Next weekend, May 20-21, we welcome Maysoon Khair from Star of Bethlehem Handicrafts to St. John Parish. Maysoon will be selling carved Olive Wood handicrafts at the back of the church after all Masses. 
These handicrafts are made by small family businesses and the older students of the School of Joy, which is a school for children with learning difficulties located just outside Bethlehem.
Sales of the handicrafts directly benefit Christian families living in very difficult circumstances as well as the important work of the school: 
“By buying from these articles you are not just supporting the school and the children, but you are also creating in them a sense of self-respect and confidence in their abilities.”
It is with a mix of sadness and gratitude that we announce that our parochial vicar, Fr. Arthur MacKay, will be leaving us to take a new assignment beginning on June 1. Cardinal Sean has asked Fr. Arthur to begin a new assignment as a hospital chaplain serving Lahey Hospital and Medical Center in Burlington and MetroWest Medical Center in Framingham. With his gentle pastoral presence, deep faith and extensive medical background, Fr. Arthur will bring unique gifts to his new ministry. For the past five years, Fr. Arthur has served the parishes of our collaborative with dedication, sensitivity and pastoral zeal. We will miss him very much. Our prayers and love go with him as he begins this new chapter in his priestly ministry. A farewell event is being planned and will be announced soon.
Also on June 1, Fr. Robert Blaney will be beginning his ministry with us as the new parochial vicar for our collaborative. Ordained in 2007, Fr. Blaney currently serves as parochial vicar of the Sacred Heart-Our Lady Help of Christians Collaborative in Newton. Fr. Blaney is a very talented priest who is much beloved in his current parishes. We welcome him with open arms and trust that you will give him the same loving support and encouragement that you so generously give to all of the priests who serve you.
The Religious Education programs of the St. John – St. Paul Collaborative are excited to announce that last year’s “Summer Blast” program for our incoming sixth graders was extremely successful and we will be permanently offering it through our Religious Education registration process – as you may have seen as you registered your rising 6th grader. The program is offered as an alternative to help our families manage their busy schedules. Successful completion of “Summer Blast” will fulfill religious education requirements for the upcoming school year. 
Our book for May is Remember to Live – Embracing the Second Half of Life by Fr. Thomas Ryan, CSP.
St. John’s Adult Faith Formation Commission
St. Paul Church will host this special statue of Our Lady of Fatima, an image of the Immaculate Heart of Our Lady of Fatima as she appeared to Sr. Lúcia in Tuy, Spain. It was blessed by Pope Francis on October 23, 2013 at the conclusion of the Wednesday audience ten days after his consecration of the world to Our Lady of Fatima. Events during the day will be:
We invite you to join us this Tuesday evening for Pilgrims on a Journey: The RCIA Story.
Join us for an hour of prayer and reflection
Our book for April is The Jewish Annotated New Testament, Amy-Jill Levine and Marc Zvi Brettler, editors. This book has been described as a “ground-breaking text for scholarship, interfaith dialogue, and secular or religious readers.” The goal of the editors and the international team of scholars who contributed articles and commentary was to explain how Jewish practices and writings influenced New Testament writers. This is done through extensive notes and a series of thirty essays on a wide assortment of historical and religious topics. Our discussion will focus on the gospel according to St. John. It would be helpful for participants to be generally familiar with the organization and content of this gospel. There will be hand-outs with samples of the commentary from the book. For information, please contact John Stewart, 617-969-0950, or johnstewart@alum.bu.edu.
