This past week, as many of you are well aware, was Catholic Schools Week. I was very proud of the 5 Middle School Students: Amy, Emily, Wyatt, Jacob, and Donal, who shared with you our parishioners at our weekend Masses some of their experiences and life-lessons at St. Agatha School. As Catholic Schools Week continued, I had lots of fun on Monday with all three classes of K1 in our school’s Early Childhood program, as they came to Church with their clipboards to complete a scavenger hunt of many of the religious items in our upper Church. These young children were well prepared by their teachers to look for and find many of the objects that are used for the celebration of Mass. On Tuesday St. Agatha School had an open house for prospective students and their families. I was glad to be able to meet some of the folks who were considering St. Agatha School for their children. On Wednesday the School had a students’ appreciation day, and I was conscripted to hand out popsicles to our students which I very much enjoyed.
This weekend we mark two very significant events. First, we observe the feast of St. Agatha and conclude our Parish’s Centennial Year. I am very grateful to Joe Reardon who was the chairperson of our Centennial Committee and the other members of that Committee for all their work in organizing and carrying out the many activities of our one-hundredth year. As mementos of our Centennial we will have Centennial ornaments as well as a Centennial Booklet with historical information about our parish and pictures and other material about events that occurred during our Centennial Year. The statue of St. Agatha that has graced our sanctuary during our Centennial (in front of the ambo where the Scripture readings are proclaimed) will be returned to the shrine of St. Agatha in our Chapel for the solace and prayers of rape victims and breast-cancer survivors. However, as a lasting memento of our Centennial Year and with gratitude for St. Agatha’s intercession for us all, in place of her statue we purchased a beautiful icon of St. Agatha which will be attached to the ambo upstairs where we had her statue. We are hopeful that the icon will be in place for this weekend, but, if not, we certainly hope to have it here the following weekend.
View the videos below then check out Kathleen's videos of our Centennial Mass and Feast on our Centennial Page HERE
Cardinal O'Malley requested each parish in the archdiocese to distribute information on two deeply troubling bills coming before the Massachusetts State Legislature. For information please click the image below.
O Heavenly Father, who raised Agatha to the dignity of Sainthood,
we implore Your Divine Majesty by her intercession to give us health
of mind, body and soul. Free us from all those things which hold us
bound to this earth, and let our spirit, like hers, rise to your heavenly courts. Through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You, forever. Amen.
Pope Francis’s Prayer to Mary during Coronavirus Pandemic
O Mary, you always shine on our path as a sign of salvation and of hope. We entrust ourselves to you, Health of the Sick, who at the cross took part in Jesus’ pain, keeping your faith firm.
You, Salvation of Your People, know what we need, and we are sure you will provide so that, as in Cana of Galilee, we may return to joy and to feasting after this time of trial.
Help us, Mother of Divine Love, to conform to the will of the Father and to do as we are told by Jesus, who has taken upon himself our sufferings and carried our sorrows to lead us, through the cross, to the joy of the resurrection. Amen.
Under your protection, we seek refuge, Holy Mother of God. Do not disdain the entreaties of we who are in trial, but deliver us from every danger, O glorious and blessed Virgin. Amen.
(Adapted from Vatican News.)