Rosary Novena for Life on Saturday, August 29 at 8am at St. Rose of Lima Parish, 500 Parker Avenue, Buffalo. Mass will be celebrated by Rev. Thomas Roman, followed by a silent and prayerful procession to and from a local abortion clinic (optional) where we join together in prayer. Closing prayers will take place upon our return outside St. Rose of Lima. For more information, contact the Pro-Life Office at 716-847-2205.

Book Sale. Christ the King Seminary, 711 Knox Road, East Aurora, will hold a second-hand book sale in the auditorium with items in most categories, but mostly religious. Hours are Wednesday-Friday, September 9-11 from 9:30am-7pm; and Saturday, September 12 from 9am-1pm.

Devotional Mass for the Crowned Virgin. The Congrega Society of Buffalo announces the next biannual Mass and Breakfast in honor of the Crowned Virgin at St. Lawrence Church, 1520 E. Delavan Avenue, Buffalo. The Mass is scheduled for Saturday, September 12 at 9am. Guest Celebrant is former pastor, Rev. Paul Seil. Paul Weisenburger, Jr. and the St. Lawrence Chamber Choir will provide the music. If you have not previously attended the Mass and breakfast, please contact Mary J.D. Steinhauser at 716-656-7195 to be added to the breakfast count.

Project Homeless Connect. Do you have a bunch of those hotel soaps and shampoos just taking up space in your bathroom? Project Homeless Connect will be taking place at the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center on September 22 and we need your help! This is a one day event where those experiencing homelessness can come and connect with community based resources, dental and medical services, get a free haircut and so much more. We are looking for individuals to donate travel size personal care items or do a collection for these items within their offices or through their place of worship. (Examples of products: shampoo, conditioner, disposable razors, band aids, dental floss, soap, deodorant, hair brushes, toothpaste, sanitary napkins.) If you or someone you know would like to help or has items they would like to donate, please contact Renee Siepierski of Catholic Charities at 716-856-4494. We would truly appreciate any help!

"The Environment: The Pope, Our Health, Our Economy, Our Brother." The Catholic Newman Community at the University of Rochester is proud to host Gerald M. Gacioch, MD, Head of Cardiology at Rochester General Hospital, as its distinguished guest speaker. Join us as Dr. Gacioch illuminates Pope Francis' encyclical on the environment, Laudato Si, and explores the moral obligation of religious institutions to confront climate change, critical to the future of the planet and especially the poor of the world. This next talk in the Cardinal Newman Lecture Series will be held on October 11 at noon at the University of Rochester's Interfaith Chapel. Free parking is available. For more information, please visit http://www.urnewman.org.

Catholic Charities' Immigration & Refugee Assistance Program is looking for such furniture items as chairs, dining room and kitchen sets, basic personal household items, school supplies, gift cards and volunteers to set up apartments and drive the delivery truck. Want to repurpose old furniture? Like to furnish homes? Consider helping the Immigration & Refugee Assistance Program. Please call 716-842-0270 or visit http://www.ccwny.org for more information.

Give a child a safe home. Catholic Charities works closely with birth families to provide a safe place for children, especially sibling groups, to stay and receive care when they cannot receive it at their own home. While often temporary, some children must be relocated permanently. Our Foster Care program allows for children to receive nurturing care in these moments of their lives from other loving families. Interested in learning more about becoming a foster parent? Our next informational meetings will be held at 525 Washington Street, Buffalo on September 8 from 10-11:30am and 6-7:30pm; attend either one. You can also learn more by calling 716-856-4494 ext. 360 or emailing foster.adopt@ccwny.org.

Care for Creation. Earth, our common home, "now cries out to us because of the harm we have inflicted on her by our irresponsible use and abuse of the goods with which God has endowed her. We have come to see ourselves as her lords and masters, entitled to plunder her at will. The violence present in our hearts, wounded by sin, is also reflected in the symptoms of sickness evident in the soil, in the water, in the air and in all forms of life. This is why the earth herself, burdened and laid waste, is among the most abandoned and maltreated of our poor; she 'groans in travail' (Rom. 8:22). We have forgotten that we ourselves are dust of the earth (cf. Gen. 2:7); our very bodies are made up of her elements, we breathe her air and we receive life and refreshment from her waters." Pope Francis, Laudato Si, paragraph 2. Action: To learn more about the encyclical and facts about climate change go to http://www.catholicclimatemovement.global. This offers 5 videos about the encyclical and why Pope Francis is calling us to respond immediately with faith, courage, action and prayer to care for God's gift of creation.

USCCB-Word of Life: "Through the vulnerability and dependence of the dying person, we discover a call to reach beyond ourselves to those around us and ultimately to God Himself." Ruth Ashfield, "The Gift of the Dying Person"

USCCB-Palabra de Vida: "Mediante la vulnerabilidad y la dependencia del moribundo, descubrimos un llamado a salir de nosotros mismos y llegar a quienes estßn a nuestro alrededor y finalmente a Dios mismo." Ruth Ashfield, "The Gift of the Dying Person"

*** New Bulletin Announcements will be posted on August 24, 2015.***