I mentioned in last Sunday’s announcements that following the mid-Lent reprieve of Laetere or “Rejoice” Sunday, that things were about to get a bit darker. I was speaking, of course, of the church’s collective and definitive turn toward the contemplation of Jesus’ experience in the final week of his earthly life.

The final two weeks of Lent comprise a sort of mini-season known as Passiontide. And this Sunday, when you enter the nave you will see that the crosses, the elaborate reredos behind the marble high altar, and the font, will all be veiled or covered in a drab fabric known as ‘lenten array’. In St. Andrew’s Chapel, the magnificent altar triptych will be closed and hidden from our sight. This custom is meant to help the worshiper enter into the contemplation of Christ’s passion by removing visual distraction, and training the eye upon Jesus - and his looming confrontation with powers both sacred and secular.

As we once again prepare for Holy Week and Easter celebrations, we ready ourselves to proclaim once again the paschal mystery that sits at the heart of our life as Christian community: Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again. I urge you to take time now to prepare yourself to enter as fully as you can into the time outside of time that the services of Holy Week create for us. Pull out your calendar and plan now for your presence in two weeks: Thursday evening, Friday afternoon, and Saturday evening/Sunday morning – for these are the occasions that invite us to walk in the footsteps of Jesus’ closest friends and disciples as we accompany him to the foot of the cross and, ultimately, to the unbridled joy of an empty tomb. We are entering together into sacred time. Come, let us worship.

Peace,

Lisa+

Sunday, April 6th 2025

8 a.m. - Spoken Eucharist (St. Andrew’s Chapel)

9 a.m. - Family Eucharist

10 a.m. - Children’s Sunday School & Youth Group

10 a.m. - Adult Forum (Kyle’s Place)

11 a.m. - Choral Eucharist (Live-Streamed)

12:15 p.m. - Coffee Hour (Kyle’s Place)

4 p.m. - Choral Evensong (Live-Streamed)

For those who are unable to be present, the 11 a.m. Eucharist will be live-streamed on our streaming webpage or YouTube.

Acolyte & Altar Guild Retreat, April 5, 12:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.

An afternoon retreat at St. James for those who want to learn more about serving St. James as an acolyte, a wine chalice bearer, or member of the Altar Guild, as well as all current members.

We will have a light lunch and discussion about the ministries, followed by an Instructed Eucharist (interactive worship explaining how the liturgy is designed), and breakout sessions for training.

Please email for any additional questions.

Lenten Preaching and Teaching Series

Join us for our 2025 Lenten Preaching and Teaching Series in which we will consider together the ways that we can draw closer to God through our experience of the arts.

Choral Evensong

Choral Evensong in April falls at the start of Passiontide, the final Sunday in Lent before Holy Week begins on Palm Sunday. The choir offers music of Herbert Howells and Gerald Finzi whose monumental anthem “Lo, the full final sacrifice” depicts the redemptive sacrifice of Christ in vivid and affecting detail.

For more information, visit https://www.saintjamescathedral.org/music-and-art/choral-season/april-evensong

Please note, Nursery care will be available for this service.

Music Staff Updates

New Assistant Director of Music

St. James Cathedral is delighted to announce the appointment of Nico Tjoelker as Assistant Director of Music starting in August. Nico will assist Canon Director of Music Stephen Buzard in running our multifaceted, intergenerational music program. Nico is a candidate for the Doctor of Musical Arts in organ at the University of Notre Dame, studying with Professor Kola Owolabi. Previously, he earned a Master of Music in organ from Yale University, studying with Professors Martin Jean, Carole Terry, and James O’Donnell. At Yale, he was Director of Music at Berkeley Divinity School and served as Organ Scholar at Trinity Episcopal Church on the Green, where he assisted Walden Moore in directing the adult and children’s choirs. Before Yale, Nico lived in Australia, completing a Bachelor of Music in organ at Sydney Conservatorium of Music. Nico lives in South Bend with his wife, Alice, a PhD student in liturgical studies at Notre Dame.



Congratulations to Jessica McCarthy



Jessica McCarthy, our Assistant for Music and Manager of the Choir School, will be leaving Chicago at the end of the summer to pursue a Master of Music in choral conducting at the Schulich School of Music at McGill University in Montreal. Jess has served the music ministry at St. James throughout her studies at Roosevelt University, beginning as Intern for Children’s Music in 2022, becoming a staff singer in 2023, and working as Assistant for Music this program year. She looks forward to incorporating what she has learned from her time at St. James Cathedral into a multi-faceted career as a choral conductor and church musician.

Holy Week Schedule

Easter celebrates our resurrected life in Jesus, but can we understand resurrection if we don't journey to Golgotha and the grave? Make a commitment to draw nearer to God each day during Holy Week. 

Visit saintjamescathedral.org/HolyWeek for descriptions of Holy Week services. Please note, Nursery care will be available for Maundy Thursday and the Easter Vigil.

Helping Hands for Holy Week

As we draw near to Holy Week, the sacred days at the very heart of our faith, we love to have a few additional volunteers to welcome and assist the worshippers who will come through our doors. We invite you to take a look at the tasks below, and, if you’d be able to help with one or more of these, contact the Cathedral office at info@saintjamescathedral.org or 312-751-3570.

• Palm Sunday, April 13: Hand out palms at the 9 a.m. & 11 a.m. services
• Maundy Thursday, April 17: Hand out bulletins and welcome people at the 6:30 p.m. service
• Good Friday, April 18: Hand out bulletins and welcome people at the 1:30 p.m. service
• Easter Vigil, April 19: Hand out bulletins and candles at the 8 p.m. service
• Easter Morning, April 20: Hand out bulletins and welcome people at the 8 a.m., 9 a.m., and 11 a.m. services

Easter Flowers Offerings

Flower Offerings are collected through Palm Sunday, April 13. Special envelopes are in the narthex. If you would like to have your gift in honor or memory of a loved one, please print their name legibly on the line provided.

You can also give online below!

Easter Vigil Potluck

Bring your favorite family dish to the potluck celebration following the Easter Vigil Service on Saturday, April 19. Sign-up to bring food or volunteer to set-up, serve, or clean-up.

Have questions?

Please email Katie Valchar or call 919-780-0821

One Book, One Diocese



As part of our Lenten offerings, this is our third year participating in the Peace and Justice Commission’s One Book, One Diocese reading project as a joint offering for St. Martin’s and St. James. 

This year we are reading War Made Invisible by Norman Solomon. Copies of the book are available at Amazon in paperback or E-book. Copies are available to borrow at both churches as well.

Canons Balke and Griffin will facilitate a 3-week discussion on this text via Zoom on Thursdays, March 27, April 3 and April 10 at 6:00 p.m. Please call or email the office to receive an invitation to the Zoom meetings.

Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. in Meeting Rm.1

The Disciple’s Way

Join us this Lenten season for a devotional book study. Newly published for this Lent, The Disciple’s Way is a series of daily reflections by current leaders of The Episcopal Church to guide our exploration of being a disciple of Jesus in the world today.

The book can be purchased here and St. James has copies available to borrow. Please contact Steven Balke for more information.

March 9 - April 25, 2025

Icons: Windows into Heaven Exhibit

Icons are more than artistic creations; they are expressions of faith that bridge the material and the spiritual, the historical and the eternal. They provide a tangible connection to the divine in both public worship and personal devotion.

We invite you to come and view the ICONS: Windows Into Heaven exhibit on display in Kyle's Place Gallery, 65 E Huron Street, March 9-April 15, 2025.

For more information, please find the brochure here 

LGBTQ+ Affinity Group

 A new small group is taking shape at St. James Cathedral! All interested parties are invited to join in this gathering of members of the LGBTQ+ community and allies. The group will gather for monthly meetings to share fellowship and informal support during these times of challenge in our broader community. The group's leadership has also identified a goal of forming connections and building community with other LGBTQ+/allied Christians throughout Chicago, as well as performing community service as a witness to God's love for all. 

If you are interested in learning more, please contact St. James parishioner Russell Hatch

Inspired by Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde’s January 21 post-inauguration sermon pleading for mercy for immigrants and those in the LGBTQ+ community, the St. James Cathedral Chapter unanimously voted to support two organizations focused on these populations in Chicago.

Diocese of Chicago Sanctuary Committee



The Sanctuary Committee, created by Diocesan Convention in 2019 and formalized in 2024, connects with other local and national sanctuary communities and institutions, immigrant rights groups and coalitions, and engages in educating, organizing, advocacy and direct action to ensure the safety and security of the undocumented community. The committee assists in equipping congregations, clergy, and lay leaders to engage in this work based on their local contexts, capacity, and discernment and implementing the work called for by convention resolutions.

Our 2025 Lenten Appeal will not only support the work of the Sanctuary Committee, but also the Asylum Seekers Emergency Fund, established to help meet the immediate needs of the newest Chicagoans and help put them on a path to independence.

St. Martin's-A Safe Space for LGBTQ+ People



Located in Chicago’s historic Austin neighborhood, St. Martin’s Episcopal Church was founded in 1878 and is one of the few safe spaces for support and community building among LGBTQ+ people on Chicago’s West Side. St. Martin’s plays a vital role in responding both to the needs of their immediate neighborhood as well as their broader context. St. Martin’s describe themselves as” a small congregation with a huge heart for all of God’s people.”



Our 2025 Lenten Appeal will support direct outreach and our growing partnership with St. Martin’s work for the LGBTQ+ community on Chicago’s West Side.



To Donate

Write “Lenten Appeal” on your check or envelope memo or donate online by visiting SaintJamesCathedral.org/give and choosing “ 2025 Lenten Appeal” under Fund.

In our Prayers at St. James

Commended to the prayers of the cathedral community: Brenda, Ellen, Richard, Ginger, Jane, John, Loya, Andronica, Ibukun, Ted, Nancy, Lois, Bob, Mary, Scott, Hazel, Hollis, Sara Jane, Frederick, Yvonne, Sandra, Lee, Greg, Tom, Ann, Kaye, Juan, Patrick, Joy, Dayna, Amy

Those who have died and have been commended to the prayers of the cathedral community:  Philip Buckland, Barbara Spence

All those who have died by gun violence in the city of Chicago: Quentan, Sammaquis, Jamie, Jerry, Isaiah

Diocesan Cycle of Prayer: For our bishop, Paula, our Presiding Bishop, Sean; and for Congregations in the Elgin Deanery: St. Simon in Arlington Heights; St. Michael in Barrington; St. Mark in Barrington Hills; St. Martin in Des Plaines; Companion Dioceses of SE Mexico and Renk: San Andrés in Veracruz; St. Michael in Paloch

Restore. Reimagine. Rebuild.

St. James Capital Campaign Prayer

Faithful God, you call us to be living stones in a spiritual temple.

Bless the mission and outreach of this cathedral church.

By the power of your Holy Spirit, enable us confidently to restore its fabric,

trustfully to reimagine our vocation, and boldly to renew our ministries in your name.

Make this place a house in which your love dwells

and in which all your people find welcome.

Grant this, we pray, through the One who leads us ever onwards in your service, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.