Sunday, December 13, 2015

December in the Missions Daily Diary - DAY SEVEN

Sunday, December 13, 2015

A GREAT DAY INDEED!
FIRST DREAM FULFILLED!
THANKS BE TO GOD AND HIS GENEROUS PEOPLE!

After a lot of hard work, prayers and much generosity, the first van has arrived. It is fully paid for (taxes, insurance and all) and has been blessed by the bishop.  


Father Andrew Roache (Pastor), Bishop Jason Gordon and Msgr. Michael Stewart (Vicar General of the Diocese and Pastor of the Cathedral of the Assumption).



St. Benedict Parish will operate this first van. Saint Benedict's is one of the most outlying parishes so the need for transportation is obvious.



Bishop Jason Gordon blessed the van with Holy Water.


I am the "R" in the "R. J. Mission Projects."
My anonymous friend is the "J."
"Adveniat" is a German Charity who made a sizable donation toward this first van. 




I handed off the keys to Father Andrew Roache, Pastor of St. Benedict, and to some of his younger parishioners. 


ON DOWN AND ONE TO GO!

My dream is to have the second van secured by the middle of February when my third trip is possible. The second van will go to Corpus Christi Parish (see below) Want to help? I would love to hear from you.

jrknott@bellsouth.net

Make Checks Out To:
St. Bartholomew Church
And Send To Me:


Rev. Ronald Knott
1271 Parkway Gardens Court
#106
Louisville, KY 40217



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Today, I returned to the Parish of St. John the Evangelist in Mesopotamia to preside at the Sunday Eucharist and preach. I celebrated this past Holy Week Services there on Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday.


I was picked up at the Pastoral Center by Jamal Andrews, a good church worker, and taken to St. John's Church for Mass.


It was good to see some old friends again, especially the pastor Father Richard Paynter.


The alter boys and girl were well prepared. 



The right side of the church included the choir on the right. Great music and the people sang with spirit.



The left side of the church with some of its senior members in the front pews. 


Some of the cutest kids in the whole world!


Donette Dowers, far left, and her girls from the Our Lady of Guadalupe Home for Girls. I met them last Easter.


Myself and the two volunteers from Ireland, Fergal and Martin, joined Father Paynter (former Anglican priest) and his wife Daphne (the bishop's secretary) at their house for lunch.



After the lunch, we stopped by the Corpus Christi Parish Harvest, an event very similar to our parish picnics - booths, food and entertainment - to raise money for the parish. 


Some of the youth performed a dance number for the crowd. 


Father Boniface, a priest from Nigeria, is the pastor of Corpus Christi Parish. He is very excited about the possibility of his parish having a van. I met him last Holy Week as well. 



We ended the day by having a drink with Sister Clare (a Sister of St. Joseph of Cluny) who was born in Trinidad. Her brother is the Archbishop of Port of Spain. She has ministered in Ireland, Sierra Leone (Africa), Rome, Dominica and St. Vincent. We went to the Blue Lagoon on the bay where lots of very large yachts are parked. Lovely woman!



WHAT A DAY!


Tomorrow morning, Monday, I will fly off of St. Vincent back to Barbados to stay at the bishop's house again to catch the Tuesday morning American Airlines plane to Miami and the plane from Miami to Louisville. 

3 comments:

  1. Whoa, this is amazing! Thanks, Fr. Ron, for orchestrating such an enterprise to help the sister Diocese.

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  2. Father Knott, you are a disciple of Christ, Real Missionary like St Paul; may the Holy Spirit remains on you for the GLORY OF GOD and the good of human kind.

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  3. I was at your Mass at St. John's that Sunday morning. It was excellent and if nothing else stayed with me, these words did: "God has a plan even when our plans fall through so BE HAPPY." See you next year Fr. Ron.

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