Office for Mission and Heritage
Established in 2004, the Office for Mission and Heritage assists the Saint Xavier University community to become more focused on, intentional about, and accountable for pursuing its educational mission as a Catholic and Mercy institution.
Accordingly, the Office for Mission and Heritage has a threefold focus:
- Promoting and deepening the University community's understanding of and engagement with Saint Xavier's Catholic identity
- Fostering and enlivening the University community's appreciation for and embodiment of Saint Xavier's Mercy heritage, past and present.
- Supporting and contributing to the academic excellence of the University's undergraduate and graduate programs
Beyond Saint Xavier, Mission and Heritage is active with national organizations committed
to Catholic and faith-based higher education. Among these organizations are the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities (ACCU), the Conference for Mercy Higher Education (CMHE), and the Lilly Fellows Program.
Prayer for Saint Xavier University
O God, give us the compassion and conviction to care for the vulnerable and marginalized, as did Catherine McAuley. Give us the zeal and courage to spread the message of Mercy far and wide, as did Frances Xavier Warde. Give us a hunger for justice and devotion to pursuing the common good, as you have given it to generations of Mercy Sisters and their collaborators.
Give us, the Saint Xavier Community, these same tender hearts, wise minds, and brave spirits to live out our Mercy heritage and mission, today and always. Amen.
The Suscipe of Catherine McAuley
My God, I am yours for all eternity.
Teach me to cast my whole self
into the arms of your Providence
with the most lively, unlimited confidence in your compassionate, tender pity.
Grant, O most merciful Redeemer,
that whatever you ordain or permit may always be acceptable to me.
Take from my heart all painful anxiety;
suffer nothing to afflict me but sin,
nothing to delight me, but the hope of coming to the possession of You
my God, in your own everlasting kingdom.Amen.
Prayer of Mother Agatha O'Brien
While you, O My God, are my help and defender
No cares can o'erwhelm, nor terrors appall.
The wiles and the snares of this world will but render
More lively my hope in my God and my all.
Yes, my refuge, you are in sorrows and dangers
My strength when I suffer, my hope when I fall.
My comfort and joy in this land of the stranger
My treasure, my glory, my God and my all.
To you dearest Lord will I turn without ceasing
Though griefs may oppress and sorrows befall.
I'll love you till death, my poor spirit releasing,
Secures me to Jesus, my God and my all.
And when you demand the life you have given,
With joy shall I answer your merciful call,
And quit you on earth but to find you in heaven
My portion forever, my God and my all.
Amen.
For more information contact the Vice President of Mission and Heritage, Jenny DeVivo, Ph.D., at 773-341-5734 or devivoFREESXU.
The Liturgy: Place of Encounter with Christ
This series on the Eucharistic liturgy aims to break open the various elements of the Mass to identify how our encounter with Christ strengthens our faith, deepens our life in Christ, and stirs the heart for mission.
On This Day: We Give Praise and Glory to God
Tuesday, March 11, 2025
Sunday after Sunday the assembly of the baptized gathers to offer its praise and thanksgiving to God. The liturgical act is not one of recalling some distant and historical moment; it is a celebration of the one and eternal liturgy. In this presentation, participants are introduced to the Church's theology of Mass and will grow to understand how, as priest, prophet, and king, each member of the assembly celebrates the liturgy. The presentation will conclude with a brief overview of The Introductory Rites, those rites that gather us and make us into a liturgical/sacramental assembly, the Body of Christ.
Be Doers of the Word, and Not Merely Hearers
Tuesday, March 18, 2025
Realizing that the Word has been incarnate and that Word lives within us, we allow ourselves to be formed by the proclamation of the Word. In this session, participants will examine the various parts and characteristics of the Liturgy of the Word. As hearers of God's word, we are roused from our pews to be doers of the word. As hearers and doers, we learn to savor the richness of God's word so as to grow closer to the heart of the Incarnate Word.
I Have Earnestly Desired to Eat
Tuesday, March 25, 2025
In his Apostolic Letter, Desiderio desideravi, Pope Francis invites the faithful to contemplate and deepen their understanding of the Eucharistic mystery. The Holy Father reminds us that Jesus earnestly desires to share himself with us in consecrated bread and consecrated wine gathered around the Eucharistic table. In this session, participants will learn about the various parts and characteristics of the Liturgy of the Eucharist. As people nourished by his saving Body and Blood, we are strengthened in love and sent forth for the life of the world.
Go and Announce the Gospel of the Lord
Tuesday, April 1, 2025
At his Ascension, Jesus told his disciples to go to the ends of the earth preaching
the Gospel. Jesus says the same to us: we are to go to the ends of the earth sharing
the Good News (Acts 1:8) because, like the two disciples on the Road to Emmaus, the
hearts of those in love with Christ burn with fervor to announce his saving and merciful
love (Lk 24:32). In this session, participants will explore the Concluding Rites of
the Mass and the Eucharistic vision to "joyfully bear fruit for the salvation of the
world."
Meet the Speaker
Timothy Johnston, M.A., MACD, is the pastoral associate at St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church in Chicago. He has a degree in music education from Quincy University in Illinois, a master's degree in liturgical studies from St. John's University in Collegeville, Minnesota, and a Master of Arts in Christian Doctrine from Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Johnston has served as an editor and liturgical training consultant for Liturgy Training Publications, director of liturgical programs at Marquette University, and director of the Office of Liturgy for the dioceses of Salt Lake City, St. Cloud and Washington, D.C. Johnston is co-author of "Guide for Celebrating Infant Baptism" (LTP, 2018), "Disciples Making Disciples: Print and Digital Resources for Forming the Assembly" (LTP, 2017), and "Pocket Prayers for Times of Trouble" (Twenty-Third, 2014).
