Dear St. Raphael Parishioners,

The Man Born Blind: You might noticce the man healed by Jesus in the gospel gets a “runaround” treatment after the miracle. He is first questioned by his neighbors, who bring him to the Pharisees, who also question him. Next, the Pharisees question his parents, and then the man for a second time. They act as if a crime had been committed, instead of a miracle! This comes across even more clearly if the longer version is read at Mass. The reason for all this commotion was that Jesus had just demonstrated power to forgive sins as nobody had ever done before. The traditional Old Testament connection between illness and sin meant that the man’s blindness was considered some kind of divine punishment. The apostles ask Jesus who the guilty party was, but Jesus dismisses the whole idea. God’s purpose in this case was to show Jesus has power over any kind of evil in this world.

The authority of Jesus over illness is also the source of the Church’s power to forgive sins. This power was so extraordinary that it upset the leaders of the time, enough for them to eliminate Jesus by violence. You might be surprised when the Church preaches forgiveness in the world today and gets repaid with scorn. Some people don’t like discussing forgiveness because it presumes they are sinners. But sinners is a word that describes us all. The Church has existed for 2000 years because people need forgiveness.

Confirmation next month: Our eighth graders completed their Confirmation retreat last Saturday. Many thanks to Annette Wynn and the Religious Education team for their work in organizing and supervising. Bishop George Rassas will be here for Confirmation at the 11 AM Mass on April 23. If 11:00 is your regular Mass time, be advised Mass will take somewhat longer that day.

Winter weather and Weekday Masses: One week ago, a Friday Mass was cancelled on short notice due to weather. My apologies to anyone who came that morning expecting the Mass to be held. I don’t remember the last time a weekday Mass was cancelled. We typically have less than 20 people on weekdays, and had no easy way to get the word out. I am not sure if even the St. Raphael social media pages would have helped, as I don’t know how many of our weekday attendees use social media. Some of our weekday attendees come because of their work location, and attend another parish on Sundays. We might be able to set up a text message list if the attendees are willing to share their cell numbers. But hopefully, that situation won’t come up again for a while.

God Bless,

Fr. Matthew Kowalski

Your Opinion Matters! Help St. Raphale by Sharing Your Input via The Disciple Maker Index Survey. The Disciple Maker Index Survey opens this week on Ash Wednesday and your help makes a difference.

Please help by completing a short, 10-15 minute survey as soon as possible. · Click on the Survey link button below to go directly to the survey.  There are also opportunities to complete the survey after daily and Sunday Mass and you can obtain a paper copy in the Narthex or by contacting the Rectory Office @ ‭(847) 395-3474‬.

The survey period begins Ash Wednesday, February 22 and runs to March 31 2023 and will ask you to reflect on your own spiritual growth and feedback on our parish’s efforts to help you grow. All responses are confidential and the parish will only receive information about the community as a whole. We will receive the results this spring/summer at which time we will share what we have learned with the entire parish. Thank you for helping your St. Raphael!

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