Deacon Michael Keable, 81, died Nov. 20 at the St. Cloud VA Hospital. The Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m., Tuesday, Nov. 30, in St. John’s Abbey Church in Collegeville, with Bishop Donald Kettler, presiding. Burial will follow in the St. John’s Cemetery. Visitation will begin at 9 a.m. in the church.

Catholic Charities Emergency Services, in conjunction with the Valhalla Detachment of the U.S. Marine Corps League, is sponsoring the annual St. Cloud Area Toys for Tots program.

Legalizing sports betting, already a prominent topic of legislative discussion, has been pushed to the front of the 2022 session chatter, with both Republicans and Democrats signaling their support.

Benedictine Sister Rosemary (Dominic) Lenneman, 86, died Nov. 10, at St. Scholastica Convent, St. Cloud. The Eucharist of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 17,  at the Sacred Heart Chapel, St. Benedict’s Monastery, St. Joseph, with burial of cremated remains in the monastery cemetery. Friends may call at St. Scholastica Convent on Tuesday, Nov. 16, for a prayer service at 1 p.m. followed by visitation until 4:15 p.m., or for a vigil prayer service at 7 p.m. at St. Benedict’s Monastery. Visitation continues at 9 a.m. until the time of the funeral.

Don’t miss these local opportunities to prepare for the coming of Christ.

“In the weeks ahead, the Diocese Synod Team will connect with ACCs, parishes, schools, ministries and organizations to initiate consultations of the people, sharing resources and tools to help get started.”

The U.S. bishops’ draft document on the Eucharist contains many moving quotes and passages that all of us could benefit from contemplating every time we go to Mass.

On Oct. 30 and Nov. 3, Assumption Cemetery in St. Cloud was filled with the saints as they came back to life through the Back from the Dead Cemetery Walk, a student-performed ‘evangelization drama’ that seeks to teach visitors about the last things and the virtues of faith, hope, and charity.