Do You Hear What I Hear?

If you listen very carefully during the Christmas Masses, you might hear the faint echo of a stirring rendition of O Holy Night by Father John Connolly. Coupled with Fr. Connolly’s signature Mother’s Day anthem, A Mother’s Love Is A Blessing, Father John left us with the sound of music! Many parishioners today hold affectionate and appreciative
memories of those special moments.

Father John Connolly passed to the Lord three years ago. He served Saint Mary Parish as pastor from 1995-2007. I count as a special blessing his assistance at Saint Mary Parish and Saint Martha Parish as a senior priest during my first year as pastor. Father John resided with us during the year that he was waiting for a room to become available for him at Regina Cleri, the residence for retired priests of the Archdiocese of Boston.

We celebrate a 3rd Anniversary Mass for Father Connolly this Sunday, December 23, at the 9:30 Mass, and welcome members of his family who will join us in remembering
him in a special way with the dedication of the handicapped accessible doorway at the ramp entrance in his honor. A plaque emblazoned with his beloved Celtic Cross will be placed within the foyer proclaiming the challenging words of Saint John Paul II to Open Wide the Doors for Christ. Father John sought to open wide the doors for Christ throughout his more than fifty years of priestly ministry. His ministry of welcome was exemplified in a striking way by his commitment to becoming proficient in the Portuguese language in order that he might welcome the Portuguese parishioners of Immaculate
Conception Parish, Stoughton to pray in their own language and thus made their full participation in the liturgy more accessible. His Portuguese pronunciation might have
held the hint of an Irish brogue, but it was an enduring sign of pastoral generosity!

As we prepare to celebrate Christmas 2018, Father Joe and I are striving to follow the example of Fr. John Mahoney, Fr. John Walsh and Fr. John Connolly as well as
all the other faithful priests who have served our parishes in opening wide the doors for Christ for all who come to worship at Saint Martha Parish and Saint Mary Parish.  These have been difficult and painful years for the Church as the number of those who worship with us has decreased markedly since the heart-breaking reports of abuse of young people by priests was revealed more than fifteen years ago. The recent revelation of the failure of bishops to respond in an appropriate manner to these transgressions by priests and other bishops has opened these wounds once again. Father Joe and I are deeply troubled by the impact of the horrific behavior of some priests and bishops on the community of the Church. We look out at the empty places in our congregations each week with heavy hearts.

At the same time, we are committed to the challenge of working with our parishioners to build up welcoming communities of faith at Saint Martha Parish and Saint Mary Parish so that those who have been absent from our churches will experience welcoming ommunity if they decide to return. We cannot erase or change past history, but we can continue to be proactive in creating a better future. We need to become what Saint Mother Teresa described as pencils in God’s hand as we write a future account of renewal and hope for the Church. Please pray for those who are striving to bring healing and reconciliation
to those who have been hurt or alienated. Please pray that Saint Martha Parish and Saint Mary Parish may always be places of welcome that open wide the doors for Christ to
all who join us for worship!