We will be closing the parish offices for the 4th of July holiday starting on Thursday, July 3rd. This building closure will be in effect the until Monday, July 7th at 8AM. Daily and weekend Masses will continue as usual.
We hope you call have a safe and happy Independence Day!
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The Knights of Columbus Good Shepherd Council #5573 are inviting you to a wonderful day at the ballpark to enjoy baseball, fellowship, and family togetherness with St Mary’s parishioners as the Joliet Slammers take on the Florence Y’alls. July 5th is a Saturday and it is Military Appreciation Night which all of your children and grandchildren will truly enjoy.
Tickets are available now for only $12.00/Ea. Please get your tickets now. Call / text (708) 218-5733 or email tpkrepelka@amerline.com.
The Knights have been granted the special opportunity to conduct a 50/50 raffle at the game which will be a wonderful occasion to raise funds for our parish and send home a very happy winner. Checks may be made out to “K of C Good Shepherd Council #5573”
Please contact Thomas Krepelka (708) 218-5733 with any questions and to purchase tickets. Looking forward to seeing a great crowd of S. M. I parishioners at the game. PLAY BALL!
The Knights of Columbus Good Shepherd Council #5573 are hosting a July 3rd Pre-Fireworks Party at the Gray House at the North end of the St. Mary’s Parking Lot!
The Knights will be serving Hamburgers, Hot Dogs and Chips for a free-will offering. Music will be provided from 5-7PM, after which we will all enjoy the Plainfield Fireworks show together. Everyone is invited!
This event has received the Knights of Columbus Illinois State Award for Family Event of the Year, so you know you will have a great time!
Please join us for a wonderful event celebrating our country, our Parish and our Families!
After eight years serving as our pastor, Father Pat Mulcahy is leaving St. Mary’s on June 30.
After thirteen years of service, Father John Regan is leaving our parish on June 30 for his new assignment as Priest in Residence at St. Thomas the Apostle in Naperville.
We have been incredibly blessed to have Father Pat and Father John as shepherds for so many years. They will both be greatly missed.
In gratitude for their time with us, and to wish them well in their upcoming endeavors, we are having a farewell dinner on Saturday, June 28, at 5:00 p.m. in the gym. All parishioners are welcome to attend.
We will also host a cake reception in the Gym after all Masses on Sunday, June 29, for both priests. Please join us as we say farewell to Father Pat and Father John.
Food Donations Needed BY JULY 1
Our next Daybreak Meal donation date is July 1st. 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 June 30. We ask that donated items please be brought to the Commons by Tuesday, July 1 at 10:00 a.m. for pick up that day. Perishable items should be marked and placed in the refrigerator in the parish kitchen.
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.
St. Mary Immaculate Parish is seeking to hire a part-time Custodian to maintain the cleanliness and function of the parish campus during the late afternoon and evening on the weekend. Duties include cleaning bathrooms, floors/carpets, disposing of garbage and recycling, setting up and taking down tables, chairs and other needed items for meetings/events, cleaning up rooms following meetings/events, and assisting with repairing/replacing items throughout campus, as needed. The pay is $17 to $18 per hour.
A High School diploma or equivalent is required. Previous Custodian experience is preferred. Need to be physically able to perform the duties as assigned, including the ability to lift up to 50 pounds, if needed. Must support the mission, philosophy, objectives and policies of St. Mary Immaculate Parish, the Catholic Church and the Diocese of Joliet. Please submit cover letter and resume to Laura Van Ham at LVanHam@smip.org.
“We must fan the flame of hope that has been given us
and help everyone to gain new strength and certainty
by looking to the future with an open spirit, a trusting
heart, and far-sighted vision. The forthcoming Jubilee
can contribute greatly to restoring a climate of hope
and trust as a prelude to the renewal and rebirth
that we so urgently desire.” — Pope Francis
A Jubilee Year is a time of forgiveness, renewal, and spiritual reflection in our relationship with God. In biblical tradition, a Jubilee was marked by the remission of debts, the return of property, and the restoration of relationships—among individuals, nations, and even creation itself (cf. Leviticus 25:8-55). The first Christian Jubilee was declared in 1300 by Pope Boniface VIII.
The upcoming Jubilee, titled Pilgrims of Hope, calls us to rediscover the hope found in Christianity and to become signs of hope in our daily lives. This sacred year will take place from December 29, 2024, to December 28, 2025.
As Pope Francis reminds us, “May this Jubilee be a moment of genuine, personal encounter with the Lord Jesus, the ‘door’ (cf. Jn 10:7,9) of our salvation, whom the Church is charged to proclaim always, everywhere, and to all as ‘our hope’ (1 Tim 1:1)” (Spes Non Confundit, 1).
During Jubilee Years, the Pope designates Holy Doors for pilgrims to pass through as a sign of conversion—leaving behind their old way of life and embracing renewed faith and zeal. Passing through a Holy Door is an act of spiritual renewal and devotion.
This year, the only official Holy Doors will be in Rome. A replica of the Vatican’s Holy Doors can be found in our Commons area, serving as a reminder of the significance of this pilgrimage tradition.
While the official Holy Doors are in Rome, local pilgrimage sites provide an opportunity for spiritual renewal during the Jubilee Year. Pilgrimage sites in our area currently include:
An indulgence is the remission of temporal punishment due to sins that have already been forgiven. While repentance and confession bring forgiveness, sin disrupts God’s order and affects others. As part of divine justice, purification is necessary to restore this order.
An indulgence offers this purification through the merits of Christ’s sacrifice and the holiness of the saints, granting spiritual renewal without the suffering typically associated with penance.
To receive a Jubilee indulgence, one must:
The Jubilee Year is a profound opportunity for spiritual renewal and deepening our commitment to faith. May this time of grace inspire us to grow in hope and holiness.
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)
