OP_101019

20 | October 10, 2019 | the orland Park Prairie faith
OPPrairiedaily.com
Pastor Column
Finding beauty
The Rev. Michael Foley
Our Lady of the Woods
Sometimes beauty
can be found in the
most unlikely of
places.
The image accompanying
this article is of a
flower taken in one of the
cruelest places on earth.
The photo was taken at
Auschwitz–Birkenau,
the largest extermination
camp of the Nazi’s during
World War II.
In 2016, I led a group of
young pilgrims and their
adult chaperones to World
Youth Day in Poland. It
FAITH BRIEFS
St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church
(15050 S. Wolf Road, Orland Park)
Novena to St. Peregrine
7 p.m. Mondays through
Nov. 4. St. A Novena to St.
Peregrine, the patron of
healing those who suffer
with cancer and other serious
illnesses.
Trivia Night Fundraiser
6:30 p.m. Saturday, Oct.
19, Upton Hall. Tickets
will be $15 per person or
$150 for a table. Prizes
will be awarded for the
first-, second- and thirdplace
teams.
Presbyterian Church in Orland Park
(13401 S. Wolf Road, Orland Park)
Trunk or Treat
1-3 p.m. Sunday, Oct.
27. Rain or shine. Everyone
welcome.
Church of the Transfiguration Episcopal
(12219 S. 86th Ave., Palos Park)
Sunday Services
8 a.m. and 10 a.m.
Childcare provided.
was a grace-filled experience
in so many ways.
Before and after participating
in the liturgies
and events of those days,
we visited a number of
historical sites, and one of
these was the concentration
camp that is famous
for the evil perpetuated
there.
Walking through Birkenau
there was a sense
of deep quiet. We were
standing on a place where
evil showed its face in the
banality and efficiency of
a killing machine.
We walked along the
railroad track where
victims were unloaded
and sent to the death for
the “sin” of being Jewish.
We gazed at the photos of
mothers holding their children
close to them, knowing
that within hours of
when the photo was taken,
they were all dead and
their bodies destroyed.
One of the young persons
from my parish cried
and pondered allowed,
“How can people do this?
It is an age-old questioned
that philosophers
and saints have also pondered.
It was at a spot near
the now-destroyed gas
chambers that I spotted
this flower growing. I took
its photo as a reminder
that, even in the midst of
evil, something beautiful
can grow. I believe this
with all my heart.
Life is a battle between
life and death, beauty and
desolation. Spring and
autumn remind us of this
truth.
Already the leaves are
beginning to turn, and
soon the foliage of the
trees will radiate with an
abundance of colors. The
reds and orange that break
forth so beautifully are
actually a calling card of
desolation. Their beauty
will not last, as the trees
shed their foliage.
St. Michael Church (14327 Highland
Ave., Orland Park)
Shawl Ministry
9-10:30 a.m. second
and fourth Tuesdays of the
month. The group crochets
and knits hats, shawls,
scarves for adults and children,
and donates those to
neighbors, friends, cancer
units, hospice, the food
pantry and neonatal units.
The group also meets six
times a year in the evening.
For more information,
contact Donna at
(708) 403-2122.
Southwest Seventh Day Adventist
Church (15760 Wolf Road, Orland
Park)
Worship
10 a.m. Saturday
St. Elizabeth Seton Catholic Church
(9300 W. 167th St., Orland Hills)
Sunday Services
7:15, 8:30, 10 and 11:30
a.m.
Ashburn Baptist Church (153rd Street
and Wolf Road, Orland Park)
Bible Study
9:45 a.m.
Hope Covenant Church (14401 West
Ave., Orland Park)
It is good to remember
that neither will the desolation
of winter. Life will
break through once again
when spring returns.
As a person of faith, I
do not believe in death
without resurrection. I do
not accept that darkness
will win over light.
It is a mystery imprinted
Alzheimer’s Support Group
7:30-8:30 p.m. second
Monday of each month.
Aishling Companion
Home Care, a support
group facilitator, hosts
monthly meetings to provide
emotional, educational
and social support for
family and friends of individuals
with Alzheimer’s
disease or related dementia.
For more information,
visit www.alz.org.
Calvary Church (16100 S. 104th Ave.,
Orland Park)
Men’s Barnabas Bible
Study
7-8:30 a.m. Thursdays.
Study various books written
by Christian authors.
in the changing seasons
and rooted in faith. It is
even found in a blooming
flower in a place of great
desolation.
The opinions of this column
are those of the writer. They
do not necessarily reflect
those of The Orland Park
Prairie.
Coffee and light refreshments
are served. For
more information, email
info@calvaryop.org.
Christ Lutheran Church (14700 S. 94th
Ave., Orland Park)
Services
5 p.m. Saturdays; 8 a.m.,
9:30 and 11 a.m. Sundays.
Sunday School and Bible
study during the 9:30 a.m.
service.
Have something for Faith
Briefs? Contact Editor Bill
Jones at bill@opprairie.com
or call (708) 326-9170 ext.
20. Information is due by
noon on Thursdays one week
prior to publication.
Resident Poet
‘A Friend—
Anytime!’
Susanne Cabrini Marie
Orland Park resident
When you really need
an ear,
Is there someone there
to hear?
Or are your pals all too
busy—
Chasing money, in a
tizzy?
Sometimes we leave
messages on their
phones,
Trying to disguise our
desperate tones.
Isn’t it funny how when
all is well,
They gather around
you, thinking you’re
swell?
Who can you turn to in
times of stress—
When your life seems
like a sorry mess?
There is a great friend
waiting in heaven
above,
A Man who wants to
give you all of His love.
Talk to Jesus out loud or
in silent prayer.
He’s always with you,
anytime, anywhere!
Remember to thank
Him for all that is good;
And, reach out to others
in your neighborhood.
Tell people about Jesus—praise
and spread
the Word;
And, know that your
prayers are always,
always heard!