St. Boniface Church in Monee will have a Mass spoken in Spanish beginning September 7.
Fr. Frank Pusateri and Fr. Thomas Milota, priests from St. Liborius parish, will offer the Mass every Sunday at 12:30 p.m.
St. Boniface, 5304 W. Main Street, is now officially a worship site within the parish of St. Liborius. Office hours at St. Boniface are Tuesdays from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Other Masses are scheduled on Sundays and Tuesdays at 8:30 a.m., with a Communion Service (or Mass in June and July) on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays at 8:30 a.m.
“We are glad to offer this service to the Hispanic population in the area,” the Rev. Milota said.
“We have a committee of individuals, who plan and execute the liturgy, and we are hoping the many neighbors we have who speak Spanish will avail themselves of this opportunity. Right now, we have many in our area who worship in Spanish and drive a considerable distance for Mass, as there is no other Spanish Mass in Steger, Park Forest, Monee, or Crete.”
St. Boniface also is honored to have Peter Ebere Cardinal Okpaleke for an unprecedented month-long visit.
“(He) presently resides at Saint Boniface for the month of August,” Rev. Milota said. “He is from Nigeria and one of the 130 cardinals of the Catholic Church who participated in the conclave that elected Pope Leo XIV.
“I am not aware of any other Cardinal having an extended visit in Monee in the history of the town and (this is) quite noteworthy. He is also one of the youngest cardinals, being only 62 years of age. He is raising consciousness of the violence taking place in Nigeria and his work to help those who have been displaced from their homes by this violence.”
Cardinal Okpaleke was the guest speaker during Masses at St. Boniface and St. Liborius on August 17. Created as a Cardinal just three years ago, he noted he was “privileged to be at the last conclave” in the Sistine Chapel of the Apostolic Palace in Vatican City.
“Before his election, I shared the same floor with Robert Cardinal Francis Prevost, now Pope Leo X IV, in Domus Sanctae Marthae in the Vatican.
“Let me congratulate you as brothers and sisters of the Pope,” he added.
In his homily, he spoke about how his rural diocese has no industry or cities.
“The economic problem of the country is being compounded by violence and insecurity of life,” he said.
“We wake up and, as we leave our homes for the business of the day, we are not sure of coming back alive. Just last month, on July 8, one of my priests was kidnapped. The next day, July 9, my secretary and the Chancellor of the diocese, who is with me here, was (shot and) nearly killed. On July 20, another priest was kidnapped on his way to Mass. He came out after three days in the criminal’s den. I have 245 priests, and over the five years of our existence, we have recorded more than 10 such incidents.”
Residents who escape the senseless violence, he continued, may lose their lives due to poor healthcare services, with negative consequences for dependents.
“As our priests visit homes, they discover elderly ones – sick, in dirty environments, poorly taken care of, and locked up alone in the house as others go out to put food on the table.
“Same is true of some children. Some are orphaned, abandoned, or starving.
“As shepherds, we are in danger ourselves, but we must look after our people. We feel challenged as a Church to uphold the humanity of all, especially the weakest and the most vulnerable.
“That is why we are working to establish this facility with two homes – one for vulnerable adults and the other for children who have lost their parents or who have been abandoned by parents or who come from homes where they cannot be taken care of,” Cardinal Okpaleke said.
“The nuns will manage the facility, and it is for charity and would be open to all persons, irrespective of denominational affiliation. This is only one of the many initiatives we have come up with as a diocese in response to our challenging circumstances. We are hopeful you will want to be part of our effort to provide a humanizing environment for these our brothers and sisters in need.”
The Cardinal is striving to raise $1,636,537.72 to fund the housing project.
Donations may be sent to Bank of America, 620 Main Street, Half Moon Bay, California 94019, or to Ekwulobia Catholic Diocese, Inc., Half Moon Bay, California 94019, Account number 325154643506, Swift Code BOFAUS3N.
For more information call +234 803 824 9028 or +234 803 389 8461.
The Knights of Columbus of St. Boniface and St. Liborius were scheduled to host a dinner with the Cardinal at Scrementi’s Restaurant on Thursday, August 21.