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1 bâü _twç Éy à{x UÜÉÉ~ ctü á{ aéüà{uüéé~? \ÄÄ ÇÉ á December 27, 2015 Feast of the Holy Family Our Lady of the Brook Mission Statement Our Lady of the Brook Parish is called to be a Catholic Community where all are welcome. Believing God to be the center of life, we commit to: Remember the values handed on to us in the Sacred Scriptures and teachings of the Apostles Celebrate Christ s presence among us in Word and Sacrament Act to foster peace, justice and compassion for all.

2 Our Lady of the Brook Parish Northbrook, Illinois 2 OUR LADY OF THE BROOK PARISH Parish Family Worship Center & Rectory 3700 Dundee Road Northbrook, IL Website: phone: (847) fax: (847) rectory@olbparish.org Parish Office Hours: M F 9 am to 4 pm Parish Staff/Rectory (847) Father Robert Heinz, Pastor Father Dan Folwaczny Father Robert Herne, Pastor Emeritus Father Richard Sztorc, Pastor Emeritus Father Tom Moran, Pastor Emeritus Deacon Peery Duderstadt Deacon Dennis McAllister Michael Ward, Director of Liturgy Daniel Williams, Music Director Catherine Colleran, Administrative Assistant Amy Principi, Bulletin Editor bulletin@olbparish.org Bookkeeper/Webmaster use above (Individual addresses are available on our website: click on contact us for a listing.) Mass Intentions Saturday, December 26, :00 PM Ann Campbell request of Jane Malley Ed Stewart request of Bubak family Sunday, December 27, :00 AM Robert Gregory Salomone request of family George Snurpus Sr. request of George Snurpus Carol Erickson request of Mary Nassar Monday, December 28, :30 AM (at St. Norbert) Tuesday, December 29, :30 AM (at St. Norbert) Wednesday, December 30, :30 AM Agnes Ryba request of Paul & Gerri Miller Dennis Yosick Thursday, December 31, :00 PM (at St. Norbert) Friday, January 1, :00 AM Jenny Haynes request of family Paul Mierke request of Terry Mierke Fritz Vargyas Saturday, January 2, :30 AM (at St. Norbert) 5:00 PM JoAnn Futrell request of family Sunday, January 3, 2016 Epiphany 10:00 AM John Paul Calandra request of family Richard Doherty request of John Doherty Robert Gregory Salomone request of family Parish Council/Finance Council Contact info for councils is available on our website. PPC Chair: Michael Nees; PFC Chair: Wayne Bubak Mass Schedule Saturday Anticipated Mass - 5:00 PM Sunday Masses - 10:00 AM Daily Mass - Wednesday & Friday - 8:30 AM Holy Day Masses - as Announced Baptisms Baptism - 12:00PM on the 2nd and 4th Sundays Sacraments of Reconciliation & Anointing The Sacrament of Penance is available Saturdays at 4:15 PM until all confessions are heard or by appointment. Anointing of the Sick and Communion to the Homebound is available upon request. Weddings Marriage - Arrangements must be made a minimum of 6 months in advance. Registering We are happy that you have joined us to worship! Whether you re just visiting or are looking for a Parish home, we are pleased to have you here. Interested in becoming a parishioner? Call and we ll take your info over the phone, or access a Registration Form on our website and mail it, fax it or drop it in the Offertory. For Those Who Have Requested Our Prayers Sidney Ament, Hilde Antos, Shawna Beagle, Coleen Bokor, Fr. Borre, Shirley Bowler, Janet Brame, Jose Calud, Betty Cantalupo, Tony Catenacci, Mary Ann Duderstadt, Gaynor Edwards, Anna Polus Esha, Anita Farenga, Mary Kay Farrell, Sally Faso, Dayana Feeney, Kathryn Fenner, Rev. Erwin Friedl, Pat Glennon, Anne Richardson Golm, Barbara Gryzmala, Beth Hansen, Fr. Bob Heinz, Fr. Herne, Brady Irwin, Milton Johnson, Sara Klimaszewski, Fr. Charlie Kouba, Al Mazewski, Jennifer Mertes, Ray and Rita Niebur, Debbie Olson, Pat Orlando, John Ormond, Carol Parker, Patti Parker, Clarene Ponticelli, Carolyn Price, Christine Rakow, Margaret Romano, Alexandra Salamone, Talie Schnoll, Frank Steinwandtner, Angelo Suranno, Patricia Tingay, Victor P. Villasin, Marion West, Evelyn Whitson, Georgina Winters, Dennis Wimberly, Audrey Zywicki Pray Also For Those Born to Eternal Life Martha Jariabka Grace Milota, mother of Mary Szostak

3 Feast of the Holy Family December 27, Silent Hidden Gestation Rev. Ron Rolheiser, OMI Some years ago, I visited the Holy Land. It s a strangely different place. Nobody doubts that. Virtually every inch of its soil has been soaked in blood, including the blood of Christ himself, and history leaps out at you from every rock. Ancient things from beyond our time seem to come to surface there and mix with the things of today. When you stand in its sacred spots, you begin to understand why Moses was told to take his shoes off and why, through the centuries, so many wars have been fought over this small strip of desert. It is aptly named the Holy Land. I walked its ground, barefoot in soul, for several weeks. Of all the things I saw there, however, including the tomb of Christ itself, none touched me as deeply as did the Church of the Visitation. It stands in sharp contrast to many of the other churches there which mark the key events in Christ s life. Unlike these other churches, the Church of the Visitation is a very modest building and is basically unadorned. You don t see any gold or marble there. Its wooden walls and oak ceiling are plain and mostly bare. However, on the front wall, behind the altar, there is a painting that depicts the scene of the Visitation. It was this painting of Elizabeth and Mary that struck me so deeply. It s a picture of two peasant women, both pregnant, greeting each other. Everything about it suggests smallness, littleness, obscurity, dust, small-town, insignificance. What you see is two rather plain-looking women, standing in the dust of an unknown village. Nothing suggests that either of them, or anything they are doing or carrying, is out of the ordinary or of much significance. Yet, and this is the genius of the painting, all that littleness, obscurity, seeming barrenness, and small-town insignificance makes you automatically ask the question: Who would have thought it? Who could ever have imagined that these two women, in this obscure town, in this obscure place, in this obscure time, were carrying inside of themselves something that would radically and forever change the world? Who would have thought it? Yet, it s true. What these obscure peasant women were gestating and carrying inside of themselves would one day change history more than any army, any philosopher, any artist, any King or Queen, or any entertainment star ever would. Inside of themselves, they were gestating the Christ and the Prophet. These births changed the world radically. Today we even measure time by the event of those births. We live in the year 1994 AD, that is, after that event. There is a lesson in that: Never underrate, in terms of world importance, someone living in obscurity who is pregnant with promise. Never underestimate the impact in history of silent, hidden gestation. We might well meditate this image: Insofar as we have real significance all of us live in obscurity, pregnant with promise, silently, in away hidden to the world, gestating that which will change time and history. If we understood this, there would be more peace in our lives, one of the raging fires inside of us would torment us much less. There is a deep restlessness in all of us that can only be stilled by understanding this for all of us live that martyrdom of obscurity, the martyrdom of a life within which we do not have adequate self-expression. There is a relentless pressure inside of each of us that pushes us to be known, to make a difference, to make our lives count in terms of the big picture. Thus, we yearn to do great things, big things, things that affect beyond the boundaries of the small towns we all live in. Invariably then we sit inside of our own lives and we feel unknown, small-time, undistinguished and frustrated because almost all of our riches are still unknown to others. We have so much to give to the world, but the world doesn t know about us. What we need to bring us some peace is what is expressed in that painting in the Church of the Visitation, namely, that what changes the world is what we give birth to when, in the obscurity and dust of our small towns and within the frustration of lives that will always seem too small for us, we become pregnant with hope and, after a long, humble gestation process, a process which is not advertised or known to the world, we bring that hope to full term. A songwriter once said: Many s the bottle of wine that s never been drunk and many s the thought that s never been thunk! I look at what hope did when it was gestated in obscurity and ask: Who would have thunk it?

4 Our Lady of the Brook Parish Northbrook, Illinois 4 Brook Happenings Sunday, December 27, :00 AM Mass Monday, December 28, 2015 Tuesday, December 29, :00 PM Friends of Bill Wednesday, December 30, :00 AM Staff Meeting Thursday, December 31, 2015 Parish Office Closed Friday, January 1, 2016 Parish Office Closed NO First Friday Breakfast Saturday, January 2, :15 PM Confessions 5:00 PM Mass Sunday, January 3, :00 AM Mass 11:15 AM Adult Scripture Study Parish Sick List or Receiving Communion Visit We are happy to pray for members of our community who are sick. We cannot (by law) publicize the health status of any of our members without their permission. Names for the sick list spoken at Mass and placed in the Bulletin have to be called in by the person who is ill, or by a member of their family and permission has to be given. We will announce the name at Mass for three weeks. After that, the name will be placed on the bulletin sick list. Names on the bulletin sick list can remain there as long as the person is ill. Please inform the parish of any changes in the person s health. Those wishing to receive a Communion Visit should call the parish office and request it. We will need their name and location, and how long they will need visits. It make take some time to find a Minister of Care who can arrange to visit. Hospitals and Nursing Homes may offer this service through other parishes Ministers. Thank you for helping us to serve you efficiently! Don t forget that our bulletin is available online at our parish website. It s in color, and has all the information you might have missed! Deadline is noon on the Monday before the weekend. We also have a page on Facebook, which posts updates regarding Holiday Events, photos from recent events, and more. Scan the code to the right with a smartphone to go directly to our home page. Upcoming Dates Mark your Calendars Now! Jan. 18: Senior Club at SN, Traveling Jan. 31: Chili Supper Readings for the Week of Dec. 27 Monday: 1 Jn 1:5 2:2; Ps 124:2-5, 7b-8; Mt 2:13-18 Tuesday: 1 Jn 2:3-11; Ps 96:1-3, 5b-6; Lk 2:22-35 Wednesday: 1 Jn 2:12-17; Ps 96:7-10; Lk 2:36-40 Thursday: 1 Jn 2:18-21; Ps 96:1-2, 11-13; Jn 1:1-18 Friday: Nm 6:22-27; Ps 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8; Gal 4:4-7; Lk 2:16-21 Saturday: 1 Jn 2:22-28; Ps 98:1-4; Jn 1:19-28 Sunday: Is 60:1-6; Ps 72:1-2, 7-8, 10-13; Eph 3:2-3a, 5-6; Mt 2:1-12 THE NAME FOR GOD Mother is the name for God on the lips and in the hearts of little children. William Makepeace Thackeray Catholic Community of Northbrook Senior Club Senior Club will meet on Monday, January 18 th at St. Norbert Grace Hall 9-11 a.m. This month s topic will be Traveling as a Senior-Guidelines, hints, etc. All are welcome! This group meets monthly, alternating between St. Norbert and Our Lady of the Brook. Join us! Stewardship of Treasure Collection Dec. 20 Not available at press time. Have you switched to Electronic Giving yet? Thank you for your continued support. Remember Our Lady of the Brook Parish in your will.

5 Feast of the Holy Family December 27, Bulletin Building Blocks - Feast of the Holy Family TREASURES FROM OUR TRADITION This New Year s Eve, at the turning of the year, you may catch a glimpse of the old year, a cartoon figure of a hunched old man with a sickle, Father Time. Where else but in this column could you learn that this is in fact a pope? December 31 was in the old calendar the feast of St. Sylvester. Legend says that Sylvester healed the Emperor Constantine of leprosy, and presided at the liturgy of baptism for the grateful emperor. In 314, he was chosen pope, and it fell to him to organize the peacetime church, free at last from persecution. He founded the Lateran Basilica, the cathedral of the Diocese of Rome. In northern Europe Sylvester Night is a time of great parties with eating, dancing, and singing recalling perhaps the joy of the church in the fresh air of Sylvester s papacy. In Poland, there was great fear as the year 1000 approached that an immense dragon would devour the earth and set fire to the heavens. The people prayed earnestly to St. Sylvester, trusting that the saint would not permit such suffering on his feast day. They ve been celebrating ever since! Many New Year s customs have pagan roots, like the British First Footer tradition. The idea is that the first person setting foot into your house in the new year determines the luck for the year ahead. The ideal first footer was not a bit like old Pope Sylvester, but rather a tall, dark-haired man carrying the right gift. A handsome first footer meant the year ahead would be pleasant, and if he carried bread or a shovel of coal there would be food and warmth in the future. Who will be your household s first footer? Rev. James Field, Copyright J. S. Paluch Co. SAT. 5 pm Presider tba tba Sun. 10:00 am Lector Mary Ann Duderstadt Roland Catenacci Ministers of Communion Altar Servers Greeters Ushers Sacristan Linen Sacristan Ministry Schedule: January 2 & 3, 2016 Bruno Cortis A Bruno Cortis B Kitty McCabe CA Mary Vollkommer 1 Dcn Duderstadt 2 Chuck Sansone Marian Reid Chuck Sansone Wayne Liebman Colleen Liebman Wayne Bubak Kitty & Esther Kelly Kathy Gianni John Marmet A Allan Homberger B Irene Homberger CA Dawn McAnaney D Valerie Catenacci 1 Dcn McAllister 2 Al Brunner 3 Patti Whalen Chloe Gutierrez Leo Mayer Nolan Whalen Georgina Winters Dolores Favorite Dennis Morrissey Dennis Morrissey Al Brunner Hospitality: The Women's Club enjoys having treats out for hospitality each week after the 10:00 a.m. Mass. Extra hands are always welcome in the kitchen along with any home made additions to the Panera donations. There is a sign up sheet in the kitchen each month where volunteers can sign up to help on Sunday... or just show up to help with clean up after you enjoy the treats! Many hands make light work for all! Can You Count? We will be in need of ONE person to help count the Sunday Collection on Monday mornings, beginning after the first of the year. You would be scheduled every THIRD Monday, year-round. If you are available, and can use an adding machine and a copy machine, please call Amy in the parish office. Or amy@olbparish.org. Save the Date! The Annual St. Norbert Hoops n Heels event will be on Friday, February 19, 2016 at 5:30. All boys (preschool -8th) and their moms are invited for DJ/Pizza/Prizes followed by a GBN basketball game. This family night is open to everyone in the Catholic Community of Northbrook. RSVP form will be available soon

6 Our Lady of the Brook Parish Northbrook, Illinois 6 ADULT FAITH FORMATION In their pastoral letter Our Hearts were Burning within Us: A Pastoral Plan for Adult Faith Formation in the United States, the Bishops identified six dimensions for adult faith formation content: [1] knowledge of the faith, [2] liturgical life, [3] moral formation, [4] prayer, [5] communal life, and [6] missionary spirit. Adult faith formation is as diverse as retreats, days of reflection, sacramental preparation (baptism, confirmation, and marriage), ministerial formation, parish mission, and our speakers series, as well as on-going scripture and catechetical study. The AFF coming attractions: Winter Ordinary Time Our Sunday Scripture reflection Who Do You Say that I Am? led by Dcn Dennis McAllister will continue on the first and second Sundays of January, 1/3 and 1/10, in the Library immediately following the 10:00AM Mass. Since we are in Cycle C of our Sunday lectionary series reading the Gospel of Luke, we ll take advantage of this year s very short Ordinary Time to read The Return of the Prodigal Son A Story of Homecoming by Henri J. M. Nouwen. Sessions will be on Thursdays at 9:30AM in the Mother Cabrini Room. See the posters at our entrances. Registrations forms are in the wall racks and on our web site. We hope you will enjoy the diversity of this year s offerings and will avail yourself of the opportunity as time and circumstances permit to attend one or more of our adult faith formation offerings. Dcn Peery The Return of the Prodigal Son A Story of Homecoming Adult Faith Formation Thursdays, January 7 though February 4 9:30 am in the Mother Cabrini Room Book by Henri Nouwen Registration forms are available in the racks near the church entrances, or on our website.

7 Feast of the Holy Family December 27, Religious Education & Youth Ministry Children s Liturgy of the Word Children s Liturgy of the Word is offered at the 10:00 AM Mass through May. This program is for children age 3 through grade 5. Liturgy of the Word for Children is an opportunity for families to attend Mass together, with children dismissed during the Liturgy of the Word to experience and learn about the readings with a community of other young people. Man to Man: January 9 The next Man to Man meeting will be Saturday, Jan. 9 at 8:00 am in Grace Hall at St. Norbert. The speaker will be Fr. Matt Foley, discussing Maintaining Spiritual Fitness in a Secular World. All men of the Catholic Community of Northbrook are welcome. Questions? Call John at (847) Like Chili? The OLB Women s Club will host their annual Chili Supper on Sunday, Jan. 31. Mark your calendars now!

8 Our Lady of the Brook Parish Northbrook, Illinois 8 Father Valker Sweater and Coat Drive January 2 and 3 In keeping with the tradition begun by Father Valker, the Catholic Community of Northbrook will have a Sweater and Coat Drive on Epiphany Weekend, which is January 2 and 3. On that weekend we will ask that you bring your old (but clean) and new sweaters and coats you don t need to the Social Area of church as you come to Mass. They will be taken to needy folks to help them get through Chicago s winter. Last year your sweaters and coats were distributed to the needy at St. Margaret of Scotland (St. Norbert s sister parish), Catholic Charities in Des Plaines, St. Martin de Porres (OLB s sister parish), the Mission of our Lady of Angels, and St Anthony's Hospital on the near south side. There will be containers in the Social Area to drop off your items. Thank you for your spirit of giving.