Holy Hour

Join us in the adoration chapel at Resurrection Church (1600 11th Ave SE) each Tuesday evening for praise & worship, reflection, and prayer as we meditate before the Body & Blood of our Lord. Also following the GRAYCE Holy Hour, the group stays around to socialize or goes out to a restaurant or someone's home. You are welcome to join us anytime for prayer and fellowship!

Dorothy Day House

703 1st St SW

The Dorothy Day Hospitality House is a shelter for people who are homeless in Rochester. The shelter is part of the Catholic Worker movement started by Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin in the 1930s. Catholic Worker communities are committed to nonviolence, voluntary poverty, prayer, and hospitality for the homeless, exiled, hungry, and foresaken.
We are scheduled every second Thursday of the month. Please contact Jason at 358-2768 if you are interested.

St. John's Block Party

Great food, great (clean!) bands, and the money goes to helping our community. Family entertainment from 12n-4pm. Details at http://sjblockparty.org.

Habitat for Humanity

GRAYCE volunteers once a month to help build houses under the direction of the Rochester Area Habitat for Humanity. No experience with any power tools or carpentry work required. Stay for as long as you want—lunches are donated by local restaurants. Contact rae@grayce.org for details for how to get involved.


Normally we are the 3rd Saturday of the month, but we are booked for next weekend!

Steubenville North Conference

1200+ Catholic teens are converging on the 3rd annual Steubenville North Conference at the Rochester Civic Center July 17th-19th. Volunteers are needed to help the youth experience Christ through uplifting talks, music, Adoration, and the Eucharist. This year's theme is "Above All." To find out more, visit the Partnership for Youth website or contact Rae at rae@grayce.org.

"Yours, O LORD is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is yours; yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all." -I Chronicles 29:11

Tubing etc in Iowa

Tentative plans: road trip to Decorah, Iowa to visit Sean and go tubing! Nordicfest is going on, so lots of options. Website will be updated as things coalesce. If you are interested, please email info@grayce.org by July 20th.

Sports Night

Possibilities include volleyball, ultimate frisbee, and swimming.

Dorothy Day House

703 1st St SW

The Dorothy Day Hospitality House is a shelter for people who are homeless in Rochester. The shelter is part of the Catholic Worker movement started by Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin in the 1930s. Catholic Worker communities are committed to nonviolence, voluntary poverty, prayer, and hospitality for the homeless, exiled, hungry, and foresaken.
We are scheduled every second Thursday of the month. Please contact Jason at 358-2768 if you are interested.

Habitat for Humanity

GRAYCE volunteers once a month to help build houses under the direction of the Rochester Area Habitat for Humanity. No experience with any power tools or carpentry work required. Stay for as long as you want—lunches are donated by local restaurants. Contact rae@grayce.org for details for how to get involved.

July Sports Night

Sports Night will be held in the Pax Christi field with the options of Volleyball or Ultimate Frisbee!!!! Afterwards, we will take advantage of the fire ring, and have a nice bonfire. Bring the makings for s'mores, fire provided. Be there at 7 to start the game!!

If the weather doesn't cooperate (gasp, no!), we'll quick change it to game night, held in the Pax Christi Youth House (aka the Rock). Pax Christi is located at 4135 19th Ave NW Rochester.

Theology on Tap

Are you interested in learning more about your faith? Would you like to discuss faith topics relevant to your experiences? Do you want to meet other young adults who share these common interests? Then Theology on Tap is for you!

Topic is "Is there a difference between curing and healing?"

Join us on Sunday, June 21st at 6:30PM @ Whistle Binkies on the Lake located: 3247 Woodlake Dr SE.

If you have any questions, please email jossie.mcmanus@gmail.com

Andy Vogel's Deaconate Ordination

Remember Andy Vogel? He will be ordained a transitional deacon this year and, God willing, a priest in 2010. Saturday, June 20th at 10 AM at Resurrection Catholic Church. A reception and light lunch will follow. Shall we all meet up and go together? Meet at 9:45am in the Resurrection gathering space!

Canoeing Fun

GRAYCE is gathering a group to go canoeing on Saturday, June 13th! Whether you've never paddled a canoe in your life or you desire to get out and perfect your J-Stroke, you're bound to have a great time!

Place to Meet: Church of the Resurrection parking lot for carpooling.
Time: 9AM sharp until evening
Price: about $23 per person (if we have an even number, otherwise someone goes in kayak for $40)
RSVP date: Monday June 8 to Katherine at katiesuebk@gmail.com. We will do something for lunch too!

Please contact info@grayce.org if finances will be difficult. Inquiries are kept confidential.

Memorial Day Mayhem: Hiking and BBQ at Whitewater

Meet at Resurrection parking lot at 1pm. From there, we'll carpool to Whitewater State Park for awesome hiking, and barbeque afterwards. We leave PROMPTLY at 1:15 CDT. Bring something to drink on the hike and for the meal. Meat for grilling will be provided for those who RSVP to info@grayce.org. Please bring a dish to pass.

Also, an optional activity will be the watchtower climb for those who either a) are nuts b) REALLY like the view or c) want to feel the burn!

Church of the Resurrection is located at 1600 11th Ave SE Rochester.

RESPECT LIFE

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has launched an e-mail campaign urging Congress to maintain widely-supported pro-life policies and to oppose the federal funding and promotion of abortion. The e-mail campaign augments the massive national postcard campaign launched in dioceses throughout the country in January.

Recent polls show that Americans strongly support laws limiting or regulating abortion, including laws honoring parental involvement in a minor daughter’s abortion decision, laws upholding the conscience rights of health care professionals and institutions, limits on abortion funding, and bans on partial-birth abortion. To guard against the erosion of current pro-life measures—and to keep abortion from becoming a federal entitlement—your voice is needed now more than ever.

Please go to www.usccb.org/postcard and click on "E-mail Congress Now" and let your voice be heard.

Solemn Vespers for All Hallow's Eve

Come join GRAYCER's at St. Bridget's for an evening Solemn Vespers service in the graveyard, processing into the church by candlelight. Afterwards, season-appropriate treats will be available in the rectory basement. If you are able to help out, please email info@grayce.org, or speak to Rae, Jen, or Becca at Adoration.

Address: 2123 County Rd. 16 SE Rochester MN 55904.

Directions from Rochester:

1) Take Hwy 63 (Broadway) south to Exit 48th St. S / Cnty 20 (the exit to Fleet Farm).
2) Turn left at exit; go through traffic light intersection with Maine Ave SE; at stop sign, turn right onto Cnty 20/ St. Bridget Rd SE.
3) After two miles, the road curves left, and Cnty 16 joins up with Cnty 20/ St. Bridget Rd SE.
4) Almost one mile later (you're still on St. Bridget Rd SE), the road curves right, and then a quick left, where there is suddenly a junction, and Cnty 20 turns southward from St. Bridget Rd SE. At this junction there is a gravel road to the left which is St. Bridget's driveway.

If you miss the turn onto the gravel road, the very next left is a sign for "St. Bridget's Church," and the paved driveway goes between the rectory (the Church is behind it) and the cemetery.

Our Mission Trip to Camden

This past June, seven volunteers from GRAYCE journeyed to Camden, New Jersey to assist in a variety of ways in one of the materially poorest communities in the nation. After Holy Hour, in room "C" (across from the Great Hall), four of the volunteers will talk about some of their experiences from the trip and share some reflections on what they learned. Snacks will be provided. There will also be time at the end for questions.

"Do you want to know if your Christianity is genuine? Here is the touchstone: Whom do you get along with? Who are those who criticize you? who are those who do not accept you? Who are those who flatter you?" --Archbishop Oscar Romero

GIFTS OF FAITH - Rochester Catholic Bookstore!

Please visit the Gifts of Faith website, recently added!

GIFTS OF FAITH
1816 2nd St. SW - across from Sargent's

Hours:Tues, Thurs, Friday 10 – 6
Wed 10 – 8
Sat 10 – 2

We are pleased to share with you the opening of a Catholic Bookstore that is opening in Rochester, called GIFTS OF FAITH. Owner Cathy Tiegs is a parishioner at Church of the Resurrection, and will carry items perfect for the Catholic population: Gifts, Cards, Bible Study Books, Non-Fiction and Fiction, Liturgy items, Teaching Items, and more. Many items can also be ordered.

Mission Trip to Camden

Back by popular demand, your friends at GRAYCE bring you...
Mission Trip II: Camden

We welcome you to join us the week of June 23 to July 1 for a summer mission trip experience to Camden, New Jersey. Camden, across the river from Philadelphia is one of the poorest cities in the nation. Its many needs provide us with many opportunities to serve. We will stay at the Romero Center, a volunteer facility run by a local Catholic church. We invite you to learn more about this fantastic opportunity by visiting the web page for the GRAYCE Mission Trip to Camden.

Lent is a time for feasting!

Article by Marcellino D'Ambrosio, Ph.D

Some think Lent is a time for fasting. I see it as a time of feasting.

I come to this conclusion based on the story of the fig tree in Luke 13. Three years without bearing fruit. What could be the problem? The owner figures that it is simply a dud and wants to cut it down. The vinedresser, a little more in touch with nature, comes to a different conclusion. Maybe all that is needed to turn things around is a bit of fertilizer.

To read the rest of this article, go to the above link. Check out the rest of Marcellino D'Ambrosio's website at:
www.crossroadsinitiative.com
It rocks!

Almsgiving

By Mark Shea for Catholic Exchange

One of the traditional emphases during Lent is the duty of "almsgiving". The tradition of the Church here comes straight out of ancient Israel and the duty that was enjoined upon the Jews by God to care for the stranger, the orphan, and the widow. In many ways, ancient Israel was commanded to take care of the weakest and least in their midst. For obedience to this command, great mercies and benefits were promised. For disobedience, some of the most strenuous and frightening curses are reserved. The sense that comes across very strongly throughout the Old Testament is that the most helpless are paradoxically the most favored and that God's special tenderness is theirs (and his special fury, ours, if we despise the weak).

To read the rest of this article, go to the above link.

Apologetics: Heaven, Hell and Purgatory

Our February Apologetics session will be on the exciting topics of HEAVEN, HELL and PURGATORY~ Join us to learn more about these places! Learn what the church teaches on the place that we will ultimately spend eternity in! Interesting facts and a laid back learning environment make for a fun evening! As a reminder, these sessions are held right after the GRAYCE Holy Hour. The Apologetic sessions are held in the Great Hall at Resurrection Catholic Church. Snacks provided. Come and bring a friend!

Our second session on Heaven, Hell and Purgatory will be on February 20th. We are honored to have Fr. Livingston be the quest speaker!

We hope to see you there!

Law vs. morality, Good and evil

At the present time it is widely accepted among lawyers that law is higher than morality – law is something which is shaped and developed, whereas morality is something inchoate and amorphous. This is not the case. The opposite is true: morality is higher than law! Law is our human attempt to embody in rules a part of that moral sphere which is above us. We try to understand this morality, bring it down to earth, and present it in the form of law. Sometimes we are more successful, sometimes less. Sometimes we have a mere caricature of morality, but morality is always higher than law. This view must never be abandoned. We must acknowledge it with our hearts and souls.

In the 20th Century it is almost a joke in the Western world to use words like "good" and "evil." They have become old-fashioned concepts, yet they are very real and genuine. These are concepts from a sphere which is above us. And instead of getting involved in base, petty, shortsighted political calculations and games we must recognize that a concentration of evil and tremendous force of hatred is spreading throughout the world. We must stand up against it and not hasten to give, give, give, everything that is wants to swallow.

Alexander Solzhenitsyn
Warning to the West
1975

September 11, 2006

From the Magnificat-

God of mercy and compassion, you see into those places in the heart that are carved out by pain and grief, those places that are darkened by hatred and destruction, those places that are deepened by compassion and love.

Pour forth into all hearts the healing presence of your Holy Spirit, that we may love more deeply and more faithfully, so that the world will be spared the horror of which we are all capable when we turn away from love.

We ask in the name of him in whom all suffering humanity finds peace at the last, Jesus Christ, your Son and our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever.

Amen.

Happy Birthday Mary!

Thy birth, O Virgin Mother of God,
heralded joy to all the world.
For from thou hast risen the Sun of justice,
Christ our God.

Destroying the curse, He gave blessing;
and damning death, He bestowed on us
life everlasting.

Blessed art thou among women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.
For from thou hast risen of Sun of justice,
Christ our God.

Meditation by our Papa Benedict

The Talents Are the Truth Who is Jesus

Jeremiah had said: "The word of the Lord had become for me a reproach and derision all day long. If I say, 'I will not mention him, or speak anymore in his name,' there is in my heart as it were a burning fire" (Jer 20:8-9.)

It seems to me that we must ultimately understand the parable of the fearful servant also from this perspective; he hid his master's money because he was afraid that he might not be able to give it all back, instead of investing the money, like the other servants, so that it would increase.

The "talent" that is given to us, the treasure of the truth, must not be hidden; it must be spent boldly and courageously, so that it will take effect and (to change the metaphor) permeate and renew humanity as leaven.

Today we in the West are busy burying the treasure - out of cowardice when faced with the challenge of investing it in this tumultuous period of history, and perhaps thereby losing something (which is sheer lack of faith), and also out of laziness. We bury it, because we ourselves do not want to be illuminated by it, either - because we would like to lead our own lives, untroubled by the burden of this responsibility.

But the gift of the knowledge of God, the gift of his love, which looks upon us in the wounded heart of Jesus, should urge us on, so that all the ends of the earth might see the saving power of God (Is 52:10; Ps 98:3).