Return to Ordinary Time
We return to Ordinary Time this weekend, a long period of our church calendar that will conclude in November. Lent interrupted the first phase of Ordinary time in mid-February. It now resumes after Lent and the Easter season, guided by passages from the Gospel of Mark. We hear two images for the Kingdom of God this weekend. The first uses functioning language saying, “This is how it is with the Kingdom of God.” It describes a person who seems to scatter seed, apparently somewhat randomly, then goes about their normal life and lets the land partner with the seed to yield a fruitful harvest in phases.
Spiritually this can invite us to trust the process of fruitfulness that unfolds in our lives in phases, perhaps also urging us to be patient.
The second asks a couple of questions: “To what shall we compare the Kingdom of God?” or “What parable can we use for it?” What follows is a familiar image, that of the tiny mustard seed that grows into the largest plant or bush. This enables birds to take shade and make a home in it. This literary language of a parable is extolled by Jesus, not only here but in several other Gospel passages. He uses parables a lot to teach and to stimulate our religious and spiritual imagination.
May the parable of the Mustard Seed invite you to consider something that started out very small in your life and has blossomed into something that has become large enough to benefit others.
Updates on Covid Protocols
The deadline for this bulletin is always Tuesday. As of this writing, we continue to update and change the protocols that we will ask you to continue to practice. The most updated information is available through email blasts on Fridays, so please look for those as Friday, June 11 was a day that brought us important changes.
We follow the guidelines set forth by the CDC and State of Illinois. Then those guidelines must be tweaked by the Archdiocese so they will be applicable to churches and even the slightly different campuses of various parishes in the Archdiocese. There are 350 different campuses with different sizes and shapes. These facilities are different than restaurants and those that hold outdoor activities. Some in the Archdiocese are educational in nature. Some spaces are for meetings, and consider here at Holy Family that our narthex is a place of gathering which under normal conditions we do so in much closer proximity to each other, moving and breathing as we do so. These are activities that we must continue to monitor for our safety.
Our Re-opening committee meets more often these days to keep up with updates and alterations. Please know that we continue to have your safety in mind as well as sharing your desire to “open up” our activities, campus, worship and other ministerial meetings.
Welcome Joan Sloan
This week we welcomed Joan Sloan to our Family & Teen Faith Staff as Administrative Assistant. Joan is no stranger to Holy Family. In her own words, here is a brief background:
“I have been a parishioner since 2011 when my family moved back to this area. My parents are parishioners here, and love it, so it made sense to me. We were asked to bring up the gifts the first day we attended, so I knew I was in the right place. I have been involved with Family Faith since 2012 as an aide then a catechist. I have also been involved with Teen Faith through Kairos Retreats and mission trips. During the pandemic, I helped as an usher and greeter. I am now very excited to join the staff as Administrative Assistant in the Family & Teen Faith Department.” Please extend a warm Holy Family welcome to Joan when you see her around the campus.
