University Museum of Art presents, “What Is Christ,” an exhibit by Nick Leeper, SJ, a Jesuit scholastic and graduate student in philosophy at Saint Louis University. A collection of Leeper’s paintings and sculptures encourage the viewer to see God through secular items. The pieces — four oil paintings and four sculptures of wood and plaster — came out of his capstone project. As he was writing about philosophy in art and religion, he thought he should also create works that demonstrated what he was writing about. “The heart of Ignatian spirituality is using one’s imagination,” Leeper said. “Art is a mode to engage that. We should be prepared to use our imagination to have an encounter with God.” The exhibit will be on display through Sunday, May 26. The Saint Louis University Museum of Art is located at 3663 Lindell Blvd. in St. Louis and is open from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday.
Catholic immigration teach-in
A Catholic teach-in on the realities of migration in the U.S. will be presented from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Thursday, May 30, at the Mercy Conference and Retreat Center, 2039 N. Geyer Road in Frontenac. Several experts will share what the Church teaches on the issue of immigration and the movement of people. Several immigrants will share their personal testimonies, and there will be time for group discussions. RSVPs are required; contact Marie Kenyon at (314) 792-7062 or email
[email protected].
Forgive Us Our Trespasses/Maafa Procession
The Archdiocese of St. Louis will host the third annual Forgive Us Our Trespasses Prayer Service and Maafa Procession in Downtown St. Louis to commemorate the approximately 2 million lives lost during the Middle Passage of the Atlantic slave trade. The event begins at 9 a.m. Saturday, June 22, at the Basilica of St. Louis, King of France (Old Cathedral), 209 Walnut St., with a prayer service and continues with a remembering ceremony at the south pond of the Arch grounds, followed by a one-mile procession to St. John the Apostle and Evangelist Church. A meal will be shared there. Participants are asked to wear white. A shuttle service will be provided between St. John and the Old Cathedral. For more information or to register for the lunch, visit www.racialharmonystl.org/fout.