Historic St. James at Sag Bridge Church 10600 S. Archer Avenue | Lemont, Illinois 60439-9344 | (Ph) 630.257.7000 | (Fx) 630.257.7912
Email: [email protected] | Website: www.historicstjames.org Facebook: https://Facebook.com/Saint James At Sag Bridge
Altar & Rosary Society MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! The St. James Altar and Rosary Society wish you and
your family the blessings of the season. May all your holiday dreams come true. This is the Holiday we have waited for all year. Relish in the joy and peace you feel when
you enter our historic St. James at Sag Church to celebrate Christmas Mass.
Pres: Barbara 708.257.9129 V.P. Linda 630.257.8252 Sec: Judi 630.243.9414 Treas: Chris 708.330.5216
WEEKENDS: Saturdays: 5:00pm & Sundays: 8:30, 10:00 & 11:30am HOLY DAYS: 7:00am & 7:00pm
WEEKDAYS: Mon, Tue, Thu 8:15am & Fri 6:00pm
WEDNESDAY: Adoration at 5:00pm & Mass 7:00pm
CONFESSION SCHEDULE: Wednesdays 6:15-7:00pm & Saturdays 9:30-10:00am otherwise by appointment.
BAPTISMS, WEDDINGS & FUNERALS: Contact the rectory office.
SICK & HOMEBOUND PASTORAL CARE: Please notify rectory.
RECTORY OFFICE HOURS: Wed, Thu & Fri: 9:00am to 2:00pm.
CLERGY: Fr. Tom Koys, M.A.,S.T.L., Pastor, Fr. Edward Gleeson, Pastor Emeritus Fr. Robert Coleman, Resident Deacon John Wilkinson, C.K.M. Deacon Doug Szarzynski
Mass Schedule
A Christmas Prayer Lord Jesus,
It is another Christmas to remember of your birth. To recall your goodness for being born to save us.
Lord Jesus, Thank you for being amongst us.
Forgive us for our sins. Lord Jesus,
This Christmas make it special for those who are sick, bring healing to their lives.
Be with those who are dying, and comfort them with your love. Help the broken families, to be reunited through your grace. For all those who persecute the Church and live a life of des-
pair, give them your peace in a mysterious way. Lord Jesus,
Thank you for being such a lovely gi to all those who have faith.
Strengthen their faith, to con nue to share your love with others.
Be with us, as we share the Good News. Make this Christmas, a blessing for all.
December 22, 2019
New Year’s Mass Schedule Dec 31st, Vigil 7pm Holy Mother of God Jan 1st, 10am & 11:30am
Page Two December 22, 2019
FROM THE DESK OF, FR. THOMAS KOYS, M.A.,S.T.L., PASTOR
This 4th Sunday of Advent brings us to the brink of Christmas so our attention must be on this incredible celebration of God’s Incarnation. It can be said that appreciating the Incarnation is identical to appreciat-ing the Eucharist. It cannot be overstated that the rea-son for the season of Christmas is most revealed to us as we grow in appreciation and love for the “Incarnation”. It also cannot be overstated that the real meaning of the Mass, is most revealed to us as we grow in appreciation and love for the miracle of “transubstantiation”. I realize I am hitting you with two $65 words; but stay with me and do not be afraid. I’ll break it down. Incarnation comes from “carne” or flesh. St John’s gospel says it beautifully, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” This is so important because believing in a God who became flesh is a lot harder to believe in than a God who re-mains invisible and beyond our senses. To believe in God is easier when that God remains undefined mys-terious and exists in some other kind of world. After all, who has seen God? Why do we all feel, even if we believe in God that God is beyond us? Maybe because He is. God who is “transcendent” is found in all of the world’s religions. Judaism of the Old Testament believes in the God of Abraham, Isaac & Jacob who spoke through prophets and revealed Himself in pow-erful signs. The Islamic idea of divinity is so trans-cendent, so much above us humans that it is consid-ered a blasphemy to say that us humans can enter into a loving relationship with God. Christianity however says that this transcendent, totally indefinable God took on flesh in Bethlehem in the year 1AD. (more or less) The second person of the Blessed Trinity became a man. This is one mind-blowing fact. To return to the Mass, our faith asks us to make the same kind of act of faith that the Blessed Virgin Mary made when she gazed on her child and said, “this is Emmanuel, God with us”. You see, if you receive the Sacred Host without making this act of faith in the real presence of Christ you are behaving more like the bystanders who may have seen the star of Bethlehem but just dis-missed it. This is why no matter what I as a priest or any local or international liturgy committee might do with the Mass, the heart and soul of the Eucharist can’t be altered.
The deep mystery of our Lord’s presence must remain in its center. Transubstantiate is an official term we use to keep this central mystery central. Do not get bent out of shape if you find it difficult to understand, in a way, we’re not suppose to understand. The hosts that begin as bread, whose substance or nature is bread are transformed into the Body, Blood, Soul and
Divinity of that same second person of the Blessed Trinity who was en-fleshed in the manger. It’s just that today Bethlehem is now our tongues.
With this in mind, I would like to ask more people to consider the option of kneeling for Our Lord at the Communion rail. There is something reverent (difficult to explain) when you kneel before receiving the Lord. Look at Mary and Joseph in every Christ-mas creche. Try it, you’ll see. (Unless, of course, your kneels won’t allow you to get back up once you kneel down)
Look for your hiking boots and join the 6TH ANNUAL ST. STEVEN’S DAY HIKE in our beautiful forest pre-serves. Meet at St. James at 9:30am, dress appropri-ately, and bring a water bottle and a snack. This year, will explore the “Grand Canyon” of the forest.
A great educational series begins here at St. James, Tuesday, Jan 7, 2020. Two sessions: 9am & 7pm. We will study the very important Encyclical Veritatis Splendor. More info will be available soon.
Our ANNUAL YOUTH PILGRIMAGE TO D.C. FOR THE MARCH FOR LIFE is around the corner. This year, we lowered to price some to help more teens participate. By doing this, our parish will run the trip in “in the red”. (the bus alone costs over $5,000) If you can help defray the cost of this important youth activity, please make a check to St. James, and simply note, “DC March” on the check. Thank you for helping.
Fourth Sunday of Advent Page Three
COULD WE CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS BY GIVING LESS TO EACH OTHER & KEEPING
THE FOCUS ON FAITH AND FAMILY? by Laura Kelly Fanucci Every year my sister and I make the same prom-ise to each other. "One year, we're not going to do presents at all," we declare over the phone. "And it will be the best Christmas ever."
Our kids are all still at home, eager Christmas lovers, so we haven't yet been able to make good on our dreams of a gift-free holiday. But I day-dream of a December free from shopping lists and shipping stress.
I know I'm not alone. The average American will spend $700 on Christmas gifts this year. This season of cheer is also an overload of consump-tion.
Ironically, the greatest gifts on the first Christmas were given freely. Mary and Joseph's love for Je-sus. The shepherds' wonder. The angels' glorious song. The star's guiding light. The goodness of God incarnate.
Could we celebrate Christmas by giving less to each other and keeping the focus on faith and family?
It can be tricky to transform long-standing tradi-tions, especially when it comes to the holidays. But it also brings a breath of fresh air to let the Holy Spirit inspire our exchanges of love in new ways.
Years ago, our family switched to celebrating the octave of Christmas. Now we open one present each morning for the eight days from Dec. 25 through Jan. 1. The kids love this tradition, run-ning downstairs every morning to see what small surprise might be waiting under the tree.
Rather than buy each child eight presents, we've found that we can fill up the octave with gifts from grandparents, godparents, aunts, uncles and sib-lings. We start with stockings on Christmas morn-ing and then add a few gifts from us: books for everyone one day, a surprise outing another night.
Switching to the octave -- from one manic morning of unwrapping -- has been such a gift for our fami-ly. We get to stretch out the Christmas celebration. We avoid the Dec. 26 "letdown." We've put the focus back on enjoying time together.
If you've ever felt stressed by December shopping (or felt the regret from credit card statements in January), consider bringing this question to prayer: How does my celebration of Christmas honor the Christ Child -- the humble baby born into poverty?
Might the Spirit whisper ways that you could cele-brate differently this year?
Here are a Few Ideas to Ponder: -- Give to others first. Prioritize your charitable giv-ing before deciding how much to spend on family and friends.
-- Simplify your gift-giving. Buy secondhand or fair trade items. Try homemade gifts or regifting some-thing you own. (Our extended family has found more fun with a goofy gift exchange -- limited to things we already own or purchases under $10 -- than with anything else on Christmas Day.)
-- Give the gift of time. Sharing an experience with a loved one brings more lasting memories than most presents we can wrap. (Hint for grandpar-ents: A museum membership or tickets to an event can be a welcome alternative, especially when parents feel overwhelmed by the influx of new toys.)
-- Follow an easy formula for kids if you can't resist buying gifts: something they want, something they need, something to wear and something to read. Four simple categories for fun.
However you choose to celebrate Christmas, let your faith guide your giving. Buying less is a great first step: to focus on Christ, resist greed and bring relief to your budget and the environment.
"Christmas is preferring the silent voice of God to the noisiness of consumerism," said Pope Francis.
When it comes to giving, we need this good news -- now more than ever.
Our weekly Offertory collections from the week-ends of December 15th, December 22nd, Decem-ber 29th and January 5, 2020 reporting will be de-layed due to early submission to the bulletin pub-lisher.
OUR MANY THANKS TO OUR REGISTERED FAMILIES USING ENVELOPES &THE
CASH-AND-CARRY FOLKS.
Our CHURCH CLEANERS FOR FRI – 12/27/19 Are Chris, Judi, Bronislawa & volunteers. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact the
rectory office at 630.257.7000.
VOTIVE OFFERINGS FOR THE WEEK OF 12/22/19 St. James Altar & Rosary Society Preservation of St. James All the Poor Souls in Purgatory
Our beautiful bouquets of flowers surrounding our altar were made by the generosity of the
Parishioners of St. James
CHRISTMAS 12/24 & 12/25/19
Celebrant Altar Servers
Lectors
5:00 PM Tues, 12/24/19
Fr. Tom Koys
Ramirez Ramirez Ramirez
Pieprzyca C. Zarzycki
Midnight Tues, 12/24/19
Fr. Tom Koys
J. Beecher J. Beecher Lawler
R. Augustyn
10:00 AM Wed, 12/25/19
Fr. Tom Koys
N. Akroush S. Bruin J.P. & M. Colarelli A. Pawlikowski
Dillenburg J. Jackson
11:30 AM Wed, 12/25/19
Fr. Tom Koys
D. & G. Estrada S. Imbarrato M. & J. Tirabassi
J. DeRoche M. Flecken- stein
MONDAY, DECEMBER 23RD St. John Kanty 8:15 AM Joseph E. Slowik
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 24TH Christmas Eve 5:00 PM Desirea Soukal MidnightConstance Formanek
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 25TH Christmas 8:30 AM NO MASS 10:00 AM The Pabin Family 11:30 AM Louis & Liane DeSitter Thanksgiving & Blessings ~ The Fugiel Family
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 26TH St. Stephen 8:15 AM Margaret Mulkeen
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 27TH St. John 6:00 PM Juan Coronado
Holy Family of Jesus, Mary & Joseph SATURDAY, DECEMBER 28TH The Holy Innocents 5:00 PM Anthony Marino
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 29TH 8:30 AM Heidi Dods 10:00 AM Bill Channell 11:30 AM Iris & Guy Tessitore
HOLY FAMILY 12/28 & 12/29/19
Celebrant
Altar Servers
Lectors
5:00 PM 12/28/19
Fr. Tom Koys
J. Beecher J. Beecher
8:30 12/29/19
Fr. Tom Koys
A. Wilson M. Wilson M. Wilson
10:00 AM 12/29/19
Fr. Tom Koys
N. Akroush J. P. Colarelli M. Colarelli
11:30 AM 12/29/19
Fr. Tom Koys
D. Estrada G. Estrada S. Imbarrato
