News and Views from St. Patrick’s Catholic Church
By Your Pastor, Fr. Pete Jankowski

During the last calendar year, Deacon Paul and I have had the pleasure of baptizing over fifty children here at St. Patrick's. As I was reflecting on this number in preparation for my "news and notes," I was reminiscing about my first parish experience as a priest at St. Mary's Church in West Chicago where us priests and deacons used to celebrate fifty baptisms a month at the parish. Thank goodness eleven years have passed!

As we celebrate the end of our Christmas Season and the Solemnity of our Lord's baptism at the Jordan, I started to reflect on the promises that the parents make on the day of the baby's baptism. On behalf of their sacred child, the parents make a promise to uphold the teachings of the Church in their home in order to instill a sense of God's values in the life of the child.

I realize that making a promise in today's society is a difficult one. To bind oneself to a certain type of lifestyle requires one to condition the self in a manner that might seem uncomfortable. Sometimes people do not realize what this promise entails or how hard it is to keep. With the high divorce rate and the low Mass attendance it is evident in our country, we can see how the faithful, at times, are not able to sustain the vow that they profess in a marriage, a baptism, or some type of religious vocation.

And yet to keep the vow we must. Our salvation depends on it. As we conclude our Christmas Season this weekend, may all of us realize that is this vow that serves as the entry way to heaven and the means by which we live eternally with God.

God Bless,

P.S. I also wish to take this moment to thank all of you, both as pastor of St Patrick's and personally, for the kind notes and gifts that a great number of you have offered us. About ten months and twenty pounds from now, each of us in the rectory will have sam- pled all the wonderful foods that sit on the rectory counter. All of us (especially me) ap- preciate your service and love at our little corner church. Please know you are in our thoughts and prayers throughout the year.

Gloria Dei Vivens Homo (The Glory of God is Living in Man)
- St. Irenaeus of Lyons

Eucharistic Adoration is a time of silent prayer and the offering of your daily trials and physical pains for the good of those most in need of God's love; a time of re-creation and a newness of life.

Come join us on Monday evenings in Church for this intimate encounter with Jesus Christ, present in the Eucharist and a communal praying of the Rosary.

Catholic Ministries

Here at St. Patrick Parish, we have reached 66% of our goal, with $23,842 pledged as of November 27th. 216 of the 736 families at St. Patrick's have pledged. Let's make sure that we reach 100%. The ministries of the Diocese touch so many of our families and our neighbors that it is our responsibility to help our neighbors and friends. If you have not given even a one time gift, we urge you to prayerfully consider offering some of the monetary blessings you have through Christ. Please be generous. Thank You!

Over the last few weeks since I have spoken about our parish debt, a few of our parishioners have inquired as to our debt's status. I have been very uplifted by the generosity of many individuals in the parish who have assisted us with donations up to $1000. I am greatly humbled by one donation to the parish for $50,000 on behalf of our Adoration Chapel. Bishop Sartain mentioned in a recent Priest Council meeting that he is thinking about incorporating some items from Ss. Cyril & Methodius Parish (which just closed) into this new Adoration Chapel as a means of allowing the faithful from that Church to come and pray with us, if they wish. All we ask is your continued support to relieve this almost $150,000 debt. However you can help us would be appreciated. For the sake of our school and for the sake of our financial stability, we thank you in advance. for your help.

To date, we have collected over $14,300 for our 2nd To date, we have collected over $14,300 for our 2nd Annual Alumni Appeal. Last year, we collected over $25,000 for this event. Please be as generous as you can in helping us meet our goal this year of $25,000.

In the most recent Alumni Newsletter, we have included the names of our beloved alumni whose correct mailing addresses we do not possess. If you know the location or situation of these individuals (i.e., married, deceased, etc.) please contact our parish office ASAP so that we may correct this information. This would apply for parents who are receiving numerous news- letters in a home from which their children have moved or those who live in the Joliet area whose ad- dresses we do not have. Thank you for your help.

Over the 2007-2008 year, parishioners from St. Patrick's Catholic Church are invited to audit our RCIA Sessions in learning the basics of the Catholic Faith. Sessions generally run on Wednesdays from 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. in the Faculty Lounge of the School. As an effort to promote Adult Education in the parish, all members of our community over the age of 14 are welcome to join us for any or all of the sessions listed each week. For more information, please contact the parish office at (815) 7274746.

Baptism with Fr. Pete Jankowski. Fr. Pete will also be present to offer an Anointing Service (Oil of Catechumens) for those Catechumens preparing for baptism

The committee is busy working to prepare for Shamrock Gala 2008 at the Patrick Haley Mansion on the corner of Center and Marion Streets on February 2nd.

This formal evening is for adults, with a great sit down dinner, dancing, and the presentation of the Dominican Award. This year, the award will be presented to former pastor, Rev. Vytas Memenas for his 50 years of service to the Diocese of Joliet as a Priest.

There will be both silent and live auctions as well as unique and special events for the evening. There is also a raffle with cash and prizes. Make reservations to spend this evening with friends and family. Tickets for the Gala are $75 per guest. Raffle tickets are $10 per chance with a first prize of a one week vacation for 2 to Cancun, Mexico; a second prize of two round trip tickets to anywhere Southwest Airlines Flights and a third prize of $600 cash. Both the Gala and Raffle tickets are available at the Rectory or at the School Office during regular business hours.

Bring Your Old Palms Back to Church! As is tradition in the Catholic Church, we invite all of the faithful to bring their blessed palms from last year's Lenten Season back to church the weekends of January 19-20 and 26-27. We will them burn these palms in order to use them for our Ash Wednesday services on February 6. You may return your old palms to the Food Pantry closet, where a receptacle has been placed for this purpose. God Bless.

February 25th, March 3rd and March 10th at 7:00pm in Church. Join us for a 10 minute reflection with Fr. Pete and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. An opportunity for the Sacrament of Confession will also be available.

Natural Family Planning Classes are available throughout the year at St. Patrick's. Please contact John and Barbara Halbur at 815-727-3018.

Each week, St. Patrick's Vocation Cross travels from home to home throughout the parish as we pray for vocations to the priesthood and religious life. This week,

will care for the cross in their home. If you would like to participate, please contact the office (815) 727-4746.

• Market Day has an exciting offer that you won't want to miss! Remember that when you order at www.marketday.com in January, you're automatically entered in a contest to win exciting prizes! Prizes include a Disney Vacation package for four, IPods and $25 Best Buy cards! Simply place your order online-it's that easy! Order online at marketday.com until NOON on January 26th, 2008., If you have any questions or would like to volunteer to help, please call Theresa at 815-729-1897. We value your support, we're looking forward to reaching our fundraising goals!
  
  
• Jan 15 -Tuesday Ivan Dragicivic, one of the 6 Medjugorje visionaries, will be speaking at St. Peter Damian Church 6:00 to 9:00 P.M 109 S. Crest Ave. Bartlett, IL 60103 contact: Colleen 630-289-6401
  
  Other Illinois Locations:
  
  
  • Jan 21 - Monday
    Queen of Martyrs Church
    5:30PM - 9:00PM
    10233 S. Central Park Ave.
    Evergreen Park, IL. 60805
    708 423-8110 / 708-423-6323
    Fr. David Simonetti
    frsimonetti@queenofmartyrschurch.com
    
    
  • Jan 16 - Wednesday
    St. Patrick Parish 6:00 to 9:00 P.M.
    406 Walnut Street
    Yorkville, IL 60560
    Contact: Anita 630-552-3448 or 630-552-7117
    
    
  • Jan 18 - Friday
    St. Peter Church 6:00 to 9:00 pm
    1891 Kaneville Road
    Geneva, IL 60134
    Rev. Msgr. Joseph F. Jarmoluk
    Contact: Prayer group member - Mary Ann O'Reilly oreillyma@comcast.net
  
  
  
• Saturday, April 26, 2008: Dr. Brent Atkinson, a nationally known counselor, speaker, and author, will speak to married couples about "Breaking the Cana Code: Secrets of a Successful Marriage." This highly interactive presentation will contain many break-out opportunities for the couples attending. The conference will take place from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Krasa Center of Benedictine University. Registration will take place from 12 - 12:45, an opening prayer will be given by Bishop Kaffer at 12:45 and the program will begin at 1:00. The cost is $25 per couple through April 12, 2008 and $30 per couple after that date. To register, please call Cathy or Phil Gorski at 630-971-2406 or email catski60@sbcglobal.net for more information.
  
  
• Presentations On Marriage And Family by Dr. Jim Healy The following presentations on marriage and family by Dr. Jim Healy are open to all interested couples and individuals.
  
  
  • January 16
    Conflict Resolution and the Art of Forgiveness
    St. Ann's Parish in Oswego 7:30 p.m.
    Contact: Gail Fonseca at 630-554-8848
    
    
  • February 1
    How to Be Married and Stay Engaged
    Sacred Heart Parish in Lombard 7:00 p.m.
    Contact: Andrea Heinz 630-889-8866
    
    
  • February 19
    Blessing and Being Blessed by our Children
    St. Mary's Parish, Downer's Grove 7:00 p.m.
    Contact: Ann Forde Murray 630-217-0115
    
    
  • April 12
    The Art of Forgiveness and Skills for Staying in Love
    Ss. Peter & Paul in Naperville 6:15 p.m.
    Contact: Chrstine Kancewick 630-718-2154

  Please call to pre-register for any of the above

St. Patrick School Mission Statement

St. Patrick School embraces a mission to provide the finest academic environment for all of our children. We emphasize achievable goals and high moral ethical standards. We instill in our students a lifelong commitment to excellence and dedication to their Catholic Christian faith. Saint Patrick School is marked by a spirit of hospitality, a parent-school and parish partnership with a nurturing atmosphere in which our children develop in mind, body and spirit.