Hello and welcome!
Last Friday I had a Zoom meeting with some officials from the Bethlehem Project. We’re still moving forward with it, and of course, at this time of year, we’re more aware of the needs of the homeless.
I’m very grateful to MC Sullivan, Deacon Paul Kline, and all the others who have been meeting and formulating proposals for the Church’s further involvement in service and pastoral care of the homeless people in our midst.
On Saturday, I went to St. Patrick’s in Watertown for the perpetual profession of two Daughters of Mary of Nazareth, Sister Elizabeth Francis Russo, who was from that parish, and Sister Fatima Raphael Kim. Of course, we don’t have many profession ceremonies of women in the archdiocese, so when we do have one it is a sign of hope.
Many people attended the ceremony. There were about 40 priests and many religious from many different communities. It shows that the Daughters of Mary of Nazareth have quite a network of associations and friendships with our clergy and with their fellow religious, which I find very encouraging.
I preached on the spirituality of Blessed Charles de Foucauld, who is the inspiration for their community. Pope Francis has announced that he will be canonized on May 15 in Rome, so we’re looking forward to that. You can listen to a protion of my homily on the following video:
By the way, they have a spectacular life-sized creche at St. Patrick’s. It was so big, I wanted to jump on the camel and see if I could ride it around the yard!
On Saturday I went to Sacred Heart in Waltham for the wake for Father Dennis Wheatley, O.F.M. Father Dennis had been the pastor there for 22 years and was very beloved. Bishop Bob Reed celebrated the funeral Mass, and I presided at the wake service.
Instead of the ordinary wake service, we celebrated the vespers service of the Franciscans. We had a full church for the service, and many Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate Conception came.
One of the friars I met there was the retired bishop of Juticalpa, Honduras, Bishop Mauro Muldoon, O.F.M., who lives here in Boston. I had not seen him for a long time, so it was good to see him again.
On Sunday I celebrated Mass at the cathedral.
On Tuesday I had a meeting at Cathedral High School with a group of people from Lynn. They showed me their plans for the outdoor space that they are planning for St. Mary’s School in Lynn.
The Mosakowski Gardens will include a sacred space between St. Mary’s Church and St. Mary’s School that with focus on the Grotto, the Stations of the Cross, Madonna Shrine a statue which was originally installed in St. Mary’s Church in 1947 and now being moved to the Gardens.
The Stations of the Cross are unique representations of the Stations in the Church, with the outdoor Stations being etched into large metal plates that will be installed vertically on granite bases.
The gardens will provide a renewed sense of purpose for St. Mary’s School’s Catholic education mission for the City of Lynn and surrounding communities. Activities at the Gardens will include school community gathering to pray the Rosary , the Stations of the Cross, and other local community based gatherings.
It’s very encouraging the wonderful work that the alumni and people like the chairman of the board Bill Mosakowski with his wife Jane, Head of School Dr. John Dolan and the others have done to advance Catholic education in Lynn. They work very closely with the town and last year, even with the pandemic, did not have to close at all.
We are very pleased about their wonderful track record at St. Mary’s, and we look forward to their establishing of the garden and the outdoor space, which will enhance the school and help to beautify that whole area of the city of Lynn.
Tuesday afternoon I had the quarterly meeting of the St. John’s Seminary board. It was very encouraging to hear the reports of the rector, Father Stephen Salocks, and the other members of the board. St. John’s has responded very well to all the challenges of the pandemic, and we had very hopeful reports on the financial stability of the seminary, which was very encouraging.
On Wednesday I attended the funeral Mass of Father Vincent Daily at St. Joseph’s in the West End. His family had decided to celebrate it there so that the priests from Regina Cleri could get there. Bishops Hennessey, Dooher and Uglietto, together with a large number of priests attended the funeral
Father Daily was 92 years old and was from a wonderful Catholic family that has produced many vocations. He was ordained in 1958 and served in many different capacities: he went to work in Bolivia for many years, was pastor at some of our inner-city parishes, and taught in the seminary. He was a man of deep faith and beautiful devotion to the Blessed Mother, beloved of his parishioners and very close to his family.
It was very inspiring to hear the homily reflections of his nephew and namesake, Father Vincent Daily, who is on the faculty of Pope John XXIII National Seminary.
After the Mass, I received a message from the new bishop of Brooklyn, Bishop Robert Brennan, asking to tender his condolences to the family and say they were praying for the brother of their former bishop.
Also, on Wednesday the employees of the Pastoral Center had a virtual Advent gathering.
We are so grateful for everyone who, during this time of the pandemic, has made so many sacrifices to continue serving the people of the archdiocese. We wished everybody many blessings and good health at Christmas and the New Year.
And finally, as we prepare to celebrate this very joyous time of the year, I would like to share with you the beautiful Christmas decorations at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross.
Merry Christmas!
Cardinal Seán