A very blessed All Souls Day to you! Catholics refer to the month of November as the “Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory” – an opportunity to take the spirit of All Souls Day (November 2) and to observe it all month long, recalling those who have gone before us marked with the sign of faith. Many parishes provide what they call a Wall of Remembrance, often a bulletin board in the church vestibule, […]
We just finished 40 days of Lent in order to prepare to celebrate 50 days of Easter! During Lent, we practice specific disciplines: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. So how do we “practice” Easter? We certainly don’t give up on praying and almsgiving, although those are colored now more by joyful gratitude than penance. But what does it mean to move from fasting to feasting? Feasting is not to be associated with gluttony. Feasting, for Catholics, […]
Alleluia! He is Risen! Here are pics from the Easter Vigil so beautifully celebrated at St. Julie Billiart Parish in Tinley Park, IL. Awaiting the Vigil in darkness 6 young adults await baptism The lighting of the Easter fire The Exsultet beautifully proclaimed by John Thomas of Liturgy Training Publications Alleluia!!! The Litany of Saints I baptize you… Renewal of baptismal promises White garments Approaching the altar for the first time
Today we celebrate the great feast of the Resurrection. As catechists, we know that Easter is more than one day; it’s a full season. Let us rejoice! Enjoy this year’s Easter reflection from all of us at Loyola Press.
For years, my wife and I bless our Easter foods at home: bread which reminds us of the Bread of Life, meats which remind us that Jesus became flesh, dairy foods that remind us of the richness of the Kingdom, herbs and spices that remind us of the flavors of life including bitterness, and wine to symbolize the Holy Spirit! A blessed Easter to all!
Here are some pics from Holy Thursday, Mass of the Lord’s Supper at St. Julie Billiart Parish in Tinley Park, IL, followed by visits to Altars of Reposition at 3 other parishes as part of our tradition of visiting churches on Holy Thursday evening. Mass of the Lord’s Supper – Incensing the altar Presentation of the Holy Oils Washing of Feet Transfer of the Blessed Sacrament Altars of Reposition: St. Julie, St. Alexander, Sacred Heart […]
As we journey through this holiest of weeks, and especially the Triduum, I invite you to reflect and respond to one or both of the following questions: Which character(s) in the Passion story do you find most intriguing (whether they are inspiring or tragic) and why? If you could paint a picture or create a sculpture of one moment in the story of Christ’s Passion, what would it be and why? I invite you to share […]
So here I am doing my civic duty as a standby juror at the Bridgeview Courthouse! So far, I’ve had lots of time to get some writing done as I sit here waiting. We’ll see how long that lasts! Tonight, I’ll be taking my sixth graders to the Living Stations of the Cross being performed by our eighth graders. It is a good Holy Week experience for them and is done very prayerfully. Here is […]
The current TV mini-series The Bible is drawing large audiences and mixed reviews from critics. I haven’t watched it yet but plan to tune in especially for the New Testament segments. As always, watch with a critical eye and take note of discrepancies with Scripture (Hollywood likes to embellish!) to point out to those you teach. In the meantime, a film that has withstood the test of time is Franco Zeffirelli’s Jesus of Nazareth. An […]
Thanks to the speedy and careful work of my colleagues Nick Yonto and Rosemary Lane, the recording of the LentenWebinar is now available!
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