October 1, 2023
During October, we pay special tribute to one of the most common devotions in the Church – the holy rosary. Near the start of his pontificate, Pope Francis spoke to young people about his 5-finger prayer. He assigned to each finger a different category of people to pray for. I have recently adapted this technique in my own prayer life and applied it to praying the rosary. For the first decade and the thumb, I pray in a particular way for those who support me, my benefactors, family, and friends, and those who, in a sense, give me a ‘thumbs up.’ The second decade, and the pointer finger, remind me to pray for those to whom ‘I point to’ in my effort to share leadership in the parish. With the middle finger and the third decade, I pray in a particular way for those I have offended. There really is no way around it; Pope Francis set aside this finger for our leaders, which is equally problematic, so I make the best of it and pray for this specific group every time I pray the rosary. With the ring finger, along with the fourth decade, I pray for the newly married, those preparing for marriage, and indeed all married couples; that their vows to each other ‘ring’ true. Finally, for the fifth decade and the pinkie, I pray for the lost or lonely, the sick and homebound, and all those who feel small or unnoticed. I hope you and your family join me in praying for the rosary this month. In particular, I pray that we all grow in our respect for the dignity of human life from conception to natural death. In that spirit of praying together, I proceed to our monthly gratitude list.
In Gratitude to:
•Mike Sweatmon and Louis Amshoff for getting the bell at Saint Aloysius unstuck and fixing a new rope. It’ll be good to hear it ring once more!
•Those who have joined me for adoration weekday mornings from 7-8 AM at Saint Aloysius. We have a faithful following; I invite you to join us for some quiet time in prayer.
•Our weekday Mass-goers at both parishes. Having recently moved up the times at both parishes, we have lost a few attendees and gained a few. I hope these new times (8 AM at Saint Aloysius and 8:30 AM at Saint Benedict) make it accessible to more people. If you have the opportunity, join us in prayer!
•Parishioner Vincent Whelan and the Knights of Columbus out of Saint Francis Xavier for their recent visit to both our parishes in their effort to engage the men of our community. As the chaplain for these Knights, I highly encourage you to look into all they do!
•Fr. John Schwartzlose of Catholic Charities of Louisville for his recent visit to Saint Benedict. We looked around the school building – primarily the upstairs – and discussed how Saint Benedict’s can provide additional help to our surrounding community. Nothing concrete came out of the meeting, but we will continue to dialogue and discern how best to utilize our space.
Requests for:
I hope to have exciting news for the St. Aloysius community. It will take some effort from many of us to see it through. I’ll be asking for helping hands. More to come!
Two Parishes, One Heart!
Fr. Adam