I hope that many will continue to be inspired by last week’s celebration of Divine Mercy Sunday realizing how important God’s mercy is for all of us and that it was for this reason that Jesus was sent by the Father to us. Jesus is the mercy of God proclaimed by His own suffering and death on the cross and His final victory over sin and death by His resurrection.
Mercy is much more than forgiveness or pity; mercy is the way that God loves us. He loves us so much that He became one of us and then offered His life for our sins. There is nothing that God would not do for us so that we could one day be with Him in heaven. He is constantly offering Himself to us as a sacrifice so that we can come to know the depth of His love.
As God has shown us His mercy so He calls us to extend that same mercy to one another by forgiving our brothers and sisters from our hearts. We must be able to apply His teachings to every aspect of our lives.
On Saturday, May 7 around 60 of our children will receive our Lord for the first time in Holy Communion. This is a very special day for these children and their parents and families. Please keep them in your prayers that they and all of us may truly treasure this great gift that God has given us so that He can truly be a part of our lives. I pray that these children and their families will always remember how important the Eucharist is in all our lives; that it should be the center of our lives. Our union with Jesus and one another can only be experienced in Holy Sacrifice of the Mass making out participation in Mass each Sunday the most important thing we do in our lives. Blessed be Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar!
We have entered the beautiful month of May. It is beautiful because the weather is
always improving and getting to be more and more like summer. It is a time for First Communions, Confirmations, weddings, and graduations. It is a time when we seem to have many opportunities to get together with friends and family to enjoy and celebrate the many blessings of God in our lives. It is also beautiful because it is the month of our Blessed Mother. Our Blessed Mother is truly a great blessing in our lives. She is the Mother of God and she is our Mother, too. Mary is a Mother whose love brings us close to Jesus as she guides and comforts us in our daily lives. Mary is really the first and greatest disciple of Jesus. She followed Him more closely than any of the others. She was with Him when most of them deserted Him as He was arrested and condemned to death. She was there at the foot of the cross as He hung there dying for us. Mary, as our mother, was the last gift that Jesus gave us while He was here on earth. As He said to St. John, “Son, behold your Mother.” He said this to all of us.
May is an important time for us to pray the Rosary because the Rosary provides us with the opportunity to reflect on the events in the lives of Jesus and Mary as well as the events that take place in our lives. The mysteries of the Rosary speak so eloquently of virtues of faith, hope, and charity and how these virtues can lead us to a deeper relationship with God and a greater awareness of His love for us and His presence in our lives.
There are many opportunities to pray the Rosary with your parish family. The Rosary is prayed every morning in church at 7:30 a.m… The schoolchildren will pray the Rosary every Wednesday afternoon (check the bulletin for times) in the church. The Parish Family Prayer Group prays the Rosary the first Sunday of the month at 6:30 p.m., in the church (that would be this Sunday).
PLEASE MARK YOUR CALENDARS. The Feast of the Sacred Heart this year is on Friday, June 26. Since the Feast of the Scared occurs on a Friday we are permitted to move the celebration to the weekend because it is our patronal feast. So we will celebrate the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on the weekend of June 25 and 26 at all the Masses. Following the 5 PM Mass on Sunday, June 26 we will hold our parish picnic. The Family Life Commission and the Parish Council will be working to plan the event, but more help and ideas would be most welcome. So, if you would like to help plan this parish gathering, please call the parish office as soon as you can. In the meantime we can all pray for good weather or we will have to have our “picnic” downstairs in McMahon Hall.
