Learning, Generosity & Service
September 2019
Catholic Schools: A Time for Shaping
By Leisa Schulz

Blank white spiral notebook pages, full boxes of sharpened crayons, iPads with new apps, and sturdy backpacks with unbroken zippers mark the start of the school year. New tennis shoes squeak as students walk on shining floors to their classrooms. Everything is fresh and new as another school year opens full of possibilities.

We are delighted to welcome your children into our Catholic school communities this year! We look forward to working in partnership with you to provide your children with a strong foundation rooted in the Gospel. Our Catholic schools provide education steeped in the faith, focused on the whole child, and geared to form individuals who are faith-filled, competent, and compassionate. Our Catholic academic programs are excellent and prepare students to be knowledgeable, active learners whose faith informs leadership, stewardship, good judgment, and decision making. Ultimately, our students are called to transform themselves, others, and the world in light of Gospel values.

A new school year is a time for shaping—students setting goals in academics, formation, service, and activities. A popular back-to-school activity is for students to set a bucket list of what they want to accomplish and look forward to in the new school year—encourage someone who is struggling, join a new club, improve in spelling, give someone a high five, read 10 books by Christmas, send cards to homebound seniors.

In the upcoming school year, our students will encounter a variety of new experiences. All elementary school students will participate in a new interim assessment to measure growth in reading, mathematics, and language. They will also experience a new mathematics curriculum focused on mastering concepts and trying several approaches to reach a solution. Many of our students return to campuses where technology upgrades have occurred, library spaces have been renovated, and buildings have been spruced up with new paint, flooring, and other upgrades.

A new school year is a time for shaping for all of us. Let’s take the opportunity to savor each day and reflect upon... Read More
Catholic Services Appeal Video 2019
Each year, people throughout the Archdiocese of Louisville give generously to the Catholic Services Appeal so that, together, we may bring Christ to others. The Catholic Services Appeal helps fund more than 100 ministries and services throughout the Archdiocese, and your gift supports the needy, vocations, prayer and worship, lifelong formation and education opportunities, work with teens and young adults, and the ministry of our parishes and schools. 

Click on the video below for an advance viewing of the inspiring message for CSA 2019.
To donate or learn more about the Catholic Services Appeal  click here. 
150 Years of Mercy   
By Sr. Paulanne Diebold, R.S.M.

All are invited to join the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the arrival of the sisters in Louisville in October of 1869. The celebration will begin with a liturgy at 11:00 a.m. Sunday, September 29 at Good Shepherd Church in Louisville, followed by a reception. 

The history of the Sisters of Mercy in the Archdiocese of Louisville began October 2, 1869, when, at the suggestion of Bishop William George McCloskey, Sisters of Mercy from St. Louis arrived in the Portland area of Louisville to take over the operation of the U.S. Marine Hospital. The nursing skills of women religious had become legendary during the Civil War, so it was natural to seek a community of sisters to run the hospital. Under a five-year contract with the federal government, the sisters operated every aspect of the hospital, including direct care for those wounded in the Civil War and in the building of the Portland Canal, as well as lifetime boatmen who were sick or aged.

From the beginning, the sisters also held Sunday school for children and for adults seeking instruction in the Catholic faith. In addition, on Saturdays, they offered sewing and needlework classes for girls. The sisters also started visitation in the area to comfort and assist the poor, sick and elderly. Within a year, they had begun to offer education to hospital patients and other adults in the area. Since hospitals did not pay much in those days, the sisters bought a cow and put in a garden to feed themselves and reduce expenses.

Young women interested in religious life began to arrive, and soon it was necessary to find a building to house the novitiate. As they say, the rest is history. Following their work at the hospital, the sisters were invited to staff a few parish elementary schools in the Archdiocese and opened Mercy Academy in 1885. It grew rapidly and in 1901, the sisters opened a new Academy building at 1176 East Broadway, where it operated for 106 years before moving to Fegenbush Lane.

At the request of women who requested a home for the aged, Bishop McCloskey invited the Sisters of Mercy to take up this mission, and in 1892 founded Sacred Heart Home. It was originally on Payne Street, but the bishop... Read More
Archbishop's Tweets
Follow  @ArchbishopKurtz on Twitter for more of his tweets.

August 23
@ArchbishopKurtz:
See my blog for an expression of gratitude from me to the faithful of @ArchLouKY :

August 16
@ArchbishopKurtz:
Serra Club offers support to seminarians

August 15
@ArchbishopKurtz:
With deep gratitude I thank all who gathered to honor Our Blessed Mother and petition Christ for my continued health through her intercession. I am progressing well.
Upcoming Events
Saturdays 9/14-10/19/19 9:30 a.m.
(See link for cost/registration)

9/15/19 9:30 a.m.
(See link for cost/registration)

9/17/19 6:30 p.m.

9/19/19 9:30 a.m.
(See link for cost/registration)

9/19/19 3:30 p.m.
(See link for cost/registration)

10/10/19 8:00 a.m.
Resources & Recommendations
This month, we're highlighting some helpful and timely resources for Catholics throughout the Archdiocese. We encourage you to check out the resources below and get involved.

Instagram Ate My Daughter and My Son Won’t Stop Playing Fortnite
Attend this parent education session at Mercy Academy (5801 Fegenbush Lane, Louisville) on Tuesday, September 17 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. to learn what you need to know to improve the odds for your children. This two-hour session will cover:

  • What kids are doing online and on their smartphones with social media.
  • How do I respond when my child experiences disappointment.
  • What can I do to improve the odds for my child.
  • How can evidence-based guidelines for best practices in parenting empower me.

The presenter is Dr. Leonard Sax, MD, Ph.D., who draws upon 26 years of clinical experience as well as visits to more than 400 schools in the past 17 years to share his recommendations with fellow parents. Dr. Sax is the author of four books, including the New York Times bestseller, The Collapse of Parenting.

This presentation is sponsored by the Office of Catholic Schools, the Office of Faith Formation, and the Office of Youth and Young Adults and is made possible by your donations to the Catholic Services Appeal.

Catholic Charities Urges Catholics to Advocate for Migrants
Kentucky’s four bishops — and their Catholic Charities agencies — are calling on pastors and parish leaders to educate parishioners statewide about the plight of migrants, debunk myths and encourage action on behalf of this vulnerable population. “Pope Francis reminds us to view migrants not as numbers or problems but as persons, seeing their faces and listening to their stories as we try to respond as best we can to their situations,” Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz wrote in a letter to parish leaders launching this new effort.
To begin with, parishioners are encouraged to learn more about the plight of migrants — both refugees and immigrants — and to separate fact from fiction. Catholic Charities has provided a fact sheet for parishes to share with their congregations. Parishioners are then encouraged to take action by writing to federal lawmakers and the governor. For more information about this effort, click here.

Catholic Services Appeal
Next month launches the annual Catholic Services Appeal, which invites Catholics throughout Central Kentucky to support the mission and ministries of the Archdiocese of Louisville. Look for a letter from Archbishop Kurtz in early October. To give online, go here . Your support is essential and appreciated! Questions? Call or email Maggie Blakeslee, Coordinator for Annual Giving, at [email protected] or 502/585-3291. 

Conversations with Archbishop Kurtz
While Archbishop is away for cancer treatment, we will be sharing the Best of Conversations with Archbishop Kurtz , by pulling together compelling segments from the past organized around topical themes. September’s topic is Catholic social teaching and will feature a discussion of the seven principles of Catholic social teaching and the Church’s teaching about racism and immigration.

Conversations airs on the Faith Channel (Spectrum channels 19 and digital channel 279) on Tues. at 7 p.m., Wed. at 10 a.m., Fri. at 7 p.m., and Sat. at 4 p.m. It is on radio stations WLCR 1040 AM, Breadbox Media, and WLHN 95.3 FM in Meade County. In addition, Conversations can be downloaded for no charge through iTunes. Conversations also is available on Bardstown Cable Channel 19 (BRTV) at 7 p.m. on the first two Monday nights of the month and on Bardstown’s PLG TV on Tuesday afternoons at 4 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays at 11:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Conversations is online at www.archlou.org/conversations .
The Catholic Connection is provided by: