From Father Steven - February 18, 2024

Father Steven Clemence • February 16, 2024

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

 

In the year of the Eucharist we began this initiative of 24Hr Adoration to help us to get closer to Jesus present in the Eucharist. Now, we try to have it once a month in our parish, besides the first Friday all day and our early morning daily adoration (6:30am-7:30am) before daily mass. There are some people who have approached me lately asking questions on what to do during adoration, or how to pray in front of the Blessed Sacrament. Here are a few tips for you.

 

First, there is never a “wrong way” to pray. The holy monks (fathers of the desert) always said that we pray by praying. Every sort of prayer counts. Whether they are recited or from our hearts, whether on the beach, driving, or at church, whether by yourself or with other people, whether using the correct words or from your hearts. Prayer is every sort of communication with God. Even when someone cuts you on the road and you exclaim, “Holy Jesus, Mary and Joseph, have mercy on me.” Indeed, I tell people that have problems by saying the name of the Lord in vain to add a petition after saying OMG, and it turns a sin into a prayer.


Second, before we pray we need some quiet time to gather our thoughts in order and to let the worries out of our head. That is why it is always good to arrive 10 minutes before mass to prepare our hearts for what we are about to do. The same with adoration. Allow some minutes when you arrive to settle down your mind and heart. Don’t worry about the rest of the world. You are in the presence of the Lord himself. Let him worry about it for a second. Then (or as a way to calm your heart) you may thank God for the graces received that day or that week or that month. Realizing the awesomeness of God, it helps us to open our hearts to receive the graces that he has in store for us. If you get distracted in prayer, just get back from your thoughts and get going again. Don’t be discouraged…it happened to the saints as well!

 

Third, invite the Holy Spirit into your heart. You can recite, “Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love…” prayer or you can make your own. Repeat it a few times pausing between one and the other. Have the intention to receive the Holy Spirit, the sweet guest of our soul. Then you can follow with the prayer of Samuel, “Lord, speak for your servant is listening.” By now you will be allowing the graces of God to enter your heart. You will experience peace and tranquility in your heart.

 

Fourth, you can choose whatever you want to meditate about. You can pray the Rosary meditating upon each of the mysteries (how God’s power of the resurrection can help you in your struggles, how Christ ascending to the Father is a sign that He is waiting for us, etc…). You can also read a passage from the Scriptures, I would recommend the Gospels. You can read that paragraph or two, and wonder in your heart, how that relates to what you are going through. Read it a second time, and then a third. You will see how there are some words that will pop out. Meditate, reflect on what they mean to you in front of your struggles, difficulties, whatever weighs upon you. Then do a moment of silence and let the Lord speak to you. Not always will the Lord speak to us, but most often He does, or at least guides us in your decisions and feelings.

 

Lastly, you can present before the Lord who is there listening to your petitions. Following the example of Jesus, we can say, “Lord, if it is your will, please _____ and there you add whatever petition you have. Whether something that the Lord enlightened you in prayer, your personal intentions, the intentions that you would like to pray regarding people around you, etc. It is always good to pray for the Pope, our Bishops, our priests, our parish community, those who have left the Church and those who never entered the church. It is also good to pray for the souls in purgatory and those who don’t have anyone to pray for them. After you conclude your prayers, just thank the Lord for that wonderful time with Him and whatever He may have revealed to you. Don’t forget to thank the Father and the Holy Spirit and Mary, who always works behind the scenes. 

 

This is only a suggestion. There are thousands of ways of praying. What is important is to pray. The way we pray is secondary. Blessed Carlo Acutis says “If we get in front of the sun, we get sun tans…but when we get in front of Jesus in the Eucharist, we become saints.” Let us take the opportunity this weekend to pray in our 24Hr Adoration, from 6pm on Sunday to 6pm on Monday. Bring your children, although if they are little, I would not have them sit for 1hour…but incrementally you can get there! Be assured of my daily prayers to you and your loved us! Together we can all be saints! 

 

God Bless, 

Fr. Steven

 

From Father Steven - August 9, 2026

By Father Steven Clemence • August 7, 2026
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Please see the information below from Deacon Joe Cooley about their Encounter School of Ministry 2026 Summer Intensive program to be held at Meehan Hall August 17—August 20th. Come immerse yourself in the Holy Spirit and whet your appetite for more of what the Lord wants to do through you, with you, and in you! God Bless, Fr. Steven —————————— Encounter School of Ministry 2026 Summer Intensive – Marlborough "Taste and see that the LORD is good." — Psalm 34:8 Are you looking for new zeal, inspiration, and energy to live out your vocation? Do you desire a deeper encounter with God’s healing power, a breakthrough in your spiritual life, or a clearer understanding of your life's purpose? Don't let the season pass without investing in your spiritual growth. The Encounter School of Ministry Boston Campus warmly invites you to join us for our final 4-evening Summer Intensive of the 2026 season, hosted right here at Immaculate Conception Parish. Whether you serve actively in parish ministry or simply want to live out the Great Commission with supernatural confidence in your daily family and professional life, this transformative experience is designed intentionally for you. Over four powerful nights, participants will receive a rich, accelerated distillation of our first four quarters of ministry training. You will unlock foundational blueprint tools rooted in our Catholic heritage to help you live out the Gospel with joy and walk in authority in Christ. Each evening features a dynamic mix of praise and worship, foundational teachings, and hands-on activations in a safe, humble environment marked by genuine kindness and charity. Nightly Curriculum Focus: Night 1: Kingdom Identity – Discover your true identity as a beloved son or daughter of God, shifting from a performance-based mentality to a heavenly perspective. Night 2: Prophetic Gifts – Learn the "language of the Holy Spirit," grow in hearing God’s voice, and cultivate gifts to build up, encourage, and console others. Night 3: Physical Healing – Learn a basic prayer model for healing ministry rooted in love and compassion for the sick. Night 4: Inner Healing & Freedom – Partner with the Holy Spirit to find emotional renewal, freedom from hidden wounds, and deep peace. Historical data from our local campus graduates demonstrates profound, multi-layered fruits: past attendees have experienced physical healings, freedom from anxiety, strengthened marriages, and a major activation in parish life, including a deeper love for Eucharistic Adoration. Come with an expectant heart ready to close out your summer with incredible spiritual fire! Event Details: Where: Immaculate Conception Parish (Meehan Hall), Marlborough, MA When: Aug 17–20, 2026 | 6:00 PM–9:00 PM nightly | Worship begins at 5:00 PM Registration / Info: Please scan the QR code on the Marlborough flyer available at the church exits, reference our digital announcements, visit online at encounterschool.org/boston , or register at the door. Contact: For questions or group details, connect with Satellite Campus Director Deacon Joe Cooley at boston@encounterschool.org . Claim your seat today and see the new horizons the Lord is opening for you!

From Father Steven - July 26, 2026

By Father Steven Clemence • July 23, 2026
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Please see the letter below from Fr. Gabriel about his experience at the retreat we recently had in Italy. God Bless, Fr. Steven ———————————————- As Father Steven mentioned in his last bulletin entry, he and I have returned from a wonderful retreat in Italy, where we were together with about 800 priests from the Redemptoris Mater seminaries of the Americas. I would like to take the time to also share a bit of my experience. The first day we arrived at the Airport in Rome, but the retreat was to take place in Porto San Giorgio, Italy, which is located on the eastern coast of the country. This presented me with the opportunity to visit Assisi on the way to the retreat house which was precisely what I was hoping to do during my travels. The Pope has named this year the Jubilee of Saint Francis as this October 4th, we will be celebrating the 800th anniversary of his passing, so there was no better time to visit. I am fond of saying that it is the saints who often choose us, inviting us into a friendship with them, which has been the case for me in a special way with Saint Francis. During the retreat, I reflected on how the spirit of Saint Francis has accompanied me most especially throughout my seminary formation, with the presence of our late franciscan spiritual director, Fr. Roderick Crispo O.F.M., the time spent with Cardinal Sean, learning from the example of his prayer life, and the honor of being the last class that was ordained by him and also being ordained on Padre Pio’s birthday. Reflecting on all of this led me to ponder the words that the Lord spoke to Francis at the beginning of his conversion, “Rebuild my Church.” Sure enough, Francis’ Jubilee in the background and those words spoken to him resounding in my heart, it all fit perfectly into the theme that threaded our entire retreat; the readings that were proclaimed each day were all taken from the Prophets calling on Israel to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem after the exile. The first day we heard from the Prophet Haggai, “be strong, all you people of the land...and work! For I am with you...and I will fill this house with glory.” These words felt very personal, that God is calling me in my ministry to participate in the rebuilding of his Church. Nevertheless, I also remembered that Saint Francis initially took the Lord’s words too literally and started rebuilding an actual Church, when in fact the Lord was calling for a spiritual renewal, not the reconstruction of a building. This also was important for me, because I have asked myself again and again in these past two years as a priest, is what I have to offer enough for this mission? Am I doing enough? The words of the retreat reoriented me to look inwardly and see that before I help anyone else, God desires to rebuild me by granting me a renewed experience of His love for me. This I saw clearly during the 2 by 2 mission that we did during the retreat, announcing the love of God as the apostles and Saint Francis did, without food, money, or cell phones, leaning entirely on the Lord’s providence. I was sent north of Rome to a port city called Civitavecchia where their Cathedral, the first Church we visited, happened to be dedicated to Saint Francis. One night during the mission, my companion and I were welcomed by a couple from the cathedral who had three teenage sons. When I entered the apartment I spotted three skateboards under their beds and proceeded to ask who of them skateboarded, two of them responded emphatically that they did. When I mentioned that I also grew up skateboarding, they were eager to take me down to the central plaza to skate together. It was moving to share that joy with them. One of the boys, Simone, at some point said, “I’ve never met a priest that skateboards.” Back at their house, I felt compelled to tell their father that I wouldn’t be surprised if one of them had a vocation to the priesthood. Their father responded saying, “as a matter of fact, the other day, we were asking them what vocation they would like to have when they were older and Simone told us ‘but if I become a priest, I won’t be able to skate anymore,’ and see now how God has sent you to us.” At that moment I saw how God was showing me that He knows my heart through and through, and that He uses my life as an expression of His tenderness toward this family and all of you that I minister to; that in serving you as a priest, you discover God’s love for you, but I also discover the Lord’s love for me and it is in this way that the Church continues to be built up. God Bless, Fr. Gabriel