Mass Times
Monday - Friday
8:00 AM - 12 Noon - 5:30 PM
Weekend Mass
Saturday
8:00 AM - 12 Noon - 4:00 PM
Sunday
8:00 AM - 10:00 AM - 12 Noon
Holiday periods may affect these times
Live Stream Mass
View the current presentation displaying on the
Fr. Terry O'Connell Memorial Digital Bulletin Board
This Week's Message
from Fr. Amasse
October 2, 2022
We are suffering from a shortage of priests. Last week , I included the poem by St. Francis of Assisi. This week, Father Lacordaire’s poem takes center stage. Some will criticize poem. One critic claims it reeks of clericalism. What’s clericalism? It’s a mindset that considers a priest to be above the rest of men and women.
Father Lacordaire hits the nail on the head. Oblates are pretty good at living the priesthood of Jesus Christ in such a way, to be pleasing to Him. Why do so many young people want to enter the military? Because it’s a life of self-giving and service to God and country. Soldiers know they are not above others. We sure are glad, however, to have them.
Without wishing its pleasures:
To be a member of each family,
Yet belonging to none;
To share all suffering;
To penetrate all secrets;
To heal all wounds; to go from men to God
And offer Him their prayers;
To return from God to men
To bring pardon and hope;
To have a heart of fire for Charity,
And a heart of bronze for Chastity.
To teach and to pardon,
Console and bless always.
My God what a life;
And it is yours,
O priest of Jesus Christ.
I remember you at Mass.
Flags of the Faithful to fly:
Uganda - October 9th - Independence Day
Poland - November 11th- Independence Day
Kenya - December 12th - Republic Day
If we are not flying the flag of your national heritage, please let me know. Send me an e-mail at [email protected]. Then we can make plans to fly the flag of your national origins on the appropriate date. Better still, please call me at 956-455-8286. Just tell me who you are please. I won’t call back if you don’t leave a voice message, out of concern for spam.
Every Saturday from 12:45 until 3:45 PM and on every First Friday from 12:45 until 5:15 PM, we have Eucharistic adoration in our beautiful Shrine. Please make the time in your busy life to come in and spend some time with God.
During this time of Adoration, we thank Christ for His continued presence among us - not just through His grace, but physically, in the Holy Eucharist. His Body is the Bread of Angels, offered for our strength and salvation. We praise the greatness of God and we acknowledge our dependence on Him in all things.
Friday, October 21, 2022
$120.00 per person includes
Deluxe motor coach transportation, Luncheon at Michael’s Restaurant in Stockbridge
Afternoon at the National Shrine
1:00 pm - Confessions and Adoration
2:00 pm - Celebration of Mass
3:00 pm - Visit the Chapel of Divine Mercy
Please click HERE for complete pilgrimage information.
Upcoming October Holy Hours
* Holy Hour for an end to Human Trafficking on Monday, October 10th at 4PM
* Holy Hour for Life on Monday, October 24th at 4PM
* Holy Hour for Oblate of Mary Immaculate vocations on Monday, October 31st at 4PM
Say the Rosary every day...
Pray, pray a lot and offer sacrifices for sinners...
I'm Our Lady of the Rosary.
Only I will be able to help you.
...In the end, My Immaculate Heart will triumph."
The word Rosary means "Crown of Roses". The origin of the word is traced to the Latin word rosarium (garden of roses). Our Lady has revealed to several people that each time they say a Hail Mary they are giving her a beautiful rose and that each complete Rosary makes her a crown of roses.
The rose is the queen of flowers and so the Rosary is the rose of all devotions and it is therefore the most important one. The Holy Rosary is considered a perfect prayer because within it lies the awesome story of our salvation. With the Rosary, in fact, we meditate the mysteries of joy, of sorrow and the glory of Jesus and Mary. It's a simple prayer, humble so much like Mary.
It's a prayer we can all say together with her, the Mother of God. With the Hail Mary, we invite her to pray for us. Our Lady always grants our request. She joins her prayer to ours. Therefore, it becomes ever more useful - because what Mary asks she always receives - Jesus can never say no to whatever His Mother requests.
In every apparition, the heavenly Mother has invited us to say the Rosary as a powerful weapon against evil, to bring us to true peace.
With your prayer made together with Your heavenly Mother, you can obtain the great gift of bringing about a change of hearts and conversion. Each day through prayer, you can drive away many dangers and many evils.
From: holyrosary.org
“The Rosary has accompanied me in moments of joy and in moments of difficulty. To it, I have entrusted any number of concerns; in it, I have always found comfort….The Rosary is my favorite prayer. A marvelous prayer!”
St. John Paul II
October 7th is the Memorial of
Our Lady of the Rosary
This feast was instituted by Pope St. Pius V in thanksgiving for the great naval victory over the Turks at the battle of Lepanto on this day in the year 1570, a favor due to the recitation of the Rosary. This victory saved Europe from being overrun by the forces of Islam. Lepanto, perhaps the most complete victory ever gained over the Ottoman Empire, on October 7, 1571, is commemorated by the invocation "Help of Christians," inserted in the Litany of Loretto. At Belgrade, the Turks were defeated on the Feast of Our Lady ad Nives in 1716. A second victory gained that year on the Octave of the Assumption convinced Pope Clement XI to command the Feast of the Rosary to be celebrated by the universal Church. Leo XIII added the invocation "Queen of the most Holy Rosary, pray for us," to the Litany of Loretto. The Feast is in reality a great festival of thanksgiving for the signal and countless benefits bestowed on Christendom through the Rosary of our blessed Queen.
St. Francis of Assisi
St. Francis of Assisi (1181 – 1226) left a life of luxury for a life devoted to Christianity after reportedly hearing the voice of God, who commanded him to rebuild the Christian church and live in poverty. He founded the men's Order of Friars Minor, the women's Order of St. Clare, the Third Order of St. Francis and the Custody of the Holy Land.
Born in 1181 in Italy, St. Francis of Assisi was renowned for drinking and partying as a youth. During a military expedition/battle between Assisi and Perugia, he was captured and imprisoned for ransom. He spent nearly a year in prison and began receiving visions from God. After his release from prison, St. Francis of Assisi claimed to have heard the voice of Christ, who told him to restore the Christian Church and live a life of poverty. As a result, St. Francis of Assisi abandoned his life of luxury and became serious in living his Catholic faith.
Today, St. Francis of Assisi, known for his deep love of nature and animals, is the patron saint of the environment and of animals. Each October, many animals are blessed on his feast day.
OBLATES IN UKRAINE
The war in Ukraine grinds on. Those who experience it first-hand are forced to face an endless stream of negative news and images.
The Church in Ukraine seeks to make everyone hear the voice of Jesus saying, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
The Church also seeks to care especially for the smallest and most vulnerable. During the summer months, various Roman Catholic and Greek Catholic parishes are organizing summer camps, pilgrimages, meetings and workshops for children, adolescents, and youth, while following the necessary safety regulations. In addition to prayers and sports activities, the organizers offered thematic conferences to the youth, one of which, under the guidance of a psychologist, dealt with the topic of preventing and overcoming stress.
“Many young people,” Father Vadym said, “have experienced the bombings first-hand. In the face of brutal violence, it is inevitable that people feel outrage and anger. The missionary often talks to young people about these temptations.
“Unfortunately, sometimes hatred can fill even our hearts and we can no longer distinguish between hatred for sin and evil and hatred for the person who does this evil,” he said. “.Our main intention must be love.”
Light Up Shrine Candles Online
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Thank you!
Please choose your donation amount. $5.00 is the standard donation per candle online
COVID Protocols
Covid Variant Protocols
Reserved seating is available for those who choose to mask and/or keep social distancing;
SJWS COVID Guidance Aug 2022 - Read Full Text Here
Confession and Adoration
Confession
Mon - Friday
10:00 AM - Noon
4:30 PM - 5:15 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Eucharistic Adoration
The Blessed Sacrament will be exposed for adoration on -
Saturday after the noon Mass until the 4:00 PM Mass, approximately 12:45 PM - 3:45 PM
First Fridays after the noon Mass until the 5:30 PM Mass, approximately 12:45 PM -5:15 PM
Office Hours
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday
9:00AM - 4:00PM
Closed Thursday
Bro. Craig Bonham, Business Manager
Ed Wilk, Office Manager/Bulletin Editor
Gift Shop & Bookstore
Aurea Torres, Gift Shop Manager
Hours
Monday - Saturday 9:00AM - 5:00PM
If for any reason you're still unable to visit the Shrine or Gift Shop and you'd like to book a Mass Intention request please call the Gift Shop Manager at 978-459-9522 x213 or email [email protected]
Oblate Historical Museum
Saturdays 10:00AM - 2:00PM
Sundays 8:30AM -11:30 AM
Prayer of Consecration of Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
Click on the Image to view the prayer
