Our next week to host families with children experiencing homelessness will be the week of December 1 – 7. Volunteer sign-up sheets are in the back of the church. Last Monday was the feast of St. Martin of Tours. One night, Martin, a Roman soldier, was entering a city during the winter. There at the gates he met a beggar freezing in the cold. Martin took his military cloak and cut it into 2 pieces, giving one to the beggar. That night, Jesus appeared to him in a dream, telling Martin that He, Jesus, was that beggar in disguise. That event changed his life. Like St. Martin, we put our faith into action by our care and concern for God’s children, especially those in need. Help us support families that are trying to make ends meet and to achieve independence by volunteering for our host week. Contact Bill Manthe at 723-4990 or Peg Jonas at 723-2051 if you have questions.

St. Clement CCW invites women of St. Joseph The Worker Pastorate to an Advent Celebration at the historic L. J. Arthur House, 210 N. Jefferson St, Lancaster, on Thursday, Dec. 12, 6:00-8:00 p.m. A light meal of appetizers, sweet treats and punch will be served. Fr. Mark Miller will give an Advent reflection. All women of our pastorate are members of CCW and welcome to attend. Please let us know by Dec. 9 that you plan to celebrate with us. Call or text Bernadette Schaefer at 608-732-7475, or Marcia Hampton at 608-732-8849.

This week in our continuing series on evangelization tips we’re talking about the method of Listen, Befriend, Proclaim, and Invite. Evangelization is an important responsibility of all Catholics. However, many of us Catholics can be a little intimidated by the idea that we might openly share the saving story of Jesus Christ with others. It’s not that we don’t find it important or desire the salvation of our brothers and sisters who don’t know Him. On the contrary. We simply get nervous when we have to share something as personal and demanding as the Gospel. We don’t know how people will react. But what if we had a template that we could use for sharing the Gospel? What if we had a predetermined method that removes a lot of our own stumbling and guesswork, so that there’s a defined beginning, middle, and end? SPSE has created a model called Listen, Befriend, Proclaim, and Invite. And it’s as easy as it sounds. First, you simply listen to a person to show them that you care about what they have to say. As they say, “nobody cares what you know, until they know that you care.” And that’s what listening accomplishes. Next, befriend by making conversation and finding a shared interest or common ground on a topic. After that, it’s your turn to talk. This is where you proclaim the Gospel. Briefly tell them about Jesus, what He’s done out of love for us (the kerygma), and what our response should be. (Don’t focus too much on the negative/sin aspect, as this may be their first encounter with Jesus in a long time or ever.) Finally, invite them to take a step towards Jesus, either by encouraging them to pray, or perhaps to do some reading based on recommendations you’ve given them about Jesus. Or who knows … maybe they’re ready for confession! As long as they are taking a step, no matter how small, in the direction of Our Lord, then it’s a successful mission. One final thing to remember—what they do with the information you’ve given is up to them. All we do is plant seeds — it is God’s job to make them grow. So your next step is to practice. Run through this method with a few friends or family members, and then ask God to put someone in your path who needs to hear it. Don’t be surprised when He does!

Share the gift of life by donating blood. The Red Cross will be holding a blood drive at St. Mary School in Bloomington from 11:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. on Monday, November 25.

Share the gift of life by donating blood. The Red Cross will be holding a blood drive at St. Mary School in Bloomington on November 25 from 11:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.

Everyone is invited to attend this fun, family event and enjoy the yummy breakfast, craft show, raffle, delicious Christmas cookies & candy, and visit with Santa on Sunday, Dec. 1 at St. Mary's School in Bloomington. All St. Mary’s fabulous bakers are invited to donate cookies and candy for the Cookie Sale. Please drop your cookies or candy off at the school by 10 AM on Saturday, Nov. 30. Monetary donations would also be appreciated; call 994-2435 for more information.

Thank you to all for supporting our Ss. Andrew-Thomas Pumpkin Sale Fundraiser and special thank you to all that made it possible: Dan Pierce, Kevin Udelhoven, Jamie & Angie Pierce, Fred & Ginny Koeller, Larry & Betty Kalina.

The Advent Breakfast at St. Charles School has been cancelled this year.

The council now has 180 Form 100s in our hands. The Form 100s were needed for the council to be able to start the Member Transfer Process. The member transfer will start immediately in hopes to be completed by January 1, 2025. The council gave out $300 Charity Checks to two brother knights with health conditions. Council 4416 does not hold meetings during the holidays. The next council meeting will be on Jan. 21, 2025 in St. Charles’ School Computer Lab in Cassville at 7:30 p.m.

Please join us for Rosary, Adoration and Benediction at St. Andrew Church every 4th Thursday of the month, to pray for peace from 7-8:00 p.m. It will be the third Thursday in November sue to Thanksgiving.

The long-awaited and overdue 2023 St. Clement Parish Directories have finally arrived! It was my understanding that the directories, like the photographs, would be mailed directly to those who had photos taken at the parish. But that is not the case. All were delivered to the parish office. We will be distributing them after the weekend Masses to those who had photos taken or who submitted photos. We will also be hand delivering some of them. You can stop by the office to pick yours up too. If you did not have your photo taken, directories can be purchased for $15 (the cost of a photo submission). The 2023 directory summarizes and totals the number of sacramental events that have taken place since we were established in 1859. This is the last photo directory for St. Clement Parish. Once our pastorate is merged, the next directory will be that of St. Joseph the Worker Parish which will include all seven churches. ~Bill Manthe

Operation Santa Claus in the River Ridge area is sponsored by the West Grant Lions Club to help those families and individuals in need to have a Merry Christmas. The club serves the Bagley, Bloomington, Glen Haven, Mt. Hope and Patch Grove areas. The members of the West Grant Lions Club have already been checking the five communities and surrounding areas served by the club for people in need. This has been necessary to provide enough time for the proper ordering of food items and other needed items. If a new situation develops that the club should know about, please contact Lion Mike Farrell at 9143 Kussmaul Rd., Mt. Hope, WI 53816. His phone number is: 608-988-4527. Money donations which are needed for the purchase of food items may be mailed to the West Grant Lions Club Treasurer, Paul Wegmann at 10998 Holly Rd. Bloomington, WI 53804. Be sure to make checks out to the West Grant Lions Club. The deadline for making money donations is Monday, Dec. 2. If you have any nonperishable food items (especially canned goods) please bring them to one of the collection locations which will be announced at a later date. Also please mark the bags or boxes as being for the West Grant Lions Operation Santa Claus. Sometimes there are other organizations or classes who are gathering food items for a different project. The Lions Club cannot distribute home canned foods or home baked items or clothing.

Masses intentions for loved ones to be said during 2025 at St. Mary's and St. John's Churches may be scheduled during November and December. The stipend is $20.00 per Mass. To schedule Masses, you may send a note listing possible Mass dates and the name of the person(s) for the intentions. You may also call St. Mary's Parish Office (608-994-2526) from 8:30 a.m.-3:00 p.m. Monday-Friday to schedule Mass intentions.

A Bereavement Mass will be held at 10:00 a.m. at St. Andrew Church in Tennyson on November 3.

We will remember loved ones who have died this past year at the Mass on Saturday, November 2 at St. Mary's Church, Glen Haven. If you would like to have your loved one remembered, please contact the St. Charles Parish office (608-725-5595).

We will remember loved ones who have died this past year at the Masses on Sunday, November 3 at St. Mary's Church, Bloomington. If you would like to have your loved one remembered, please contact the St. Mary's Parish office (608-994-2526).

We will remember loved ones who have died this past year at the 8:00 p.m. Mass on Saturday, November 2 at St. Mary's Help of Christians Church. If you would like to have your loved one remembered, please contact the St. Charles Parish office (608-725-5595) with the person’s name and which Mass you will be attending.

We will remember loved ones who have died this past year at the 4:30 p.m. Mass on Saturday, November 2 at St. Charles Church. If you would like to have your loved one remembered, please contact the St. Charles Parish office (608-725-5595) with the name of the person.

Thank You to everyone who attended our and special thanks to the many wonderful volunteers and generous donors. We couldn’t have a successful festival without you! Congratulations to our raffle winners: $5,000 - Maddie Driscoll (gave $500 back) $3,000 - Stan Miles $1,000 - Mary Jo Roesch $500 - Tom McLimans $100 - Kathy Edwards (gave all to school) $100 - Patricia Adams $100 - Larry Duncan $100 - Connie Murray $50 - Judy Leeser $50 - Mary Chapman