Meet Jurell Sison, the new Director of Youth Ministry! We are very excited to welcome him to the St. Ambrose team. Learn 3 important things about Jurell and find out about the exciting upcoming FIAT trip to Cedar Point! We are inviting YOU to come to Cedar Point with Jurell and FIAT. We have a special promotion….invite 3 friends to join you at Cedar Point and get your ticket FREE! Watch the video for more information.

Come on board as we journey to Josephinum Pontifical College or the celebration of Mass then tour the grounds.  Travel to the breathtaking Franklin Conservatory to enjoy the butterflies and flowers.  We stop to shop and eat at the North Market to enjoy shops filled with International foods.  Lots to do, places o rest and eat.  To reserve seating call:  330.460.7322.  $35 covers bus – lunch on your own.

A pilgrimage is a transformative journey to a sacred place reminding us that we are pilgrims on a journey that begins and ends with God. Pilgrimages are an opportunity for contemplation of one’s life and for transformation. Our travel is the outward part; our drawing closer to God is the inward part.

A pilgrimage can also be defined as the course of our life here on earth. The physical pilgrimage we take is a symbol of the spiritual pilgrimage we are on throughout our lives. Each day we have the opportunity to encounter Christ through every aspect of our human experience – its suffering, joys, and interactions with others. By taking what we have learned from our pilgrimage we can put it into practice in our daily lives and come to a better knowledge of God.

Bishop Richard Lennon has designated the parishes below as pilgrimage sites in the Diocese of Cleveland for the Year of Faith. You will receive a “Pilgrim Passport” at the first parish you visit (available at each location). As you journey to each site, the passport will be
stamped at that location.

www.wewelcomecatholics.com

Saint Ambrose Church, 929 Pearl Road.

Join us July 15-19 from 9 a.m. to 12 noon or 1 p.m. to 4
p.m. for a VBS full of adventure and lots of fun!

For more information or to volunteer contact Shelly Yanke at syanke@stambrose.us

A program brochure, application materials and more information can be found on our website http://www.csjoseph.org/stjosephworkers.aspx, or by contacting Sister Anne Dolores at adlaplante@csjoseph.org.  Applications are due July 1, 2013.

Can you spare 5 minutes to contact your Members of Congress and ask them to support conscience protection for EVERYONE?  Call or click here to email your two Senators and Representative.

Please join with us in calling on Congress to protect the right of all people and groups to participate in life-affirming health care — without violating their consciences!

Not sure what to say?  Here are some suggestions:

• The administration has issued a mandate requiring virtually all insurance plans to include sterilization and contraception, even including the morning-after and week-after pills.  People who run secular charities, or religious or secular businesses, are being forced to buy insurance coverage for “services” to which they have a deeply held moral or religious objection — with no exceptions.  I oppose forcing people to participate in, fund, or provide things they believe are wrong or immoral.
• Though churches themselves are exempted from the mandate, religious ministries of service — such as charities, schools, and hospitals — are given second-class status under the law, in the form of a still-murky “accommodation.”  But these ministries are integral to our religious community and deserve the same exemption as our houses of worship.  I oppose government action that defines our religious community narrowly and inaccurately, reducing freedom of religion to freedom of worship only.
• Freedom of religion is a bedrock principle on which our nation was founded.  It is referred to as our “First Freedom” — first on the list in the Bill of Rights, and first in priority among human freedoms.  I support religious freedom as a fundamental human right of every person.
• A distinct blessing of being an American is that we are free to choose our faith, and live by the dictates of that faith throughout our lives — at home, at church, and in the public square.  Other countries may force faith underground, but in America we can follow our conscience while also participating fully in society.  I support policies that allow Americans to live their faith in their jobs and in their everyday life.
• In the words of Cardinal Dolan, “In obedience to our Judeo-Christian heritage, we have consistently taught our people to live their lives during the week to reflect the same beliefs that they proclaim on the Sabbath.  We cannot now abandon them to be forced to violate their morally well-informed consciences.”  I support the right of all men and women who work in health care — whether providing services or providing insurance — to live and work in harmony with their faith and convictions.

Please call your Congressional representatives today and urge them to take whatever action is necessary to protect religious freedom and the moral convictions of all!

For more information or to join the postcard campaign, go to NCHLA’s action alert.  A special note: Members of Congress will be in their home states and districts for the remainder of this week.  This represents an excellent opportunity for you to talk with Members directly on the urgent need for conscience protection legislation.

PRAY     *     FAST     *     ACT

In this Year of Faith, the Catholic Bishops of the United States have called for a nationwide effort to advance the movement for Life, Marriage and Religious Liberty through prayer, penance, and sacrifice.  Catholics across the nation are being encouraged to pray, fast and act for increased protections of religious liberty and to rebuild a culture favorable to life and marriage. (more)

Join the Movement!

To join the call to prayer for Life, Marriage and Religious Liberty, go to Call to Prayer for Life, Marriage and Religious Liberty by clicking HERE

To learn more about challenges  to religious liberty and conscience rights, go to Conscience Protection by clicking HERE

To have your group or organization send postcards through “Project Life and Liberty,” go to Postcard Campaign by clicking HERE.

It is my pleasure to share this Letter with the Faithful of the Diocese of Cleveland and all people of good will throughout the eight counties of our diocese. The occasion prompting this letter is the Apostolic Letter given Motu Proprio by Pope Benedict XVI entitled, PORTA FIDEI. This Apostolic Letter announces a “Year of Faith.” The Holy Father issued his Letter on 11 October 2011 indicating that the Year of Faith would begin on Thursday, 11 October 2012 and end on Sunday, 24 November 2013.

The date for the opening of the Year of Faith is significant as it will be the fiftieth anniversary of the Opening of the Second Vatican Council. As we know, this event in the life of our Church has been and continues to be energizing and directs much of our Catholic life, especially through the teachings of the sixteen documents issued by the Council. Moreover, the year 2012 also commemorates another significant event in the life of the Church, the twentieth anniversary of the issuance of the Catechism of the Catholic Church on 11 October 1992 by Blessed John Paul II.

Click HERE for the complete letter.