Faith, Conscience, and Care at the End of Life: Catholic, Jewish, and Muslim Perspectives in a Changing Illinois Landscape
On Sunday, November 15, Catholic Theological Union (CTU) will be hosting a "Sundays at CTU" Event. The topic will be "Faith, Conscience, and Care at the End of Life: Catholic, Jewish, and Muslim Perspectives in a Changing Illinois Landscape". This is a very pertinent topic given recent legislation in Illinois.
The event will include several presenters, including our own Fr. James Halstead, OSA. Fr. Jim is a Lifetime Trustee of CTU who lives with/suffers from ALS. His insights on the topic being discussed will be invaluable.
Since Fr. Jim is unable to speak, Augustinian Affiliate Fr. Richard Fragomeni (Fr. Jim's Spiritual Director and friend) will read Fr. Jim’s written text.
The event will begin with Mass at 3 PM. Fr. Halstead will share his reflections at the beginning and end of the panel discussion.
This event is free and open to everyone.
Click the link below to learn more and register for the event:
You may also be interested to read a letter that was sent out to CTU Trustees encouraging them to attend. It gives a beautiful testimony to the impact Fr. Jim has made on CTU.
Stay tuned for more: Fr. Jim and Fr. Richard Fragomeni will collaborate for another event titled "Quality of Life with ALS" to be held at the Shrine of Our Lady of Pompeii in Chicago at a date and time to be determined.
Veterans Day Mass - Mendel High School Alumni Association
Veterans Day Mass
The Mendel High School Alumni Association invites alumni, families, and friends to join us for our 2026 Veterans Day Mass as we honor the Mendel men and women who served our country, along with the first responders who answered the call to serve their communities.
This year’s Mass will be held on Wednesday, November 18, 2026 at St. Barnabas Church.
Each year, this gathering gives the Mendel community an opportunity to remember those who served in the United States Armed Forces and to recognize the courage and sacrifice of our first responders. We will also pay special tribute to the 16 Mendel Monarchs who made the ultimate sacrifice in Vietnam and the three Monarch first responders who died in the line of duty.
Their service remains an important part of Mendel’s history, and their names and sacrifices deserve to be remembered by every generation of Monarchs.
Support the Veterans Day Mass Program
Alumni, families, businesses, and friends of Mendel can help support this year’s Mass by purchasing an advertisement or remembrance in the official program.
Program advertising options:
Full Page: $200
Half Page: $125
Quarter Page: $70
Single Line: $25
You may use your space to promote a business, recognize a veteran or first responder, remember a loved one, congratulate the Alumni Association, or simply show your support for the Mendel community.
Purchase an ad or make your contribution here:
Veterans Day Mass Program & Donations
Honor and Remember
Mendel has always been more than a school. It is a brotherhood built across generations. The Veterans Day Mass is one of the occasions when that brotherhood comes together to say something simple, but important:
Thank you for your service. We remember.
Cascia Hall - Celebrating 100 Years: Spring Vespers / Augustinian Affiliation
Join the Cascia Hall Community for these special events to celebrate the school’s Centennial
Visit: https://www.casciahall.com/celebrating-100-years for more information.
Cascia Hall - Celebrating 100 Years: Centennial Gala
Join the Cascia Hall Community for these special events to celebrate the school’s Centennial
Visit: https://www.casciahall.com/celebrating-100-years for more information.
Discover the Augustinian Third Order
Are you drawn to Augustinian spirituality and looking for a way to deepen your faith while remaining rooted in your everyday life, family, work, and community?
The Midwest Augustinians invite you to join us for an online Augustinian Third Order Information Session to learn more about this centuries-old way for lay people to share more deeply in Augustinian spirituality and community.
Saturday, October 17
11:00am -12:30pm CST
Online via Zoom; preregister to receive the Zoom Link
Cascia Hall - Celebrating 100 Years: Outdoor Mass
Join the Cascia Hall Community for these special events to celebrate the school’s Centennial
Visit: https://www.casciahall.com/celebrating-100-years for more information.
World Day of Migrants and Refugees - Special Event
Please join Fr. Richard Fragomeni, Affiliate of the Order of St. Augustine and the Sant’Egidio community for this special event at the Shrine of Our Lady of Pompeii in honor of the World Day of Migrants and Refugees.
Cascia Hall - Celebrating 100 Years: Commando Cookoff
Join the Cascia Hall Community for these special events to celebrate the school’s Centennial
Visit: https://www.casciahall.com/celebrating-100-years for more information.
Cascia Hall - Celebrating 100 Years: Homecoming Cookout
Join the Cascia Hall Community for these special events to celebrate the school’s Centennial
Visit: https://www.casciahall.com/celebrating-100-years for more information.
Cascia Hall - Celebrating 100 Years: 1926 Day
Join the Cascia Hall Community for these special events to celebrate the school’s Centennial
Visit: https://www.casciahall.com/celebrating-100-years for more information.
Cascia Hall - Celebrating 100 Years
Join the Cascia Hall Community for these special events to celebrate the school’s Centennial
Visit: https://www.casciahall.com/celebrating-100-years for more information.
St. Augustine & St. Monica Feast Day Celebration
Save the Date: St. Augustine's Feast Day
Please save the date to join us to celebrate the Feast Days of St. Augustine and St. Monica on Friday, August 28th.
We will host Solemn Vespers at 6:30pm on Aug 28th at St. Barnabas Parish with a reception following. At this event, we will also honor our Augustinians' Anniversaries of Ordination and Profession.
Where: St. Barnabas Parish
When: Friday, August 28th
6:30PM Solemn Vespers with Reception to Follow
Camp Restless 2026
June 14-19, 2026 | Lemont, IL
For Students Entering Grades 7-12
A week of leadership, faith, friendship, service, prayer, and community rooted in the Augustinian tradition.
Pope Leo @ One: Augustinian, Pastoral, Prophetic
Pope Leo @ One: Augustinian, Pastoral, Prophetic
The election of Pope Leo XIV (formerly Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, OSA, '77) on May 8, 2025, marked a historic moment as the first Augustinian and the first U.S.-born Pope. As a Villanova alumnus, his papacy is being celebrated with a special panel discussion for his one-year anniversary. The event will feature experts and thought leaders who will examine Pope Leo XIV's influences, upcoming priorities, and the path ahead.
Tuesday, April 28, 2026
5 to 6:30 p.m. (EASTERN TIME)
The Villanova Room of the Connelly Center
With opening remarks delivered by the Rev. Peter M. Donohue, OSA, PhD, Villanova University President and facilitated by Tia Noelle Pratt, PhD, Special Assistant to the Vice President for Mission & Ministry and Director of Mission Engagement and Strategic Initiatives for Mission and Ministry.
Featured panelists include:
Robert Cardinal McElroy, Archbishop of Washington, who participated in the May 2025 conclave that elected Pope Leo XIV
Justin McLellan, Vatican correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter
The Rev. John Lydon, OSA, PhD, Inaugural Director of Villanova’s Mother Cabrini Institute on Immigration
Jaisy A. Joseph, PhD, Assistant Professor of Theology and Religious Studies at Villanova University
Hannah Kalamarides ’26 COE, Villanova student and synodal fellow in the University’s Office for Mission and Ministry, who participated in the Jubilee Year of the Synod in Rome in October 2025
To Breathe Again: A Lenten Journey for Women
This Lenten retreat invites women on a gentle yet deeply meaningful journey rooted in Scripture and Augustine’s wisdom on interior renewal. Across the weekend, we will explore what steals our breath, where God desires to restore it, and how grace teaches us to live breathe again. Through prayer, reflection, storytelling, and community, participants will encounter a space of peace, truth, and renewal designed for the real lives women carry.
This retreat is intentionally designed to be right-sized for every woman’s life. Whether you balance work schedules, the needs of children, the demands of aging parents, or the quiet weight of responsibilities that never seem to pause, you are welcome here.
You may participate in one of two ways:
1. Full Weekend Experience — Friday through Sunday
Arriving Friday evening allows you to settle in, breathe deeply, and enter the slower spiritual rhythm that frames the rest of the weekend. It offers the gift of spaciousness and gentle immersion.
2. Core Retreat Experience — Saturday through Sunday
If joining on Friday is not possible, you will not have “missed” essential content. Saturday marks the start of a new arc of the retreat, with its own introductions, prayer, and teaching moments that bring everyone—Friday and Saturday arrivals—into a shared journey.
Both entry points provide a complete and meaningful Lenten experience. Choose the option that best honors your season of life. The retreat is structured so that no woman feels behind, rushed, or unable to participate fully.
From Leo XIII to Leo XIV: Living Christian Love, Justice, and Mutuality in a Politically Divided World of AI, Climate Change, and Terror
From Leo XIII to Leo XIV: Living Christian Love, Justice, & Mutuality in a Politically Divided World of AI, Climate Change, & Terror (Via Zoom)
Thursdays, January 15 – February 26 | 6:30-8:00pm
$25 | Via Zoom
7-session series
Instructor: Sister Dawn Nothwehr
To register for the in-person series, click here. Click here for Virtual Information.
Together, we will explore key biblical texts, Catholic Social Teaching, and Pope Leo XIV’s September 2025 World Day of Prayer for Creation Address through art, music, drama, presentations, and discussions. We will define social justice by examining Scripture, Church documents, social science perspectives, and insights from parish workers and community organizers, all rooted in the principle of reverence for the human person and their environment. Participants will be introduced to major social teachings that inspire committed Christians and others striving for justice, peace, and ecological reconciliation in today’s challenging world.
Explore how faith meets the challenges of today’s world.
In this 7-session series, we’ll look at how generations of Christians have lived out their faith in times of change and conflict — and what their wisdom can teach us now. Through scripture, reflection, and conversation, we’ll uncover ways to bring Christ’s healing presence into our communities and daily lives.
Topics include:
Faith in Action: What Jesus teaches us about poverty and justice
Images of God: Insights from the Old and New Testaments
Living Our Beliefs: How early Christians shaped community and compassion
Catholic Social Teaching: From its origins to Pope Francis’ Laudato Si’
Making It Personal: Exploring today’s social issues through a faith-based lens
Come discover how ancient wisdom still speaks powerfully to our modern world — and how each of us can be a source of hope, peace, and renewal.
Email Sister Dawn Nothwehr with questions about program content at dawnosf@gmail.com.
Please make sure to download the Zoom app in advance of this program. We will send the Zoom link a few days before the first date of class.
Registration for all classes closes two (2) days prior to the scheduled event to allow adequate preparation time. We encourage you to register early to secure your spot.
NOCHE DE REFLEXIÓN DE EPIFANÍA: RESPONDIENDO A LA PRESENCIA DE JESÚS EN MI VIDA.
Join us at St. Turibius for a joyful Epiphany celebration held in Spanish on Thursday, January 8, 2026, at 6:30 PM. Music, prayer, reflection on the light of Christ, and parish fellowship for all ages. All are welcome—bring family and friends to share in the joy!
Affiliation Ceremony & Pope Leo XIV Mass of Thanksgiving
Please join our Augustinian community to celebrate Pope Leo XIV and honor our new Affiliates.
Reception to follow the Ceremony. We hope you can attend.
RSVP at the link below.
