News Releases

Chicago, IL (Jan. 15, 2021) – The Archdiocese of Chicago will join other Christian churches in praying for unity during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, beginning on Monday, Jan. 18, 2021. Started in 1908, the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is celebrated annually around the world between Jan. 18 and Jan. 25. Those eight days form an “octave” from the Confession of St. Peter to the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul. This year’s theme is from the Gospel of St. John, “Abide in my love… you shall bear much fruit.”

Chicago, (Jan. 12, 2021) – The Archdiocese of Chicago will participate in local events in January commemorating the March for Life, an annual pro-life gathering in Washington, D.C., occurring on the anniversary of the 1973 Roe v. Wade court decision legalizing abortion.

Chicago, (Dec. 23, 2020) – Cardinal Blase J. Cupich, archbishop of Chicago, and other local clergy were invited by Guy A. Medaglia, president and chief executive officer of Saint Anthony Hospital, to receive their vaccinations against COVID-19 as part of the hospital’s campaign to combat vaccine hesitancy among the communities Saint Anthony serves. Saint Anthony, a safety net hospital in a community disproportionately affected by the pandemic, has served the near west and southwest sides for more than a century.

The Archdiocese of Chicago today announced updates on the Rogers Park/Edgewater, Our Lady’s Triangle, Jefferson/Portage Park and Old Irving Park/Addison Renew My Church groupings.

Chicago, (Dec. 14, 2020) The Archdiocese of Chicago today announced it has named Moira Reilly, LCSW, as Interim Director of the Office for Child Abuse Investigations and Review (CAIR), which works to provide a compassionate and thorough process to receive and investigate reports of abuse against personnel. Reilly fills the position of Leah McCluskey Heffernan, who has accepted the position as Director, Office of Child and Youth Protection for the Diocese of Joliet.

Chicago - (Dec. 2, 2020) - St. Thomas the Apostle Parish, in Chicago, with the help of a $1 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc., will establish the Tolton Spirituality Center, a non-profit clearinghouse and community hub to build upon the life and legacy of Venerable Augustus Tolton – a former slave and first black priest in the United States. St. Ambrose Parish, also in Chicago, will collaborate on the project.

Des Plaines – (Nov. 24, 2020) - Very Rev. Esequiel Sanchez, Rector of the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Des Plaines, Ill. announced today that celebrations of the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe at the Shrine on Dec. 11 & 12 are cancelled due to the on-going pandemic. After consultation with Cardinal Blase Cupich, archdiocesan, and governmental officials on the severity of the local course of the pandemic it was determined that protecting the health and safety of the thousands of pilgrims who yearly visit the Shrine is best accomplished by closing the Shrine grounds and live streaming services.

Chicago – (Nov. 23, 2020) – The Archdiocese of Chicago and Catholic Charities have jointly raised an historic $20 million for COVID-19 relief efforts in response to the vast needs of individuals and communities in Cook and Lake Counties. This fund is one of the largest U.S. Catholic relief responses to COVID-19 and is being deployed to assist thousands of people without regard to their faith, racial, ethnic, or gender identities.

Chicago - (Nov. 20, 2020) – The 50th annual collection for the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD), the U.S. Catholic bishops’ domestic anti-poverty program, will be held at archdiocesan parishes the weekend of November 21-22, 2020. This national collection is the primary source of funding for CCHD’s community and economic development grants and education programs for locally-based programs. Twenty-five percent of the funds collected remain in each diocese to support local anti-poverty projects. In 2020/2021, CCHD will support 24 organizations in Cook and Lake counties with more than $780,000 in grants.

Joliet, Ill. --- (Nov. 16, 2020) – Bishop of Joliet Ronald A. Hicks today announced the appointment of Leah McCluskey Heffernan, MSW, LSW as the director of the Office of Child and Youth Protection for the Diocese of Joliet. The appointment is effective Dec. 1, 2020. Heffernan joins from the Archdiocese of Chicago where she was the director of the Office for Child Abuse Investigations and Review in the Archdiocese’s Office for the Protection of Children and Youth.