Two services to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday will be held at St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church, 1500 Brookdale Road, Naperville. A Taizé service is scheduled at 7:00 p.m. Monday, Nov. 23, in the Lighthouse room of the church, and a Mass of Thanksgiving will be held in the Church on the holiday itself at 9:00 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 26.
The Taizé service, a quiet hour of peace-filled, meditative prayer will celebrate Thanksgiving and welcome the upcoming holiday season. Taizé includes vocal and silent prayer entwined with simple, sung meditative refrains and readings from Scripture … in short, a perfect prelude to the holidays.
This serene service had its beginnings in war-torn Taizé, France, when a group of young Christians from Eastern Europe settled there in August 1940. Since then, Taizé prayer has spread throughout the world. Through its simplicity, it welcomes the mystery of God and allows that mystery to become tangible through the serenity and beauty of Taizé’s own simplicity.
The special Thanksgiving Day Mass will be celebrated at 9 a.m. in the church and, to use the favorite phrase of the Rev. Peter Infanger, pastor of St. Thomas, “All are welcome.”
This liturgy also will continue a long-standing tradition at the parish: Those who attend are invited to bring the bread and wine that will grace their holiday celebrations for a special blessing. At the conclusion of Mass, everyone collects their blessed items to take home to enjoy with family and friends during dinner.
The Thanksgiving Mass substitutes for the regularly-scheduled daily liturgy at St. Thomas the Apostle. Daily Mass at 8:30 a.m. will resume the day after Thanksgiving.
St. Thomas the Apostle, a parish of the Diocese of Joliet, strives to bear the Good News of God’s unconditional love to all generations through worship, faith formation, witness, and service. Organized in 1984, the St. Thomas faith community numbers more than 3,000 households and over 9,000 registered members. Complete news and information on parish events, guest speakers and special programs is available at stapostle.org. For general parish information, please call (630) 355-8980.