Monthly Meeting for November 2013: Movie Night!

After a few months of outings, for November our group will be staying locally at the Oratory.  We will meet on Saturday, 16 November at the Oratory, beginning in church at 4:00 P.M. with the Holy Rosary and Benediction, and then head to the basement at 4:40 for a social night with a movie, dinner and a talk.

All young adults, ages 18–35, are welcome to join us!

Date: 16 November, 2013
Time: 4:00 P.M.
Location: St. Francis de Sales Oratory

For more information, please contact the Oratory at:
2653 Ohio Avenue
Saint Louis, Missouri 63118
Telephone: (314) 771-3100 • FAX: (314) 771-3295

Monthly Meeting for October 2013: Hiking

Here is a guest post from one of our members, announcing the next meeting:

Our monthly Sursum Corda event is coming up! We will be going to Shaw Nature Reserve in Gray Summit, MO on Saturday, October 19th for a hike. I am really excited because we will be viewing all the trees as they start to change color. We may even pass by the Meramec river.

We will be meeting at the Oratory at 1pm for those who would like to carpool. Then we will head out West on 44 to Gray Summit, MO. (about 37 minutes from the Oratory) http://goo.gl/maps/8SeDt

Once we arrive at the Shaw Nature Reserve, we will meet there in the parking lot to hit the trail at 2pm. So, come prepared with walking foot-gear. 

After the hike, we will head back to the Oratory for a 5:30pm Rosary and then dinner at Hodak's between 6 and 7pm afterwards.  (it is half a mile East on Gravois from the Oratory.)

All young adults, ages 18-35, are welcome to join us for any or all of these activities!

For more information, please contact the Oratory at:

2653 Ohio Avenue

Saint Louis, Missouri 63118

Telephone: (314) 771-3100 • FAX: (314) 771-3295

Monthly Meeting for September 2013: St. Joseph's Shrine

On Saturday, 14 September, the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross and sixth anniversary of the implementation of Pope Benedict XVI's motu proprio "Summorum Pontificum", Sursum Corda will be visiting the Shrine of St. Joseph, located just north of downtown St. Louis.  Founded in 1843 by the Jesuits, the Shrine is a beautiful example of Romanesque Revival architecture, and is the location of the only Vatican-authenticated miracle in the Midwest.

Although we have visited the Shrine in the past, this time we will be having a High Mass celebrated by Canon Ueda, with a choir formed from our own members.  (Anyone who may be interested in joining the choir, or serving, is encouraged to contact the office at St. Francis de Sales for further information.)  The Mass is open to the public, so feel free to invite your friends and family to join us.

We will meet at St. Francis de Sales at 9:30, so as to then carpool to the Shrine for Mass, which will be sung at 10:00.  (Note the time change!)  After Mass there will be time for prayer and touring the church, and then we will meet at 1:00 for a picnic at Tower Grove Park.

The Shrine is located at 1220 North 11th Street, St. Louis, Missouri 63106.  For more information, please contact the Oratory.

All are welcome to attend.  Hope to see you there!

August meeting reflection

Last weekend saw another enjoyable Sursum Corda get-together at St. Francis de Sales Oratory. This one was made more special by the addition of some of the young adults from the Shrine of Christ the King in Chicago! A few enthusiastic St. Louis Susum Cordians were on hand to greet them on Friday night but the majority of the record attendance (41!!) came on Saturday, which began with eight ‘o clock Mass. After a breakfast in the hall, everyone piled into vehicles for the hour and a half drive to Onandoga Cave in Leesburg, MO. In spite of being very cold and clammy, the cave tour was most impressive and instructive. (Did anyone know that property is now measured in volume, not area? So you own any caves or other natural resources under your property down to the center of the earth!) Everyone had a chance to discuss the cave at a picnic lunch outside of the visitors center before heading over to the McCanns’ home in Kirkwood for a barbecue and volleyball! We were also treated to a spiritual conference by Canon Ueda on Pope Francis’ new encyclical Lumen Fidei, a powerful reminder of the importance of faith in our lives. The gathering broke up after ten ‘o clock Mass, followed by brunch on Sunday to end one of the most enjoyable weekends of my life. Things at the convent were never quiet as the girls discussed everything from old movies, to the Civil War, to family Christmas traditions! I wish especially to thank Nikki for organizing the event, Canon Ueda for reminding us of the spiritual purpose of our gathering, and the McCann family for graciously opening their home to us.

―T.L.

July meeting reflection

Here is a reflection written by one of our members about the July Sursum Corda meeting:

July 20, 2013 found the young adults of Sursum Corda meeting at the St. Louis Zoo in the Living World for our monthly gathering. This was one of our largest turnouts so far. Though we missed the presence of our dear Abbé Alex, we were happy to welcome several new faces. Among these faces were two young men from the Institute's Seminary near Florence, Italy: Abbé Jacob Gonzales and Abbé Jonathon Fehrenbacher. We were honored to have them join us for the day's events. We were also honored to have with us, for what was probably the last time before he leaves for the seminary, our candidate for the priesthood, David Sampayo. We will all miss him, and keep him in our prayers.

The weather was hot, but it didn't prevent us from having a wonderful afternoon. Judging by the time spent viewing the different animals, the most popular seemed to be the wild cats. Before leaving for the Oratory, we took a break at the concession stand area to cool off with cold drinks, giant misting fans, and good company. After leaving the Zoo, we all made our way to the Oratory where we gathered in the Church for Adoration and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, celebrated by our beloved Canon Ueda. During this there was a silence and peace that settled over everyone. It was such a beautiful moment to recollect oneself. We prayed the Rosary there together kneeling before the Holy Eucharist, exposed in the monstrance. Adoration was closed by the singing of "Salve Regina." We then moved to the basement of the church where we were joined by Canon Avis to enjoy pizza, drinks, and ice cream while watching a movie. We thank all of those who have worked make this possible. We especially thank Canon Ueda for all of the tireless work he puts into every Sursum Corda meeting. God bless him. Praise God that we have such grace-filled opportunities available to us these days. Deo Gratias!

―A.M.

Monthly Meeting for August 2013

This month we will have a special meeting of Sursum Corda, in which we will be welcoming members of the Sursum Corda group from the Shrine of Christ the King in Chicago, Ill.  The group will be arriving in the evening of Friday, 9 August, after which there may be some fellowship time (though any plans for evening activities unfortunately are tentative, given the nature of travel delays.)

On Saturday, 10 August, our two groups will join together for 8:00 A.M. Mass at St. Francis de Sales Oratory, followed by a breakfast in the church hall (at approximately 8:45).  We will then leave at 9:15 to visit Onondaga Caves State Park, arriving around 11:00.  Later in the afternoon, we will return to St. Louis around 3:00 P.M. for a barbecue, spiritual reflection and recreation at the house of one of our parishioners in Kirkwood. (For the address, please contact the Oratory.)

On Sunday, 11 August, we will hear Mass at 10:00 A.M., and then enjoy brunch together at noon, with the Chicago members departing around 2:00 P.M.

All young adults, ages 18-35, are welcome to join us for any or all of these activities!

National Sursum Corda meeting reflection

Here is a reflection written by one of our members about the recent National Sursum Corda Retreat at Mundelein Seminary in Chicago:

Where I come from we do not have the opportunity of attending a daily Mass in the extraordinary form, nor do we have confessions, spiritual direction, or friends who share the same values. During the beautiful weekend spent at Mundelein Seminary for Sursum Corda, all of these things and more were available to us. Some of the main highlights during the weekend were: daily Mass, confessions at any time, spiritual direction, square dancing, Compline on Friday night, a Rosary walk to Kolbe Shrine in Marytown (where we also received an excellent tour), watching The Quiet Man, volleyball tournaments, the talent show on Sunday night, conferences given by the Canons, and the close of every night with evening prayers. Of course in between these events we had meals and time to socialize with others who came from around the country to be a part of this grace-filled weekend. In the evenings (after prayers) we would gather in the livingroom to play games, talk, and enjoy each others company. We were able to get away from the world and refresh and enrich our souls. We left Mundelein with new armor and weapons to defend our beautiful Faith - to stand up and fight for truth.  On Sunday we were blessed with the addition of Canon Talarico, Canon Hellmann, and some other members of the Institute from the Shrine in Chicago to our company. I know there were many who had to put a lot of hard work into making this weekend possible, and I thank them with all of my heart and pray that God blesses them abundantly for their generosity. I especially thank Canons Huberfeld and Stein, who dedicated themselves entirely to this event. Sursum Corda was a lasting experience that I will never forget.  God willing, I will definitely be returning next year.

―A.M.

Monthly Meeting For July 2013

Our monthly Sursum Corda will be on July 20, 2013.  We will meet at 2pm at the Saint Louis Zoo, and then return to St. Francis de Sales Oratory at 5pm for Adoration and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament.  At 6pm, we will descend into the church hall for a movie over pizza and refreshments!

All young adults, ages 18-35, are welcome to join us!

Who are we?

Sursum Corda is a national young adults group run under the direction of the Institute of Christ the King, Sovereign Priest.

The goal of the Institute is to extend the reign of Christ in society.  To this end, the Sursum Corda group is formed to foster the necessary harmony between spiritual, social and cultural life of the youth.  This is done through group prayer, faith discussion, fun activities and charity work as a means of building up Catholic identity.  In our age we can get almost everything in a very fast and convenient way. Social networking often fuels and informs our personal lives, but we also need personal contact to share our joys, dreams, and concerns with other young people so that all of us can be encouraged to continue our lives in the love of God.  Please feel free to join us in our community activities.

We look forward to seeing you!