Dear people of Old St. Pat’s,
It is a very exciting time at Old Saint Patrick’s!
We continue to reverberate from the wonderful celebration of Sunday’s Mass and the Welcome Back Brunch on the Block. Thank you to all who participated, supported and made it happen.
This event also reminds us that it is time to look a bit more into the future as to what we are welcoming and what will be back. Wisely, many have been referring to the “next reality” , as we are in a very dynamic period as a parish and a culture , we know there will not be a singular new reality.
For one thing, as new concerns rise about Coronavirus variants infecting much of our country, we know that all decisions are subject to new instructions as to safe practices.
So what is “next” in very concrete terms of the life of OSP?
Mass times
The Sunday Mass schedule will return to the pre-pandemic lineup on September 12.
The familiar 7:00, 8:00, 9:30 (sometimes two at that time) 11:15, 5:00 pm and 8:00 pm will first of all allow for a touch of the familiar, both in timing and the programming that has surrounded those Masses.
That being said, we will be watching attendance at all our Masses all year so that a possible ‘next’ mass schedule can be determined. Nothing rash and nothing without deliberation and consultation. We will need to consider our realistic next.
Such discernment will be guided by many factors in addition to Mass attendance, including a realistic assessment of how much we are asking of our priests who regularly preside here. We are extraordinarily gifted to have priests of such exceptional generosity; we also recognize that each of them has additional responsibilities outside of OSP. We intend to respect their time while acknowledging the broader reality of scarcity of ordained leaders. Even Fr. McGrath tells me he's not planning to bring a full squad of Jesuits with him.
This reality also relates to the ability to offer multiple daily Masses in addition to funerals, weddings, and other special occasions.
Part of our considerations for the future will include a more neighborhood view of other churches where Eucharist and Reconciliation are offered to a mobile population.
And of course, all our liturgies are celebrated so exquisitely, beautifully and prayerfully due to the exceptional work of our dedicated staff and volunteers performing the numerous ministries required at every liturgy. All are necessary and all are part of any such decision.
Livestream Masses and Zoom Programing
The 9:30 am and the 5:00 pm OSP Masses will be Livestreamed.
The ‘next reality’ will be livestreaming the Sunday Mass at Old St Pat’s – whatever may be taking place in that context as a part of the life of the parish.
There are innumerable stories of how the livestream Mass has sustained people during the shutdown and shut-in experience of the COVID restrictions and continues to sustain many. OSP was uniquely prepared and intentionally decided to fill such a need. OSP has been Livestreaming Mass every Sunday since 2015. As there were already instincts about livestreaming before church doors were closed, why would we walk that back? Yet we also have much yet to learn about the effect of the normalization of worshiping, learning, and sharing virtually! The Eucharist, the experience of communion, is meant to be celebrated in each other’s physical presence. It is part of our understanding and embrace of the mystery of the Incarnation. At the same time we are aware of wonderful connections that have been made in ways we would never have imagined.
The staff is currently considering how we can continue to offer ministries that have proved to be (even surprisingly) effective over Zoom. The “next reality” will be hybrid in many cases. While other experiences are best in person. More to come as we experiment and determine the best use of our resources.
It is truly an exciting time. Old St. Pat’s continues to determine what is next and is committed to listen, learn, and lead in reading the signs of the times and sharing a way to a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ and all God’s children.
Gratefully,
Fr. Ken Simpson
Administrator
It is a very exciting time at Old Saint Patrick’s!
We continue to reverberate from the wonderful celebration of Sunday’s Mass and the Welcome Back Brunch on the Block. Thank you to all who participated, supported and made it happen.
This event also reminds us that it is time to look a bit more into the future as to what we are welcoming and what will be back. Wisely, many have been referring to the “next reality” , as we are in a very dynamic period as a parish and a culture , we know there will not be a singular new reality.
For one thing, as new concerns rise about Coronavirus variants infecting much of our country, we know that all decisions are subject to new instructions as to safe practices.
So what is “next” in very concrete terms of the life of OSP?
Mass times
The Sunday Mass schedule will return to the pre-pandemic lineup on September 12.
The familiar 7:00, 8:00, 9:30 (sometimes two at that time) 11:15, 5:00 pm and 8:00 pm will first of all allow for a touch of the familiar, both in timing and the programming that has surrounded those Masses.
That being said, we will be watching attendance at all our Masses all year so that a possible ‘next’ mass schedule can be determined. Nothing rash and nothing without deliberation and consultation. We will need to consider our realistic next.
Such discernment will be guided by many factors in addition to Mass attendance, including a realistic assessment of how much we are asking of our priests who regularly preside here. We are extraordinarily gifted to have priests of such exceptional generosity; we also recognize that each of them has additional responsibilities outside of OSP. We intend to respect their time while acknowledging the broader reality of scarcity of ordained leaders. Even Fr. McGrath tells me he's not planning to bring a full squad of Jesuits with him.
This reality also relates to the ability to offer multiple daily Masses in addition to funerals, weddings, and other special occasions.
Part of our considerations for the future will include a more neighborhood view of other churches where Eucharist and Reconciliation are offered to a mobile population.
And of course, all our liturgies are celebrated so exquisitely, beautifully and prayerfully due to the exceptional work of our dedicated staff and volunteers performing the numerous ministries required at every liturgy. All are necessary and all are part of any such decision.
Livestream Masses and Zoom Programing
The 9:30 am and the 5:00 pm OSP Masses will be Livestreamed.
The ‘next reality’ will be livestreaming the Sunday Mass at Old St Pat’s – whatever may be taking place in that context as a part of the life of the parish.
There are innumerable stories of how the livestream Mass has sustained people during the shutdown and shut-in experience of the COVID restrictions and continues to sustain many. OSP was uniquely prepared and intentionally decided to fill such a need. OSP has been Livestreaming Mass every Sunday since 2015. As there were already instincts about livestreaming before church doors were closed, why would we walk that back? Yet we also have much yet to learn about the effect of the normalization of worshiping, learning, and sharing virtually! The Eucharist, the experience of communion, is meant to be celebrated in each other’s physical presence. It is part of our understanding and embrace of the mystery of the Incarnation. At the same time we are aware of wonderful connections that have been made in ways we would never have imagined.
The staff is currently considering how we can continue to offer ministries that have proved to be (even surprisingly) effective over Zoom. The “next reality” will be hybrid in many cases. While other experiences are best in person. More to come as we experiment and determine the best use of our resources.
It is truly an exciting time. Old St. Pat’s continues to determine what is next and is committed to listen, learn, and lead in reading the signs of the times and sharing a way to a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ and all God’s children.
Gratefully,
Fr. Ken Simpson
Administrator
Just a Thought
Sunday, May 9, 2021
Fr. Ken Simpson
Happy Mother’s Day!
Today in our liturgies we are blessed by inspiring witness talks by Keara Ette and Theresa Valach about their experience of encountering God in motherhood and family.
Contrary to perhaps our usual understanding of “witnessing” - as observing an action outside of us and reporting it. Christian witness is about sharing something that has happened inside us. Giving “witness” to an experience of a relationship within us which is revealed by our words and actions and naming the source.
On Mother’s Day, Chicagoans are asked to contribute to the amazing active “witness” of the work of Catholic Charities in Cook and Lake Counties. Their adaptive response to pressing needs of people across the Archdiocese regardless of (as they used to say) ‘race , color or creed’ is a living and effective witness to the work of Jesus Christ through us in our world. We urge your support in the Second Collection today.
Catholic Charities was instrumental in my first encounter with OSP. When I was in the Seminary at Mundelein, I spent a year working with Catholic Charities in this neighborhood in their ministry on “skid row”. This was just as urban development was starting to move west of the train station. The neighborhood was still populated by the residents of a number of SRO hotels (or as it was said back in the day, “flop houses”). Charities rented two floors in one of them for participants in some of our programs. We served a ‘soup line’ meal every night followed by BINGO (how Catholic!) and also ran some programs out of OSP, in the legendary “3 parishioner” days.
Old St. Pats, Charities, and Mother’s Day converge in my consciousness today. Allow me to respond to a few questions I have been asked by adding a more personal “Chicago”, Catholic style, introduction to last week’s “Just a Thought”. Beginning with my mom and dad.
My mom was proudly (‘west side’) Irish and Catholic. My dad was born in the South Shore neighborhood and grew up in Oak Park and River Forest. He was neither Irish nor Catholic, but as all Chicagoans of that era, he knew what parish he was living in. My parents were married at Ascension Parish in Oak Park where my mom grew up. And I spent many days as a kid visiting my grandmother, aunts, uncles and cousins who all lived a few blocks apart on the same street.
I was adopted as an infant from the Cradle in Evanston, as was my sister a few years later. We grew up in Park Ridge and went to grammar school at St. Paul of the Cross. My dad “converted” (as we used to say) when I was in fourth grade. My dad and I were Confirmed on the same night.
I went to Loyola Academy and then to Loyola University / Niles College Seminary where I first met Fr. Jack Wall.
I was ordained a priest in 1978 at Mundelein Seminary. A few years after ordination I had the opportunity to go to the University of San Francisco for a Masters in Spirituality.
Over the years I have been blessed to serve in a variety of ministries: As a deacon in a small, almost exclusively northern Italian parish, St. James in Highwood. As a newly ordained priest, I moved to the other end of the archdiocese to St. Michael in Orland Park; a parish of mostly south side Irish and the largest in the archdiocese at the time.
After four years as associate pastor at St. Michael, I was asked to serve on the faculty at Niles College Seminary of Loyola University as Vice Rector and Dean of Formation. It was there that I first encountered Tom Hurley as a college seminary student. After ten years with college seminarians I continued to serve the university population in campus ministry at Northwestern University as Chaplain/Director of the Sheil Catholic Center for 15 years.
I then moved to be pastor of Saint Clement in Lincoln Park for almost ten years until I was appointed to a newly created position of Vicar for the Professional and Pastoral Development of Priests. This involves the ongoing, lifelong learning for priests. I am continuing to do that work along with being Administrator of OSP.
Another source of rich experience and lifelong friendship has come working as a firefighter and EMT and serving as a Chaplain to Fire Departments. This also led to working as a regional and national team member helping first responders manage critical incident stress.
My life is truly and unexpectedly blessed. The wonderful opportunity to “witness” to God at work in and through and with you is yet another blessing for which I am very grateful.
Fr. Ken Simpson
Today in our liturgies we are blessed by inspiring witness talks by Keara Ette and Theresa Valach about their experience of encountering God in motherhood and family.
Contrary to perhaps our usual understanding of “witnessing” - as observing an action outside of us and reporting it. Christian witness is about sharing something that has happened inside us. Giving “witness” to an experience of a relationship within us which is revealed by our words and actions and naming the source.
On Mother’s Day, Chicagoans are asked to contribute to the amazing active “witness” of the work of Catholic Charities in Cook and Lake Counties. Their adaptive response to pressing needs of people across the Archdiocese regardless of (as they used to say) ‘race , color or creed’ is a living and effective witness to the work of Jesus Christ through us in our world. We urge your support in the Second Collection today.
Catholic Charities was instrumental in my first encounter with OSP. When I was in the Seminary at Mundelein, I spent a year working with Catholic Charities in this neighborhood in their ministry on “skid row”. This was just as urban development was starting to move west of the train station. The neighborhood was still populated by the residents of a number of SRO hotels (or as it was said back in the day, “flop houses”). Charities rented two floors in one of them for participants in some of our programs. We served a ‘soup line’ meal every night followed by BINGO (how Catholic!) and also ran some programs out of OSP, in the legendary “3 parishioner” days.
Old St. Pats, Charities, and Mother’s Day converge in my consciousness today. Allow me to respond to a few questions I have been asked by adding a more personal “Chicago”, Catholic style, introduction to last week’s “Just a Thought”. Beginning with my mom and dad.
My mom was proudly (‘west side’) Irish and Catholic. My dad was born in the South Shore neighborhood and grew up in Oak Park and River Forest. He was neither Irish nor Catholic, but as all Chicagoans of that era, he knew what parish he was living in. My parents were married at Ascension Parish in Oak Park where my mom grew up. And I spent many days as a kid visiting my grandmother, aunts, uncles and cousins who all lived a few blocks apart on the same street.
I was adopted as an infant from the Cradle in Evanston, as was my sister a few years later. We grew up in Park Ridge and went to grammar school at St. Paul of the Cross. My dad “converted” (as we used to say) when I was in fourth grade. My dad and I were Confirmed on the same night.
I went to Loyola Academy and then to Loyola University / Niles College Seminary where I first met Fr. Jack Wall.
I was ordained a priest in 1978 at Mundelein Seminary. A few years after ordination I had the opportunity to go to the University of San Francisco for a Masters in Spirituality.
Over the years I have been blessed to serve in a variety of ministries: As a deacon in a small, almost exclusively northern Italian parish, St. James in Highwood. As a newly ordained priest, I moved to the other end of the archdiocese to St. Michael in Orland Park; a parish of mostly south side Irish and the largest in the archdiocese at the time.
After four years as associate pastor at St. Michael, I was asked to serve on the faculty at Niles College Seminary of Loyola University as Vice Rector and Dean of Formation. It was there that I first encountered Tom Hurley as a college seminary student. After ten years with college seminarians I continued to serve the university population in campus ministry at Northwestern University as Chaplain/Director of the Sheil Catholic Center for 15 years.
I then moved to be pastor of Saint Clement in Lincoln Park for almost ten years until I was appointed to a newly created position of Vicar for the Professional and Pastoral Development of Priests. This involves the ongoing, lifelong learning for priests. I am continuing to do that work along with being Administrator of OSP.
Another source of rich experience and lifelong friendship has come working as a firefighter and EMT and serving as a Chaplain to Fire Departments. This also led to working as a regional and national team member helping first responders manage critical incident stress.
My life is truly and unexpectedly blessed. The wonderful opportunity to “witness” to God at work in and through and with you is yet another blessing for which I am very grateful.
Fr. Ken Simpson
Please allow me to step into this space in the Crossroads.
It has been over a month since Fr. Tom Hurley announced that he needed time and prayer to heal what has been coming on for some two years. His heart wrenching announcement was a surprise to everyone except those few with whom he had sought counsel. This has left all of us with a variety of emotions and questions.
Many have reached out to offer any assistance that they can to Tom. Many have sent messages of support. Let me assure you that we are collecting his mail and have a way to get it to him.
It goes without saying that his relationships at OSP are very important to him. His radiating warmth and humor make everyone feel they are a friend. To draw out of last Sunday's gospel – Fr. Hurley is a ‘good shepherd’ , who knows and gives his life for his sheep. It is hard not to hear his shepherd’s voice. But at this point in his life he has identified his need to be shepherded by a smaller circle of close care givers. For all of us who care for him, his personal outpouring and courageous step into healing can only impel us to provide him what he has asked – prayer and time.
Some have asked ‘how long’? Or intimated that this will be a speedy process. I do not know how long. And, I hope, neither does Tom. Putting any expectations on him or on how much time he needs are probably not helpful. I share your care for Tom and am deeply concerned for him. I am not on his care team. But I have been given the care of Old St. Pats for which he cares profoundly.
I was appointed Administrator within hours of Tom’s announcement. What is an Administrator? The appointment letter states that an Administrator has “the same obligations and the same rights as a Pastor”, but without a set term. It is also says that parish should be “run in accord with the established pattern”.
To put it simply, I am here to do what a pastor does and to do what Old St. Pats does for as long as I am needed. And, not surprisingly, I have found “the established pattern” to be impressive and responsive to many needs in the parish and the world. The staff, volunteers, members, and supporters are truly inspiring. I am very grateful for the welcome I have received.
I am not a total stranger to OSP. I have helped out on occasion with sacraments and RCIA. I know many parishioners and have worked with many of the staff. I have followed the vision and development of FXW school. I am familiar with the trajectory of Old St. Patrick’s and the vision and leadership provided by the modern day pastors, Fr. Jack Wall and Fr. Tom Hurley. I have been engaged, challenged, and inspired by conversations with them over the years. It is an honor to be among you and to contribute what I can to this wonderful ministry.
Finding myself here just before Holy Week and Easter, in the middle of Confirmation and First Communion season, has been like surfing a seiche. I am energized and good-exhausted by the experience. Though it has come as a complete surprise, being at OSP is a grace for me.
Coming to OSP means a considerable adjustment to the full-time ministry I was and continue to do for the priests of the Archdiocese. As the Vicar for the Professional and Pastoral Development of Priests, I work with training and development of all priests post-seminary. Blending the OSP and Archdiocesan calendars will be an ongoing project. I am grateful for the opportunity to continue some of the work for the welfare of our priests wellbeing as I step into the more directly pastoral ministry of OSP.
I realize that any nagging questions at this time about OSP and its leadership and direction are added to over a year of societal uncertainty because of COVID-19. This time asks for charity and more patience. I will keep this community informed as is appropriate going forward.
At the same time I know you realize that the vibrant ministry of Old St. Patrick's is well held in the hands of the people, volunteers, staff, and administration that continues to do the work of being the community of faith that stands in the crossroads to help the presence of Christ be truly and immediately experienced by so many. I am privileged to be part of this very good work and join you in the crossroads.
Let us continue to hold Fr. Tom Hurley and each other in prayer.
Fr. Ken Simpson
It has been over a month since Fr. Tom Hurley announced that he needed time and prayer to heal what has been coming on for some two years. His heart wrenching announcement was a surprise to everyone except those few with whom he had sought counsel. This has left all of us with a variety of emotions and questions.
Many have reached out to offer any assistance that they can to Tom. Many have sent messages of support. Let me assure you that we are collecting his mail and have a way to get it to him.
It goes without saying that his relationships at OSP are very important to him. His radiating warmth and humor make everyone feel they are a friend. To draw out of last Sunday's gospel – Fr. Hurley is a ‘good shepherd’ , who knows and gives his life for his sheep. It is hard not to hear his shepherd’s voice. But at this point in his life he has identified his need to be shepherded by a smaller circle of close care givers. For all of us who care for him, his personal outpouring and courageous step into healing can only impel us to provide him what he has asked – prayer and time.
Some have asked ‘how long’? Or intimated that this will be a speedy process. I do not know how long. And, I hope, neither does Tom. Putting any expectations on him or on how much time he needs are probably not helpful. I share your care for Tom and am deeply concerned for him. I am not on his care team. But I have been given the care of Old St. Pats for which he cares profoundly.
I was appointed Administrator within hours of Tom’s announcement. What is an Administrator? The appointment letter states that an Administrator has “the same obligations and the same rights as a Pastor”, but without a set term. It is also says that parish should be “run in accord with the established pattern”.
To put it simply, I am here to do what a pastor does and to do what Old St. Pats does for as long as I am needed. And, not surprisingly, I have found “the established pattern” to be impressive and responsive to many needs in the parish and the world. The staff, volunteers, members, and supporters are truly inspiring. I am very grateful for the welcome I have received.
I am not a total stranger to OSP. I have helped out on occasion with sacraments and RCIA. I know many parishioners and have worked with many of the staff. I have followed the vision and development of FXW school. I am familiar with the trajectory of Old St. Patrick’s and the vision and leadership provided by the modern day pastors, Fr. Jack Wall and Fr. Tom Hurley. I have been engaged, challenged, and inspired by conversations with them over the years. It is an honor to be among you and to contribute what I can to this wonderful ministry.
Finding myself here just before Holy Week and Easter, in the middle of Confirmation and First Communion season, has been like surfing a seiche. I am energized and good-exhausted by the experience. Though it has come as a complete surprise, being at OSP is a grace for me.
Coming to OSP means a considerable adjustment to the full-time ministry I was and continue to do for the priests of the Archdiocese. As the Vicar for the Professional and Pastoral Development of Priests, I work with training and development of all priests post-seminary. Blending the OSP and Archdiocesan calendars will be an ongoing project. I am grateful for the opportunity to continue some of the work for the welfare of our priests wellbeing as I step into the more directly pastoral ministry of OSP.
I realize that any nagging questions at this time about OSP and its leadership and direction are added to over a year of societal uncertainty because of COVID-19. This time asks for charity and more patience. I will keep this community informed as is appropriate going forward.
At the same time I know you realize that the vibrant ministry of Old St. Patrick's is well held in the hands of the people, volunteers, staff, and administration that continues to do the work of being the community of faith that stands in the crossroads to help the presence of Christ be truly and immediately experienced by so many. I am privileged to be part of this very good work and join you in the crossroads.
Let us continue to hold Fr. Tom Hurley and each other in prayer.
Fr. Ken Simpson
Christmas 2020 / New Years 2021
By Fr. Tom Hurley
Where do I actually begin? What can I possibly write THIS YEAR for a church publication with respect to Christmas and the New Year? Truth be told, I am actually past the deadline for submitting this short article to Leanne Kelly, our Director of Communications here at Old St. Pat’s (which actually is nothing new for those who know me and my procrastination). She is the most tolerant, patient person I have ever met and I am so grateful for Leanne! But putting aside my “tardy” ways, this is probably the trickiest, most difficult Christmas message to write in all my years of doing this. There have been many times over the past few days when I have felt like emailing Leanne and telling her, “forget it… I’m not writing this year.” Yet, the task is still before me.
During these months of the pandemic I have been spending a fair amount of time with my mom, who is 91 years old. With downtown being so deserted and not many people around Old St. Pat’s, I have been blessed to stay at my mom’s house and share more time with her. Like so many of you, I’ve set up shop at the kitchen table where I do a lot of my work for Old St. Pat’s on the computer. A few days ago, as I stared for a couple of hours at an empty computer screen and struggled to find some words to share with you this Christmas, I looked across the kitchen table and I was captured by something I’ve seen thousands of times before: the Nativity Creche. Set on her bay window ledge, against the darkness of the evening hours, I looked up during my quandary about this article and there was something about the Manger scene that struck me with great delight: the Star!! It seemed to twinkle more than ever before and I meditated for a while on its beauty.
I started thinking about the power of that Christmas Star. As I sat alone in the empty kitchen, I both lamented and chuckled over the memories of our Family Christmas Eve mass when the kids of Old St. Pat’s have shared with us the story of the Nativity in their award winning pageant performance, unfortunately not to be seen “live” this year. Of all the little ones in the pageant, the actor who came to my mind first was The Star. I applaud every kid who has played that most important role in the pageant throughout these many years. Popping up from behind the stable that we set up on the altar, there would always be cheers from the congregation when the Star appeared! Why would there not?
Realizing that Mary and Joseph are usually the coveted parts of fame and notoriety in the Christmas pageant, for me… at least this year…the Oscar award goes to the Star! No other part is more significant to me this year than the Star of Wonder, Star of Night, and the Star with Royal Beauty Bright!
Against the backdrop of a darkened year 2020, filled with so much suffering, sadness, isolation, and loss, we need the Light of the Star to keep guiding us and filling us with Hope. We are so much like those shepherds of old and the wayward Magi, having wandered in darkness and uncertainty these past nine months, just hoping for God’s light of love, wisdom, and patience to bring us to a more settled place within ourselves. What a treacherous journey this has been and continues to be for so many of us. For those who live in fear, those who have lost family members and friends, and for all of us who still grieve over the humanitarian cancer caused by racism and violence in this country, we need that Light.
Knowing that the words “normal, routine, and traditional” will find no part in our Christmas experience this year, maybe the simple message that we need to keep sharing comes from the gift of the Star: let me guide you to that Perfect Light. Yes, it’s been a rough, ugly year and unfortunately we’re not out of this pandemic just yet. It’s taken a toll on all of us, no one has been spared from its negative impact.
And yet, the only reason we can boldly and faithfully celebrate Christmas this year... as we have these past two thousand years... is because that same Star who guided our ancestors through the darkness of a troubled world, still shines brightly in the multitude of angels who keep proclaiming that message of Good News. For when the days have been long and lonely, we’ve heard it through the angelic voices of family, friends, livestream, Zoom, funny texts, and the people of good will in this world who have heralded a message of Hope.
Come Lord Jesus, guide us to thy Perfect Light.
For a Peaceful, Hopeful, and Illumined Christmas,
Fr. Tom Hurley
During these months of the pandemic I have been spending a fair amount of time with my mom, who is 91 years old. With downtown being so deserted and not many people around Old St. Pat’s, I have been blessed to stay at my mom’s house and share more time with her. Like so many of you, I’ve set up shop at the kitchen table where I do a lot of my work for Old St. Pat’s on the computer. A few days ago, as I stared for a couple of hours at an empty computer screen and struggled to find some words to share with you this Christmas, I looked across the kitchen table and I was captured by something I’ve seen thousands of times before: the Nativity Creche. Set on her bay window ledge, against the darkness of the evening hours, I looked up during my quandary about this article and there was something about the Manger scene that struck me with great delight: the Star!! It seemed to twinkle more than ever before and I meditated for a while on its beauty.
I started thinking about the power of that Christmas Star. As I sat alone in the empty kitchen, I both lamented and chuckled over the memories of our Family Christmas Eve mass when the kids of Old St. Pat’s have shared with us the story of the Nativity in their award winning pageant performance, unfortunately not to be seen “live” this year. Of all the little ones in the pageant, the actor who came to my mind first was The Star. I applaud every kid who has played that most important role in the pageant throughout these many years. Popping up from behind the stable that we set up on the altar, there would always be cheers from the congregation when the Star appeared! Why would there not?
Realizing that Mary and Joseph are usually the coveted parts of fame and notoriety in the Christmas pageant, for me… at least this year…the Oscar award goes to the Star! No other part is more significant to me this year than the Star of Wonder, Star of Night, and the Star with Royal Beauty Bright!
Against the backdrop of a darkened year 2020, filled with so much suffering, sadness, isolation, and loss, we need the Light of the Star to keep guiding us and filling us with Hope. We are so much like those shepherds of old and the wayward Magi, having wandered in darkness and uncertainty these past nine months, just hoping for God’s light of love, wisdom, and patience to bring us to a more settled place within ourselves. What a treacherous journey this has been and continues to be for so many of us. For those who live in fear, those who have lost family members and friends, and for all of us who still grieve over the humanitarian cancer caused by racism and violence in this country, we need that Light.
Knowing that the words “normal, routine, and traditional” will find no part in our Christmas experience this year, maybe the simple message that we need to keep sharing comes from the gift of the Star: let me guide you to that Perfect Light. Yes, it’s been a rough, ugly year and unfortunately we’re not out of this pandemic just yet. It’s taken a toll on all of us, no one has been spared from its negative impact.
And yet, the only reason we can boldly and faithfully celebrate Christmas this year... as we have these past two thousand years... is because that same Star who guided our ancestors through the darkness of a troubled world, still shines brightly in the multitude of angels who keep proclaiming that message of Good News. For when the days have been long and lonely, we’ve heard it through the angelic voices of family, friends, livestream, Zoom, funny texts, and the people of good will in this world who have heralded a message of Hope.
Come Lord Jesus, guide us to thy Perfect Light.
For a Peaceful, Hopeful, and Illumined Christmas,
Fr. Tom Hurley
Sunday, November 1, 2020
By Fr. John Cusick
In Memoriam
My dad died 49 years ago this afternoon. It was nine days before my 26th birthday and today is nine days before my 75th birthday. As the saying goes, “a lot of water has traveled under the bridge” since then.
There is no significant reason to celebrate 49 years since he died. I just approach each anniversary in a different place and with different emotions running through my mind and heart. Some years it is like he just died and other years it is a passing thought. Last year my emotions were raw. Today they are reflective.
I don’t think we ever get over the death of someone we have loved. We simply learn to live with it. A part of me died on September 22, 1971, too. My physical relationship went away, and it has never returned.
I have come to believe we can’t live the rest of our lives looking over our shoulder to that moment in time when the spirit leaves the body. We can’t deny it or bury it. But, as hard as it seems at the time of death, we need to stand tall and face the future – often in spite of the past.
My mom said to me one day a few months after the love of her life died, “He is not coming back. I have to get on with my life.” And she did for the next 29 years. She showed me how to do. She showed me the way.
49 years ago tomorrow was the first day of my adult life. I grew up over night and quickly. There is no timetable or game plan that works universally. I have met some people for whom life has been cruel and harsh. Adulthood came in their early teens. Other people have had the silver spoon in their mouth and have lived adolescently well into their 30s and 40s. Adulthood comes for some people with sobriety, for others with love or holding their first born (their flesh and blood). Losing a job can break open the adult in us, and so can love that walks away.
I wonder this anniversary year how many people “grew up” when COVID-19 came calling. Within the few years after my dad died many of the things he told me returned to my mind and memory. The first time he said them my reaction was the classic in-one-ear-and-out-the-other. When they revisited me in my “adult” years they had an impact and even altered some of my habitual behaviors. I even wrote a short book about a handful of them. I wanted, as an adult to share them with anyone who would listen. I titled my little tome “Never Be Ordinary.” I have tried to never be ordinary because my dad told me so. (You can get that little book on Amazon.)
I miss my dad, especially this year on the 49th year he left this earth in room 525 at Little Company of Mary Hospital. I will always miss him. I miss him because I love him. Love never dies.
- John Cusick
My dad died 49 years ago this afternoon. It was nine days before my 26th birthday and today is nine days before my 75th birthday. As the saying goes, “a lot of water has traveled under the bridge” since then.
There is no significant reason to celebrate 49 years since he died. I just approach each anniversary in a different place and with different emotions running through my mind and heart. Some years it is like he just died and other years it is a passing thought. Last year my emotions were raw. Today they are reflective.
I don’t think we ever get over the death of someone we have loved. We simply learn to live with it. A part of me died on September 22, 1971, too. My physical relationship went away, and it has never returned.
I have come to believe we can’t live the rest of our lives looking over our shoulder to that moment in time when the spirit leaves the body. We can’t deny it or bury it. But, as hard as it seems at the time of death, we need to stand tall and face the future – often in spite of the past.
My mom said to me one day a few months after the love of her life died, “He is not coming back. I have to get on with my life.” And she did for the next 29 years. She showed me how to do. She showed me the way.
49 years ago tomorrow was the first day of my adult life. I grew up over night and quickly. There is no timetable or game plan that works universally. I have met some people for whom life has been cruel and harsh. Adulthood came in their early teens. Other people have had the silver spoon in their mouth and have lived adolescently well into their 30s and 40s. Adulthood comes for some people with sobriety, for others with love or holding their first born (their flesh and blood). Losing a job can break open the adult in us, and so can love that walks away.
I wonder this anniversary year how many people “grew up” when COVID-19 came calling. Within the few years after my dad died many of the things he told me returned to my mind and memory. The first time he said them my reaction was the classic in-one-ear-and-out-the-other. When they revisited me in my “adult” years they had an impact and even altered some of my habitual behaviors. I even wrote a short book about a handful of them. I wanted, as an adult to share them with anyone who would listen. I titled my little tome “Never Be Ordinary.” I have tried to never be ordinary because my dad told me so. (You can get that little book on Amazon.)
I miss my dad, especially this year on the 49th year he left this earth in room 525 at Little Company of Mary Hospital. I will always miss him. I miss him because I love him. Love never dies.
- John Cusick
Sunday, April 19, 2020
By Fr. Tom Hurley
Back on Palm Sunday (April 5), I told the story of a man who sent me a text message (because that’s one of the ways we’re all communicating during these days of social distancing) and he used a phrase that captured my attention: “The Good News always finds a way in!” He had written this in response to an experience I had just days earlier with having to anoint someone through their bedroom window, due to the virus situation in which we find ourselves. I love that line: The Good News always finds its way in!
On this Second Sunday of Easter, however, I feel like we should change up the expression a bit: “The Good News always finds its way OUT!” The irony of what we are hearing today in John’s Gospel, which is always proclaimed on this Second Sunday, or the Octave of Easter is quite shocking given the situation today of being told to stay home. Most people focus solely on the Doubting Thomas angle of this Easter account, but I would suggest we look a little closer at the scene itself: the disciples are locked in a room: fearful, intimidated, and uncertain about their future. Sound familiar? It’s eerie to hear the words of John’s gospel today as we find ourselves “sheltering in place” and uncertain as to when this pandemic will allow us to move beyond our homes and back to some sense of normalcy, whatever that will mean. Just like our holy ancestors two thousand years ago, one week after that first Easter, we still find ourselves in this intimidating time of isolation and asking the big questions about what our future will be like, once the “coast is clear.”
But remember the story of those first apostles does not end with their fear and being locked in a room forever. And it’s not just about how one of them, Thomas, came to believe. But it seems to me that their story is our story, and has always been our story. Beyond even this time of pandemic, we have often found ourselves in situations where we feel trapped, alone, and uncertain about what we should do next. But remember what happens: the Risen One comes into their midst, breathes new life into them, and more-or-less says to them: get out of here! Don’t be trapped in your fear or isolation. As intimidating as it may feel, go out into the world and be bearers of the Good News. Yes, The Good News always finds its way into us. But likewise, The Good News always has to find a way to get out of us and into the world.
Thank you for “sticking with us” and helping us create this new experience of Church in these unprecedented times. I am so grateful and so proud of the Old St. Pat’s team who continues to work hard at figuring out how we get The Good News out into the world and into your homes and hearts. I can’t tell you how grateful I am that Old St. Pat’s has the technology that allows us to Livestream our liturgies to you. Last week, on Easter, we had over 9,500 devices that were joining us at 10:00 a.m. By 8:00 p.m. that night, we had over 26,000 devices that had viewed/participated in the Easter celebration at Old St. Pat’s, some from as far away as South Africa, Canada, and Genoa, Italy, to name just a few. I have no idea how many people that translates into... but let’s just say thousands!! Thank you for supporting Old St. Pat’s and especially at this unusual time in our history as we work hard to get The Good News Out into the world.
Let’s keep praying for each other, no matter where we find ourselves on the map. Let’s pray for those in the medical world, those who serve and protect, and all those in the service industries. We remember especially the suffering and the dying, along with their families. We hold in prayer those isolated in nursing homes and hospitals and quarantined in their own homes. May the Good News find its way into us and how to get out of us into our struggling world.
With Easter Hope,
Fr. Tom Hurley
On this Second Sunday of Easter, however, I feel like we should change up the expression a bit: “The Good News always finds its way OUT!” The irony of what we are hearing today in John’s Gospel, which is always proclaimed on this Second Sunday, or the Octave of Easter is quite shocking given the situation today of being told to stay home. Most people focus solely on the Doubting Thomas angle of this Easter account, but I would suggest we look a little closer at the scene itself: the disciples are locked in a room: fearful, intimidated, and uncertain about their future. Sound familiar? It’s eerie to hear the words of John’s gospel today as we find ourselves “sheltering in place” and uncertain as to when this pandemic will allow us to move beyond our homes and back to some sense of normalcy, whatever that will mean. Just like our holy ancestors two thousand years ago, one week after that first Easter, we still find ourselves in this intimidating time of isolation and asking the big questions about what our future will be like, once the “coast is clear.”
But remember the story of those first apostles does not end with their fear and being locked in a room forever. And it’s not just about how one of them, Thomas, came to believe. But it seems to me that their story is our story, and has always been our story. Beyond even this time of pandemic, we have often found ourselves in situations where we feel trapped, alone, and uncertain about what we should do next. But remember what happens: the Risen One comes into their midst, breathes new life into them, and more-or-less says to them: get out of here! Don’t be trapped in your fear or isolation. As intimidating as it may feel, go out into the world and be bearers of the Good News. Yes, The Good News always finds its way into us. But likewise, The Good News always has to find a way to get out of us and into the world.
Thank you for “sticking with us” and helping us create this new experience of Church in these unprecedented times. I am so grateful and so proud of the Old St. Pat’s team who continues to work hard at figuring out how we get The Good News out into the world and into your homes and hearts. I can’t tell you how grateful I am that Old St. Pat’s has the technology that allows us to Livestream our liturgies to you. Last week, on Easter, we had over 9,500 devices that were joining us at 10:00 a.m. By 8:00 p.m. that night, we had over 26,000 devices that had viewed/participated in the Easter celebration at Old St. Pat’s, some from as far away as South Africa, Canada, and Genoa, Italy, to name just a few. I have no idea how many people that translates into... but let’s just say thousands!! Thank you for supporting Old St. Pat’s and especially at this unusual time in our history as we work hard to get The Good News Out into the world.
Let’s keep praying for each other, no matter where we find ourselves on the map. Let’s pray for those in the medical world, those who serve and protect, and all those in the service industries. We remember especially the suffering and the dying, along with their families. We hold in prayer those isolated in nursing homes and hospitals and quarantined in their own homes. May the Good News find its way into us and how to get out of us into our struggling world.
With Easter Hope,
Fr. Tom Hurley