Shrine of St. Jude :: Chronicle :: May Novena Guest Preacher

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May 2009 Chronicle
•	A Message From Fr. Jim
•	Dominican Connection
•	Friends of St. Jude Report....What God Has Done
•	May Novena Guest Preacher
•	Wondrous Silence

St. Jude Chronicle Archive

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Our newsletter, The St. Jude Chronicle, is sent in advance of our five solemn novenas and contains articles on the spiritual life.
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Prayer for the Friends of St. Jude
Dear God, I can get very caught up in my own problems. After all, they are real and cause me a lot of pain. But I remember that I am part of a large human family, your family, and we all have problems. I expand my awareness to include all people, especially the many others who approach Saint Jude with their concerns. I move out of myself to embrace them in prayer and ask that your grace may flow through every one of them.

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About us
The Dominican Friars, the Province of St. Albert the Great, are Roman Catholic priests and brothers. We are part of the global "Order of Preachers," the Dominican Family of priests, brothers, sisters, nuns and lay people, who live and pray today in a holy tradition that dates back to time of St. Dominic, the thirteenth century.

Our mission is to communicate the Word of God through preaching, theological education, and the promotion of justice and peace. This mission in the Body of Christ demands a vowed community life, liturgical prayer and life-long study.

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Fr. Robert J. Botthof, O.P. joined the Order of Preachers in 1982, two years after his wife, Mary died and his two children were married. After completing his theological/pastoral studies at Aquinas Institute in St. Louis, he was appointed President/Principal of Fenwick High School in Oak Park, IL. He has also served as both Parochial Vicar and Pastor of St. Vincent Ferrer Church in River Forest. Until the present, he has been the parochial Vicar at St. Domitilla Parish in Hillside/Berkeley, IL.

Fr. Robert was a public and Catholic high school administrator and guidance counselor for nearly 45 years and has had much pastoral counseling experience. Having been married for 23 years and then widowed, he is particularly interested in helping all who have lost a loved one through death or divorce. His wife died of cancer after many years of treatment and suffering. His attending to her needs, that of his family, and having served as a regular visitor to parishioners in home, hospital and hospice, aptly have prepared his for the compassionate ministry of being the pastoral and spiritual director of the Shrine.

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