St. Peter Catholic Church Newsletter — February 2022

FEB | 2022

CONTENT PAGE 2 How Can We Model the Faith for Our Children?

PAGE 3 The Word of God: How Do We Hear It?

And How Do We Respond to It?

PAGE 4 The Soup and a Smile Ministry PAGE 6 Valentine’s Day

The Feast of a Christian Martyr

PAGE 7 The Sunshine Crew

ENTERING INTO THE LENTEN SEASON An Opportunity to Renew Our Faith and Draw Strength from the Eucharist

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any Lenten practices that we foster within our families today will stay with our children throughout their lives. In one small, but tangible example, Fr. Leo Enlow vividly remembers abstinence on Fridays during his childhood and the butter rolls that were his breakfast staple.

“We used to go to Mass on Fridays as kids at our Catholic school, and after Mass, for a dime at the cafeteria, we’d have these beautiful butter rolls and milk,” Fr. Leo says. “My mom would also make me a fried egg sandwich for lunch on Friday. I definitely remember those days of fasting and abstinence as a child.”

During the Lenten season, St. Peter offers us many opportunities to plan an intentional spiritual journey and foster Lenten practices such as prayer, fasting, and abstinence.

“This year I’m hoping that together we will renew ourselves in the Eucharist,” Fr. Leo says. “During the pandemic, we have been away from the Eucharist and Mass, and many people have stayed away. It is

Lent provides us with a valuable opportunity for spiritual renewal as we solemnly reflect and prepare for the joy of Easter.

time to come back to the Eucharist.”

To foster our renewed love and reverence for continued on page 5

ST. PETER

CATHOLIC CHURCH

HOW CAN WE MODEL THE FAITH FOR OUR CHILDREN?

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he Church has made it clear that parents are primarily responsible for the spiritual and cognitive development of their children in matters of the faith. As the Dogmatic Constitution of the Church, Lumen Gentium, states, “Husbands and wives find their proper vocation in being witnesses of the faith and love of Christ to one another and to their children” (Chapter 4, Section 35). The Catechism of the Catholic Church further emphasizes this vocation, by pointing out that the moral education and spiritual formation of children is not only the right, but the responsibility, of their parents: “The right and the duty of parents to educate their children are primordial and inalienable... Parents have the first responsibility for the education of their children” (CCC 2221, 2223).

But how can we as parents create an environment in the home conducive to spiritual and moral development? As busy adults, how are we to disseminate the knowledge and understanding of the tenets of the faith to our children in the way that a trained and experienced catechist can? Furthermore, how do we strike a balance between teaching our children in the home and not interfering with the faith formation and sacramental preparation they are currently receiving through their parish school or religious education program?

The answer to all of these questions is stewardship.

Indeed, we must reinforce the lessons that our children learn in school and at religious education classes by talking to them about the faith, reading

Sacred Scripture with them, and spending time in family prayer. And there are several authoritative resources online that can help parents in this task, including Catholic Parents OnLine at www.catholicparents.org, which links parents to numerous websites and documents that can help them in talking to their children about the faith.

But the best way that we can teach our children is by serving as a living example to them of how to live as disciples of Christ.

If we want our children to grow up as strong Catholics and to display a lifelong commitment to their faith, then it is important that we ourselves live a committed faith life. This includes an ongoing commitment to our own faith formation as adults and active participation in the sacraments. It also includes the giving back of our time, talent, and treasure in service of our community in thanksgiving for the gifts that God has given us.

Parenting can be a tough vocation, and children deal with many influences in their lives that exist in stark contrast to the values that their parents often hope to instill within them.

Fortunately for parents, the stewardship way of life provides a simple and effective model for teaching our children in matters of the faith. By living as stewards of God’s gifts and reaping the spiritual rewards that accompany this lifestyle, we are tangibly showing our children that sharing of our gifts and talents leads to a life of happiness and spiritual fulfillment. In doing this, we give them a good opportunity to follow in our footsteps and make their faith a top priority for the rest of their lives.

A LETTER FROM OUR PASTOR

THE WORD OF GOD: HOW DO WE HEAR IT? AND HOW DO WE RESPOND TO IT? Dear Parishioners,

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few short weeks ago, we completed our Christmas season. We are now in what we call Ordinary Time — but before long, we will begin Lent.

This is one of those rare years when Ash Wednesday is in March — so, Lent does not, of course, begin in February this year.

The Gospel of John begins with the statement, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” We speak often of the Word in the Church. As most of you are aware, the first part of our Mass is called the Liturgy of the Word. What does that mean to us?

Basically, there are four parts of our celebration of Mass: Introductory Rites; Liturgy of the Word; Liturgy of the Eucharist; and Concluding Rites.

My focus in this reflection is that second part — the Liturgy of the Word. The main parts of that are a First Reading, a Responsorial Psalm, a Second Reading, the Gospel, and a Homily.

We draw on Holy Scripture from the Bible for the readings. As Catholics, we do not consider that these readings are about God, or about the Church, or about our faith, or a history lesson, or a nice story from long ago. We consider them to be God speaking directly to us. Thus, our attentiveness to what is being proclaimed is important. Are we listening? Do we hear? And

then, do we respond in our lives? All of those should be facets of how we approach the Word of God. For us, the Word of God is the living Word. God is speaking to us as a community, and He asks us to be faithful to His Word. If we pay attention and truly listen, God can nourish our spirit, and Christ can be more real and present to us. The Homily, the Responsorial Psalm, the Profession of Faith, and the Intercessions develop the Word further and complete it. The Profession of Faith is our acceptance of God’s Word.

However, the question for us is, how do we respond to the Word? Does it change our lives?

Does it bring us to the conversion necessary to live lives of stewardship and service? It is not easy, I know. Being able to listen, to hear, and then to act requires time, practice, commitment, and a desire to fulfill all of this. That is one of my prayers for us — that we can hear the Word, and that we can bring it to life in our own lives and in the lives of others.

In Christ,

Rev. Msgr. Leo J. Enlow

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ST. PETER

CATHOLIC CHURCH

THE SOUP AND A SMILE MINISTRY A Hands-On Way of Serving and Caring for Fellow

Carol Rolves and Kathy Schwartz

Prayer card sent with every delivery

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Basket raffled at parish picnic for soup to be delivered monthly for a year to the winning family

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ospitality is vital to any Catholic community and Scripture calls us to take care of one another. So, what does hospitality look like in our parish? It might be providing coffee and donuts after Mass, preparing a funeral dinner, or greeting parishioners and visitors at Mass. For Carol Rolves, Kathy Schwartz, and the members of the Soup and a Smile Ministry, hospitality means more than just providing a warm meal. A smile, a prayer, and time spent visiting a fellow parishioner each are just as important.

Romans 12:13 says, “When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.” That verse serves as the inspiration for our ministry, says Kathy. And, Carol adds, it’s been amazing to see to Holy Spirit at work, guiding our group.

About a year ago, Carol and Kathy began to discuss what they could do to connect with and care for parishioners who are homebound or lonely. At about the same time, Lyn Strieker, Stewardship Associate, heard about another parish that delivered soup to parishioners in need and asked if anyone was interested in doing that here at St. Peter. Carol gave her a call and soon a core group was formed made up of Kathy, Carol, Lyn, Sue Kuhl, and Sharon Mays.

“We started with the homebound of the parish,” Carol says. “It kind of grew from there.”

Soon the group was making and delivering soup to parishioners on the parish prayer list, the homebound, those recovering from illness or surgery, new moms, and grieving families, as well as to those who work hard to make the parish and the school successful. Soup and a

Parishioners Smile has made soup for our priests and the parish staff. For Teacher Appreciation Day, the ministry provided 60 containers of soup to the schoolteachers and staff.

As a fundraiser for the parish picnic, they auctioned off a monthly delivery of soup — made and delivered by the core committee — for an entire year.

“It’s a hands-on way of showing parishioners that we care,” Carol says.

“It’s not just soup — it’s also prayer and a friendly smile. It’s a ministry that is truly stewardship. We serve each other as a parish family.”

The five core members meet each month and they communicate with the cooks over the phone. Currently, Carol estimates that each cook gets an assignment every month or two. The assignment involves making soup and delivering it to the recipient — with a smile and a prayer card. The current 40plus cooks share the “work” and it becomes an enjoyable effort.

Another important aspect of stewardship is providing opportunities for others to join a ministry. The Soup and a Smile Ministry has done just that, giving more than 20 new cooks a chance to serve in their parish.

“As Catholic Christians, we believe that we are the hands and feet of Christ on this earth,” says Kathy. “We know that you can’t outgive God, so when we serve Him by serving others, we are abundantly blessed.

Those blessings far outweigh the time and effort involved.”

To join Soup and a Smile, or if you know someone who would appreciate a container of soup, please contact Carol Rolves at 217-257-5851 or Kathy Schwartz at 217-779-2824.

ENTERING INTO THE LENTEN SEASON continued from front cover the Eucharist, St. Peter will offer an additional Mass each weekday.

“We’ll continue to have our morning Mass, but we’ll also have an evening Mass at 6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday,” Fr. Leo says. “I hope that this opportunity encourages people to come back to the Church and to return to the Eucharist.”

In addition, the Sacrament of Reconciliation will be available every weekday evening from 5:45 p.m. to 6:15 p.m.

Also on Tuesdays and Thursdays, the parish will have an ongoing “mini-mission” with a series of presentations on the Creed led by Fr. Leo. These presentations will take place in the Church from 7 to 8 p.m.

Fr. Leo plans to draw upon a new resource by Bishop Robert Barron on the Creed. In this video-based study, Bishop Barron invites us to reflect deeply upon the words we recite each week during Mass.

“It’s a new resource that came out recently,” Fr. Leo says.

“Part of living the Creed, living our beliefs, is knowing our faith better and centering ourselves around the Eucharist.”

This Lent Fr. Leo also invites us to choose a fast of some kind to practice. While we used to think only of food in relation to fasting, we can also think of fasting from a habit that has led us away from Christ.

“There are different habits that seem to take us away from Christ and from our families,” Fr. Leo says.

“Maybe we have developed the bad habit of sleeping in on Sunday. Maybe we are focused on electronic devices and not on our family.”

This Lenten season, let us come together as a faith community centered on the Eucharist and united in practices of prayer, almsgiving, and fasting. One way to do this is to join the parish for our mini-mission on the Creed each Tuesday and Thursday during Lent.

“When we profess our faith, we profess it in front of the Eucharist,” Fr. Leo says. “There’s no better way to renew our faith in the Creed than to draw strength from the Eucharist.”

For more information about the Lenten season at St. Peter, please reach out to the parish office at 217-222-3155.

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ST. PETER

CATHOLIC CHURCH

VALENTINE’S DAY The Feast of a Christian Martyr

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andy, flowers, romantic dinners, and excuses for wooing are the common traditions we associate with the once-pagan holiday known as Valentine’s Day. Dangling cupids, candy “message” hearts, and faux long-stemmed roses clutter every card store, waiting for that last-minute purchase.

The question is — how did this over-commercialized holiday really begin?

There are a few stories surrounding the history of Feb. 14 and St. Valentine himself, all dating back to the Roman Empire. The 14th day of February was a day set aside to honor the goddess Juno, queen of the Roman gods and goddesses. The following day, Feb. 15, began the feast of Lupercalia — a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus.

As part of the festival traditions, there was a name drawing among the young people. The names of young Roman women were written on slips of paper and placed into a jar. Each young man would draw a young woman’s name from the jar, and the two would be partners for the duration of the festival. Sometimes the pairing lasted an entire year, and often, the couple would fall in love and later marry.

At the time, Emperor Claudius II was involved in many bloody and unpopular campaigns, and he was having a difficult time recruiting soldiers to join his military leagues. Claudius believed that soldiers were reluctant to join because they did not want to leave their loves or families.

With this in mind, Claudius decreed all marriages and engagements cancelled in Rome. During this time, St. Valentine was a priest in Rome, and he and St. Marius secretly married young couples. For this, St. Valentine was apprehended and dragged before the Prefect of Rome, who sentenced him to be beaten and then executed by beheading. He suffered this martyrdom on Feb. 14, around the year 270 AD. Before his death, it is said that St. Valentine left a note for the jailer’s daughter, who had become his friend, and signed it “From Your Valentine.” Although the truth behind the St. Valentine’s legend is murky, the stories certainly emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic and, most importantly, romantic figure. It is no surprise that by the Middle Ages, Valentine was one of the most popular saints in England and France.

Over time, Feb. 14 became a time for lovers to exchange sweet messages, making St. Valentine the patron saint of lovers. The date was often commemorated with the sending of poems and simple gifts. During the Middle Ages, it was commonly believed in France and England that Feb. 14 was the beginning of the avian mating season, which added to the idea that the middle of February — Valentine’s Day — should be a day for romance.

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THE SUNSHINE CREW Fostering Community and Connection with Our Homebound Parishioners

Jodi McDonald started the Sunshine Crew with a heart for all members of our parish community.

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ivine Mercy can be defined as God’s love reaching down to meet the needs and overcome the miseries of His people. We learn from this love and respond in kind by showing mercy to others. The Church gives us the Corporal Works of Mercy as a place to start when we are

looking to share God’s mercy with others. One such Corporal Work of Mercy is “visiting the sick and imprisoned.”

Unfortunately, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, visiting the sick has not always been possible — and because those who are sick or elderly are at

an increased risk for serious complications from COVID-19, the number of people who are seemingly “imprisoned” in their homes has greatly increased.

It was with a heart for community members such as these that parishioner Jodi McDonald started the Sunshine Crew.

“I was on a walk with my good friend Gina Bergman one day — we were talking about these people stuck in nursing homes who couldn’t see their families and had little to no contact with the outside world,” Jodi says. “It is the same with our homebound parishioners. We had this idea and just decided to start it!”

The Sunshine Crew is a letterwriting ministry. During Lent and Advent, parishioners sign up to write to a homebound person each week.

“It is as simple as sending a card saying, ‘I’m thinking about you and praying for you,’” Jodi says. “We encourage people to share about themselves and their families. There are no rules except to send weekly.”

Sometimes the recipients will send letters back, but oftentimes they are unable.

Some of the people who have signed up continue writing through the whole year. For those who are homebound, the Sunshine Crew provides one valuable way that they keep in continued on back cover

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2600 Maine Street Quincy, Illinois 62301 www.cospq.org

THE SUNSHINE CREW

continued from page 7

contact with their parish community. We are all called to community, and when you are unable to attend Mass or be involved in the various activities, it is hard to remain a part of that community. This can be a difficult and isolating time in someone’s life.

“It is a simple ministry but it really does touch others,” Jodi says. “We have had such positive feedback from the letter recipients and their families.”

Simple though it may be, St. Teresa of Calcutta reminded us to “do small things with great love.”

And, as we enter into the season of Lent, this is a great opportunity to take advantage of when thinking of Lenten obligations. It is also a great activity to involve the whole family together.

“This has fostered a sense of community across all age groups,” Jodi says. “We write to the elderly and homebound, but we have people of all ages writing to them. We encourage those with children to send artwork that they can hang up. It really brightens their day to receive these kinds of things!”

If you would like to sign up to send letters, please call the parish office at 217-222-3155 or email Jodi McDonald at 5mcdonaldsjc@gmail.com. To sign someone up to receive letters, please contact the parish office at 217-222-3155.

MASS SCHEDULE Weekend Masses Saturday: 5:00 p.m., Sunday: 8:00, 9:30 and 11:00 a.m.

Weekday Masses Mon-Sat: 8:00 a.m., except for Wednesdays: 8:30 a.m.

Reconciliation Saturday: 7:30-7:50 a.m., 3:30-4:30 p.m. or by appointment