About Us

Our Vision

St. Margaret Mary Parish exists to help people experience new life in Christ.

Our Mission

Encounter Christ

We help people encounter the living person of Jesus Christ.

Grow in Christ

We help people deepen their relationship with Jesus through the Beauty, Truth, and Goodness of our Catholic faith.

Be Christ

We empower people to go out and be Christ to the world.

Our Patroness

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, a French Roman Catholic Visitation nun and mystic, is greatly recognized for her devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

She was born in 1647 in France as the only daughter of Claude and Philiberte Lamyn Alacoque. Margaret showed an intense love for the Blessed Sacrament and preferred silence over childhood play.

Rheumatic fever confined her to her bed for four years. After making a vow to the Blessed Virgin Mary to consecrate herself to religious life, Margaret instantly returned to perfect health. In recognition of this favor, Margaret added the name Mary to her baptismal name.

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque experienced visions of Jesus Christ for most of her life.

After the death of her father, Margaret and her family were forced into poverty when a relative refused to hand over the family’s assets. Her only comfort in life was her frequent visits to pray before the Blessed Sacrament at a local church.

At 17-years-old, Margaret’s family regained control of their assets and her mother encouraged her to become more social, in hopes she would find a suitable husband. One night, after attending a ball, Margaret had a vision of Christ, scourged and bloody. He showed her that His heart was full of love for her because of the promise she made to His Blessed Mother as a child. After this vision, Margaret was determined to fulfill the vow she made years prior and entered the Visitation Convent at Paray-le-Monial in May 1671.

During her time in this monastery, Margaret received several private revelations of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. These visions showed her the “form of the devotion, the chief features being reception of Holy Communion on the first Friday of each month, Eucharistic adoration during a ‘Holy hour’ on Thursdays, and the celebration of the Feast of the Sacred Heart.” The Lord Jesus requested His love be made evident through her.

In December 1673, Jesus appeared to Margaret Mary again, and allowed her to rest her head on His heart. His human heart was to be the symbol of His divine-human love. He revealed to her the wonders of His love. He explained to her that he wished to make these wonders known to all the world, and that He chose her for His work.

Margaret Mary convinced her superior, Mother de Saumaise, her visions were authentic. However, she struggled with convincing others of the validity of her apparitions, even those in her own community. Margaret eventually gained the support from the community’s confessor, St. Claude de la Colombiere, who declared her visions were genuine. St. Margaret Mary led the monastery in observing the Feast of the Sacred Heart privately, and inspired the construction of a chapel built to honor the Sacred Heart.

Margaret Mary died at the age of 43, on October 17, 1690. While being anointed she spoke the words, “I need nothing but God, and to lose myself in the heart of Jesus.”

On September 18, 1864, Margaret Mary was beatified by Pope Pius IX. When her tomb was opened a few years later, two immediate cures took place and her body laid incorrupt. She was officially canonized on May 13, 1920 by Pope Benedict XV.
St. Margaret Mary Alacoque is the patron saint of devotees of the Sacred Heart, and those suffering with polio and from the loss of parents. Her feast day is celebrated on October 16.

Parish History

St. Margaret Mary Parish was established on July 12, 1980, formed from parts of two already existing parishes: St. Peter and Paul, Naperville (established 1846) and St. Joan of Arc, Lisle (established 1924). St. Margaret Mary became the 111th parish of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Joliet (established 1949).

It was the growing population of Green Trails, along with the development of what was then the new southeast section of Naperville that attracted sufficient numbers of Catholics to warrant the establishment of a new parish. Built on land donated by Harold and Margaret Mary Moser, St. Margaret Mary Parish was named by Bishop Imesch in honor of the patron saint of Mrs. Moser.

Fr. Joe Voss, associate pastor of St. Mary’s, Downers Grove, was appointed the first pastor of St. Margaret Mary. Fr. Voss served St. Margaret Mary Parish as pastor for approximately nine months before taking a leave of absence on March 22, 1981. Fr. Ted Weitzel was named the second pastor on March 25, 1981. The early Masses were celebrated at Steeple Run School, and very quickly a parish Pastoral Council and a building committee were organized to plan for the future.

The construction of the worship space made visible the Benedictine heritage of the parish. A building committee of ten met weekly for two years to plan for the construction of the church building. The church was officially dedicated on October 15, 1983 with Fr. Ted and Bishop Imesch presiding at the dedication Mass.

Once the church building was constructed and dedicated, even more members flocked to its doors. By late 1983, the parish had grown to 1065 families. Fr. Ted completed his twelve-year stay at St. Margaret Mary Parish in June 1993 and Fr. Bill O’Shea was named pastor.

All Saints Catholic Academy opened its doors in August, 2005. This regional school is sponsored by three Naperville Catholic parishes: St. Margaret Mary, St. Elizabeth Seton, and St. Thomas the Apostle.

After years of planning, fundraising, and construction, our new wing to our parish facility opened in September 2008. The new wing includes a foyer for the parish library, and the Upper Room, used for a variety of parish activities. As part of the project, the church offices relocated to the lower level of the wing, and religious education offices were centralized in the 1989 wing. All this movement created space for the new Teen Center, which opened in November 2008.

Fr. Bill O’Shea entered into retirement in June 2007, concluding 14 years as pastor of St. Margaret Mary. Fr. Paul Hottinger then served the parish as pastor for 14 years before retiring in July 2021. Fr. Max Behna currently serves as pastor.