St Paul Roman Catholic Church

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The Remembrance Chapel, located off the vestibule of the church, is a calm and quiet place to pray as well as a way to honor our departed loved ones by burning a candle in their memories. How to Arrange for a Memorial Candle.

Could you not keep watch for one hour? (Mark 14:37)
Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament takes place every Friday during the year in the side chapel, from 9am until 7:30pm. A signup sheet may be found in the hallway leading to the chapel. Please consider spending an hour with our Lord.

Stop by after the 12:15pm Mass every First Friday of the month for a lunch of soup, sandwiches, and dessert in the First Friday Cafe in the Spiritual Center!

Check out Postscripts for pictures of Ministry Sunday, the Blessing of the Animals, the Parish Picnic, and the dedication of the new Remembrance Chapel.

Learn more about the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa, what Catholic Relief Services is doing and what you can do to help. Also note that you can also buy hand-made items from countries helped by SERRV through their website: http://www.serrv.org/.

It's NEW! It's FUN! The newly-formed Encore Club for retired adults in the parish and Princeton environs offers fellowship, food, and engaging events. They'll be meeting on the last Friday of each month at 1pm in the Parish Center. Consider checking them out! Next meeting is January 28, 1pm.

Do you have a loved one in the military? If you would like that loved one remembered in prayer, please send the serviceperson's name to sHowley@stPaulsOfPrinceton.org.

In the Church, The Daughters of St. Paul, A King is Born: 2010 Daughters of St Paul Choir Christmas Concert," includes a wide variety of songs from the traditional "When Blossoms Flowered Amid the Snows" to the upbeat, rhythmic title song "A King Is Born."

Christmas from Poland and France. VOICES Choir with special guests, St. Paul Children's Choir. Program includes excerpts from the Midnight Mass for Christmas by Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1634-1704), accompanied by recorders, violins, viola da gamba and organ; also, the well-loved Totus Tuus by Gorecki, first performed in 1987 at a mass held by Pope John Paul II in Victory Square, Warsaw; a new holiday work by Ryan Brechmacher, In Nightly Stillness, tuneful Polish carols and French nols, and Ken Guilmartin's Happy Holiday Time. Conducting are Dr. Lyn Ransom and Andrew Monath of VOICES, as well as Carole Moore and Lauren Ketterer of St. Paul Children's Choir, Kathleen Milly organist and Jo-Ann Sciarotta pianist.
General Admission: $20; Children 12 and under $10; Family Pass $45. Advance sale: $3 off each ticket. NJ Pass Holders: 25% discount. Purchase online at www.VOICESChorale.org, by leaving a message at 609-637-9383, or at the door.

THANKSGIVING DAY MASS at 9am Thursday, November 25. Cider and donuts served in the Parish Center after the Mass.

Join us for a vigil for all nascent human life on Sat. Nov. 27 after the 5:30pm mass. Our vigil reflects the one that will be celebrated by the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI to coincide with first vespers of the First Sunday of Advent. This is your opportunity to thank God for the gift of your own life, the gifts given to our families and friends and to acknowledge our commitment to respect God's gift of creation and life. We will be offering this vigil especially for those expecting a child, for families with children with special needs, for the blessings of our parents, grandparent and children, and for all the teachers, catechists and volunteers who work with children. The vigil will consist of evening prayer, a Rosary, and benediction. Please join us so we can start the Advent Season united in prayer.

The annual Knights of Columbus, Council 636, Advent Wreath Workshop will be held after the 8:30am and 10am masses on Nov. 28 in the parish center. Donated greens and cuttings appreciated. Reservations are encouraged. Please call Bob Shaughnessy at 609-924-0073.

Boy Scout Troop 40 will be selling Christmas wreaths on Sun, Nov 28 after all the masses. These freshly-made, live Balsam wreaths are assembled by the boy scouts and feature local hand selected pine cones and holly, finished off with a beautiful red bow. Wreaths are $15 each and support BSA Troop 40 in their largest fundraiser of the year!

The Jesse Tree is an Advent custom that helps us to prepare spiritually for Christmas. Jesse was the father of King David, the first king of Israel. Long after King David died, Isaiah made a prophecy that a new shoot would bloom from the stump of Jesse. Christians take this as a reference to Jesus. To show this prophecy being symbolically fulfilled this Christmas, we as members of the body of Christ, can each represent a new shoot through our love and generosity toward others. The weekend of 11/27, our Jesse Tree will be on the altar near the Blessed Mother's statue. Gift tags will be hanging from its branches. If you wish to participate, take a tag, buy the requested present, return it unwrapped but with the original tag attached by Sunday, December 12. (You may place your gift beneath the tree.) When you return the gift, please take an ornament from the box beneath the tree and place it on a branch.

6th Annual Diocesan Mass for Ministers of Charity and Justice, the Gaudium and Spes Awards Day, will be celebrated on Saturday, Dec. 4, 11am at St. Gregory the Great Church in Hamilton Square. Coadjutor Bishop David M. O'Connell will preside. For more information contact Mary Ellen Blackwell at 609-534-5182 x 162 or email mblackwell@cctrenton.org. All are welcome to attend.

SIMBANG GABI (Night Mass) will be held at St. Paul on Tues., Dec. 21, 7pm. For the Filipino Community, the custom of nine masses starting nine nights before Christmas Eve started in 1660. This year the masses are being held on:
Dec. 15, 7pm, Blesssed Sacrament, 716 Bellevue Ave., Trenton

Can you give someone a ride to mass? Several local women would appreciate rides to mass on Sunday. Please contact Pat Giallella at 609-240-2313 if you can help.

7pm in the Parish Center
A Christmas Carol Starring Jim Carrey, Gary Oldman, Colin Firth and Bob Hoskins. A Christmas Carol returns to the heart of the Dickens' story to offer a piercing glimpse of a man in a prison of his own making. But then ghostly visitors quite literally lend him a hand to break free in time to celebrate Christmas. The emotional power of the acting and the use of Dickens' original dialogue maintain the strength of the story against the intensity of the special effects. Particularly moving is the scene where Bob Crachit is brought fact to face with the invisible visitor Scrooge as he mourns the loss of his son Tiny Tim, poignantly aiding Scrooge's discovery of the secret of a life which is well lived. Mature themes of charity, repentance and greed are portrayed in a way which reaches the youngest of viewers. Jim Carrey is at his flexible best˜he scowls as the curmudgeonly Scrooge, is sprightly and winsome as the Ghost of Christmas Past and laughs uproariously as the Ghost of Christmas Present. Beautiful orchestration weaves together favorite Christmas carols. This is the family film to ring in the Christmas season.

9am in the Parish Center
Catholic Corner: The Survivor, The Hero and The Angel: One Family's Story of How to Find the Love in Each Day. Brothers James and Sam Raccosta have a very rare metabolic disorder called Tri-functional Protein Deficiency (tfp). James also was born with a liver condition called billiary atresia which is a malformation of the bile ducts in the liver. He received several operations including two liver transplants to correct this. Their mother, Maryann Raccosta has written a book, which she hopes to publish one day. It chronicles the story of her family illustrating how they have come to appreciate life even more and find the joy in each day, even under the most challenging and difficult circumstance. Maryann, her daughter Gabrielle and son Sam share how their faith has carried them and encouraged them through the worst of times.

Love's Redeeming Way: The Heart of ALphonsian Spirituality, a talk by Sister Patricia Dailey, Tuesday, Nov. 30, 7:30pm in the Parish Center. St. Alphonsus Liguori was a remarkable 18th century saint, a beam of light in a dreadfully dark time of spiritual starvation, a time that emphasized God's distant power and majesty, that stressed the extreme of human unworthiness. St. Alphonsus lifted the curtain to reveal the true face and heart of God. This would become Alphonsus' mission and passion: to make God's redeeming love visible and available to all people, especially to those who had least access. His entire life can be called one long reflection on the mystery of salvation, the mystery of a self-emptying God who would enter our world, lay down his life upon the cross in a wondrous excess of love, and find a way to remain with us still. This is the God of St. Alphonsus Liguori, the God whom he would name Boundless Love. Sister is a member of the Congregation of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Annual Christmas Tree Lighting on Dec. 4 after the 5:30pm mass. Reception to follow in Parish Center. Santa is scheduled to attend!

The mass for Our Lady of Guadalupe will be on Sun., Dec. 12 at 7pm. Join our Hispanic community for a liturgy full of beautiful song and children dressed in native costume. The mass is bilingual and all are invited!

Karl M. Conrad, retired facilities manager, was diagnosed with emphysema twelve years ago. Since that time, Karl has endured many medical complications and numerous hospitalizations. His condition deteriorated to the point that his only remaining medical option was a double-lung transplant which he received on March 14, 2008. He has been doing well, but even with insurance, many of his needs remain uncovered: healthcare deductibles, co-payments, medications, and travel expenses to Pittsburgh every couple of months. The National Transplant Assistance Fund (NTAF) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that assists the transplant community. All contributions are administered by NTAF exclusively for uninsured transplant-related expenses. Donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law. To make a contribution for Karl, send a check payable to: NTAF Mid-Atlantic Lung Transplant Fund (in memo section, write: In Honor of Karl M. Conrad), to National Transplant Assistance Fund, 150 N. Radnor Chester Road, Suite F-120, Radnor, PA 19087. Credit card contributions can be made by calling 800-642-8399 or via their website at www.transplantfund.org. Karl and his family thank all of the St. Paul parishioners for their continued prayers and help.
RELIGIOUS ED EVENTS
• Consult the Religious Ed page for the holiday schedule of CCD instruction.
• Religious Ed's annual Drop-and-Shop Babysitting is back for the 8th year. Eighth-grade confirmation students will provide an evening of Christmas fun and activities for children ages 4 and up (toiled-trained, please). Friday, Dec. 10, from 6:30-9pm. Cost is $25/family. Registration form