Dear Parishioners:
The project on our OLM School Field began last week. What little crabgrass and weeds that were growing on the field were removed. It is now being prepared for the placement of new sod. Thankfully we already have a sprinkler system installed in the field, so the new sod can be properly watered. In September, the students will run and play at recess and Gym Class on new, thick green grass! We are grateful to all who make this project possible.
Our organ project is ongoing and progressing quite well. I spoke with Anthony Peragallo of the organ company this week. He assures me that the organ parts will be fully restored and returned to OLM in late August. In the meantime, the temporary organ provided by the Peragallo Organ Company is working nicely. However, its sound is less majestic than the sound of our organ.
We hope to hear our organ's majestic sounds at our Annual Patronal Feast Day Mass on Sunday, September 24, at 10:30am. This Mass kickoffs our OLM Feast Week. Bishop Henning is celebrating the Mass. We hope and pray he can also bless our new Church doors! Mark your calendar for the Feast Week Mass and all the events of that week.
The Annual OLM Saints and Scholars Golf Tournament at Quidnessett Country Club is Monday, September 25. Our Holy Hour of Mercy is on Wednesday, September 27, and Thursday, September 28, we have our Work of Mercy. And on Friday, September 29, we have our Annual OLM Oktoberfest!
As for the church doors, as I write this column on Monday morning, our contractor for the project, Dave Chirico, informs me that he is installing the stained glass in the doors. Once this is done, the doors are ready for installation. Say a few prayers!!
We have been patiently awaiting our doors for a long while. There is an adage that says Patience is a virtue. My mother always told me this as a child because I tended to rush things or insist that things were done when I wanted them done. "Patience is a virtue," those words would return to me when I asked for the hundredth time, "Well, when will it be done? When will it happen?"
No person in the world could say they do not need the virtue of Patience. Jesus said: "By your patience, you will save your soul." Given that this virtue is universal and not easy to attain, In his book, the Three Ages of the Interior Life, the great French Dominican Theologian, Father Réginald Garrigou-Lagrange, OP, says:
"Patience is an exercise of the cardinal virtue of fortitude. Patience, says St. Thomas, is a virtue attached to the virtue of fortitude, which hinders a man from departing from right reason illumined by faith by yielding to difficulties and to sadness. It makes him bear the evils of life with equanimity of soul, says St. Augustine, without allowing himself to be troubled by vexations."
Of course, Patience is a critical virtue in the spiritual life but also for life in general. St. Paul's description of the many characteristics of love – the first thing he says about love is that it is patient. The next thing he says is that it is kind (1. Cor. 13:4). May God give us the grace to be patient and kind and help us grow in charity!
On Sunday, August 13, Father Patrick Ryan, just ordained on June 24, is coming to OLM to celebrate a Mass of Thanksgiving at 10:30am. You may remember him from the summer he served at OLM as a Summer Seminarian about four years ago. His benevolent Pastor, Fr. Barrow, has permitted him to return to OLM to celebrate and preach Mass. Following the Mass, you can greet and congratulate Father Ryan. He will also offer First Priestly Blessings after the Mass.
A special grace may be gained from receiving a "first blessing" of a newly ordained priest. First blessings are customarily given when the first Masses are celebrated. Still, they may be given up to a full year after ordination. After receiving the blessing, the faithful may kiss the palms of the newly ordained priest in recognition of the sacred character of his priesthood and the hands that now hold the Eucharist and confer the sacraments. Let us pray for Father Ryan and also for an increase of vocations to the priesthood, especially in the Diocese of Providence. Do good. Be well. God Bless. Go Sox!