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Mass Schedule
Sunday Masses:
Saturday: 4:00 PM
Sunday: 8:00 AMWeekday Masses:
Now through Wednesday, April 8, 2020, weekday Masses will be celebrated at 8:00 AM on alternating weeks between St. Mary's and our sister parish, Ss. Peter & Paul in Virgil. See the Parish Calendar below for the current schedule. -
Today's Readings
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Reading 1 Jas 3:13-18Responsorial Psalm 19:8, 9, 10, 15Gospel Mk 9:14-29
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From the Desk of Fr. Ariel Valencia
The Lion's Roar
An incardinated priest shall be entitled to apply for a three-month sabbatical on the occasion of every fifteenth (15th) year of service to the Diocese (“major sabbatical”). The purpose of the sabbatical shall be spiritual and/or educational. (Diocese of Rockford Priests’ Personnel Policies, Article V)
This May 17th, I will have been a priest for 17 years. Thanks be to God for all the graces throughout these years of ministry!
At this time, I thank the diocese for this opportunity to take a sabbatical which, for me, will be a time of spiritual and educational enrichment. I also thank Msgr. Thomas Dzielak for taking care of our parish while I am away. Let us keep each other in prayer so, though we are far, we will always be united in spirit. -
Online Giving
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Parish Calendar
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February 24 - February 28Daily Masses this week will be at Ss. Peter & Paul in Virgil at 8:00 AM.Read More
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Wednesday, February 26, 7:00 PMJoin us for Mass and distribution of ashes at 7:00 PM today. No morning Mass here at St. Mary's. If you choose, you can attend the 8:00 AM morning Mass at Ss. Peter & Paul in Virgil.Read More
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Friday, February 28, 5:30 PMJoin us for Lenten Stations of the Cross following the Communion Service.Read More
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Sunday, March 1Saturday, Adoration 2:45 PM, Confessions 3:00-3:45 PM, Mass 4:00 PM; Sunday, Mass 8:00 AMRead More
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March 2 - March 6Daily Masses this week will be here at St. Mary's at 8:00 AM.Read More
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Sunday, March 8Saturday, Adoration 2:45 PM, Confessions 3:00-3:45 PM, Mass 4:00 PM; Sunday, Mass 8:00 AMRead More
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Sunday, March 15Saturday, Adoration 2:45 PM, Confessions 3:00-3:45 PM, Mass 4:00 PM; Sunday, Mass 8:00 AMRead More
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Sunday, March 22Saturday, Adoration 2:45 PM, Confessions 3:00-3:45 PM, Mass 4:00 PM; Sunday, Mass 8:00 AMRead More
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Catholic Link
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Mardi Gras rolls around every year, and every year I think “Oh shoot. What am I going to give up... The post How To Choose Your Lenten Practices appeared first on Catholic Link.
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This week we talk about how to respond to division in the Church. Do not let others’ actions drag you... The post Liturgy Live 7th Sunday In Ordinary Time | Be Perfect appeared first on Catholic Link.
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Ever go to Mass and walk away totally confused? It happens sometimes. There are Sundays when we just don’t understand... The post 7 Free Resources To Help Kids Understand The Gospel appeared first on...
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Catholic News Service
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IMAGE: CNS photo/Rosanna Aguilera, San Angelo Standard-Times via Reuters By Donis Tracy BOSTON (CNS) -- The extra day we get approximately once every four years is a way to adapt the calendar year to...
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IMAGE: CNS photo/courtesy Becket Religious Liberty for All By Carol Zimmermann WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The U.S. Supreme Court announced Feb. 24 that in its next term it will examine if the city of...
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IMAGE: CNS photo/Flavio Lo Scalzo, Reuters By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- With the biggest two days of celebration and costume parades left, the famous pre-Lenten "Carnevale" of...
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Parish News & Events
Ash Wednesday... Lent Begins This Week!
Join us for Mass and distribution of ashes on Ash Wednesday, February 26, here at St. Mary's at 7:00 PM. No morning Mass here. If you choose, you can attend the 8:00 AM morning Mass with distribution of ashes following at Ss. Peter & Paul in Virgil. (Ash Wednesday is a DAY OF FAST & ABSTINENCE)
Weekday Mass Schedule
Weekday Masses this week (Feb. 24 - Feb. 28) will be celebrated at 8:00 AM at Ss. Peter & Paul in Virgil. No weekday morning Masses this week at St. Mary's. There will be a Mass here on Ash Wednesday at 7 PM and Communion Service with Stations of the Cross following beginning at 5:30 PM. Please join us!
Lenten Fish Fries - All You Can Eat... Ss. Peter & Paul, Virgil
Serving from 5-8 PM. Adults: $12-$15, Children (5-10) $4-$7, Under 5 free. Carry out is available. Menu consists of fried perch, baked cod, French fries, baked potato, vegetable, coleslaw, applesauce, dinner rolls, dessert, coffee or milk. Beer and pop are available at an extra charge. Shrimp can be added to the regular buffet for an extra charge. For additional information or to place a carry out order call 630-365-6618.
Mass Intentions
Please remember your loved ones with a Mass intention. We can pray for anyone, they do not have to be deceased. It can be for a wedding anniversary or birthday, a Mass of Thanksgiving, or any other special intention. Weekend Masses fill up quickly, but we do have daily Masses each week that are available. You can also use these Masses while you are away and cannot be here to pray for those loved ones. Please call or stop in the parish office for more information.
New Parishioners Welcome!
If you are new to our parish or just visiting - WELCOME!! If you would like to officially claim St. Mary’s as your Parish Home - we would love to have you! Contact the Parish Office (815-827-3205) for information and a registration form. Forms can be mailed or emailed to you or you may stop in and pick them up.
The Catholic faith community of St. Mary, Maple Park is constantly in need of people to be involved in our liturgy. We are very much in need of cantors, accompanists, choir members, extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist, lectors and altar servers. Make an effort to actively participate at Mass and step up! Contact Deacon Greg if you feel called to serve in a ministry.
Volunteers - We Need You!
Religious Education NewsClasses Sundays, 9:15-10:30 AM
CALENDAR:- February 23 ~ CLASS
- March 1 ~ CLASS
- March 8 ~ CLASS
- March 15 ~ CLASS
Thank you so much for everyone who made our Confirmation Mass a wonderful blessing. Thank you to Msgr. Dzielak, Deacon Greg, Brian Stover, and Kathleen Francis for their consistent educational and spiritual guidance. Thank you to all our parents who supported our students and the parishioners who prayed for us. The Holy Spirit is upon us.
1st Reconciliation is Saturday, February 29
Pray for: Ryan Johnson, Dustin Klug, Genevieve Kralka, Kaelyn McGreer, Aaron Ortega, Thomas Reavley, and Cammie Stover
Remember Your Parish...
Please remember St. Mary’s with a gift in your will or estate plan. -
From the desk of Msgr. Tom Dzielak (February 23, 2020)
YOU HAVE MADE US FOR YOURSELF, O GOD, AND OUR HEARTS ARE RESTLESS UNTIL THEY REST IN YOU[St Augustine, THE CONFESSIONS]So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect [Matthew 5:48]. I suspect that for many, if not all of us, this ending statement of Jesus in today’s Gospel passage might trigger the thought, “how in the world could I ever be perfect as God is perfect?” It could seem that Jesus is asking for something impossible of us.
In order to understand His statement, we need to understand what the word “perfect” means in this passage. The Greek word Matthew uses is “teleios,” which means “complete, realizing the purpose for which it was planned” [ The Gospel of Matthew, volume I, William Barclay, revised 1975, Westminster John Knox Press]. What Jesus is telling us is that we are to realize the purpose for which we exist: to be in union with God, and therefore in a limited sense, “God-like.”
We Catholics are and should be out of step with the culture in which we live today. We believe that our thoughts, words and actions should be centered on the purpose for which God has created us, revealed to us especially through the life and teaching of Jesus.
But the fact is that how we “feel”—not how we think — is the criteria for how people in our culture take for granted how we should live our lives. Have you ever noticed how consistently people use the word “feel” when referring to something that is a thought and not a feeling? “ If it feels so good, it can’t be bad” are the lyrics of a popular song from some years ago.
An obvious example is the transgender movement today: “I feel like a female (or male), so that’s what is true about me and that’s how I have to be treated”—regardless of the physical and biological makeup in which a person was born. Look also at issues of medical ethics: “I feel that what I do with my body no one’s business but my own, … If I want to end my life by assisted suicide, that’s my own business.”
But to base our outlook on life on what we “feel” is a disaster-in-waiting. Consider the consequences if reality is based on how you “feel,” and not on the purpose for which God created you. If the criteria of good and evil are based on feelings, what do you say to someone who “feels good” about sexual contact with children? What do you say to people who “feel good” about murdering people … or stealing … etc., etc.? And who, if not God, determines that your “feel good” is okay, but the “feel good” of a criminal is not okay? Be careful if you answer, “well, everyone knows some things are good and some are not.” Really? Prove it. Show how the world is a better place when each person has a right to act out his or her feelings because he or she “feels” okay about it. -
From the Desk of Deacon Greg Urban
Church Stained Glass Window Work
The work installing exterior vented clear-glass on the nine windows (five windows on the North side of the church and the four windows in the upper church sanctuary (altar area)) has been completed. The cost for this phase of work was $80,000. Through your generosity and our fundraising activities (many thanks to our volunteers and guests!), we had the funds to complete this work. There are ten more windows on the South and East (front) sides of the church that will still require this work when we raise the necessary additional funds.
The Diocese has granted us permission that donations we receive for “Stained-Glass” will be exempt from the diocesan assessment (used as a basis of setting our diocesan appeal goal) until December 31, 2020. Therefore, we ask that you use the “stained-glass” offering envelope, online giving selection, or write “stained-glass” on your checks for contributions for the window work. We sincerely thank you for your past donations and ask for your continued generous support in this endeavor to help properly maintain our beautiful church building. -
Word on Fire
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