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Late evening Dec. 4, 2021, Benedictine College sophomore Christopher Holzman and his friends were going to take one last ride on their longboards before calling it a night. No one saw him fall off of the board because it was dark, his friends found him unresponsive at the bottom of the hill and called 911. Holzman was transported to the hospital in Atchison, Kansas, with two temporal bone fractures and traumatic brain injury.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The teachings of the Second Vatican Council are still "the guiding star" the Catholic Church is meant to follow, Pope Leo XIV said. Rereading all of its teachings "is a valuable opportunity to rediscover the beauty and the importance of this ecclesial event," he said Jan. 7, and because its work remains "a guiding principle for us today."

In response to feedback from the diocesan faithful, the Office of Faith Formation is offering a diocese wide Lenten book study based on Liz Kelly’s book, A Place Called Golgotha: Meditations on the Last Words of Christ. “In reviewing feedback from the Synod (on Synodality), we often saw there were lots of conversations and requests for more opportunities for adult faith formation studies,” Karmen Bower, director of Faith Formation pointed out. “A lot of parishes have really been great at responding to this desire and a lot of people have stepped up in their parishes to be a bigger part of providing those opportunities.”

Just a month after his ordination to the permanent diaconate in the summer of 2021, Deacon David La Mar began to serve in jail ministry of which he believes he has been called. “Nobody ever really approached me about this ministry. I recall during diaconal formation while at prayer, discerning what I believe was the prompting of the Holy Spirit: ‘You should go to the Boone County Jail and see if you can help them with jail ministry,’” said the deacon who serves at Ascension Parish in Boone County.

The Manning Sacred Heart Community Closet is available to anyone, no matter their financial situation, noted Melanie Enenbach, the director of the closet. Recently, when SNAP benefits were in limbo, Enenbach noted she “saw a huge surge of people coming in.” Other reasons for the increase include changes in seasons and changes in family circumstances.

As the diocese gears up for Briar Cliff Sunday on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1, the focus is on a Briar Cliff graduate. Elise Mangan, former Bishop's Scholar, is a product of both Kuemper High School and Briar Cliff University. Now she serves as a language arts educator in a diocesan Catholic school.

Men of the Diocese of Sioux City will have a chance to build community with one another and learn ways to help them stand strong in the faith at the 2026 Men’s Conference slated for March 21 in Le Mars. According to Delores Huemiller, one of three diocesan faith formation coordinators, the theme of this year’s conference is Standing Strong as a Man, Parent and Grandparent. It is open to all men in the diocese, including high school juniors and seniors. “Men will be encouraged to be firm in their faith, be firm in their convictions and be strong, Catholic men in the church and the world that we need today,” she said.

Through a partnership between the Diocese of Sioux City and Abounding Joy Ministries, an online divorce and separation workshop will be offered at a discount in the diocese. Build a New Life will begin Jan. 22 and run for 12 weeks, providing tools for emotional healing, spiritual renewal and practical rebuilding, “grounded in the truth and love of the church.” Certified Catholic divorce healing coach Carolyn Klika Catino of Abounding Joy Ministries will lead the workshop.

Storm Lake St. Mary School leadership announced the theme for the annual auction as well as a $1.5 million building project at their Jan. 6 event theme announcement. The project includes a major renovation and modernization of the community gymnasium entrance and first floor of the high school.

Nearly 100 Storm Lake St. Mary High School graduates and supporters convened upon Iowa City Jan. 3 to cheer on the Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball team and their head coach, Ben McCollum, 1999 Storm Lake St. Mary alumnus.

This is not an age where we want to lose the edge in our discernment. If we do, we can easily end up in dangerous positions, dangerous especially to our souls. One of the things that is more and more prominent is the number of people who become entangled in occult activities (especially witchcraft and New Age) without even recognizing it at first. This is because doors in the spiritual realm get opened.

Catholics nationwide are invited to pray “9 Days for Life,” an annual Respect Life novena starting Jan. 16.

The faithful are reminded to have their charitable gifts postmarked, date stamped or received by midnight, Dec. 31 to qualify as a deduction for the 2025 tax year.

For the world's 1.4 billion Catholics and for millions of other people as well, the Catholic Church's 2025 was primarily about the death of Pope Francis and the election of Pope Leo XIV. In fact, the Wikimedia Foundation announced Dec. 2 that "Deaths in 2025" -- an entry that includes Pope Francis -- was their second most-read entry during the year, and Pope Leo's biography was the fifth most-read article of the 7.1 million entries Wikipedia has in English. "As people rushed online to learn about Leo, traffic to all Wikimedia projects peaked at around 800,000 hits per second -- more than 6x over normal traffic levels, and a new all-time record for us," said the foundation.

Pope Leo XIV will formally close the Jubilee Year of Hope in Rome on Jan. 6, 2026, on the feast of the Epiphany. In the Diocese of Sioux City, Bishop John E. Keehner closed the holy year on Dec. 28, on the feast of the Holy Family, at the Cathedral of the Epiphany in Sioux City.

Father Steven McLoud, diocesan priest, was sentenced Dec. 22 in Kossuth County District Court after pleading guilty to the charge of third degree fraudulent practice, which is an aggravated misdemeanor.

(Bilingual English and Spanish) ... Of course, our celebration of Christmas is very much a celebration of the light of God’s love come into the world in the person of his only begotten son ... Por supuesto, nuestra celebración de la Navidad es en gran parte una celebración de la Luz del amor de Dios que ha venido al mundo en la persona de su Hijo Unigénito...

Father Eugene Earl Sitzmann, 90, retired priest of the Diocese of Sioux City, died Dec. 20 in Cherokee. His funeral Mass will be Dec. 30 at 11 a.m. at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Le Mars with Bishop John Keehner and Father David Hemann presiding. Burial will be at Calvary Cemetery in Le Mars. Visitation will be 10 a.m. to noon Dec. 29 at the Greenwood-Schubert Funeral Home in Cherokee. Visitation with the family present will be Dec. 29 from 5 to 7 p.m. at St. Joseph Church in Le Mars. A prayer service will be held at 7 p.m. at the church.

During Poverty Awareness Month, the faithful are encouraged to join the Secretariat of Justice and Peace, the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, and the Catholic community in the United States in taking up Pope Leo's challenge to live in solidarity with the poor.

“And I saw that the temple was filled with the glory of the Lord,” Ez 43:5, from the first reading of the rededication Mass for the renovated St. Rose of Lima Church in Denison. In September 2024, St. Rose of Lima Parish kicked off a $2 million fundraising campaign, Witness His Glory, to finish what was begun in 2006 when the church was built, and to enhance the worship space. Bishop John E. Keehner presided at the rededication Mass last night, in the church filled with parishioners, diocesan priests and deacons.