You Are Invited to Baby Jesus' Party!

We have a special invitation for you! On Saturday,
December 13,
from 10 until 3,
we will have our annual Birthday Party for Baby Jesus. It will be at our bookcenter on Watson Road in St. Louis. All children are invited! You can dress in costumes and have your picture taken with Baby Jesus, eat birthday cake, color, sing, and more. For more information, please call us at 314-965-3512.

P.S. We hope to see you there!

Thanksgiving

For Sylwia, this was her first Thanksgiving, and she took pictures of everything! Everyone helped to prepare the meal -- at one point, there were seven people in the kitchen at the same time. Sr. Rebecca made her mother's stuffing and a pecan pie; Sylwia made turkey cookies and cranberry sauce; and Emily made asparagus (a special recipe from Sr. Rebecca). Everything was delicious ("pyszne" in Polish). After the meal, the postulants took a walk with Sr. Caritas while the rest of the community went to sleep. :) In the evening, we spent time together watching movies.

What We Did in the Windy City

Friday,
November 21:
We went to Chicago and stayed four days with our Sisters there to help them in the apostolate. It was a good experience because we met new Sisters and we saw how the apostolate is carried out in another city. The Sisters showed us different churches and took us around the city. We enjoyed getting to know the Sisters, seeing the city, and learning more about our Pauline life and charism.

Retreat for Young Women in Chicago

On Sunday,
November 23
in Chicago, we helped with a day of retreat at the Sisters' convent. Eleven young women came to see how the Sisters live, work, and pray. Sr. Helena Raphael spoke about the Daughters of St. Paul, and also about discernment and being open to God's plan for us. We went to Mass with the young women, listened to Sr. Helena's conferences, ate lunch and took a walk with them, and shared about our life. It was a beautiful and very joyful day, and we will continue to pray for the young women we met.

Mission in Chicago!

On Friday,
November 21,
our postulant group drove to Chicago. We went to visit our sisters there and to help with some events. On Saturday, we participated in an "Encuentro" -- a conference for all the Hispanic young people in the Archdiocese of Chicago. There were about 1,200 youth who attended! We had an exhibit, and there were many talks and lots of music, and at the end of the day there was Mass with the bishop.

Come and See! A Special Visit

On Sunday,
November 9,
we had two special visitors -- Sr. Margaret Michael, our national vocation director, and Jackie, a young woman from Kenya who is in discernment with our community. Jackie came to spend time with the sisters and postulants. We went for a hike at a nearby park. We prayed together, and in the evening we played cards. It was a very joyful time! The next day, Sr. Michael gave us a class on an aspect of our Pauline spirituality. We very much enjoyed having them with us.

P.S. Jesus says, "Come to Me, all of you!"

Vatican II Class

Sylwia, Emily, and Sr. Rebecca took a three-week class on Vatican II. The class was held at St. Peter's Church and our teacher was Fr. Mike, the associate priest at St. Peter's. It was very interesting because many of the people in our class were alive during Vatican II, so they shared their thoughts with us.

Adventure on Grants' Trail

Sylwia and Emily made a new discovery: we are experts in repairing bikes. Close to the convent in St. Louis, there is a very beautiful walking and biking trail.
The neighborhood around the convent is also very good for walking and biking. We fixed two of our bikes so that we could ride around the neighborhood and on the trail. The weather has been very beautiful and good for being outside, and many times we go for short walks and bike rides.

Happy Halloween!

This Halloween was special because it was Postulant Sylwia's first time to celebrate Halloween. Sylwia carved her first pumpkin -- she carved the eyes and nose, and Sr. Joane made the smile. Sylwia named the pumpkin "Timothy" because her English teacher told her she must practice her pronunciation of "th." Sr. Rebecca made caramel apples, and Sr. Jerome prepared a very nice meal. After supper, we played Catch-Phrase and charades. Some of the words were very funny to act out -- we laughed a lot!

On the Air!

The Catholic radio station in St. Louis is called Covenant Network. During the last week of October, we went to the station to record "St. Paul Spots." These were brief thoughts from the Letters of St. Paul that the station will play throughout the Year of St. Paul.

Wizyta w polskiej parafii w St. Louis

On Sunday,
October 19,
we went to St. Agatha's, the Polish parish in St. Louis. Mass was celebrated in Polish -- now Sr. Rebecca and Emily understand what it is like for Sylwia when Mass is celebrated in English. After Mass, we went downstairs where there was a Polish meal. We met the priest and some of the people. We celebrated with them the thirtieth annivesary of John Paul II's election to the papacy with traditional Polish songs.

Mother Thecla Book Club

On the first Saturday of every month, several junior high girls meet in our bookcenter. We read and discuss the life of a saint (in October we spoke about Bl. Jacinta and Francisco of Fatima, and in November about St. Bakhita of the Sudan). After our discussion, we have a time of Eucharistic Adoration. In December we will read and discuss St. Juan Diego.

All girls in 6th, 7th, and 8th grade are invited to come -- for more information, please call our bookcenter at 314-965-3512.

School of Evangelization -- Come, Holy Spirit!

October 7-10:
Sr. Joane, Sr. Emi, and Emily participated in the Archdiocesan School of Evangelization from October 7-10. It was a week full of talks and prayer on evangelization. Many people from the whole Archdiocese of St. Louis attended. We pray that it was a fruitful experience for all.

Our Annual Benefit Dinner with Friends and Benefactors

On October 5,
we had our annual benefit dinner and auction. Every year we hold a fund-raising dinner. Many, many good people and friends of our Congregation come to support us. This year, many of our sisters came from other houses to be with us. It is always beautiful to see how people appreciate and support us and our mission.