Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church

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       Our Lady of Mercy Faith Formation 2025-2026 Schedule

                        December 2025

 7 Family Gathering
 14 Classes
 21 Family Mass
 28 No Classes– Merry Christmas

                        January 2026

 4 Family Mass
 11 Classes
 18 No Classes-MLK
 25 Family Gathering

                              February 2026

1 Family Mass
 8 Classes
 15 No Classes-Winter Recess
 22 Family Gathering

                           March 2026

1 Family Mass
 8 Classes
 15 Classes
 22 Family Gathering 
 29 Family Mass-Palm Sunday

                            April 2026

5 No Classes-Happy Easter
 12 No Classes-Spring Recess
 19 Family Gathering
 26 Last Day of Classes

                              May 2026

3 Closing Family Mass

            All Classes/Gatherings will be held on Sunday’s in the Parish Center

Grades Pre-K  -6    (9:00  to 10:15 a.m.)

Grades 7—10        (6:00 to 7:30 p.m.)

Family Mass          (Sunday 10;30 a.m.)

Family Gathering   (After the 10:30 a.m. Mass
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   In Need of Sacrament or Sacraments?
Any person needing to receive their adult sacraments of baptism, first communion, confession, confirmation or any combination of the above, should contact Rev. M. David Dawson or our Religious Education Coordinator, Gina Burby. You can call the Parish office at 860-747-6825 and leave a message for them to call you. Be sure to leave your full name and best call back number.

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Advent Confession and Mass Schedule

Tuesday, December 16^th:  Extra Confessions: 6 p.m.

Saturdays December 20th and 27th Confessions at 12 Noon

December 20^th:  Vigil Mass at 4 p.m.

December 21^st:  Sunday Masses at 8:30 a.m. & 10:30 a.m.

The Nativity of the LORD 
 Christmas Masses:

December 24^th: Christmas Eve at 4 p.m.

December 25^th: Christmas Day beginning at Midnight Mass (12 a.m.) and 9 a.m.

January 1^st: Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God Mass at 9 a.m.

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Mass Book 2026 Information

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                                                       Who needs Jesus?
    Many today say that they don’t have a need for Jesus. They go to work, have homes, put food on their tables, raise families without His help. In fact, daily activities go on but the world can’t really make sense without Him. Truth. The truth is in Christ, “in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3). We cannot understand the truth without Him. To make sense of the world, we need Jesus to lead us. Life. The life we have will eventually end. To keep living, we need Jesus. “I am the way and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but by me” (John 14:6). Eternal life comes through Him. Death. None of us escapes death. Yet, in the Resurrection
 Jesus defeated death for us. It didn’t hold Him and He offers the gift of life to each of us if we live in Him. Sin. Even the holiest of us sins. Without Jesus, what becomes of us? He “gave himself as a ransom for all” (1Timothy 2:6). If we don’t accept His price, our sins come back to us for eternity. Suffering. Modern science can alleviate some but not eliminate some of the world’s suffering. Jesus provides comfort and healing to those who trust Him and surrender to Him.
https://www.vecteezy.com/free-photos/jesus-clipart, Copyright 2022 Success Publishing & Media LLC

Archbishop Christopher J. Coyne Directs $500,000 in Emergency Funding
   to Local Food Banks to Address SNAP Shortfalls 
  

 At the direction of Archbishop Christopher J. Coyne, the Archbishop’s Annual Appeal has

 released $500,000 in emergency funding to food banks throughout Hartford, Litchfield, and New Haven counties to address current shortfalls that SNAP recipients may be experiencing as a result of the federal government shutdown. These emergency funds are in addition to the funding that is regularly distributed from the Archbishop’s Annual Appeal to these
 food banks.

As has been widely reported through national and local media, the Supplemental Nutrition 
    Assistance Program, or SNAP, ran out of money on Saturday, November 1^st due to the

 federal government shutdown. SNAP is the largest food stamp program of its kind in the

 United States, providing financial assistance to 42 million Americans.

“The Catholic Church provides relief and hope for God’s children. It’s what we have done for over 2,000 years and what we continue to do today,” says Archbishop Coyne. “In the spirit of Jesus’ command to serve our brothers and sisters in need, I am pleased today to release
  $500,000 in funding from the Archbishop’s Annual Appeal to food banks throughout the

 Archdiocese of Hartford. These funds will help to ensure that those who rely on SNAP

 benefits for nourishment can still put food on the table for themselves and their families.”

The Archbishop’s Annual Appeal is a yearly fundraising initiative spearheaded by the

 Archbishop of Hartford with the intention of raising and distributing funds to organizations and ministries that serve communities throughout Hartford, Litchfield, and

New Haven counties.

                                    God is love
    We call God “Creator,” “Savior,” “Father,” yet when we really want to understand who He is, one word is enough. God is love. “Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love.”  (1 John 4:8). Love is the very nature and essence of God Himself. He doesn’t just love, He is love. In fact, that’s why He created us, so we can have a share in that love. 
    We are not simply swept up  in the good will God has toward all his creations. He loves each of us as individuals and that love is never-ending and unconditional. “Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? See, upon the palms of my hands I have written your name” (Isaiah 49:15-16). This is not necessarily because we are good; we can’t possibly earn the vast love He has for us. But the good news is we can’t lose it either.
    Because He loves us so much, He denies us nothing that will draw us closer to him and to life in Heaven. “For God so loved the world,” Jesus declared, “that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
     Copyright 2020 Success Publishing & Media, LLC/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Sacred-Heart-Roman-Catholicism

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******************************************************************                       The Traveling Statue of Mary
 “The Traveling Statue of Mary is available for a visit to your home. We are participating in the “100,000 Rosaries for Vocations” meditation. A perfect opportunity to pray the rosary with Mary present as you pray for vocations. You can include personal petitions. Signup with your name and phone number on the sheet by the statue of Mary next to the grand piano and we will call to arrange a visit.” 

                     The Legion of Mary
 “The Legion of Mary is open to men and women who would like to join us in our ministry. Do you have  a couple of hours in the week to do Mary’s work? Come and see what we are all about. Call the parish office with your name and phone for more information. If you know of a homebound parishioner who would a friendly visit please contact the parish office with their name and phone number to arrange a
 visit. Call 860-747-6825.

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           2025 -  Jubilee Year In The Church

2025 has been declared a Jubilee year in the Church. This usually happens every 25 years. These go back to the time of the Old Testament. It is meant to be a time of celebration and remembrance. It starts the first day of Advent. The archdiocese of Hartford and the Vatican have not yet stipulated how this will come impact the diocesan or parish level yet.
 

Here is a definition from Catholic Encyclopedia: 
 For the Israelites (see HEBREW YEAR OF JUBILEE), the year of Jubilee was in any case preeminently a time of joy, the year of remission or universal pardon. "Thou shalt sanctify the fiftieth year," we read in Leviticus 25:10, "and shalt proclaim remission to all the inhabitants of thy land: for it is the year of jubilee."

 Every seventh year, like every seventh day, was always accounted holy and set aside for rest, but the year which followed seven complete cycles was to be kept as a sabbatical year of special solemnity. The Talmudists and others afterwards disputed whether the Jubilee Year was the forty-ninth or the fiftieth year, the difficulty being that in the latter case two sabbatical years must have been observed in succession.

 Further, there are historical data which seem to show that in the age of the Maccabees the Jubilee of the fiftieth year could not have been kept, for 164-163 B.C. and 38-37 B.C. were both certainly sabbatical years, which they could not have been if two sabbatical years had been intercalated in the interval. However, the text of Leviticus (25:8-55) leaves no room for ambiguity that the fiftieth year was intended, and the institution evidently bore a close analogy with the feast of Pentecost, which was the closing day after seven weeks of harvest. 

In any case it is certain that the Jubilee period, as it was generally understood and adopted afterwards in the Christian Church, meant fifty and not forty-nine years; but at the same time the number fifty was not originally arrived at because it represented half a century, but because it was the number that followed seven cycles of seven.
 Praise be Jesus Christ now and forever
 Rev. M. David Dawson

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Attached is the kids' bulletin. Please print it and share with your children and grandchildren. Enjoy!
 Click on this link to open: Kids' Bulletin
*A printed copy will be available at all Masses.* 

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

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.

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

       Weekend Masses

             Saturday
         Mass 4:00 p.m.       

             Sunday 
 8:30 a.m. & 10:30 a.m. 

 Liturgy of the Word         for Children is            celebrated at the         10:30 a.m. Mass

   Monday   6:00 p.m.          ****************

   Tuesday- Saturday
            8:00 a.m.

         Wednesday
           NO Mass

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Friday: 8:30 a.m. Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament followed by Adoration & Benediction

*************************          CONFESSIONS

Confessions are celebrated each week at 12:00 p.m. on Saturdays
For an Examination of Conscience go here. 

 

The Office is Located at:
19 South Canal Street,
Plainville, CT 06062
Office Hours are 
Monday - Thursday:
     9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Friday: 9:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., afternoons by appointment only


 
Phone:  860-747-6825
Fax:  860-747-5407
Email: Administration@olmct.org