Today we celebrate the great feast of Pentecost. We call it the “birthday of the Church” because it was the moment when the apostles received the Holy Spirit in an incredible and dramatic way (we’ll hear about it in the first reading). It launched them out of the locked upper room and out into the streets to proclaim the message of Jesus Christ.
Peter—the one who denied knowing Christ three times—was the one who took the lead. He had the courage and conviction to preach a sermon to the people that resulted in 3,000 people being baptized on that very day.
The Church grew from 11 apostles and Mary to over 3000 in a matter of hours.
Today there are over 1.2 billion Catholics around the world—and it continues to grow, the largest growth being in Africa. The Church has reached the corners of the world. It grows because the Holy Spirit is alive and working and moving.
On the Move
A big thank you to the team of dedicated volunteers that made our school’s “Golf FORE Technology” fundraiser a success. The good news is that we can now move forward with our goal of bringing technology into the hands of students, which will be implemented in a series of phases beginning this summer. More about this next week.
Congratulations to our St. Hubert School 8th graders as they graduate on Friday. Please pray for these developing leaders who will affect our world and build up our Church.
If you would like to learn more about the issues of Domestic Violence and our outreach program, there’s a special training session this Saturday. See page 7 for the details.
Check out “To Go Forth”—a blog site created by the US Bishops to help promote Catholic Social Teaching. Visit: togoforth.org
It’s the active force that moves us here at St. Hubert to be a center of faith, hope, and love here in Hoffman Estates—our corner of the world. We’re not a parish that sits still. When we see a need, a concern, a way to help, we proactively make it happen. And, the initiative comes from you.
The effort to create Mother’s Day care packages to give as a sign of support and solidarity to the women at Wings came from the heart of one of our parishioners. She asked, “Can we do this?” And we said, “How can we not?” She worked with our Domestic Violence team to get the word out, and then our parish responded very, very generously. The Women’s Center couldn’t believe it. And the women who needed to feel cared for in the midst of a vulnerable and difficult time, felt it.
That’s just one example of how the Holy Spirit moves a community.
It’s interesting: in the Star Wars franchise, “the Force” isn’t named, it’s just felt. But, we have a name for the Force that we feel is with us and moves us. It’s God, the Holy Spirit. And it allows us to take care of one another in our little corner of the world.
Happy Birthday everyone! May God bless us in the year ahead as we remain open to how the Holy Spirit is moving us.
–Fr. Mike