Sacraments
Celebrating Sacraments at St. Thomas the Apostle
SACRAMENTS are the ways that a community celebrates its identity within the Body of Christ. As a
faithful Roman Catholic community we celebrate our identity in the Sunday and the daily Liturgy, as
well as through the normal round of sacraments that mark our various passages through life.
BAPTISM celebrates the presence of a true, local church. St. Paul used to write to his
communities with an address to "the church of God in Christ in ....." The local church does two
things: it baptizes and it receives new members. Baptism is more than about joining oneself to a
community. The community also is pledging itself to treat all its members as children of God.
This local community of St. Thomas the Apostle has taken for its own special emphasis the
following expression: God's Pople In Extraordinary Variety. That is who we are, and what we are
trying to celebrate. Baptisms are celebrated monthly, and preparation is made by calling the
parish for inclusion in the next upcoming preparation class.
CONFIRMATION deepens our commitment to the Body of Christ as we are coming to find it in our
concrete community and in our personal commitment to this Body. The Spirit of God is poured out
upon us in Baptism, but it also finds its place in us in a particular way. Life calls us to deepen our
commitments to one another. We are summoned to find our own unique, personal path and
identity inside the Body of Christ. But we also are called to live with one another, and with those we
have not yet encountered. We are called to see others as our brothers and sisters, no matter how
different they are from us on the outside. In the sacrament of Confirmation we affirm our
commitment to following that way of life.
MATRIMONY seals the love two people have for one another. It proclaims that love is the very
center and foundation of our lives, both as individual persons and as a community. Every
marriage creates a new community in God: people we never before knew become part of our lives
through family relationships and friendships. Through it we summon the future into existence.
Marriage Preparation requires preparation and an initial interview with the priest to determine that
one is truly free to marry inside this community. Please contact the parish a year before you intend
to marry, and do not book any dates before assuring yourself that the marriage truly can take place
and that there is a ministering official free to do it .
THE ANOINTING OF THE SICK connects the sick and suffering members of the community to the
power of Christ to redeem and heal. As a parish family we celebrate communal Anointing from
time to time throughout the year. Individuals in need of the comfort of prayer and anointing may
seek this sacrament whenever they feel it necessary. We will be happy to take and make the time
for this sacrament as it is needed.
THE EUCHARIST allows the community to "give thanks" to God for the saving event of Jesus Christ,
not only in the distant past, but also in our lives today. Not only do we celebrate this great mystery
on a daily and weekly basis, but we also celebrate through the exposition of the Blessed
Sacrament, particularly on the First Fridays on each month throughout the year. Please consult our
schedules for the time of these celebrations.
RECONCILIATION allows the individual members of the Christian Community to find forgiveness
and healing in the official calling to mind of God's goodness to us in Christ. The Body of Christ can
be spoken of in different ways.
One way refers to Jesus himself. One refers to the resurrected and eternal Christ. One way refers
to our own incorporation into the mystery of Christ through Baptism. Reconciliation reminds us of
our own frailty and weakness. We are sinners in spite of all that we are offered in Christ. We sin
not only against God, but also against one another. We fragment the body of the church by failing
to remember who we are in Christ and to what great end we are called. We fail to remember who
we are. And so we are in need of healing and reconciliation.
As a parish we celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation through communal services (as in
Advent and Lent) and through individual expressions of our sinfulness. The Sacrament of
Reconciliation is offered each Saturday and also by appointment.
ORDINATION pervades the whole Church, even if we rarely get to attend one ourselves. The
church is gifted with "order" through which the many gifts of the Holy Spirit are put to use
throughout the Body of Christ. Many people may have wonderful gifts, but there is still a need to
bring them into a harmonious and fruitful union with one another. We need to pray that we will not
be deprived of the leadership of those who turn their entire lives over to Christ through their service
to His Body, the Church.
Perhaps you who are reading this are becoming conscious of a call to give yourself more fully to
the service of the Church, whether through the archdiocese, through a religious community or in
some other way. Please take this call seriously and give it your attention. Some are called to
ministry while remaining part of the laity. All are needed. All are welcome. If you need to reflect
more deeply on this, please call the parish, and someone will be happy to help you find more
direction and guidance. Do not let the Spirit breathe on you to no effect.
FUNERALS, while not being a sacrament in any official sense, normally take place in the setting of
the liturgy. A funeral is the time we set aside for remembering the great destiny to which we all
have been called in being summoned into existence by God's effective Word. We try to celebrate
each Funeral with the reverence and delicacy that each family requires. Please contact the parish
as soon as you are able and come help us prepare a way to give the deceased person the kind of
celebration that expresses our love and places it inside the context and remembrance of God's
love for us, too.
SACRAMENTS are the ways that a community celebrates its identity within the Body of Christ. As a
faithful Roman Catholic community we celebrate our identity in the Sunday and the daily Liturgy, as
well as through the normal round of sacraments that mark our various passages through life.
BAPTISM celebrates the presence of a true, local church. St. Paul used to write to his
communities with an address to "the church of God in Christ in ....." The local church does two
things: it baptizes and it receives new members. Baptism is more than about joining oneself to a
community. The community also is pledging itself to treat all its members as children of God.
This local community of St. Thomas the Apostle has taken for its own special emphasis the
following expression: God's Pople In Extraordinary Variety. That is who we are, and what we are
trying to celebrate. Baptisms are celebrated monthly, and preparation is made by calling the
parish for inclusion in the next upcoming preparation class.
CONFIRMATION deepens our commitment to the Body of Christ as we are coming to find it in our
concrete community and in our personal commitment to this Body. The Spirit of God is poured out
upon us in Baptism, but it also finds its place in us in a particular way. Life calls us to deepen our
commitments to one another. We are summoned to find our own unique, personal path and
identity inside the Body of Christ. But we also are called to live with one another, and with those we
have not yet encountered. We are called to see others as our brothers and sisters, no matter how
different they are from us on the outside. In the sacrament of Confirmation we affirm our
commitment to following that way of life.
MATRIMONY seals the love two people have for one another. It proclaims that love is the very
center and foundation of our lives, both as individual persons and as a community. Every
marriage creates a new community in God: people we never before knew become part of our lives
through family relationships and friendships. Through it we summon the future into existence.
Marriage Preparation requires preparation and an initial interview with the priest to determine that
one is truly free to marry inside this community. Please contact the parish a year before you intend
to marry, and do not book any dates before assuring yourself that the marriage truly can take place
and that there is a ministering official free to do it .
THE ANOINTING OF THE SICK connects the sick and suffering members of the community to the
power of Christ to redeem and heal. As a parish family we celebrate communal Anointing from
time to time throughout the year. Individuals in need of the comfort of prayer and anointing may
seek this sacrament whenever they feel it necessary. We will be happy to take and make the time
for this sacrament as it is needed.
THE EUCHARIST allows the community to "give thanks" to God for the saving event of Jesus Christ,
not only in the distant past, but also in our lives today. Not only do we celebrate this great mystery
on a daily and weekly basis, but we also celebrate through the exposition of the Blessed
Sacrament, particularly on the First Fridays on each month throughout the year. Please consult our
schedules for the time of these celebrations.
RECONCILIATION allows the individual members of the Christian Community to find forgiveness
and healing in the official calling to mind of God's goodness to us in Christ. The Body of Christ can
be spoken of in different ways.
One way refers to Jesus himself. One refers to the resurrected and eternal Christ. One way refers
to our own incorporation into the mystery of Christ through Baptism. Reconciliation reminds us of
our own frailty and weakness. We are sinners in spite of all that we are offered in Christ. We sin
not only against God, but also against one another. We fragment the body of the church by failing
to remember who we are in Christ and to what great end we are called. We fail to remember who
we are. And so we are in need of healing and reconciliation.
As a parish we celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation through communal services (as in
Advent and Lent) and through individual expressions of our sinfulness. The Sacrament of
Reconciliation is offered each Saturday and also by appointment.
ORDINATION pervades the whole Church, even if we rarely get to attend one ourselves. The
church is gifted with "order" through which the many gifts of the Holy Spirit are put to use
throughout the Body of Christ. Many people may have wonderful gifts, but there is still a need to
bring them into a harmonious and fruitful union with one another. We need to pray that we will not
be deprived of the leadership of those who turn their entire lives over to Christ through their service
to His Body, the Church.
Perhaps you who are reading this are becoming conscious of a call to give yourself more fully to
the service of the Church, whether through the archdiocese, through a religious community or in
some other way. Please take this call seriously and give it your attention. Some are called to
ministry while remaining part of the laity. All are needed. All are welcome. If you need to reflect
more deeply on this, please call the parish, and someone will be happy to help you find more
direction and guidance. Do not let the Spirit breathe on you to no effect.
FUNERALS, while not being a sacrament in any official sense, normally take place in the setting of
the liturgy. A funeral is the time we set aside for remembering the great destiny to which we all
have been called in being summoned into existence by God's effective Word. We try to celebrate
each Funeral with the reverence and delicacy that each family requires. Please contact the parish
as soon as you are able and come help us prepare a way to give the deceased person the kind of
celebration that expresses our love and places it inside the context and remembrance of God's
love for us, too.
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Sacramental preparation
Jennifer Davis
773--324-2626
Justine Spina
773-753-7435
Jennifer Davis
773--324-2626
Justine Spina
773-753-7435
St. Thomas the Apostle
5472 S. Kimbark Avenue
Chicago, IL 60615
Phone: 773-324-2626
E-mail: staparish@aol.com
www.stapostlechurch.com
5472 S. Kimbark Avenue
Chicago, IL 60615
Phone: 773-324-2626
E-mail: staparish@aol.com
www.stapostlechurch.com
Copyright, 2008. St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic
Church. All rights reserved.
Church. All rights reserved.
St. Bridget of Kildare