Easter Flowers and Music

easter flowersWould you like to make a donation towards our Easter flowers or Easter music in memory of a loved one during this holy season? If so, you may make a donation using you offertory envelopes, the collection basket, ParishPay, or by dropping your donation off at the rectory or in the mail. Please make sure to include the name of the person you want remembered in this special way. The deadline for submissions is this Tuesday, March 31 at noon. Thank you!

Attention Young Actors – Passion Play Rehearsal This Saturday!

Passion PlayActors/Actresses in Grade 3 and older – help “perform” the Passion Play at the 9:00 AM Family Mass on Palm Sunday, March 29. Attendance at one rehearsal this Saturday, March 28, from 9:00 AM- 12:00 is required/mandatory.  Confirmation candidates earn 5 hours of community service credit.

Please contact Maria Wardwell (781-237-2148 or maria.wardwell@stjohnwellesley.org) or Chrissy Harding (781-416-7362 or cctharding@aol.com) for information and registration.


March 28-29: Easter Candy Collection for St. Mary’s Center

Easter basketThe Parish will be collecting your donations of Easter candy at all Masses this weekend. The candy will be used to fill Easter baskets for families residing in the shelters operated by St. Mary’s Center for Women and Children in Dorchester. Easter baskets for 174 children and moms will be assembled by Religious Education students in grades 7 – 10 and delivered to St. Mary’s during Holy Week. Thank you for your generosity!

March 29: News from Religious Education

Religious-Education-Contemporary_SMALLThis Week: Sunday, March 29
Grades 1 – 6 Class 10:00 – 10:45 a.m.
Grades 7, 8 Class 6:00 – 7:00 p.m.
Friends for Good 7:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Grades 9, 10 Friends for Good 6:00 – 7:00 p.m.
Class 7:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Friday, April 3 – Good Friday
Walk with the Cross 12:00 noon  All ages are welcome to participate.

Next Week: Sunday, April 5
Happy Easter – No classes.
Wednesday, April 8
Grades 1 – 6 Class 3:30 – 4:45 p.m.
Saturday, April 11
Grades 9, 10 Optional Movie Matinee & Discussion 2:30 p.m., Parish Center Pre-registration is required; please email jane.leonard@stjohnwellesley.org.

A full calendar of all events is available on the Religious Education section of the Parish website.

REGISTRATION 2015-2016 Religious Education registration information for the 2015-2016 school year was recently e-mailed to all families. If you did not receive the email, the form and directions are available for download on the Religious Education page.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!

palm-sunday_2015

Wednesday, April 8th at 7:00pm: “Wellesley Then and Now” – A Parish Anniversary Lecture presented by the Wellesley Historical Society

The New St. John Church circa 1901Please join us as we launch our efforts to mark this milestone with a lecture on Wednesday, April 8th, from 7:00-8:00 p.m. in the St. John Church Social Hall. Kathleen Fahey, the Curator of the Wellesley Historical Society, will present a comparison of the Wellesley of today with the (much smaller and more rural) Wellesley of 100 years ago. She will use a combination of modern photographs and older ones from the Society’s archives to show how our town has changed over the years. All ages are welcome! For further information contact the Parish Office at (781) 235-0045 or Mimi Eldridge at (781) 431-9510.

Lenten Series on Pope Francis Concludes this Sunday, March 22 at 3pm

Joy of the Gospel_CoverA JOURNEY INTO THE MIND AND HEART OF POPE FRANCIS
Come join the final session of this special journey with others – each session stands alone and materials will be provided each week. More information here – if you have questions, please contact Sr. Evelyn at evelyn.ronan@stjohnwellesley.org

Runs through Sunday, March 22
3:00-4:30 p.m. Parish Center
Moderator: Gerald Kehoe

Joint Parish Lecture with Fr. Raymond Helmick, S.J.
Sunday, March 22 at 2:00pm at St. Paul

Imacon Color ScannerDo you wonder about the complicated situation in the Middle East? What about the Holy Land? Would you like to have a better understanding of the issues involved in this area of the world? We are a group* of your fellow parishioners from St. John’s and St. Paul’s eager to hear Fr. Raymond Helmick, S.J., Professor of Conflict Resolution at Boston College talk about this conflicted land. We also think our fellow parishioners and a wide range of Wellesley area residents would like to learn about what is going on in that part of the world. Fr. Helmick has vast experience as a peace negotiator in the Israeli and Palestine treaties, in Northern Ireland and the Balkans. Please join us on Sunday at 2pm in the St. Paul Parish Hall to learn more about and from this remarkable person and priest. Visit his website Raymond G. Helmick, S.J.

*The 2015 St. John-St. Paul Lenten Lecture Committee

Mary Beth and Paul Sandman
Kathy and Rick Hughto
Mary Lou Crane and Robert Ryan
Christine and Joe Tierney
Marcia and Chris Gorgone
Nancy and Jack Joyce
Kathi Aldridge
Kathy and Brian Boyce
Liz and Tom Fleming
Audrey Moran

Special Collection for Our Parish Lenten Gift to St. Francis House – A House of Grace

stfrancishouse_largeThis is the weekend to share in the extraordinary ministry of St. Francis House through our Lenten Gift! Our Gift brings the Gospel alive –

“…for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me…” (Matthew 25:34-40)

Once again, this is our opportunity, as individuals and as a community to respond to the need before us and ease the suffering of the homeless. Over the years, we have tried to direct our Lenten Gift to an immediate, urgent situation, and this iswhat exists now at St. Francis House. The needs there can seem overwhelming. However, we can remind ourselves of the words and spirit of another heroic relief worker –

“Some people find God in church, others in nature, still others in love. I find God in suffering.”

At St. John Parish, most of us are fortunate enough to have experienced the first three more than many people do. This is another opportunity to find God in our suffering brothers and sisters at the other end of Route 9. Now is the time! 

At Masses this Weekend: Please give generously to our Special Second Collection at all Masses during the weekend of March 21-22. (Checks can be made payable to “St. John Parish”; we will total all funds and send one check to St. Francis House.)

By Mail or at the Office: Donations can be mailed to the Office or dropped off weekdays during regular business hours (9 Glen Rd., Wellesley, MA 02481)

Online via ParishPay:  Click this link and choose 2015 Lenten Gift (Please Note: you do not need to be a regular ParishPay user to donate online – anyone can make a secure, one-time donation with a credit card. No need to set up an account – just click Start Giving!)

For more information on St. Francis House and our Gift, please visit our 2015 Parish Lenten Gift page: St. Francis House – A House of Grace

 Small yet strong in the love of God, like Saint Francis of Assisi, all of us, as Christians, are called to watch over and protect the fragile world in which we live, and all its peoples.
                                          (Pope Francis)

March 22: News from Religious Education

Religious-Education-Contemporary_SMALLThis Week: Sunday, March 22
Grade 2 Mass 9:00 a.m.
Grades 1 – 6 Class 10:00 – 10:45 a.m.

Next Week: Sunday, March 29
Grades 1 – 6 Class 10:00 – 10:45 a.m.
Grades 7, 8 Class 6:00 – 7:00 p.m.
Friends for Good 7:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Grades 9, 10 Friends for Good 6:00 – 7:00 p.m.
Class 7:00 – 8:00 p.m.

A full calendar of all events is available on the Religious Education section of the Parish website.

REGISTRATION 2015-2016 Religious Education registration information for the 2015-2016 school year was recently e-mailed to all families. If you did not receive the email, the form and directions are available for download on the Religious Education page.