Palm Sunday

Mike Hayes is the author of "Googling God: The Religious Landscape of People in the 20s and 30s". He is also the managing editor of Bustedhalo.com, a Catholic spirituality site sponsored by the Paulists. Mike's take on how Catholics often think about and occasionally respond to "Creasters" is refreshing and frankly, spot on. This week, St. Thomas will welcome many people who for countless reasons have been away from the church and are taking that tentative first step back...will their experience bring them back a second time, a third?

Mike Hayes' blog for Palm Sunday:

I love Palm Sunday. We get to see more people on Palm Sunday and Ash Wednesday than we do most of the year. And while many people find it annoying that these folks only show up during these times (and maybe in addition Christmas and Easter) we have such an opportunity to feed them some good spirituality. I would also challenge those who don't like these people that they may be the reasons that they don't show up more often. Complaining about their lack of attendance might just be the nudge they needed to go right back out the door from whence they came--and most likely not to return again. Other traditions would fall over backwards welcoming these people with open arms each and every Sunday--and yet, we don't do that often enough--not even four times a year when we know they're going to make their way back to us. There's a lot of hatred out there--why not be a force for positive change? Pastors often are too busy with preparations as are the rest of the staff--what is it that we can do as laity to take on the task of welcoming people into our pews this Palm Sunday?

So today, ask yourself--not father, not deacon, not the choir director...How can you welcome someone in your parish that you might not see on a regular basis?

That's where we need to be this Holy Week...and I pray that we all find it in our hearts to do just that. Posted by god googler at 7:33 PM

Bless me, Father...

When was the last time you received the sacrament of reconciliation? If it’s a distant memory, you are not alone. Reconciliation has a bad rap and conjures up all kinds of unpleasant feelings. For one thing, it persists in being known only by its first part: the confession, as if the forgiveness part is an afterthought.

But, on Wednesday March 25 at 7:30pm you can show those bad feelings the door. Come experience this healing Sacrament with new eyes. A communal service of prayer and music will be followed by opportunities for individual confession and sacramental absolution with a Priest. Deacons and prayer partners will also be available to talk with if you so choose.

Please come. Experience the healing and freeing Sacrament of Reconciliation with the community of St. Thomas the Apostle. Weds. March 25 at 7:30pm.

1500 Brookdale Rd. Naperville IL 60563 630-355-8980

What's your story?

This past week we were honored to have our Lenten Mission presented by the author Alice Camille. While she was here, Alice commented she truly felt she was among friends, and that our way of welcoming was relatively uncommon in the world of presenters. Our way of making a guest feel at home in not an accident.

It is, very simply, the way we do things at St. Thomas.

Alice shared many stories with us, and in each one a thread continued to emerge: God resides in the relationship. When we are present to one another, we shine a light on the holiness of the seemingly insignificant everyday encounter. We need to keep our eyes open, our ears alert, and allow ourselves to be vulnerable in order to recognize divinity in the moment; in other words, what happens when a simple conversation takes on an aura of sacred presence. Is it by chance? Perhaps a coincidence? As Alice told us, it's not magic, it's transfiguration.

At different times of our lives, we experience how it feels to be among friends, and conversely, how it feels to be alone, a stranger in a crowd. We all have a story. What is yours? When and where have you felt among friends, and when have you recognized God in an encounter? Will you share your story here?