Deacon’s Beacon: What Good is Faith Without Works?
What good is it if someone says he has faith, but does not have works? (James 2:14)
A cornerstone of our faith is that it should be a call to action to help those in need. Our Lady of the Wayside offers many opportunities for us to help others.
As a result of the Coronavirus Pandemic, the ways have been modified, but the need goes on. A number of years ago, there was a hit song – “The Beat Goes On.” The message of the song was that times will change, but the basic issues of life remain the same.
That’s true today. Our daily routines have changed, but people’s needs continue. Our Lady of the Wayside has a long tradition of assisting those in need – including:
The “Sharing Parish” activities with St. Mark’s. These include some of our long-standing ministries. The Food Pantry ministry occurs on the second Sunday of the month – food is collected at OLW and then delivered to the food pantry at St. Mark’s for all members of the community.
The Christmas season at St. Mark’s is considerably brighter because of the OLW Christmas Giving Tree. Many of our parishioners have been providing gifts for approximately 120 families.
Our parish’s Meals on Wheels ministry delivers meals every September for the Wheeling township Meals on Wheels program. Daily meals are provided for approximately 18 people who are unable to leave their home.
Our PADS ministry provides temporary shelter for the homeless. Due to Coronavirus restrictions this is one of our most heavily impacted ministries. Updated actions are currently being discussed.
The Shawl ministry provides hand knitted shawls that have been blessed by a priest or deacon to the sick or suffering parishioners. They also recently provided on request, face masks with the icon of the Blessed Virgin and the infant Jesus.
Many of these ministries (and others) have been modified, and in some cases temporarily put on hold.
Details on these and other ministries will be provided in the upcoming weeks.
Birth of the Virgin Mary
Last Tuesday (Sept. 8) we celebrated the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The birth is known as the “Immaculate Conception”, recognizing that through the grace of God, Mary was born free of original sin.
The devotion for the Catholic Church in the month of September is the “Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin.” Mary, even though she was born free of original sin, also suffered in her life.
“Suffering” is a way of bringing us closer to God. And, as children of God, we are also called to help those suffering in our world – one way we do this is through the OLW Care & Outreach Ministries that reach out to those in need.
Our parish is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin. She is our guardian and shows us the path to God.
To learn more about additional OLW Adult Ministries, click here.
All of us involved in these ministries believe that we are very blessed to be able to journey with these people. For information on any of these ministries or how you can participate, please contact me at 847-253-2082 or irenetomc@hotmail.com
“You are the light of the world. Do not light a lamp then put it under a bushel basket…. your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Heavenly Father.” Matthew 5:5-16
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