Dear Parishioners:
Today we begin the month of May! It is a month dedicated to Our Blessed Mother Mary. Saint Francis de Sales said: "Let us run to Mary, and, as her little children, cast ourselves into her arms with a perfect confidence." And so during this month, we run to Mary in prayer and with confidence. Each Monday night in May, we gather as a parish to pray the Rosary for Peace in Ukraine. We call upon the powerful intercession of our patroness Our Lady of Mercy, the Queen of Peace. So schedule thirty minutes each Monday to come to May Devotions as we pray the Rosary before the Eucharistic Lord and receive Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. As Saint Padre Pio once said: “The Rosary is the ‘weapon ‘ for these times!”
The month of May also brings us the celebration of First Holy Communion at OLM. Next Saturday, the Our Lady of Mercy First Communion Class children receive Jesus Christ, body, soul, and divinity in the Eucharist for the first time in their young lives. Pray for them! Celebrating a First Holy Communion Mass in a parish church in Italy in 2019, Pope Francis said to the children:
"We rejoice because, for love of us, Jesus gave his life on the cross and destroyed sin. He rose again and made us adopted sons and daughters of God the Father. We are joyful because he is alive and present among us, today and always. That is why we can encounter him today in the Eucharist."
First Communion is a beautiful day of faith, hope, and love for our parish children, their families, and our entire parish family. As our children celebrate this First Holy Communion, we pray that it is just the beginning of a lifelong and loving relationship with Jesus Christ nourished and strengthened weekly at Sunday Mass.
Next Sunday is Mother's Day! We celebrate God's great gift of Motherhood and honor our Mothers for their love and support. We will offer Masses next Sunday for all Mothers, living and deceased. So please return your Mother's Day Memorial envelopes before next Sunday so we may pray for your beloved Mothers and Grandmothers.
Next Sunday, we also celebrate Motherhood in a very special way. at 10:30 am Mass. Our First Communion Class will crown the Blessed Mother Mary, Queen of May. It is a beautiful tradition and a wonderful way to pay tribute to our parish patroness, Our Lady of Mercy.
The English author William Makepeace Thackeray once said: "Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children." What a joy for our parish family to celebrate both the Mothers of our parish and First Communion for our parish children.
May is a month for us to pick up our Rosary beads and put them to work. Take them out of our pockets and use them to pray. Many great popes, saints, and scholars have encouraged us to pray the Rosary daily. It's a powerful prayer that can change your life, strengthen the family, bring peace to the world, convert entire nations, and win the salvation of souls.
Some people have the impression that the Rosary is not relevant to them. It might be a sacred prayer for very religious people—priests, religious sisters, and pious Catholics—but not for an ordinary layperson. Many view it as the marathon of Catholic devotions. They dismiss it as too long and too difficult. We don't have to be holy to pray the Rosary and we don’t have to pray it all at once.
Some people quietly pray a whole rosary in one sitting. But we can also choose to divide it up, prayying just a decade or two at a time at different points throughout the day. Perhaps on the way to work, in between errands, in between meetings, while folding laundry, or doing dishes. Many holy men and women have prayed the Rosary just this way and found it fruitful for their busy lives.
We can pray it anywhere! The Rosary is like a portable chapel we pull out anytime, anyplace. Whether we have a sudden, urgent situation to present to God in prayer, or we want to fill some of our days with thoughts of God, all we need to do is pull out our beads and turn to the Lord in this prayer. Indeed, the Rosary is always accessible. It's May so take out the beads and pray the Holy Rosary!
Be well. Stay safe. Do good. God Bless! Hope to see you at Devotions on Monday as we pray together for peace.