A word from Pope Francis ~ “We are impatient, anxious to see the whole picture, but God lets us see things slowly, quietly.”
On this first Sunday of February, we celebrate the Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time. With our Easter celebration coming later this year on April 9, Ash Wednesday is observed on February 22 this year. We have a few more weeks in Ordinary Time before the beginning of Lent. We will have a chance to hear some of the key sections of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew’s Gospel – our primary Gospel for this year.
Our 2023 celebration of Catholic Schools Week got off to an excellent start last Sunday. The St. Isidore Catholic School community did a wonderful job in providing the music for last Sunday’s 10:00 am Mass. It was great to have our young people lead us in prayer at that Mass and to serve the parish in different liturgical ministries. There was a lot of energy in the air from the moment our students greeted us as we arrived for Mass. Our principal, Mrs. Corie Alimento, extended a genuine thank you to the parish community for our support of the school. The Knights of Columbus sponsored their traditional pancake breakfast and had the largest turnout ever! The Grade School Open House welcomed many prospective families into our building. It was an awesome kick-off for our annual celebration of Catholic Schools Week.
The celebrations continued throughout the week, with each school day celebrating our School, our Students, our Parents, our Community and our Staff. CSW events included the School Mass on Wednesday, a band concert by the St. Francis High School Jazz Band, a Spelling Bee, grade-level service projects and the traditional 8th Grade vs. Teachers Volleyball game. Thank you to all who helped make these celebrations so memorable. It was a good week to celebrate our commitment to passing on our faith tradition from one generation to the next.
When I celebrated the Grade School Mass last Wednesday, I had the chance to thank the men and women who serve on our Grade School faculty and staff. It was interesting to tally the combined years of service given to the St. Isidore parish community by our school faculty and staff – 268 years of service in Catholic education at our school and a total of 620 years of service in education overall. This is an astounding number of years of service to our parish through our school, especially when we remember that our country will be 247 years old this July! We offer our prayers and thanks for our teachers, administrators, staff and all who share in the ministry of Catholic education.
We will kick off the 2023 Catholic Ministries Annual Appeal before Ash Wednesday this year. Our Announcement Weekend, where we learn about the many ministries supported by the Appeal, will happen next weekend at all Masses, Saturday/Sunday, February 11/12. The in-pew Commitment Weekend will be the following weekend, February 18/19. The 2023 Catholic Ministries Annual Appeal theme is, “We Belong to God.” The ministries and programs we support through the CMAA are essential to the mission of the Diocese of Joliet and to our mission of helping to do God’s work here on earth. When we give to the CMAA, we help those in need to know that they belong to God. When we join together, we will make a difference in the lives of many.
We are now less than three weeks away from our St. Isidore Gala 2023, with its fun theme, “Under the Sea.” This is a wonderful opportunity for our parish to come together during the cold winter months to celebrate our Catholic School. The Gala will be held on Saturday, February 25 beginning at 5:00 pm with dinner, followed by entertainment, auctions and dancing at Belvedere Banquets, 170 W Devon Avenue in Elk Grove Village. It promises to be a wonderful mid-winter evening spent with fellow parishioners. Call your friends! Plan on getting a table. This event benefits our school. Grand Raffle tickets for the $10,000 grand prize are now available at the parish and school offices and websites. Additional information is available at the school office and elsewhere in the bulletin.
A lot is happening and will be happening all around us. Even in the midst of winter, there are signs of hope and of life. May God continue to bless us with all that we need, and more.
Father Jim Murphy