Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament will resume Thursday, March 14th.
Category Archives: Important Announcements
Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament Will Resume Thursday, March 14th
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Posted in Important Announcements, Special Liturgies
Help Perform the Passion Play on Palm Sunday! Rehearsal This Saturday, March 23
ATTENTION ACTORS: Seeking Actors/Actresses in Grade 3 and older to help “perform” the Passion Play at the 9:00am Family Mass on Palm Sunday, March 24. Attendance at one rehearsal on Saturday, March 23 from 9:00am to 12:00pm is required/mandatory. Confirmation candidates earn 5 hours of community service credit. Please contact Maria Wardwell (781-237-2148) or Chrissy Harding (781-416-7362) for information and registration.
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Posted in Children, Family Mass, Family Mass Music, Important Announcements, Youth Choir
Join Us at the 9am Family Mass
Sundays at the 9am – the Family Mass is a wonderful way for your family to participate! Volunteer to greet parishioners bring gifts to the altar, set-up the Donuts and much more. We would love your participation and will provide you with all the information you need. To learn more, visit our new Family Mass page, or contact Chrissy Cassa, Family Mass Coordinator, for more information.
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Posted in Children, Family Mass, Important Announcements, Volunteers Needed
Easter Candy Collection – This Weekend March 23-24
The Parish will be collecting your donations of Easter candy at all Masses on the weekend of March 23 and 24. The candy will be used to fill Easter baskets for the families residing in the shelters operated by St. Mary’s Center for Women and Children in Dorchester. Easter baskets for 131 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!
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Posted in Important Announcements, Lent, Religious Education Program
Easter Flowers and Music
Would 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 to submit names of loved ones so that they are included in the Easter bulletin is Wednesday, March 20. Thank you!
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Posted in Important Announcements, Lent, Music, Special Collections
March 3: News from the AFFC
Tuesday, March 5 * * * CANCELLATION * * * Evening for Women
Unfortunately it is again necessary to cancel our next program scheduled for March 5. Sr. Evelyn has developed some unexpected medical issues but is hoping to return to the parish before too long. As always she deeply appreciates your prayers.
Wednesday, March 20: Book Launch: Encountering Jesus in the Scripture Presenters: Fr. Daniel Harrington, SJ & Christopher R. Matthews
Boston College, Theology & Ministry Library, 5:30 p.m.
For more information, please contact the Adult Faith Formation Commission
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Posted in Adult Faith Formation, Important Announcements
March 3: Religious Education News
This Week: Sunday, March 3
Grades 1 – 6 Class 10:00 – 10:45 AM
Grade 2 Parent Meeting/Visit
Grade 7 & 8 Class 6:00 – 8:00 PM
Grade 9 Friends for Good 6:00 – 7:00 PM
Grade 9 & 10 Class 7:00 – 8:00
Wednesday, March 6
Grades 1 – 6 Class 3:30 – 4:45 PM
Next Week: Sunday, March 10
Grade 2 Mass 9:00 AM
Grades 1 – 6 Class 10:00 – 10:45 AM
Every 9th and 10th grade student attending the full Friends for Good session will be credited with one-half hour of community service which may be applied to the twenty-five hours required for Confirmation. Students will sign-in upon arrival.
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Posted in Important Announcements, Religious Education Program
Our 2013 Lenten Gift: Rebuilding in Faith – Supporting St. Margaret Mary Parish, Staten Island
Week 3: The Rebuilding Effort
As the storm devastation became clear, the reality that the families of Staten Island needed major support became obvious. St. Margaret Mary Parish stepped forward in service by distributing $500 gift cards to parishioners provided by the Archdiocese of New York, starting a relief fund and creating a food bank as residents looked to friends and relatives to provide shelter. Strong early donations of approximately $215,000 went quickly in the days immediately following the storm as families looked to get resettled.
![Cleanup1](https://saintjohnwellesley.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Cleanup1-300x139.jpg)
Volunteers remove ruined furnishings and appliances from a home in Midland Beach.
The “rip out” stage of the rebuilding effort progressed swiftly in this community of teachers, fire fighters, police, many with the skills to make repairs.
![](https://saintjohnwellesley.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Rebuilding1.jpg)
Volunteer removing damaged walls, ceilings, floors, and insulation.
Volunteer laborers by the hundreds and donations of tools and supplies came from services organizations from all over the area. St. Margaret Mary provided organization and administrative support coordinating the donations and recycling the tools and supplies. Now, however, the costly rebuilding stage starts and the unsettling realization that insurance covers only a fraction of the basics.
One Family’s Struggle
Let’s look at this rebuilding phase through the experiences of the “Rodriguez” family (not the actual family’s name), a family of four, occupying two small homes on one lot of property. The property, located near Gateway National Park, has never had any problems with water and therefore no flood insurance was required or taken on the property. Originally the maternal grandmother lived in the smaller of the two homes until her death two years ago. The father is a New York City police officer, the mother is a homemaker and the two children include an 18 year old daughter with Crohn’s Disease and a 15 year old son. The night Sandy struck, Mr. Rodriguez was on duty but left his car for the family in case they needed to evacuate; however, the storm came so quickly they were unable to get out. Their car was totaled as the sea engulfed everything. Mom, son and daughter took refuge in the attic for safety.
![Mud and waste left the house with extensive damage.](https://saintjohnwellesley.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Interior-Damage2.jpg)
Mud and waste left extensive damage.
When the water receded they were able to come down to find everything covered in mud and sand, with all personal items drenched in a mix of sewer and sea water. Their car sat upside down having been swept by the storm surge.
![Interior Damage6](https://saintjohnwellesley.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Interior-Damage6.jpg)
The home after the damaged floors and walls were removed.
Upon inspection, Mr. Rodriguez realized his house had shifted by the force of the water, causing a crack in the ceiling and in one of the walls. The damage to the small homes was extensive. Repairs just to regain occupancy included a new floor, new wallboard and insulation, new doors, as well as systems and appliances. FEMA has given the family $6,500 “for construction costs.” No other assistance is available as their homeowner’s insurance covers nothing as the damage is considered flood damage.
The Rodriquez story is not uncommon as hundreds of families in Midland Beach are left with limited and inadequate insurance and disaster relief.
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Posted in 2013 Lenten Gift, Important Announcements, Lent, Service Commission
Pope Benedict XVI
Today at 2pm Pope Benedict XVI will complete his tenure as our Holy Father. To mark this historic moment, St. John will join with churches and institutions throughout the Archdiocese in ringing their bells, beginning at 1:52 pm and stopping at 2 pm.
“I would like to leave you with a simple thought that is close to my heart: ‘The Church is not an institution devised and built by human beings … but a living reality. … It lives still throughout the course of time. Like all living realities it develops, it changes … and yet in the very depths of its being it remains the same: its inmost nucleus is Christ.’“
– from Pope Benedict’s address to the College of Cardinals
Vatican City, 28 February 2013
More information: http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-benedict-xvi-begins-last-day-of-pontificate
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Posted in Important Announcements
Lenten Lectures with Fr. Bryan Hehir: March 4 and 25
Please join us at 7:30pm in the Church for this year’s Lenten Lectures with Fr. Bryan Hehir:
Monday, March 4: The State of the Church
Monday, March 25: Church and State: Here and Abroad (note change of date)
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Posted in Adult Faith Formation, Important Announcements, Lent, Special Events