Parish Announcements

On January 22, 1973, the Supreme Court legalized abortion throughout the United States in its companion decisions Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton. Since that time, millions of children have lost their lives, and millions of women and families have been wounded by abortion.

On June 24, 2022, the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision overturned Roe v. Wade, and we praise God for the great opportunity state and federal legislators now have to protect pre-born children. While God, in His mercy, ended the nearly fifty-year nationwide regime of abortion on demand, right now state and federal laws, in many instances, are still hostile to pre-born children. So, great prayer and advocacy is very needed.

9 Days for Life is the U.S. Catholic bishops’ annual novena January 16-24, surrounding the Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children.

Let us join in fervent prayer for those who cannot pray for themselves.

What a wonderful event experienced by the Men of Faith in our parishes Sunday Dec 15th . After attending the 10 a.m. Mass together at Holy Trinity, the men were treated to a breakfast prepared and served by the women of our parishes.Following the meal the men were inspired by the words shared with them by Matt Faley, Director of Mission with the Diocese. Afterwards they participated in a raffle where 26 local businesses offered donations for this event.
I would like to thank those gentlemen who attended for making the extra effort to join us on what hopes to be the start of something inspirational going forward.

Thank you Brenda Jenkins for coordinating a bevy of women to prepare and serve the meal to the men. Thank you.

Thank you to Matt Faley for taking time from his family to spend with this group of faithful men and sharing his vision.

Thank you to all the businesses who were generous enough to provide donations for the raffle.

I want to especially thank Jen Lonergan in our office who patiently, kept adding more businesses to the program as I was knocking on doors asking for donations. She did an excellent job producing the 20-page program for the event. Thank you, Jen.

Thank you all for coming together to make this event a success. May you have a blessed day.
David Liptak
Evangelization & Discipleship Coordinator

Still One Priest
What was to be five weeks without a parochial vicar has turned into sixteen. I thank Fr. Rogers Byambassa and Msgr. Doug Hennessy (86 years old!) for their help. We will do our best to cover Masses while Fr. Rogers is in Uganda December 15 to January 22. Be not surprised if a few daily Masses are cancelled. Fr. John Twinomujuni will cover one of the Saturday vigil Masses.

The norm in the Catholic Church is “one parish, one pastor.” A pastor having the care of two or three parishes is permitted by the Church on a temporary basis. When a bishop gives a pastor multiple parishes, his time is necessarily split between congregations. Saint Padre Pio could bilocate; I cannot. Jesus told us, “The harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few; so ask the Master of the harvest to send out laborers for His harvest.” Pray that more men answer God’s invitation to become a priest. Too many Catholics take for granted the priests we do have – let us be thankful that these men DID answer God’s call and have persevered. The priest that took my place as pastor of Holy Family in Danville, Fr. Peter Pilon, is presently in ICU, and that parish will reduce from seven Masses per week to two.

We know that the Catholic Church in our Diocese of Peoria has been “thinning out”: practicing Catholics have thinned out, money has thinned out, the number of priests is thinned out. Old schedules cannot be covered. Fewer resources mean necessary downsizing. My mother’s situation offers an analogy: she was a dairy farm girl with much energy and a great work ethic, but the years have caught up with her, and she can’t move like she used to. “The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak,” Jesus told His apostles in the Garden of Gethsemane. Or, as the song says, “The old gray mare, she ain’t what she used to be, many long years ago.” There’s no shame in getting old; most of us get there. We thank God for the past, for the memories, for the people we’ve encountered, but we must not regress and stagnate in “what used to be.” We call a spade a spade, and with “evangelical hope” (per Pope Francis), we move forward with a smaller and purified Catholic Church. It’s OK to be small, strong and faithful. God reduced Gideon’s army from 32,000 to 300 and won the battle against Midan and Amalek (read Judges 7). God has always utilized the faithful, fervent few to win His battles.

Saints Speak of the Virgin Mary
As Eve was seduced by the word of an angel and so fled from God after disobeying His word, Mary in her turn was given the good news by the word of an angel and bore God in obedience to His word. As Eve was seduced into disobedience to God, so Mary was persuaded into obedience to God; thus the Virgin Mary became the advocate of the virgin Eve. (St. Irenaeus of Lyons)

Without God’s Son, nothing could exist; without Mary’s Son, nothing could be redeemed. (St. Anselm)

As breathing is not only a sign but even a cause of life, so the name of Mary, which is constantly found on the lips of God’s servants, both proves that they are truly alive, and at the same time causes and preserves their life and gives them every succor. (St. Germanus of Constantinople)

My goodness, in deference to the Word, has decreed that anyone at all, just or sinner, who holds her in due reverence will never be snatched or devoured by the infernal demon. She is like a bait set out by My goodness to catch My creatures. It was in mercy that I did this. (Jesus to St. Catherine of Siena, The Dialogue)

Mary’s strongest inclination is to unite us to Jesus, her Son, and her Son’s strongest wish is that we come to Him through His blessed Mother. (St. Louis de Montfort)

Just those nations and countries have lost their faith in the divinity of Jesus who have given up devotion to His Mother.(St. John Henry Newman)

Have no fear of loving the Blessed Virgin too much; you will never love her enough, and Jesus will be pleased since the Blessed Virgin is His Mother. (St. Thérèse of Lisieux)

The key to understanding Mary is this: We do not start with Mary. We start with Christ the Son of the living God! The less I think of Him, the less I think of Her; the more I think if Him, the more I think of Her; the more I adore His Divinity, the more I venerate Her Motherhood; the less I adore His Divinity, the less reason I have for respecting Her. I am sure that I would resent even hearing Her name if I had become so perverse as not to believe in Christ the Son of God. You will never find that anyone who really loves Our Lord as a Divine Savior, dislikes Mary. (Venerable Fulton J. Sheen)

Thank you to all who made memorial gifts in honor of loved ones using the envelopes included in your contribution packets. Your gifts were used to prepare our churches for Christmas.

We appreciate your generosity!

Tuition assistance scholarship grants from the endowment fund established as a result of the Diocese of Peoria ROOTED IN FAITH Campaign and named in honor of Archbishop Spalding, the first Bishop of Peoria, will be available for the 2025-2026 school year for students enrolled in or intending to enroll in grades Kindergarten through 12 in any Catholic school located in the Diocese of Peoria whose families are active members of a Catholic parish in the diocese. All grants will be based on financial need objectively assessed.

Information about the grants and application materials may be obtained from any Catholic elementary or secondary school in the Diocese of Peoria or on the Diocesan website www.cdop.org under Catholic Schools and then under John Lancaster Spalding Scholarship. Consult the detailed protocols and procedures and checklist at the bottom of the webpage for all requirements necessary to be eligible for an award.

Parents must apply online at: online.factsmgt.com/aid. Families of students currently receiving grants are reminded that all grants are for one year only, and anyone seeking to renew a grant for the 2025-2026 school year must reapply.

Deadline date for the completed application is April 25, 2025. Notification of grant awards will be made in June of 2025.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
Elizabeth Ministry would like to thank all who baked cookies and bought our packages. We had a tremendously successful cookie sale to help fund our baptism gift bags and our Mother’s Day carnations. Please keep the families we serve in our parish in your prayers especially during this beautiful Advent and Christmas time.

If you have any concerns or needs that we can help with or are interested in getting involved in our ministry, please let us know at elizabethministry@holytrinitybloomington.org.

Immaculate Conception This Year
This year in the Diocese of Peoria, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception Mass is NOT obligatory. December 8 is its usual date, but because it fell on a Sunday (the Lord’s Day, and Mary does not displace her divine Son), the Church shifted the Immaculate Conception to Monday, December 9. Bishop Tylka has the authority to dispense us from the obligation to attend Mass that day (a Monday), and so he did. Nevertheless, there is an 8:00 AM Monday Mass at Holy Trinity on December 9, and it will be the Mass of the Immaculate Conception.

Mom Turns 80
My five younger brothers, four nephews, two nieces and a sister-in-law pre-celebrated my mother’s 80th birthday on November 29. My sister-in-law sang Doris Day’s “Que Sera Sera”, as her husband Jon played the guitar. At the end, Mom said, “Thank you, God, for allowing me to be a mother.” I recall her saying years ago, “I don’t know what I’d do without my [seven] boys.” Not that it was smooth sailing – it wasn’t! Mark Twain wrote in his autobiography, “My mother had a great deal of trouble with me, but I think she enjoyed it.” But the joys outweigh the sorrows, and we ultimately will await each other in Heaven, by the grace of God. Unlike cars, homes, money, stuff and fame, children have eternal souls, and they last…forever!

Elaine Rinehimer Retiring
At the end of December, our business manager Elaine Rinehimer will retire. Monsignor Hennessy hired Elaine in 2008 as a part-time bookkeeper, and her responsibilities grew to include both accounting and managing buildings for two parishes. We thank Elaine for her diligent work! Due to the multiplicity of her duties, the position could not be replaced by a single person. Parishioner Jim Sallen, who has been part of our maintenance crew, will take over the management of parish buildings in a part-time position. Jim is an electrical engineer, retired from ISU, and he has much experience working with a variety of contractors. Parishioner Mark Landsly, whom Fr. Stirniman hired more than one year ago, will take over much of Elaine’s accounting responsibilities. A diocesan expert in our Parish Soft accounting software will assist us in making this transition. The resources of a parish are the people, the finances, and the property. As we move forward, we will be making decisions on how/where to utilize these resources most wisely, just like any prudent householder does.
~Fr Loftus

Visit our Advent & Christmas page on our website for this year’s schedule, ideas for activities, options to sign up for daily reflections sent to your inbox, videos suggestions and more. Look for Advent & Christmas on the menu bar.

As of October 31st, Holy Trinity has $107,546 in pledges toward an assessment of $132,097. Historic St Patrick has $37,280 of an assessment of $56,674.

Any amount above our assessment comes back to our parishes, any shortage has to be paid by the parish.