Remembering The Passion of Our Lord

We have a Pope! Pope Francis, our new Holy Father, was installed this past Tuesday on the Solemnity of St. Joseph.  It was a fitting day for such a celebration as St. Joseph is the Patron of the Universal  Church.  Pope Francis has truly been an inspiring example of humility and holiness these last weeks since his election. At the Mass of Installation, he offered these wise words: “Let us never forget that authentic power is service, and that the Pope too, when exercising power, must enter ever more fully into that service which has its radiant culmination on the Cross. He must be inspired by the lowly, concrete and faithful service which marked Saint Joseph and, like him, he must open his arms to protect all of God’s people and embrace with tender affection the whole of humanity, especially the poorest, the weakest, the least important, those whom Matthew lists in the final judgment on love: the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick and those in prison (cf. Mt 25:31-46). Only those who serve with love are able to protect!” Truly inspiring words to begin our celebration of Holy Week. As we prayerfully listen to the Passion of our Lord this weekend and mark his entry into Jerusalem, may we begin this holiest time of the year with a renewed commitment to following Christ’s example of love and sacrifice.  Now that the rigors and sacred discipline of Lent are drawing to a close and as we approach the solemn celebration of the Sacred Triduum of Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter, may we do so with our hearts renewed in the faith and a ever deeper union with Christ and His Church. I invite you to join us for the celebrations of Holy Week.

On Holy Thursday, we  mark the institution of the Eucharist and Sacred Priesthood with the Mass of the Lord’s Supper at 7:00PM.  Our Church will be transformed into that upper room where our Lord offered his last supper and humbly washed the feet of his apostles.  Following the Mass, we will have the great opportunity to “watch and pray” in adoration of the Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament as our Church is transformed into the Garden of Gethsemane where our Lord prayed the night before his crucifixion.  The Church will remain open until Midnight for prayer at the Altar of Repose.

On Good Friday we mark the crucifixion and death of our Lord with simple Stations of the Cross at 3:00PM and the solemn celebration of the Liturgy of the Passion and Veneration of the Cross at 7:00PM.  This solemn day should be spent in prayer and reflection and is a day of fast and abstinence for Catholics.

Holy Saturday we celebrate the Mother of all Vigils, the great Easter Vigil.  The Easter Vigil can only be celebrated after sunset so we will begin the great celebration at 8:00PM next Saturday.  We will celebrate with great joy our Lord’s glorious and triumphant resurrection.  We especially rejoice at Our Lady of Mercy as we receive our new Catholics into the Church and welcome one of our newest Catholics with Baptism into the faith. On Easter Sunday we continue our celebration of  joy  with the normal Sunday Mass schedule.  Fr. Shemek, Deacon John and I are truly looking forward to our first Holy Week at Our Lady of Mercy.  We will remember all of you in our prayers as we humbly ask for yours.  May Holy Week 2013 be for  us as a parish family a truly prayerful and powerful celebration our Lord’s Passion, Death and Resurrection.

Benedict, the Pope Emeritus, suggests: "The Paschal Mystery we relive in the Easter Triduum is not just a memory but a current reality. Even today, Christ overcomes sin and death with His love. Evil in all its forms does not have the last word. The final triumph is of Christ’s truth and love! If we are prepared to suffer and die with Him, as St. Paul reminds us in the Easter Vigil, His life becomes our life. It is upon this certainty that our Christian lives are built." God Bless Pope Francis!  Have a truly blessed Holy Week!  See you in Church! God Bless.

Celebrating Lent with St. Joseph and St. Patrick!

Dear Parishioners: I hope you were able to make it to all or part of our Parish Lenten Mission this past week. Father Tim Reilly did a wonderful job and truly gave us much to think and pray about in our lives.  I am grateful for his presence in our parish and in your name, thank him for an outstanding job of preaching the Gospel to our parish.

The sound we hear this weekend is the new sound system in our Church.  It was installed this week and has been fully operation since Wednesday.  AVCOM Technologies from North Kingstown finished replacing all the old speakers with new Bose  speakers, old microphones with  new sets and replaced much of the old wiring.  This system should enhance your hearing of the Mass  and make it much clearer throughout the entire body of the Church.  In addition to the new speakers you see at either side of the altar, there are two more toward the rear of the Church, two in the vestibule, two in the sanctuary, two in the choir loft and  one new speaker in the cry room. This should ensure no matter where you are seated, you can clearly hear what’s being said  or sung at Mass.  The system also comes with special devices for those who are hearing impaired. If you need one of these devices, please contact the Parish Office and let us know.

The work for the new system was done quickly and AVCOM has a sterling reputation in the Diocese, having installed sound systems in the Cathedral, St. Rocco, St. Jude and Blessed Sacrament.  The total cost of this project was $20,000 and was funded thanks to your generous support of the Annual Collection.  We also anticipate modernizing and updating the   Church bathrooms in the weeks after Easter.  We are currently taking bids for the work and hope to renovate the bathrooms, install new fixtures and changing tables in both bathrooms.  This project is also possible because your generosity to the Annual Collection.

It’s hard to believe that Lent is drawing to a close as next weekend we look forward to the solemn celebration of Palm Sunday.  The complete schedule for Holy Week is printed in this week’s bulletin and I encourage to clip it out and put it on your refrigerator as a reminder.  Holy Week is the most sacred and special time of the year yet sadly too  many Catholics skip attending the ceremonies of Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday. Father Shemek, Deacon  John and I are all looking forward to celebrating our first Holy Week at Our Lady of Mercy.

If you have never attended Holy Week before, we invite you to consider doing so this year. Before Holy Week comes, we do have two very special feasts to celebrate at OLM. Namely the Feasts of St. Patrick and St. Joseph!  I invite you to join us Tuesday for Italian Mass at 12:05 to mark the Solemnity of St. Joseph.  Monsignor “Alberto” Kenney will offer the Mass in Italian along with some Italian hymns.  He will also offer the traditional St. Joseph’s Day Table Blessing of breads and pastries.  So bring your Italian bread and goodies to be blessed. Following the Mass, please be our guest for a zeppole!   Happy St. Joseph’s Day!

This Sunday is the great Feast of St. Patrick, the Apostle of Ireland and we will mark it next Saturday after Mass.  Join us in the OLM School Cafeteria for  corned beef sandwiches,  Irish soda bread, Irish music and Irish dancers!  All we ask is that you make a donation to OLM Outreach for our efforts in  supporting McAuley House.  Hope you can make it!

In a special way we mark Palm Sunday by returning our Lenten Rice Bowls which we have sacrificed to fill these last few weeks.  All the proceeds from Operation Rice Bowl go to support the poor and hungry served by Catholic Relief Services.  We ask that you count up all your coins and write out a check, it makes it much easier for our volunteer counters. We continue to pray for the Conclave to elect our new pope.  As I write this column we continue to await the white smoke and the words “habemus papam,” “We have a Pope!”

Catholic Charity Appeal and Parish Mission Now Underway!

I offer my thanks to the many parishioners who so generously responded in supporting the Catholic Charity Appeal last weekend.  Over 250 parishioners donated or pledge a gift last week including over 100 who did so for the very first time!  I am grateful to Kevin and Nancy McDevitt for their leadership of the Appeal and especially for Kevin’s great job helping us with the in-pew pledge process.

The in-pew pledge system is currently used by nearly every parish in the Diocese and has proven effective  not only in helping parishes meet their goals but increasing awareness of the Appeal and its many good works as well as bringing in new donors.  Clearly this was the case at OLM last week as 125 people responded for the very first time!

If you have not yet made your pledge to the Appeal, I ask you to please consider doing so this week.  We are asking every family to consider a pledge of $250 payable over 12 months. This is about $20 per month to support the Diocese’s efforts to serve the poor, the needy and the suffering.  I ask you to please take an Appeal pledge envelope located in the pews home with you this weekend and return your pledge in next weekend’s collection basket.     

I wish to also thank Steven Zubiago, the Chair of the Bishop’s Partners in Charity at OLM, for leading the effort to reach out  to those parishioners who are able to donate $1000 or more in support of the Appeal.  This is also a very important part of reaching our Appeal Goal of $195,000 and I am grateful for his leadership.

In 1925, Bishop William Hickey, the Bishop of Providence, established the  Appeal to support the good works of the Catholic Church in Rhode Island.  Today, the Appeal supports 39 charitable ministries and programs of the Diocese of Providence that provide social, educational and spiritual support to those in need. My thanks for your generous support in keeping this outstanding tradition alive today for the many poor and needy who benefit from the good works of our Church.

I am happy to welcome  Father Tim Reilly to Our Lady of Mercy this weekend.  Father Reilly will be leading us on our annual Parish Lenten Mission.  He serves  as the Chancellor of the Diocese of Providence and Assistant Spiritual Director at Our Lady of Providence Seminary.  Father Reilly is a native of Riverside and a graduate of Boston University  and studied for the priesthood at the Pontifical North American College in Rome where he obtained advanced degrees in theology and canon law. During his priesthood he has served at St. Francis in Wakefield, St. Brendan and as Chaplain at Prout.  He is a gifted speaker and I am sure you will enjoy his preaching.

He is to preach all the Masses this weekend and then will give a talk each night on  Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday at 7:00PM.  Please note that Mass will not be celebrated these nights but there will be Exposition and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament on Wednesday night’s Mission.  Also confessions will be heard each night of the Mission from 5:30 until 6:30 PM.  I hope you can make some or all of the Mission this year.  It is a great Lenten tradition to take some time out to pray, reflect and renew our spiritual lives at a Mission.  If you cannot make it, please pray for those making the Mission and for it’s success in deepening the faith life of our parish.

We look forward to next week’s celebration of the great feasts of St. Joseph and St. Patrick.  Monsignor Albert Kenney will celebrate the Mass and preach to us on Tuesday, March 19th at 12:05PM.  In honor of  St. Joseph’s Day  the Mass will be celebrated in Italian complete with Italian Hymns.  Don’t be fooled by Monsignor’s surname, his Mother’s maiden name is Spinale and he studied in Rome! I invite you to join us for a zeppole after the Mass!  On Saturday night,  March 23rd, we will celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with an “Irish Celebration” to benefit McAuley House.  Join us in the OLM School Cafeteria for  corned beef sandwiches, Irish soda bread, live Irish Music and Step Dancers.  God Bless.

Supporting Good Works! The Annual Catholic Charity Appeal

Dear Parishioners: This weekend we kickoff the annual Catholic Charity Appeal at Our Lady of Mercy.  This is our chance as Catholics to support the many good works of our Diocesan Church in Rhode Island.  The many agencies and charities funded by the CCA include  educational and formational endeavors, refugee services, elder care and nursing homes, outreach to the poor and homeless, prison ministry and  crisis help for the truly needy. Unlike many other charities what makes the CCA unique is that  its many services and good works are always done in the name of the Lord Jesus.  It is as Blessed Mother Theresa of Calcutta used to remind people, that we are called to see “Jesus in the distressing disguise of the poor.”

These “distressing disguises” include funds  the poor, the sick, the elderly, the immigrant, the prisoner and the most vulnerable among us.   The Catholic Church and her many agencies are the second largest social service provider after the government.  Our call as Catholic disciples includes financially supporting the many good works done in the name Jesus by our Diocesan Church.  I hope you will consider pledging a gift to support the Catholic Charity Appeal.  If you have never done so, please consider doing it this year.

Your gift can be pledged over 12 months and can be paid by check or credit card.  We are asking each family to  consider a pledge of $250.  This is a pledge of about $20 per month over the year or about the cost of large pizza with a couple of toppings.  It is about $5.00 per week or the cost of large Dunkin Donut coffee and donut.   Would you give up the pizza or the coffee to help someone in need? I am reminded of the words of the great martyr of the second century, Saint Polycarp: “If you can do good, do not put it off, because almsgiving frees you.”  Please do not put off supporting the Catholic Charity Appeal.  In the name of the thousands of poor, sick and truly needy who benefit from it, I thank you for your generous response.

As we continue to travel the great Lenten Fast of Forty Days, I invite you to join us on Monday night at 7:00PM for the next installment in our Lenten Lecture Series.  Father Jeremy Rodrigues will speak on the significance of Holy Week in our lives as Catholics. The Sacred Triduum of Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter is among the most important celebration in the Church Year.  We had a great crowd for our last lecture and I hope you can make some time to join us this Monday at 7:00PM in the OLM School Cafeteria.

Also next weekend we welcome Father Tim Reilly to Our Lady of Mercy for our annual Lenten Mission.  Father Reilly serves as the Chancellor of the Diocese of Providence and also as the Assistant Spiritual Director at Our Lady of Providence Seminary.  He is dynamic preacher and will preach all the weekend Masses as well as each night of the Mission.  A Mission is a great opportunity to devote some time to prayer and reflection during this Lenten Season.  Mark it on your calendar and please join us next week.

Also I ask for your prayers for the success of the Mission for our entire Parish Family. We said “Farewell” to Pope Benedict on Thursday and now we offer our prayers for him as he goes into a  life of prayer devoted to the Church.  May God continue to bless Benedict for his years of dedicated service to His Church.  As I write this column the news media is full of speculation about who is to be elected the next Pope.  As the College of Cardinals enters into conclave we pray for our Church and for the guidance of the Holy Spirit in choosing the successor of Saint Peter and the new Vicar of Christ on earth. May the cardinals gathered in Rome elect a worthy and wise man to lead our Church in this 21st century.   Forget all that the media suggests about who the next Pope is to be and remember the old adage, “he who goes into the conclave as Pope, leaves as cardinal!”  Only God truly knows!  Thanks for your support of the Catholic Charity Appeal. See you at Stations on Friday night! God Bless.

Staying True to Lent and Saying Farewell to Benedict!

Dear Parishioners: Enough snow already! The second weekend in a row it snowed! Just as we cleaned up after the Blizzard Nemo, Mother Nature decided to bring us another snowstorm.  I’ve had enough of the white stuff for a while.  Pray that if it snows again it will be on a Tuesday or Wednesday so everyone can get out for Mass!

How is your Lent going? Are you keeping up your Lenten promises to pray, fast and give alms?  If you’ve slipped because of the snowstorms or vacation, don’t worry and just start again.  It’s forty days and it’s well worth the effort to get closer to the Lord and His Church.

There’s no better way to pray then to come to Mass, so considering making it part of your daily life during Lent.  The Mass is the source and summit of our lives as Catholic disciples and we can gain strength to live a life of holiness and faith. Why not join us for Daily Mass at either 7:30AM or 12:05PM?

When’s the last time you went to Confession? Was it a week, a month, a year or even a decade ago?  No matter, you’re always welcomed back to the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  Confessions at Our Lady of Mercy during Lent are offered on Mondays from 5:30PM until 6:30PM, so stop by on the way home from work!  We also continue to offer Weekly Confession on Saturdays at 3:00PM. Get Confession on your calendar, it’s good for the soul!

Of course, we also have Stations of the Cross every Friday at 7:00PM.  It is one of the most important devotions honoring the passion of Jesus.  What matters most in the Stations of the Cross is to follow Jesus Christ in his passion and to see ourselves mirrored in him. By accompanying him on the Way of the Cross, we gain his courageous patience and learn to trust in God who delivers us from evil. I hope you are able to make the Stations at least once during Lent.

One of the three pillars of Lent is fasting. Reflecting on this ancient and venerable practice, Pope Benedict suggests: "Denying material food, which nourishes our body, nurtures an interior disposition to listen to Christ and be fed by His saving word. Through fasting and praying, we allow Him to come and satisfy the deepest hunger that we experience in the depths of our being: the hunger and thirst for God." 

During Lent we fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday but we are also asked to fast from meat on Fridays.  Fasting and abstaining from meat on Fridays is a great Lenten discipline. How is it going for you?   We are called to refrain from the indulging in the pleasure of a good steak or a juicy hamburger not as a punishment but as a penitential practice to grow closer to the Lord who died for us on Good Friday.  If we aren’t  focusing on Jesus and on the Cross when we abstain from the meat, then the matter can become less about Lent and more about “should I have the meatless pizza, a grilled cheese sandwich or a Lobster Roll?” We all know that it’s so much more than that.

Next weekend I will be speaking at all Masses about the Catholic Charity Appeal.  This annual drive  calls us to financially support the good works of our Diocese.  It is an important part of our lives as Catholics in Rhode Island.  Every parish in the state is called upon to assist in helping those most in need and the most vulnerable in the Ocean State. Our CCA Chair, Kevin McDevitt, will also lead us through the in-pew pledge portion of the Appeal at all Masses.  Please pray for the success of the CCA and consider making a pledge next week.  Thank you for your generous support.

We continue to pray for Pope Benedict and for our Church during this time of transition. I ask you to especially pray on Thursday for the Holy Father on his last day as Pope and invite you to join us for a special Mass at Noon in thanksgiving for his Pontificate.  We are thankful for his service and leadership of our Church but also hopeful as we await the election of a new Pope.  May the Holy Spirit continue to guide us!  Remember Fridays are for fish and Stations of the Cross. God Bless.

Of Blizzards, Popes and Almsgiving in Lent!

Dear Parishioners: I hope by now everyone has their power back!  The blizzard hit us hard last weekend here at OLM.  We lost power on Friday and it wasn’t restored until after Fr. Shemek celebrated the 4:00PM Mass on Saturday in the dark and cold.  There was a band of brave souls who made it out for the Mass.  Saturday night the power was restored and so Sunday Masses had light and heat but not very many people!  I am grateful to our maintenance crew who worked so hard plowing and shoveling all that snow.  Also I wish to thank Sister Jeanne, OLM Principal, who took in Sisters Edna, Lucy and Rose to the St. Rose Convent during the blizzard.  Both our convents lost power and I was grateful to the Warwick Police for transporting the good sisters from OLM to St. Rose Convent so they could be safe, warm and well fed!

No sooner did we start recovering from the blizzard when news arrived of  Pope Benedict’s startling news that he is to resign as our Pope at the end of the month.  The Holy Father has decided that age 85 he doesn’t have the physical strength to continue leading our Church with the vigor needed for the job.  This is the first time in centuries that a reigning Pope has resigned and so it has left many asking what will happen. Pope Benedict will step down and the College of Cardinals will gather in conclave in Rome to elect a successor.  This will take place in March and I hope we might have a new Pope by Easter!  In the meantime, let us pray for our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, and offer our thanks to God for giving us such a gentle, wise and humble shepherd to lead our Church.

We were reminded on Ash Wednesday that “we are dust and to dust we will return” and to “repent and believe in the Gospel.”  As we begin our Lenten journey of forty days, I invite you to consider joining us each day for Daily Mass at 7:30 AM or 12:05 PM  and to walk the Way of the Cross each Friday at 7:00 PM, Our Lenten Year of the Faith Lecture Series begins this Monday night at 7:00 PM in the OLM School Auditorium with the young and dynamic Father Joseph Upton speaking on the Sacraments of the Church.  A complete listing of the series is in this week’s bulletin.  In this Year of Faith and during this Lenten Season, these lectures are  a great way to deepen our knowledge and understanding of our Catholic Faith.

One of the three pillars of Lent is almsgiving.  Pope Benedict XVI explained "In inviting us to consider almsgiving with a more profound gaze that transcends the purely material dimension, Scripture teaches us that there is more joy in giving than in receiving (Acts 20:35). Every time when, for love of God, we share our goods with our neighbor in need, we discover that the fullness of life comes from love and all is returned to us as a blessing in the form of peace, inner satisfaction and joy." One of the many ways we bear witness to almsgiving during Lent is through the annual Catholic Charity Appeal.  I am happy to announce that Kevin and Nancy McDevitt will serve as the General Chairs of the CCA here at OLM We will kickoff the Charity Appeal the first weekend of March with the in-pew part of the drive.  This is the first time OLM has used in-pew solicitation for the Charity Appeal but most  parishes use this system very effectively as the means to obtain pledges and donations.

Last year Our Lady of Mercy Parish fell short of reaching its goal for the Charity Appeal but I am confident that with the strong leadership of our Chairs and your generous response we will not only reach our goal of $195,000 but surpass it!  I also wish to thank Stephen and Antonia Zubiago for agreeing to serve as the Chairs of the Bishop’s Partnership in Charity portion of the Appeal.  The BPC is for those donors who can generously donate $1,000 or more to the Charity Appeal.  We will be reaching out to our BPC donors in the coming weeks as the kick-off the Appeal at OLM approaches.

Have a great Lent! I wish a happy and healthy vacation this week  to all  our school children! Remember Fridays are for fish and Stations of the Cross. God Bless.