Holy Rosary Church, Springfield

09/07/2026

09/04/2026

Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
September 6, 2026

"The commandments... are summed up in this saying, namely, 'You shall love your
neighbor as yourself.’" Romans 13:9

The challenge of a steward is summed up in the simple question, "what have I done for my neighbor?"

Mass Intentions for--- September 2; September 5; & September 6, 2026
September 2, 2026----------------5:30 p.m. ----- Jeanette Graves Higdon
September 4, 2026----------------5:30 p.m. ----- Brent Graves
September 5, 2026----------------5:00 p.m. ---------- Charles Wheatley Hamilton
September 6, 2026---------------10:00 a.m. ---------- Brent Graves


Gracie Graves Mann, Gabriel Lowery, Roy Curry, David Fogle, Margaret Spalding, Charlie Lewis, Kim Abell, Benny Battcher, Derrick Bouldin, Jerome Flowers, Dennis & Helena Wheatley, Cathy Brady, Linda Rinder, Gary Cothern, Wanda Taylor Wright, Debra Williams, Mary McWhorter, James Ellery ,Buster Fogle, Teresa Abell, Margaret Bush, Delisa Mattingly, Wanda Culver, Jessica Bell, Chris Yantis, Darnell Young, Richard Adkins, Kim Coyle, Richie Hamilton, Marhea Williams, Arlene Spalding, Donna Keene, Charles & Ruth Spalding, Bob Livers, The Burns Family, Ann McAdams, Cameron Spalding, Joash McKaye, Jane Gerton, Oakley Riggs, Kay Crenshaw, Bruce Gordon, Brandon Coulter, Kim Johnson, Carol Carney, Geraldine Spalding, Marie Addison, Donnie Hall, Phillip Wheatley, Iris June Medley, Lora Justice, Dennis Rust, Jacob Cowan, Josh Jarmon, Jaylen Dickerson, Sheila Carmona, Raymond Felton Spalding, Ted Key, Angele Spalding, Maureen Spalding, Lex Burkhead, Paul Spalding, and any others not listed here.
**If you need to add/remove someone just call the office and let Mary Grace know.

Pastor’s Corner Dominican Prayer

In covering Dominican life, we’ve already mentioned Dominican looks and the Dominican habit. Prompted by today’s Scripture, we’ll look at Dominican prayer. Dominicans pray “in common” (together). We do this in three ways: praying with the brethren assigned to the same priory or house at particular times throughout the day; using the same prayers and structure as those elsewhere on earth; and praying for- and with- our brethren who have died.
We pray the “Liturgy of the Hours” (aka – the “Divine Office”) together and, whenever possible in chant. In today’s Gospel, Jesus promises that “where two or three are gathered together in my name, there I am in the midst of them.” Monks, nuns, and friars like the Dominicans, all come together at certain times to pray. Here in Springfield, our little community begins our day in prayer (with Lauds, a.k.a. Morning Prayer). We come together again in the evening to pray Vespers (Evening Prayer), closing out the day together as we began it – in common. To better unify our voices, and to put our hearts also into the effort together, whenever possible, we chant the psalms and other prayers, fulfilling the command to “make a joyful noise to the Lord.” In all this, we even pause and breathe together – drawing our silence and our life’s rhythm into the unity of prayer with Jesus, present with us by His promise.
We also pray the Rosary, whose very structure and component prayers unite us even when not in the same space or time. In the Rosary, as in the Divine Office, our shared prayer makes us members of a common brotherhood – a Confraternity of all who pray the Holy Rosary. At times, we can be tempted to think that if we pray using a “memorized prayer” such as the Our Father, the Hail Mary, an Act of Contrition, etc., we’re not “really” praying from our heart. . . Actually, we’re praying from the heart of the whole Church. This is why the Rosary is such a powerful prayer – every time we pray it, we unite our hearts, minds, and words with everyone praying the rosary around the world: “lay” (“ordinary” people) or in “religious” life (ie. Friars, nuns, or monks).
Finally, we even pray together with those who have died. When he was dying, St. Dominic promised “to be more useful to the brethren in heaven [as an intercessor] than he ever was on earth,” we not only rely on him to fulfill that promise from heaven; we on earth also pray that our deceased brethren may join him in heaven! Jesus encourages this with His specific choice of words in today’s Gospel: “if two of you agree on earth about anything for which they are to pray, it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father.” This indicates a bond of unity forged by prayer which stretches between heaven and earth. We Dominicans take this very seriously, and each day, we pray for our deceased brothers and sisters. In fact, we maintain a “necrology” – records of the dates on which each of the friars in the region (in our case, the U.S. provinces) died. We use this to pray by name for each of the friars who have died on that day. (And we hope they join St. Dominic in directing heavenly aid our way as well!)
In the letter to the Romans, St. Paul notes that “love is the fulfillment of the law.” Just as the physical laws (such as gravity, motion, etc.) unite us harmoniously to everything else in the universe, so too, these “laws” of prayer (the choral office, the rosary, and our prayers for the dead) keep us united as Dominicans and as faithful Christians to God and His universal Church!

Hospitality Ministers for September 12th and September 13th
5:00pm: Cocanougher Family
10am: Ruby Thompson Family
Lectors for September 12th and September 13th
5:00pm: Cathy Carrico
10am: Mary Grace Lewis
Communion Ministers for September 12th and September 13th
5:00pm: Volunteers
10am: Pam Grundy & Richard Railey
Mass Intentions for September 9th, September 12th and September 13th
5:30pm: The People of Holy Rosary
5:00pm: Mary Elizabeth Riley
10am: Deloise Logan (82nd Birthday)

Upcoming Events:
Every Mondays: 5:00p.m. Rosary
This Weekend: Sunday, the 23rd is the feast of St. Rose. There will be a special procession after the 11:30 Mass at St. Rose on Sunday, August 23rd with veneration of the relic of St. Rose, followed by a cookout in the parish center.)
**Be on the lookout for more information about a Men’s Club being formed. **
August 31st -September 28th: Food Distribution on Mondays at 6:00pm in the church basement.

Here are the daily Mass readings for the week of September 7th -September 12th, 2026
• Monday, September 7, 2026: 1 Corinthians 5:1-8/ Psalm 5:5-6, 7, 12/ Luke 6:6-11
• Tuesday, September 8, 2026: Micah 5:1-4a or Romans 8:28-30/ Psalm 13:6ab, 6c/ Matthew 1:1-16, 18-23
• Wednesday, September 9, 2026: 1 Corinthians 7:25-31/ Psalm 45:11-12, 14-15, 16-17/ Luke 6:20-26
• Thursday, September 10, 2026: 1 Corinthians 8:1b-7, 11-13/ Psalm 139:1b-3, 13-14ab, 23-24/ Luke 6:27-38
• Friday, September 11, 2026: 1 Corinthians 9:16-19, 22b-27/ Psalm 84:3, 4, 5-6, 12/ Luke 6:39-42
• Saturday, September 12, 2026: 1 Corinthians 10:14-22/ Psalm 116:12-13, 17-18/ Luke 6:43-49

Local Adoration Days and Times:
St. Augustine (Lebanon): Saturdays 8:00am-9:00am; First Fridays 7:30am-5:30pm
St. Dominic’s: Thursdays 6:15pm-8:00pm and Sundays 4:00pm-6:00pm
Holy Name of Mary (Calvary): Mondays 6:00pm-7:00pm
Holy Rosary (Springfield): First Fridays 6:30pm-8:00pm
Holy Trinity (Fredericktown “the ‘Burg”): Wednesdays 9:00am-10:00am
St. Rose: Thursdays 6:00pm-7:00pm

***It’ll be a new year before you know it; If anyone would be interested in a 4-week Bible Study during Advent please put your name on the list on the back table and mark the day you would be able to attend; we’ll go with the day that has the most people able to attend. “Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol: Story and Advent Bible Study”

08/28/2026

Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time
August 30, 2026
“Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.” Romans 12:2

The bishops in their pastoral letter on stewardship warn us about conforming to the destructive “isms” at work in our culture – materialism, individualism, and consumerism. Stewardship calls us to generously share what we have with others. Stewardship focuses on our dependence on God. This focus goes against our culture’s focus on independence and individualism.
Mass Intentions for--- August 26; August 29; & August 30, 2026
August 26, 2026----------------5:30 p.m. ----- Jeanette Graves Higdon
August 29, 2026----------------5:00 p.m. ---------- John “Willie” Ellery
August 30, 2026---------------10:00 a.m. ---------- Barbara Hodgens (3yr. Anniversary)

***Keep the Family of Gary Ellery in your thoughts and prayers***

Gracie Graves Mann, Gabriel Lowery, Roy Curry, David Fogle, Margaret Spalding, Charlie Lewis, Kim Abell, Benny Battcher, Derrick Bouldin, Jerome Flowers, Dennis & Helena Wheatley, Cathy Brady, Linda Rinder, Gary Cothern, Wanda Taylor Wright, Debra Williams, Mary McWhorter, James Ellery,Buster Fogle, Teresa Abell, Margaret Bush, Delisa Mattingly, Wanda Culver, Jessica Bell, Chris Yantis, Darnell Young, Richard Adkins, Kim Coyle, Richie Hamilton, Marhea Williams, Arlene Spalding, Donna Keene, Charles & Ruth Spalding, Bob Livers, The Burns Family, Ann McAdams, Cameron Spalding, Joash McKaye, Jane Gerton, Oakley Riggs, Kay Crenshaw, Bruce Gordon, Brandon Coulter, Kim Johnson, Carol Carney, Geraldine Spalding, Marie Addison, Donnie Hall, Phillip Wheatley, Iris June Medley, Lora Justice, Dennis Rust, Jacob Cowan, Josh Jarmon, Jaylen Dickerson, Sheila Carmona, Raymond Felton Spalding, Ted Key, Angele Spalding, Maureen Spalding, and any others not listed here.
**If you need to add/remove someone just call the office and let Mary Grace know.

Pastor’s Corner: Images of Grace

After long last, I’m very pleased to announce that the stained glass windows that were out for restoration are coming home this week! Specialists from Swiatek Studios will come to St. Rose to re-install the three panels from the windows in the Sanctuary and one from the St. Rose window in the tower. In addition, the full window depicting St. Dominic receiving the rosary from the Blessed Mother will be completely re-installed, together with its wood frame and its storm glass protective window. (The stained glass windows in the sanctuary of Holy Rosary remain both beautiful and strong- though it’s worth considering whether or not to “upgrade” the colored glass windows of the main church to full stained glass scenes. Might it be a fitting move as Holy Rosary prepares for it’s 100th anniversary in 2029?)
Stained glass windows are treasures not just because they are valuable and beautiful pieces of art – but especially because these windows can teach us many things about our faith and our identity. Take the scene of St. Dominic receiving the rosary from the Blessed Mother – it tells the story of how prayer and meditation on the life of Jesus fueled St. Dominic’s preaching to convert hearts that had left the faith. The rosary is so fundamental to our Catholic identity, and especially to the Dominican identity. (If you are interested, come to St. Catherine of Alexandria church in New Haven next month, when I’ll give a brief talk about this at the Rosary Celebration on September 13th). . . The fact that it’s stained glass not only hands us the story in beautiful visual art, but because comes to us when the sun shines through it all, it teaches that God’s grace enables all of reality to be and to be elevated and beautifully perfected through His involvement!
Pope Benedict XVI, when visiting the US in 2008, applied this to our own experience of faith. He explained that the true beauty and grace of the Church can only be properly perceived and understood “from the inside”—through active participation in the life of communion and grace. He pointed out that from outside, stained glass windows look dull and not at all interesting; but from within, they dazzle with the radiance of sunlight beaming through. So, too, many who consider the Catholic Church, or the Faith itself, from an “outside’s” perspective, will see only rules, restrictions, and old customs. Once the same skeptic comes to consider the Faith from within, and experiences the Mass and Sacraments alongside believers, that person can wonder at the artistry and comprehensive beauty of the truth of it all!

So, as you consider this lesson of stained glass beauty, think of how God’s grace beautifully reveals the goodness of our own identity as His light shines in our lives. Consider inviting a friend or a family member to “come and see” the life of Catholics by attending Mass with you; by praying a rosary with you (and with friends at 5:00pm every Monday afternoon at Holy Rosary); or otherwise participating in our beautiful and God-driven Faith! We’ll all be part of an image of grace in action!

Hospitality Ministers for September 5th and September 6th
5:00pm: Jimmy Edelen Family
10am: Arlene Spalding Family
Lectors for September 5th and September 6th
5:00pm: Kaye Martin
10am: Christina Lewis
Communion Ministers for September 5th and September 6th
5:00pm: Shawna Hazelwood & Bernadette Porter
10am: Christina Lewis & Sara Lewis
Mass Intentions for September 2nd, September 4th, September 5th and September 6th
5:30pm: Jeanette Graves Higdon
6:00pm: Brent Graves
5:00pm: Charles Wheatley Hamilton
10am: Brent Graves

Upcoming Events:
Every Mondays: 5:00p.m. Rosary
This Weekend: Sunday, the 23rd is the feast of St. Rose. There will be a special procession after the 11:30 Mass at St. Rose on Sunday, August 23rd with veneration of the relic of St. Rose, followed by a cookout in the parish center.)
**Be on the lookout for more information about a Men’s Club being formed. **
August 31st -September 28th: Food Distribution on Mondays at 6:00pm in the church basement.
Next Weekend: Second Collection for Peter’s Pence
Next Weekend: Holy Family Group will be here selling their wood carvings

Here are the daily Mass readings for the week of August 31-September 5th, 2026
• Monday, August 31, 2026: 1 Corinthians 2:1–5/Psalm 119:97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102/Luke 4:16–30
• Tuesday, September 1, 2026: 1 Corinthians 2:10b–16/Psalm 145:10–11, 12–13ab, 13cd–14/Luke 4:31–37
• Wednesday, September 2, 2026: 1 Corinthians 3:1–9/Psalm 33:12–13, 14–15, 20–21/ Luke 4:38–44
• Thursday, September 3, 2026: 1 Corinthians 3:18–23/Psalm 24:1bc–2, 3–4ab, 5–6/Luke 5:1–11
• Friday, September 4, 2026: 1 Corinthians 4:1–5/Psalm 37:3–4, 5–6, 27–28, 39–40/Luke 5:33–39
• Saturday, September 5, 2026: 1 Corinthians 4:6b–15/Psalm 145:17–18, 19–20, 21/Luke 6:1–5

Local Adoration Days and Times:
St. Augustine (Lebanon): Saturdays 8:00am-9:00am; First Fridays 7:30am-5:30pm
St. Dominic’s: Thursdays 6:15pm-8:00pm and Sundays 4:00pm-6:00pm
Holy Name of Mary (Calvary): Mondays 6:00pm-7:00pm
Holy Rosary (Springfield): First Fridays 6:30pm-8:00pm
Holy Trinity (Fredericktown “the ‘Burg”): Wednesdays 9:00am-10:00am
St. Rose: Thursdays 6:00pm-7:00pm

***It’ll be a new year before you know it; If anyone would be interested in a 4-week Bible Study during Advent please put your name on the list on the back table and mark the day you would be able to attend; we’ll go with the day that has the most people able to attend. “Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol: Story and Advent Bible Study”

08/21/2026

Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time
August 23, 2026

"Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" Matthew 16:13

The answers the disciples gave to Jesus’ question varied because they recognized some of the attributes of individual prophets in Jesus. Peter saw what the Messiah was supposed to be because Jesus reflected who He was. A steward reflects generosity and this is immediately recognizable to all that he meets

Mass Intentions for--- August 19; August 22; & August 23, 2026
August 19, 2026-------------5:30 p.m. ----- The People of Holy Rosary
August 22, 2026----------------5:00 p.m. ---------- Brent Graves
August 23, 2026---------------10:00 a.m. ---------- Warren & Elizabeth Gerton

Gracie Graves Mann, Gabriel Lowery, Roy Curry, David Fogle, Margaret Spalding, Charlie Lewis, Kim Abell, Benny Battcher, Derrick Bouldin, Jerome Flowers, Dennis & Helena Wheatley, Cathy Brady, , Linda Rinder, Gary Cothern, Wanda Taylor Wright, Debra Williams, Mary McWhorter, James Ellery, , Buster Fogle, Teresa Abell, Margaret Bush, Delisa Mattingly, Wanda Culver, Jessica Bell, Chris Yantis, Darnell Young, Richard Adkins, Kim Coyle, Richie Hamilton, Marhea Williams, Arlene Spalding, Donna Keene, Charles & Ruth Spalding, Bob Livers, The Burns Family, Gary Ellery, Ann McAdams, Cameron Spalding, Joash McKaye, Jane Gerton, Oakley Riggs, Kay Crenshaw, Bruce Gordon, Brandon Coulter, Kim Johnson, Carol Carney, Geraldine Spalding, Marie Addison, Donnie Hall, Phillip Wheatley, Iris June Medley, Lora Justice, Dennis Rust, Jacob Cowan, Josh Jarmon, Jaylen Dickerson, Sheila Carmona, Raymond Felton Spalding, Ted Key, and any others not listed here.

Pastor’s Corner: More than just an outfit – the Dominican Identity
We’ve been talking about some important Dominican saints, here’s a look at the distinctive “uniform” that unites and identifies us. The proper term for our garb is called a “habit,” since the way we dress is meant to reflect our way of life – in the case of us Dominicans, it is a life embracing poverty, prayer, preaching, and devotion to our Blessed Mother. The elements of the habit each visually represent this:
The base-layer, called a tunic, is a simple robe worn by poor people in his day. St. Dominic resolved that his followers would wear a plain tunic made from un-dyed wool (the cheapest clothing option for his day), as a sign of the voluntary poverty that they embraced. This apostolic poverty (recall that Jesus sent out the apostles to preach as beggars— taking “no money, not even a second tunic. . .”), would allow all, especially the many poor peasants, to take the friars and the Gospel they preached seriously. A simple belt or “cincture” would help keep the tunic neatly ordered and serve to attach the rosary. Likewise, it is the practice of virtue that keeps our lives neatly ordered and coordinated. When the friars put these on each morning, they recite a prayer: “Clothe me, O Lord, with the garment of salvation. By Your grace, may I keep it pure and spotless that, clothed in white, I may be worthy to walk with You in Your Presence.” And for the cincture: “Gird me, O Lord, with the cincture of justice and the cord of purity, that I may unite the many affections of my heart in the love of You alone.”
St. Dominic discovered his life’s work when he and his Bishop were traveling and encountered whole villages of fallen-away Catholics who had adopted the inhumane and hateful ideologies of the “Cathars.” The two eventually joined what proved to be an unsuccessful mission to re-convert these fallen-away Catholics. Despite the death or departure of his companions, Dominic persevered and was rewarded. In prayer, he had a vision of the Blessed Mother who gave him a rosary and the instruction to “preach the rosary.” She promised that it would be a weapon of prayer that would turn the tide of the spiritual battle for souls there. Indeed it did, and St. Dominic and his followers would forever wear a rosary hanging from their belt on their left side, as a knight would wear his sword.
The hood attached to a sort of bib or chest-length cape – known as the “capuche” – was given to the Dominicans as a sign that they were permitted to preach on behalf of the Church. (At that point, only bishops had the authority to preach, and to this day, the “uniform” for bishops still includes a “shoulder-cape” as a badge of their preaching office.) In another vision, the Blessed Mother would give the Dominicans another layer to wear: the scapular, or long apron in the front and back of the habit. The scapular – white (for the priests) as a sign of purity, or black (for the brothers) as a sign of service – proclaimed to all that the Dominicans came under Our Lady’s special patronage and would fight for her honor.
On top of all this, there is the heavy black “cappa” or hooded cloak, which would serve as both a raincoat and a bed-roll for the friars, ensuring that they could be prepared to go anywhere to preach the Gospel “in season and out of season.” (If you look closely at the round portraits of Dominican saints above the arches at St. Rose, you might notice one with his cappa tied to a stick – that is St. Raymond of Penafort, who miraculously escaped from being stranded on an island by a corrupt king; St. Raymond fled using his cappa as a sailboat, which carried him away to safety.)
So next time someone asks you, “Why do those priests wear white?” You can say with a smile, “oh, it’s just a habit. . .”

Hospitality Ministers for August 29th and August 30th
5:00pm: Shawna Hazelwood Family
10am: Tina & Christina Lewis
Lectors for August 29th and August 30th
5:00pm: Shawna Hazelwood
10am: Pam Grundy
Communion Ministers for August 29th and August 30th
5:00pm: Volunteers
10am: James Gerton & Danell Young
Mass Intentions for August 26th, August 29th and August 30th
5:30pm: Jeanette Graves Higdon
5:00pm: John “Willie” Ellery
10am: Barbara Hodgens (3yr. Anniversary)

Upcoming Events:
Hospitality Ministers for August 29th and August 30th
5:00pm: Shawna Hazelwood Family
10am: Tina & Christina Lewis
Lectors for August 29th and August 30th
5:00pm: Shawna Hazelwood
10am: Pam Grundy
Communion Ministers for August 29th and August 30th
5:00pm: Volunteers
10am: James Gerton & Danell Young
Mass Intentions for August 26th, August 29th and August 30th
5:30pm: Jeanette Graves Higdon
5:00pm: John “Willie” Ellery
10am: Barbara Hodgens (3yr. Anniversary)

Upcoming Events:
Every Mondays: 5:00p.m. Rosary
This Weekend: Sunday, the 23rd is the feast of St. Rose. There will be a special procession after the 11:30 Mass at St. Rose on Sunday, August 23rd with veneration of the relic of St. Rose, followed by a cookout in the parish center.)
This Weekend: St. Dominic is here selling raffle tickets.
This weekend: (2:30pm) Corn Hole Tournament and (2:00pm) Rosary Heights Women’s Club Fun Day
**Be on the lookout for more information about a Men’s Club being formed. **
August 30th Fellowship Sunday
September 5th & 6th : Second Collection for Peter’s Pence
August 31st -September 28th: Food Distribution at 6:00pm on Mondays in the church basement…more information in the announcements and on the flyer.

Here are the daily Mass readings for the week of August 24-29, 2026
• Monday, August 24: Revelation 21:9-14/Psalms 145:10-11, 12-13, 17-18/John 1:45-51
• Tuesday, August 25: Second Thessalonians 2:1-3, 14-16/Psalms 96:10, 11-12, 13/ Matthew 23:23-26
• Wednesday, August 26: Second Thessalonians 3:6-10, 16-18/Psalms 128:1-2, 4-5/ Matthew 23:27-32
• Thursday, August 27: First Corinthians 1:1-9/Psalms 145:2-3, 4-5, 6-7/Matthew 24:42-51
• Friday, August 28: First Corinthians 1:17-25/Psalms 33:1-2, 4-5, 10, 11/Matthew 25:1-13
• Saturday, August 29: Jeremiah 1:17-19/Psalms 71:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 15, 17/Mark 6:17-29
Local Adoration Days and Times:
St. Augustine (Lebanon): Saturdays 8:00am-9:00am; First Fridays 7:30am-5:30pm
St. Dominic’s: Thursdays 6:15pm-8:00pm and Sundays 4:00pm-6:00pm
Holy Name of Mary (Calvary): Mondays 6:00pm-7:00pm
Holy Rosary (Springfield): First Fridays 6:30pm-8:00pm
Holy Trinity (Fredericktown “the ‘Burg”): Wednesdays 9:00am-10:00am
St. Rose: Thursdays 6:00pm-7:00pm

Announcements for August 22nd and 23rd, 2026

• St. Dominic is here this weekend selling raffle tickets for their Fall Festival to be held on September 12th.
• Corn Hole Tournament and Rosary Height’s Women’s Club Fun Day this afternoon, Fun Day begins at 2pm and the Corn Hole Tournament begins at 2:30.
• We received a grant as part of a food insecurity initiative and the funding didn’t arrive until the week of the picnic so for the next 5 weeks; beginning August 31st on Monday evenings at 6pm we will give out meal kits while supplies last. If you or someone you know could benefit please let them know. Everyone is welcome!
• Next Sunday is Fellowship Sunday

08/21/2026

Share your faith with your children-
Sign up your young ones with the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd program
2:00pm-3:45pm Saturdays (starting September 12th)
at St. Rose School building
register your 3-6 year old child at https://forms.gle/ArjfLYRw4wUbAj7S8

08/15/2026

Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
August 16, 2026

"Observe what is right, do what is just; for my salvation is about to come, my justice, about to be revealed.” Isaiah 56: 1

A steward is keenly aware of the need for justice. It is the Lord’s justice practiced by a steward that delivers the poor.

Mass Intentions for--- August 12; August 15; & August 16, 2026
August 12, 2026-------------5:30 p.m. -----Jerome & Joyce Spalding Family living & deceased
August 15, 2026----------------5:00 p.m. ---------- Charles Wheatley Hamilton
August 16, 2026---------------10:00 a.m. ---------- Brent Graves

Gracie Graves Mann, Gabriel Lowery, Roy Curry, David Fogle, Margaret Spalding, Charlie Lewis, Kim Abell, Benny Battcher, Derrick Bouldin, Jerome Flowers, Dennis & Helena Wheatley, Cathy Brady, Betty Chesser, Linda Rinder, Gary Cothern, Wanda Taylor Wright, Charlotte Jerome, Debra Williams, Mary McWhorter, James Ellery, Tony Trigg, Buster Fogle, Teresa Abell, Margaret Bush, Delisa Mattingly, Wanda Culver, Pat Churchill, Jessica Bell, Chris Yantis, Darnell Young, Richard Adkins, Randy Hall, Kim Coyle, Ritchie Hamilton, Marhea Williams, Arlene Spalding, Donna Keene, Charles & Ruth Spalding, Bob Livers, The Burns Family, Gary Ellery, Ann McAdams, Cameron Spalding, Joash McKaye, Jane Gerton, Oakley Riggs, Kay Crenshaw, Bruce Gordon, Brandon Coulter, Lawrence “Popcorn” Lydian, Kim Johnson, Martha Nance, Carol Carney, Geraldine Spalding, Marie Addison, Donnie Hall, Phillip Wheatley, Iris June Medley, Lora Justice, Dennis Rust, Jacob Cowan, Josh Jarmon, Jaylen Dickerson, and any others not listed here.

Pastor’s Corner: A Gardner and a Very Special Rose
You may have noticed that the priests at St. Rose and at Holy Rosary (in the recent past as well as during its first half a century) wear white robes called a “habit”. These identify them as members of a Catholic “Order” or religious congregation known as the Dominicans. Last week we celebrated the feast day of the first Dominican, St. Dominic de Guzman (1170-1221), and this week, we’ll be preparing to celebrate the first Dominican of the “New World” (of the Americas) to be declared a saint: St. Rose of Lima.
St. Rose’s life was marked by deep prayer, heroic sacrifice, and unwavering love for Christ, particularly in the face of family conflict, as well as pioneering outreach between social classes and ethnic prejudices. She was born Isabel Flores de Oliva in Lima, Peru, in 1586. Raised in a devout Catholic family, she developed a strong spiritual life from an early age and desired to dedicate herself completely to God. Yet even in her faith-friendly family, there were very worldly expectations for “Rose” (as she was nicknamed because of her beauty and in deference to her domineering and influential Godmother). Her status-conscious but strapped-for-cash family pressured their beautiful daughter to throw herself headlong into the social scene and marry into wealth so as to prop up the family standing. St. Rose wanted no part in such ambitions. Aided by grace, she carefully navigated the often conflicting paths of honoring her family and responding with devotion to God.
Influenced by the life and holiness of St. Catherine of Siena –a kindred spirit with similar family conflict– Rose became a lay Dominican. Like her predecessor in the Order, Rose remained with her family, while embracing a life of prayer and penance. She rejected marriage offers, choosing instead to focus on growing in holiness. She was especially devoted to prayer before the Blessed Sacrament and sought union with Christ through sacrifice and self-denial. She produced fine embroidery and cultivated flowers, which she sold to help her family. She also grew herbs and other plants with medicinal properties, which she used to help minister to the sick, especially to the destitute indigenous people of Peru. She transformed her own room on her family’s property into a place where the poor, the abandoned, and the sick could receive care and assistance.
St. Rose experienced profound mystical visions and ecstasies, and built a small “hermitage” on her family’s property where she could better contemplate God in solitude. She also suffered physical and spiritual trials and misunderstandings from family members and others. Eventually, her holiness became widely known, and a Dominican spiritual director confirmed the supernatural source of her mystical experiences. All these elements of her life are touched upon in a magnificent stained glass window in the tower of our St. Rose church (she also appears in a window at Holy Rosary – beautiful in her tender devotion to the crucified Jesus). I encourage you to make a visit and spend a little time out of the way to soak it all in. Consider lighting a candle there and praying for someone who, like St. Rose, has a hard time negotiating family conflict, misunderstood devotion, or whose road to their vocation is strewn with social or financial hardship. Pray for those devoted to care for the sick and the poor, and for vocations to the priesthood (as St. Rose did with a particularly personal intensity) and religious life.
St. Rose died in 1617 at the age of 31, yet the life and beauty of her soul still endures over four centuries later. It’s no wonder that the first Dominicans in the United States chose her to be the patron of their original foundation here in Washington County.

Rosary Heights Women’s Club: Congratulations to August Dollar-a-Month Club winners: Jeannette Edelen and Anna Grundy!!

Hospitality Ministers for August 22nd and August 23rd
5:00pm: Cathy Carrico Family
10am: Paul & Jeffrey Spading
Lectors for August 22nd and August 23rd
5:00pm: Cathy Carrico
10am: James Gerton
Communion Ministers for August 22nd and August 23rd
5:00pm: Shawna Hazelwood & Bernadette Porter
10am: Mary Grace Lewis & Volunteer
Mass Intentions for August 19th, August 22nd and August 23rd
5:30pm: The People of Holy Rosary
5:00pm: Brent Graves
10am: Warren & Elizabeth Gerton

Upcoming Events:
Every Mondays: 5:00p.m. Rosary
Monday Evenings: An evening Bible study on the Acts of the Apostles (Mondays from 6:30pm-8:00pm) in the parish hall at St. Rose. This week's Bible Study will discuss Acts chapter 19
Tuesday August 18th: Monthly Tuesday "Magnifica Humanitas" meeting for August.
"Want to solve the modern world's problems? The "Magnifica Humanitas" discussion will meet on Tuesday, August 18th at 6:00pm in the St. Rose parish hall. We'll be examining the way forward that Pope Leo outlines in chapters 4 and 5 of his encyclical. All are invited to join in!
August 23rd: Sunday, the 23rd is the feast of St. Rose. There will be a special procession after the 11:30 Mass at St. Rose on Sunday, August 23rd with veneration of the relic of St. Rose, followed by a cookout in the parish center.)
August 23rd: Corn Hole Tournament and Rosary Heights Women’s Club Fun Day
**Be on the lookout for more information about a Men’s Club being formed. **

Here are the daily Mass readings for the week of August 17-22, 2026
• Monday, August 17: Ezekiel 24:15–23/Deuteronomy 32:18–19, 20, 21/Matthew 19:16–22
• Tuesday, August 18: Ezekiel 28:1–10/Deuteronomy 32:26–27, 28, 30, 35–36/ Matthew 19:23–30
• Wednesday, August 19: Ezekiel 34:1–11/Psalm 23:1–3a, 3b–4, 5, 6/ Matthew 20:1–16
• Thursday, August 20: Ezekiel 36:23–28/Psalm 51:12–13, 14–15, 18–19/ Matthew 22:1–14
• Friday, August 21: Ezekiel 37:1–14/Psalm 107:2–3, 4–5, 6–7, 8–9/Matthew 22:34–40
• Saturday, August 22: Ezekiel 43:1–7ab/Psalm 85:9, 10, 11–12, 13–14/Matthew 23:1–12
Local Adoration Days and Times:
St. Augustine (Lebanon): Saturdays 8:00am-9:00am; First Fridays 7:30am-5:30pm
St. Dominic’s: Thursdays 6:15pm-8:00pm and Sundays 4:00pm-6:00pm
Holy Name of Mary (Calvary): Mondays 6:00pm-7:00pm
Holy Rosary (Springfield): First Fridays 6:30pm-8:00pm
Holy Trinity (Fredericktown “the ‘Burg”): Wednesdays 9:00am-10:00am
St. Rose: Thursdays 6:00pm-7:00pm