St. Patrick Church, RE - Stpatricklemont.org

Page 2 APRIL 14, 2013
Perspectives From Fr. Kurt: Our Parish Family
The Third Sunday of Easter
Dear Parishioners and Friends of St. Patrick;
Last Sunday afternoon, April 7 th , I happily and proudly
made the drive up to Mundelein Seminary to be part of
the installation ceremony of Larry Oskielunas into the
official office of Reader. Larry is now one step closer to
serving us and the people of the Archdiocese of Chicago
as an ordained Permanent Deacon. It was great to be
with Larry, Roseanne his wife, their children, his Mom
and Dad, his classmates, their families, his teacher, and
Bishop Joseph Perry, Auxilliary Bishop of Chicago, to
celebrate this major step of faith in his life. As part of the
official ceremony, Larry received a white outer garment
known as an alb which is a “public statement” that he
desires to serve the Lord as one ordained among us. In
the weeks and months ahead, as Larry continues his studies,
discernment, and transition into the future role as a
public, ordained minister, you will see him wearing this
white robe as he proclaims the Word of God, shares the
body and blood of Jesus Christ, teaches us, prays with us
and shares his reflections among us of how the Gospel of
the Lord, Jesus calls us to greatness in the world today.
Congratulations Larry and Roseanne! We are very proud
of you both and promise our prayers for you and all your
loved ones.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for
your generous Easter contributions. As of this writing,
the Easter Collection is well above $16,000.00. I know
some were out of town this Easter to be with loved ones
throughout our country and beyond, so, I am sure the collection
results will need to be updated. Please remember,
as I am sure you already know, that the Good News of
the Gospel only has a chance to be shared in the world
today through your generosity and mine. Thank you
again for believing in the mission of Jesus Christ, our
Risen Savior.
This weekend, I hope you will join me in
welcoming Ms. Jane Doyle among us.
She will be speaking at all of the Masses
this weekend including the 5pm Tri-Parish
Sunday Mass. Jane is one of the leaders
of our Master Planning Committee, and
she will be speaking to us about what our
Capital Campaign can look like if we wish
to make some improvements to beautify these sacred
grounds as we celebrate 175 years together and beyond in
faith. Ultimately, you, the good people of St. Patrick’s
will let the committee and me know how to proceed. As
we journey together, I guess I would like to put this one
question before us all. If not now, when
Would you join me in prayer for our brothers
and sisters of faith at St. Cyril and
Methodius Parish right here in Lemont As
you probably know by now, a major transition
in leadership will be taking place by
this July 1 st . Our brothers and sisters down
the road and up the hill a bit, will be losing their
loving Pastor, Father Larry, and their fun filled,
smiley Associate, Father Marcin. Whenever I
stop by St. Cyril’s to help with various celebrations,
meetings, or gatherings, I am reminded of
how lucky I have been to be welcomed by two
outstanding priests who have continued to teach
me what it means to work with a team, a Tri-Parish model
of the Vatican II Church. Father Marcin, with all my
teasing, which you have accepted always in a good natured
way, I want you to know I have enjoyed very much
your youth-filled spirit in my life and in the life of the
community of Lemont. I and the people of St. Patrick,
wish you only the best! And to you, Father Larry, thank
you for warmly welcoming me to Lemont, calling us together
as brother priests, young and old alike, and loving
staffs. I will miss you amigo! All the best! Would you
like to come back as an inspiring speaker
Finally, dear friends, some health issues have recently
cropped into my life! Many of you who gather with me
in the journey of faith know this reality as well. I appreciate
your love, prayers, advice, and support during this
time.
So I know you want only the best for me as I want only
the best for you. In that spirit, I want you to know that I
am under a Doctor’s supervision at this time. I am undergoing
some testing procedures that may take a while to
produce results. What I do want you to know is this – the
issues I am dealing with are not life threatening. However,
under my Doctor’s recommendation, it is clear for
now some things have to change. This will definitely
involve how Communion is administered at major celebrations
here for the foreseeable future. There will be
more Eucharistic Ministers assigned and maybe even a
new “Communion Traffic Pattern” re-designed.
On a personal note, I will need to take more seriously my
diet, a regular exercise regimen, some time for rest on a
more regular basis, and in the words of my Spiritual Director,
realizing there is “only one Lord and Savior
among us!”
With Easter peace and joy,