St Francis Xavier Church

A really, really nice church. Has that great «community» vibe that you want in a church. Building is beautiful and in great shape. Not the type of place where you’ll get the evil eye if you come a minute late or aren’t looking as sharp one weekend as maybe you should… Very accepting of everyone and friendly to all. Grew up going here until I moved out several years ago… Has been very hard to find another parish I feel so comfortable at.

It may be a beautiful church, but it certainly doesn’t seem authentically Catholic, which is a shame, as it is the church and school I attended as a child. I haven’t belonged in many years, but several times I have gone as I couldn’t make it to my own churches masses. I always dread going as it is so trying hard to still be a «Protestant» church with its «feel good» messages, music, greeting each other once in the pews and hand– holding across the aisles during the Our Father. The 70s, 80s and 90s are over. Time to return to a Catholic liturgy and the focus on Jesus Christ.

St. Francis Xavier Church in La Grange has ‘run –a-​muck’! I was taught as a child that when in the House of the Lord, you kept quiet and respectful of where you were… You’re in GOD’s house! I have been going to SFX since last year and enjoy the tranquil beauty of the church. Each time I attend the noon service at SFX I look forward to arriving :15 minutes early so I could be at peace and meditate in prayer before mass starts. However, as of these past few months, I took a break from SFX. It seemed that each time I went to Sunday mass and sat up front near the alter to see and hear clearly, I began to notice a borage of conversation among fellow parishioners talking amongst each other loud enough to be distracting to everyone else there in prayer. They seemed to be everywhere ‘talking’ about anything but for the reason that they where in church. I recently returned for Easter Sunday service. And as of today May 8^th, I planned on taking my mom to mass for it was Mothers Day. As we arrived, the parking lot was busy with the 10:30 congregation. As we entered the church, the atmosphere was charged with conversation. As my mom and I located ourselves towards the front, there was a couple of young mothers ‘talking’ and standing at the steps of the alter all the while their children (along with many others) were running and jumping all over the alter and towards the sacristy. The flowers that where positioned around the alter where being manhandled by a 5 year old boy followed by what seemed to be his sister. We sat in disbelief to what we were observing. These mother s were completely oblivious to what their children were doing and seemed to not care. My patients was running thin and I became angry. I told my mom that we could not worship in that kind of setting. As we left, Rev. John Hoffman was coming back inside from greeting other parishioners from the earlier mass. As we past each other, I hesitated but then turned around and ask, ‘Father I’d like to call your attention to an issue that’s been troubling me for some time now…” and began to tell him what I/​we had just observed. And the fact that this total disregard for quiet in his house of the LORD goes on every time I attend SFX services. He accepted no responsibility and replied with, «Well if you don’t feel you can pray here maybe you should go somewhere else. I don’t see a problem with it» I have to say that was not what I expected to come from him. Just how much money has the Archdiocese spent on their ad campaigns to get people to come back to the church and this is how a man of GOD reacts to a legitimate concern of an adult parishioner? Is this the current code of conduct in which the church sees as acceptable and allows the congregation to ‘run-​a-​muck inside their church? If that’s the case I will go back to believing in GOD in my own way in the quiet meditation of my own home! D.C. DuBois/​La Grange Park

SFX is a wonderful Catholic Church. The feeling of community is alive & well. Their school is top notch. Where you fortunate enough to grow up in a communtiy where you knew everybody by name? This is that kind of a community. I couldn’t and wouldn’t want to raise my kids anywhere else.

Very nice church right off of Ogden Ave. and LaGrange Rd.
Offers: High ceilings, illuminated, romantic, clean, welcoming, all around beautiful.