February 25, 2021
Dear Friends,
During the season of Lent, Fr. John and I have asked our staff to reflect on the Stations of the Cross. We will be praying for all of you during this holy season.
Love,
Fr. Tim
The Third Station: Jesus Falls for the First Time
Walking through the Stations of the Cross at Holy Hill with our young daughters, we paused at each one to explain what the station depicted. It didn’t take long for my toddler to notice a pattern, related to her own life experience, which became her mantra for the rest of the day: “Jesus fell down.” Over and over, she repeated those words. This was something she could relate to, a connection to her own life experience of falling down again and again, skinning her knees, unbalanced by the weight of her impulsive desire to do things her own way, to satisfy her need for autonomy, which so often sends her careening out of control. (Quite literally. They don’t call them “toddlers” for nothing.)
The difference, of course, is that Jesus falls, crushed by the weight of our sins, not his own. The weight of our impulsiveness, our greed, our need to seize control of our lives which so often results in us becoming unbalanced, careening out of control, hurting ourselves and those around us. Everyone we encounter has had this experience of falling down. Reflect on the love that drove the Son to enter our weak and vulnerable condition, that drove him to skin his knees for us. What burden causes you to stumble as you follow Jesus? Are you ready to ask Jesus to bear it away - to give him control of your life? To help you see and love others as Jesus sees and loves them?
Rachel McGrew, Associate Director of Family Ministry and Religious Formation
The Fourth Station: Jesus Meets His Mother
My youngest son is by far the most adventurous yet accident-prone of my three children, which is an unfortunate combination of traits to have. I will never forget the two ER visits that resulted in stitches and staples in his head. As a mother, my heart aches whenever I know that my child is suffering and I would do absolutely anything to take away their pain. That’s what mothers do. When my children were younger, I would hug away their hurt and kiss their ouchies good bye. I wish it was that easy now. As my children grow older, I know that I can’t protect them from all the heartache and challenges that they will face. My role is not to make it all go away but to listen and ask questions which help them navigate their next steps. As they become adults, my hope and prayer is that they will always go to their mother as a source of comfort and help during their trials of life.
When Jesus meets his mother on the side of the road after having fallen, imagine how much comfort he must have felt with her embrace and words of encouragement and faith. Mary’s trust in God didn’t take away her heartache, confusion, or grief but as she bore those things in her heart she remained hopeful in God’s love. Mary is our Mother who loves us and wants to provide us with comfort and reassurance when we are bearing our own crosses. Do you find yourself asking our Blessed Mother for help when you are struggling and need prayers? How can you be a source of comfort and help to those around you who are struggling? Like Mary, do you accompany them with trust in God in your heart?
Anh Clausen, Director of Family Ministry and Religious Formation
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Video Mass for Sunday, February 28th. Here is the recorded Mass for this upcoming Sunday (2nd Sunday of Lent). We provide a worship aid to help you better enter into the prayer of the Mass. Please know that we will continue these recorded Masses indefinitely. We are so grateful to DV Productions, our Liturgists Mary Robertson and Meggie Moyer, and our cantor Amy Sobczak for their efforts in making our prayer as beautiful as possible.
In Person Mass. Please be sure to register online to attend an in person Mass. Our Mass schedule and registration links can be found on the Reopening and Mass Times pages of the parish website. The links to those pages are included every week at the bottom of this newsletter.
Eat, Drink & Be Catholic @Home. Our Family of Four Parishes invites adults of all ages to our next Eat, Drink & Be Catholic via Zoom on Wednesday, March 10 at 7:00 pm. We will welcome Anne Haines, Episcopal Representative for Pro-life Urban Ministry, and Laura Hancock, Director of Social Justice and Outreach Ministries for the Family of Four Parishes. Anne and Laura will explore our Lenten Almsgiving Project in light of our theme, “Possibility of Encounter.” Email Chad Griesel at grieselc@archmil.org to RSVP and receive the Zoom link.
Lenten Almsgiving Introductory Video. In this video, we introduce you to the future site of the Archdiocesan Ministry Center at All Saints. Related to our Lenten theme of the “Possibility of Encounter,” we will be focusing our almsgiving campaign on supporting a positive first impression of the ministry center… the outside! We will be raising funds to update the landscaping of the building, providing new signage to welcome visitors and neighbors, and remove outdated barriers. You will hear from Fr. Tim Kitzke and Anne Haines about the history between our Family of Four Parishes and the neighborhoods of the central city that will be served in this ministry center. Additionally, you will learn more about the vision of the center moving forward. As one parishioner stated, “We are helping to facilitate the possibility of encounter in the future.” If you’d like to support this almsgiving campaign, please write a check to your parish and put “Lenten Almsgiving” in the memo line. Thank you!
Lent Webpage. Visit our Lent webpage at www.oldsaintmary.org/lent-2021 for details on this year’s theme, almsgiving project, events, and more. Updates will be posted throughout Lent to support prayer, fasting, and almsgiving as we find hope in the possibility of encounter.
Bulletin. Please be sure to read the Family of Four Parishes Bulletin to get this week’s updates! Click here to view the bulletin or click the picture below.
Parish Financial Support. We continue to be humbled by your financial support of the parish during these tender and tenuous times. Thank you so much, it has been amazing to witness the generosity of so many! Please mail in your envelopes and contributions to our parish office (Old St. Mary Parish, 835 N Milwaukee St, Milwaukee, WI 53202), and our parish staff will process these.
Please do not hesitate to contact Fr. Tim (Cell: 414-762-7986; kitzket@archmil.org) or Fr. John (Cell: 414-305-3824; baumgardnerj@archmil.org) if you need anything! Be assured of our love and prayers.
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Click the picture below to view the bulletin.
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Click below to view the Lenten Almsgiving video.
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