Good day, St. James Community. Here is the latest news and your SUNDAY bulletin for May 18, 2025.
WE WELCOME ANYONE WHO CAN ATTEND SUNDAY MASS AT ST. JAMES AT 10:00 A.M. Fr. Garry Richmeier will be our celebrant. Considering that many parishioners are still suffering the effects of the COVID-19 virus and other infections, if you plan to join us in person, we recommend masking if you exhibit symptoms or are immunocompromised.
WE CONTINUE TO LIVE STREAM OUR 10:00 AM SUNDAY MASS, reaching out to parishioners and friends who can’t attend in person. Here is the link to the live stream on our Facebook page for St. James Midtown, KC. A recording of the live-streamed Mass can also be accessed at https://stjkc.org/sundays-at-st-james.
If you weren’t able to join us for our May 4th parish-wide Synod meeting, here is the web address to watch the video: https://www.facebook.com/stjamesmidtown/videos/23869564052667186/
WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO VISIT THE ST JAMES WEBSITE REGULARLY AT
www.StJKC.org and provide feedback or ideas for posts. Please send your ideas to website@stjkc.org.
MEMBERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO READ AND REFLECT ON THE READINGS BEFORE MASS. Here are this Sunday’s readings for the Fifth Sunday of Easter.
First Reading – Acts 14:21-27: Paul and Barnabas, after spreading the gospel and strengthening new believers, reminded them that faith requires perseverance through hardships, appointed leaders in the churches, and celebrated God’s work in opening the door of faith to the Gentiles. How can we remain steadfast in our faith when facing difficulties, trusting that God is working through them for a greater purpose?
Second Reading – Revelation 21:1-5a: John’s vision of a radically transformed universe—a new heaven, a new earth, and a holy city where God’s presence eradicates all sorrow and pain—urges us to ponder: how can the promise of divine renewal inspire us to overcome our struggles and manifest hope in our everyday lives?
Gospel – John 13:31-33a, 34-35: John 3:16 powerfully communicates that God’s boundless love for humanity is so profound that He sacrificed His only Son to grant eternal life to all who believe. How does the promise of eternal life, as an expression of divine love, challenge or enhance the way you understand personal sacrifice and hope?
Faith Formation insert this week is about preparing for hardships. Check it out: https://files.cdn.thinkific.com/file_uploads/297590/attachments/c08/adc/ed8/B_W.pdf
Fr. Don Farnan has a wonderful weekly podcast that addresses important issues of the day and how they intersect with our faith. Check it out and subscribe. https://uponthisrockpodcast.buzzsprout.com/.
Our own Sarah Hirsch, is interviewed by the National Catholic Register inquiring about Catholics’ reaction to having a new pope and being an American. To read the article, click here.
THE BULLETIN, FRIDAY EMAILS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS AT MASS
For the size of our parish, St. James has a lot going on. Providing information to the people is crucial. We have three vehicles to communicate with parishioners: the bulletin, Friday email, and announcements at Mass. Parishioners are invited to send announcements and other items for the bulletin and Friday emails to Bulletin@StJKC.org no later than midnight on Mondays. To have an announcement at Mass, your information must be sent to dianeew72@gmail.com no later than noon on Saturdays. All announcements will be edited for conciseness. Thank you for your cooperation.
Have you heard that St. James is going camping?! That’s right. On August 1-3, 2025, at Big Rock Candy Mountain Retreat in Jadwin, Missouri. Check it out at www.bigrockcandymt.com This Retreat Center has lodging options for everyone (serious tent campers and “I need a cabin with beds and electricity please” campers!) and is located on the Ozark Scenic Riverways. There is an outdoor pool and restaurant on site and plenty of recreational options including horseback riding, kayaking, fly fishing, hiking, biking and more. Please fill out the form below if you are interested in coming. Filling out the form now helps with planning but is not an ironclad commitment. Our deposit is due by June 1, so I’ll be collecting money in May. https://forms.gle/fMVvDC3bmAHF2LtY6 Contact Rachael with any questions and feel free to share with other St. James folk. Rachael Coffman, 816) 885-7718
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A Message from JustFaith.
If you want to have a healthy and productive dialogue around immigration and are mindful about creating division or conflict, we developed Faith and Immigration Justice just for you.
This small group program guides participants in building a community of trust where they can unravel myths, uncover the truth, and discern how their community may be called to respond to immigrants in your local community and beyond.
Join us on Tuesday, May 20 at 12:30pm ET/9:30am PT for an information session and JustFaith Staff Members will provide a brief experience of the program, an overview of the content, general information, and tips for starting the program in your church, organization, or area. Register at https://justfaith.org/faith-immigration-info/
Misinformation about immigration hurts all of us. Our small group program Faith and Immigration Justice gives you the tools you need to guide your church/community in dispelling harmful myths, learning what’s true, and discerning how God may be calling you to love and act.
REDEMPTORIST– PRESENTATION ON BLESSED STANLEY ROTHER On Monday, June 9 at 7:00 pm, Redemptorist will host Fr. Don Wolf, a priest from the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, who will speak about Blessed Stanley Rother. Fr. Rother was martyred in 1981 in Guatemala where he was serving as a missionary in Santiago Atitlan. In 2015, the Vatican formally recognized him as a martyr. He was beatified in 2017 in Oklahoma City. Blessed Stanley Rother is the first martyr from the United States and the first U.S.-born priest to be beatified. Fr. Wolf is a cousin to Blessed Stanley Rother and will speak in the Garden Room at Redemptorist.
St. Francis Xavier PUBLIC WITNESS Tuesday, May 20 4:30 pm Troost side of SFX at 51st and Troost.
The nuclear weapons plant in Kansas City, Mo., is doubling its size and gaining funds to help create new nuclear weapons. Join Peace Works Kansas City to object! We’ll do preparation for resistance on Sunday, May 18, and will hold our resistance Monday, May 19. Get details and register at https://peaceworkskc.org/sign-up-resist-nukes-5-18-19/
and see some of WHY we are resisting, at https://peaceworkskc.org/dont-nuke-mother-earth/.
Part of Monday, May 19 will be livestreamed by Bryson Ripley, leader of Kansas City Veterans for Peace – 5:30 to about 7:00 a.m. CDT and 10:00 to about 11:30 a.m. CDT. This will happen on Tik Tok @semperfightme .
We also are going to ask local city councils to move “Back from the Brink” of nuclear holocaust, making plans at 1:00 p.m. May 18 at Waldo Library at 201 East 75th Street in KC MO. See https://peaceworkskc.org/help-us-move-back-from-the-brink-of-nuclear-apocalypse/.
National Eucharistic Pilgrimage stop in Kansas City | May 27
The National Eucharistic Pilgrimage is stopping in Kansas City on May 27. Join the pilgrims for Eucharistic Adoration at St. Monica Catholic Church (1616 The Paseo, Kansas City) at 4:30 p.m.
Knights of Peter Claver & Ladies Auxiliary of St. Monica Parish Presents: “Soul Line Dance Class” on Saturday, May 31.
Get ready to step into the rhythm at this FREE Soul Line Dance Class, hosted by the Knights of Peter Claver & Ladies Auxiliary Council and Court #57. This isn’t just a dance class—it’s a vibrant celebration of community, culture, and movement in Kansas City’s historic 18th & Vine District. Click here for more information.
Bill Cordaro