Parish News - Blessed Carlo Acutis Parish

March 22nd - Weekly Newsletter

3/23/2023

NEW Mass Schedule Info, The Passion of Christ: Live Theater, and more ...

I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord;
whoever believes in me will never die.

Dear Friends,

Happy Wednesday everyone, lots of important news this week ... !

NEW MASS SCHEDULE - Beginning Sunday April 16, 2023, we will be changing the Mass Schedule. Please read the information below very carefully!

Stations of the Cross - This FRIDAY, March 24: 6 p.m. ENGLISH Stations at St. Hedwig; 7 p.m. SPANISH Stations at St. John Berchmans. The full schedule is posted below.

The Passion of Christ, Live Theater - A live theater production of the Passion of the Christ is coming to our Parish THIS Saturday, March 25th, 6 pm at St. Hedwig. For a bit more about the live production, see below.

Living Stations of the Cross - St. John Berchmans Junior High students will be performing Live Stations of the Cross on Friday, March 31st at 2 pm and 7 pm in St. John Berchmans Church. All are welcome.

DMI Survey - This Lent, parishioners of all ages are asked to share their input by participating in a 10-15 minute survey developed by the Catholic Leadership Institute, called the Disciple Maker Index Survey (DMI). The survey is ANONYMOUS and available in multiple languages, including English, Polish and Spanish. The survey runs through the end of the month. See below for more information ...

Lenten Movie Event "The Chosen" - There's still time to join us on Mondays OR Tuesdays during Lent as we watch the TV Series "The Chosen".

REVISED BCAP Food Pantry needs - Just a reminder that donating to the Food Pantry isn't a one time thing. Food and other necessities are CONSTANTLY needed. See below for our most current needs.

Eucharistic Testimonies - When we encounter Jesus Christ, he changes us—sometimes by signs and wonders, at other times by his peace that passes all understanding. During this Eucharistic Revival, we would like to share testimonies of our parishioners and their relationship with Jesus in the Eucharist. Today we highlight Jane Simers.

MASKS are still OPTIONAL, BUT ... With Covid and the Flu on the rise, please use your best judgement when it comes to your own safety and the safety of others, and do not come to church if you are feeling ill. As always, be kind and respectful to one another if the person choses or not to wear a mask. Remember, we're all in this together!

Parish Forms on the Website - https://www.carloacutisparish.org/parish-forms.html Did you know that many of our forms and requests are on our website? Inquiring about a Baptism ... Need a copy of your Baptismal Certificate ... Want to schedule your wedding? It's all on our website! Simply fill out the form and we'll get back to ya.

Prayers for the Sick - Both in the Sunday Bulletin, and here in the Weekly Newsletter, we list the names of those who are in sick and in need of our prayers. If you would like to add you someone's name to the sick list, please email the Parish Office. Please also email us when it's ok to remove them from the sick list. This helps to ensure our list is up to date.

We hope to see you at one of the Masses this weekend, wear a mask or not, and don't forget to bring a friend or two!! Oh ... and wear something PURPLE.

God Bless, see you in Church!
Michael White, Director of Music and Liturgy AND Weekly Newsletter Editor

Blessed Carlo Acutis Parish Mission Statement

We are a multicultural, intergenerational Catholic parish community of people who through the help of the Eucharist, are on the journey to learning about, celebrating, serving and proclaiming our faith in the Risen Jesus.

Vision Statement

Our vision is transforming spirits, hearts and minds.

Core Values

We are welcoming, learning, believing, serving, celebrating,
understanding, sharing, diverse, community and focused on quality.

Goals

1). To have vibrant, welcoming liturgies.
2). To be an evangelizing community.
3). To reach out to youth.
4). To provide social justice education and outreach to the poor.

Your input is welcome.
Please send suggestions to Father Paul Sims, C.R. at [email protected].

The Passion of Christ
THIS Saturday, March 25th, 6 pm at St. Hedwig

Live Theater Production is a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to bring theater to our community, with the help of our community. It consists of 70 amateur volunteer actors and singers. It is an opportunity for families to make their dreams of being part of theater a reality, and where curious spectators are able to attend performances free of charge.

Cecylia Jablonska is the director and screenwriter of the Passion of Christ which was set to music by Emmy award-winning composer Andrzej Warzocha. Passion of Christ has been performed all over Chicagoland as a holiday tradition for the past 30 years.

The goals of the Passion of Christ are to deepen faith; provide a chance to fulfill the theatrical dreams of adults and children alike; integrate families through fellowship; discover new leaders; and inspire new passions.

For the viewer, it is an immersive theatrical experience to be enjoyed by all, in addition to a spiritual preparation for the Resurrection of our Lord.

Client Choice Food Pantry
Revised March 15, 2023

Please see the updated list of needs...

IN ADDITION TO FOOD ... Because peoples needs are more than just food, we are now collecting the following (new or gently used) items for our Immigrant brothers and sisters. Coats, Winter Clothes, Jeans, Shoes, Blankets, Towels, Sheets, Pots/Pans, and Utensils.

You can drop off any donations to 2517 W. Logan blvd between the hours of 9-3 pm M-F, or on Sundays in the bins at the back of the church.

Throughout the Season of Lent, Paschal Triduum and Easter, we will be sharing with you reflections to help "Keep the Season".

Annunciation of the Lord
Saint of the Day for March 25

The Story of the Annunciation of the Lord

The feast of the Annunciation, now recognized as a solemnity, was first celebrated in the fourth or fifth century. Its central focus is the Incarnation: God has become one of us. From all eternity God had decided that the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity should become human. Now, as Luke 1:26-38 tells us, the decision is being realized. The God-Man embraces all humanity, indeed all creation, to bring it to God in one great act of love. Because human beings have rejected God, Jesus will accept a life of suffering and an agonizing death: “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13).

Mary has an important role to play in God’s plan. From all eternity, God destined her to be the mother of Jesus and closely related to him in the creation and redemption of the world. We could say that God’s decrees of creation and redemption are joined in the decree of Incarnation. Because Mary is God’s instrument in the Incarnation, she has a role to play with Jesus in creation and redemption. It is a God-given role. It is God’s grace from beginning to end. Mary becomes the eminent figure she is only by God’s grace. She is the empty space where God could act. Everything she is she owes to the Trinity.

Mary is the virgin-mother who fulfills Isaiah 7:14 in a way that Isaiah could not have imagined. She is united with her son in carrying out the will of God (Psalm 40:8-9; Hebrews 10:7-9; Luke 1:38).

Together with Jesus, the privileged and graced Mary is the link between heaven and earth. She is the human being who best, after Jesus, exemplifies the possibilities of human existence. She received into her lowliness the infinite love of God. She shows how an ordinary human being can reflect God in the ordinary circumstances of life. She exemplifies what the Church and every member of the Church is meant to become. She is the ultimate product of the creative and redemptive power of God. She manifests what the Incarnation is meant to accomplish for all of us.

Reflection
Sometimes spiritual writers are accused of putting Mary on a pedestal and thereby, discouraging ordinary humans from imitating her. Perhaps such an observation is misguided. God did put Mary on a pedestal and has put all human beings on a pedestal. We have scarcely begun to realize the magnificence of divine grace, the wonder of God’s freely given love. The marvel of Mary—even in the midst of her very ordinary life—is God’s shout to us to wake up to the marvelous creatures that we all are by divine design.

~ Franciscan Media

Abba Father
by Jane Simers

Summer Sunday mornings of my childhood are imprinted on my mind.
In the eight minutes driving back from Mass to our house, my father talked to us
about that Sunday’s Gospel. He related the Gospel in his own words, without
much embellishment or commentary. Now, when I hear those summer Gospels of
Ordinary Time, I feel a special happiness and a little nostalgia for childhood.
I wonder why did my father use this time to recount to us what we had just
heard? Was he simply obeying the presider’s instruction: “Go and announce the
Gospel of the Lord”; in the re-telling, was he re-enforcing his own understanding
of the Gospel’s message; was this his attempt to teach the Word of God to his
little ones?

He had a certain style that when he talked to us about the Gospels, we listened
intently. He didn’t need to insist that we sit still and pay attention to him; he
wasn’t the slightest bit stern. The fact was that we never misbehaved when we
were with him; we could not wait to be with him. As we grew older, we still
wanted to be with him, and spent time with him when we could. He was always
delighted to be with us; he acted as if being with us was as special as a once in a
lifetime experience, living in the moment, without an end in time or in his
affection for us.

We trusted our father completely. As children, we did not worry about anything.
He cared for us, he fed us and clothed us, he protected us, taught us, comforted
us, guided us and sent us out into the world. He was constant, predictable, and
ready to hold us close. We did nothing to earn his love, all we had to do was be
his children and accept his love. We were his and he was ours.

Though none of us had demanded our inheritance, running off with it and cutting
ourselves off from our father like the Prodigal Son, my father often acted like the
father in that story. If we showed up at home unexpectedly, he showered us with
his happiness. If we joined our parents unannounced at Mass, sliding into the pew
where they sat every Sunday, his smile was enough to light the whole church, to
let the whole world know we were his children with whom he was well pleased.
He was always there, even when we rushed off to live our own lives, patiently
waiting for our return.

My father at Mass was marked by exuberant praise and adoration. As long as I
can remember, he truly participated “actively and consciously” in the Eucharistic
celebration and his example was our invitation to do the same. Mass was always a
joyful celebration, a taste of the Lord’s promise of life everlasting.

I know that God made me. However, until recently, I had forgotten that we are
created by God in His image and likeness and the importance of this truth. As I
contemplate my father’s influence on my faith journey, I know now that my
father lived that truth.

I am a witness to my father building a relationship with his children modeled on
the intimate relationship and self-giving love between God the Father, our
Creator and God the Son, our Savior.

I am a witness to the endless and enduring love that God the Father has for each
of us as our Creator. My father embraced that love, making it part of his identity,
and wanted very much to pass on that truth to his children.

By talking to us about the Sunday’s Gospels, he opened a door for us to know the
Word of God. As we grew in size and thought, we began to understand that by
living the Gospels as he did, our own relationship with God would grow and
become stronger. His love for the Eucharist and the sacrifice of the Mass showed
itself in his own kindness and mercy, not only to his children but in his work and
service to his community. He encouraged his children to be of service in small
things. The beatitudes were our guidelines for doing good. He was pleased when
we chose helping professions and encouraged us to use our educations in service
to others beyond our regular employment.

Although I had two sisters and a brother with whom I shared my father, I never
felt that his love for me was diminished by his love for them. So it is with our
heavenly Father: He loves us all, His mercy is never ending, He has a place for
each of us, in this world and in the next. God’s invitation to share in His divine life
is never withdrawn. At the Last Supper, Jesus tells us that those who are faithful
to Him will have life everlasting.

My faith journey and my life journey are intertwined. As I have passed through
the various phases of my life, I have often returned to those Gospels my father
talked about. They have influenced my choices and actions in many ways.
I thank my dear, dear father for teaching me how to know, love and serve God in
this world so that I can be with Him in the next.

“Continuously ask your guardian angel for help.
Your guardian angel has to become your best friend.”

Pope Francis is cautioning people not to get accustomed to the war in Ukraine, and is calling for the faithful to keep those suffering "this tragic reality" in our hearts and prayers. "The thought of the people of Ukraine, afflicted by war, should remain vivid in our hearts." Please continue to pray for them.

Online Book of Intentions

Praying for each other's intentions is an important part of our parish life. If you would like the parish to pray for your intention, please write the intention in a sentence or two in this Online "Book of Intentions." These intentions will be remembered in our intercessions at our Sunday masses. Click HERE

Please pray for the Sick of our Parish

Fr. Paul Reicher, Doreen Maneely, Anna Mann, Nicole Vilches, Karel O’Brien,Angela Rivera, Mary Anne Sedey, Linda Klickmann, Barbara Durbin, Danny Olivero, Junior Burgos, Dolores Kryszak, Joseph Price, Teresa Ellison, Tallulah Andresen, Robert Bauer, Antionette Krerowicz, Ana Flores, Apolonio Alarcon, Antonio de Vera, Patricio A. Yanez Guerra, Manglio Bonilla Gail, Jason & Family, Daniel Brady, Cyndi De Lira, Carolyn S. Duckunue, Transito Alvarez, Frances Alequin, Alejandro Carmona, Sophie Hernan, Eleanor Jura, Monika Kloniecka, Joseph Wyse, Verena Tonnesen, Berenice Sosnowski, Nick Jurado, Jackie Schuman, Terry Brady, Salomea Olszewska, Hertha Runowski, Angie Schuman, John Graff, Joseph Murphy, Linda Riske, Margaret Flisiak, Jazzmyne Aguilar, Hailey Marose, Sarah Ellison, Nancy Idaszak, Sally Cox, Daniel Salas, Eleanor Rylko, Nancy, Brian, Jimmy Denges, & Crystal Mohetano.

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March 22nd - Weekly Newsletter