Nov 30 at Mater Christi Parish in Albany, Fr. Dan McHale will give a presentation on the Theology of Suffering from 6:30- 7:30pm, followed by a Holy hour with Adoration, Benediction & Confessions.

Young adults (ages 21-39) will enjoy a walk in the fall air and lovely views along the Mohawk River! They're welcome to bring a picnic lunch and a camp chair for to share a meal together. When: November 18th 11:00am Address: Blatnick Park, 2545 River Rd Niskayuna We will take a stroll from Blatnick Park to the Rosa Rd area of the trail, stopping at Lock 7 halfway down for the view on the way back to Blatnick. Picnic lunch to close! Communication to meet up will be via Discord. Event sign-up link to attend: https://forms.gle/FrSAkg9EED1hSwJ4A

St. Matthew's in Voorheesville is having a Christmas wreath sale, 14" Wreath with Bow $25, 14" Wreath with Berries, Pinecones & Bow $30 Order deadline is Nov 19. Contact Peggy McQuade 518-765-2804 Ext: 14 to order!

Thank you to all who came out to our 2023 Saints+Snacks+Ministry event. A fun time of fellowship and learning about all of the ways you can get involved at St. Thomas the Apostle. Check out some fun pictures from our event!

The Christ Child Society (CCS) of Albany invites you to a Holiday Shopping Extravaganza on Saturday, November 18 from 2:00 – 6:00 pm in the St. Madeleine Sophie Parish Center, 3500 Carman Road in Schenectady, NY. Come start your holiday shopping with your favorite local vendors such as Tupperware, Mary Kay, Pampered Chef, Sweet on You Holiday and Paper Craft items and many more while enjoying some delicious snacks and desserts.  Please join us to shop, eat and socialize, all while supporting the CCS ministries serving the children of our community.

Unleashing Love Women’s Conference Awakening our hearts to share God’s love. Where: St Pius X Church, Loudonville When: Saturday, December 9, 2023 Time: Check-in and Continental Breakfast at 8:30 AM; Event runs from 9 AM to 4 PM Keynote Speakers: Fr. Chris Alar, MIC; Mrs. Anne Costa, and parishioner Mary DeTurris Poust Event will include: Presentations, Reconciliation, Adoration, Rosary, Mass with Bishop Scharfenberger, box lunch, and beverages. Conference Information and Registration Link: https://www.rcda.org/UnleashingLove Early Registration: $40. until November 30 Registration: $45. From December 1 to December 8 On-site “Day Of Registration”: $50. on December 9 Note: Credit / Debit card users -- ignore PayPal and use the black button bar to pay via credit / debit card.

Special thanks to all our bowlers who joined us in having some fun while helping others. Together we collected $182.00 for blanket kits for our Advent Family Night of Service! Special thanks to Del Lanes and their staff for a Cosmic time! Click here for more photos

We thank all of our parents, Middle School & High School youth, Fr. Matt, catechists and gatekeepers for joining us at our Fall Back to Faith Formation. A very special thanks to Christa Strain, Children’s Editor at Pauline Books & Media for introducing us to Bible Journaling using a Lectio Divina form of prayer! The Spirit is moving here at St. Thomas! Click here for more photos

Thank you St. Thomas for $685 worth of gift cards for our Meal Ministry! Your generosity will assist individuals in our own parish family who are mourning the loss of a loved one, in treatment or just because ❤ Special thanks to Maria for collecting and to her son for assisting in Fall back to Faith Formation setup!

If you were unable to attend the NYS Eucharistic Congress, the videos of the speakers, liturgies and music can now be viewed on the NYS Eucharistic Congress website under the Photos & Videos tab! https://nyseucharisticcongress.org/videos

Thank you, St. Thomas, for showering His love at our Parish Picnic! We thank our Picnic Committee, and our many volunteers who worked together transporting, setting up and taking down, cooking, supervising stations and more! Lastly, we thank you for celebrating with us as one family showered in His love! God Bless you! View our picnic album here

Our St. Thomas sponsored Scout Troop 1071 is hosting a Frese’s Catering Service Chicken BBQ at the St. Thomas Church parking lot on Thursday, September 28th from 3:30 to 6:30 PM. For $15 per takeout order, you can enjoy a half chicken dinner with coleslaw, baked potato, corn on the cob, roll & cookie. All proceeds to benefit Troop 1071. Please call 518-369-5962 to preorder by Sept 21. Thank you for supporting scouting!

How is the Holy Spirit Calling you today? Special thanks to Deacon Daniel for sharing your vocation story with all of us!  He reminded all of us on how the Spirit continually is at work in our lives; inspiring us to discover our vocation in life and giving us the grace to serve HIM and others. We thank everyone for coming out to have fun, ice cream and to pray for vocations! Special shout out to our Youth Ministry CORE Team for hosting!

The Christ Child Society of Albany is planning their annual Baby Shower for Saturday, October 14, 2023 from 12:00pm to 2:00pm at St. Madeleine Sophie Parish Center, 3500 Carman Road, Schenectady, NY 12303. The needs of our Layette Program continue to grow and we extend a warm thank you for your donation in assisting over 500 newborn babies in our community who are in need. All are welcome. The Layettes we distribute include an afghan or quilt (36”- 42” or 40”- 40”), receiving blankets, disposable diapers (newborn and size 1), onesies (3 to 6 months or 6 to 9 months), sleepers (3 to 6 months), hooded bath towels, handmade sweater sets and baby board books. We ask that you bring your Layette Item(s) as a donation unwrapped. Refreshments will be prepared for your enjoyment. Please RSVP by Sunday, October 1 to Carol Kelly at (518) 698-6633.

The Churches of St. Matthew's, Christ the King, St. Lucy's, and St. Thomas the Apostle plan to begin the Gabriel Project® as part of our Walking with Moms in Need program. The Gabriel Project® is a pro-life and parish-based program offering assistance to women experiencing difficult circumstances during their pregnancy. We need volunteers to accompany pregnant women and assist them spiritually, physically, emotionally, and materially. If you are interested in learning more about the Gabriel Project®, you can come to the training meeting at St. Thomas on Saturday, September 23, at 9:30 am in the parish office conference room. For more information, please contact Louise Schrecongost in the parish office.

Beginning Experience of the Hudson Valley is a peer led ministry that serves those grieving the end of a marriage or spousal relationship due to death, divorce, or separation. This fall we are offering two programs and we invite men and women of all ages to attend. Healing Weekend- an in-person weekend retreat at St. Lawrence Retreat Center in Beacon NY from October 20 to 22, 2023. For information or to register please call Phyllis at 914 261 5812 or Betty at 973 903 3941 In the Beginning…Coping with Life Alone- one day remote via zoom program held on Saturday, September 23, 2023 from 9AM to 4PM. For information or to please call Jim at 845 569 9452 or Denise at 845 325 3147.

All are welcome to join us for our September book discussion. As described on Amazon.com, "As a parent, leader, citizen, athlete, coach, friend, spouse, entrepreneur, who are you helping those around you to BECOME? Are you ready to ask bigger and more meaningful questions? What is this one life really all about? Is there a recipe to create clarity of purpose? A traumatic car accident and other "Frying Pan" moments in the middle of Jonathan Fanning's career as a management consultant to Fortune 500 companies triggered a quest for a deeper sense of purpose, meaning, and significance." A limited number of copies of the book are available in the parish office for $15 per copy. Join us on September 21 at 7pm in the Gathering Hall to discuss our next book selection Who are you Becoming by Jonathan Fanning WITH Jonathan himself!

Thank you! “Act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8 Fr. Sean O’Brien, OFM, Director at St. John/St. Ann’s Outreach Center is humbled by your continued support of our neighbors! We thank our young church, Corella and Peg for greeting and sorting our donations. Click here for more photos.

You are invited to Mater Christi Parish for Sung Vespers in the spirit of Taize on September 12 and October 19 at 7pm. These are special evenings of song, scripture and silence. For more information contact Justine Rodriguez, Director of Music at 518-489-3204.

“What does love look like? It has the hands to help others...” St. Augustine. The South End Children’s Café thanks you for your gifts of cleaning supplies and personal care items that will assist families on a tight budget. Special thanks to Corolla, Peggy and our young church for greeting and sorting! God bless you St. Thomas for sharing the LOVE! Click here for more photos!