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Dear Friends in Christ,One phrase used by many of Irish descent when asked how things are going in their lives is to reply, “It’s all grace upon grace.” The French writer Blaise Paschal put it this way. “Tout est grace” All is a gift. Let me acknowledge some grace-filled gifts available through our life as a church community.This coming Sunday, May 3 at 11:00 am and Monday, March 3 at 7:00 pm we have the opportunity to gather again for synodal listening sessions. Many of you remember our experience of these prayerful and discerning discussions in the past. They invite us to reflect on our hopes and concerns for the church. The content of these dialogues will be recorded and sent into the archdiocese which will summarize them and send them to the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops to eventually be sent to the Vatican for the next part of the Global Synod in October. I hope you will consider coming to one of these sessions. They matter!A consistent theme in all aspects of the synodal process is a desire by many to promote the role of women more actively in the pastoral leadership of the church. One of the organizations doing that is “Discerning Deacons” which will host a gathering here at St. Bridget’s on Tuesday, March 5 beginning with a social at 6:30 pm, followed by a program and discussion from 7:00 to 8:30 pm. This is a vitally important discussion in our church that I encourage you to attend. All are welcome!Speaking of the pastoral leadership of women, our own neighborhood was once blessed by the presence and ministry of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, the founder of numerous hospitals, orphanages, and schools in our country, including nearby Villa Academy. “Cabrini” a movie about her life and ministry opens March 8th and has received high praise from critics. I hope you plan to see this film.The Irish are right! It’s all grace upon grace!Blessings of peace,Fr. William Heric, Pastor
