Fr. Timothy Barr

Are You an Employee or Volunteer of the Diocese?

Posted on by Fr. Timothy Barr

The Diocese of Rockford Safe Environment required paperwork and trainings are now accessed online!

All employees and volunteers now have an account.

How do I access my account?

You will receive an email from Virtus informing you of your user ID, along with instructions on how to access your account. This will include a direct link to the website. If you are unsure of your password, you can click ‘Need Login Information’ and it will allow you to set your password to whatever you would like!

If you do not have an email, your Virtus Site Administrator will be able to provide you with your user ID so you can enter it and click ‘Need Login Information’ to choose a password you would prefer. Your Virtus Site Administrator is Ann Peters. She can be reached at 815-233-0005.

What do I have to do right now?

Please access your account by logging into Virtus, and update your contact information. Our Virtus Site Administrators have been working diligently for the past few months manually entering all the dates of everything you have already completed so you are not being asked to resign or retake any trainings previously completed. If you are missing any documents or trainings, the system will make that visible when you log in and ask you to complete or acknowledge those requirements.

Parental Notification Taken Away?

Posted on by Fr. Timothy Barr
A statement by the Bishops of Illinois:

March 2021

DearBrothers and Sisters in Christ,

We, the diocesan bishops of Illinois, write today out of great concern. Bills have been introduced before the Illinois General Assembly to repeal Illinois’ Parental Notice of Abortion Act. They are House Bill 1797and Senate Bill 2190. The enactment of this legislation would lead to tragic and irreversible outcomes.

The Parental Notice of Abortion Act simply requires that when a minor girl seeks to have an abortion, a parent or guardian is notified 48 hours before the procedure. The obvious hope of the law is that parents, by their deep love and moral obligation, will act to protect, support and guide their children. In every other facet of life, we are taught–and we teach –that parental involvement is key to the child’s best interest. Repealing the Act is nothing less than an invasion into the sacred space of family life by the state, with no provision to support the minor emotionally, humanely or materially at a critical moment in her life.

It is unfortunately true that not all young people come from loving homes. In these cases, when the threat of abuse or neglect outweighs the rights of parents, the current law allows a young girl the opportunity to declare in writing that there is abuse, or she can seek an emergency hearing before a judge to explain her situation. We acknowledge that this can be emotionally difficult; however, such difficulty must be weighed against the harm done when our laws effectively undermine family life by separating children from the care of parents who love them the most. The state should do everything to support families, not destabilize them.

The existing Parental Notice of Abortion Act provides important safeguards against the evils of sexual abuse and human trafficking. If a minor girl can be taken by any adult man to an abortion clinic, in the hopes of erasing the evidence of his abuse, what protection exists outside of the girl’s parent or guardian being informed? Why would we want to create such a dangerous environment?

Simply put, the Parental Notice of Abortion Act works. According to statistics gathered by the Illinois Department of Public Health, since the law’s final enactment by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2013, abortions performed on minors in Illinois have decreased over 30 percent.The lives saved by this law are real and present among us.

These are the reasons every state in the Midwest and 37 states overall have laws requiring some form of parental involvement in the decision of a minor to have an abortion. Illinois has been among those states for 8 years and no obvious problems or detriments have been publicly exposed. The repeal of Parental Notice of Abortion is a tragic solution in search of a problem.

So what can you do? As Catholics of good will, we call on you to engage your elected officials –state representatives, state senators and the Governor –and urge them to oppose House Bill 1797and Senate Bill 2190.

Possible methods of contact include phone calls, letters, emails, and Zoom meetings between legislators and you, their concerned constituents. For all of these efforts, you will need to be able to identify your legislators and secure the appropriate contact information. Here is how: Visit the Catholic Conference of Illinois’ website–www.ilcatholic.org –scroll nearly to the bottom of the homepage, click on “Find Your Legislator” and input the asked-for information. Doing this will identify one’s state elected officials, and simply clicking on their names will provide the contact information. In our concern for all human life, and particularly for the struggles of young girls in these difficult circumstances and their unborn children, we ask you to participate in this effort. Together we are strong, and we can make a difference.

Thank you. Sincerely,
His Eminence Cardinal Blase J. CupichArchbishopof Chicago
Most ReverendDaniel R. Jenky, C.S.C.Bishop of Peoria
Most ReverendThomas John Paprocki Bishop of Springfield
Most Reverend David J. Malloy Bishop of Rockford
Most Reverend Ronald A. Hicks Bishop of Joliet
Most Reverend Michael G. McGovern Bishop of Belleville

Download

file:///C:/Users/frbar/AppData/Local/Temp/BishopsLetter_ParentalNotice_March2021_FINAL.pdf

2 Corinthians 12

Posted on by Fr. Timothy Barr

Paul continues his boasting, but again, not as what would be presumed by a worldly point of view. He boasts of another person who receives many great graces (v2). Many have come to believe this person was John the Apostle, the beloved apostle. This person received some prophecies that were not to be spoken of (4). Paul would rather truly boast of the goodness of others than for himself (5). Paul is ever aware of his own unworthiness of God’s calling. But it is exactly through his unworthiness and weaknesses that God proves Himself.

God wants to keep working through Him as such a powerful witness of God’s goodness, that He sees to it that Paul remains humble (7). God sends Paul some suffering so that he may remain humble. Paul accepts this suffering as a good. He fully embraces this suffering. This does not mean that that he enjoys it. He asks God that it would be taken away (8). Yet God chooses to say no to this request (9). It becomes a teaching moment. Paul discovers that his weakness is the reason for God’s work in him. For this viewpoint, Paul does not have to be ashamed of his weaknesses. His humility that God preserves in him allows Paul not to be ashamed. Paul wants to glorify God in whatever way he can. He is truly learning to love God by suffering so that God’s glory may be revealed (9). It is not about Paul; it is about God.  

It is the devil that tries to shame us. When we lack humility, we become embarrassed about the things we do. He gets us to beat ourselves up. We assume God is angry with us, and so we blame God for our shame. But God offers mercy. God is not the reason for our shame. What causes our shame is our lack of faith in Him. Our shame weakens our faith and distances us from God. Doubts start to grow and many even blame God or the Church for the shame they feel. The father of lies begins to consume them.  This is how the devil wants to control us. We become enslaved to him. But Paul refuses to be ashamed. Jesus has conquered sin and death. The devil hath no shame because he wants to do evil. Paul has no shame because Jesus has offered His love and Paul has chosen to love Him back. The weaknesses he suffers are found to be a way to love God back. These things that are considered to bring shame in this world are now ways for God to be glorified, and therefore a reason for Paul’s boasting. This is something that is a “stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the gentiles” (1 Cor 1:23) (also see v11). 

Paul goes on to complain about the ingratitude of the people. He spends his life giving the grace of Jesus to them continually. He refuses to become a burden for them, but they will respond to those who make a great demand on them (11:20). God’s graces are a rich storehouse for his children, according to Paul (v14 & Mt 6:19-20). This is how Paul is supplying for his spiritual children that Jesus has given him.

Many children to this day rebel against their parents. Children blame their parents and judge them as they judge God Himself. Many people ignorant of God’s ways find that God is not to their liking. Neither are their actions to God’s liking (20). God always loves them and is not in need of their approval and neither is Paul (19). It is most unfortunate that so many people reject God, for they will not be in heaven. This is why Paul fears their sins so much. We worry so much about the approval of those who embrace the sinful way of life, those who could deem us in their graces while in this life. We want to make sure the life on this earth is taken care of. But we never think of the embarrassment of the sins we commit in the next life. Sin is not the norm in heaven. Those in hell will use it against each other who have been cast there. These sins that cause such shame are “discord, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, slander and gossip, self-importance, disorder” (20). These are habits that never bring peace or make us glad for something we did. Oh how the devil enslaves us. Jesus, come and set us free!

St Joseph Corner

Posted on by Fr. Timothy Barr

PRAYER FOR PURITY • • • O Guardian of Virgins and holy Father St Joseph, into whose faithful keeping were entrusted Christ Jesus, Innocence itself, and Mary, Virgin of virgins, I pray and beseech thee by these dear pledges, Jesus and Mary, that, being preserved from all uncleanness, I may with spotless mind, pure heart and chaste body ever serve Jesus and Mary most chastely all the days of my life. Amen.

St Joseph, pray for us.

As Almighty God appointed Joseph, son of the patriarch Jacob, over all the land of Egypt to save grain for the people, so when the fullness of time was come and He was about to send on earth His only-begotten Son, the Savior of the world, He chose another Joseph of whom He made the lord and chief of His household and possessions, the guardian of His choicest treasures. – Blessed Pope Pius IX

2 Corinthians 11

Posted on by Fr. Timothy Barr

It seems that many people were taken by a spirit of show from the Gospel of Christ (v3). The people would not give to the true ministries of Christ. That is why Paul feels like he stole from others in the Church (v 8). The people of the one community expected others to do the heavy lifting of paying for their ministries that cannot save. Yet they would easily give money for the ministries of a false teaching (v4). Paul labors not to make a show of things as many people today would like as well (v6). Paul wants to lead all of God’s people to God. False prophets and teachers lead people to themselves. They make a lot of money, but end up not really feeding the people of God. They do not tell them what they need to hear, but what they want to hear. “They practice deceit in their disguise as apostles of Christ. For even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light” (13). That is why we have to be careful not to go running to the preacher that tells us what we want to hear or go to the church that has the most entertaining music.

Such people cannot offer any real depth in the spiritual life. After a while it leaves us empty. It ends up avoiding the cross we are to carry. We are also in a society that likes soundbites. They say it makes things simple for them. Simplicity is good but simplicity can be deceiving. It still has to be tested. We are willing to spend time with tv, smart phones and other devices, but we are not willing to spend time with God as He really is. If we do spend time with “God,” we try to force God into a box we want Him to be in. We set the parameters for God and how He is to act. If this is our approach, we will surely end up in hell. Yes, I know; harsh words, but true. Nobody ever got into heaven by demanding God be obedient to them. Bottom line is where do we want to go, heaven or hell? Getting to heaven requires being honest with ourselves and a willingness to do God’s will.

Paul goes into a different kind of boasting (v16). This is how we know if someone is truly from God or not. A person of God has a vision that goes beyond the world and its governance. Paul boasts of his trials whereas others boast of their greatness and accomplishments (v23). Paul does not demand service for himself, whereas others demand a service for themselves (v20). Success is the standard of mere human thinking whereas with God, His works are proven through trials and our weaknesses. God chooses the weak and the sinners to prove His power and His goodness.  We do not have to be perfect; we just have to love Him and try our best. We try to grow in holiness, but not with an iron fist to ourselves and others.

Paul is not expecting perfection. Paul is upset, not because they are sinners, but because many have wandered away from God (2). They have chosen not to love God and to follow a false teaching. To fail at loving God does not make one a hypocrite. Peter was weak and so sinned against our Lord (John 18:13-27). Yet Jesus forgave him and did not take his ministry away from him because he sinned (John 21:17). No. It was the sin of Peter that humbled Peter so that he would remain humble in serving God’s people. Paul was called from his sins while he was sinning so that he would remain humble enough to serve God’s people (Acts 9). Paul sought to serve God and to bring all that would listen to him to God, not to himself or to make money for himself as the false preachers did (v 20-21). It wasn’t about Paul. If that was his motive, he would have told people what they wanted to hear and left them in the road to hell. Paul wanted the followers of Christ to love the Christ. This was the foundation by which they would get to heaven. Once we love God, then we will have the desire and strength to seek His will and do it. Sometimes we have to take a step back and get the big picture. Do you love God? Do you know Him? Then, are you willing to listen to Him and follow His ways?

Teach Us to Pray

Posted on by Fr. Timothy Barr

The apostles had seen Jesus go to quiet places to pray. We read about him going to a place set apart from everyone and everything else many times in the Gospels. It was clearly a habit for Jesus.

Often we are unaware of our deepest needs and desires. Sometimes we need things and don’t know we need them. Sometimes we yearn for things but do not know exactly what we are yearning for. The men and women of every era yearn for connection and relationship with God, because we were made for that. Birds were made to fly, fish were made to swim, and human beings were made to love God and each other.

“Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.”  Luke 11

“The Prayer Process requires no mentor, no guide…just the process itself, and ten minutes of your time every day. Are you ready? Here goes:

THE PRAYER PROCESS

Gratitude:  Begin by thanking God in a personal dialogue for whatever you are most grateful for today.

Awareness:  Revisit the times in the past twenty-four hours when you were and were not the-best-version-of-yourself.  Talk to God about these situations and what you learned from them.

Significant Moments:  Identify something you experienced today and explore what God might be trying to say to you through that event (or person).

Peace:  Ask God to forgive you for any wrong you have committed (against yourself, another person, or him) and to fill you with a deep and abiding peace.

Freedom:  Speak with God about how he is inviting you to change your life, so that you can experience the freedom to be the-best-version-of-yourself.

Others:  Lift up to God anyone you feel called to pray for today, asking God to bless and guide them.

Finish by praying the Our Father.

These excerpts come from author Matthew Kelly: A Practical Guide to Life’s Essential Daily Habit I HEARD GOD LAUGH, p.36 & 41.