From Father Steven - February 2, 2025

Father Steven Clemence • January 31, 2025

 

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

 

Please see the letter below from Father Gabriel.

 

God Bless,

Fr. Steven

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Hello Parishioners, 


Last week I had the opportunity to accompany 49 youth from our parish to the March for life in Washington D.C. While making our way down, we visited the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Philadelphia where the remains of Saint Katherine Drexel are kept. There was a particular instance in her life that stood out to me. Once, while visiting St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice, she was enchanted by a painting of the Virgin Mary. While kneeling in reverence to the image, she suddenly had this sense that Our Lady was speaking to her, inaudibly she received the message: “Freely give to others what you have received.” It resonated with me, because my initial calling shares something similar, I had an experience of an inaudible voice that compelled me to leave everything behind to follow Christ, and though I did not hear a thing, this voice was more compelling than any physical voice, it cried out to me in my innermost being. 


Reflecting on Mother Drexel’s call, my own, and all of this in the context of the March for life led me to remember how the Lord, slowly but surely, softened my heart to heed this call which I initially ran away from. I began to remember my formators at the seminary preaching that there were many people that the Lord had appointed for us to reach in due time. Those words frustrated me then, I felt pinned between a rock and a hard place, wanting to leave behind the seminary, but knowing that if I did I’d be lying to myself. Nevertheless, this last pilgrimage made it apparent that in the youth that we took to the March, I was with those very people that my formators once spoke of. But far from frustrating me now, it was with great joy that I accompanied them. I was elated to see how they were moved by the experience, from the life of Mother Drexel, to the time in confession and Adoration, to the March itself. It was all impactful one way or another, and the Lord allowed me to be an instrument to bring this joy to these youth.


This experience brought me even deeper, because I also remembered that much of my resistance towards the vocation sprouted from my unmet desire to have a family of my own. I had felt that the Lord cheated me out of that life by sticking me with a vocation to the priesthood. However, on the pilgrimage to the March for Life, by ministering to these youth who received so much joy, I witnessed for myself the realness of spiritual fatherhood, and the fruitfulness of a celibate life, which is no less fruitful than that of married life. It brought me to see openness to life is not just a matter for those with a vocation to marriage, because when I was resisting and saying no to the Lord’s will before, I was saying no to the gift of life that would come in the form of those spiritual children that the Lord desired to entrust to me. I was refusing to lead these youth to happiness. This realization to some degree is painful, but also encouraging, because by seeing the abundance of grace that has come forth from trusting the Lord a little, it readies me to be less resistant and more eager to do His will in the future, even when I may not understand it.

 

God Bless,

Fr. Gabriel

 

From Father Steven - April 19, 2026

By Father Steven Clemence • April 17, 2026
Dear Brothers and Sisters, I hope you are having a blessed Easter season and were able to enjoy some of the beautiful weather we had recently. This week, we will be launching our annual parish raffle, as we do each year. This is one of our main parish fundraisers. Although our parishioners are always very generous, this year we have incurred unexpected expenses due to snow removal and increased utility costs. This raffle helps us cover some of those expenses. In addition to supporting our parish, the raffle also contributes to the priestly formation at the Redemptoris Mater Seminary. Years ago, several pastors came together and saw this as a meaningful way to support both our parishes and the seminary. You can find more details online, but approximately 60% of the proceeds from tickets sold remain with the parish, 20% covers expenses, and 20% supports the formation of new priests for the Archdiocese of Boston. It is truly a win-win-win situation. Each ticket costs $20. The prizes include a 2026 Honda Ridgeline (pickup truck), a 2026 Honda Civic Sport, and $15,000 in cash prizes (five prizes of $2,000 and five prizes of $1,000). The drawing will take place on September 27th. The success of the raffle depends greatly on parishioners who are willing to help sell tickets to family and friends. You will have until September 13th to sell tickets and return the envelopes to the parish office. For the first time, we are offering an incentive: whoever sells the most tickets will receive a $400 prize. During the initial phase, which will take place this weekend and next, we will offer envelopes containing 20 tickets for those who would like to take them home to sell. Additional envelopes will be available at the parish office. At a later date, tickets will also be sold at Mass (before and after the summer). For those who would prefer to purchase individual tickets, they are always available at the parish office through Lee Ann. We invite you to consider helping us this year. Last year, our parish raised $18,045 in profit from the raffle. Altogether, participating parishes contributed $115,000 to support the seminary. We hope to surpass that amount this year. Please feel free to reach out if you need more information. I would like to thank you for your continued generosity to the parish, to those in need, and for all that you do quietly and faithfully. It is a privilege to witness your kindness. Additionally, I ask for your prayers for the upcoming celebrations of the sacraments. Next week, children from the Brazilian community will receive their First Communion on Saturday, followed by the Spanish community on Sunday. The English community will celebrate First Communion the following week at the 11:00 a.m. Mass. Many couples will also be receiving the sacrament of marriage in the coming months. Finally, our youth will receive the sacrament of Confirmation on May 29th in Portuguese and on June 5th in English & Spanish. That same season, we will celebrate our annual Eucharistic procession on the Feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi) on June 7th. If you have never participated, I encourage you to mark your calendars and join us. Some parishioners begin preparing a sawdust carpet in the early hours of  the morning and finish just in time for the procession. It is a beautiful tradition that honors the Body and Blood of Christ. God Bless, Fr. Steven

From Father Steven - April 12, 2026

By Father Steven Clemence • April 10, 2026
Dear Brothers and Sisters, HAPPY EASTER!!! We are still celebrating Easter (and we will continue until Pentecost!). I would like to share with you this weekend the article that the Archdiocese has written in response to some media requests to comment on the rise of people coming back to the faith. Over the past 4 years we have seen a steady and significant increase in non-Christians [or unbaptized] becoming Catholic during the Easter season. Regarding specifically catechumens participating in the Rite of Election, these are the numbers for the Archdiocese of Boston: 2023: we had 299; 2024 - 360; 2025-438; 2026-680. What’s the reason? Probably a combination of factors including a fundamental need to be closer to God. The first observation is that we believe it to be the direct action of the Holy Spirit, and not simply a sociological phenomenon or the success of some program or another. In fact, Archbishop Henning has said that “this seems to be something that the Lord is doing - the Spirit of the Lord is always at work in the world and in the Church and we are happy to see such a response in people’s hearts to Jesus’ call to follow Him.” The Archbishop notes that ”we seek to cooperate with the action of the Spirit; but it is His work, not ours.” Has Pope Leo had an impact? Yes. It’s not just being the First American Pope; it is that he has captured a sense of community with Catholics across the world and very clearly in the US Catholic Church. The wave had been growing before his election but is now picking up speed and size. There is a sense of spiritual renewal in the Archdiocese of Boston. We have seen it in our parishes across the Archdiocese. Archbishop Henning has put an emphasis on engaging with Catholics across the archdiocese at the parish level and in our schools, with a particular focus on youth and young adults. In a recent interview, Patrick Krisak, the archdiocese’s director of faith formation and missionary discipleship said, “There may not be a revival across the country, but there are revivals,” he said. “And at what point do all of those pockets of revival that we’re seeing all over the country add up to a revival?” The two main categories of folks we see being welcomed into the Church are children/adolescents, who mostly did not receive their sacraments on the typical schedule, and adults. A key component is the work at the parish level in welcoming and accompanying families where adults and children seek to join communities of faith. In addition, Rev. Eric Cadin, Director of Vocations with the Archdiocese, said that “among college age young people, there is a profound openness to the big questions. This includes questions such as, where do I come from? What is my purpose? What does all this mean? More importantly, so many who are exposed to division and even cruelty, especially online, as well as in real life, are actively resisting and moving away from that. And it leads them to an openness to faith, especially one that promotes love your enemy. That is a radical truth, that captivates young people, especially in the world in which we live. They meet people in the church who engage their real questions with generosity and grace and mercy, and it is very attractive to them.” Here in the parish we are happy to announce that 39 people received Baptism on Easter, and 3 people were welcomed into the Catholic Faith (they were baptized Protestant). Some of them were children, others teenagers, and some adults as well. They were baptized, confirmed and received their first communion all together. Please continue to pray for them as they really began their journey and for those who are still being called into the faith. Congratulations to all of you that received your sacraments and we look forward to walking along with you!  Finally, I would like to invite you all to the Divine Mercy celebration that will take place this Sunday at 3:00pm in the Church. If you have never attended, it is a beautiful moment! If you are not familiar with it, search about and be ready to be marveled by it. God Bless, Fr. Steven