February

40 Days for Life Kick-off
The Helena-area 40 Days for Life spring campaign will soon begin. This program consists of 40 days of: prayer and fasting for an end to abortion, constant, peaceful vigil outside abortion centers, and active pro-life community outreach. The spring campaign will begin Feb. 25 and continue through April 5. The kick-off will be held Monday, Feb. 23, at 7 p.m. in the Sienna/Ross Room of the Carroll College Cube.

To learn more about 40 Days for Life visit www.40daysforlife.com/helena.

March

Natural Family Planning classes to start March 8
A series of classes on Natural Family Planning will begin Sunday, March 8, in Helena, taught by an instructor certified by the Northwest Family Services of Portland, Ore. She has been teaching it since 1993. NFP is a modern, sympto-thermal method of achieving or preventing pregnancy, and is morally acceptable to all faiths, according to the Helena-area teacher. A woman can use it her entire life.

Individual classes also may be arranged. For more information and registration, call Diana at 442-7926.

Women: experience Benedictine monastery life
Single Catholic women, ages 18 to 40, who want to experience the Benedictine way of life are invited to attend a Benedictine Life Weekend March 20-22, at Monastery Immaculate Conception in Ferdinand, Ind. It is free of charge.

The Sisters of St. Benedict’s program will focus on the theme “The Spirit of the Rule of Benedict.” Participants can experience the monastic schedule, pray with the sisters, participate in community life and meet other women who are considering religious life.

Women wishing to register or obtain more information can call Sister Agnes Marie Dauby or Sister Michelle Sinkhorn at 800-738-9999 or e-mail them at vocation@thedome.org. Registration is also available online at www.thedome.org.

Founded in 1867, the Sisters of St. Benedict of Ferdinand are 170 religious women who minister in schools, parishes, church institutions, retreat centers, health-care facilities, and social service agencies. They currently serve in Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Maryland, Italy and Peru.

Latin Mass continues at Frenchtown parish
Sunday, March 8, is the next date for the celebration of the Extraordinary Form of the Liturgy of the Mass (according to the 1962 edition of the Roman Missal and as permitted by Pope Benedict XVI in Summorum Pontificum) at St. John the Baptist Church in Frenchtown. Mass will begin at 11 a.m. Confessions are scheduled at 10 a.m. and the rosary will be prayed at 10:30 a.m.

Engaged Encounter offers 7 weekend programs
Engaged Encounter, a marriage preparation program for engaged couples, is planning seven weekends for engaged couples throughout this year. Coming weekends include March 20-22 in Butte, April 3-5 in Kalispell and Great Falls, and June 5-7 in Great Falls. Scheduled next fall are Sept. 18-20 in Kalispell, Oct. 2-4 in Butte and Oct. 16-18 in Great Falls.

For information and registration, couples should contact a registration couple in the area where they wish to attend: Jerry and Maureen LaChere, 594-1780 in Butte; Bob and Vickie Williamson, 727-5507 in Great Falls, and Stan and Margie Smith, 756-5848 in Kalispell.

Couples are encouraged to make a weekend one to six months before their wedding date. Non-Catholics are welcome. Engaged Encounter helps them to communicate effectively in marriage and to prepare for marriage, not just a wedding celebration.

May

Nursing banquet, celebration coming up in Butte
The annual St. James School of Nursing banquet and celebration weekend will be held May 15, 16 and 17 at the War Bonnet Hotel in Butte. The St. James class of 1959 will be honored. For more information, call Claire Holman at 406-723-4258, or Deanna Thomas, 406-782-4435.

On-going Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites
St. Joseph, Guardian of the Redeemer, is a local group of the Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites (OCDS) located in Butte. Presently, members come from Helena, Bozeman, Belgrade and Butte. Secular Carmelites are called to make prayer penetrate their whole existence. Like all vocations within the Church, the Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites is a call from God, an invitation. If you desire to learn to pray in a way that fosters a deep friendship with Jesus Christ in faithfulness to his Church, the Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites may be worth investigating. The group meets at St. Joseph’s Church, Butte, the third Sunday of the month. For more information, call Melldie Freeman, group leader, 406-494-7949, or Becky Hyle, formation director, 406-494-3892.

Benedictine monastic life
The Benedictine Sisters of St. Scholastica Monastery in Duluth, Minn., invite single women 21 or older to experience monastic life by living with them and participating in some of their ministries as a Benedictine Associate volunteer for six months to a year or longer. Room and board are provided, plus opportunities to participate in spiritual and educational programs. For more information, contact Sister Grace Marie at (218) 723-5984 or gmbraun@duluthosb.org, or write to St. Scholastica Monastery, 1001 Kenwood Ave., Duluth, MN 55811.

Secular Franciscans meet in Missoula
People who want a deeper experience of Christ and knowledge of the humble and peace-loving traditions of St. Francis of Assisi may contact the Secular Franciscan Order in Missoula. It is a group of Missoula-area married, single and divorced lay people who meet every month in fraternity. A two-year discernment period is required. Meetings begin at 10 a.m. the second Saturday of each month in the Loyola Chapel behind St. Anthony’s parish center. For more information, contact Joe Korona at 549-4239.


Published in The Montana Catholic, Vol. 25, No. 2, February 20, 2009.