St. Leo Church

We, the members of St. Leo Parish in Versailles, KY are a Roman Catholic faith community of diverse and caring people.  We come together to worship and to be nourished by the Eucharist and the Scriptures to strengthen us in order to fulfill the present and future spiritual needs of our members.  We strive to provide religious education for all members and to serve the community at large. 

2020 Catholic Diocese of Lexington Annual ONE IN CHRIST
For many parishioners, you probably received a letter from Bishop John Stowe these last few days asking for your financial support of the Diocesan Annual Appeal. If you haven’t already, please give for this worthy cause to support our Church throughout the Bluegrass and Eastern Kentucky. As a priest for the Diocese, I have been blessed over my 13 years as a priest and five years as a seminarian to travel and visit most of the parishes in the diocese and to see how the Catholic presence in the 50 counties makes a difference for people who are in need. There is a sense of gratitude and admiration for how the Catholic parishes throughout our diocese are known as a place where people can come and get support.
During this COVID pandemic, our mission appeals to parishes throughout the country were canceled, so I was unable to travel to Portland this past August to ask for donations for our diocese. These dozens of appeals by priests, deacons, and religious from our diocese each year bring in a significant amount of financial support for our mission work. Without that support this year, the need for each one of us to give in some way to support our Annual Appeal is even more important. Thank you for generosity in supporting the wider mission of our Church in our Diocese.

Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA)
Our first-class for RCIA on the Catholic faith begins this Sunday at 9:45 am in the Media Center/Library. If you have a spouse who is not Catholic or have a friend who has shown interest in learning more about the Catholic faith, why not consider coming to a class and learning about the Catholic faith. The classes will be presented by zoom as well so if one prefers to listen from home you can do that as well. If you are interested or know someone who might be interested in attending these sessions, please submit an email to RCIA.stleoparish@gmail.com, or contact one of our RCIA Administrative Team Members, Mickey Ward at (859) 489-9575, mfward0516@gmail.com or Teri Ward at (859) 489- 0255, Ttwmw1126@gmail.com.

Feast of the Archangels Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael
As the Church celebrates the Archangels on September 29, St. Leo will not be having the regular 8:30 am Mass on Tuesday morning and instead will have a Mass at noon on Tuesday inviting our First Responders to this Mass invoking the intercession of the Archangels in times of danger or emergency. This Mass will be offered for our police, dispatchers, sheriff, fire, EMS, Coroner, WCEM, WCAC, medical professionals, military, and for the people of Woodford County. If weather permits, the Mass will be outside on the front lawn of the Church so please bring lawn chairs if you are able to attend.
For those not able to attend at noon, there will also be a bilingual Mass Tuesday evening at 6:30 pm with a healing service afterward asking the intercession of the archangels for prayers of healing and blessings for the faithful.

Memorial of St. Therese of Lisieux
A relic of St. Therese will be displayed for veneration on September 30 after the 6:30 pm as well as at the Mass on her feast day of October 1. There will a healing service after the 8:30 am Mass on Thursday, October 1. Let’s turn to our St. Therese asking for her prayers for God’s healing and blessings to be upon the many intentions we bring to our Heavenly Father.

Memorial of St. Francis: Blessing of Pets
As the Church honors St. Francis on October 4, there will be a blessing of pets at 3:00 pm on Sunday afternoon. There also will be a blessing of pets on October 6 at 2:45 pm during school pick-up. If families want to bring their pets in their cars there can be drive-by blessings of their pets.
 

Catholic Diocese of Lexington Releases Names of Priests Accused of Sexual Abuse of Minors

LEXINGTON, Ky. — The Catholic Diocese of Lexington has released a list of priests accused of sexual abuse of minors. The list, released Aug. 14., a day after the diocese received it, was compiled by attorneys who had unlimited access to the diocese’s priest personnel files and the files of any reports of abuse made to the diocese. The review team also conducted interviews, talked with the diocesan Victims' Assistance Coordinator and met with the Diocesan Review Board.

“I, along with every priest in the Diocese of Lexington, am very sorry for what this report describes and apologize to every person who has ever been abused or injured in any way by one who was ordained to represent Christ,” wrote Lexington Bishop John Stowe, OFM Conv., in a letter accompanying the report, which he commissioned in December 2018.

The list, compiled by Lexington attorneys Allison Connelly and Andrew Sparks, is divided into categories of those with substantiated allegations against them (reasonable certainty that the allegation is true) and credible allegations (more likely true than not). The list also names those who served in the territory of the diocese but were listed by another diocese or religious congregation and one allegation that was found to be unsubstantiated.

Accusations against two priests in the Catholic Diocese of Lexington have been substantiated as having occurred in the time since the creation of the diocese in 1988. The reviewers found that the majority of clergy sexual abuse of minors in the territory of the Catholic Diocese of Lexington took place before the diocese’s creation. The territory of the diocese previously fell within the Diocese of Covington and the Archdiocese of Louisville. 

The reviewers will also issue a second part to the report, which will include a deeper analysis of the phenomenon of clergy sexual abuse of minors and will provide recommendations for response. This report will soon be made available online. The full list of names can be found online now, along with a letter from Bishop Stowe.

The Catholic Diocese of Lexington urges anyone who has experienced abuse in the Church to report it to the local authorities and to contact the diocesan Victims’ Assistance Coordinator, Laura Napora:
 (859) 338-5695 or victimsassistance@cdlex.org.
 

Please click on the link below!

Catholic Diocese of Lexington Annual Appeal 2020

Please click on the link below!
/documents/2020/8/BishopLetter081420.pdf

Deepen Your Knowledge About The Catholic Faith For anyone interested in becoming Catholic or anyone wanting to learn more about the Catholic faith (spouses of Catholics or St. Leo parishioners), St. Leo will begin the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA) program on September 20, 2020. We will have classes on Sunday mornings from 9:45 AM – 10: 45 AM in the Media Center. If you are interested or know someone who might be interested in attending these sessions, please submit an email to RCIA.stleoparish@gmail.com, or contact one of our RCIA Administrative Team Members, Mickey Ward at (859) 489-9575, mfward0516@gmail.com or Teri Ward at (859) 489- 0255, Ttwmw1126@gmail.com. You have no obligation to become a member of the Catholic Church, you are welcome to inquire and ask questions. The Adult RCIA session will be held between our 8:30 AM & 11:00 AM, Sunday Masses. Anyone who would like to attend, but is not comfortable attending in person, please send us an email and we will work out arrangements.
 

Sign up with FORMED. ORG. It will provide you with a podcast, an Ebook, a movie or even a kid’s cartoon. Every St. Leo parishioner has FREE 24/7 access to the best Catholic content on any device, including your smart TV, computer, smartphone and tablet with internet access. It's been called the Catholic Netflix, though it's not just movies and documentaries. There are daily devotionals, weekly sermons, kids programming, audiobooks, ebooks, and Spanish-language content!

It’s all part of our parish subscription! It truly is the Catholic faith - on demand. If you haven’t signed up yet, it’s easy and FREE! Here’s how to get FORMED:

1. Go to www.FORMED.org.
2. Click signup
3. Select “I belong to a Parish or Organization”
4. Type in: St. Leo Versailles, Kentucky
5. Enter your email and you are good to go!

24 HOUR ADORATION
FIRST FRIDAY, OCTOBER  3,  2020
FOLLOWING OUR FRIDAY 9:00 AM –MASS

*ADORERS IF UNABLE TO ATTEND PLEASE FIND A SUBSTITUTE FOR THAT HOUR.

      Mass Schedule

                          
Sept. 26^th - Oct. 5^th


SATURDAY, SEPT. 26, 2020
(St. Cosmas & St. Damian)
Eccl 11:9-12:8/Lk 9:43b-45
8:30                  AM   Mass/Inside Church
5:00                  PM   Vigil Mass/Inside Church


SUNDAY, SEPT. 27, 2020
Ez 18:25-28 Phil 2:1-11/Mt 21:28-32
8:30                 AM   Mass/Inside Church
11:00               AM   Mass/Outside Weather
                                  Permitting
6:00                 PM    Spanish Mass/Outside Weather
                                  Permitting


MONDAY, SEPT. 28, 2020
(St. Wenceslaus & St. Lawrence Ruiz)
Jb 1:6-22/Lk 9:46-50


TUESDAY, SEPT. 29, 2020
(Sts. Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael)
Dn 7:9-10, 13-14 Jn 1:47-51
8:30                 AM   NO MASS 
12:00               PM   Mass/Woodford County First                                      Responders
6:30                 PM   Bilingual Mass & Holy Hour


WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 30, 2020 (St. Jerome)
Jb 9:1-12, 14-16 Lk 9:57-62
9:00                AM   St. Leo School Staff, Students,    
                                 and Families
10:00            AM   Adoration
6:30                PM     Mass


THURSDAY, OCT. 1, 2020
(St. Therese of the Child Jesus)
Jb 19:21-27/Lk 10:1-12
8:30                AM   Mass


FRIDAY, OCT. 2, 2020
(The Holy Guardian Angels)
Jb 38:1, 12-21; 40:3-5
9:00                AM   Mass
 

SATURDAY, OCT. 3, 2020
Jb 42:1-3, 5-6; 12-17 Lk 10:17-24
8:30                  AM   Mass/Inside Church
5:00                  PM   Vigil Mass/Inside Church


SUNDAY, OCT. 4, 2020 (Respect Life Sunday)
Is 5:1-7/Phil 4;6-9 Mt 21:33-43
8:30                 AM   Mass/Inside Church
11:00               AM   Mass/Outside Weather
                                  Permitting                               
6:00                 PM    Spanish Mass/Outside Weather   
                                  Permitting
 

Dear Friends,  

This is an unsettling time for our country and our community, as we are in a public health emergency due to the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19). Your elected leaders and public health officials are working around the clock to slow the spread of the virus and provide care to those who need it. It is important to remember that we need to be prepared, not scared. Heed the advice of public health experts who agree that the most effective way to “flatten the curve,” or slow the spread of the virus, is to practice social distancing. Below is some helpful information regarding COVID-19: 

How do I stay informed?  

It is important to remain informed with accurate information from an official source. Visit the state’s COVID-19 resource page for the most up-to-date and trustworthy information: www.kycovid19.ky.gov.   

How can you be infected? 

·Coronavirus can spread from person to person through respiratory droplets produced when an infected person coughs or sneezes. Because these droplets can travel up to six feet, public health experts advise maintaining six feet of distance from others. 

·The virus can also remain on a surface or object and enter the body through the mouth, nose, or eyes. This is why it is important to wash your hands before touching your face. 

How long does it take to show symptoms after being infected? 

It takes 2 to 14 days to develop symptoms after exposure to the virus. The average is about 5 days. 

What are the symptoms? 

·         Fever 

·         Dry cough 

·         Shortness of breath 

When should you seek testing? 

·         If you are exhibiting symptoms 

·If you have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive for the coronavirus 

·If you have recently traveled to one of the high-risk countries 

Except in the case of an emergency, please call your healthcare provider before seeking treatment in person.  

While it is normal to feel anxious, there are ways to take control of the situation and be prepared. I urge you to take the following precautions to keep yourself and our community safe. 

·        Wash your hands often and for at least              20 seconds 

·        Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and                   mouth 

·        Avoid physical contacts like handshakes           and hugs 

·        Stay home if you feel sick 

·        Avoid large crowds 

·        Abstain from unnecessary travel 

What is the difference between “Healthy at Home” and “social distancing”? 

Healthy at Home is a stricter form of social distancing. There are some differences. Healthy at home means: 

Non-essential retail and businesses are closed. These types of businesses include entertainment, sporting goods, clothing, shoes, jewelry, book stores, florists, furniture and auto dealers.  

·Stay home (stay unexposed and do not expose others) 

·         Only go out for essential services 

·         Stay six feet or more away from others 

·         Don’t gather in groups 

It is important during this national emergency that we unite as a community, follow the advice of experts, and take responsibility for our actions to #SlowTheSpread of coronavirus. For more information, visit www.kycovid19.ky.gov or call the Kentucky COVID-19 Hotline: (800) 722-5725.