PLANS MADE
WORKING TOGETHER
EVENTS
UNITY MASS
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Come, celebrate the Unity Mass,
joining the parishes of St. Fidelis and St. Aloysius together! On Sunday,
June 25th at 11am, Bishop Manz will formally inaugurate the new community of
St. Aloysius which will serve the people of Wicker Park, Humboldt Park and
Bucktown. Our parish will be as diverse as ever, comprising Hispanics,
Anglos, Filipinos and African-Americans, the well-to-do and the homeless,
large families, couples and individuals, young and old, the mainstream and
those who live on society's edge, gay and straight, and all who are part of
God's beautiful creation!
After the Mass, we will have an outdoor reception (weather permitting) and
enjoy one another's company as we strengthen friendships which have lasted
for years, separated only by a name and always united by our love for
Christ.
If you want to be a part of this magnificent community, this vibrant Body of
Christ found here in Wicker and Humboldt Parks and Bucktown, you can
register to be a member by clicking
here.
Feel at Home when you come to St. Aloysius
Everyone knows that the people of
St. Aloysius have spent a lot of time and money repairing their worship
space over the last five years. We now have new pews and flooring, a
new sanctuary and are awaiting the arrival of our new doors.
With the merger of St. Fidelis, we will be incorporating some of their
beautiful pieces of religious art in order to help people feel more at home
when they come to worship at St. Aloysius. Among the many beautiful art
pieces which will be incorporated into St. Aloysius' worship space are the
mural of Christ embracing the city, the Holy Family shrine and the risen
Christ statue.
Spend a Sunday with us, and see how good it feels to pray in a place you can
call home! St. Fidelis Parish to close!
We will make a new home with them! In May, 2005, Bishop Manz, the Archdiocesan Office of
Research and Planning, Sister Leonette Kaluzny, Pastoral Coordinator of St.
Fidelis, and Rev. Nicholas R. Desmond, Pastor of St. Aloysius, decided to
petition for the closing of St. Fidelis and the merger of its community with
St. Aloysius Parish. This was the culmination of 3 years of meetings
and planning between four parishes, including St. Helen's and St. Mark's.
The Cardinal approved this merger plan in August, 2005. The plan
was formally announced in October, 2005 and the Parish Councils and Finance
Councils of both parishes began making plans to bring the two communities
together. These Councils have continued working together throughout
the process and have merged their methods to form a new Parish Council and a
new Finance Council. In order to facilitate this merger, a few principles
were decided immediately. First, even though St. Fidelis Parish is
closing, we are looking to forge a NEW sense of community with the people of
both parishes. The community of St. Fidelis is not simply being
welcomed into a new church, but both communities are being asked to forge
something new together in Christ. The events leading up to the merger
are designed to help people get to know each other well enough to work
toward a new community. Among the events planned are joint celebrations of
Ash Wednesday where all of the English-speaking parishioners attend the Mass
at St. Fidelis and all of the Spanish-speaking parishioners attend the Mass
at St. Aloysius. In February, a Mardi Gras Party at the Ukrainian
Cultural Center, A Palm Sunday Procession for the Spanish-speaking community
to begin at St. Aloysius and process to St. Fidelis where there will be
Spanish Mass. For the English-speaking community, Palm Sunday
procession from St. Fidelis to St. Aloysius for the English Mass. In
addition, St. Fidelis will celebrate its 80th anniversary as a parish on
April 23rd, and will have a closing Mass on June 18, 2006. The unity
celebration Mass will be June 25, 2006 at St. Aloysius Parish. |
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One Baptism
One Faith
One Body of Christ
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