October 3, 2021: The Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

PARISH NEWSLETTER

The Church of St. Mary :: 201 E. Illinois Lake Forest, IL 60045

Parish Office Hours: 8:30am to 4:00pm Monday - Friday

Phone: (847) 234.0205 :: Email: receptionist@churchofstmary.org

www.churchofstmary.org :: https://www.facebook.com/ChurchofStMaryLF/

During the month of October there will be opportunities for parishioners and guests of St. Mary to stand up for life, from conception to natural death. May our witness of faith for all human life guide us and strengthen us as individuals and as a community of believers.

Some opportunities at the Church of St. Mary include...

Support of the Lake County PADS program, on the second Friday of the month, October – April, Deacon Jack Herrmann works with parishioners in providing meals for the guests of PADS Lake County.

Support of the Baby Bottle Project that helps support the Aid for Women agency: www.aidforwomen.org/

Support of the 40 Days for Life Prayer Vigil - www.40daysforlife.com/en/ – you are invited to join parishioners on Thursday afternoons in Waukegan at 1:00pm in praying the rosary. Please contact Terry Darraugh for more information about where to meet at tdarraugh@gmail.com.

Support the parishioners that feed the hungry at the Most Blessed Trinity Food Soup Kitchen on the third Friday of each month.

Support Catholic Charities and their work in aiding Afghan refugees as they get settled in a new land and country. (Details will be forthcoming about this effort in future bulletins.)

May our support and prayers of these and other respect life actions demonstrate to one and all our respect for the dignity of all human life, made in the image and likeness of God.

This coming Thursday, October 7, the Roman Catholic Church celebrates the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. All are invited to attend the 7:30am Mass and pray the rosary this Thursday.

On Mondays through Saturdays, the rosary is recited at St. Mary’s following the 7:30am morning Mass. Some people spend time with “Mary in the Garden” on the east side of our church. Families pray the rosary in their homes. People pray the rosary while they are driving to and from one appointment or another. The rosary is prayed every Wednesday evening during adoration at 6:30pm.

During the month of October, the Parish Staff and Parish Council are encouraging parishioners to reach out and pray the rosary with someone. You may reach out to a neighbor or friend that you haven’t seen as regularly as you would want during the COVID-19 pandemic. Maybe you will Zoom or Facetime with someone across the country or world to pray together. If someone reaches out to you, or if you reach out to someone else, you are invited to share a picture or a photo of your time together in prayer. Please send those images to Melissa Haak at mhaak@schoolofstmary.org who will help put together a digital compilation of St. Mary’s reaching out to others and praying the rosary together. The Guild of St. Mary will be hosting a rosary weekly during the month of October (please see the schedule later in this email). In addition to these public gatherings, you are invited and encouraged to reach out to a friend, pray the rosary together honoring our Blessed Mother.

With the guidance of the Parish Finance Council and support of the Parish Council, we regularly address maintenance and capital projects that maintain and improve our campus. After a long delay, this week began the much needed tuck pointing of St. Mary’s church. It took several months for the bricks to arrive for the project. The tuck pointing helps keep nature outside of the church and allows the beauty of the interior to remain intact.

Here is some information regarding the tuck pointing project at our parish. The work will take place on the southwest, south, southeast, and northeast sides/corners of the church. There should be no impact to the North Front Doors. The lift and materials will be stationed in the southwest corner of the Green Bay Road parking lot next to the UGC Gym and close to the Green Bay Road entrance. There will be times the construction crew will need to block the Green Bay Road entrance when moving the lift/materials. A small construction protective canopy will be built over the South Entrance to the church to protect parishioners. It is our goal to keep the South Doors open as much as possible, but we may have to close them during parts of the day when they start to work on the South façade. We will keep you updated as to the progress made on this and other maintenance projects as they unfold. Weather will dictate the length of the tuck pointing project at the parish this fall.

Next Saturday we are recognizing couples celebrating their 25^th wedding anniversary. Couples will attend the 5:00pm Mass and receive a blessing on the occasion of their Silver Anniversary. Since we were not able to gather couples together in 2020, if you celebrated your silver wedding anniversary last year, please call the Parish Office and let us know if you can attend the Mass on Saturday. We would be very happy to include you.

May God bless us with compassionate hearts, respecting all life.

On Tuesday, September 28, over 25 men attended the launch and first meeting of the Church of St. Mary's “That Man Is You” program. We are thrilled at the turnout and enthusiasm shown by all who attended. The Holy Spirit is with us!

Please join us for our next meeting on Tuesday, October 5 at 7:00pm in the Parish Center Conference Room for fellowship as we journey spiritually with this program. “That Man is You” is open to all men 18 years old and over. The meetings take place every Tuesday from 7:00-8:30pm.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact Deacon Bob Thomas at bthomas@churchofstmary.org

We look forward to having you join us!!!!

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION

Learn more about the School of St. Mary!

Please join Mandy Castle, Director of Admissions, at one of our October Admissions events to learn more about the programs offered at the School of St. Mary. Most of the programs are virtual, current and prospective students are encouraged to attend.

Friday, October 1 - Virtual Kindergarten Information Session

Friday, October 8 - Virtual Early Elementary (1st-3rd)

Friday, October 22 - Virtual 4th Grade Information Session

Friday, October 29 - Virtual 5th Grade Information Session

All sessions start at 9:30am and can be accessed at this link. Please reach out to Mandy Castle, Director of Admissions, at mcastle@schoolofstmary.org for more information.

HOLY COMMUNION TO THOSE IN CARS

In the months ahead, we will be offering you the opportunity to come and receive the gift of the Eucharist in Holy Communion from your cars. This will take place on the last Sunday of each month, our next opportunity will be Sunday, October 31. All are welcome. This opportunity is especially for those who are not able to worship in person at St. Mary’s.

Please follow the directions below:

Starting at 1:00pm, after the congregation leaves the Noon Mass, cars may line up entering from the east Oakwood entrance.
Driving through the parking lot, proceed under the school breezeway and drive behind the church, stopping by the south church/elevator entrance where the priest will be.
Please stay in your car, with a mask fully covering your nose and mouth, waiting in prayer to receive the Eucharist.
The priest will process from car to car, offering the Eucharist.
After you receive the Eucharist you can pull over, parking your car in the parking lot, offering a prayer of thanksgiving for the gift of Jesus in the Eucharist.

CHURCH SCHEDULE

SCHEDULE: Saturday, October 2 - Sunday, October 10, 2021

Saturday, October 2, 2021:

+ 7:30am: Livestream & PUBLIC MASS

+ 8:00am: Reconciliation in Church

+ 5:00pm: Livestream Sunday Mass & PUBLIC MASS

Sunday, October 3, 2021:

+ 8:00am: PUBLIC MASS

+ 10:00am: Livestream & PUBLIC MASS

+ 12:00pm: PUBLIC MASS

+1:00pm: Communion to those in cars

Monday, October 4, 2021: