Dear Parishioners:
As was announced last weekend, Bishop Lewandowski has appointed Father Brodeur as the new part-time Chaplain to Bishop Hendricken High School, effective July 1. This new ministry is in addition to his ministry here at Our Lady of Mercy. I am confident that he will do very well serving as Chaplain at Hendricken while continuing to serve our community with zeal.
So now, OLM has two priests who have additional part-time ministries. In addition to serving as Pastor of OLM, I also serve as the part-time Director of the Rhode Island Catholic Conference, advocating on behalf of the Diocese with elected and government officials. Both Fr. Brodeur and I receive 80% of our salaries and benefits from the parish and 20% from the Diocese and Hendricken.
This year, we had four priests retire from active ministry, and one died a few months ago. We will have two ordained priests in June. A whole host of new assignments for pastors across the Diocese were announced last week. Please pray for Fr. Brodeur and all the priests who have been reassigned.
There is still more news to report. Mr. David Cote, our Pairsh and School Business Manager, has moved on from OLM and the other parishes he worked to take a new position in the private sector. We wish him well in his new endeavors and thank him for his service to OLM. He served our parish well for over twenty years. We have begun a search for a new Business Manager and possibly a new bookkeeper. In the interim, Mr. Cote will continue to offer his support until the position is filled. We are also actively looking for a part-time maintenance person for the school. As you recall, our longtime School Maintenance Director, Mr. David Belanger, passed away recently. I kindly ask for your understanding and prayers during this time.
At OLM School, Dr. Deborah Husak, our Middle School Science teacher, and Mrs. Karen Kane, our Middle School Math Teacher, are retiring this year. Also, Mrs. Cheryl Maynard, OLM School Librarian, is departing due to family reasons. We thank them for their many years of hard work and dedication to our school and students. They are outstanding teachers and will be sorely missed. We wish them the best of luck in the future!
We celebrated First Communion Mass on Saturday, and today we celebrate the First Communion Class May Crowning Ceremony at the 10:30 am Mass. Mother’s Day is a beautiful day to crown our Blessed Mother with flowers as the Queen of Heaven and Mother of God. It symbolizes her role as the "Queen of May" and a perfect follower of Christ.
This Thursday is the Solemnity of the Ascension of our Lord, a Holy Day of Obligation for Catholics. The Ascension is celebrated forty days after Easter, and commemorates the moment when the risen Christ, in the sight of his apostles, ascended bodily into heaven. It marks the completion of his earthly mission and the beginning of his exaltation at the right hand of the Father, where he intercedes for us as our eternal High Priest. There is a Vigil Mass at 5:00 pm on Wednesday evening, and on Thursday, there are three Masses: 7:30 am, 10:00 am, and 7:00 pm. The OLM School Mass is at 10:00 am, not the normal 9:00 am, as it is also Grandparents’ Day at OLM School. With 271 students, we expect a very large turnout of grandparents for the Mass.
Grandparents’ Day is always a fantastic celebration of faith and family for our students. The grandparents get a chance to be with their grandchildren in class and at Mass. As Pope Francis said, “Grandparents are the wisdom of the family, they are the wisdom of a people.”
Today is Mother’s Day, and we honor Mothers, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers upon the family and society. It calls us to cherish the gift of life that we receive from our mothers and to pray for all women to whom God has entrusted life in a very special way. As we pray in thanksgiving for the gift of mothers, we remember mothers experiencing difficult pregnancies and pray that they may find support and encouragement in choosing life for their children. We offer Masses today for all Mothers, living and deceased.
Pope Francis said: “A society without mothers would be a dehumanized society, for mothers are always, even in the worst moments, witnesses of tenderness, dedication, and moral strength. Dearest mothers, thank you for what you are in your family and for what you give to the Church and the world.”
Be well. Do good. God Bless. Happy Mother’s Day!