The Sound of Joy, Hope and Faith

Dear Parishioners:                              

Greeting OLM School students on the First Day of School!

 The sun was shining, and the children were smiling beneath their face masks! It was a great first day of school on Tuesday. It was a different kind of school day with temperature checks, face masks, social distancing, and car drop-offs. It is the new normal during this time of the pandemic.                         

I thank our outstanding OLM School Principal, Mr. McNabb, for his great job in planning our school's re-opening. Since April, he has been working tremendously hard to ensure the safe and happy re-opening of our school this fall. The cooperation of our faculty, staff, parents, and students has been terrific too.

On Friday, we celebrated the Opening OLM School Mass and consecrated our parish school to our Blessed Mother Mary. We ask Mother Mary to protect our school community from all harm and guide them in faith, hope, and love to Christ, the Divine Teacher. Please keep praying for students and teachers everywhere.

I wish to thank the many parishioners who attend the 7:30 am Daily Mass at OLM. First, they were so kind and hospitable last week to our visiting Missionary Sisters of the Word. Almost 30 of these holy Sisters attended Mass at OLM for the week. They were on retreat at their Provincial House in West Greenwich. It was terrific having the good sisters pray with us and for us!

Our Daily Mass parishioners were so cooperative in helping make our first day of school run smoothly. The new parking procedures began on Tuesday, September 8, 2020, and continues to be in effect while school is in session. This plan includes no parking on the section of Third Street parallel to the school building or the side parking lot closest to the school.  These measures allow for our students' adjusted arrival procedures and create additional outdoor learning space as part of our school's re-opening plan. When arriving for daily Mass, please avoid parking in those areas while school is in session. We thank the many parishioners who were so cooperative and understanding in helping keep our school students safe and happy.    

We congratulate our OLM School First Communion Class, who celebrate their First Holy Communion this weekend. On Saturday, they gathered with their families for the First Communion Mass (live-streamed for their family and friends unable to attend). It is always such an occasion of joyful and hopeful faith when our children receive the Eucharistic Lord in Holy Communion for the very first time. As St. Pius X said: "Holy Communion is the shortest and safest way to heaven."

Next Saturday and again on Saturday, September 26, the students from the OLM Religious Education Program celebrate their Frist Communion Masses. We thank all who help prepare the children for this important day in their lives, especially their parents, who are the first teachers of the faith. We also thank our First Communion Teachers, OLM RE Directress, Mickey St. Jean, and OLM School 2nd Grade Teacher, Jean Perretta. Please pray for all the OLM children making their First Holy Communion, may they grow in love and devotion of Christ truly present in the Mass.

Our Parish Patronal Feast is fast approaching on September 24. The OLM Feast is a day to celebrate as a parish family. We begin our celebration this year with Devotions in honor of Our Lady of Mercy on Monday, September 21, at 7:00 pm. Dominican Father Patrick Mary Briscoe, OP, is preaching on Mercy as we gather in adoration of the Eucharist and pray the Rosary for our parish. Fr. Briscoe and another Dominican Friar will also hear Confessions on Monday, September 21, beginning at 6:00 pm.

The Feast Day Mass is on Thursday, September 24, and is to be live-streamed. The Feast Day celebrations include the "See You in September" Raffle drawing via live stream. It should be a great day of faith and fun as we celebrate our patroness, Mary, the Mother of Mercy!

Raffle tickets are still available for purchase. Please remember, "you got to be in it to win it"!! Only 600 tickets are being sold with cash prizes of $10,000! All proceeds help OLM School stay safe and keep students healthy, happy, and holy! Thanks for helping support our outstanding parish school with this raffle.

Stay safe. Be Well. Do Good! God Bless. Go Pats!!!!     

On Work and Dignity, Class and Consecration

Dear Parishioners:         

             The Labor Day holiday is Monday. It was established as a civil holiday to recognize workers' labor, sacrifices, and contributions. In our Catholic tradition, work is more than a way to make a living. It is not a burden but a blessing.              

Work is an expression of our dignity and a contribution to the common good. In spiritual terms, work is a way to participate in God's continuing work of creation. This Labor Day, let us prayerfully reflect on the dignity of work and pray, especially for the unemployed. 

Pope Francis teaches: "Work is fundamental to the dignity of a person. Work, to use a metaphor, 'anoints' us with dignity, fills us with dignity, makes us similar to God, who has worked and still works, who always acts. Work gives one the ability to maintain oneself, one's family, to contribute to the growth of one's own nation." 

As we celebrate the Labor Day Holiday, we mark the unofficial end of summer. This Tuesday, the students and faculty at OLM School should return for all-day, in-person classes. We are so happy our students are back in school, albeit in a very new and different way. Our student's and faculty's safety is paramount, and our reopening plan includes many new health policies and safety procedures. We've also made many upgrades to the building to ensure the health and safety of our faculty, staff, and student body.   

On Tuesday, we'll again hear our students' laughter on the playground; their young voices lifted in prayer to God and the old familiar ring of the school bell! It is a welcomed and joyful sound! Since the lockdown in March and our students' absence, we've been living with the isolation and silence of the pandemic. Let us give thanks to God for the blessing of our outstanding parish school. May His divine assistance keep all students and teachers safe, healthy, and happy!     

Our Opening OLM School Mass is this Friday at 9:00 AM. It is to be live-streamed for our OLM School students, faculty, and families. Every parishioner is most welcome to join us at Mass online and pray in spiritual communion with us. We thank Bishop Evans, who is celebrating this Votive Mass of the Blessed Virgin Mary.       

Following the Mass, we are consecrating OLM School to the Blessed Virgin Mary for its protection during this pandemic. As we begin school again, we call upon Our Lady to keep our students and faculty safe, healthy, happy, and holy!

How fitting that OLM School should begin classes on the Feast of the Birth of the Blessed Mother, Tuesday, September 8th. And then on Friday, again turn to Mother Mary as we consecrate our school to her maternal care and spiritual guidance. Our Lady of Mercy, pray for us!!   

Consecration means "to make holy" and is made ultimately to God with the understanding that it is a serious commitment. We must respond faithfully to God's grace at work in our lives. We are consecrating our school administration, faculty, staff, students, and families to Jesus through Mary.   

Saint Pope John Paul the Great explained: "Consecrating ourselves to Mary means accepting her help to offer ourselves and the whole of humanity to Him who is holy, infinitely holy; it means accepting her help—by having recourse to her motherly heart, which beneath the cross was opened to love for every human being, for the whole world—in order to offer the world, the individual human being, humanity as a whole, and all the nations to Him who is infinitely holy" 

We joyfully congratulate the nine RCIA candidates welcomed and fully initiated into the Church last Sunday at the 10:30 AM Mass. It was a joyful and solemn celebration of the Sacraments of Baptism, Communion, and Confirmation. It is truly a hopeful sign of faith and joy amidst the crisis of the pandemic.     I thank Fr. Barrow for all his dedication and work in preparing these candidates for this joyful day.  

In your name, I welcome these new and fully initiated Catholic brothers and sisters into the Church. We offer them the promise and pledge of our prayers. May they continue to grow in faith, hope, and love of Christ and His Church.

Stay safe. Be Well. Do Good! God Bless. Happy Labor Day! God Bless America!

Summer's Ending, Schedules Changing

Dear Parishioners:               

While public schools have scheduled their reopening for September 14, OLM School has plans to open this week. We believe it to be the best path forward in light of the ever-changing situation. This coming week is a time of small-group orientations for our students and their families.  Governor Raimondo is expected to announce on Monday, August 31, further guidance regarding the reopening of schools in RI. Interestingly just last week in a news interview, the Governor said she intends to send her own two children back to their private schools. Like most private schools, they too are offering in-person class instruction.     

At OLM School, we are committed to bringing our students back into our school building as safely as possible. Therefore, this week's schedule allows the students to get familiar with their teachers and classrooms. It also allows students, faculty, and parents to grow more comfortable with our school's new setting and safety policies and procedures.

OLM School opens for full all-day and in-person class instruction on Tuesday, September 8. It is the Feast of the Birth of the Blessed Mother Mary!  A fitting day to resume classes in a school under her patronage! We ask for prayers for all students and teachers as they prepare for school this fall. In particular, pray for our Catholic schools, especially the administration, faculty, staff, students, and families of  OLM School.

Fr. Connors has now returned to St. John Seminary in Boston for the fall semester.  Classes begin this week there and Fr. Connors in addition to teaching his many classes is also serving as the Director of Liturgy for the seminary. In order to avoid an outbreak of  COVID-19 at the seminary, the entire faculty and student body were tested.  Also, the seminary is in lockdown until the October break.  The student seminarians are not allowed to go out.  The resident faculty priests are allowed to leave only to celebrate Mass at local parishes.  So please pray for Fr. Connors and the seminarians, may they remain healthy, stay safe, and may their academic year be fruitful.

With schools starting up, summer is coming to an end, as usual, too soon! It is a strange summer amid the pandemic with few people traveling, fewer family gatherings, and fewer summer vacations. While Labor Day traditionally signals the end of the summer, the official first day of fall isn't actually until September 22, 2020.

In September, we usually resume our Sunday 5:00 PM Mass. However, due to the COVID-19 restrictions, we are postponing the resumption of this Mass until further notice. We presently have three Masses every weekend, and attendance is not increasing. There seems no need to add an additional fourth Mass at present. Many parishioners are not attending Mass each week. We hope and pray Mass attendance increases as the summer ends. The sanitizing of the  Church building occurs before and after every public celebration of Mass. It involves a considerable amount of time and work by our maintenance team/ We do this to ensure the proper sanitization of the Church. This cleaning and sanitizing is a costly expense and also very time-consuming. Our maintenance crew is not readily available to work on Sunday nights in order to clean and sanitize the Church properly. Therefore, it is prudent to postpone the  5:00 PM Sunday Evening Mass from our weekly schedule until further notice. 

Those who have reserved Mass intentions for the 5:00 PM Sunday Mass, please know those intentions are to be satisfied at one of the three weekend Masses celebrated every week. Although this is not the customary practice at OLM, multiple Mass intentions at Mass are allowed. Therefore, one Mass a weekend is to be offered for two intentions in order to satisfy all previously booked intentions. Please understand that all booked Mass intentions are going to be offered.  If you have any questions or concerns about a Mass you've reserved for a particular intention, please contact the OLM Parish Office. Thank you for your patience and understanding in these difficult days.

Welcome back OLM School! Pray for the safe and happy start of school!   Stay safe. Be Well. Do Good! God Bless.

A Joyful Welcome

Dear Parishioners:                  

Next Sunday at the 10:30am Mass we  celebrate our Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA). The RCIA is a program of study for adults who are in need of the Sacraments.  Candidates usually include baptized Catholics who need to make First Communion and/or Confirmation, baptized non-Catholics who are received into the Church and also unbaptized Adults who are baptized and confirmed. Since last fall the OLM RCIA Candidates have been preparing to receive the Sacraments of Initiation. Normally we celebrate this Rite with great joy and solemnity at the Easter Vigil Mass but due to the COVID-19 lockdown we had to postpone it.

This year seven adults   candidates are prepared for the reception of First Communion, conferral of the Sacrament of Confirmation and Reception into the Catholic Church.   One candidate is being fully received into the Catholic Church, four  receive First Holy Communion and Confirmation and two others  the Sacrament of Confirmation. I offer my sincere thanks to Fr. Barrow and his RCIA Team of dedicated parishioners who   prepared these candidates for this solemn occasion.  Each Sunday they gathered to study and learn more about the Catholic Faith.  It is a joyous day to celebrate as we  welcome these candidates into our parish family as fully initiated Catholics. Pray for them as they make their final preparation for this joyful occasion in their faith lives. 

May God bless them and continue to lead them to deeper faith,  greater hope and more profound love. We also ask your prayers for our OLM School Principal and Faculty.  On Tuesday they  gather for a retreat here at OLM.  Normally the Faculty Retreat is held at the beautiful St. Edmund Retreat Center on Enders Island in Mystic, CT.  However, because of COVID-19 restrictions that is not possible this year. The Faculty Retreat is a time of spiritual renewal and refocus for our faculty especially after a rather challenging year. 

Father Jordon Zajac, OP

Our Retreat Master this year is Dominican Friar, Father Jordon Zajac, O.P, who teaches English at Providence College. Father Jordon was ordained this past spring and is a graduate of PC who went on to earn a Ph.D. in English specializing in Shakespearean Drama at  the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.  He is an intelligent, talented and dynamic young priest and we are grateful he is able to lead our faculty on this important spiritual retreat.

Our dedicated faculty are to be commended for the outstanding job they did with distance learning during the COVID lockdown.  Such excellence required lots of hard work and true dedication and we are grateful for the many sacrifices they make to ensure the high standards of academic excellence and dynamic Catholic Faith at OLM School.  Please pray for them as they gather for retreat. The faculty is also meeting this week for professional development days. This is a time to  focus upon distance learning, teaching techniques and implementing the health and safety protocols for our school this year.

Our faculty remain committed to ensuring academic excellence and the strong Catholic identity in our outstanding school.  Their sacrifice and dedication ensures OLM School is a safe, happy and virtuous place to learn. While some schools are opting not to reopen for in person education, OLM School remains fully committed to reopening our school for all-day in person learning. Thus far the RI Department of Health has indicated it is  completely safe to do so. 

Our Lady of Mercy School

The first week of school this year is a time of orientation for our OLM School families, students and faculty as they learn more about our safe environment practices and get accustomed to the many new health and safety policies and procedures.  Our Principal, faculty and maintenance staff are working tirelessly at ensuring our school’s reopening and ensuring it  is safe and our school ready.  We want our little saints and scholars back happily and safely learning and praying!

You can add to this happy and safe reopening by buying a “See You in September” Raffle ticket.  The proceeds go directly to funding the many needs of our parish school in response to the COVID crisis.  I commend those who have been so generous in their support in our time of need and thank you for your support.

Stay safe. Be Well. Do Good! God Bless.

Supporting Our OLM Saints & Scholars

Dear Parishioners:

Many Catholic schools in the U.S. are facing a crisis as over 130 have already announced permanent closure. A recent survey of U.S. Catholic school principals showed that currently, 10% are uncertain about their ability to open in the fall; this equals hundreds of Catholic schools and thousands of families in turmoil.   

 At OLM School, we continue to advance toward the reopening of our parish school! Our plan is up on the school webpage. Our students and faculty are excited about coming back together in the classroom to learn and teach once again!  It will be a happy day when our little saints and scholars are back in our outstanding school again!!

I wish to commend and thank our dedicated OLM School Principal, Patrick McNabb, for his hard work in developing the plan. He has been tireless throughout the entire summer in ensuring our school can reopen safely and happily for our students this fall. We also thank our dedicated faculty who have been a tremendous help in ensuring our school reopens as planned.

As you can imagine, we have done considerable cleaning and maintenance work on the school building over these last months. This includes the installation of all new locks on classroom doors, installation of new fire detectors, installation of new ceiling tiles in the gymnasium, and the painting of rooms. In addition, to these “typical” summer maintenance projects, we have been working to make our school as safe and clean as possible for our students during this time of COVID-19. Here’s what we’ve done to date to ensure the safe and productive return of our students:

·    Hired a Registered Nurse to serve as our OLM School Nurse

·    Renovated the School Nurse Office ($2,500)

·    Created a hygienic isolation room for sick students ($2,500)

·    Placed HEPA Air Purifiers in every classroom ($7,500)

·    Purchased Electrostatic Sanitizing Sprayer & Supplies ($5,000)

·    Installed automatic faucets and automatic toilets in all bathroom ($10,000)       

·    Purchased webcams for every classroom ($2,500)

·    Purchased 25 new Chromebooks ($5,000)

We have hired additional maintenance staff for cleaning and sanitizing. They are reorganizing classrooms to ensure safe distance for students and faculty. The school building will be cleaned and sanitized daily and bathrooms hourly, using electrostatic sanitizing spraying. This work requires much time and diligence by our maintenance staff to ensure the safety of all. It also requires increased costs for personnel, supplies and materials.       

 I am truly grateful for the hard work and dedication of our maintenance staff in keeping OLM safe, clean and beautiful. They do all this plus maintain the entire physical plant, including the Church, Rectory, Mercy House, Mercy Convent, Franciscan Convent, and St. Patrick's Cemetery. If you see them around working, stop, and say thanks!   

Of course, all these much-needed projects come at a considerable expense for our school. Unfortunately, our Annual Spring Fling School Fundraiser in April was canceled due to the COVID-19 Lockdown. And we've also had to cancel our Annual Saints and Scholars Open OLM School Golf Tournament scheduled for this September. These are the two largest fundraisers for our parish school and help to fund the many maintenance and educational projects for the school year.    

Because we cannot gather in person for either the Golf Tournament or for a Spring Fling, we are happy to announce the "See You in September" Raffle! Only 600 tickets are for sale for $100 apiece. The $10,000 in raffle prizes includes a Grand Prize of $5,000 with additional prizes of $2,500, 2 prizes of $1,000 and $500. The tickets are on sale this week, and the Raffle Drawing is to be live-streamed on Thursday, September 24th, the Feast of Our Lady of Mercy! It will be an exciting way to celebrate our Parish Feast.  

The proceeds of this raffle ($50,000) will help us with the increased costs of our many needed COVID-19 school maintenance and educational projects. We traditionally have raised nearly $100,000 from our Annual Spring Fling and about $25,000 from the Annual Saints and Scholars Golf Tournament. So you can see the raffle is much needed and helps us toward partially funding the future of our outstanding parish school. 

You have always generously supported the mission of Our Lady of Mercy School in the past and we are confident of your continued generosity. In order to obtain your ticket or tickets, please send a check for $100 per ticket payable to “OLM” to Our Lady of Mercy, “See You in September” Raffle at 65 3rd Street, East Greenwich, RI 02818. There is no limit on the number of tickets you may wish to purchase and the more you buy the better the odds of winning!!!

Help us today support our OLM Saints and Scholars of tomorrow! Your odds of winning are better than Powerball and certainly much better than betting on the Red Sox!! Put your money on the OLM Saints and Scholars!!

Gratefully in Christ,

Fr. Healey

Religious Education Begins at Home!

Dear Parishioners:                 

The First Communion (La première communion), by Elizabeth Nourse (1859–1938)

We are happy to report that we have rescheduled our First Holy Communion Masses postponed earlier in the spring. We are spreading them out over three Saturdays in September to keep the groups small, about 20 candidates at each class. Our OLM School First Communion Class will celebrate together while our OLM RE Classes are separated in two. Due to the COVID-19 restrictions, only their parents and immediate family are allowed to attend the Masses. However, it will be live-streamed so that relatives and friends might watch and pray for the First Communicants. We are thrilled that this important celebration in the life of our parish is happening! We thank all the First Communion Families for their patience and understanding during these unprecedented times. Please pray for these children as they continue to prepare for the reception of First Holy Communion.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI once gave a talk to a First Communion Class. He said:

  “Of course, I remember my First Communion day very well. It was a lovely Sunday in March 1936. It was a sunny day, and the Church looked very beautiful, there was music. There were so many beautiful things that I remember. But at the heart of my joyful and beautiful memories is this one - I understood that Jesus had entered my heart, he had actually visited me. And with Jesus, God himself was with me. And I realized that this is a gift of love that is truly worth more than all the other things that life can give.”

Confirmation Mass is scheduled for Sunday, October 25th, at 5:00 PM with Bishop Salvatore Matano of Rochester, NY as our celebrant. We are keeping this date and time and expect that Bishop Matano is still able to join us. We have over 80 candidates for Confirmation and anticipate restricting attendance at the Mass to the candidates and their parents and sponsors. The Mass is to be live-streamed for relatives and friends. Pray for these young men and women as they prepare to receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Catechism Lesson by Jules-Alexis Muenier [1890)

We are also finalizing our plans for the OLM Religious Education Program for the coming year. We will be unable to have in-person classes due to the COVID-19 restrictions. These restrictions mean that our RE families are going to have to homeschool their children in the faith. Of course, we provide the needed materials and necessary guidance for this home study. We hope for some limited in-person instruction for the RE Students preparing for First Communion and Confirmation in 2021. We are still developing a plan that is feasible and safe for all concerned. Sacramental Preparation needs some in-person instruction, and this is most likely to be done in the Church itself.

It is important to remember that our RE Program is only an additional aid and guide for parents in the teaching of the faith to their children. They are the primary teachers of the faith. The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches:

“Parents have the first responsibility for the education of their children. They bear witness to this responsibility first by creating a home where tenderness, forgiveness, respect, fidelity, and disinterested service are the rule. The home is well suited for education in the virtues. Education in the faith by the parents should begin in the child’s earliest years. This already happens when family members help one another to grow in faith by the witness of a Christian life in keeping with the Gospel. Family catechesis precedes, accompanies, and enriches other forms of instruction in the faith. Parents have the mission of teaching their children to pray and to discover their vocation as children of God.”    

We encourage students and families to register now for Religious Education. Knowing the number of students enrolled in our RE program this fall helps us plan correctly. Registration is online at the parish website. Pray for our OLM RE Families! Our goal is first and foremost, the healthy and safe return of students to RE and Church. Of course, all these plans are subject to change as the pandemic health and safety restrictions evolve. Please pray for an end of COVID-19 and the health, well being and safety of all! Stay safe. Be Well. Do Good! God Bless