Dear Parishioners:
Summer has arrived! Hopefully we can begin to enjoy some sunny, warm weather and less rain! School is out and the summer vacation for all school children has now begun. The Fourth of July is coming soon! Don’t let the summer go by without taking some time of rest, refreshment and relaxation. Pope Francis reminds us: “Moments of rest are sacred because in them we find God.”
The summer brings with it family vacations and gatherings, respite from the routine and from work, and a chance to renew our lives. Summer reading is always part of the season for me. I hope to read a few good books this summer. For fun I hope to read a novel entitled Conclave by Robert Harris, a fictional story of intrigue at the Vatican! For education I hope to read ArchbishopChaput’s latest, Strangers in a Strange Land: Living the Catholic Faith in a Post-Christian World. It should provide some great insights into living a authentic Catholic life in the increasingly secular and often hostile world.
And for my spiritual reading I am looking forward St. Thomas More’s The Sadness of Christ. This classical work was the last that St. Thomas More wrote in the Tower of London before he was executed for standing firm in his Catholic faith. In it, he explores the Gospel passages that depict the agony of Our Lord in the Garden of Gethsemane. St. Thomas depicts Christ as a model of virtue in the face of suffering and persecution. Centuries later it is still timely and all too relevant for Catholics today. What will you be reading at the beach or by the pool this summer?
Summer is here and that means its also time for the OLM Vacation Bible Camp. It begins this Monday for children aged 4 thru 12 underthe direction of Mr. Michael LaChima, our OLM Youth Activities Coordinator, OLM Middle School Teacher and Mrs. Mickey St. Jean, OLMDirectress of RE. It is a great week of fun and faith for the children. The theme for thisyear is “A Wilderness Adventure through the Sacraments.” The children learn aboutthe Sacraments in very fun and faithful ways. The camp is held everyday this week from 9:00am until Noon. So when you see happy kids running around OLM having fun and smiling, you’llknow why!
Next weekend we again take up our Annual Missionary Cooperative Collection. Each year every parish in the Diocese of Providence hosts a particular missionary group as part of our support of the universal mission of the Church. We support the missions with our prayers and with a second collection to financially support their mission work.
This year wewelcome the Salesian Missionaries of Don Bosco. Fr. Sean McEwen, S.D.B, is coming to tell us about the great missionary work of the Salesian Fathers, Brothers and Sisters. These religious men and women work across the globe spreading the Gospel and helping the poor at schools, hospitals and parishes.
Fr. McEwen is a native of Canada who currently works in the missions in South Africa. He spends his summer holidays traveling across the U.S.A. preaching about the missionary work he and so many others do everyday to buildup the kingdom of God. Please give him a warm welcome to OLM and support him with your prayers and generous financial donations in the second collection.
My work at the RI Statehouse as the Director of the RI Catholic Conference is drawing to a close for the year! It is in these final days that we must be most vigilant. With the passage of the state budget and some other pending bills still to consider the General Assembly is wrapping up another session.
A radical pro-abortion bill did not advance this session. I thank those parishioners who reached out to Rep. Shanley of Warwick and Rep. Casimiro of North Kingstown to ask them to opposesuch extreme anti-life legislation. I also thank State Representative Giarrusso for his firmand consistent support of the sanctity of human life and for keeping the convictions of his Catholic faith.
It’s summer! Enjoy! Relax! Rest! Renew! Go to the beach! Sit outside and read that book! But get to Mass! Be well. Do good. God Bless. Go Sox!