Historic St. James at Sag Bridge Church

Transcription

1 Historic St. James at Sag Bridge Church S. Archer Avenue Lemont, Illinois (Ph) (Fx) Website: Facebook: James At Sag Bridge Listen to The Winds of Change 12:00 noon to 1:00 pm on WNDZ AM 750. Fr. substitutes every other Wednesday. Visit: windsofchangeshow.com, Fr. Register on Flocknotes to receive important text messages and s. Text: jamesatsag to March 13, 2016 Fifth Sunday of Lent Founded in 1833, St. James at Sag Bridge is the sole country parish of the Archdiocese of Chicago, serving a growing community of Catholics who come together to worship God through the celebration of the Eucharist and traditional devotional activities within truly unique and beautiful surroundings. Our faith-filled community strives to bear witness to Jesus Christ by loving and serving one another to bring about the Kingdom of God. Mass Schedule: Weekends: Saturdays: 5:00pm Sundays: 8:00, 9:30 & 11:30am Holy Days: 8:15am & 7:00pm Weekdays: Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays 8:15am, Fridays: 8:15am & 6:00pm Wednesdays: 7:00pm Confession Schedule: Saturdays: 9:30-10:00am Wednesdays: 6:30pm Baptisms: Sundays after the 11:30am Mass by appointment. At least one parent must be a registered parishioner. Weddings: Minimum eight months in advance. At least one spouse must be a registered parishioner. Marriage preparation by appointment only. Funerals: For families of registered parishioners, or for non-parishioners to be buried in our own cemetery. Sick & Homebound Pastoral Care: Please notify rectory Rectory Office Hours: Mon, Tue, Wed, Thu & Fri: 9:30am to 1:00pm Apostolic Disciples: Fr. Thomas, M.A.,S.T.L., Pastor Fr. Ed Gleeson, Pastor Emeritus Deacon John M.Wilkinson, CKM, Minister of Care/RCIA Mike Dillenburg Parish Council Chair Mike Wall, Finance Council Chair Mrs. Pamela Stafford, Cantor Mrs. Pamela Mikrut, Organist Rodney Poynter, Holy Name Society, President JoAnn Starha, Altar & Rosary Mrs. Giovanna Imbarrato, CCD Teacher Mr. Seamus Coughlin CCD Teacher Mrs. Mary Coughlin Lenzen CCD Teacher Mr. Steve Hagen CCD Teacher Mrs. Joyce McNamara-Coughlin, CCD Director.

2 Page Two March 13, 2016 From the Desk of Fr. Thomas, M.A.,S.T.L., Pastor Evangelization Debate Last week at a couple of my Masses, I tried to tackle one of theology s most challenging topics. Since, I have never preached the exact sermon twice, you may or may not have heard my angle. The topic, which the gospel story of the Prodigal son evoked, was the topic of Justification. If you know something about the history of the differences between Catholicism and Protestant Christianity, you know that this is a whopper of a debate. To recap my angle in simple terms I mentioned some people interpret the father s merciful love for his wayward son as evidence that the Lutheran/Calvin type interpretation is correct. Luther, Calvin, and all the reformers of course declared that our works i.e., acts of virtue and charity and following God s law were of no consequence in terms of our justification, that is to say our salvation. Accordingly, the stubbornness of the elder son is therefore interpreted to mean God is reprimanding the Catholic side of the justification debate because this elder s son s insistence on being an obedient son is teaching us that good works are irrelevant in terms of our salvation. This debate, which admittedly doesn t get much play except in graduate schools of theology, has manifested itself in another way, which does get more play in quite a few church circles. Many of the same issues and dynamics can be found in the more common church debate, which I will call the great evangelization debate. The great evangelization debate also has two basic sides to it. Among all Christians, (Catholic and Protestant) who see the importance and necessity of reaching out to those who do not belong to the flock, that is to say evangelizing there are those who say Thou shalt not mention moral issues when evangelizing. There are others who say, Discovering the right and wrong of certain moral issues is part and parcel of coming to know, love and serve Jesus. Honestly, I do not hope to solve this debate in a single bulletin article, but this whole debate reminds me of a scene in one of my favorite movies, The Jeweler s Shop. If you like me, struggle with this classic justification debate or its more modern installment, this movie scene helps. At one point in The Jeweler s Shop, an adult son is talking to his mother about his girlfriend. Monica, the girl, doesn t seem to want to get married, even though they have a good relationship and they love each other. The mother, with frustration in her voice tells her son, I don t think your father would have agonized over how to win a girl. Your father would have just gone ahead and done it. So what does this scene have to do with the great evangelization debate? Well, you see, winning someone for Christ, or bringing someone into the fold is a lot like winning a girl. You can agonize way too much over how to win a girl s heart. In such matters, you must follow your instincts, your heart, and your conscience. Isn t it true that evangelization needs a similar approach? Some girls are won over with chocolates and poems. Others need to see great accomplishments or strong muscles. When it comes to accepting the true faith, some people are won over by convincing answers to perplexing questions. Others are moved on a more emotional level. So, don t agonize over whether to include moral issues in your evangelization. If your heart tells you that, a person needs to hear a particularly Catholic explanation of a moral issue, and then by all means do your best to follow the spiritual work of mercy known as instructing the ignorant. If your heart tells, you that such a conversation will frighten him/her away from church like a fish flees noise from your fishing boat, and then by all means, feed him/her milk until he can handle meat. Now, go out there and evangelize. BUNNY SHOOT MARCH 18, 2016 ST. MARY OF CZESTOCHOWA SOCIAL CENTER, 5000 W. 31ST., CICERO, IL Sponsored by the Polish Falcons of America Nest Cicero, IL Doors Open: 6:30pm, Raffles begin: 7:00pm WIN HAMS, DUCKS, SALAMI, BACON, SAUSAGE & MORE! Use your credit card to gift to St. James. All you have to do is go to ww.historicstjames.org, Click on the Give Central box, then chose which kind of donation you want to make (these are called events in Give Central) and follow the easy steps. No envelopes, no writing checks, no hassles. You may choose to throw Monopoly money into the collection basket so your neighbors don t think you re cheap. COME CELEBRATE SUNDAY, MARCH 20TH AFTER ALL THE SUNDAY MASSES IN SAG HALL BIRTHDAY COFFEE & CAKE FOR THE PASTOR & PASTOR EMERITUS

3 5th Sunday of Lent Page Three ST. JAMES HOLY THURSDAY PILGRIMAGE BUS TRIP MARCH 24, 2016 CHURCH AS HOME By Evelyn Augusto I often think about what brings people to Church. I do so in response to Pope Francis' invitation to participate in The Call To A New Evangelization. Of course, there are as many ways to bring people to Church as there are people. My personal role as a member of the Pastoral Council at our parish is to figure out what some of these ways are. How do we invite people who are searching for a place to worship to join our community of Faith; moreover, how do we inspire the absentee Faithful to come back to Church? My goal is to encourage people to discover what I myself have discovered: That all we need can be found inside the doors of The Church. My Catholic Church is very much my home. To begin to fill our Churches with people, our parishes must become a "home away from home" for its parishioners as well as the members of the neighboring community. In this day and age, sadly, home does not define itself as it once did. For many, it is no longer where the heart is. Home, for some, is not comforting word, it does not describe a place where one feels safe, validated, cared for, appreciated, or the least bit loved. Nor is it a place where one can find help if needed. Many people-- and they may not even be conscious of it-- regard home as something like a motel, that is, a place where they only sleep and shower. In some homes healthy relationships have not been established, there is no nurturing going on in the home, no life instructions given, and even less guidance provided. In fact, in some cases, family members are left more wounded then empowered by their experience of family. We are finding that there are a great many "home-less" people who live in well constructed, warm houses. Happily, I believe I have a prescription for this malady along with a solution to the ever-growing, serious situation of half-empty Churches. If we can encourage people to sample parish life, and to experience personal, as well as spiritual growth; if we can offer them a "home away from home" people can recover. Once people have experienced The Joy of the Gospel for themselves, the Church, will in turn, help resurrect that "dwelling place"... that home, which psychologically has come to mean everything. BIRTHDAY CANDLE PRAYER: Jesus said, "I am the light of the world." May the birthday candles that represent the years of your life. Be a reflection to others of your love for Christ. HAPPY 93 RD BIRTHDAY! JOE LAKNER! We will leave St. James following the 7:00pm Mass on Holy Thursday March 24 th. A signup sheet will be in the back of church. Seating is limited. There will be a $5.00 donation for the cost of the bus. Please contact either the rectory office or Deacon John at The Churches/Parishes we will be visiting are listed below. Don t forget St. James will be open until midnight for adoration as well. ITALIAN NEIGHBORHOOD: Holy Family Parish: 1080 W Roosevelt Rd. St. Francis of Assisi: 813 W. Roosevelt Rd Notre Dame: 1334 W. Flournoy Shrine of Our Lady of Pompeii: 1224 W. Lexington St Peters: 110 W. Madison Old St. Patrick s: 700 W. Adams St. MARCH 20 TH : PALM SUNDAY MASSES: Sat: 5:00pm, & Sun: 8:00am, 9:30am, & 11:30. PARISH MISSION: March 21 st : Weekday Mass 8:15am & 7:00pm with Confessions, (Fr. Lombardo). March 22 nd : Weekday Mass 8:15am & 7:00pm with Confessions, (Fr. Lombardo). March 23 rd : Weekday Mass 7:00pm (Mission Ends) with Confessions, (Fr. Lombardo). LENT ENDS - EASTER TRIDUUM BEGINS: March 24 th : Holy Thursday: Mass of Last Supper 7:00pm followed by Pilgrimage Bus Trip, 8:00pm. (Church will be open until Midnight). March 25 th : Good Friday: Outdoor Stations of the Cross at 12-Noon & 3:00pm. Confessions 1:00-3:00pm Veneration of the Cross 7:00pm March 26 th : Holy Saturday: Blessing of Food Baskets 1:00pm. Easter Vigil Mass at 7:00pm. March 27 th : Easter Sunday Masses: 8:00am, 9:30am & 11:30am.

4 The Sunday collection for the weekend of March 6th was $5, The number of envelopes was 127. OUR MANY THANKS TO OUR REGISTERED FAMILIES USING ENVELOPES AND THE CASH-AND-CARRY FOLKS. Our CHURCH CLEANERS FOR FRIDAY, 03/18/16 Are Dottie, Julie, Bronislawa & Volunteer. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact the rectory office VOTIVE OFFERINGS FOR THE WEEK OF 03/13/16 St. James Ladies Guild Special int. Anne & Baby Slowik In honor of Bob Wonsowski Special int. for the Radzajewski Family Special int. for Michael J. Quigley Speedy recovery for Julie Jacobek In honor of Mrs. June Riermaier Our two beautiful bouquets of flowers surrounding our altar were made available for the special int. for JANE HOPSON THANK YOU! Please keep NICK IMGRUND in your prayers as he continues his service in the United States Navy. Please keep LUCAS GOUGH in your prayers as he continues his service in the United States Air Force. Please keep KELSEY SMITH in your prayers as she continues her service in the Peace Corps in Africa. Please keep STEPHANIE REMAR in your prayers as she continues her service in the Diplomatic Corps in Africa.

5 Monday March 14th 8:15 AM Vera Janda Tuesday March 15th 8:15 AM Tony Sabick Wednesday March 16th 7:00 PM Prayerful Wishes Society Thursday March 17th 8:15 AM Lorraine Sabick & Doyle & Fogarty Families Friday March 18th - Abstinence 7:00 PM Dan Czywycz & (Mass & Stations) PALM SUNDAY Saturday March 19th 5:00 PM Eileen Hally Sunday March 20th 8:00 AM Dr. Noreen Salmon 9:30 AM Michael & Elizabeth Nelson 11:30 AM Special int. for Nancy & John Cimino Friday of Lent 3/18/2016 7:00 PM Mass & Stations Altar Servers N. Akroush J. Szarzynski T. Szarzynski Lectors D. Szarzynski PALM SUNDAY 3/19 & 3/20/2016 Celebrant Altar Servers Lectors 5:00 PM E. Dooley M. Dooley C. Zarzycki D. Szarzynski 8:00 AM J. Beecher J. Beecher Dillenburg M. Dillenburg T. Gorski 9:30 AM J.P. Colarelli M. Colarelli L. Mikrut D. LaSota P. Brunk 11:30 AM M. May J.P. Ramirez M. Ramirez M. Fleckenstein J. DeRoche