By DIANE SCHLINDWEINManaging Editor After nearly a two-decade career as a leader in Catholic Dominican secondary education, Sister Katherine O’Connor, OP, is stepping down as president of Sacred Heart-Griffin High School in Springfield. She announced her retirement earlier this school year and will leave her post this summer. She noted  that her decision came after much prayer, discernment, and discussions with her family, friends, and congregational leadership.  Sister Katherine took on the school’s presidency in 2005, and before then, as a member of the Dominican Sisters’ Leadership Team, served as council liaison on the SHG advisory board. The role of… Read More

My husband and I were both raised as Catholics. He divorced long before I met him and subsequently married him. My question is, have I been excommunicated because of this marriage and if not, can I still receive Communion? This is my first and only marriage as we were both in our 50s when we met and married.Mary in Springfield Dear Mary,  The Code of Canon Law lists excommunication under “Penalties and Other Punishments,” the purpose of which is to help one who has broken communion with the Church to restore communion with the Church. The gravity of excommunication is… Read More

Priests from our diocese reflect on what it was like celebrating their first Mass Father Michael Berndt Our ordination was on a Friday evening, and I wasn't going to wait until Sunday to celebrate my first Mass. So, I celebrated the first Mass where I was the main celebrant at the small chapel at the Villa Maria Conference Center in Springfield where I had stayed the night before. There were probably less than 10 people as I remember it in the little chapel there. One of them was a priest from Rockford, Father Ervin, who was making sure I was… Read More

‘I love everyone here’Teacher at St. Francis/Holy Ghost Catholic School in Jerseyville wins 2023 St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Award By ANDREW HANSENEditor It was 9 a.m. on Tuesday, May 2. The Father Hembrow Center Gymnasium at St. Francis/Holy Ghost Catholic School in Jerseyville was packed with students, faculty, staff, priests, Bishop Thomas John Paprocki, and friends and family of Lisa Evans, a fourth-grade teacher at the school. Those in the gym knew why all these people were together except Evans, at least at first, but that soon changed when she walked in and saw family and friends, and then it was… Read More

By DIANE SCHLINDWEINManaging Editor On Friday, May 26, Bishop Thomas John Paprocki will ordain three men to the transitional diaconate for the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois. The ordination will take place at 6:30 p.m. Mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.  A few weeks ago, seminarians Alex McCullough, Daniel McGrath, and Jayke White took time to share their thoughts and feelings about  their ordinations. Alex McCullough Alex McCullough, who calls Immaculate Conception in Mattoon his home parish, first felt called to the priesthood during his second year at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, where he was studying microbiology.… Read More

Many times in our lives we feel the need to recharge or renew our passions, our health, our life. What does that look like for you? For some, we may make a commitment to renew a passion we once had. For others, it may be making changes to your lifestyle to improve your health by starting an exercise program or eating healthier. When we embark on making a change, we study the different methods or ways to make changes and find what works best in our lives. We invest the time in learning information, making a plan, and how to… Read More

Click here to download the Springfield Dominicans 150th PDF Read More

Click Here to download the Religious Jubilarians PDF Read More

What is the procedure if the Eucharist is dropped during the distribution of holy Communion?Jim in our diocese Whether through simple inattentiveness or by way of a genuine accident, it sometimes happens that a consecrated Host falls to the ground or that a chalice with the Precious Blood is dropped or spilled. In such a situation, what is one to do?  Of course, it goes without saying that every effort should be made to ensure that the Eucharist — either the Precious Body or the Precious Blood — never touches the ground. This is why the bishops of the United States remind… Read More

Official AppointmentsEffective July 1, 2023(unless noted otherwise)  Pastor Emeritus Reverend R. Dean Probst is appointed Pastor Emeritus of Saint Thomas the Apostle Parish, Newton, Illinois, and Saint Mary of the Assumption Parish, Sainte Marie, Illinois; from Pastor of Saint Thomas the Apostle Parish, Newton, Illinois; and from Saint Mary of the Assumption Parish, Sainte Marie, Illinois, while retaining duties as Judge of the Diocesan Tribunal. Pastor Reverend T. Joseph Havrilka is appointed Pastor of Saint Patrick Parish, Pana, Illinois, and Sacred Heart Parish, Oconee, Illinois; from Pastor of Saint Clare Parish, Altamont, Illinois; from Saint Mary Parish, Saint Elmo, Illinois;… Read More

Creating safe environments for schools, parishes By ALI SMITHSpecial to Catholic Times  As we wrap up April, which is Child Abuse Prevention Month, let’s take a look at how the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois is continuously educating and providing awareness to prevent the abuse of children.  The Springfield diocese has been implementing training and screening requirements for adults since 2002. These measures continue to promote a safe environment in the Catholic schools and churches of this diocese.  Adults in every family, school, community, and church are the protectors of the minors within. As leaders, adults should be educated to recognize… Read More

The subject of holiness and being holy has confused me for many years. I am specifically asking about Mary and the saints. In Eccl 7:20 it states the following: “… yet there is no one on earth so just as to do good and never sin.” I have often read and heard of the Virgin Mary and the saints being holy. I understand, based on the Bible, which is the true Word of God, that no human is or ever was holy. No one. Being holy would mean all the saints, the Virgin Mary, and the Triune God are all holy… Read More

You are invited to a historic event that will feed your soul and inspire your faith in a radical wayEucharistic Congress at BOS Center set for Oct. 28 features four national Catholic speakersBy ANDREW HANSEN Editor  Mark your calendar for Sat. Oct. 28 for an event unlike any other. National Catholic speakers, inspirational videos, sacraments, and Mass with 7,000 Catholics from across the diocese will be the essence of the Eucharistic Congress at the BOS Center in downtown Springfield, and you are invited. The experience will be the highlight of the diocesan Year of the Eucharist going on now, which is… Read More

We asked people from across the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois what Catholic teacher in our schools is making a big difference in the classroom? What teacher goes above and beyond, someone whose impact is deep and personal? What teacher authentically lives out what it means to be Catholic and instills our faith into his or her students? What teacher embodies St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, who founded Catholic schools in the United States? The Office for Catholic Schools and Office for Communications for the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois, organizers of the award, received nearly 100 nominations from all across… Read More

Diocesan priests, Bishop Balke to celebrate special JubileesBy DIANE SCHLINDWEINManaging Editor  On Wednesday, May 3, priests from around the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois will gather at Villa Maria Catholic Life Center on Lake Springfield for a day of celebration. That day they will hear from Bishop Mark Bartosic, an auxiliary bishop from the Archdiocese of Chicago. Additionally, they will take part in Evening Prayer, a social hour, and a dinner, after which Bishop Thomas John Paprocki and the priests will honor priests who are celebrating Jubilees this year. Those men include Bishop Victor Balke, Msgr. David Peters, and Father… Read More

Retired St. Paul Parish organist honored for five decades of serviceBy DIANE SCHLINDWEINManaging Editor HIGHLAND — After spending five decades as the organist for St. Paul Parish and choir in Highland, as well as 50 years working as service manager at the Wicks Pipe Organ Company, also in Highland, William “Bill” Bust finally retired when he was over 80 years old.    Although Bust stepped several aside years ago, the pandemic and all its repercussions — along with Bust’s health issues — caused a delay in his official retirement celebration, which took place earlier this year. The current St. Paul choir director, Andrea… Read More

I understand the Church recognizes Protestant's baptism, and I understand why they cannot participate in the sacrament of the Eucharist, but I am absolutely dumbfounded as to why they can't participate in the sacrament of reconciliation/penance. Why? Doesn't God call us all to repentance? Surely, He does. But why would the Church withhold absolution? While we are on the subject, I'm also very sad that my Protestant friends do not have access to the anointing of the sick. This just breaks my heart because I've seen some radical miracles in people I personally know who have received pretty dramatic physical healing as a result of… Read More

‘All I think about is wanting to live life to the fullest’ How prayer has kept a young girl and her family strong despite cancer, other hardshipsBy ANDREW HANSEN Editor  DECATUR — Eleven-year-old Olivia Dunker of Decatur is a fighter. That courage was evident from the womb as her mom, Andrea, says. “Olivia arrived in this world on her own time, seven weeks early, and only weighed three pounds, two ounces,” Andrea recalls. “She fought so hard the first couple weeks to be a strong baby, but she did it. They said she would do everything delayed, but she hit all her milestones.… Read More

Read More

Going to confession? The priest will say something a little differently nowBy FATHER DAREN ZEHNLE Special to Catholic Times  You may have noticed that your confessor spoke a slightly different formula for sacramental absolution over the last several weeks. Perhaps you wondered about the different wording he used. Why is there a change to the formula of absolution? In 1973, the then-Congregation for Divine Worship published the Rite of Penance under the authority of a special mandate from the Roman Pontiff. Originally published in Latin, this liturgical book was translated into English in 1974. The translators of the English text used… Read More