Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church

FROM THE PASTOR - HOLY WEEK:
We begin Holy Week this coming Sunday with the celebration of Palm or Passion Sunday.  Holy Week will culminate in the Sacred Triduum.  These are the most sacred days in our faith.  During these days we meditate on the gift of the Holy Eucharist and the Death and Resurrection of Jesus.  Due to the Coronavirus Pandemic we will not be able to gather in our parish church to commemorate the very core of our faith.  We should know, however, that Jesus, who died on the cross and rose to life is with us in our difficulties as well as our joys.  God does not abandon us.  We are called to place our trust in God’s goodness and grace.
I encourage you to commemorate Holy Week by tuning in to EWTN for uplifting and encouraging programming.  All the liturgies of Holy Week will be broadcast on this network.  For a complete schedule visit www.ewtn.com/lent/schedule.aspx.
Please know that I continue to pray for the health and well-being of everyone in our OLM Community and also pray that we may be able to gather together soon, to worship our Lord Jesus Christ together.
May God Continue to Bless You,
Fr. Ray
 

HOLY  WEEK

Masses and Confession have been suspended until April 30th at this time.  There will be no celebrations of Holy Week in our church.  We encourage you to watch many Holy Week Celebrations and Masses on EWTN.  Please check back with us often for updated information concerning OLM.  Also, please download My Parish Ap here and have the information sent to you.  

The Sacrament of Confession has been cancelled per the Archdiocese of Hartford as of April 2, 2020.  Please visit back here for any updates, call the Parish Office at 860.747.6825 with any questions or download My Parish Ap here to have any updates sent right to your phone.

Our church is open from 6am - 6pm for private prayer.  You are invited to come and spend some time with the Lord in private prayer.

Online Bible Study - Please join Susan and Donna from the Faith Formation team for a continued Bible Study that meets EVERY Tuesday morning at 9:00am.  We read and discuss the upcoming Sunday's gospel  and how it applies to our everyday lives.  We can still have social engagement while social distancing.  Please join us online.
The zoom address to put in your browser is: http://us04web.zoom.us/j/743264255.

Hope is Not Cancelled - A New Prayer Meeting for OLM Starting this Friday, April 3rd at 3pm.  You are invited!
 
A Prayer Meeting online to:                            
• Discuss Hope and Fears of the Current Situation
• How to stay close to Jesus during this time
• Praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet
• Meditations of the Stations of the Cross
• Introduction to praying the Liturgy of the Hours
 Please join Donna Marotto (Faith Formation Director for
Youth) online every Friday at 3:00pm. Questions? ourladyofmercyym@gmail.com  
Click on the following link on your computer or type in your
browser:  http://us04web.zoom.us/j/580389920

You are invited to pray a novena to end the spread of the coronavius here.

Here are some fresh and new ideas for all ages in learning about our Catholic faith. Crafts for kids, how to read the Bible for all ages, music and informational videos. All at no charge. Share this link with friends and family. Let us spread the love of Jesus with one another. God is bigger than all that is taking place in the world today! Take refuge in Him and His Word. Blessings to all of you. You are all in our prayers.

Another great source of information to feed your soul is here at Ascension Press.

CREA, who holds sales of fair trade items at our parish has heard from their artists and providers that they are in desperate situations, as their opportunities for sales has dried up, due to the pandemic. The family of a woman in Guatemala, who makes jewelry, has no means to feed her family. To help support her and others that are assisted through CREA, please contact Sr. Ruth at crea@crea.org. Your donation can save lives and give hope. As well, CREA has fair trade chocolate, coffee, and olive oil in stock, ready for purchase.

Bishop Barron offers this video that speaks of getting back into the Bible and how to do that.

Here is the Kids' Bulletin for this coming Sunday, Easter Sunday. Please print it and share with your children and grandchildren.

FORMED - Faith at Home website is offering 40 days of free Catholic movies for adults, children and families, along with information on the Sacraments, Bible Studies, Lenten Reflections, Rosary Reflections and so much more Catholic content.  Grow in your faith with your children and grandchildren!

We Encourage You to Pray a Televised or Streaming Mass.  Three options below are: 
ORTV
The television Mass is broadcast seven days a week at 10:00 AM on WCCT-TV (WB20) and WCTX-TV (MyTV9). It can also be seen Saturday and Sunday at 5:00 AM on WCCT-TV. The Mass can also be found streaming live at these times.  
EWTN
The Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN) is available from many local cable providers, including Comcast Digital, Frontier Fios, Cox Communications, and Cablevision. The daily Mass is televised at 12:00 AM, 8:00 AM, 12:00 PM, and 7:00 PM. Various prayers and devotions are offered at different hours of the day.  You may also stream the daily Mass online. 
WORD ON FIRE
Bishop Barron is also offering a daily Mass here.  
EUCHARISTIC ADORATION
We also encourage you pray with Jesus in Eucharistic Adoration online, so that you may pray before the Blessed Sacrament.  YouTube has many to choose from.  You may use this one among the many. 


Let us all pray to the Lord for ours and others' good health and peace in our hearts!  It is still Lent!  Attend to your devotions and add another if possible for the world during Holy Week.        

Welcome!

If you are new in the parish, please introduce yourself after Liturgy.  If you'd like to join our community of faith, please fill out a parish registration form and return it in the collection basket, to the parish office or via mail at 19 South Canal St., Plainville, 06062.

If you are guests with us, we are glad to have you celebrate with us! You are most welcome!

You can see our Bulletin by clicking here.

Find out how much Jesus loves us when we go to Mass and receive the Eucharist in this inspiring video!         

Dear Padre,

My neighbor is a fundamentalist Christian. He said I won't be "saved" unless I accept Jesus as my personal savior.  Didn't Jesus become my savior when I was baptized?

Your neighbor is probably referring to John 3:7, when Jesus told Nicodemus, "You must be born anew."  Jesus is talking about a spiritual rebirth; we must have a spiritual birth in order to be saved.

As you have correctly noted, Catholics believe this happens at baptism. In John 3:5, Jesus says, "No one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit."

We are saved by the waters of baptism. But for Catholics, it's not merely a one-time event.  We continue to accept or reject the salvation offered us by the decisions we make every day.

Your neighbor used the words "personal savior."  Catholic Christians go even deeper through the sacraments.  We develop and nurture  a very personal relationship with Jesus by regularly receiving the Eucharist.  In the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we admit we have sinned and ask Jesus to forgive us.  And in the Sacrament of Confirmation, our relationship is "sealed" with the gifts of the Spirit.  

Many Catholics also celebrate the Sacrament of Marriage. The couple's personal relationship with Jesus is deepened through the love the couple shares.

So tell your neighbor you are indeed saved by Jesus.  And because you are saved, you deepen that relationship with Jesus by living a sacramental life.

Fr. Patrick Keyes, CSSR

All Masses are suspended at this time.  Please check back for updates.  We will reassess on April 30th.                          Weekend Masses                                    Saturday Vigil - 4:00PM 
Sunday - 8:30 & 10:30AM, Liturgy of the Word for Children is offered during these  two Masses.  A Children's Mass is celebrated the first Sunday of the month at the 10:30am Mass. 

Weekday Masses                                  M, T,Th, F & S - 8:00AM
The Rosary is prayed at 7:30 AM before Mass and after the 8:00 AM Mass. 

Adoration is suspended at this time.  You are invited to pray with Jesus at this link.   Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament                                       Friday morning after the 8am Mass & Friday evening at 7:30pm every 4th Friday of the month except during Lent.

Confession is suspended at this time by the Archdiocese of Hartford.  Please check back as to when it will be reinstated again. For an Examination of Conscience go here.
Confession is held on Saturday, at Noon, in the church.  Please stay behind the screen until further notice.

The Office is Located at:
19 South Canal St., Plainville, CT 06062
9:00AM - 4:00PM,                    Monday - Friday
Phone:  860.747.6825
Fax:  860.747.5407
Email: olmct@sbcglobal.net

We, the people of Our Lady of Mercy Church in Plainville, Connecticut are committed to journey together as a community of faith, hope, and love within the Catholic tradition.  We are called to witness to the presence of Jesus Christ in our lives through sharing and celebration of faith and a life of Christian Service.