Dates and times for Tolton: From Slave to Priest in central Illinois

It was not part of my planning but, surely, rather a working of Divine Providence that St. Luke Productions desired to bring Tolton: From Slave to Priest to the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois during this National Vocation Awareness Week. What better way could there to be raise awareness concerning vocations to the priesthood by learning more about the Servant of God Father Augustus Tolton, the first publicly known black priest in this country?

I've already shared the dates and times of the performances with you already, but please allow me to share them with you again and to strongly urge you to attend at least one of them.

First, though, let me share again the bulletin blurb from St. Luke Productions to advertise Tolton: From Slave to Priest to give a brief bit of useful information:

Meet Fr. Augustus Tolton, the first African American priest, in this one-man multimedia performance. From his dramatic escape from slavery to his courageous struggle in the face of prejudice, Fr. Tolton’s inspiring life centers around his message reconciliation and hope. This riveting drama is filled with all the elements of professional theater, runs 90 minutes, and is suitable for ages 10 and up.

And now, the performance locations, dates, and times:

• EFFINGHAM - The first performance will be held on Tuesday, November 7th at 7:00 p.m. in Effingham at the Effingham Performance Center. A free-will offering will be taken. Following the performance, I have been asked to give a brief presentation on the canonization process and to answer whatever questions attendees might have.

• JACKSONVILLE - The second performance will be held on Wednesday, November 8th at 7:00 p.m. in Jacksonville at Our Saviour church. The performance, I think, will be free to all attendees.

• DECATUR - The third performance will be held on Thursday, November 9th at 6:30 p.m. in Decatur at Our Lady of Lourdes church. A free-will offering will be taken.

• SPRINGFIELD - The fourth performance will be held on Saturday, November 11th at 7:30 p.m. in Springfield at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. A free-will offering will be taken.

• QUINCY - The fifth performance, and the one to which I am most looking forward, will be held on Sunday, November 12th at 3:00 p.m. in Quincy at the Pepsi Arena of Quincy University. A free-will offering will be taken.

• GRANITE CITY - The sixth and final performance will be held on Monday, November 13th at 7:00 p.m. in Granite City at Holy Family church. A free-will offering will be taken.

I plan to be at each of the performances and hope to see you somewhere!