Dear Friends in Christ,
I write this article after a beautiful weekend of celebrations here at Our Lady of Mercy Parish. Our Second Annual Gala was a great success! Thanks to all of you who attended or supported this event in any way. As you may know, the funds from the Gala have been set aside for the refinishing and repair of our pews at Our Lady of Mercy, which can use some refreshing after many years of use. I want to extend a special thank you to all the members of the Gala committee for their months of hard work to prepare for this important event.
We also had an excellent celebration of the Feast of Our Lady of Mercy at the special 5:00pm Sunday Mass last Sunday. We began with a procession with several images of the Blessed Mother as we prayed the Rosary through our neighborhood. I want to thank everyone who organized these special liturgical moments of prayer and the party in Ryan Hall which followed.
There are some special initiatives to which I would like to draw your attention:
· Bodas de Cana. It has been many years since we have celebrated a special wedding for those who would like to receive the Sacrament of Marriage after some years of living in civil marriage or in a free union. We have scheduled April 19, 2024 for this celebration, which offers couples the chance to celebrate their weddings all together as one large group in church and to have a reception together in Ryan Hall following. If you are interested, please attend a Marriage Information Night and tell the deacon you would like to join the Bodas de Cana.
· Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. After some consultation with our parish groups and staff, I am happy to announce that we will begin having Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament available each Friday at Our Lady of Mercy Church from after the morning 8:15am Mass until Benediction at 6:30pm each evening. This will begin on November 3rd and will continue each Friday, with the exception of days that would have funerals requested. I want to thank Deacon Juan Carlos Diaz for agreeing to be the coordinator of the adorers. If you are interested in committing yourself to a certain hour of Adoration each week, a sign-up sheet will soon appear in the back of Church.
· Baptisms at St. Francis Xavier. Many people have asked about celebrating baptisms, weddings, and cotillions (sweet 15th celebration) at St. Francis. The answer is YES you may. Simply ask the office. We will have baptisms during the Mass in both English and Spanish on the first Sunday of each month at SFX. The preparation talks will continue to take place here at OLM.
· Finally, you are all invited to the Mass of Installation for the new pastor, which will take place on October 14th at 5:30pm (bilingual), followed by a celebration in Ryan Hall. Bishop Mark Bartosic will be the celebrant. More than anything else, this is a chance to pray that God grant me the grace I need to be a good shepherd to you all, and that we might collaborate well in the mission that He is giving to us as a parish.
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Fr. Thomas J. Byrne