Eucharistic Adoration
Every Wednesday of Advent 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. | Every Thursday of Advent 12-Noon to 5 p.m. Advent Retreat Day
December 5th | 8:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. | Hospitality Room Jesse Tree Collection
December 6th | Before 11:00 a.m. | Back of Church Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
December 8th | 8:15 a.m., 12-Noon, & 7:00 p.m. Holy Day of Obligation Masses (*Family Night*) Franciscan Shelter Christmas Dinner Collection
December 13th | Before 1:00 p.m. Poinsettia Pick-up
December 17th in the PAC Christmas Eve, Birth of Jesus
December 24th | Two @ 3:00 p.m. (Church & Gym), Two @ 5:00 p.m. (Church & Gym), 7:00 p.m. & 12-Midnight (Prelude Music begins at 11:30 p.m.) Christmas Day, Birth of Jesus
December 25th | 8:00 a.m., 10:00 a.m. & 12-Noon
Just Creations / CEC Fundraiser
Have you started on your holiday shopping? Well I have just the place for you! The Catholic Enrichment Center of the Archdiocese of Louisville’s Office of Multicultural Ministry in collaboration with Just Creations (Louisville’s International Fair-Trade Marketplace) will host a fundraiser for the center from Monday, Nov. 30 – Saturday, Dec. 5 from 10 AM – 6 PM. A percentage of the proceeds from items purchased will go toward the Catholic Enrichment Center initiatives when referencing the CEC when purchasing any items. Just Creations is located at 2711 Frankfort Avenue, Louisville, KY 40206. For more information call the CEC at (502) 776-0262.
Advent Adoration
Adoration during Advent will be extended on Thursdays from 1-5 p.m. The 3 Thursdays during Advent are 12/3, 12/10 and 12/17. Please consider spending quiet time with Our Lord & listening to what He is saying to you, it is a wonderful opportunity to prepare for Jesus’ birth. Don’t forget to wear your mask and stay 6’ apart.
Poinsettia Order Form
Click here or the button below to download your order form. Please return to the Parish or School Office by Friday, December 4th. Interested in learning about the Legend the Poinsettia? Click here.
Join us the first Saturday each month in the Church at 7:50 a.m. for Rosary Devotion. Our next date is December 5th, so come join us! The Five First Saturdays devotion is one of the principal points of the Fatima message. It centers on the urgent need for mankind to offer reparation and expiate for the many injuries that the Immaculate Heart of Mary suffers from the hands of both impious and indifferent men.
On the First Saturday during 5 Consecutive Months, the Devotion consists of Going to Confession, Receiving the Sacrament of Holy Communion, Saying five decades of the Rosary, and Meditating for 15 min. on the mysteries of the Rosary. All this offered in REPARATION for the sins of blasphemy and ingratitude committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
Advent Retreat – Waiting with Mary this Advent
Saturday, December 5th from 9:00 AM to Noon in the Hospitality Room. Judy Ribar will be our Retreat Facilitator. By Dec. 5 We will have been in COVID for 9 months and what has been born in us these months, as Mary waited for the birth of her Son. That’s my plan to focus on Mary’s faith and hope while waiting. And then the love experienced at the birth. Where has our faith led us these months, what’s our hope for the future and how will we celebrate these weeks of waiting? COVID Guidelines are in place, so pre-register to Jenni Finefrock at 502-876-9695 to secure your spot.
Advent Wreath Lighting
We are again inviting families of the parish to join us in lighting the candles on the Advent Wreath. We are looking for one family per Mass for each Sunday of Advent. Advent; December 6th, 13th, and 20th. Thank you for signing up and please don’t forget your date & mass time! We ask that you arrive to your chosen Mass 10-15 minutes early to let the presider know your family is there, otherwise they will need to find others to fill in. Click here or the button below to sign up!
Advent and the season of Christmas are upon us! As in years past, the St. Margaret Mary Catholic Community will be supporting the less fortunate through our Christmas gift program, The Jesse Tree. As our local community has faced many challenges and struggled throughout the year, the need for your support is greater than ever. We ask that you prayerfully consider supporting the organizations detailed here.
Between November 21 and December 6, display cases filled with ornament shaped name tags will be set up at each entrance of the church. Each ornament represents one of the five organizations our program sponsors. To keep our parishioners, volunteers, and recipients safe, we are requesting gift card donations to either Target or Walmart. While we are grateful for any dollar amount, we would especially appreciate gift cards in $25 denominations. These gift cards will be distributed to the recipient families to purchase gifts for each of their children. Please attach the ornament shaped name tag to the gift card and drop it in the parish office drop box.
If you are uncomfortable visiting a retail location or unable to purchase a gift card, you can still share the gift of giving by making a cash donation. The parish office will collect all monetary donations for The Jesse Tree and purchase the gift cards on your behalf. Thank you for your continued support! In a very difficult year, we can provide hope and joy to those struggling in our community.
Students who wish to attend a Catholic high school next year are required to take the Catholic high school placement test scheduled on Saturday, December 12, from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The placement test is free of charge and helps Catholic secondary schools determine the most appropriate course work and academic path for meeting the needs of each student.
Students take the test at the Catholic high school they plan to attend. This year due to COVID-19, students are asked to preregister on that high school’s website. Links to preregister for the high school placement test can be found at www.louisvillecatholicschools.com/placementtest. Students should bring two #2 pencils and a face mask, as each school will adhere to safe and healthy testing guidelines. **If inclement weather cancels the test on December 12, it will be rescheduled for the following Saturday, December 19 at the same time. For more information, call the Catholic School Information Line at 502/634-1315 or email comm@archlou.org.
16th Annual “Songs of the Season”
High school students who attended St. Margaret Mary and participated in Supernova Choir can be seen in this year’s “Songs of The Season” production. Other Catholic and public schools who have participated in the past are included, too. Click this link for scheduling information
Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
December 12th
Beginning in 2016, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has named the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe a day of prayer in solidarity with immigrants and refugees. As the patron of the Americas, Our Lady of Guadalupe gives us a model for how we too might reach out to and welcome those who seek better lives here in our land. Click here to learn more!
Christmas Dinner at the Franciscan Kitchen
The Human Needs & Concerns Ministry is serving our annual Christmas Dinner at the Franciscan Kitchen on Preston Street on December 14th. All meals are carryout. Handwashing & masks are required for everyone.
FOOD DONATIONS DUE:Sunday, Dec. 13th (Deliver donations to SMM Parish Hallway b/w 7:45 a.m. – Noon.) HELPERS NEEDED:Sunday, Dec. 13th– collect donations, load into vehicles, & drivers to take to the Kitchen KITCHEN SERVERS NEEDED:Monday, Dec. 14th– Fifteen people needed on-site at Franciscan Kitchen from 10am-1pm
If you are unable to contribute a food item but wish to participate, you can make a monetary donation. Please make the check payable to St. Margaret Mary and put “Christmas Dinner Project” on the memo line. Thank you for supporting this important service project. If you have any questions please contact Rose Ann Wagner at 502-341-5661 or rawagner5@aol.com.
2020 Retirement Fund for Religious Collection
The collection for the Retirement Fund for Religious will be held in our parish December 12/13. Help our elders. In good times and bad, senior Catholic sisters, brothers, and religious order priests have dedicated themselves to service and acts of mercy. Today, they pray for an aching world. Yet years of serving for little or no pay have left their religious communities without enough retirement savings. Your gift to the Retirement Fund for Religious helps provide medications, nursing care, and other necessities. Please be generous.
Blessing of the Child in the Womb
Sunday, December 13th at 12-Noon Mass at the Cathedral of the Assumption, 433 South Fifth Street.Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz Presiding. All expectant mothers are most welcome! The “Rite for the Blessing of a Child in the Womb” was crafted to support parents awaiting the birth of their child, to encourage parish prayers for — and recognition of — the precious gift of the child in the womb, and to foster respect for human life within society.
Seniors Corner
Senior’s want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Hope to see everyone soon. Keep up with the contacts and prayers. If you would like to be a part of a project where you are interviewed by a student please call Susan Sherman, 548-2161.
Children’s Formation Videos
Our Children’s Formation Coordinator, Tara Mattingly, created a video for the kids to keep them learning and interactive in their growing faith. This week, she covered “The Liturgical Year / The Church Calendar”. Click here to watch now! To view a list of the previous videos shared, click here.
Stewardship Cards
REMINDER… Don’t forget to turn in your Stewardship Intention Card.
If you feel more comfortable submitting a card online, please click here to fill out a Google Form version of your Stewardship Card.
Online Prayer Series “Pray All Ways”
Online Now with three episodes!
Our parish theme this year is “(Jesus) The Heart of our Family”. In these challenging times, we are called, even more, to keep Christ at the heart of our family, and at the center of our lives. To aid in this, we will be offering a new online video prayer series, highlighting a different Catholic prayer form each week. We encourage you to watch the video each week, learn about each prayer form, and engage each week in a new way of connecting with Christ, and opening your heart to his Spirit. Please click here to find our current video and new videos to come!
Email Listing for the Recently Deceased
We are currently working on creating an email list for those who would like to receive emails about those in our parish community who pass away along with their funeral arrangements and other information. These emails will be sent as soon as we get permission from the family to notify our community. If you’d like to be on this list, please click here to update your email preferences and check “Repose of the Souls“.
Stay Up to Date with Us
Be sure you are subscribed to our emails and like us on Facebook to get the most up to date information. You may also check our website for updates, and links to online masses and donations. The Parish Office is trying to limit the amount of face to face contact so we ask that you please wear a mask when stopping by. We also have labeled boxes in the breezeway between the two sets of double doors for you to drop off anything you need to turn into the Parish Office. We do check these throughout the day. Or please feel free to use the night drop located before the main Parish building entrance on the right.
Submit your contributions ONLINE. This is a safe & secure way to continue your pledge and support for SMM. You’re still welcome to mail in, give at Mass, or drop off your donation to the Parish Office/in the locked night drop outside the main entrance to the Parish building. *Current automatic withdrawals are continuing as scheduled. We encourage parishioners to sign up for the automatic service as this way benefits SMM the most with minimal fees. The form for that is available online as well.
Parish Office Hours
The Parish Office is back open 8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Most employees are working on site, however some are still occasionally working from home for precautionary measures. If you need to speak to a staff member, call us at 426-1588. Or click here for a list of our employees and their emails. We remain at your service.
Advent Adoration
Advent Retreat – Waiting with Mary this Advent
Jesse Tree
Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
