Celebrate Sunday Mass at
St. Alphonsus!
Daily prayer keeps you in good relationship with the LORD, and yourself.
Next Thursday, Dec. 8 is the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, a Holy Day of Obligation. Mass times will be at 8:30 AM and at 7:00 PM.
Eucharistic adoration and benediction the first Friday of every month 7:30-8:30 PM. Starting this Friday, Dec. 2
“Come to me all you are labored and burdened and I will give you rest” Matthew 11:28
Invite your friends/loved ones to Mass! Sunday Mass schedule in English is at 9 AM, 11 AM, and 5 PM. Mass in Spanish is at 12:30 PM. The 9 AM for the first Sunday of each month, readings are bilingual English/German.
St. Alphonsus still have a handful of free Word on Fire and Little Blue Book Advent reflection books to help you keep the season as well as 2023 calendars available at Mass this Sunday.
Christmas Mass Schedule:
Christmas Eve Saturday, Dec. 24 4:00 PM, 6:00 PM, and 11:00 PM
Christmas Day, the Nativity of the Lord Sunday, Dec. 25 9:00 AM and 11:00 AM, 12:30 PM (Spanish) NO 5 PM this evening
New Year's Mass Schedule:
No Vigil New Year's Eve Mass on Saturday, Dec. 31
New Year's Day, Sunday, Jan. 1 Regular Sunday Schedule
Men's Evening prayers group (Vespers) continue on Wednesdays from 8:15 to 9 PM in the chapel.
Knights of Columbus Food Drive- Our parish Knights council will be hosting a food drive this Saturday December 3 from 11 AM– 2 PM and after Masses this Sunday Dec. 4 in the back of Church in support of Mission of Our Lady of the Angels. The drive takes place in the St. Alphonsus parking lot near the garage. Donations of nonperishable food items can also be placed in the labeled bins in the vestibules of the church. Thank you for your generosity!
Monday, December 12th, the Church will honor Mary in the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, remembering the day when an image of her appeared on the cloak of St. Juan Diego, a humble Aztec farmer, in 1531. The miracle sparked a massive conversion of the indigenous peoples to the Catholic faith and ended the Aztec rituals of human sacrifice. She is honored as the patroness of Mexico, of the Americas, and venerated as the Patroness of the Unborn. Our parish will celebrate by holding Mass on the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe at 7:00 PM which will be followed by a Fiesta in the Festival Hall afterwards. All are invited! Please support our fund to offset costs of flowers to decorate the Mary altar. Thank You!!
Do you have upcoming exciting events that you would like to share with our St. Alphonsus Church and our parish school communities? You can share them here!
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St. Alphonsus Giving Tree
Our Giving Tree is now up in the narthex of the church! St. Alphonsus takes part in the annual Celebration of Giving. Grab any number of tags and return your gift(s) to church on Sunday or you may drop off at the rectory office during business hours. This wonderful service project annually 'makes Christmas' for hundreds of those less fortunate. Our Giving Tree will be in support of recipients of Catholic Charities and the Women's Center.
Thank you for your generosity; these gifts are possibly the only ones they will receive this upcoming Christmas!
The parish office will also be open this Saturday Dec. 3 and on Saturday Dec. 10 from 9 AM to Noon to better accommodate those wishing to drop off their Giving Tree gifts.
The Giving Tree will be extended to next Sunday Dec. 11! There are still quite a few tags left! The absolute last day St. Alphonsus can accept gifts would be Wednesday Dec 14, as we could not guarantee delivery to the recipient by Christmas after that date.
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Stewardship at St. Alphonsus
"Honor the Lord with your substance and with the first fruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine." (Proverbs 3: 9-10)
What Does It Mean To Give First Fruits?
Thank you and God bless you!
- Text Sunday to 773-570-7600
- Click on the link you receive via text
- Fill in the information and click "Submit Form" to make your gift!
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To carry out our mission that God has graciously invited us to participate in, we must be stewards of the temporal goods. By giving up our time, talent, and treasure, we are able to respond to the call of our why in our “whats” and “hows.” This means, we baptize, we see others face-to-face, we draw in, we invite in, we create spaces of deep hospitality that we are able to accompany others as they seek to discover how God has been already present to them. In other words, as Henri J.M. Nouwen reminds us in, A Spirituality of Fundraising, stewardship, fundraising, and generosity are all concrete ways we help the Kingdom of God come about. We invite you to join us in responding to the vocational call of our shared baptism. Please click on the QR code here and consider the ways in which you may be generous with your time, talent, and treasure for the sake of the Kingdom of God and the mission with St. Alphonsus.
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Faith Formation
Rev. Steven Bauer and our parish staff are always open to the faithful in assisting with your spiritual journey. May God bless us with patience and peace as we seek to live in harmony with one another and all creation!
Our Religious Education program is looking for an extra 2nd grade catechist starting in January 2023. If you are interested in this wonderful opportunity, please contact Erica Cook.
Walking With Purpose- Women’s Group at St. Alphonsus— Tuesday mornings and evenings 9:30-11 AM or 6:30-8 PM.
Beholding His Glory, a nine-lesson Bible study, reminds us how all Scripture points us to our Redeemer, Jesus Christ. We will learn to recognize and appreciate God’s plan for our own lives, His aweinspiring majesty, and His desire for personal intimacy with each one of us. Questions? Contact Susan Combes
Retreats for Men and Women
Advent Retreat – No Greater Love Dec. 6 at 2:00 PM
God has a love in store for us that cannot be described, for words diminish the depth and width and height of such love (Eph 3 17-19). By loving God, we can love with greater patience, greater kindness, greater forgiveness, greater generosity, greater empathy, a greater drive for peace and justice for everyone. Join Deacon Art Miller for this Advent retreat as he opens the door to a greater love during this Advent season and beyond. Register in advance for this online webinar here.
Morning with Mary, Saturday, December 10th, (8:30am - Noon)
The National Shrine of St. Maximilian Kolbe at Marytown presents...
"Morning with Mary Mother of God"
Make this Morning with Mary part of your Advent preparation for the joys of Christmas to come!
The Morning with Mary Mother of God begins with the Rosary in the Main Chapel, followed by a talk on Our Lady of Medjugorje by guest speaker, Ann Vucic, who wowed the faithful at last year’s Morning with Mary. Following Ann’s talk, Christopher Powell, Director of Sacred Music, and the Marytown Shrine Choir will present a Sacred Music Concert reflecting the love and spirit of the season. The event ends with Mass at noon.
Bellarmine Jesuit Retreat House is located on 80 acres of gently rolling meadows and wooded countryside just 40 miles northwest of Chicago.
Bellarmine offers a variety of retreats for men and women. Click here for the Retreat Schedule.
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Young Adult Ministry
St. Alphonsus has a vibrant young adult community! Be sure to check out our Facebook page for service opportunities and other future events!
Praise and Adoration- Friday Dec. 9 at 7:30 PM
St. Alphonsus YAM Ugly Christmas Sweater Party- Saturday Dec. 10
Join us on Saturday December 10th from 7 PM-10 PM at the Athenaeum Center For Thought & Culture’s Paradiso Event Space for an elf-tastic night of food, drink, games and fun. Beer, wine, and alcohol will be available for purchase at the bar at the event space but we will provide food.
Fab-Yule-ous ugly sweaters and Christmas spirits are encouraged! Because we'll really be sleighin' it in our snowtorious Christmas sweaters this wintery night. We will have an Best Ugly Sweater Contest and we will have Christmas music and fun Christmas games as well.
Hope to see you all on December 10! Merry Christmas from St Alphonsus YAM! And remember "The best way to spread Christmas cheer is for singing loud for all to hear" - and Fleece Navidad!!!
Come play bingo with the residents of St. Mary’s Home (a nursing home operated by the Little Sisters of the Poor) on December 18th, 1-3PM!
Catholic Sports League- Bowling League
Kick off 2023 with a CSL favorite, our annual bowling league! It’s a perfect way to spend your Monday nights in January when the weather gets cold. Sign up individually or with a friend. Register before early bird pricing closes!
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Pope Francis' December Intention
We pray that volunteer non-profit organizations committed to human development find people dedicated to the common good and ceaselessly seek out new paths to international cooperation.
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Alphonsus Academy
If you are planning to send Christmas cards this year or create personalized Christmas gifts, a great way to save money and help raise money for AACA is by ordering through www.minted.com with the promo code FUNDRAISEALPHONSUS. You will receive 20% off your purchase and Minted will donate 15% of all sales back to AACA. The promo code and savings/giveback are all year round.
Give To Catholic Education! Invest In Kids Act Tax Credit Scholarship Program. Learn more here.
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Around the Archdiocese
The Institute for Diaconal Studies (IDS) invites all men who feel the gentle nudge of the Holy Spirit to attend an Exploring the Diaconate session. It is a time to pray, discuss, and learn more about the discernment process and the formation program that aspirants and candidates pursue. Please join us, with your wives, if married, as we explore the potential of a vocation, engage in dialogue and pray in search of the next step. All are welcome to attend any of the sessions.
The Archdiocese is hiring! Maybe the new year can be the start of something new for you. There is an opening for an Evangelization Coordinator, an integral part of a team advancing our evangelization and missionary discipleship efforts across the archdiocese as we renew our local Church. If you think the Holy Spirit is nudging you in this direction, share your interest by clicking on the link here.
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When we plan our weekly giving, and set this money aside first, we demonstrate the great importance that God and the support of the Gospel have in our lives.
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Our weekly bulletin features many of the ways you can contribute to the vibrancy of St. Alphonsus parish.
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