PHILO — Though summer break is still three months away, the community of St. Thomas School is looking ahead to important changes next fall that will address the challenges of rising costs and declining student enrollment. The changes are part of a new strategic plan that includes a restructuring of classrooms, reducing the number of […]
Continue readingOne of the greatest sources of power that Father Patrick DeMeulemeester has encountered in his life has nothing to do with nuclear weapons systems or high political office. It is the rosary and he credits the devotion not only for his vocation but for the very survival of his family in Belgium during World War […]
Continue readingHer life hasn’t always been easy, but Kimberly A. Padan chooses to side with the author of the first letter of Peter, who encouraged the Christians in Asia Minor by saying, “Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope.” For nearly an hour she did […]
Continue readingSPRINGFIELD — They weren’t in school, but Cardinal Francis George of Chicago told the 3,500 students from 180 Catholic schools around the state that their presence in the Capitol rotunda made it a school day. Included in that number were 900 students from 39 of the 48 schools across the Diocese of Peoria. The rally […]
Continue readingMONTICELLO — In terms of talent and scoring points, the two teams in last Thursday’s Illinois Elementary School Association Class 2A eighth-grade boys’ basketball state championship were about evenly matched. The game at Monticello Middle School was a nail-biter for fans, with the Bloomington Holy Trinity Saints winning in overtime, defeating the Champaign St. Matthew […]
Continue readingCHAMPAIGN — It’s not the usual Lenten sacrifice. This Lent, Jimmy Becker and Mike Schafer, two students from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, have decided to give up their spring break. While other college students are enjoying themselves at the beach or visiting their families back home, Becker and Schafer, both avid bicyclists, will […]
Continue readingNearly 1,000 bowlers from throughout the United States and Canada will make their way to Peoria March 28 through April 26 to take part in a Knights of Columbus International Bowling Association tournament. Spalding Council 427 of Peoria is gearing up to host the major event, led by tournament chairman John W. Kunkle, who knows […]
Continue readingConsider Father Tom Hollaway’s parishes in Bushnell and St. Augustine the “Slumdog Millionaires” of Saturday’s much anticipated prize drawings at the Annual Diocesan Appeal kickoff event. While the movie swept the Academy Awards, the parishes led by Father Holloway swept major attendance awards designed to give winning parishes a jump-start toward their respective ADA goals. […]
Continue reading1. Lent is the principal season of penance in the Christian year. Priests, religious and laity are strongly urged to develop and follow a program of voluntary self-denial, attentiveness to prayer, and especially to works of charity and mercy. 2. Everyone of 14 years of age or over is bound to abstain from meat on […]
Continue readingROCK ISLAND — As far back as Chris Mandle can remember, there have been Stations of the Cross on the Fridays of Lent at Sacred Heart Church in Rock Island and even as a child he loved everything about them. Now 27 years old and the owner of his own design company, he remains active […]
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