St. Margaret Mary Parish Youth Ministry

02/02/2022

Registration for Notre Dame Vision is now open! Visit https://hubs.la/Q013b8Fg0 to learn more and apply today!

06/15/2020

Who's coming to Mass this weekend?!

Masses are live streamed on Facebook and YouTube daily at 10:00am. You can watch them anytime.  Bulletins Since our founding 40 years ago, St. Margaret Mary Parish has been known as the parish with heart. Even though we are physically separated for time being, our parish is alive and well doing w...

03/20/2020

Even though we can’t go to mass this weekend, we can still take this opportunity to dive into the Word through the Sunday mass readings! In this video, Marissa and Claire walk us through praying an at-home Liturgy of the Word. More to come!

Claire and Marissa walk you through how to pray with the Catholic Sunday Mass readings at home with your families this weekend.

03/19/2020

AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM BISHOP RICHARD E. PATES

My dear Sisters and Brothers in the Joliet Diocese,

Because of the rapid spread of the virus and in accord with the actions taken by the neighboring dioceses, all Church services, beginning with weekend Masses, daily Mass, Stations of the Cross, etc., in the parishes and institutions in the Diocese of Joliet will discontinue immediately. This will remain in effect until it is prudently advisable to resume them. The diocese will make the decision as to when to resume them. The Sacrament of Penance may be administered when approached, in accordance with health guidelines.

After consultation, the Chrism Mass of April 6th will be celebrated at 7:00pm in the St. Francis Xavier Chapel of the Blanchette Catholic Center. Arrangements are being made to involve limited numbers of priests as well as to live stream the ceremony. Unfortunately, the afternoon of reflection with Archbishop Sartain as well as the clergy meal are canceled. Hopefully, we can arrange a special clergy gathering once the “all clear” signal is sounded by health authorities.

The Ordination to the Transitional Diaconate of Sam Conforti is being transferred to the St. Francis Xavier Chapel of the Blanchette Catholic Center to be celebrated on Saturday, April 4th at 11:00am. The individuals attending the ceremony personally will be contacted by the Vocation Office. Plans are in place to live-stream the event.

The ceremonies of Holy Week beginning with Palm Sunday Celebration on April 4th through Easter are canceled in the parishes and institutions of the Diocese of Joliet. This radical step is most painful but is undertaken in the interests of the health of our parishioners and the broader community. I know it was ever so difficult for the Holy Father, Pope Francis, to take this same step at the Vatican. If this should be changed, I will notify you immediately.

The diocesan, parish and institutional offices are to be closed except for priests and deacons to attend the pastoral needs of our parishioners. Exception can be made for essential personnel at the diocesan and parish level on a very limited basis.

We are experiencing events unknown to us before. If we take sacrificial short-term measures, long-term beneficial outcome will come that much sooner.

My prayers, support and solidarity are with all in the Diocese. I am confident that if we are calm and trusting in the assured Providence of a very loving God, we will survive this severe crisis in good mind and spirit.

With my support and heartfelt prayer, I remain, sincerely yours in Christ,

Most Reverend Richard E. Pates
Apostolic Administrator
Diocese of Joliet

https://dioceseofjoliet.org/communications/newsdetail.php?id=123

03/17/2020

Feeling like your forced family time is getting a little strained? Mimi, one of our Peer Ministers, recently shared about how she was able to heal and deepen relationships with her family members through understanding during a time of hardship and uncertainty:

•

“Life isn’t fair, and it’s never going to be. But it’s what we do with gets thrown at us,” Mimi said in her talk at the Confirmation Retreat. “While my family has always been close, we fight like every other family, and sometimes worse… Instead of letting this tear my family apart, I took the opportunity to mend all my relationships with my siblings and parents. This was such an intense struggle. I didn’t know how to understand myself, let alone understand the actions of others!”

•

“So, I started paying attention whenever we interacted. With every conversation I have, I try to learn something new. It may not be a fact about them, but a quirk, or how they choose to present or carry themselves. This whole idea of understanding, it’s not putting someone in a box. It’s not about analyzing people. It’s about seeing their reality. I applied this to my family and learned little things about them I had never known, even after living with them for so long.”

•

“My family and I still have ups and downs of course, but in gaining my family back, I realized another thing. God is always there, even when I ignore him. My relationship with God is still rocky, I still struggle to understand… But I take every conversation about God to learn something new about his love and myself.”

•

“Learn about others. You may not fully understand them, but you will see things about them that teach you something. Strive to see yourself and people as they are."

•

Thanks for sharing with us your witness about your family, Mimi! We’re so thankful to have you as a member of our church family. @ Saint Margaret Mary Parish

03/15/2020

Like a sculpture in progress, we are all unfinished. How does God want to encounter you, here and now, today?

03/13/2020

A message from our Diocesan Offices:

Based on current guidelines from local public health departments, which recommend the cancellation of public gatherings involving 250 or more people, Bishop Richard E. Pates, Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Joliet, mandated the closing of schools operated by the diocese.

The decision to temporarily close our schools, beginning Monday, March 16, applies to all Catholic schools, Religious Education, and Youth Ministry programs that are operated by the Diocese of Joliet until further notice. Catholic schools not operated by the diocese, such as those sponsored by religious orders, will make decisions individually.

During this closure period, Catholic school students will be asked to complete At Home Learning activities, and Youth Formation programs will be provided means to facilitate ongoing formation.

Knowing that many families depend on the daily services we provide, the Catholic Schools Office, the Office of Youth Formation, and diocesan leadership are working to coordinate extended support to those families and students most in need during this time. More information will be shared in the coming days.

Based on current guidelines from local public health departments, which recommend the cancellation of public gatherings involving 250 or more people, Bishop Richard E. Pates, Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Joliet, mandated the closing of schools operated by the diocese.

03/13/2020

Chosen Confirmation Prep is cancelled for this Sunday. More info coming soon!

02/24/2020

We are loving talking about drama-free relationships at Dare Greatly this semester! Join the conversation this week as we ask the question “What is love?” on Tuesday night from 7:15-8:45. All high school women are welcome!

01/21/2020

“Everyone has a story.”

I don’t have to tell you that the pressure to be perfect in today’s world is *so* real. You know it already from having an instagram, getting ready for prom 3 months out, or heck, even just from stepping onto a high school campus.

It’s oh so easy to fall into the game of comparison. This girl has the perfect grades, friends, outfit, boyfriend… I need to step it up. When was the last time you thought something along these lines? Stop for a minute. Remember how that felt. Not great? Didn’t think so.

You are not the only one who has experienced this pressure to be perfect, to compare yourself to an impossible standard. But no one is as perfect as they seem - not you, and not the girl or guy who seems to have everything either. “Everyone has a story,” Sarah Swafford says in her book Emotional Virtue. Come to the SMMP Teen Center tonight from 7:15-8:45 to check out Chapter 1 of her book with us, and bring a friend!

01/14/2020

There has to be another way.

What is it about your life that is leaving you unsatisfied? For me, I often find myself constantly looking ahead to the next thing - the next event, the next year, the next guy - to make me happy. But what if I already have everything I need to be happy? And what if there is something greater than even my happiness at stake here?

Next week at Dare Greatly we will begin reading Sarah Swafford’s "Emotional Virtue: A Guide to Drama-Free Relationships" to unpack these questions and more. Through this book, we will dive into the challenges that we face as women: the masks we feel like we need to wear, the pressure to be perfect, the desire for love and friendship that drives so much of our lives, and the role God wants to play in all of it.

Because, as Sarah says, “There has to be another way - another way to tackle the pain, another way to tackle life, and another way to pursue love, by allowing ourselves to be loved and to love others.” Let’s find another way, together.

High school women, join us at Dare Greatly next Tuesday, January 21st, for our semester kickoff. We’d love to see you there!