Catholic Diocese of Lexington

24/08/2026

Last Thursday evening, friends and guests gathered at the Artists Studio above DV8 Kitchen in Lexington to honor Fr. Norman’s birthday with an evening full of fellowship, creativity, and plenty of fun.

Guests enjoyed exploring the artwork throughout the studio while catching up with one another, sharing birthday cake, and celebrating Fr. Norman. The evening even included a spirited dance contest that brought plenty of laughs and memorable moments to the celebration! 💃🕺

It was a joyful tribute to a life that touched so many and a reminder that Fr. Norman’s spirit, ministry, and influence continue to live on through the people and communities he loved.

Thank you to everyone who joined in celebrating and remembering Fr. Norman. ❤️🙏

24/08/2026

Community, solidarity, and hope take center stage in a recent Eastern Standard interview featuring organizers Jeff Rubin and Stu Johnson.

The conversation highlights “Hands Across / Stand Together: Linking Arms, Lifting Hope,” an upcoming community demonstration inviting participants to line Versailles Road, Main Street, Midland Avenue, and Wi******er Road on August 28, commemorating the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington. (Esweku)

Hear more about the inspiration behind the event, what organizers hope it will accomplish, and how the Lexington community can come together in a visible expression of unity.

🎧 Listen to the full interview:
https://esweku.org/track/4947222/august-20-2026_jeff-rubin_stu-johnson

There’s a plan to demonstrate the “unity” in “community.” You’ll hear from organizers Jeff Rubin and Stu Johnson about “Hands Across / Stand Together: Linking Arms, Lifting Hope” — people lining Versailles Road, Main Street, Midland Avenue and Wi******er Road on August 28th, the 60...

24/08/2026

Join us in prayer as we celebrate the Season of Creation, a time to reflect on God’s gift of creation and our shared responsibility to care for our common home. 🌎🌿

The Diocese of Lexington invites you to a Virtual Prayer Service on Tuesday, September 8 at 7:00 p.m.

Gather with us online for an evening of prayer, reflection, and gratitude for the beauty of creation.

🗓 Tuesday, September 8
⏰ 7:00 p.m.
💻 Join via Zoom
Meeting ID: 879 3454 1941
Passcode: 101674

The Zoom link is https://us06web.zoom.us/j/87934541941?pwd=2mZKmJ2zAIabXJaIUnGBBlagf91Dd3.1

20/08/2026

🎲 Welcome to Lex Vegas! 🎰

The Catholic Wildcats - UK Holy Spirit Parish Newman Center brought students together for another fun-filled Lex Vegas—an annual evening where Catholic and non-Catholic students alike are invited to connect, compete, and enjoy some good old-fashioned fellowship.

From table games and refreshments to an inflatable race course that put everyone’s competitive spirit to the test, the night offered plenty of opportunities to laugh, meet new people, and build community.

Events like Lex Vegas are a reminder that campus ministry begins with something simple: an invitation to come together. 💙🤍

Thank you to the Catholic Wildcats and everyone who helped make this year’s Lex Vegas a memorable night!

20/08/2026

Today, Father Marc Bentley, Vocations Director for the Catholic Diocese of Lexington, traveled to Eastern Kentucky to visit seminarian Didier Buwani during his pastoral assignment at St. Martha Catholic Church in Prestonsburg and St. Luke Catholic Church in Salyersville.

Father Marc had the opportunity to speak with Didier, his pastor, Father Eric Anya, and several parishioners about Didier’s experiences and growth during his time in these communities. He also concelebrated Mass with Father Eric at St. Luke.

Pastoral assignments are an important part of priestly formation, allowing seminarians to learn from the priests and people they serve. Please join us in praying for Didier and his continued formation!

18/08/2026

Neighbor Helping Neighbor ❤️

After severe storms caused flooding and damage in Wolfe County, one Eastern Kentucky resident found herself without a bridge to safely reach her home. Within hours, a neighbor arrived with his skid steer—clearing the damaged bridge, salvaging its steel beams, and creating a temporary crossing from a fallen log.

No questions asked. No hesitation. Just a neighbor helping a neighbor. It’s a powerful reminder of the generosity and resilience that continue to define our Eastern Kentucky communities.

If you or someone you know needs assistance with recent flood damage, contact Catholic Charities at 859-475-5522. Donations can also be made to support those affected.

“Give and gifts will be given to you… For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you.” — Luke 6:38

🔗 Read the full story: https://cdlex.org/neighbor-helping-neighbor/

On Sunday evening in Wolfe County, flood warnings were issued amidst a major thunder and lightning storm. The creek through town overflowed its banks in some areas, cresting at the porches of many homes. Trees fell along with bridges. One bridge that fell was fortified by steel beams but was still d

17/08/2026

Afraid to take that first step in discernment?

Seminarian Carl Ramos offers an important reminder: you are not expected to figure out God’s call by yourself. Discernment happens with the Church. Your pastor, spiritual director, and vocations director are there to help you listen carefully, ask honest questions, and recognize where God may be leading.

As Carl tells Vocations Director Fr. Marc Bentley, “It’s not just you who is discerning … it is also the Church.”

You do not need to know the final answer before you begin. Sometimes the first act of courage is simply letting someone know that the question is on your heart.

If you believe God may be calling you to the priesthood, speak with your pastor or send the Vocations Office a message. Please keep Carl and all our seminarians in your prayers.

17/08/2026

The Catholic Diocese of Lexington joins the Adorers of the Blood of Christ in mourning the passing of Sister Joan Shalapin, ASC, who died peacefully on August 8, 2026, at the age of 88 after 68 years of professed religious life.

Sister Joan dedicated her life to education, pastoral ministry and service, including many years in Kentucky. She served in community health education at Our Lady of the Way Hospital in Martin and spent 15 years as pastoral associate at St. Joseph the Worker Mission in Elkhorn City. Throughout her later years, she continued serving others through art, photography, spirituality, hospice volunteering and reading for the blind and partially sighted.

We give thanks to God for Sister Joan’s faithful life and ministry. Please keep her family, friends and the Adorers of the Blood of Christ in your prayers.

Eternal rest grant unto her, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon her. May she rest in peace. Amen.

Sister Joan Shalapin, ASC, of the Adorers of the Blood of Christ, died peacefully at 3:30 p.m. on August 8, 2026, at Benedictine Living Community at the Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows in Belleville, Illinois. She was 88 years old and had been professed for 68 years.She was one of five children in t

14/08/2026

Obedience did not make St. Maximilian Kolbe passive. It made him free — free enough to step out of line.

In the letter proclaimed today in the Office of Readings, St. Maximilian writes:

“Obedience raises us beyond the limits of our littleness and puts us in harmony with God’s will.”

Kolbe was not describing blind submission to evil. In the same passage, he makes clear that a command contrary to God’s law cannot convey God’s will. Christian obedience means surrendering our self-will to God — a surrender that makes courageous love possible.

The world witnessed that courageous love at Auschwitz.

In July 1941, Franciszek Gajowniczek — a Polish Catholic, husband, father, and army sergeant — was among ten prisoners selected to die by starvation following another prisoner’s escape. When Gajowniczek cried out for his wife and children, Father Kolbe stepped forward and offered to take his place.

The exchange was accepted. After about two weeks in the starvation bunker, Father Kolbe was killed by a phenol injection on August 14, 1941. Gajowniczek survived the war.

The N***s could take away Father Kolbe’s outward freedom, possessions, health, and ordinary ministry. They could not take away his priesthood or his freedom to love. In the starvation bunker, his priesthood took on its deepest Eucharistic form: a life received from Christ and offered so that another might live.

Most of us will never be called to martyrdom. But every true vocation requires self-gift. Marriage, priesthood, and consecrated life each teach us to move beyond the question, “What do I want from life?” and ask instead, “To whom is God asking me to give my life in love?”

Where might God be inviting you to step out of line and say yes?

St. Maximilian Kolbe, pray for us — and for all those discerning their vocation.

Could Christ be calling you to become a Conventual Franciscan friar — as a brother or priest? Learn more: https://franciscanvoice.org/vocation/

Image: Lowdown, via Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/?curid=109087975
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