The start of a new year is a great time for us to take another look at our support of our parish. Committing to stewardship is an important part of living a Christian life. Real Christian living asks a lot of us and is not supposed to be easy. Making a commitment to stewardship is a serious challenge.
As you came to Mass this Sunday, you would have noticed that the Nativity scene outside has been taken down and put away. We have come to the end of our Christmas celebrations. At this time, allow me to express, on your behalf, a word of gratitude to the many who made it possible for us to celebrate the beauty and the mystery of the Incarnation.
The start of a new year is a great time for us to take another look at our support of our parish. Committing to stewardship of time, talent, and treasure is an important part of living a Christian life, and real Christian living asks a lot of us, and is not easy....
We are blessed this Christmas knowing that God has fulfilled his promises through the birth of our Savior! What better way to acknowledge this gift to us than to offer a gift to others in our lives...
The Christmas story will not change. It is a story rich in human sweetness and delicacy because it has a child at its center. We were all children once, and childhood memories touch our tenderness and allow us to go back in time and relive the excitement of Christmas.
We look ahead to Christmas next weekend knowing that our Christmas collection, one of our two largest special collections of the year, is a necessary part of our ability to support the many ministries, liturgies, and outreach that touch us throughout the year,
One week before Christmas, with the third Sunday of Advent, known as ‘Gaudete Sunday,’ there is a marked shift in the focus of our Advent preparation. There is a lighter mood, and a heightened sense of joyous anticipation proclaimed through the readings. For the first two weeks of Advent, the focus can be summed up in the phrase, “The Lord is coming.” But beginning this week with Gaudete Sunday, the summary might be, “The Lord is near.”
A couple of years ago, one of the columnists in the Chicago Tribune wrote, “Christmas is Coming Fast: Here are the things you should be panicking about.” Among the nine things he mentions, twice he suggests that we should be panicking if we are not doing so already. As we light the second candle on the Advent wreath, we hear one of the familiar voices of Advent, John the Baptist. He came to announce a new, radical message from the wilderness of the desert. John did not go to the crowds in the temple; the people went to the desert to hear him...
By now, you have heard the very unfortunate news that the Illinois legislature decided that the Invest in Kids tax credit scholarship program will terminate on December 31, 2023. For 83 years, Queen of All Saints School has provided students a high-quality, faith-based education that prepares them to lead, not just in our local communities but in the broader national and global communities in which our graduates contribute their talents...
With Christmas on a Monday this year, our Advent season of preparation is the shortest it can be. Looking ahead, since the fourth Sunday of Advent is on Christmas eve, we have made some adjustments to our usual schedule. On the fourth Sunday of Advent, December 24, we will have only three Masses in the morning, at 7, 9 and 11am, so that we will have time for the last-minute decorations in the sanctuary.
This weekend is the end of our Thanksgiving holiday, an American tradition with a distinctly religious foundation, one with a special focus on our obligation of stewardship and generosity to each other, in grateful remembrance of all the blessings God has bestowed upon us. Gratitude lies at the very heart of stewardship.
This edition of the bulletin had to go to press almost a week before the usual deadline. I am writing this on the Friday before the winter clothing drive for the migrants and the homeless. I want to thank you all for your generosity to clothe those who are naked and exposed to the elements of a Chicago winter. Some of you dug deep into your closets to share with others in need; some of you have gone out and bought something in a spirit of concern, giving and sharing...
Thanksgiving is an American holiday with a distinctly religious foundation. Thanksgiving focuses on our obligation of stewardship and generosity to each other, in grateful remembrance of all the blessings God has bestowed upon us. Gratitude lies at the very heart of stewardship.
A few days from now will be Thanksgiving Day, the beginning of the holiday season. For most of us, the first step in making the holidays magical is dressing our homes for the season, from trimming a tree to decking the mantel to setting a table for parties and feasts. This time of year is centered around family gatherings...
Regular readers of this page in our weekly bulletin know that we always present an honest assessment of our parish finances and our goals for our shared future. We ask that everyone carefully consider what we have read and heard. Then, take an honest look at how our lives have been blessed by God and how we might repay those blessings with generosity to our parish and the many ministries through which we help and assist each other.
Stewardship involves our gifts of time, talent and treasure. Let’s talk about time. COVID restrictions are mostly an increasingly distant memory. Vaccinations are routine, school is in full session, work routines have become more flexible to adapt to people’s desires for more work from home. New experiences are planned and yet we remember the traditional need to return as a community to our basilica for worship, for prayer and for spiritual comfort...
Last week I mentioned that November is a month to remember: to remember our loved ones who have been called to our eternal home; to remember those who defend our freedom; and to remember with gratitude the many blessings from God. When we remember, we bring to mind someone or something, drawing on our memories. Memories may feel warm and comforting, filling us with joy...
There are just two months remaining in the year, so it’s time to seriously think about our 2023 tax returns and how we can support our parish in a tax-advantaged way. Certainly, the primary motivation for our charitable contributions to Queen of All Saints Parish is the generous return to God for the great gifts he has given us.
November is a special month for remembering who we are as a people and who we are as a Church. On November 1st, we gather to celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints – a day which honors the more obscure saints as well as the saints each of us have known. On November 2nd, we observe All Souls’ Day. On this day, we will have a special liturgy for families who have had loved ones buried from our parish, and for those families who have lost loved ones this past year...
