Cardinal George helps Mundelein church celebrate 150th anniversary
St. Mary of the Annunciation Parish in Fremont Center celebrated its 150th anniversary Sunday with two special guests.
The one that attracted the most attention was Francis Cardinal George, making one of his final appearances as cardinal before handing over the reins to successor Blase Cupich.
The second was the parish's longtime pastor, Ron Lewinski, now working alongside George as his delegate for parish transformation. Prior to that, Lewinski had served as St. Mary's pastor for 18 years, leading it through three eras or, as he said, "three different parishes."
Supporting himself on crutches, Cardinal George moved slowly as he proceeded toward his designated seat during the service.
But the frail appearance was deceiving, as he entered vigorously into the proceedings, singing along with parishioners and then smiling as Lewinski remembered the horse and buggy ride they shared when they blessed site for the new church.
"We were supposed to re-enact that today, but our new pastor forgot to bring a horse," Lewinski joked, prompting laughter and applause.
In the cardinal's homily, he praised the parish for its legacy of prayer. Calling the church a vineyard, he said, "Here, in 150 years, the church has prayed - and prayed constantly. And it has taught people how to pray.
"Allow me to congratulate you with all my heart and urge you to continue in the ways of your parish, which are so beautiful," he added.
George also showed that he has not lost his sense of humor.
"If there is something that you really want and you can't say, 'God help me to have this,' there is something wrong" he said. "Your way is getting in God's way. You can't ask God to help you rob a bank successfully. We all know that."
Pastor Jerry Jacob, who took over for Lewinski in July, expressed his gratitude to Cardinal George for assigning him to St. Mary's.
"I look forward to the ministry that's been entrusted to this wonderful community in the coming years," he said.
Following the 11:30 a.m. Mass, the cardinal greeted parishioners, many of whom had pictures taken with him.
Among those in attendance were Mike and Karen Schwalbach of Mundelein.
"This might be one of his last appearances," Karen Schwalbach said. "It was important to see him and support him."
Lewinski spoke of the many changes he's seen since he first came to St. Mary's, recalling that the parish once had only about 500 families. Today it has four times that number.
"It has been a wonderful privilege to watch that growth, to be part of it," he said.
Lewinski said George has been particularly supportive of the parish transformation initiative he now leads, which is charged with reigniting parishes, helping them to redefine themselves.
"He has gotten us through some difficult times," he said of the cardinal. "He has been, at the same time, someone who has really called us to mission, called us to go beyond our difficulties and the challenges that we have had to face, stumbling blocks at times, to really look to the future with hope."