Dear Parishioners:                               It's hard to believe we had the April Spring School Vacation this past week, and it's already the Fourth Week of the Easter Season. Between an early Easter Sunday and all the rainy weather, the spring has gotten off to a slow start. As Mark Twain famously said: "In the Spring, I have counted 136 different kinds of weather inside of 24 hours." Of course, spring brings with it many events on our parish calendar. The School Play debuts wit ..read more

Dear Parishioners:                               The English Catholic convert and author G. K. Chesterton once commented: "Christendom has had a series of revolutions, and in each one of them, Christianity has died. Christianity has died many times and risen again, for it had a God who knew the way out of the grave."  His words came to mind as I reflected upon Easter, a season of baptism and new life. Baptism on Easter Sunday We had the joy of witnessing four baptisms at the East ..read more

Dear Parishioners:                                   "This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad," the Psalmist sings on Easter Sunday. And indeed, in this Easter Season, we continue "to rejoice and be glad!" For there is much good news of great rejoicing at OLM.                             ..read more

Dear Parishioners:                    Happy Easter! Alleluia, He has Risen! Today, we celebrate the center and core of our Christian faith, the Resurrection! For our faith is a Resurrection Faith. We rejoice today, for the Risen Christ, having conquered sin and death, remains with us across the ages.     The Lord's Easter gift to the Church and the world is the gift of hope. Because the Risen Christ remains with us personally and collectively, we never face life's challenges alone. Christi ..read more

Dear Parishioners:                                Fr. Healey and Fr. Mahoney celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with Monsignor Seamus Horgan. Last week, we had two grand celebrations honoring St. Patrick and St. Joseph. Both Masses were joyful and faith-filled, and the receptions were lively and fun. I thank all those who helped make these Parish Feasts a great celebration. I also wish to thank Monsignor Seamus Horgan from the Vatican Embassy and Bishop M ..read more

Dear Parishioners:                                   It's Laetare Sunday, the Fourth Sunday of Lent. The name Laetare comes from the entrance antiphon from Isaiah: "Rejoice, Jerusalem, and all who love her. Be joyful, all who were in mourning; exalt and be satisfied at her consoling breast."  Laetare is the first word meaning "rejoice" in the Latin text. The Church expresses hope and joy amid our Lenten fa ..read more

Dear Parishioners:                                  We are at the halfway point of Lent. That means we still have three weeks until the Holy Week and Easter Sunday. Some people say that time passes quickly. But often, I hear people say that Lent seems so long.      Lent seems so long for two reasons. The first is completely objective: Lent is, in fact, the longest season of self-denial during the Church’s year. No other seaso ..read more

Dear Parishioners:                                  We welcome our Lenten Mission Preacher, Father Francis McCarty, OSB, to OLM. He is preaching all the weekend Masses and offering a Mission Talk on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday nights. The title of his Mission is "The Seven Words of the Blessed Virgin Mary: Lessons on Discipleship."              Fr. Francis McCarty, OSB Father Fr ..read more

Dear Parishioners:                                 Of the three pillars of Lent — prayer, fasting, and almsgiving — almsgiving is often neglected. And yet, the only place in the Old Testament that brings all three together puts the emphasis firmly on the last: "Prayer and fasting are good, but better than either is almsgiving accompanied by righteousness … It is better to give alms than to store up gold; for almsgiving saves one from death a ..read more

Dear Parishioners:                   Today, the Church celebrates the World Day of the Sick. This annual day of prayer was established in 1992 by St. Pope John Paul II to encourage Catholics to pray for the sick and those who care for them. It is a day to offer hope to the ill and infirm. So, please pray today for the sick and suffering, especially those from Our Lady of Mercy Parish. The World Day for the Sick is February 11, a date chosen because it coincides with the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. It commem ..read more