Dear Parishioners:
As you can see around the church, Christmas is over! The trees, the creche, and the decorations are all put away for another year. Some suggest that Christmas really ends on Candlemas, or the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, on February 2.
Candlemas is the last day that the Alma Redemptoris Mater, the Marian antiphon, is sung or recited. The Alma Redemptoris Mater is used from the beginning of Advent through February 2, and so Candlemas has come to be associated with the close of the Christmas season. However, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops states that the liturgical season of Christmas concludes with the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord. We are now in the Season of Ordinary Time.
The ordinary here does not refer to a season of dull routine but rather the listing of ordinal, or sequential, numbers. This is what is meant by the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time, the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, etc. Interestingly, there is no First Sunday in Ordinary Time in the liturgical calendar, because the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord replaces it.
Rather than making a statement about degrees of importance, the term Ordinary Time refers to the order of Sundays in the church year that do not fall into the major liturgical seasons of Advent, Christmas, Lent, or Easter. It is the longest liturgical season, lasting 33 or 34 weeks each year and ending with the Solemnity of Christ the King.
While it is “ordinary time”, there are plenty of extraordinary things happening at OLM. Next Sunday, we kick off Catholic Schools Week. Fr. Brodeur, a graduate of the former St. Pius X School in Westerly, will preach at Masses on Catholic Education, and OLM students will also speak at Masses.
Also, next Sunday, OLM School is hosting an Open House from 10:00 am until Noon. If you’ve never visited the school, the Open House is a great opportunity to learn about the many extraordinary things that take place in our classrooms.
Our outstanding Principal, Mr. Patrick McNabb, along with our exceptional faculty and staff, will be there, along with many of our great students. So take some time next Sunday and stop by the Open House.
Also, next weekend we will host a Baby Shower Collection for Gabriel’s Call, a ministry of the Diocese of Providence that serves pregnant women in need of assistance. It assists them during pregnancy and beyond by meeting material needs, providing friendship, and offering guidance through a difficult time. I am very grateful to OLM Parishioner and Bishop Hendricken student Joseph Ferris, who is leading this important project. A list of needed items is in the bulletin. Please leave all donated items in the blue bins in the Church's vestibule.
I appreciate your support. This project in support of Gabriel’s Call comes as we make the Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children on Thursday, January 22. The over 60 million abortions since the 1973 decision of Roe v. Wade reflect the heartbreaking magnitude of the evil of abortion
The Holy Father, Pope Leo, in a recent address to the Vatican Diplomatic Corps to the Holy See, said:
“We categorically reject any practice that denies or exploits the origin of life and its development. Among these is abortion, which cuts short a growing life and refuses to welcome the gift of life.”
We are reminded time and again in Scripture to seek the Lord’s help, and as people of faith, we believe that our prayers are heard. And while, on June 24, 2022, the Dobbs decision overturned Roe v. Wade, right now, state and federal laws, in many instances, are still hostile to unborn children. So, great prayer is still very needed.
In our own State of Rhode Island, the law allows for the abortion of an unborn child up until the time of birth. A truly horrific practice. So I encourage you to pray for the unborn, especially on Thursday. Pray for the unborn and their mothers, as they very much need our prayers. As we pray for life, we also support the Gabriels’ Call Baby Shower Collection next weekend. Thank you for your support of the sanctity of human life.
Be well. Stay safe. Do good. God Bless! Go Pats!! We hope Houston has a problem!