From Father Steven - May 12, 2024

Father Steven Clemence • May 10, 2024

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

 

To all the mothers, we wish you many blessings and may you always grow in grace and wisdom! Although we have only one mother, we can have many mother-like figures in our lives. One of these mothers, is our Holy Mother Church. I would like to reflect with you how the Church is our mother.

 

The role of the Church is to educate us in the faith, help us to grow in grace, and to follow a path of holiness. Just as our mothers educated us to behave, to say "please" and "thank you," and have taught us right from wrong, so does the Church have the same role. Our behavior is molded according to that of Jesus and of the saints. Our spiritual "please" is our prayers directed to God, and "thank you" is attending mass, which is the greatest act of thanksgiving ("it is truly right and just, always and everywhere, to give you thanks"). The Church always teaches us what is right from what is wrong, through CCD, homilies, bulletin letters, and through the Magisterium (the collection of teachings/documents of the Church), especially through the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

 

As a mother, the Church also needs to correct us and as children, we are not always fond of it. As an adult, it is funny how we come to the realization that our mothers were always right. For all the kicking and screaming and whining from our childhood was for no reason. Our parents had to help us to mature and not to do things on a whim. Sometimes when the Church speaks, we are not fond of its opinion either. There are some of its teachings that can be welcomed with long faces and indifference. As our mothers were older than us, and were able to use their experience to help, so does the Church with its 2000 years of experience and the treasures inherited from the Old Testament.

 

One more thing that our mothers have taught us is to share. As children we were taught to share our toys with others, and as teenagers, we were called to share our time and talents with others. Well, today the Church invites us to share our good with other people. Also, the Church is called to care for everyone, regardless of who they are. One way we have to do that is through St. Vincent de Paul, who gathers funds and goes out to help those in need. Next weekend we are beginning a new way of helping people, the Community Fridge. It is a community based effort with the assistance of local organizations to provide relief to local individuals and families facing food insecurity, alleviating hunger. Located on the side of the church, the Fridge will be primarily operated by community and Rotary members. It will run entirely on solar power, ensuring self-sufficiency one of the first of its kind in the country. Maintenance check-ups on the solar equipment and fridge clean-ups will be coordinated weekly along with donations from local businesses. Our parish community is called to contribute this great initiative and those who are in need to be helped by it. There will be a ribbon cutting ceremony on May 19th after the 11:00am mass.

 

Lastly, you may have seen the great devastation this last week in Brazil that has affected over 1 million people. It happened in my hometown, Porto Alegre, and the suburban area with a population of 4 million people. Due to historic amounts of rainfall, the rivers went up as high as 60 feet, displacing over 200 thousand people.

 

Although I don’t have family members there, my friends and my original home parish have had their houses submerged by over 20 feet. Speaking with the Cardinal, he has allowed me to collect funds to send to the people on the fronts helping the victims. I have contacted a local parish that is donating food to the places sheltering people as well as feeding all the first responders. We would support their efforts as well as some local volunteers who are going to the supermarkets buying what people need (food, mattresses, medicine) and delivering in the shelters. I will make sure that all this money is given to those in need. For anyone who would like to contribute to this cause, you can write a check to the parish with the memo: “Brazil Relief.” We will be doing a special collection next weekend for the victims. Therefore, we will move the seminary collection of Pentecost to the following weekend. To those who give through Online Giving, there is an option to donate also called “Brazil Relief”. There is also an option through text 2 give, where you can text 508-859-7970 or scan the QR code.

        BRAZIL RELIEF FUND

 

To all mothers, HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY

 

God Bless,

Fr. Steven

From Father Steven - December 21, 2025

By Father Steven Clemence • December 19, 2025
HISTORY OF THE CHRISTMAS TREE Dear Brothers & Sisters, Trees have always had a great importance for primitive men: they signaled the presence of water, offered shadow, were used for tools, used for fire, gave fruits for nourishments... For this reason, trees became religious objects, they were worshipped not for what they are but for what they revealed: the divinity of a God. It is next to oak adored by pagans that the first Christmas tree is born in the 8th Century thanks to the missionary work of St. Boniface. Saint Boniface was a bishop and Apostle in Germany and in those lands he had converted many pagan tribes. His work was not easy and even if they converted, many times they faith was weak and they would fall back into old customs. During the Christmas night of 724, Boniface went to the Oak of Thunder of Geismar, which was adored by the pagans as an image of the God Thor. They would offer human sacrifices next to the oak to gain benevolence by the God. Boniface stopped this barbaric act and took an ax and started cutting down the oak tree. At that point, a strong wind started blowing and the tree fell and broke in 4 parts. Behind the oak there was a fir tree (Christmas tree). Therefore, Boniface began a simple catechesis for these men who lived their lives at the rhythm of nature and announced to them Jesus Christ: his birth, his death, and his resurrection out of love for man. He told them that among the trees that are dead because of the loss of leaves, the evergreen fir tree was the image of Christ, the living. This tree full of light was the symbol of him who is the light of the world and with his birth leads us to God who dwells in light. In the end, he invited them to put candle lights on that tree in honor of the birth of Christ and with the wood of the fallen oak tree he made them build a chapel in honor of St. Peter. Years later, this tradition crossed the border of Germany and reached the royal palaces of Austria, France, England, and even Russia. The Christmas Tree and the Nativity scene were very common in all of Europe until the protestant reformation. Lutherans forbid the use of sacred images and the nativity scene was suppressed. The Christmas tree became more and more widespread. That’s why for Catholics the tree was a protestant innovation. Only at the beginning of the 1800 Catholics began to use the Christmas tree again. In the Vatican, beginning in 1982, the Christmas tree has always been next to the Nativity scene. John Paul II on December 19 2004, during the Angelus, said: “Next to the crib, as in St Peter’s Square, we find the traditional Christmas tree. This too is an ancient tradition that exalts the value of life, for in the winter season the evergreen fir becomes a sign of undying life. Christmas gifts are usually placed on the tree or arranged at its base. The symbol thus also becomes eloquent in a typically Christian sense: it calls to mind the tree of life (cf. Gn 2: 9), a figure of Christ, God’s supreme gift to humanity. The message of the Christmas tree is consequently that life stays evergreen if we make a gift of it: not so much of material things, but of life itself: in friendship and sincere affection, in fraternal help and forgiveness, in time shared and reciprocal listening.” Address of his holiness benedict xvi to pilgrims from Walloon, Belgium who had come to bring as a gift to the holy father the Christmas tree which will decorate St. Peter’s square in the Christmas season - clementine hall Friday, 18 December 2009. “In the forest the trees are close to each other and each one contributes to making the forest a shady and sometimes dark place. And here, chosen from among a multitude, the majestic fir that you are offering me today is lit up and covered with sparkling decorations like as many marvelous fruits. Having abandoned its somber dress for a scintillating splendor, it is transfigured and becomes the messenger of a light that is not its own but bears witness to the true Light that comes into this world. This tree’s destiny is comparable to that of the shepherds: while they were watching in the shadows of the night, here they are illumined by the Angels message. This tree’s destiny is also comparable to our own, for we are called to bear good fruits to show that the world has truly been visited and redeemed by the Lord. Standing beside the crib, this fir, in its own way, demonstrates the great mystery that was present in the simple, poor place of Bethlehem. To the inhabitants of Rome, to all the pilgrims and to all who will visit St Peter’s Square through the television images broadcast across the world, it proclaims the coming of the Son of God. Through this tree, the ground of your land and the faith of the Christian Communities of your Region greet the Infant God, the One who came to make all things new and to call all creatures, from the humblest to the most exalted, to enter into the mystery of Redemption and to be associated with it.” God Bless, Fr. Steven

From Father Steven - December 14, 2025

By Father Steven Clemence • December 12, 2025
Dear Brothers & Sisters, It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas… I hope the nativity scene, the trees, the lights, the gifts, and the Christmas carols are helping you prepare for the big day! If not, hurry up with your preparations! This weekend we celebrate Gaudete Sunday , which translates to “ Rejoice Sunday .” This expression comes from the Introit (entrance antiphon) of the Mass: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Indeed, the Lord is near.” The priest wears rose (not pink!) as a sign of the sun that is just about to rise on the horizon, representing the imminent coming of Christ. Although we are living through one of the darkest times of the year, we know that the Light is coming. Sin and suffering have an end. We are almost there. The first reading speaks of how everything dead, feeble, or broken will be transformed—and will rejoice. St. Paul cautions us to be patient. The Lord is near, but not yet. We are very close, and if anyone is not ready, there is still time! A couple of weeks ago, we heard St. Paul’s exhortation: “It is the hour now for you to awake from sleep. For our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed; the night is advanced, the day is at hand. Let us then throw off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.” (Rom 13:11–12) However, not everyone rejoices at this time of year. I want to acknowledge all those who struggle during this season. For some, this will be the first Christmas without their father, mother, husband, wife, child, sibling, or another loved one. Whether they are far away, estranged, or have been called home to the Lord, not being able to celebrate such an important moment with them is very hard. Instead of laughter, there may be tears. Instead of a house full of people, there may be only a few—or no one at all. There are also people who must be away from their families this Christmas. I ask each of you reading this letter to say a prayer for them this weekend. In your Christmas gatherings, when you pray or say grace before the meal, remember them. If you know someone who has recently lost a loved one or is separated from their family, please be especially considerate. A small gesture can go a very long way. I also want to take this opportunity to publicly thank all the people who worked so hard these past days with the Novena, the Consecration to Mary, and the celebrations of the Immaculate Conception and Our Lady of Guadalupe. They did a fabulous job organizing everything, decorating, and cleaning up. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! And thank you as well to all of you who participated in these events—it would not have been the same without you. Finally, next week we are preparing for our Immaculate Conception Christmas Concert! It will be an opportunity for the whole parish to come together and celebrate each other’s cultures. Children and adults from all three communities are preparing to share their Christmas joy with us. I invite you all to come. It will take place Sunday, December 21 at 3 PM . Feel free to bring others as well. We will have refreshments afterward.  …and don’t forget to keep Christ in Christmas!!! God Bless, Fr. Steven