News from P.I.T. (Pastor in Training)
From the Pastor’s Desk
September 27 – Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
A sacred event is coming up. Sacred in the sense of our duty as Catholic Christians and citizens of the United States. That sacred duty is to vote in the general election on November 2, 2020. As Election Day draws near it is important for everyone to know what is permitted and what is not permitted regarding the Church’s involvement in politics and the election. What IS permitted: Educating Catholics and others on the teachings of the Church as they relate to social policies. Analyzing and measuring policies against the values of the Gospel. Speaking out on issues, such as those involving the life and dignity of the human person, social justice, the promotion of the common good, and the life of the Church in society. Encouraging voters to participate fully in the political process. What IS NOT permitted: Endorsing a candidate or political party. The Church donating money or other resources to a candidate or political party. Exclusively offering the parish or church organization’s facilities to a candidate or political party. Campaign materials or other materials produced by candidates or political parties are not to be distributed on Church property including cars parked in the church parking lot or signs in the parkway. (Information from the Illinois Catholic Conference brochure: “Guidelines on Political Activities for Parishes and Catholic Church Organizations” www.ilcatholic.org
In a bulletin article or homily, there is not enough time or space to go into depth about the teachings of the Church. Regarding all the issues that one must consider in forming ones conscience the basic Catholic Social teaching includes the following major themes:
Life and Dignity of the Human Person
Protection of and Participation in the Family and Community
Rights of the Human Person be Protected
Care for the Poor and Vulnerable
Dignity of work and the rights of Workers
Solidarity as One Human Family
Care for God’s Creation
To study more in depth the teachings of the Church in forming your conscience to vote this November, please go to the following links:
Have a blessed week!
Father Don
From the Pastor’s Desk
September 20 – Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Today, September 20, back in 1997 was a monumental day for Our Lady of Mercy Parish. It was on this day that the Church building in which we presently worship was dedicated. It was an eventful day for the pastor Fr. Tivy and those parishioners who first founded OLM in June of 1988 and those who joined during the nine years it took to fundraise and build the church. Let us be grateful today for all those who made the financial and gifts in kind sacrifices to build the beautiful church in which we worship today. The feast day of our parish patron, Our Lady of Mercy is on Thursday, September 24. We have received permission from the Bishop to transfer the celebration to the weekend of September 26/27. Let us celebrate our dedication anniversary and feast day with joy!
In parishes throughout the country this weekend, we celebrate Catechetical Sunday. The theme being “I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you.” COVID-19 sure affected the manner in which we are doing religious education for our youth this year. Religious education for K – 5 is a family based program being done at home with parents as leaders, supported by our RE staff and catechists. Prior to COVID-19 we had already planned to offer the at home family catechesis program as an option for families instead of classroom instruction in the building. After COVID-19 hit, we decided that it was not feasible to offer classroom instruction due to the many protocols that were required to be in place. Additionally we did not feel it safe to bring together children from different school communities, and put them through more protocols. In addition, there likely would have been a shortage of catechists as several of our catechists fit the “at risk” category and would not be able to teach. However, there is a “silver lining” to the situation. The at home parent led catechesis program allows families to explore stories of our faith together at a schedule that is convenient for each family. And, no one has to wear masks or socially distance! More importantly, this program gives back to the parents what is their original responsibility that parents agreed to when they had their child baptized, namely of raising their child in the faith. Throughout the Catechism of the Catholic Church, it is stated: parents are the primary educators of their children in the faith, and that parents are gifted to do that. Unfortunately over the years, the Church has been enablers of taking that responsibility away from parents. Dropping off children for a Religious Education class with no further involvement of parents in the faith formation of their children has been a disaster in forming children as Disciples of Jesus. The Church and religious education programs are intended to support, not substitute for the parent’s role in raising their children in the practice of the faith! I strongly encourage our families who have not registered yet to give this program a try. We are here to guide and provide all you parents need to implement family catechesis in your home.
Have a blessed week!
Father Don
From the Pastor’s Desk
September 13 – Twenty-Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
If there were ever words from sacred scripture that get right to the point and strike the heart, today’s first reading and Gospel are those words! If there was ever a clearer and direct message in the scripture readings, today is the day! It there was ever more difficult direction to live, today’s readings give it. What am I talking about? FORGIVENESS! For the 39 years that I have sat in the confessional, forgiving someone who angered or hurt you is probably the sin I hear most frequently. Why do we find it so darn hard to forgive someone – especially when we hear the warnings in today’s scriptures? These words from our first reading provide me with a lot of motivation to forgive: “Wrath and anger are hateful things, yet the sinner hugs them tight. The vengeful will suffer the Lord’s vengeance, for He remembers their sins in detail. Forgive your neighbor’s injustice; then when you pray, your own sins will be forgiven.” For many years, I withheld forgiveness from the hurt I experienced in a family relationship. Even though I would say I do not care if I ever see that person again, that was simply a defense. Deep down in my heart I wanted to restore that relationship, but wanted the other person to make the first move. After many years, I realized that I was giving power to that person and hurtful memory to control my happiness now. How stupid was I! Unfortunately, because of my stubbornness, the reconciliation did not happen before that relative died. Then I realized that I do not want to die with any unreconciled relationships in my life. They say you can’t take it with you, and that is true of material things, but I think you do take with you the unreconciled sins, hurts, hardness of heart and anger that you’ve held onto in life. That is why we Catholics believe in purgatory. Purgatory is purification from all that kept us in this life from loving and forgiving as God is. And, in the afterlife, you won’t get to heaven until you are willing to be seated at the heavenly banquet next to the person you hated most in this life! So, I would rather shorten my purgatory by having less unreconciled relationships when I die.
Today’s Gospel parable should also provide the motivation to reconcile quickly. The one servant who was treated with mercy and had his debt forgiven, which happens when we go to confession, went out and treated another servant without the mercy he received. Because of this, he was severely punished. Jesus concludes: “So will my heavenly Father do to you, unless each of you forgives your brother from your heart.” Remember, when you pray the “Our Father” you tell God to forgive your sins just like you forgive those who sin against you! Do you really mean that?
Have a blessed week!
Father Don
From the Pastor’s Desk
September 6 – Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time
Where did we go wrong? The idea that we need to be a rugged individualist, that we are not our brother’s keeper, that other people’s lives and actions are their business, not ours is just simply not scriptural. In other words, this is NOT what God intends. Ezekiel in the first reading today tells us that our responsibility for one another requires us to warn each other so as to “dissuade the wicked” from their ways. If we fail to do so, says the prophet, then we are culpable. God made us to be responsible for one another. In today’s second reading from Paul’s correspondence with the believers in Rome, Paul reminds us of our mutual “debt.” We are to love one another. We “owe” this to one another, says Paul. In loving, we fulfill the law. Because of our love for one another, we help one another to avoid sin and do what is right. In today’s Gospel, Matthew gives us a glimpse of the inner workings of the early church. In order to help one another to become more authentic images of God, the community had worked out a process whereby those who sinned might be made aware of their sin, then seek forgiveness and be reconciled to God and to their brothers and sisters in Christ. I find though too often we skip the first step in this reconciliation process. Most of us jump to the second or third step right away. The first step says: “If your brother/sister sins against you, go and tell him/her their fault between you and him/her alone.” In other words, keep it to yourself! Try to work things out between the two of you first before going and complaining to others. When a parishioner complains to me about something someone on staff did or said, wanting me to fix it, I always ask, did you talk to that person first? Step two and three in the Gospel story today should be a last resort….telling first one or two, or then the whole church.
Sometimes when hearing confessions, the person confessing confesses the sins of the other person, not their own. Yes, we get angry at other people for something they said or did, but they did not make us sin. We choose to react/respond in a way that is sinful or not. Reconciliation is an art that unfortunately many have not learned or experienced. Reconciliation is a grace from God – we cannot do it by ourselves. The expression forgive and forget is impossible for humans – only God has divine amnesia! While we never forget, we humans CAN forgive. God’s grace empowers us to be agents of forgiveness and reconciliation. Give forgiveness and reconciliation a try! It is said that practice makes perfect! Maybe that is what Jesus means when he says for us to become perfect as our heavenly father is perfect!!
Have a blessed week!
Father Don
From the Pastor’s Desk
August 30 – Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time
Last week I ended my article indicating that Our Lady of Mercy Parish has a new relationship with All Saints Catholic Academy in Naperville. Let me give you a little history about ASCA and our parish involvement. Founded in 2005 as a regional inter parish Catholic grammar school, five area parishes were asked to make a financial commitment to purchase the building and property that was formerly Calvary School. Those five parishes are St. Margaret Mary in Naperville, St. Thomas the Apostle in Naperville, St. Elizabeth Seton in Naperville, Holy Spirit Catholic Community in Naperville, and Our Lady of Mercy in Aurora. Holy Spirit and Our Lady of Mercy were not able to make a financial commitment at the time to become a supporting parish. Both parishes were either already in or planning to undertake a capital campaign for a building project. In our case, we would be conducting a capital campaign to build the Parish Life Center. The other three parishes committed $3.3 million paid over 15 years. Each parish paid $200,000 a year out of their Sunday income to fund this commitment. Families attending ASCA from those three parishes received a reduced tuition rate. A higher tuition rate for families not from the three supporting parishes is charged. However, Fr. Hugh (and myself) want to support Catholic Education. Our Lady of Mercy parish pays the difference between the two rates of tuition for families from OLM who send their children to ASCA. Our Lady of Mercy has also done that for our registered families who attend a Catholic grammar school in Aurora and elsewhere, even though those schools are not in the Diocese of Joliet.
The three parishes, St. Margaret Mary, St. Thomas the Apostle, and St. Elizabeth Seton have completed paying their $3.3 million commitment. This past January, officials from the Diocese along with Bishop Pates met with the pastors of all five parishes. There is still $4 million owed on the building and property. The five parishes were asked to commit $60K annually for four years to reduce the debt that will be managed in the schools budget after four years. You may remember that the Diocese was instituting a “tax” beginning this fiscal year on parishes without schools to help struggling schools. Our tax would have been $60K and is in our budget. Therefore, I agreed providing that our “tax” would now go to ASCA and not to a general fund for struggling schools. As a result, families from OLM will receive the “supporting parish” tuition rate instead of the higher rate of tuition.
Throughout the years, OLM has had many families attend ASCA. In my 8 years of being associated with ASCA, I can testify that it is a great school! I will be celebrating the 8:15AM Wednesday School Mass on a regular basis. Check out ASCA, and any parents interested in sending their children to ASCA, please feel free to contact me.
Have a blessed week!
Father Don