Dear Parishioners,

I’m calling my bulletin article for this week, Familiar Places with New Faces, as hopefully will be evident.

The first of these familiar places is Vatican City, the smallest sovereign state in the world. It is home to what may be the largest Catholic church in the world that is built over the necropolis where the apostle Peter is buried. It is also the place where the pope, successor of St. Peter, resides.

On May 8, 2025, the College of Cardinals elected Robert Prevost from among themselves to become the successor of Peter following the death of Pope Francis. Thereafter, Cardinal Prevost chose to be named Leo XIV as an act of homage to Pope Leo XIII, who died in 1903 and who is fondly remembered for his strong emphasis on Catholic social teaching. Pope Leo XIV himself said that he chose this name to indicate his desire to continue developing this social teaching and to address another industrial revolution and the developments in the field of artificial intelligence that pose new challenges for the defense of human dignity, justice, and labor.

Born in Chicago, Illinois and raised in a town near the city’s South Side, Prevost became an Augustinian friar in 1977 and was ordained as a priest in 1982. His service has included extensive missionary work in Peru from 1985 to 1986 and from 1988 to 1998, where he variously served as a parish pastor, diocesan official, seminary teacher, and administrator. Elected prior general of the Order of Saint Augustine from 2001 to 2013, he later returned to Peru as Bishop of Chiclayo from 2015 to 2023. In 2023, Pope Francis appointed him prefect of the Dicastery (Vatican Office) of Bishops and president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, and made him a cardinal that same year.

A United States citizen by birth, Leo XIV is the first pope to have been born in North America, the first to also hold Peruvian citizenship, and the second pope from the Americas (after Francis). He is the first pope from the Order of Saint Augustine. Prior to his election, Leo XIV was described as a moderate. As a cardinal, he emphasized synodality, dialogue, and engagement with contemporary social and technological challenges. He is also engaged with issues such as climate change, migration, Church governance, and human rights.

He has consistently expressed alignment with the reforms of the Second Vatican Council. Whether clothing is an indication of anything more than personal preference—which I believe it is—Leo XIV chose to wear some of the more formal papal attire that Pope Francis jettisoned, namely the white rochet (surplice) worn over his white cassock and the red mozetta, the cape-like garment that covers his shoulders and chest. The pectoral cross he chose to wear over the red mozetta is of a more traditional, elegant style. When he first greeted those gathered in St. Peter’s Square on the day of his election, he quoted the first words of the Risen Christ to the apostles: “Peace be with you.” Quite different from Pope Francis, whose first greeting on the day of his election was “Good Evening.”

During the first Mass the new pope offered with the cardinals in the Sistine Chapel the day after his election, Leo said that those with a ministry of authority (like himself) should learn to move aside so that Christ may remain, to make oneself small so that He (Christ) may be known and glorified, and to spend oneself to the utmost so that all may have the opportunity to know and love Him.

Let us joyfully welcome and pray for Pope Leo XIV, who has assumed what must certainly be one of the most challenging vocations in the Church and in the world.

On a less global and more local scale, the second familiar place with a new face is our own campus of St. Joan of Arc Church and School, where we welcome Tom Zettle, our recently hired Maintenance Supervisor.

Tom, 35 years old, grew up in Lisle and worked as an auto mechanic for 16 years. Tom replaces Mario Hernandez, with whom he worked here at St. Joan of Arc for several months before Mario took a position elsewhere that was less supervisory in nature. Tom is proving to be an extremely hardworking, dedicated, and calm staff member who, in his own words, is “always trying to improve myself and learn.” Tom’s goal in life is to help people, which he is always eager to do and which he is currently doing so amazingly here at our parish and school. His favorite sports are soccer, disc golf, and baseball.

Thank you, Tom, for serving us so well. We look forward to your loooooong career with us.

The third familiar place with a new face is the interior of our church with Megan Batinick. Megan serves our parish as the one who designs, creates, and maintains the seasonal arrangements that bring joy and beauty to our liturgical environment. This can be one of those thankless tasks that is often taken for granted until it is not done or is done poorly. Our parish has been consistently blessed with individuals who strive to ensure that the place where we worship reflects the glory of God as much as we mortal beings can perform such an awesome duty.

In this position, Megan’s work is most intense during the high holy days of Christmas and Easter. But there are other times throughout the Liturgical Year that our worship space calls for special arrangements and particular care. Megan grew up in Plainfield and is now a parishioner of St. Joan of Arc. She and her husband Brian have been married for two years and, with their one-year-old son Elliot, live in Lombard.

Besides caring for our church, Megan works in actuary retirement consulting. She enjoys dancing and other activities that bring her close to the beauty of God’s creation. We are grateful for the talent that she shares with us so creatively, generously, and gently.

Three new faces in beloved familiar places. God is indeed very good to us.

Easter blessings,

Fr. Gabriel, OSB

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