Dear Parishioners, I mentioned in a recent homily that my favorite prayer over the last few years has become the simple, short prayer: “Come, Holy Spirit.” That’s it. Just those three words. Yes, that counts as a prayer. I have a lot of favorite prayers–the Memorare, the Suscipe, the Anima Christi, to name a few–but "Come, Holy Spirit" cuts the deepest to my heart. Let me explain. First, I like its brevity. I think you know that about me by now. I’m pretty economical. There’

I think it’s safe to say that Jesus’ words from today’s Gospel are consoling: “In my father’s house there are many dwelling places. If there were not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you also may be.”

Please join us for our next book club meeting where we will discuss Family Matters by Rohinton Mistry. All are welcome!

I was recently interviewed about the Anointing of the Sick for a series being done on the sacraments.

Over 60,000 moms in need come to us each year. At Catholic Charities we provide vital services like food, housing, and diapers for families throughout Cook and Lake counties. Offering support at a critical moment often changes the course of a mom’s life. Your gift this Mother’s Day gives hope to moms who need it most. Join us!

We celebrate the first of our First Communion liturgies as more than 200 children receive the Eucharist this year. Please keep these children and their families in your prayers as they take this important step in their faith journey.

Support the annual Misericordia Candy Days as volunteers collect donations after Mass. Your generosity helps provide care and opportunities for individuals with developmental disabilities.

Altar Server Training will be held on Tuesday, May 19, 2026, in the St. Paul of the Cross Upper Church.

We invite you to join us as we gather to pray the Rosary in a beautiful, 30-minute service accompanied by music & candlelight.

Sponsor A Raised Bed in our Vegetable Garden to Feed the Hungry! Sponsoring our parish vegetable garden means planting, watering, and harvesting your own 4’x4’ raised bed throughout the growing season.

Thomas certainly had some audacity in asking–no, demanding–to see the nail marks of the risen Christ. It would have been like Peter wanting to see the rooster again that had crowed. The nail marks should not have been something Thomas, or any of the other apostles, would have wanted to see.

Please Join Us for Faith & Film as we watch and discuss Mary, Life After Jesus: The Road to Ephesus.

Around the middle of Lent I did the Stations of the Cross with our religious education program. It was a “teaching Stations,” where I explained each Station in our church and pointed out some of the features of the paintings. We have beautiful Stations and there are many interesting little symbols discretely portrayed in each of the paintings. One of the symbols throughout the corpus has to do with sight and seeing.

Thanks be to God—we are an Easter people! This means that the Resurrection of Jesus Christ—the truth that He lives today—guides every aspect of our lives. For us, Easter is not simply a day of remembrance; it is a way of life. We have a mission, given by Jesus to the apostles and handed down to us in our own time, to invite others into that same way of life.

The SPC School Board will have two (2) open positions for the upcoming 2026–27 school year. We invite parents and parish members to consider taking a leadership role by serving on the school board.

A question I am frequently asked this time of year is, “Father, is your bracket busted?” Yes, yes, my bracket is busted. Every year. And in more ways than one.

I have been reading recently the poetry of Father Abram Ryan, an American who was ordained in 1860 and was known as “the poet priest.” His poetry has beautiful imagery and a melancholic tone (fitting for Lent, I think). It is deep too. For instance, look at this stanza from his poem, Sea Dreamings (1883): Life, only life, can understand a life; Depth, only depth, can understand the deep. The dew-drop glistening on the lily’s face Can never learn the story of the sea

We will have a Family Mass this Sunday, March 15th at 10:30 a.m. in the HFC. Our next family Mass will be next month, Sunday, April 19th.

Our Gospel this Sunday is the healing of the man born blind from John chapter 9. The scene is a dramatic one involving a rather eventful trial with parents being called in as witnesses and the defendant arguing with the plaintiffs (the Pharisees). The Pharisees ultimately did not care about the defendant and the truth. They were merely trying to discredit Jesus.

Dear Parishioners, In praying these past several days about the Samaritan woman at the well (our Gospel for this third Sunday of Lent), I’ve had the image of a rose in my mind. Well, actually, it’s two roses I’ve had in mind. I’ve included here a painting by Edouard Manet from 1882 to illustrate what I mean. I picture our Lord and the Samaritan woman as these roses. There is a love being exchanged there, and what greater symbol of love is there than a rose? But these aren’t