Giving Thanks For God's Many Blessings!

Dear Parishioners:                    

On Monday, August 1, I marked my tenth anniversary as Pastor of Our Lady of Mercy Church. It's incredible to realize that I've been here a decade! I am most grateful to Bishop Tobin, who assigned me to this wonderful parish, and certainly grateful to God for the blessing of serving here at OLM.             

  I am most thankful for the fine priests I have served with these last ten years, Fr. Shemek, Fr. Connors, Fr. Barrow, and now Fr. Mahoney. Each of them has been a blessing in my life and a true joy to serve and live with at OLM. I also thank Bishop Evans, our neighbor here at OLM, for his joyful fraternity and faithful witness to the priestly ministry. 

 I am certainly grateful for the outstanding staff at OLM who are so dedicated to this parish. Our excellent OLM maintenance staff keep God's house clean and beautiful, fix the broken things that continually arise, and are always willing to lend a hand to any project. We are blessed to have such an excellent Religious Education Program led by Mickey St. Jean and Doug Green. I am grateful to our OLM Business Manager, Dave Cote, and Parish Secretary, Sandra Demers, who help me administer to the parish. I am thankful to our Music Director, Henri St. Louis, for his tremendous talent and music. Of course, our good Sisters who faithfully and humbly serve the parish are a true joy! 

We are blessed to have an excellent parish school. Our outstanding Principal, Patrick McNabb, continues the fine tradition of former principals, Sister Jeanne Barry, RSM, and Scott Fuller. We have an excellent and dedicated faculty, wonderful students, and supportive parents who make it an academically excellent, lovingly nurturing, and truly Catholic school where students strive to be saints and scholars.

And, of course, I am truly blessed to serve you, the good people of OLM, who continue to inspire me with your deep faith, joyful hope, and generous charity. I am humbled daily by the example of many parishioners who faithfully know, love, and serve God and neighbor. 

 Much has changed over a decade. There have been three different Presidents and three Governors, each truly unique!! We've had a Pope retire and elected the first Jesuit Pope from South America. And at the parish, while things do change much remains the same.

We've happily celebrated hundreds of Baptisms, Communions, Confirmations, and Weddings. For a decade, I've had the great privilege to celebrate Holy Mass for this faith-filled community as we worship and joyfully praise Almighty God, Sunday after Sunday, during blizzards, heatwaves, and even pandemics!

Sadly we've had hundreds of funerals over the decade, including for young parishioners, taken too soon, and tragically. But we've also celebrated funerals for faithful parishioners who led long lives dedicated to their God, faith,  family, and parish. I've also had the great joy and privilege of anointing those facing the trials of sickness and those preparing for their eternal reward.  And at this parish dedicated to mercy, I've had the remarkable privilege to offer God's forgiveness in the Confessional. For ten years, hundreds of people have sought out God's mercy as they humbly confess their sins and receive the grace of the Sacrament. 

As I reflect upon ten happy and joyful years serving as Pastor of OLM, I am reminded of the poem entitled "A Priest" by the French Dominican Father Henri Lacordaire, one of the greatest preachers of the nineteenth century. It reads:

"To live in the midst of the world without wishing its pleasures; To be a member of each family, yet belonging to none; To share all suffering;  to penetrate all secrets; To heal all wounds; to go from men to God and offer Him their prayers;  To return from God to men to bring pardon and hope; To have a heart of fire for Charity, and a heart of bronze for Chastity To teach and to pardon, console and bless always. My God, what a life; and it is yours, O priest of Jesus Christ."

 I give thanks to God for my pastorate at Our Lady of Mercy and pledge my continued prayers for you and your families.  Please pray for me.  Our Lady of Mercy, pray for us! Be well. Stay safe. Do good. God Bless. Go Sox!!! 

Are You Missing the Joy of Holy Mass?

Dear Parishioners:                    

Pope Francis greets people after Mass.

Pope Francis has said: "We can rightly say that the family is 'like one of the family' at Mass because it brings to the Eucharist its own experience of togetherness and opens it to the grace of universal togetherness, of God's love for the world. In participating at Mass, the family is purified from the temptation to turn in on itself, fortified in love and fidelity, and extends the reach of its fraternity according to the heart of Christ."

One thing missing from our parish following the pandemic is many of our parish families participating in weekly Sunday Mass. While the pandemic and its many restrictions have ended and schools, restaurants, sports programs, travel, and shopping have all returned to the pre-pandemic normality, many of our OLM families have chosen not to return to regularly attending Holy Mass on Sundays. 

The self-imposed exile of many families from Holy Mass is truly a sad circumstance here at OLM and in most parishes across the country. The pre-pandemic practice of attending Sunday Mass seems to have disappeared from the calendar of many Catholics. It is important to remember that the Eucharist is the source and summit of our Catholic Faith and, therefore, must be the center of our lives.     

St. John Vianney, Cure d’Ars and Patron Saint of Parish Priests

St. John Vianney, whose feast we celebrate this week on Thursday, August 4, faced a similar situation in the 19th Century. In 1818, he was appointed parish priest of the town of Ars. This assignment opened his eyes to the sordid state of the community of 230 people.

The spirit of the French Revolution had made many people ignorant and indifferent toward their Catholic Faith. They turned to indulging in vice rather than seeking to lead lives of virtue. Drunkenness and debauchery in local taverns rather than attending Mass was the new Sunday routine for many local townspeople. 

During his assignment in Ars, St. John Vianney strived to transform his town spiritually. He preached against sin and vice. He dedicated himself to teaching the children the Catholic Faith. He vehemently preached against blasphemy and paganism, even refusing to give absolution to parishioners who did not change their ways. It took St. John Vianney 10 years to bring spiritual renewal to the Town of Ars.

His prayer, zeal, and perseverance resulted in greater attendance at Sunday Mass and people turning away from their vices. Sunday Mass became the week's highlight in the townspeople's life.

The town of Ars began to draw pilgrims who sought St. John Vianney's spiritual advice. By 1855, about 20,000 people would visit him, seeking his counsel. In the last ten years of his life, he would spend 16 to 18 hours per day in the confessional hearing confessions.

  On August 4, 1859, the saintly parish priest of Ars died at 73. More than 6,000 people and 300 priests attended his Funeral Mass.  St. John Vianney was canonized in 1925 by Pope Pius XI and was made the patron saint of parish priests. 

As a result of the French Revolution, St John Vianney had received little formal education. Early on, he felt called to the priesthood but struggled in school. While in seminary, he needed private tutoring to supplement his lack of formal education. He was an academically poor student yet he would become world-renowned and declared the patron Saint of Parish Priests. His life and priestly ministry teach many lessons about faith and perseverance.

Ignorance and misunderstanding of the Catholic Faith and apathy and indifference toward religion, coupled with a love for material comfort and personal pleasure, seem to be common signs of our times. Such indifference and misunderstanding were also true in the early 19th Century in a small town in France.     So let us turn to Saint John Vianney to inspire and intercede for us. May he lead us to be more zealous in the practice of our Faith and make Sunday Mass the center of life for every parishioner at OLM. Let's put Sunday Mass back on the schedule and make it the highlight of our week.

As St. John Vianney once said: "If we truly understood the Mass, we would die of joy." 

 Be well. Stay safe. Do good. God Bless. Go Sox!!! 

A Mission to Build a Culture of Life & Civilization of Love

Dear Parishioners:                    

Missionhurst Priests baptizing in the Missions.

Unfortunately, the priest from the Missionhurst Missions who was scheduled to be with us last weekend canceled due to unforeseen circumstances. No replacement was available from the Missionhurst Missionaries. However, in their name, I thank you for your generous support of last weekend's Second Collection in support of the Missionhurst Missionaries.  

Each year every parish in the Diocese of Providence hosts a Missionary to learn more about their work and to offer our financial assistance. Even today, we remain a Missionary Church as the Gospel is preached in remote areas among peoples who know little of Christ and his Catholic Church. Pope Francis has stated:

"Would that all of us in the Church were what we already are by virtue of baptism: prophets, witnesses, missionaries of the Lord, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to the ends of the earth!"      

Last week I was in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to attend the Annual Summer Meeting of the National Association of State Catholic Conference Directors (NASCCD). There were almost forty state directors in attendance from across the country. It is a meeting at which we receive updates from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishop's staff on Federal legislation and actions by the Biden Administration.  

Pro-Lifers react to the Supreme Court Dobbs Decision.

At the meeting, a young Dominican Friar, Fr. Henry Stephan, OP, a Sorin Fellow at the de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture at Notre Dame University, offered an excellent presentation entitled "Citizenship in the City of God and the City of Man." It was a great and very timely reflection. 

We also had experts speak to us about the issues of concern to the Church, which we all advocate at local state houses. A panel of legal scholars discussed the recent U.S. Supreme Court Dobbs Decision on abortion.

Now that Roe v. Wade has been overturned, abortion has become a state issue primarily. Sadly many states, including ours, have codified Roe v. Wade in state law. Like Rhode Island, many states allow abortion on demand without any limit. This extreme position allows for the killing of unborn children up until birth. Such a policy mirrors the extreme abortion policies of China and North Korea.

The militant response to the Dobbs Decision by radical abortion extremists and their political allies is to expand access to abortion on demand by allowing the killing of the innocent unborn up until birth. They also demand public funding for this evil with tax dollars. Such a radical policy far exceeds nearly every country in Western Europe.

In a recent article in the Wall Street Journal entitled "A Catholic's Duty in Post-Roe America," Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City recalled the words of the late John Cardinal O'Connor of New York, 'If you are pregnant and in need, come to the Catholic Church."

While the reversal of Roe v. Wade is necessary for ending abortion and promoting the sanctity of life, as Catholics, we must also build a culture of life in myriad ways. As Archbishop Coakley stated:

 "By virtue of our baptism, we are called to see Christ in every human life and to work and pray for a society in which laws reflect the inherent dignity of the human person. This commitment requires us to create alternatives to abortion and ultimately to make it unthinkable. The end of Roe challenges us anew to open our hearts, and our doors, to mothers and children in need —to what Pope Francis called 'he highest form of love, and of fatherhood and motherhood.'" 

Our response must be to continue praying for more respect for life, especially for expectant mothers and their unborn children, continue advocating for life and supporting candidates who respect the right to life, and continue supporting expectant mothers and children living in poverty or crisis with Catholic Charity efforts like Gabriel's Call. Our duty as Catholics is to build a culture of life that counters the radical abortion extremists and their allies with our love and support of life.

The Fonzi Statue in downtown Milwaukee.

Unfortunately, the All-Star break meant the Brewers were not playing, and I had no chance to attend a baseball game at the new American Family Field! While Milwaukee is an interesting city to explore, it's good to be home!

Be well. Stay safe. Do good. God Bless. Go Sox!!! 

Missionaries, Martyrs & Preaching the Gospel

Dear Parishioners:                   

St. Kateri Tekakwitha, Feast Day on July 14.

While visiting my sister and her family in New York last week, we made a pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs in Auriesville, NY. Once the 17th Century Mohawk Village of Ossernenon, it is now a Roman Catholic shrine dedicated to three Jesuit missionaries who were martyred there and to St. Kateri Tekakwitha, a Mohawk woman who was born there. Her feast was last week on July 14.    

For over 130 years, the Shrine was under the direction of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) but is now operated by the Friends of Our Lady of Martyrs Shrine. I was privileged to offer Holy Mass at the main shrine chapel for your intentions.

In 1930, a coliseum was built at the Shrine, overlooking the Mohawk Valley, as one of the first circular churches built in the United States. It seats over 6000 worshipers for Holy Mass and has four altars for the three Martyr Saints and St. Kateri.   

The Coliseum Chapel at the Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs in Auriesville, NY.

The Jesuit Fathers Isaac  Jogues, René Goupil, and a lay Frenchman, Guillaume Coûture, were captured in August of 1642 in an Iroquois raid on the St. Lawrence River. They were brought to Osserenon, survived gruesome torture, and were enslaved.       Just weeks later, on September 29, Father Goupil was killed near the village gates by a tomahawk blow. His blessing a Mohawk child with the sign of the cross had been interpreted as something evil by the Native People.   

After the death of Father Goupil, Father Jogues remained enslaved and performed menial tasks, and endured hard labor, starvation, and exposure, especially during the winter hunts.  He served as the 'beast of burden' to his captors. Whenever he could break free, Father Jogues found a quiet place, stripped the bark off of a tree in the shape of a cross, and knelt and prayed. The crosses remain on the trees of the Shrine in memory of his devotion.    

The North American Martyrs

His docility with the Mohawks earned him the freedom to minister to other Catholic prisoners in the villages of the Mohawk Valley. He ministered to the sick, performed baptisms, and heard confessions. But he could not offer the Holy Mass, his canonical fingers, which the priest uses to handle the consecrated Host, were severed during the torture.

After a year of captivity, Father Jogues escaped with the help of Dutch settlers from the Albany area.    He arrived in his native France on Christmas Day, 1643. There he received special dispensation from the Pope to celebrate Mass without his canonical fingers. After a few short months in France, he returned to Canada in 1644.

In Canada, he met John Lalande, a young lay Jesuit who volunteered to help build the mission. They expected to be welcomed on this second mission. Instead, they were bound, beaten, and taken captive. The Mohawks blamed a crop pestilence on Father Jogues. Killed by tomahawk blows, St Isaac Jogues died on the evening of October 18, and St. John Lalande in the early morning hours of October 19. They were then beheaded, and their bodies dragged into the Mohawk River. Although no relics were recovered, the ground of their blood sacrifice is considered a natural reliquary.

Praying and offering Mass at a holy place where three Saints were martyred, and one was born was truly a distinct privilege for me. It is truly a peaceful place of prayer and holiness. If ever you are in the area of that part of New York State, I recommend a visit.

Missionhurst was founded in Belgium in 1862 by Father Theophile Verbist for the conversion of China.

The North American martyrs were missionaries who brought the Catholic Faith to this land. As we recall their heroic martyrdom in sacrificing their very lives to preach the Gospel, let us remember today the thousands of Missionaries who continue to proclaim the Gospel under difficult conditions including even violence and oppression. This weekend we are asked to support the mission work of the Congregation of the Immaculate Heart of Mary (Missionhurst/CICM),  They preach the Gospel in some of the most remote places of the world including Mongolia, Indonesia, Africa, Asia and Latin America. The  Second Collection this weekend supports the missions of Missionhurst/CICM. In their name, thank you for your generous financial support and continued prayers for missionaries.

Be well. Stay safe. Do good. God Bless. Go Sox!!!!! St. Kateri and the North American Martyrs, pray for us! 

Summer Means Reading and the Missions

Dear Parishioners:                    

              I hope you had an enjoyable Independence Day celebration with family and friends.  However, it is still hard to believe the Fourth of July has already passed. The summer is moving too quickly for me!     Pope Francis has said: "During summer time, let us learn how to take a break, turn off the mobile phone to gaze into the eyes of others, cultivate silence, contemplate nature, regenerate ourselves in dialogue with God." Very good advice for  us during these summer days. 

“During summertime, let us learn how to take a break, turn off the mobile phone to gaze into the eyes of others, cultivate silence, contemplate nature, and regenerate ourselves in dialogue with God.”

— Pope Francis

Last week I was lucky enough to visit New York and spend some time with my sister and her family, even my N.Y. Yankee loving brother-in-law! It was a relaxing time with family, and I was able to read a couple of books. What are you reading this summer?  

  I finished reading a new book entitled "We Don't Know Ourselves" by Fintan O'Toole. It is a memoir-style look at the history of Modern Ireland. O'Toole is a writer for the Irish Times. His recollections of Ireland from his childhood to the present day, are an absorbing and entertaining read. I think even those without Irish roots would enjoy it!   

Of course, my summer reading always includes a Bruno the Detective novel by Martin Walker. If you're unfamiliar with Bruno the Detective, it is a mystery series set in France's Périgord region. Bruno is a small village Chief of Police and former soldier who solves murders. He is also a passionate cook who manages to solve crimes in between cooking fabulous French meals! The books are quick and easy to read, but usually make me hungry! 

Robert Cardinal Sarah

I am finishing up "At the Service of the Truth" by Robert Cardinal Sarah for spiritual summer reading. The Cardinal is a native of Guinea, a former French colony, who converted to the Catholic Faith as a child. He served as a bishop in his native land, was named a Cardinal by Pope emeritus Benedict XVI, and served in the Vatican as the Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship.

The book is drawn from a retreat he led for priests. He writes with his trademark clarity and directness  confronting some of the most burning issues facing the priesthood and Catholic Church today. His writings  always provide a challenging reflection. I also hope to read the new edition of the biography of St. Charles de Foucauld by the French journalist, Jean-Jacques Antier. St. Charles was canonized by Pope Francis this past May. The Pope said the French Saint's spirituality "did me so much good when I was studying theology and helped me so much to overcome crises." 

St. Charles de Foucault

  When local bandits killed him in Algeria in 1916, the French aristocrat who became a monk was virtually unknown to the world. Over a century later, however, the spirituality of St. Charles Foucauld's hidden life has spread wide and far across the globe.   

  Born in 1858 into a French aristocratic family and  educated in Paris. He would serve as a Cavalry Officer in the French Army, become an explorer, and a noted geographer during his adventurous life. After a conversion at  age twenty-eight, this future Saint was filled with a desire to surrender himself completely to God. In his journal, he wrote, "My Father, I put myself in your hands. Whatever you make of me, I thank you, I am ready for everything, I accept everything, I thank you for everything."

This desire to surrender to God would lead him to become a priest and eventually to a life of prayer and simplicity as a monk. He would live as a hermit in the Algerian desert, devoting himself to prayer and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. His later work and writings as a monk led to the founding of the Congregation of the Little Brothers of Jesus. St. Charles de Foucault, pray for us!

Next weekend we take up our Annual Mission Co-op Collection to support the work of Catholic missionaries. Once a year, every parish in the Diocese of Providence is called to assist the work of  our Catholic missionaries with  prayer and financial support. This year we welcome the Missionhurst Missionary Fathers who are preaching at all the Masses next weekend. And the Second Collection next weekend is in direct support of their missionary work. There is no envelope for this collection.  Thank you for your generous support of Missionhurst!

Be well. Stay safe. Do good. God Bless. Go Sox!!!!!

Celebrating Our Freedom with Faith

Dear Parishioners:

I wish you and your families a  Happy Independence Day! We rejoice and pray for our nation as we recall the Declaration of Independence and commemorate its ratification by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776. The Second Continental Congress declared that the Thirteen Colonies were no longer subject and subordinate to the monarch of Britain, King George III. We threw off the shackles of British imperialism and declared our independence. 

  The Continental Congress voted to approve independence on July 2 and adopted the Declaration of Independence two days later, on July 4, 1776. The Declaration states: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

Signing of the Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776

  Of course, these words take on new meaning in light of the recent U.S. Supreme Court Dobbs' decision on abortion. As the U.S. Catholic Bishops stated after the decision: "For nearly fifty years, America has enforced an unjust law that has permitted some to decide whether others can live or die; this policy has resulted in the deaths of tens of millions of preborn children, generations that were denied the right to even be born.

  America was founded on the truth that all men and women are created equal, with God-given rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This truth was grievously denied by the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade ruling, which legalized and normalized the taking of innocent human life. We thank God today that the Court has now overturned this decision. We pray that our elected officials will now enact laws and policies that promote and protect the most vulnerable among us.”

Pro-lifer celebrating the Dobbs Decision, June 24, 2022.

Regrettably, the Dobbs ruling changes nothing in Rhode Island concerning abortion. In 2019, the General Assembly passed legislation that codified Roe v. Wade in an extreme abortion-on-demand bill that allows abortion up until birth. Now there is a renewed effort to force all Rhode Island taxpayers to pay for the evil of abortion with their tax dollars. While the Supreme Court has recognized that abortion-on-demand was never part of the Constitution and, thus, state legislatures around the country are no longer prohibited by the now-overturned Roe v Wade decision from passing and enforcing laws that protect preborn human life, there is much work to be done in Rhode Island.

A mother and child visiting St. Gabriel’s Call in Providence.

Bishop Tobin's statement on the SCOTUS decision stated: "While rightly insisting that abortion is evil, the Catholic Church also recognizes the particular needs that many women encounter when pregnant. For several years already, the Diocese has responded to this need with important programs such as St. Gabriel's Call, which provides personal and material assistance to pregnant women, new moms, and their infant children; and also the Cabrini Fund, which offers financial scholarships to assist parents with child care expenses. For many years, these programs have supported women and children, Catholic and non-Catholic alike. 

    In light of the ongoing needs of women and their children, I have directed our diocesan staff to increase the support we can offer to women and children through these already existing diocesan programs and be alert to other and new ways of assisting women, children and families in the days to come."

We, too, must renew our commitment to the sanctity of all human life with more prayers for an end to abortion and prayers for all expectant mothers, especially those in crisis pregnancy and those living in poverty. We must also redouble our efforts to support them with greater charity and more good works. Our call to build a culture of life that truly protects the sanctity of life of every human being has not ended with the Supreme Court decision but must be renewed with an even greater determination. Let us "pledge ourselves to continue our service to God's great plan of love for the human person, and to work with our fellow citizens to fulfill America's promise to guarantee the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all people," born and unborn. 

 Be well. Stay safe. Do good. God Bless America! Happy Independence Day!