For those interested, Steven Babin will be holding brief tutorial and Q&A sessions in the parish hall after Masses next weekend, March 16 &17, regarding the new email scheduling system. Please, come and see!
Category: From the Pastor’s Desk (Page 28 of 78)
As a parish community, we are blessed to have so many Lectors, Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, Sacristan/Servers, Greeters, and Collectors, all of whom volunteer to share their faith and time in support of our Masses. Given that so many of our ministers reside outside of New Hampshire – and that many are seasonal ministers – scheduling can become a complex feat. It is beyond me how Paula King has kept it all straight!
I am happy to report that St. Joseph’s will be joining many other parishes by switching to an email scheduling system that will save everyone much time and energy. It’s very easy to use – especially when you need to check your Mass assignments, schedule yourself “away” for any period of time, or to request a substitute at the last minute.
We envision moving away from the manual scheduling method shortly after Easter. Steven Babin will be holding brief tutorials and Q&A sessions in the parish hall after weekend Masses on one Sunday in late March.
With thanks for your cooperation and esteem for your ministry!
Fr. John Mahoney
Bishop Peter A. Libasci invites couples celebrating
5, 10, 25, 50, and 60+ years of marriage in 2024 to
attend a Mass, followed by a cake and coffee reception,
on Sunday, May 5, 2024 at 2:00 p.m. at St. Joseph
Cathedral, Manchester. To register, please contact
the parish office by April 12, 2023. The parish office
will gather and submit all necessary information to the
Cathedral. All couples will receive a mailed invitation
to this special celebration. (Registration will remain
open until the capacity is reached; please no guests.)
A special word of thanks to Mike Iarocci, Chairperson of the Buildings and Grounds Committee, for completing the unenviable task of putting in order the rectory garage! And, many thanks to Jan Wolowski and Steve Babin for replacing light bulbs to brighten the worship space in the church!
Dear Parishioners and Visitors:
The prayers of the liturgy refer to Lent as “this joyful season.” Though the character of the 40-day period is penitential, the intent of Lent is to prepare us spiritually for the greatest feast of the Church year, the always-jubilant Easter Season.
So where did Lent come from? Let’s start by saying that Christianity embraces one key belief: the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. This central article of faith shapes everything we do as Christians, how we live, how we die, and certainly how we express our faith in worship. Easter is, therefore, the primary day of rejoicing, and every Sunday is considered a “little Easter,” a commemoration of how Jesus triumphed over sin and death.
In the early Church, Christians prepared for the Easter sacraments by fasting for up to a week, but by the 4th century, a full 40-day period of preparation was observed, imitating the 40-day fast of Jesus in the desert before undertaking his great mission. Almsgiving was added to the practices of Lent as it, too, was a traditional way of making sacrifice to God in the wake of sinfulness.
Easter, the Christian Passover, was fixed by the Council of Nicaea in 325 to coincide with the first full moon after the vernal equinox. That makes Lent the annual “springtime” of faith, quite literally, as the word Lent means “spring.”
Let us pray together, as a community of faith, that this Lenten Season will be a time of faith development and growth in the Spirit for us, for all who gather here, and especially for those who have lost their way in faith.
With prayerful best wishes,
Fr. John Mahoney