From Father Steven - June 16, 2024

Father Steven Clemence • June 14, 2024

 

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

 

This weekend we celebrate Father’s Day! We are grateful to have Fr. Victor join our parish. Please see the letter below from Fr. Victor. Happy Father’s Day!

 

God Bless,

Fr. Steven

 

My Dear Parishioners,

 

I am your new priest in town. I flew in last week early morning at 12:40 AM from St. Croix, US Virgin Islands. My name is Fr. Victor Vitug. I was born and raised in the Philippines. My parents are Juanito Vitug & Leonila Luna, both are deceased. I still have 7 living siblings.

 

I entered the seminary when I was 57. It was a late vocation, actually “very late.” I was the one found by the Lord standing ‘idle’ almost at the closing hour. Basically, I see my life in the gospel of St. Matthew where the owner started calling for workers for his vineyard. He began at nine in the morning, then recruited some more at noon time and at 3:00 in the afternoon. And not wanting to miss anybody, he came back at the last hour, where he saw me standing and waiting.

 

For all my life, I was such a fool, having all the things I wanted but my life was empty. All I desired was to be happy, but I found myself in search of happiness in the wrong places and things. I was looking for money, fame, success and enjoying whatever life can give me. Going out for fun and doing basically what I want to do.

 

So immediately after graduating from college in 1973, wanting to gain experience, I got myself a job in the bank. I was hopping from one industry to another. From banking to Pharmaceuticals to transportation-shipping industry to the Airline, then to Hotel Industry and finally settled with the Insurance industry. It was a long and tortuous journey, but was necessary in order for me to discover the love of God. He was patiently waiting for the right moment. He never gave up on me. He never ceased loving me. And the best part, he kept pursuing me like a true lover until finally surrendered myself to him and welcomed the kind of love he has for me. I understood what St. Augustine meant when he wrote, ‘my restless heart, found rest in him, simply because we were made for him.’ At hindsight, responding at the last hour was actually the “perfect” time for me. There could be no other hour for me than that. Thanks to the community I joined 32 years ago, it was very instrumental in leading and showing me the mission the Lord has prepared for me today.

 

At 67, I was ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Boston at the Holy Cross Cathedral in May 2019, together with 12 men. My first assignment was at Reading, Massachusetts at the St. Agnes and St. Athanasius for two years. Then I was a hospital chaplain briefly before I was sent to the Virgin Islands where I served as Parochial Vicar for two years. My pastor was Fr. Andrea Fillippuci who used to be one of your priests sometime ago. Still strong and walking at 72, Cardinal Sean O’Malley sent me here to Immaculate Conception to continue my mission. Together with Fr. Steven and Fr. Gabriel, our two young & energetic priests, may we continue to minister to all your spiritual needs and a witness of the love and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ in our lives.

 

Thank you for welcoming me to your “home.”

 

Yours in Christ,

Fr. Victor 

From Father Steven - June 7, 2026

By Father Steven Clemence • June 5, 2026
Car Show, Trinity Sunday, and Corpus Christi Dear Brothers and Sisters, I hope that this title hasn’t confused your minds! How is it possible that we can put all these three things together? Very simply, those are our hidden treasures that once a year they are celebrated. Every year I have always walked down the street to the corner of Prospect and Main St. to take a peek at the cars. Last year however, after all the masses, I adventured to look at all the cars. It is amazing how cool and awesome it was. But it is also “sad” that we don’t get to see them that often riding on the streets. Some of the cars are true hidden gems that are probably guarded very safely somewhere away from the curious eyes. The same can be said about our Celebration of The Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi). Those are true gems that often are not seen/spoken about. This week we will be celebrating the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, also known as Corpus Christi. In the old days we celebrated it on Thursday after Trinity Sunday, but here in the States it has moved to Sunday. For almost 1000 years, the Church has always celebrated this day with a procession with the Blessed Sacrament through the streets around the churches. Even before the Reformation, the Church has always believed and affirmed that “By the consecration, the transubstantiation of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ is brought about. Under the consecrated species of bread and wine Christ himself, living and glorious, is present in a true, real, and substantial manner: His Body and His Blood, with His soul and His divinity” (CCC 1413 quoting the Council of Trent). Unfortunately, many people nowadays do not believe in the real presence of Christ on the Eucharist. In spite of many miracles around the world and even recently, where the consecrated host became the tissue of a human heart, and the consecrated wine became real human blood, people refuse to believe in it. Recent studies have shown that even a major number of Catholics (including practicing Catholics) do not believe that Jesus is really present in the Eucharist, but it’s a mere representation of him. St. Alphonsus Liguori writes in a great reflection book titled Visits to the Blessed Sacrament , “Loving souls can find no greater delight than to be in the company of those whom they love. If we, then, love Jesus Christ much, behold we are now in his presence…let us console ourselves in his company; let us rejoice in his glory and in the love in which so many enamored souls bear him in the Most Blessed Sacrament.” We are called first of all to be close to Jesus under the sacramental species, not only when he is present inside the tabernacle, but above all when he is exposed. We will have the special grace to do our own Eucharistic Procession here in the Parish. Some parishioners will be working from the early hours of Sunday creating a sawdust carpet with holy images on Prospect St., which will be closed on Sunday. After the trilingual Mass at 11am (rain or shine) all three communities will gather for a procession through downtown Marlboro. It will be our time to take our greatest gem out “from hiding” and show it to everyone!!!! Last year we had a great attendance, and I invite you to reach out to family and friends and invite them to celebrate this awesome event with us! Finally, as I mentioned before, mark on your calendars the National Eucharistic Procession that will pass through Boston as part of the 250 th of the birth of our Country. There will be events on June 26-28 in Plymouth, Freedom Trail and Lexington. God Bless, Fr. Steven

From Father Steven - May 31, 2026

By Father Steven Clemence • May 29, 2026
Dear Brothers and Sisters, This year our nation celebrates the 250th anniversary of its independence. Many celebrations have been taking place throughout these past months and will continue in the months ahead. The Catholic Church is also organizing events to mark this important milestone. A National Eucharistic Pilgrimage began in St. Augustine, Florida, and will travel through several cities significant to the history of the United States. Boston will host three days of the National Pilgrimage. On Friday, June 26, there will be celebrations in Plymouth. On the following day, there will be a Eucharistic Procession along the Freedom Trail, beginning at Boston Common at 10:00 a.m., followed by Mass at 4:30 p.m. at the Cathedral. On the final day, there will be Mass, Adoration, and a procession in Lexington. We would like to organize a group from the parish to participate in some of these events. We will publish more information at a later date, but you may also find details online. Another important event will take place on Friday, June 12 . All the bishops of the United States have decided to dedicate our country to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Following their call and the encouragement of our Archbishop, we will also consecrate our parish and ourselves to the Sacred Heart. To prepare ourselves for this consecration, we will pray the Novena to the Sacred Heart in all three languages. We will pray the first day together on Wednesday, June 3 , after Benediction at 7:00 p.m. (The novena prayers will be available at the entrances of the church beginning this weekend.) We will conclude the novena and make the Act of Consecration on the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Friday, June 12 , also at 7:00 p.m. It will be similar to the consecration to Mary that we made last December. Although many people have seen the image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus—such as the statue to the left of the main altar—some may not be familiar with the devotion itself. In 1673, during a time when the world had grown cold and had forgotten the tenderness and mercy of Christ’s love, Jesus appeared to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque on the feast of St. John in Paray-le-Monial, France. He revealed to her His Heart burning with love for humanity. In these visions, Jesus asked her to spread devotion to His Sacred Heart and instructed her on how the devotion should be practiced. The devotion as we know it today is largely based on these revelations to St. Margaret Mary. Jesus’ profound love for us is demonstrated through His willingness to sacrifice His life for our sake. The love flowing from His Heart motivated all His actions—His inner life manifested in His virtues, compassion, and sacrifice. Yet this great love is often met with indifference and ingratitude, even among the faithful. The purpose of devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is to focus our hearts on receiving and returning His love with gratitude—with all our heart, soul, and strength—so that He may be glorified. From a theological perspective, consecration is not considered magic, protection from all hardship, or a guarantee of prosperity. Rather, its purpose is surrender, transformation, and the alignment of our lives with Christ’s love by becoming more patient, forgiving, compassionate, and self-giving toward others. On a different note, NEXT SUNDAY we will celebrate our annual trilingual Corpus Christi Mass at 11:00 a.m. There will be no 9:00 a.m. or 1:00 p.m. Mass that day. We will gather outdoors in the parking lot—rain or shine—to celebrate the greatest gift: the true Body and Blood of Christ. After Mass, we will process with the Blessed Sacrament through downtown Marlborough, singing and praising God. This year the procession will coincide with the car show, so please plan ahead and arrive early to find parking. Hopefully, as in past years, we will have a large crowd. If there are volunteers who would like to help with the sawdust carpet, please arrive around sunrise. God Bless you all, Fr. Steven