Fr. John McLoughlin, Pastor of St. Patrick Church on St. Croix, and the Missionary Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary extended prayers over Sr. Annamma Kuttivathu, ICM, as she celebrated the 25th anniversary of her first profession as a religious at the parish on December 8.
The launching of the Bishop's Appeal 2008 will generate financial support for Catholic Charities of the Virgin Islands, the territory's four Catholic schools and the Light of Christ Retreat Center. The Bishop's Appeal is an annual fund-raising campaign designed to meet major needs within the diocese. All money raised stays in the territory. The 2008 appeal begins on Ash Wednesday, February 6, and ends on Pentecost Sunday, May 11. Brochures are available at all parishes and schools.
For more information contact the Catholic Chancery,
Phone: (340) 774-0201
Mail: P.O. Box 301825, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, 00803-1825
The 2007 Bishop's Appeal raised nearly $400,000. The goal for 2008 is $400,000. The parish goals are as follows:
Holy Cross Church $50,000
Holy Family Church 40,000
Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church 18,000
Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church 35,000
St. Ann Church 40,000
St. Anne Chapel 11,000
St. Joseph Church 15,000
St. Patrick Church 21,000
Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral 60,000
The Catholic Chancery 110,000
Parishes in the Diocese of St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands will promote Operation Rice Bowl on Ash Wednesday, February 6. Operation Rice Bowl is the Lenten Program of Catholic Relief Services. For 33 years, Operation Rice Bowl has called participants to pray with their families and faith communities, fast in solidarity with those who hunger, learn about our global community and the challenges of poverty overseas, and give sacrificial contributions to those in need. The featured countries this year are Guatemala, Mali, India, Haiti and Cameroon.
The Diocese of St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands has a job opening on St. Thomas. The Catholic Chancery seeks an accountant/bookkeeper. Mail resumes to the Catholic Chancery, P.O. Box 301825, St. Thomas, VI 00803, or fax resumes to (340) 774-5816.
Ash Wednesday, February 6, will be the last multilingual Communion Service on a Wednesday at the Schneider Regional Medical Center's All Faiths Chapel. The weekly Catholic Communion Service will move to Mondays at 5:00 p.m. beginning February 11.
The Diocesan Office of Evangelization will offer a Liturgy Workshop entitled "Music: A Call to Ministry" to all parish musicians and cantors at the Light of Christ Retreat Center on St. Croix on February 29 and March 1. Composer Kevin Martin-Millien of Trinidad and Tobago will be the speaker.
Married couples are invited to register for the Marriage Encounter at the Light of Christ Retreat Center on St. Croix on March 28-30. The weekend retreat will help couples to discover God's vision of marriage, family life and spiritual diversity, thereby leading them to a clearer understanding of their relationship with each other and with God.
Most Rev. Elliott Thomas, retired bishop of the Diocese of St. Thomas in the Virgin Islands, and Fr. Henrique Schulterbrandt, CSsR, Parochial Vicar at St. Patrick Church on St. Croix, began physical therapy programs in January at the Redemptorists' St. John Neumann Residence in Saratoga Springs, New York. Bishop Thomas is recovering from pneumonia and Fr. Schulterbrandt from knee replacement surgery.