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Church Clips by Dolores Madlener

Dolores Madlenera column of benevolent gossip

  • Nothin’ but a hound dog —

    Back to Church Clips in the Aug. 2-15 issue. We all knew Francis Thompson wrote “The Hound of Heaven,” not G.K. Chesterton, right? (Some days I’m your best friend and some days I’m in the doghouse. Mea culpa.)

  • Helping hands —

    Misericordia will have a trolley with a fringe on top to carry folks from nearby free parking lots to its fairgrounds at 6300 N. Ridge for Family Fest 2009 on Sept. 13. . . . The St. Vincent de Paul Society benefit on Sept. 12 will be in honor of the late great Joe O’Shea. He began his extensive involvement with SVdP at Queen of Martyrs Parish (Evergreen Park) in 1984. Joe never held a golf club in his hands, but worked tirelessly for every SVdP golf outing.

  • Parish potpourri —

    Bishop Francis Kane will be celebrating Mass to mark the 90th anniversary of Our Lady of Peace Church (S. Jeffery) at 10 a.m. Oct. 11. The bishop is one of the parish school’s proud alums. . . . St. Julie Billiart Parish (Tinley Park) had its first annual Veteran’s Appreciation Picnic. They raised $1,000 for the Honor Flight Chicago program that brings vets to Washington, D.C., free-of-charge to visit veterans’ memorials. . . . Immaculate Conception Parish (Highland Park) would like to include works for sale of original Christian/Catholic art as well as secular art at its Mistletoe Market Dec. 5. For an application and more info, call Ann Geraci at (847) 480-0169.

  • Long live the ‘king’ —

    The pipe organ has been called “the king of instruments.” Dennis Northway and Stephen Schnurr chronicled 100 of our city’s “interesting, historic or unique” instruments in Volume I of “Pipe Organs of Chicago.” Published in 2005 to critics’ high praise, the musician-authors have just published Volume II. Each book showcases over a dozen Catholic church organs in the arch, as well as others. Go to www.pipeorgansofchicago. com and take a look at the detailed research, with hundreds of color illustrations. Volume I is $50 + $5 shipping; Volume II, $65 + shipping. Order from (773) 764-5003.

  • Idea exchange —

    The Serra Club of DuPage County (Joliet diocese) has an adopt-a-priest pin idea for the Year of the Priest. Each pin is $10, engraved with a priest’s initials and year of ordination. They are sold randomly (you don’t get to choose a priest). The idea is to remember to pray for the priest each day. With each pin comes a prayer card and pre-addressed envelope with a card to send to Father to let him know he’s being prayed for.

  • Play ball —

    And throwing out the ceremonial first pitch at Wrigley Field July 30, with his name emblazoned on the scoreboard, is Father Bernie Pietrzak, new pastor of St. Anne’s (Barrington). It was a parting gift from school kids at St. Raymond’s (Mount Prospect) to their die-hard Cubs fan pastor. (Grace Bailie, first-grader, is also on the mound in the photo above.)

  • ‘Vaticanopoly’ —

    A semi-retired Jewish professor of European history at Northern Illinois University, with a strong interest in Catholic Church history, has designed “Vatican: The Papal Election Board Game.” It’s touted as sophisticated and filled with nuance so it makes replays enjoyable. “Vatican” can teach you a lot about how a pope is elected. It also has enough intrigue woven in to make a fun parlor game for the ordinary man or woman who sometimes act like they think they’re the pope of Rome. There are pitfalls — like you lose 10 votes if your Latin is sloppy, or if you’re observed eating too many cannelloni. The learned Catholic mag “First Things,” quotes a player who says, it’s “a hybrid of Monopoly, Risk and Clue — with a bit of theological Chutes-and-Ladders thrown in for good measure.” Available from DuPage Press in Glen Ellyn, Ill., (866) 317-0655 for $40 + shipping.