Trivia Cost: $80 per team/table of 6-8
Pizza, grilled chicken, & pulled pork sandwiches along with a cash bar — ALL REASONABLY PRICED!
To Register: email smiptrivianight@gmail.com or contact Matt Trusk at 630-738-0081
Proceeds will be donated to the SMI Confirmation Program
Food Donations Needed BY JANUARY 7
Our next Daybreak Meal donation date is January 7. We would greatly appreciate your help with donating various items for meal preparation.
If you would like to help, please sign up to donate an item at smip.org/daybreak by January 6. We ask that donated items please be brought to the Commons by Tuesday, January 7 at 10:00 a.m. for pick up that day. Perishable items should be marked and placed in the refrigerator in the parish kitchen.
Please note: our offices will be closed from December 26 through January 3. Items may be brought to the commons on the weekends, when we are open for Mass.
Our meals are successful as a result of your generosity. Your participation is truly a way to make a positive difference in someone’s life.
Questions? Contact Chris McLawhorn at 815-436-8374 or Kathy Hall at 815-436-2729.
Scheduled every Saturday in Church at 2:30 pm. – Please note there wil be no confessions heard on Saturday, December 28th.
Confessionpalooza will be on Sunday, Dec. 22 from 1:30 p.m. until all in line are heard.
The parish offices will be closed starting Monday, Dec. 23rd and then will not reopen until the morning of Jan. 6th.
In case of an emergency, you will still be able to reach a priest at our main number, 815-436-2651 and follow the instructions in the menu.
Enjoy a delicious breakfast of pancakes, sausage links, and scrambled eggs, and know that you are supporting important area charities!
Breakfast will be served in the gym after the 7:30, 9:00, and 10:45 a.m. Masses on January 19th. The Knights are not charging for this breakfast; however, goodwill donations are encouraged and accepted. Cash and check only.
For additional information contact: Thomas Krepelka at 708-218-5733 or tpkrepelka@amerline.com
If you spiritually adopted an unborn baby in March, your baby is entering its ninth month.
Adopted Baby Hannah
“God bless you Mom and Dad for giving me life.”
“Thank you, Spiritual Adoptive parents, for praying for me”
“Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the
most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight in Bethlehem, in the piercing cold, in that hour vouchsafe.”
Blessed Christmas
Reverence for Life Ministry
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
It’s such a wonderful gift for us to be able to gather, worship, serve and be formed here at Saint Mary Immaculate. No matter what may be happening around us, our parish community is a constant source of peace in our lives. This is the place where we can gather at the Eucharistic table, serve our Lord, and be formed in the faith that has been passed down through the centuries.
Here, united as we are in God’s love, we are a visible sign and witness to the love of God in our community. Here we are nourished by prayer, Word, and Sacraments through which we get grace to go forth and do the work that God has chosen for us to do. Here we grow in relationship with our Lord who longs to be part of our lives. We value formation in the faith and sharing that faith with others through our witness, service, and evangelization. Through our many vibrant ministries, we put flesh on the words of Saint John: “If God so loved us, we also must love one another” (1 John 4:11).
With this in mind, I invite you to respond to our parish’s new giving initiative: Living as Faithful Disciples: Come, Follow Me! Please review the contents of this brochure and prayerfully consider how you and your family can play an active role in continuing the work of Jesus Christ through our parish community. Our goal is to increase our Sunday offertory contributions so that we can continue to worship, serve, and form people in the faith, bringing the love of Jesus to as many people as we possibly can.
On October 19 and 20, our parish will be observing a special Commitment Weekend, inviting members of our community to come together and make a financial commitment that will allow Saint Mary Immaculate Parish to continue its important work. We are counting on you! By participating in our giving initiative, we respond to God’s great gift of love by loving one another with the heart of Jesus.
Thank you for your generosity, prayers, and commitment to Saint Mary Immaculate Parish!
Yours in Christ and His Blessed Mother,
Father Pat Mulcahy, Pastor
Look for a brochure in your mailbox from Father!
Here, united in God’s love, we are a visible sign of the body of Christ and together we do great things. Nourished by prayer and the sacraments, the members of our parish community are journeying on the path of discipleship and growing in relationship with Jesus Christ daily. We value discipleship and evangelization.
As we strive to love one another better, good stewardship plays a key role. Stewardship isn’t a code word for financial support. Stewardship is about doing the work of Christ and engaging our many resources to further the ministry and mission of Our Lord. Remembering that everything we have is a gift from our creator.
We know the importance of bringing the love of God to our neighbors. Through our many ministries, and our social and service-oriented outreach programs, we put into action the truth stated so eloquently by St. John the Apostle: “If God so loved us, we also must love one another” (1 Jn 4:11).
Being a grandparent is the best job in the world. Children bring a joy of innocence making you feel young again. You can spoil them rotten and send them home. We have 3 grandchildren – all boys ages 10, 7 and 6. We loved the role so much our daughter and Son-in Law gifted us with the pleasure of taking them two days a week while they worked during the school year with summers off. Retirement was the dream.
Ours role changed drastically in 2023. We are the maternal grandparents of Beckett McBride. He was diagnosed with uncurable, inoperable brain tumor. You hear about these things but never think it is going to happen to you – but it happened to the sweetest, happiest 6-year-old boy. We have now become a 24/7 support system.
Being a grandparent has taken on a new meaning. Because of Beckett’s condition we need to keep him safe for obvious health reasons so that means keeping the entire family safe. The boys are with us whenever they are not at school or with their parents so child care became a full-time job, M-F. We are now an extension of the parents so rules and discipline cannot be so easily ignored. Grandparenting was so much easier. Yet, God helped us see how to balance the two and find our own mini parent/grandparenting style. Our view of retirement is so different now. But we are very content and get more joy in this version than the one we had in our heads.
People ask how we are doing it. FAITH. Yes, we have strong talks with God about His prudence – knowing when, where and how this should play out, mainly because of our lack of patience. We express a lot of anger to Him about this heart wrenching process, but we also are aware, we have yet to be angry “with Him” or ask “Him why”. We are calm and confident that He knows what is best for Beckett’s eternal life and every person in this life. God knows the big picture and all the intricate parts that have to move for every one of us to get to heaven to be with Him. Who are we to get in His way? We are just here to serve.
Beckett is a treasured gift from Him. We are just here to do our part as grandparents and pay the gift back in any way we can, to anyone we can. No matter the sacrifice. I’m beginning to understand the phrase, “the joy of sacrifice”. I just don’t have words to describe it yet.
Forget the checkbook and make donating simple for you and your family. With Online Giving, you can give back to your church whenever and wherever with the simple click of a button from your computer or smart device.
Scripture
Matthew 8:23-27
And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. And they went and woke him, saying, “Save, Lord; we are perishing.” And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, O men of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?”
Reflection
A few weeks ago as the Coronavirus swept through Italy, Pope Francis led a prayer service in the rain in the darkness of night in the middle of St. Peter’s Square. It was an eerie picture seeing a lone figure praying in this huge square that is typically filled with thousands of people. For me, in a way it was a modern re-telling of the story from Matthew’s Gospel quoted above.
It seems that in our world today, many become overwhelmed and begin to feel hopeless. It appears that things will never return to normal. All of the things that we cling to in order to receive hope we have found to be empty. Our lives have been turned upside down. Some have lost jobs, we worry about having enough money to pay the rent/mortgage, or to buy groceries to feed our families.
What is hope? Hope is placing our trust in Christ’s promises and relying not our own strength, but on the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit. (CCC 1817). This is key – hope comes from NOT relying on my own strength but one the strength of the Holy Spirit. Our hope is based in part on the assurance of all the times God had proved faithful to his promises throughout history. How can we find hope when we feel hopeless? Here are 3 suggestions I found that have helped me.
Song
Prayer
My Lord, I bring my burdens to You, knowing You will take care of me. You will not permit me to slip and fall. I trust You to save me out of this hopeless predicament.
O God, have mercy on me, for I feel like I’m being hounded all day long. But I will put my trust in You. I praise You for Your promises of deliverance. I trust in You, so why should I be afraid? Thank You for carrying my burdens.
Amen.
Scripture
1 Corinthian 14:33
“For God is a God not of disorder but of peace.”
Reflection
The alarm goes off
You greet God and thank him for the glorious gift of life He has given to you again today and then you remember……another day of quarantine.
Do you want to start your day with a bombardment of news telling you all that is wrong with the world? Maybe you choose not to listen today, but then you wonder, what have I missed? Is something important happening, has there been a new development that I am missing? Are they telling me the truth? This channel is telling me this, while this medical expert is telling me the complete opposite to be true. Who do you believe, who can you trust?
Amidst all this confusion we are blessed to have THE constant; God. He never leaves us. He didn’t leave Adam when he was uncertain who to believe. He didn’t leave Moses when he wrestled with his new found ‘freedom’ in the desert. And He didn’t leave Peter when he ached to choose a side. And he won’t leave us now. Our confusion is not because of God—but rather it is assuaged through of Him.
Revel in the peace He offers to us.
Song
Prayer
Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you
Loving God, you care for me. You care for others. People and things on earth sometimes let me down. When this happens, I offer all my cares and wishes to You. You are the one who is worthy of care and praise. Take care of me and help me take care of others.
Amen
Scripture
Psalm 46:10
“Be still, and know that I am God.
I am exalted among the nations,
I am exalted in the earth!”
Reflection
During this time in history the feeling that is a constant in my life is Amazement! Amazement on how people of Faith deal with the adverse events and situations.
Through our hardships (regardless of the current Pandemic) in our life, we could experience a job loss, finances, sickness, loss of a loved one, relationship with a troubled child, or even divorce. But whatever the challenge is, we can have the determination to see things through as we find our strength in God. It is in the difficult times that our faith is tested and remind us in the words of 2 Timothy 1:7, “God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.”
In fact, we can move from feeling like a victim of our circumstances to find purpose through our faith. I have found the words of the Apostle Paul in Romans 8: 35, 37 to be very encouraging in times of adversity: “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? … No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.”
Allow these verses to resonate in your heart, and know that no matter how bad the situation we are facing, we can experience God’s love, and nothing can separate us from it. We should not fret through this difficult time, but instead we should stand tall and know this too shall pass!
Let us look at this current Pandemic as a journey to have us reflect and assess how best to get out of your comfort zone to allow the Lord to speak to our heart, and change us as we share our true Faith with those around us. Think of it as the Lord’s Reset Button !
Song
Prayer
These words come from the living experience of the presence of Jesus in the prayer life of Fr Dolindo and you are invited to make them your own as you pray the Novena.
Day 1
Why do you confuse yourselves by worrying? Leave the care of your affairs to me and everything will be peaceful. I say to you in truth that every act of true, blind, complete surrender to me produces the effect that you desire and resolves all difficult situations.
O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything! (10 times)
Day 2
Surrender to me does not mean to fret, to be upset, or to lose hope, nor does it mean offering to me a worried prayer asking me to follow you and change your worry into prayer. It is against this surrender, deeply against it, to worry, to be nervous and to desire to think about the consequences of anything. It is like the confusion that children feel when they ask their mother to see to their needs, and then try to take care of those needs for themselves so that their childlike efforts get in their mother’s way. Surrender means to placidly close the eyes of the soul, to turn away from thoughts of tribulation and to put yourself in my care, so that only I act, saying “You take care of it”.
O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything! (10 times)
Day 3
How many things I do when the soul, in so much spiritual and material need, turns to me, looks at me and says to me; “You take care of it”, then closes it’s eyes and rests. In pain you pray for me to act, but that I act in the way you want. You do not turn to me, instead, you want me to adapt your ideas. You are not sick people who ask the doctor to cure you, but rather sick people who tell the doctor how to. So do not act this way, but pray as I taught you in the our Father: “Hallowed be thy Name”, that is, be glorified in my need. “Thy kingdom come”, that is, let all that is in us and in the world be in accord with your kingdom. “Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven”, that is, in our need, decide as you see fit for our temporal and eternal life. If you say to me truly: “Thy will be done”, which is the same as saying: “You take care of it”, I will intervene with all my omnipotence, and I will resolve the most difficult situations.
O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything! (10 times)
