Fourth Sunday of Advent & Christmas
"Through Jesus Christ, be glory forever and ever. Amen." Romans 16:27
Announcements
The parish offices will be closed on December 25 and December 26 in honor of Solemnity of Christmas.
Christmas Eve, Sunday, December 24 - Masses will be at 3:00pm (Family Mass) with live Nativity and 5:00pm Christmas Eve Mass.
Christmas Day, Monday, December 25 - Masses will be at 9:00am and 11:00am.
Solemnity of Mother of God, Monday, January 1, 2024 at 9:00am.
The parish offices will be closed on January 1st and 2nd to commemorate the New Year.
Pastoral Letter by Fr. Sergio Romo, Pastor
"Three hours is not enough time to finish our preparations for Christmas, but three hours is more than enough time for God to prepare our hearts!"
Today is the Fourth Sunday of advent and in most years we would have a few more days to finish our preparations for Christmas. This year though, the Fourth Sunday of Advent and Christmas Eve fall on the same day. That means we only have the three hours between the end of the 11:00AM Mass for the Fourth Sunday of Advent and the start of the 3:00PM Vigil Mass for Christmas Eve to get everything done. Three hours is not enough time to finish our preparations for Christmas, but three hours is more than enough time for God to prepare our hearts!
All too often, the stress and anxiety of the holidays places a pall over our interactions with others, and we end up disappointed with how the holidays go. Wrapping up all the gifts we intend to exchange with our loved ones takes time. Standing at the grocery checkout line with all the ingredients we will need for the meals we will prepare will stress us out. The traffic and congestion will not cooperate and only cause us more undue anxiety.
It would be much better then to be content with what we have already done, and let go of what we couldn’t finish, so that we can be truly present to our loved ones, free of all stress! In three hours time we would benefit immensely from some down time to remember what Christmas is all about, to call to mind the people we will be celebrating with, and “wrap” everything we will be doing over the next few days with the proper disposition, love.
This preparation is the one one that usually does not get added to our to-do-lists at the start of the season. In truth though, it is the most important one that will have the greatest effect on how we celebrate the Christmas season. So, if we have some items on our lists that we have yet to check off, I have some counterintuitive advice, abandon trying to check off those items, and add just this one; take these the last few hours of Advent to center ourselves for Christmas.
With three hours, we have more than enough time to consider the gift of our selves that we have yet to give, to God and to our loved ones. We can transform our minds so that we can truly experience joy. And we can rearrange of our hearts to make space for Jesus, our family, and our friends!
Next year, we will have two days between the Fourth Sunday of Advent and Christmas Eve. Even so, I hope you will join me next year, at the very start of our preparation for Christmas, in adding to your to-do-list, three hours for down time, to get the real job of Advent done.
Merry Christmas!
Christmas Mass Schedule
Support the Annual Christmas Appeal
Every week in the bulletin, we report the monthly totals of parish giving. Compared to the necessary expenses to run the parish, we have consistently been reporting that there has been a financial short fall month after month. This means that there is an urgent need to fully support this year's Christmas Appeal and for ongoing weekly support through Sunday offertory. If you are able to support the parish with a generous gift this Christmas, we ask for your assistance. Support the Annual Christmas Appeal by making a donation at https://www.givecentral.org/location/299/event/6048
The Giving Tree Project
Thank you Saint Andrew! We successfully delivered 338 gift bags to the students at Saint Mary of the Lake and St. Thomas of Canterbury schools. Thank you for helping keep these kids toasty warm this holiday season!
Blood Drive - January 14, 2024
The Knights of Columbus will hold a Blood Drive in the parish on Sunday, January 14, 2024. There will be opportunities to sign up for the drive in the back of church on the weekends of Dec 30/31 and Jan 6/7. Please consider making this life-saving donation to help those in need!
Volunteer
Current Volunteer Opportunities:
Be a part of Saint Andrew's fall/winter event line up schedule:
The Giving Tree Project - partnership with Saint Andrew Parish and Saint Mary of the Lake and Saint Thomas of Canterbury
Please contact Julie Richards if you are interested julie@standrew.org
Mass Schedule
RETURNING TO THE CUP
A set of videos have been produced by the Saint Andrew Parish staff to remind parishioners about the reasons we offer the receipt of the Precious Blood at Mass and how we receive it with the appropriate reverence. Please take the time to view these videos at www.standrew.org/returning-to-the-cup
Weekend Mass Schedule:
Vigil - 4:00pm Mass
Sunday - 9:00am,11:00am and 5:00pm Mass
Confessions:
Confessions are heard in the main church at 3:00pm on Saturdays or by appointment.
Call 773-525-3016 or write info@standrew.org
Readings for the Week:
Mass readings are available on the U. S. Bishop's website
at https://bible.usccb.org/readings/calendar
Mass Intentions:
Sunday, December 24, 2023
+Marte Vinzons
Sunday, December 31, 2023
+Deceased of the Vinzons Family and +Catherine Walsh
Live Stream:
Watch our live stream of Sunday Mass at www.standrew.org/sundaymass
School News
Baby Bulldogs Registration- All are Welcome!
It's coming back! Baby Bulldogs will be back in January. This fun program is open to all infants, toddlers and their caregivers in our community. Registration is now open. Baby Bulldogs Winter 2024 Registration.
Applications are now open for 24-25! Do you have a friend or neighbor that is considering applying to the best school in Chicago? Sign up for a tour here: schedule a tour New student applications for the 24-25 can be found here: New Student Application
Religious Education News
We have begun Religious Education for the 2023-24 year for grades K through 8. Please visit www.standrew.org/re to learn more about the program for the upcoming year if you still need to register. We will have our next parent meeting and student classes on Sunday, January 7, 2023 at 10:00am in the school building for students and in the auditorium for parents. Students are now assigned to complete chapters 10 & 15 at home before the next meeting. Please contact David Heimann at david@standrew.org if you have additional questions.
Stewardship and Finance Report
November Offering:
Envelope Collection - $7,698
Automated Giving - $18,018
Loose Cash - $3,734
Total Offertory - $29,450
Monthly Budgeted Expenses: $38,500
Annual Catholic Appeal
Many families in our parish have received the Annual Catholic Appeal mailing from Cardinal Cupich. On behalf of those served by the ministries, parishes and schools who receive funding from the Appeal, we thank you for your gifts. Please return your response as soon as possible. You may also make a pledge or donation directly through the Archdiocesan website at https://giving.archchicago.org/annual-catholic-appeal/about
Enrich - Expand - Grow Capital Campaign
Income - $1,911,569
Interest on Income - $40,256
Total Income - $1,951,825
Consulting Operating Expense - $215,000
Archdiocesan Contribution - $246,000
Church Lighting (Actual) - $250,517
Church Lighting (Consultant) - $10,480
Church Windows (Actual) - $157,120
School Addition (Architect Fees) - $34,530
Annex (Demolition) - $55,795
Annex (Utilities Disconnect) - $18,210
Annex (Environmental Remediation) - $38,780
Church Boiler - $313,845
School Boilers - $609,248
Total Expense - $1,949,525
BALANCE - $2,301
Revised 11/22/2023
Parish Staff
Parish Staff:
Pastor: Rev. Sergio Romo
Resident Priest: Rev. Emmanuel Madu
Pastoral Associate: David Heimann
Deacon: Mark Purdome
Business Manager: Esperanza Benavides
Fundraising/Development: Julie Richards
Office Manager: Christina O’Malley
Receptionists: Terry Ryan, Christine Chua, Mercedes Jairala
Engineer: Alfred Benkiser
Contact parish staff by phone at 773-525-3016,
electronically at http://standrew.org/get-in-touch/,
or by email at info@standrew.org
School Administration:
Principal: Sarah Casavechia
Assistant Principal: Shanna Eley
Reception: Trini Mahadeo
Admissions: Anne Japsen
Contact School Administration by phone at 773-248-2500
Calendar
Update - Renew My Church Covenant
Better Together” Covenant Update
As we continue to imagine ways to implement the covenant between St. Andrew and St. Benedict, we are excited to reach out to the larger parish community. We invite you to pray about bringing your skills and talents forward to enrich our parishes and the community around us. We plan to begin our work in earnest in the new year and anticipate a commitment of just a few hours a month.
Initially, the covenant will focus on a few specific areas:
1. Relationship-building – understanding each other’s needs and strengths as a way to recognize co-responsibility to each other
2. Communication and evangelization – increasing inter-parish communications to more effectively collaborate, share pastoral insights and expand outreach to non-churched individuals
3. Leadership development (volunteerism) – affirming existing leadership, inviting new leadership and ensuring parishioners recognize their gifts of leadership
Team leads have been designated at both St. Andrew and St. Benedict, who would be happy to answer any questions you have. Their contact info is below.
Gabe Villareal: gabevillarreal@gmail.com
DJ Glascott: d_glascott2000@yahoo.com
Frank Flesch: frflesch@hotmail.com
Maggie Bahler Rizzio: maggiebahler1@gmail.com
This covenant is critical to the growth of our parishes and an important part of bringing the word of God to all those around us. We hope you will feel drawn to be part of the future vitality of our community!