From Father Steven - July 28, 2024

Father Steven Clemence • July 26, 2024

 

Dear Brothers and Sisters, 

 

We have some great news to share with you. In the past we shared with you how Grandparent’s day is celebrated on the memorial day of St. Joachim and Ann, the grandparents of Jesus. Recently, Pope Francis has given greater attention to this day as well as the care of the elderly. Please read the message below from the Catholic News Agency.

 

The Vatican has granted a plenary indulgence to anyone who visits a sick, lonely, or disabled elderly person on the fourth annual World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly on July 28.

 

Those who are grandparents or elderly themselves can also receive a plenary indulgence, as well as anyone who participates in religious functions connected to the celebration, as long as the usual conditions are fulfilled. The usual conditions to obtain a plenary indulgence are to be detached from all sin, to receive sacramental confession and holy Communion, and to pray for the pope’s intentions.

 

An indulgence is a grace granted by the Catholic Church through the merits of Jesus Christ to remove the temporal punishment due to sin. It applies to sins already forgiven and cleanses the soul as if just baptized. 

Cardinal Angelo De Donatis, the head of the Apostolic Penitentiary, sent a decree July 18 granting the plenary indulgences.

 

A person who cannot leave his or her home due to sickness, infirmity, or another serious reason can also obtain the plenary indulgence if they “unite themselves spiritually to the sacred functions” of the day, “offering to the merciful God the prayers, pains, or sufferings of their lives, especially during the various celebrations which will be broadcast through the media,” De Donatis decreed.

 

The World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly, initiated by Pope Francis in 2021, is held on the fourth Sunday of July, which falls near the July 26 feast of Sts. Joachim and Anne, the grandparents of Jesus.

 

In 2024, the day will be celebrated on July 28 with the theme: “Do Not Cast Me Off in My Old Age” — taken from Psalm 71. The Vatican announced the theme in February, saying it was Pope Francis’ desire “to call attention to the fact that, sadly, loneliness is the bitter lot in life of many elderly people, so often the victims of the throwaway culture.”

 

In 2023, Pope Francis marked the day with an intergenerational Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica, affirming in his homily that old age is a “blessed time.” “How much we need a new bond between young and old,” the pope said on July 23 last year, “so that the sap of those who have a long experience of life behind them will nourish the shoots of hope of those who are growing. In this fruitful exchange we can learn the beauty of life, build a fraternal society, and in the Church, be enabled to encounter one another and dialogue between tradition and the newness of the Spirit.” 

 

Conditions to obtain a plenary indulgence

In order to obtain a plenary indulgence, the following conditions must be fulfilled:

1. Detachment from all sin, even venial.

2. Sacramental confession, holy Communion, and prayer for the intentions of the pope. These three conditions can be fulfilled one week before or after performing the works to gain the indulgence, but it is appropriate that Communion and the prayer take place on the same day that the work is completed.  The prayer for the intentions of the Holy Father is left up to the choice of the individual, but an Our Father and Hail Mary are suggested.

 

God Bless,

Fr. Steven


From Father Steven - July 20, 2025

By Father Steven Clemence • July 18, 2025
Dear Brothers and Sisters, I hope you are having a wonderful summer—visiting family and friends, enjoying beautiful places, and, above all, continuing your prayerful life with the Lord. It can be challenging at times to maintain our spiritual routine while on vacation. St. John Bosco exhorted young people to make time for recreation , not relaxation —there is a difference between having moments of fun and letting our guard down. Remember, the devil never rests; he is like a lion looking for someone to devour. A balanced life is always best: a little bit of work, a little bit of fun, and a little bit of prayer. Indeed, we should take advantage of the summer to do things we often don’t have time for during the rest of the year. On a separate note, in case you were not here last weekend, I announced that our Archbishop, Richard Henning, has extended my term as pastor for another six years. He is very pleased with what he hears about the parish, which is a reflection of your efforts and your prayers. I must confess that I, too, am very pleased to see the work that God is accomplishing in our community. There are many graces that God has bestowed on our people—many stories of individuals returning to the Church, receiving the sacraments after many years, and much more. One of the greatest privileges I have is witnessing God at work in people’s lives. Of course, we also share in the sorrows and struggles of our parishioners. But after these years, I can say that, counting both the joyful and the difficult moments, I am very happy to be your pastor. My primary duties are to teach, sanctify, and govern the parish. I have done my best to fulfill these responsibilities. I know I don’t have much to offer, so I kindly ask for your patience with my limitations. I too walk alongside you on this path of growing closer to the Lord. Mistakes have been made in the past, and there may be more in the future—hopefully fewer. Please continue to pray for me and for all priests. We truly need all the prayers we can get. Next week, I will accompany a group of 51 young people on a pilgrimage to Rome for the Jubilee of Youth. Fr. Gabriel will also be going, although with a different group. Fr. Victor will remain here with you, along with Fr. Cássio Dalpiaz, a longtime friend of mine from Brazil. He is a priest from Brasília and will soon be going to Portugal to complete his doctoral studies on the connection between Literature and Theology (he has done extensive work on the theology behind Tolkien’s writings). He speaks English, Portuguese, Spanish, and French. Some of the youth going to Rome are children of immigrants who faced difficult times not long ago. Thank God their situation has improved, though some families are still dealing with immigration-related issues. These young people are struggling to cover the full cost of the trip, so they will be asking for donations after Mass. Lastly, I’ve invited some parishioners to share their testimonies in the upcoming bulletins. I hope these stories help convey some of the beautiful things happening in our parish and in the lives of our people. Let us continue to pray that more souls may choose the “better part”—that is, to love and serve the Lord. God Bless, Fr. Steven

From Father Steven - July 13, 2025

By Father Steven Clemence • July 11, 2025
Dear Brothers and Sisters, This weekend we will hear the story of the Good Samaritan. We all know the story—but do we act as the Good Samaritan? There are some stories in the Bible that we are so familiar with that we could almost recite them backwards. The danger of becoming too familiar with a story is that it no longer impacts us. We can become numb to the message of Jesus. I would like to offer three thoughts to help us meditate on this Gospel passage. First , the geography is very important. The story takes place on the road from Jerusalem to Jericho. Therefore, all the characters had just been in the presence of God in the Temple in the Holy City. To bring this into our daily context, it would be as if people had just left Mass. After praying to the Lord, they encounter a victim. Can you imagine—after listening to the commandment of love, they are given the opportunity to put it into practice, but they bypass it? Second , the characters in the story are not horrible people. According to Jewish precepts, if someone touched a corpse, they would become ritually impure. Perhaps they didn’t want to defile themselves. Maybe they didn’t have time to return to Jerusalem to go through the rite of purification. Or perhaps they thought the victim was already dead, or they were simply in a rush. In other words, there could have been a “reasonable” or “justifiable” excuse not to help the needy person. Third , the Samaritans were not on good terms with the Jews. Due to a historical event long ago when the Israelites were taken into exile, their rivalry had deep roots. It would be like the Red Sox and the Yankees, or Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland—they really didn’t like each other. That is why the Samaritan is called “good.” Since Samaritans were generally viewed negatively, this one stood out as “good.” However, this hostility did not stop our Samaritan friend from helping his neighbor. Though they all believed in the same God, not all acted like God. Jesus tells us that all the Law is summed up in love of God and neighbor. We can all know what is right and wrong, like the characters in the Bible. The real question is: do we excuse ourselves like the priest and the Levite, or do we act like the Samaritan? As we approach the Lord at Mass this weekend, let us not be mere consumers. Quite the opposite—let us be re-energized and do what the Lord has done for us. As we witness Christ giving His life for us in His Body and Blood, let us do the same. “Love one another as I have loved you” (Jn 13:34). This command “is something very near to you, already in your mouths and in your hearts; you have only to carry it out,” as we hear in the first reading. Finally, I would like to highlight a couple of things. This Sunday, 7/13 , some parishioners will be holding a fundraiser for a group of 50 pilgrims who will attend the Youth Jubilee in Rome this summer. They will host a ticketed Spanish Rock Concert at 3 p.m., either in Meehan Hall or in the parking lot (donations can also be sent to the parish office). We are also promoting the Catholic Fest event next weekend. There will be food and games in the parking lot. We’ll also have Sean Forrest, a singer and missionary, sharing his amazing witness from 2–3:30 p.m. (in the church). I hope you can stop by on Saturday, July 19th , from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.  Let us not miss these opportunities to support our parish—and to love one another! God Bless, Fr. Steven