ONE DOWN ONE TO GO!

FIRST A CRISIS THEN GOOD NEWS
Want to help with the final push?

As many of you know, I have been working hard in my retirement doing priest retreats, clergy convocations and parish missions, as well as asking around among some of my friends to get enough money together to buy two vans for the Diocese of Kingstown in the country of St. Vincent and the Grenadines in the West Indies (Caribbean). My dream was to get the first one in time for my next volunteer trip down there in December and the second one by the time I go back down in February.

FIRST, THE BAD NEWS 

Not long after I thought I was getting close to having enough to buy the first van and even had a little toward the second, I learned that there is a 123% import tax in SVG which would have meant that the van would have been more than twice the purchase price. You can imagine my utter disappointment. Bishop Jason Gordon, however, made an appeal to the government of that island country to have that tax waived for both vans. He just got a notice that 50% of the import taxes have been waived. (We were first told it was 100%, but 50% is better than none at all!)

NOW, THE GOOD NEWS 

Because of the added tax, we were a little short for the first van so I have made up the difference and now I am happy to announce that we can at least make the first purchase ($43,116.00 for van, taxes, insurance and fees). Thanks be to God! I hope to be able to help bless this first van when I go down this December.

I will continue to do as many priest convocations and retreats as I can, but that won't be enough because I use much of that to pay my own travel and expenses when I go down. I am hoping for a $47,752 miracle so I can order van #2 soon and help bless it when I go down in February. 

  

          Here is what has been suggested by the parties down there for the sides of the vans.

ROMAN CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF KINGSTOWN

Donated by R J Mission Projects

Bishop Jason Gordon is the Catholic bishop of the Diocese of Kingstown, SVG, as well as the bishop of Bridgetown, Barbados, He is the only bishop of two dioceses in two separate countries. We met at St. Meinrad Seminary while he was visiting his seminarian studying there. He stayed at my house the last time he was in town before flying home the next morning. He is a good man with great responsibilities and limited resources.

                             

Does anyone want to help with the rest? If so, ........

Make your tax deductible donation by check made out to:

St. Bartholomew Catholic Church - SVG Mission Fund

Mail it to me at:

Rev. J. Ronald Knott

1271 Parkway Gardens Ct. #106

Louisville KY 40217

You will receive a letter of acknowledgment of your gift.

If you want to send the donation directly to St. Bartholomew, contact me.

_____________________________________________________________

While I will be on the island of St. Vincent to bless at least one of the vans, my main reason will be to lead a discernment retreat for six permanent deacon candidates. I am attaching a copy of the retreat outline to show you what I will be doing. It will be my first contact with them, but hopefully not my last. I hope to follow them through their process to their ordinations.  

“CALLED”

DEACON DISCERNMENT RETREAT SCHEDULE

Diocese of Kingstown, SVG

Rev. Ronald Knott, Director

Wednesday 

 16.00 pm Introduction 

18.00 Mass

19.00 Supper 

Thursday 

 7.30 Mass

8.30 Breakfast 

10.00 Conference: CALLED

Why was I born? 

What is a call? 

11.30 One-to-One (1)

12.30 Lunch

14.00 Conference: CALLED II

How do I hear my call?

Where will my call lead me?

15.30 One-to-one (2)

16.30 One-to-one (3)

17.30 Conference: CALLED III

The Call of Jesus

Called to Carry On the Work of Jesus 

19.00 Supper

20.00 Conference: CALLED IV

God Chooses the Weak and Makes Them Strong: Examples from

Scripture and Church History 

Friday 

 7.30 Mass

8.30 Breakfast 

10.00 Conference: CALLED V

Spiritual Leadership in the Universal Call to Holiness

11.30 One-to-One (4)

12.30 Lunch

14.00 Conference: CALLED VI 

The Two Arms of the Bishop: Diaconate and thePresbyterate

Made Holy and Making Others Holy Through Your Ministry 

15.30 One-to-one (5)

16.15 One-to-one (6)

17.00 Farewell and Next Steps

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AN OMEN OF SUCCESS?

I saw this walking through the Toronto airport on my way home from leading the Corner Brook-Labrador priest retreat. It is a child's painting on a construction wall.