The Old St. Mary's Community Weekly Newsletter |
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Thursday, October 21, 2021 |
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This week's newsletter contains the following:
Message from the Pastor
Sunday Reading Reflection Guide for Families
Notice of the Death of Sir Knight Dr. Henri H. Tikmehdash
Request to download the Old St. Mary's Parish App
Information on the Mass for Hope and Healing
Old St. Mary's Womb and Tomb Prayer Service
House of the Good Shephard Donation Requests
Domestic Violence Support Group Via Zoom
Old St. Mary's recipient of the "Spirit of Hecker Award"
All Souls Day of the Dead Remembrance
Tapas Valencia - Thanksgiving Day Meals for those in need
Care for Creation Kickoff in the Archdiocese
NOTE: The Worship Aid for Sunday, October 24th was not available at the time of the release of this newsletter. It will be on the Old St. Mary's Parish App and the website, if and when it becomes available.
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Welcome back to the weekly Parish Newsletter.
Please have a good look around – there are always new items to explore.
Please check out the latest on the Old St. Mary’s Parish App below, then check your favorite app store. Lots of exciting features coming your way.
This weekend our Ofrenda will be available for you to add pictures of loved ones who have died. I’ve seen the set up in the Commons as we prepare to remember folk on All Souls Day – and Dia de Muertos on November 2.
The other celebration we have coming up next week Thursday is Of Womb and Tomb, you will find more on that today as well.
When I was in St. Mary’s Grade School in Janesville, Wisconsin, I was given the grace as a server to be present for many funerals. That may sound like it would be difficult, fortunately we had wonderful priests at the parish who were able to communicate the power of Christ’s resurrection even in the most difficult times.
Indeed, there were some real hardships. I had a cousin die from leukemia, another cousin murdered, a friend, her father and grandmother all killed in a car accident. And over the years I have, like all of you, experienced the death of loved ones, family, friends, popes, celebrities and people I cared about.
I guess, the message I want to share with you, death is around us all the time – and the pandemic deaths and unjust deaths of these last years have simply compounded the grief. The message remains, Christ was killed and rose from the dead. The “hope of resurrection dawns,” is not a simple catch phrase – it is a loving God reaching out to us and inviting us to reach out to each other in our times of loss.
Yes, Catholics are a bit quirky when it comes to death – it hurts us so good. But that Eucharist experience again, that is what brings us together as we all know what mourning is like. And it is also what brings us together across time and space. As you consider which events you will connect with in the next couple of weeks – remember that you are loved. And remember that love is what brings us together as a parish and gives us courage and hope to continue on.
God Bless You!
Fr. Brad
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REST IN PEACE
We are deeply saddened to advise you of the sudden passing of Sir Knight Dr. Henri H. Tikmehdash affectionately known as Dr. T), Grand Knight of Council 182.
Arrangements are pending and will be shared when available.
Please keep Sir Knight Dr. Henri H. Tikmehdash, his family and our Brother Knights of Council 182 in your prayers.
Eternal Rest Grant unto Him O Lord and May Perpetual Light Shine Upon Him.
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DOWNLOAD THE OLD ST. MARY'S PARISH APP
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You can now download the
Old St. Mary's Parish app.
Search for OSM Parish in the App store or Google Play store.
While we are still working on some of the functions for the app, there are many things that you can do and see.
- Connect to livestream the Masses,
- Make a one-time donation or setup a recurring donation.
- View daily Mass readings
- See the weekly bulletin
- Update Household changes
- See the weekly newsletter
- Link to the Old St. Mary's School website.
- Register in the Parish
- Register your child for Faith Formation classes
- View the Church calendar
These are just 10 of the many things that are available on the app.
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When you download the app, a 6 digit code will be sent to your phone. Sign in and create your profile. If you are in our database, your name will automatically appear when you type in your name to create your profile. Once in, you can upload a photo to your profile. This will be useful in the future if you belong to or join a group and interact with other members of that group.
Please note, If your phone carrier is T-Mobile. That carrier blocks 5 and 6 digit short codes. You will need to contact T-Mobile and ask them to unblock short codes for your phone number.
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If one member suffers, all suffer together.” —1 Cor. 12:26
Join in solidarity with our brothers and sisters who have been victims of sexual abuse by clergy or other trusted adults and with those who accompany them on their healing journey.
Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021
11 a.m.
St. Agatha Catholic Church 3151 W. Douglas Blvd.
Chicago, IL 60623
Bishop Bartosic and Fr. Larry Dowling, pastor of St. Agatha Catholic Church, will preside at the Mass as victims, families and the People of God pray together and seek hope and healing.
Parking on the boulevard or in lot at SW corner of Kedzie and Douglas Blvd.
There is hope for your healing.
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OF WOMB AND TOMB PRAYER SERVICE |
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Thursday, October 28, 7 PM
Old St. Mary's Catholic Church,
1500 S. Michigan Ave, Chicago Illinois
Prayer in Time of Infertility, Miscarriage, and Stillbirth.
A grief too often held in and unseen: the ability to conceive, the loss of a child before birth, death at birth. With sacred song and scripture, let us come together to share the holy journey of grief in community.
We will light candles to remember the lives that were not realized as we would have wished. We will pray for our sisters and brothers whose lives are forever changed. We will sing our fears and our dreams to the one who made us.
Together, we will bear witness to the Christian mystery-that new life emerges both of the womb and of the tomb.
As a part of the service, we'd like to proclaim names and light candles in memory of our little ones. So that we might prepare, please feel free to send a private email with the names that we should speak aloud to swilliams@oldstmarys.com.
Some children were not named. That's okay, too. There will be an opportunity to light a candle for the babies that remain in our hearts and on our minds, those without names, those whom we call "Baby Smith," or "Baby Girl Ramirez." This is an opportunity to remember as you best see fit.
Please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns. Thank you for your willingness to teach me, to support one another, to be vulnerable, and to lean on each other through the journey of grief.
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The House of the Good Shepherd, a program of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago, opens its doors and hearts to women and children who face unimaginable trauma and fear. Its holistic transitional housing and family violence recovery programs empower women and children to leave behind the cycle of violent homes, step out of poverty, and embrace a future full of hope and independence.
In support of the important work of the House of the Good Shepherd, Old St. Mary’s is sponsoring a diaper, pull ups, baby wipes, and gift card drive during the month of October—which happens to be Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The following donations are needed: diapers in sizes 4 & 5, pull-ups in sizes 4 & 5, baby wipes, and gift cards from Walgreens, CVS, or Jewel-Osco.
You can bring your donations to the parish office during the week, or drop them off in the Commons when you come to Mass.
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OCTOBER IS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
AWARENESS MONTH
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Domestic Violence Support Group via Zoom
Catholic Charities provides a support group via Zoom for any adult resident of Cook or Lake Counties who has experienced or is experiencing domestic violence.
- The group meets on Mondays from 5 pm to 6 pm
- The group has open enrollment
- The group is free and confidential
Contact 312-655-7106
or
with questions or to register
Come to learn more about domestic violence, meet others with similar experiences, share your story, and be part of a supportive
community.
If someone is in imminent danger, call 911.
For free assistance or referrals, call the
Illinois Domestic Violence Hotline
1-877-863-6338, 1-877-863-6339 (TTY)
or the
National Domestic Violence Hotline
1-800-799-SAFE (7233), 1-800-787-3224 (TTY)
From the Old St. Mary’s Domestic Violence Ministry
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SAVE THE DATE
Saturday, November 6
Longtime Old St. Mary's employee
Dennis Davis will be a recipient
of the "Spirit of Hecker" Award.
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The Archdiocese of Chicago has been chosen by Pope Francis to join with 26 other diocese around the world in building teams around his encyclical Laudato Si. Please consider attending the "kick off" gathering for our Vicariate on Saturday November 27th. It will be held at Our Lady of Sorrows. It is very exciting that Chicago was chosen and we hope that you will attend. If you have any questions please email Brian Leonard at bvleonard@aol.com.
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THINGS TO NOTE AS YOU RETURN MASS. |
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- All Masses are open. You no longer need to register to attend.
- Masks are required for everyone over the age of 2 regardless of your vaccination status.
- You may sing and respond.
- There will still be a worship aid available on our website for those not attending Mass in person.
- Sanitizing and social distancing for Communion are not required.
- Collection baskets will be passed to collect your offerings. Thank you.
- COVID-positive Parishioners
Since we are no longer requiring Mass registration,
it is important to let us know if:
A. you receive a COVID-positive diagnosis AND your symptoms
started with 48 hours of attending Mass and/or a parish meeting, OR
B. you receive a COVID-positive diagnosis and the date the test was administered was within 48 hours of attending Mass and/or a parish meeting.
call the parish office, 312-922-3444, ext. 23.
- All Masses will continue to be livestreamed. The dispensation from the obligation to attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation is still in effect.
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WAYS TO DONATE TO OLD ST. MARY'S CHURCH |
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Text to Give - 1.833.245.6595 - text GIVEOSM
(not case sensitive)
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If you don't wish to set up an account in Pushpay, you can make a donation to Old St. Mary's using Quick Pay through Zelle from your bank account.
Zelle is a quick way to pay people you know and trust in minutes.
For more information about Quick pay through Zelle or to see if your bank has this feature, visit Get Started with Zelle
You can also access Pushpay using the QR code below
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Old St. Mary's Church is Chicago's First Catholic Parish Established in 1833
Served by the Paulist Fathers since October 12,1903.
Phone Number: 312.922.3444
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Old St. Mary's Church
1500 S Michigan Ave,
Chicago, IL 60605
312-922-3444
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