Upcoming Events
Last Collar Standing
January 15, 4 p.m. (online)
Confirmation Retreats
February 4 – Holy Name, Watertown
Eucharistic Revival Evening of Prayer
March 23 – Aberdeen, SD
March 29 – Watertown, SD
Going Deeper Retreats
March 31 – April 2, Abbey of the Hills
D-Camp 2023
June 18-21, Broom Tree (High School)
July 9-12, Broom Tree (High School)
July 13-16, Broom Tree (Junior High)
Power Hour
Tuesdays at 1 p.m. over Zoom
More Info
Hector Bautista’s Arrival
The Office of Discipleship and Evangelization is very pleased to welcome Hector Bautista to the team. He started as the director of mission engagement on December 1. The director of mission engagement has the primary responsibility of coming to know what gifts God is raising up in people across the diocese, and matching those gifts to needs at the local, regional and diocesan level to advance Lifelong Catholic Missionary Discipleship Through God’s Love. Hector will be reaching out to pastors and parish catechetical leaders to get to know you all in the coming weeks. Please offer him a warm South Dakota welcome as he and his family settle into life in the Midwest.
Lumen Christi
Lumen Christi, our very own diocesan missionary program, seeks to send out formed young adults to effectively engage and evangelize young people in various ways. From week-long summer camps to real one-on-one relational ministry, these missionaries provide strong support for parish leaders in building Lifelong Catholic Missionary Disciples Through God’s Love. The Discipleship and Evangelization Office is planning to form, equip and send out 20 missionaries for our summer program for 2023. We are inviting you to partner with us in these recruiting efforts by identifying some exceptional candidates to apply for this upcoming season. If you know of someone who is of college age, loves their faith, and desires to be an active missionary disciple, please encourage them to apply now! To learn more and to submit an application, please visit our webpage at www.sfcatholic.org/lc
We are still taking requests for Lumen Christi teams for the summer of 2023. To find out more about Lumen Christi and to request a team for next summer, please visit sfcatholic.org/lumenchristi/
Last Collar Standing
Last call! Plan your watch party today. Our 4th Annual Last Collar Standing event will be live on our YouTube page. Pick a priest to sponsor and help them win advantages in the games! Visit www.sfcatholic.org/lcs for more information. Text LASTCOLLAR to 84576 for updates.
Bulletin Blurb: Last Collar Standing will be January 15 at 4 p.m. Pick a priest to root for and help him win advantages! www.sfcatholic.org/lcs
Bulletin Blurb: Last Collar Standing will be January 15 at 4 p.m. Text LASTCOLLAR to 84576 to stay up to date and be involved in the voting.
Confirmation Retreat
In collaboration with the diocese, Holy Name Parish in Watertown is providing a Confirmation Retreat on February 4. This will be open to all parishes. As with October’s retreat, all registrations are done through your parish, and the parish is required to send adult helpers with their youth to assist with small groups (one adult for every five youth). Note: the parish is responsible for ensuring these adults have all met the Safe Environment requirements laid out by the diocese. The registration form for this retreat can be found on our webpage at: www.sfcatholic.org/youth/for-youth-leaders/. Parishes, please send in your completed registration forms by the dates listed on the form. More details can be found here: www.sfcatholic.org/youth/confirmation-retreats/
Bulletin Blurb: The diocese is offering a confirmation retreat at Holy Name Parish in Watertown February 4. Talk to your parish to get registered today!
Going Deeper Retreat – Spiritus
This retreat is focused on providing a fundamental teaching and theology on the Holy Spirit and his role in our everyday life. Youth grades 9-12 who are active in the parish and looking to go deeper in their faith are invited to attend. For more information, visit www.sfcatholic.org/deeper.
Bulletin Blurb: The spring Going Deeper retreat, Spiritus, is accepting registrations and will fill up fast. Register today to reserve your spot! www.sfcatholic.org/deeper
D-Camp 2023
D-Camp 2023 registrations are filling up fast and early bird prices are only offered through January! If your parish would like to support youth financially in attending camp, please let us know. We can create a discount code for your youth to register, and then we will bill the parish after camp. There are only about 100 spots available for each camp, so encourage your youth to register ASAP. The link can be found on our website: https://www.sfcatholic.org/youth/d-camp/
Bulletin Blurb: D-Camp 2023 registrations are now open. Register today to reserve your spot! https://www.sfcatholic.org/youth/d-camp/
Power Hours
For a couple of years now, we have been holding weekly Zoom calls supporting Parish Catechetical Leaders (PCL) from around our diocese by offering an opportunity for growth in both spiritual and professional development and to have a space to bounce ideas off one another and inspire and encourage one another in our shared mission (PCLs include priests, deacons, DREs, YMs, discipleship coordinators, RCIA coordinators, etc.). Power Hours are held at 1 p.m. on Tuesdays approximately every other week. Zoom invitations are sent to the PCL email list weekly.
PCL Email List
If you are new or newly diving into our offerings, we invite you to join the PCL email list. You can sign up on the diocesan For Parish Leaders webpage.
Attention priests and deacons: “Priests for an Apostolic Age” Conference – Dallas, TX January 24-26
From Father Scott Traynor- Vicar for Lay and Clergy Formation
Dear Priests and Deacons: I want to draw your attention to this upcoming conference organized by Evangelical Catholic. I am familiar with the speakers and think this conference will be an excellent resource for any priest or deacon who can attend. I find the focus of this conference and their planned topics especially timely as we look ahead to the implementation of Set Ablaze. I will be attending and hope some of you will be able to come as well.
Full details available here: https://www.evangelicalcatholic.org/events/
Conference schedule here: https://www.evangelicalcatholic.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Event-Schedule-PDF.pdf
From the organizers:
The Evangelical Catholic is a non-profit organization dedicated to transforming lay people into intentional disciple makers who are excited and equipped to go out and evangelize their communities in the context of trusting friendships. They are excited to announce their first-ever conference experience designed just for priests and deacons to give them the skills and tools they need to activate their parishioners as effective Catholic missionaries in their own communities. “Priests for an Apostolic Age” is a three-day conference that will provide clergy with the opportunity to gather with others who share similar convictions on evangelization, learn how an outdated understanding of the parish could be holding them back, and how to leverage their influence to activate a movement of missionary disciples. The event is set to take place January 24-26 in Dallas, TX.