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St. Mary's Catholic Parish: From the Pastor

Fr. Paul E. Desmarais, Pastor - St. Mary's Parish

St. Mary's Catholic Parish

For the Week of June 27, 2010

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For the Week of June 20, 2010

“Who do the crowds say that I am?” We know that Peter will say; “You are the Christ the Son of the living God.” We can ask this ourselves; “Who do we say Jesus is in our life?” Is Jesus a nice guy who was a teacher among many others? Is He just another prophet? When we believe He is the Messiah and the Son of God, that changes everything. He and His teachings become the most important thing in our life. The Eucharist becomes the most important possession we can have. Why would we want to miss Mass and miss receiving our Lord? Why would we miss out on the opportunity to be with Him in prayer? Our Lord is so powerful; why do we deny ourselves the opportunity to have Him within us? His love, grace, mercy, compassion are always available to us.

It says in the book of Revelation that Jesus is knocking on the door of our hearts waiting for us to let Him in. Each and every Mass begins with the prayer, “The Lord be with you. What better way to begin our week than by letting the Lord come into our hearts each and every Sunday and each and every time we pray to him.

For the Week of June 13, 2010

Jesus says in the gospel today, “The one to whom little is forgiven, loves little.”

One of the hardest things Jesus asks us to do have to do with forgiveness. How hard it is to forgive! How hard to let go of the pain and suffering done to us when someone hurts us by what they have done. How hard it is to forgive when someone will not say they are sorry. Each time we pray the Our Father we pray; “Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.” We admit in this prayer that we are in need of God’s grace to forgive and be forgiven. Many times people cannot forgive someone who has harmed them so seriously because of the hurt and pain they feel. Along with forgiveness comes the healing of our heart to heal from the pain. Asking for healing from our Lord allows us to be rid of anger, resentment, bitterness hatred which is so destructive of the human heart. Anger, resentment, bitterness, hatred can destroy us. We need the grace and love from our Lord to heal the hurt.

In healing and forgiving we are not saying we would once again be friends with someone who hurts us so badly but, we do not want to become bitter, resentful people by holding on to anger and hatred. Our Lord promised His love and help for us to be able to forgive. We also need His grace and help to say to someone we hurt; I’m sorry! Pride, ego can get in the way of admitting we did something wrong. We need the virtue of humility to understand we have done something wrong and we need to say to God and others, I’m sorry. Jesus came to heal and forgive a broken world by His love, mercy and the power of the cross.

For the Week of June 6, 2010

A quarter of American Catholics do not believe in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Many of these Catholics believe the Bread and Wine are a symbol. When we fail to believe in one of the most important beliefs of our faith, we miss out on so much our Lord can give us.

The spiritual food we need to allow our faith to grow and blossom we miss out on, when we do not come to Mass or believe in the real presence. It is why the church calls it a mortal sin to miss Mass on Sunday. It is why God made it one of the commandments. The Body and Blood of our Lord have been linked to many miracles of healings. The Body and Blood of our Lord has touched the lives and hearts of people in so many different ways. There is a way we can ask the Lord for His healing love to help us each time we come to Mass. 1) Before Mass begins, pray for your intention, ask the Lord’s healing power to touch the life and heart of the person you pray for. 2) At the offertory lift up the person you pray for as an offertory gift, place your intention on the altar of God. 3) Believe at communion time when you receive our Lord that your intention is being answered. 4) When you come back to your seat, continue to pray for the person you want the Lord to help or heal. We miss out on so much when we fail to receive Him at Mass. Each and every Saturday night or Sunday at Mass, there is so much love our Lord wants to give each and every one of us.

For the Week of May 30, 2010

St. Paul tells us in the second reading that “The Love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.” We receive a Father’s love revealed by Jesus through the Holy Spirit. When we celebrate the Holy Trinity this weekend, we do not celebrate some abstract idea or concept. A loving Father has been revealed to us by his son Jesus. Our Father loves us, heals us, and forgives us our sins; Jesus is the messenger of this mercy.

Jesus constantly tells us that he has come to do only the will of the Father. Jesus sacrifice on the cross shows us that He can take on the darkness and sinfulness of the world and overcome it by the power of the resurrection. The Holy Spirit empowers our heart with this love and also empowers us with His gifts and fruits. We honor the Father, Son and Holy Spirit this weekend for what they did for us and continue to do for us each and everyday.

For the Week of May 23, 2010

“To each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit.” St. Paul reminds us of how the power of the Holy Spirit touches our lives. Are you patient or kind or merciful and forgiving? Are you wise or understanding? Are you courageous or strong in your faith? Are you compassionate or loving? All these and many more are the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit working in your daily life. We are not only touched by the Holy Spirit on Sunday, but every day of our life.

This Pentecost Sunday, we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit coming into our lives to give us the grace God wants you and me to receive. The Holy Spirit empowers you and I to live out our faith with the tools and gifts we need. Think how often we pray asking for some kind of help from God. Think of how we receive it and how we are helped by the Holy Spirit everyday. Most major feasts of the church honor what happened to Our Lord, Our Lady or someone else. Pentecost is our feast day. The power of the Holy Spirit is given to everyone willing to receive it. This is truly God’s gift to us.

For the Week of May 16, 2010

In the first reading today just before his death St. Stephen prays, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Stephen knows that his life belongs to God and all that goes with it. Stephen knows he is in the hands of God. It says in the book of Wisdom, the soul of the just is in the hand of God and no torment will touch him…they are in peace. Our lives also are in the hands of God, we belong to him, we give ourselves to our Lord the way Stephen did. We trust in the goodness of God no matter what happens; we put ourselves into his hands.

It isn’t easy to trust God when things don’t go well for us. It is hard to see him when there is no light at the end of the tunnel. Faith and belief in God are also about having courage, the strength to believe in hopeless situations. Stephen knew he was going to die but he did not stop believing that our Lord was watching over him. He is an example for us of how we should pray and have faith. He prayed knowing he was going to die. He knew his persecutor could kill the body but not his spirit. He knew his spirit belonged to God and nothing in the world would change that.

For the Week of May 9, 2010

Jesus today talks in the gospel about the power of love and peace. This is not about peace and love in the abstract, Jesus learned about love and about peace through his mother Mary. In the nine months Mary carried Him in her womb, Jesus learned about love. As a young child Mary taught Jesus about love, as a teenager and as a young man Mary taught Jesus about the power of love. This intimate connection between Jesus and Mary is so powerful. The two are truly united and one.

Today as we celebrate Mother’s Day, we honor the people who have taught us about love. Today we honor the power of love. Today we reflect on what someone’s love has taught us. We reflect on how love has molded and made us the people we are. Love isn’t always perfect but when it falls short, it teaches us something about mercy and compassion and forgiveness. Today is a day to reflect on all the goodness mother’s have given to us.

For the Week of May 2, 2010

When we hear in the gospel today Jesus telling us that He will give us a new commandment to “love one another,” we might ask the question; what’s so new about that? Hasn’t love been around long before Jesus came into the world? This is not a new concept or idea! In the next line of the gospel, Jesus goes on to say. “As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.” The challenge now is for us to love as Jesus has loved. We are called to care for each other with the same compassion, mercy, patience, gentleness, forgiveness etc. that Jesus gives to us.

Now we have to measure our love for others against the love that Jesus has for others. We ask ourselves how we can measure up to this kind of love. How can we possibly do this? In the second reading from Revelation, we hear, “Behold God’s dwelling is with the human race. He will dwell with them and they will be his people and God himself will always be with them as their God.” What a great promise given to us. God will be with us to strengthen us and come to our help when we need Him. The love He wants us to give to others He first gives to us. We receive from Him the same gifts we ask Him to give us.

In this journey of life that calls you and me as Christians to love as God loves, we need not be discouraged because God’s strength and love are here to help us to love as He loves us.

For the Week of April 25, 2010

In the Gospel today Jesus says “My sheep hear my voice, I know them.” Because we are God’s creation He knows us. He knows who we are, what we are made of. He knows our likes and dislikes, our dreams and hopes. He knows our disappointments and failures. He wants to be with us during these times, but do we recognize or see Him in our daily life? Do we hear his voice? Do we hear Him knocking on the door of our hearts? Jesus says He does in the book of Revelation.

We live in such a fast paced life that we do not take the time to pray. We say we have so much to do that we don’t have time to pray. If we don’t pray we miss out on the voice of God speaking to us. We cannot recognize His voice because we have not heard it. We don’t know what he sounds like. Even five or ten minutes a day to talk to Him is a start, it’s a beginning. In that short period of time a lot can happen. Our Lord wants us to spend time with Him. What can we do to create time to pray even if it’s just for a few moments, it’s a start. What can I give up? Could it be time in front of the T.V. or computer? The most important relationship we have in life is with our Lord. What can we do to make the time to hear his voice?

For the Week of April 18, 2010

Many people in their lives do not believe they have the gifts or talents or ability to reach out and serve God and others. People say “I could never do this or I could never do that.” What happens is that we tell ourselves I am not good enough or worthy enough to serve. Peter felt the same way, but always stepped out in faith to serve his Lord. Even after denying knowing the Lord three times, Peter is forgiven and Jesus calls Peter to follow him.

Jesus calls all of us to follow him. He calls us to use our gifts and talents in the service of Him and others. When Mother Cabrini was called by God to establish an order of religious sisters and a hospital in the United States, God took away from her, her fear of water because the only way she could come to the U.S. was by boat. God had given her gifts and talents she did not see in herself. God would use her to serve the sick by removing her fear. God wants to remove the fear that can prevent us from answering His call to serve others. When we answer the call to serve, God can do great things with us. He gives us the strength, power, courage and faith to answer His call to service.

For the Week of April 11, 2010

On Easter Sunday we celebrated our Lord’s victory over death. His resurrection, overcoming the oppression and darkness that is death. Hope in the midst of darkness, light and love where there is no hope. The church gives us eight days to reflect on the power of the resurrection. The gospel readings for each day of Easter week deal with the power of the resurrection over death and sin.

Divine Mercy Sunday helps us to reflect on the aspect of the resurrection that is Jesus victory over sin. The mercy of God is greater than the sinfulness of our lives. Jesus has destroyed sin. We are called to receive that mercy. All throughout the gospel stories, we hear of how Jesus brings forgiveness of sins and healing into peoples lives. Our Lord does not condemn sinful people but wants them to know His forgiveness, love and mercy for them. On Divine Mercy Sunday, our Lord wants us to know the power of love over sin and death. We live in a time when we need hope. In all that happens in our world today, we need the light and love of the resurrection to bring us hope, peace and mercy into our world.

Pray for the hope and mercy you are looking for. Pray that as we celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday, our hearts can feel the love, the goodness, the grace Jesus gives to each of us through the power of the resurrection.

For the Week of April 4, 2010

On behalf of the staff and me, we wish all of you a blessed and Holy Easter Sunday. This is a great day of celebrating Our Lord’s victory over sin and death. Salvations, Hope, forgiveness are gifts we receive this day.

All of us are touched by the grace of our Lord. No matter whom we are, God’s grace belongs to us. The pain and the suffering endured by our Lord point us to the direction of this day; today points us to the grace we receive to deal with the suffering and challenges of everyday life. St. Paul tells us that without the resurrection, the cross and suffering of Jesus is folly! The people of the resurrection stories will come to recognize Jesus in different ways. Mary Magdalene recognizes Jesus at the tomb when He calls out her name. Two disciples will recognize Him in the breaking of the bread after walking with Jesus on the road to Emmaus. The disciples will recognize Jesus when He walks into the room where they are and says, “Peace be with you.” The resurrection we celebrate today is an ongoing story; all of us will see Jesus in different ways. Our hearts today and everyday of our lives will be touched by His love, grace and mercy given to us today and everyday of our lives.

For the Week of March 28, 2010

We are about to celebrate the most important week of our Christian faith. From Palm Sunday through Easter we will learn how the mercy of God is greater than our sinfulness and the sinfulness of the world.

Jesus gives you and me the three most important gifts we can receive in the world. His body and blood, mercy and forgiveness. I invite all of you to attend our Holy Week services on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The schedule is in the bulletin. All of us are in need of the grace this week can give us. All of us need to see and feel in our own hearts the love given to us on the cross by a Savior who wants to live and reign in our hearts. I pray that this will be a blessed week for all of you and your families and friends.

For the Week of March 21, 2010

St. Paul says “I consider everything as a loss because of the supreme good of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.” (Phil 3:8)

St. Paul is willing to give up whatever it is that stands in the way of knowing our Lord. Are there things we hold on to that prevent us from fully knowing our Lord? Do we hold on to past hurts? Do we hold on to jealousy or envy or pride? Are we too busy to go to Mass on Sunday? What are the things that prevent our Lord from living completely in our hearts?

Our Lord forgives a woman caught in adultery to show her that mercy and forgiveness are greater than her sins. He challenges her accusers to have the compassion for her that He has. More important than the letter of the law is the spirit of the law. Jesus tells the woman He will not condemn her, he wants her to avoid the sin. Do we hold on to judging people unfairly? Do we condemn people? Do we hold on to our grievances? Do these things get in the way of knowing our Lord? During the remainder of Lent, how can we get rid of obstacles that prevent us from knowing Jesus our Lord?

For the Week of March 14, 2010

In today’s gospel of the prodigal son, three stories unfold for us. We have a father of great generosity who is ready to give his youngest son his share of the inheritance. The father knows the son will loose it and so he wants and waits and waits for the son to come home. When he sees his destitute son return, he is accepted home with no questions asked. The father’s love for both his sons is unconditional.

The prodigal son is ready to take on the world and spend his money without any thought for the future but after he looses everything, the one virtue he does not loose is humility and the chance to come home again. The virtue of humility lets him have a second chance, a chance to start over again. The righteous son; his good deeds are not matched by the virtues of mercy, compassion or forgiveness. He ends up having resentment towards his younger brother. The father is teaching his two sons that mercy and forgiveness are greater than sinfulness. The father offers to both his sons the chance to have their hearts touched by mercy. Our Lord offers you and me the chance to have mercy, change our hearts. God offers this gift to you and me every day of our lives.

For the Week of March 7, 2010

Over the past week, meetings have been held by our parish finance council with Msgr. Raymond Bastia, Vicar for Finances for the Diocese of Providence and Michael Sabatino, his assistant, concerning the financial future of our parish. I and the finance council also had a parish meeting last Sunday to discuss the seriousness of our financial picture. We are in debt over $250,000. The Finance Office of the Diocese of Providence has given our parish 45 days to come up with a plan to get ourselves out of this debt. This is how I plan to move forward:

1. Two people will help me in the day to day operation of the parish and help to manage its budget.

2. Two people will oversee the bookkeeping of the parish.

3. Three sub committees have been set up. The first committee is a Capital Campaign Committee. Its goal will be to raise enough money to pay off the debt of the parish. We need to raise money to replace the roof over St. James Chapel and also have money we can use in the future for other needs of the parish. The second sub committee is a building and grounds committee. We need people who will help us in the upkeep of the parish buildings and property and to identify what needs to be done to accomplish that goal. The third committee is the budget committee. This group of people will take a close look at our parish spending and look at ways we can cut back on spending. All these committees are already in place but we can always use your help and expertise.

We will now be putting in the bulletin each week how much we receive in the parish collection. Another open parish meeting will be held within the next forty five days to reveal our plan to you for the future of our parish.

For the Week of February 28, 2010

The transfiguration of Jesus is more than just the story of Jesus showing himself to be the Messiah and Son of God. Jesus does not show power and glory for its own sake. Jesus is trying to teach Peter, James and John an important lesson. Jesus wants to teach them that they too can be changed. They too have the power of God living within them. They too carry the glory of God within them. We also today carry the glory of God within us. We carry within us the Divine presence of God through the sacraments we have received. Today through the Eucharist, we carry the love of the Lord in our hearts. We are the living presence of Jesus in the world. This knowledge should change and transform us. We all need to be changed from an old way of living to a new way of revealing Jesus present in our hearts and in the world. Jesus message to us this Lent is to allow the presence of God within us to make us into the people we have been created to be.

On Christmas Day in 1988, Our Lady of Medjugorje gave this message to the visionary children of the town. “Dear Children! I call you to peace. Live peace in your heart and all around you, so that all will know the peace that does not come from you but from God. Today is a great day. Rejoice with me. Celebrate the Nativity of Jesus with my peace. It is for this peace that I have come as your Mother, the Queen of Peace. Today I give you my special blessing. Bring it to all creation, so it will know peace. Thank you for having responded to my call.”

Our Lord today is asking all of us to bring His peace to all those around us.

For the Week of February 21, 2010

Many people today question “where is God in our world?” How is He present to us? How has He revealed himself to us? The greatest messenger of God’s mercy in our world has been Our Lady. She has reminded the world through her messages at Fatima, Guadalupe and Lords of the mercy of God in our world today. She tells the world of the power of divine mercy to forgive the world of its sinfulness. She reminds us that the mercy of God is greater than the sinfulness of our lives. This is the message Our Lady is speaking to the visionaries of Medjugorje. We are being called to turn away from our sinfulness and receive divine mercy in our hearts.

This is the meaning of Lent. We heard on Ash Wednesday; “turn away from sin and remain faithful to the gospel. This has been Our Lady’s message throughout history. The season of Lent calls us to live this message in our everyday life. So many things in our life tempt us not to follow the message of the gospel. It is easy to loose focus on the word of God with so many distractions around us. This is why the message of Our Lady are so important for our world today. Ivan Dragicevic one of the visionaries of Medjugorje will share this all important message with us. I hope you can be there for this wonderful night. You can reserve a ticket for the night by calling the rectory at 364-7214.

For the Week of February 14, 2010

The prophet Jeremiah tells us in the first reading today, “Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,” whose hope is in the Lord. Jeremiah reminds us that we are created in the image and likeness of God, we are God’s people, as St. Paul says in Acts of the Apostles, “In Him, we live and move and have our being, we are His offspring.” We are reminded to come to the Lord with all our cares, needs and concerns.

It is not easy when facing the loss of a job or the loss of a home. It is not easy if I or someone else is sick or suffering to just simply ay we will trust in God. Jeremiah wants to tell us that because God created us, He is not going to abandon His creation. All that is asked of us is to have faith and hope in the goodness of God our creator who loves us more than anyone else. Jeremiah will also say to us that we are the eyes, ears, hands and heart of God in the way we reach out to those most in need.

For the Week of February 7, 2010

In the Gospel today we have a wonderful example of the power and mercy of God through Jesus. Jesus wants to show us the generosity of his love and mercy through the catch of fish that Peter receives after fishing all night and caught nothing. Jesus will show Peter what can happen for him when he trusts in the power and love of Jesus.

Peter is so overwhelmed by this act of generosity; he becomes aware of his own sinfulness and weakness. Peter then is told not to be fearful or afraid because the grace and power of Jesus will help him do great things for others. Peter one day will heal a crippled man in the temple by the grace of God. When our lives are touched by the love of God we are called to share it with others. After Peter had received such blessings from Jesus, the expectation was that he would share it with others. The gifts we receive from God are meant to be shared with others. We don’t hoard grace for ourselves; rather we are called to use what God has given us for others. Peter’s unworthiness did not matter to Jesus. Jesus only cared that the blessings he received from Jesus would be used one day to help others. We too can heal hearts and peoples lives by the love, mercy, forgiveness and compassion we bring to them.

For the Week of January 31, 2010

St. Paul gives us one of the most comprehensive accounts about the qualities of love. St. Paul says it is patient, kind, not pompous or inflated or rude; it does not seek its own interests, it is not quick tempered, it does not brood over injuries…then St. Paul says that love never fails. When we look at the way we love we can see all the ways we have not loved as we should.

Our love does fail at times, we are quick tempered and impatient, we can be unkind. We come to Mass each week to be inspired by the promise from Jesus that He will be with us to give the grace, help and inspiration we need to live out the call to love. Everyone knows about the demands that love places upon us. The demands of love can be overwhelming at times calling upon every virtue of love to help us love and care for others. The tired mother and father who care for a sick child after the demands of the work day. People who care for elderly parents and their own children know how hard and tiring it can be. When St. Paul says that love never fails, he points us towards the Eucharist. It is then that our gift of love is strengthened. We know in the Eucharist we receive our Lord’s strength and love to carry on. We know he will not leave us alone on this life’s journey.

For the Week of January 24, 2010

“Today the scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.” Jesus had told the people in the synagogue, He came to bring glad tidings to the poor, liberty to captives, recovery of sight to the blind, let the oppressed go free. His message of over two thousand years ago is meant also for us. Jesus comes into the world today to bring us His power, love, mercy, forgiveness. He comes into the world today to heal us and forgive us. He comes into the world to help us see we are God’s creation.

We come each week to hear the words that will inspire us; we come each week to receive the bread of life that will be our strength and mercy for the coming week. We also receive the Eucharist so we too are people of hope to others by our charity, mercy and compassion. We take with us the bread of life so we can be the bread of life for others. Jesus can say this scripture passage is fulfilled because he calls you and me to do what He did. Jesus’ words live on today because you and I make them come alive each and every time we put this gospel into practice.

For the Week of January 17, 2010

The story of the wedding feast at Cana contains two stories. The first and most obvious is the miracle itself of Jesus changing water into wine. The second story is how Jesus’ mother tells him the wedding has run out of wine and then tells the servants to do whatever he tells you. The miracle happens because of Mary’s intervention. She brings the needs of the newly married couple to Jesus. Mary continues today to bring the needs of all of us to her son. Mary is our greatest intercessor. When we pray she hears us with a mother’s heart and wants the best for us. She also leads us and brings us to her son. On the 18, 19, 20th of this week we will have the image of Our Lady of Gudalupe once again with us. Mary reached out to Juan Diego and she reaches out to us to remind us of the great love her son has for us.

The chapel will be open during the day until 9:00 pm for anyone who wants to come and pray with her. Mr Marty Rotella will once again speak to us and share his music with us on Tuesday and Wednesday evening beginning at 7:00 pm in St. James Chapel. All are invited to attend.

For the Week of January 10, 2010

“This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.” These are the words the Father spoke to Jesus at his baptism. God also spoke these words to us at our own baptism. We are loved by Him and He is pleased with us and proud of us. We are his creation, He is our father. Today we see how special this relationship is with Him and with us.

Baptism makes us special sons and daughters of God. His love and mercy guide us every step in our life’s journey. He wants us to know as a loving father, He is here for us. He is not a parent who abandons us but will walk with us. Jesus could always turn to his father in his need. We too can count on God’s love for us, even when things seem difficult or even out of control in our life. When we seem to catch one bad break after another, God’s strength and the power of His love is with us. We are his beloved creation in whom he is pleased and proud of.

For the Week of January 3, 2010

“And you Bethlehem…from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.” The word “ruler” does not bring to mind very kind images of what that person would be. Hitler, Stalin, Mao, all were people who ruled with a bloody iron fist. Anyone who stood in their way was killed.

Jesus is someone who is different. Jesus brings love, hope, peace, mercy, healing, and justice into our world, instead of fear. Jesus is the King and Lord of mercy. Jesus says to his disciples that he came into this world to serve, not be served. It is why Jesus is the model king. Jesus calls you and me to be a member of His kingdom. We do not live in fear of Jesus as ruler; rather we are people of mercy and love, peace, healing, justice and hope. Jesus is worshiped not out of fear; He is worshiped out of love.

From the Pastor: June to December 2009

From the Pastor: January to May, 2009

From the Pastor: June to December 2008

From the Pastor: January to May, 2008

From the Pastor: September, October, November, December 2007

From the Pastor: June, July, August 2007

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