Saint John the Guardian of Our Lady Parish

Sunday, April 28, is Divine Mercy Sunday. Our parish will celebrate God's mercy in a special way. 2:00-3:00 PM: Confessions will be heard by several priests in the upper church. 3:00 PM: A prayer service will be held in the upper church, which includes the procession of the Image of Divine Mercy, Exposition, Adoration, Diary Meditations, the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, and Benediction. 4:00 PM: Mass will be celebrated after the prayer service. This Mass satisfies the Sunday Mass obligation. Please come to honor and receive, the infinite mercy of God!

The Novena to The Divine Mercy starts Good Friday at 7:15 PM, before the Good Friday Service, the Novena to the Divine Mercy, will be publicly recited in the church. The rest of the novena can be done on our own. Novena/Chaplet pamphlets will be distributed at the church entrances.

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul and those we serve wish to thank all who contributed to the Ash Wednesday Collection. The total collection was $2,455. Your generosity is overwhelming, and enables us to continue our mission of helping those less fortunate in our community. Thank you!

All parishioners of high school age are invited to attend the 2019 Steubenville East Catholic Youth Conference, to be held at the Tsongas Arena on the weekend of July 12-14. 2019. Our group from St. John’s will be travelling by bus to the campus of UMass, Lowell, for a fun, faith-filled weekend of inspiring music, engaging liturgies, challenging speakers, and fellowship with thousands of other teens. This year’s theme is “Belong”. Students who have attended in the past have described it as “amazing” and “life changing”. We will stay in the college dormitories and eat at the campus cafeterias. Reservations are being taken now. For questions, and to reserve a place, please contact chaperones Bill and Betty Madden at 978-368-7487. More information is also available on-line at steubenvilleconferences.com/youth/conf-east/.

Thank you to all the parishioners for your support of the Mother's Day Rose Sale. Because of your generosity we were able to raise $1,175 for Problem Pregnancy, the all-volunteer Agency that supports women during their pregnancy. Thank you also to the volunteers who worked hard to make this fundraiser so successful. God Bless you and your families. Janice Donahue-Hibernians of Our Lady of Knock

Today’s announcement by the Holy See of a Motu Proprio by Pope Francis is welcome news. Mandating a consistent global response to this threat on children, young people and vulnerable adults is a major milestone, making it clear that any cover-up of child sexual abuse is never acceptable. I look forward to the June plenary session of the Bishops of the United States when we discuss how we can implement the Motu Proprio. This will strengthen the work in our country which has been made possible by the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, which has effectively guided our efforts for seventeen years. MORE