TEUTOPOLIS — Over 450 people from throughout the Effingham deanery were at St. Francis of Assisi Church in Teutopolis for a 7 p.m. Mass, Sept. 1, to welcome Bishop Thomas John Paprocki on his first formal visit to their deanery after his June installation as bishop of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois.

Priests of the Springfield diocese will gather Sept. 20-24 at the Decatur Conference Center and Hotel for their annual convocation.

Year Three of Why Catholic? will start up soon in parishes throughout the diocese. Sign up Sunday for the fall small-group sessions will be after Masses the weekend of Sept. 12, with the six fall sessions to run from Oct. 3 through Nov. 7.

“Harpscape Retreat” — a retreat designed for anyone who loves the harp, would like to play the harp or would like to experience a retreat immersed in harp music — will be held at the Franciscan Chiara Center near Springfield Nov. 4-7.

ALTON — For the first time in more than 30 years, Marquette Catholic High School in Alton is in the midst of a capital development campaign, in which leaders hope to raise $3 million to make upgrades throughout the campus and enhance the school’s endowment fund.

Now that September is here, people who are part of the Springfield Diocesan Young Adult Mass (commonly known as YAM) community are winding down their summer activities and preparing for a busy fall.

QUINCY — St. Elizabeth Fraternity of the Secular Franciscan Order held a jubilee celebration on Aug. 15 in St. Francis Church.

Alveda King, niece of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, will speak at a free lecture titled “Helping the Dream Survive!” at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 23, at the Springfield Howlett Building, 501 S. Second St., in the state capitol complex.

EFFINGHAM — A spaghetti fest sponsored by Joe’s Pizza and Pasta will be held Sunday, Sept. 19, at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Effingham. Tickets are $6 for adults and $4 for children.

The quarterly meeting of the Springfield Diocesan Chapter of the Knights of Columbus will be held Sunday, Sept. 19, at the Highland Knights of Columbus Council 1580, 12454 State Route 143 N. in Highland. Chapter officers will meet at 12:30 p.m. Lunch will be served at 1:15 p.m. followed by the general meeting at 2 p.m.

The Diocesan Adult Enrichment Conference (DAEC) will take place Sunday, Nov. 7 through Monday, Nov. 8 at the Decatur Conference Center and Hotel, 4191 US 36 West (Wyckles Road) in Decatur. The DAEC is held every other autumn. It is sponsored by the diocesan Office for Catechesis and is made possible in part by the Annual Catholic Services Appeal.

Bishop Paprocki to preside at ecumenical prayer service for life

Dr. Alveda King, pro-life proponent and niece of the late civil rights leader, Dr. Martin Luther King, will join Bishop Thomas John Paprocki at an ecumenical prayer service for life at 1 p.m. Friday, Sept. 24, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. The service will be followed by a prayerful walk and peaceful protest at the Planned Parenthood of Springfield.

The Office for Catechesis of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois, in conjunction with local parishes, will once again offer faith formation courses for adults, according to Jonathan Sullivan, director. Courses are designed to assist Catholics who want to know more about their faith, respond to questions about the church, and make faith-filled decisions in their lives.

Knights of Columbus Council 364 in Springfield is hosting the 89th Annual K. of C. Cooperative Barbecue from noon until 8 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 29.

TAYLORVILLE — Handmade baby quilts and hand-knit and crocheted baby covers are on their way to Haiti to help the smallest of victims in the aftermath of last year’s earthquake in the island nation.

Approximately 70 educators met at the invitation of the diocesan Office for Catechesis' Catholic Schools Office in the Cathedral atrium in Springfield Aug. 12 to learn more about equitable participation in federal education programs.

The Diocese of Springfield in Illinois is already preparing for the First Sunday in Advent in 2011, when the new English translation of the Roman Missal will be used for the first time, according to Eliot Kapitan, director of the Office for Worship and the Catechumenate.

This summer and fall, members of the Effingham Deanery Right to Life group are taking their pro-life message to the streets — literally.

Bishop Thomas John Paprocki has reassured a victims’ rights group that there are no priests with proven, admitted or credible accusations of child abuse currently in ministry in the Springfield diocese.

At least five groups totaling more than 100 people from the Springfield diocese are already making plans to participate in the 2011 World Youth Day next summer in Madrid, Spain. The WYD pilgrims are from: St. Anthony High School, Effingham, led by Father Daren Zehnle; a Spanish ministry group, led by Father Christopher Brey; a group led by Becky Bauerle from Mother of Perpetual Help, Maryville, and Mother of Dolors, Vandalia; a group from St. Paul, Highland led by Jack Cygan; and a group organized by Kyle Holtgrave, associate director of youth in the diocesan Office of Catechesis, which includes youth from Our Lady Queen of Peace in Bethalto, Sacred Heart in Virden, and St. Mary in Alton.

EDWARDSVILLE — Middle school students from St. Mary School in Edwardsville came off as big winners in the 14th International Botball Robotics Tournament held in conjunction with the Global Conference on Educational Robotics, July 8-10, on the campus of nearby Southern Illinois University in Edwardsville.

The Diocesan Council of Catholic Women (DCCW) will hold its 82nd annual convention Saturday, Oct. 2, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Springfield. The convention will begin at 7 a.m. with registration and refreshments and conclude at 3:30 p.m. The theme will be “You Are Called … Go Forth.”

The Office for Marriage and Family Life is hosting its annual diocesan celebration for couples married 50 years or more on Sunday, Sept. 26. The celebration will take place at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Springfield, beginning with a musical program at 1 p.m., followed by 2 p.m. Mass celebrated by Bishop Thomas John Paprocki and a reception held in the new Cathedral atrium.

With the 2010-2011 academic year just about to get under way, principals and teachers all over the Springfield diocese are preparing to share their knowledge with the thousands of young people who attend Catholic schools. This year principal Ron Niebrugge is returning to once again lead St. Anthony High School in Effingham and several Catholic grade schools will be under new leadership. The majority of these six men and women were at the diocesan pastoral center in Springfield on Aug. 4 for the annual new principal's meeting and took time to share their thoughts on the upcoming school year.

At the end of each school year, teachers and catechists in parish schools and religious education programs in our diocese are honored for special service anniversaries.

Recent state legislation has the potential to make big changes in the way Catholic cemeteries operate, said speakers at a July 28 meeting at Ss. Mary and Joseph Parish in Carlinville. The meeting was held for those who serve Catholic cemeteries in the diocese, including pastors of parishes with cemeteries, cemetery managers, cemetery board members and volunteers who work in Catholic cemeteries. An estimated 100 people were in attendance.

QUINCY — In celebration of the parish’s 150th anniversary, St. Francis Solanus in Quincy is sponsoring a Catholic Christian concert by Steve Angrisano from 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 28, at Quincy University’s Pepsi Arena.

Holy Family Food Pantry in Springfield needs help gathering school supplies to fill almost 600 requests for children in needy families so they will be able to have the supplies necessary to start the new school year feeling confident, prepared, on an equal plane with their peers and ready to learn.

ALTON — Natural Family Planning classes will begin Sept. 20 at 7 p.m. on the first floor of Saint Clare’s Hospital at 915 E. 5th St.