View the Mass for the Seventh Sunday of Easter with Fr. Daly by clicking the link below:

Seventh Sunday of Easter

The disciples after the Resurrection were fearful and plagued by doubt. Not unlike us today. Then in the midst of this, Jesus was taken from them or so it seemed when he ascended to the Father.
But he did not leave them orphans. In St John’s Gospel he promises them and us:
“…I will come back again and take you to myself…”
In the meantime, he assures us in the first reading from Acts of the Apostles that:
“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you...”
He pledges that this power will enable us:
“and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria
and to the ends of the earth.”
Carry me and my message to others in word and deed:
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…”
Though the physical Jesus has been taken from our sight, the Spirit of God is ever at our side. Soldier on, be strong, have courage, love one another and remember in every moment his pledge in the last line of today’s gospel:
“And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.”

No doubt you have heard that the first phase of the plan of the Commonwealth for “opening up” includes houses of worship. This took many by surprise. The expectation was that we would be included possibly in phase two or even phase three.
 
This is not going to be a flick-the-switch event. It will be a slow complicated process. Only use of 40% of the seating capacity of the church building is allowed. This number is further reduced by social distancing of at least six feet. Masks must be worn, social gatherings before or after Mass are to be avoided, regular cleaning must be done after each Mass and parishioners over 65 or otherwise vulnerable are urged to stay home. We will continue to offer Mass on video available on the parish website and Sharon TV.
 
We ask for your understanding. We will not be offering Mass other than on video this weekend, May 23/24. Daily Mass which normally includes a small number of participants will have to wait until we have some Sunday experience.
 
Please bear with us. I know that the Eucharist is central to our faith and sense of identity as Catholics. The Second Vatican Council called it “The Sacred Mystery of the Eucharist” and the source and summit of the life of the people of God. In practice the faithful today have embraced this.
 
Let me share with you a “Prayer for Spiritual Communion.”

My Jesus,
I love you above all things and I desire to receive you into my soul.
Since I cannot at this moment receive you sacramentally,
Come at least spiritually into my heart.
I embrace You as if You were already there and unite myself wholly to You.
Never permit me to be separated from you. amen

This time like we have never experienced before is teaching and will teach many things about us and our way of life when we look back and reflect after it has passed. One of those things is how profoundly the Second Vatican Council captured the message of St Peter ( 1 Peter 2: 9a) when he called the church the “people of God”:

“You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood,
a holy nation, a people of his own…”

In common parlance, the church is the building or the institution or before Vatican II and even today, for many, the priests, religious and the bishops were the church. But Vatican II captured a truth more ancient even than Peter, prefigured in the earliest pages of the bible. God’s special relationship of love and covenant with Israel was never rescinded but lives as Peter proclaims in a new way. We are the people of God. We are the followers of an itinerant Jewish preacher, Jesus of Nazareth, Son of God and Son of Man, raised from the dead and ascended to the right hand of the Father. But he has not abandoned his people.

St. John's Gospel promises:
“And if I go and prepare a place for you,
I will come back again and take you to myself,
So that where I am you also may be.”

In the meantime, especially in these days, as I go into our church, I am reminded on many levels of the "people of God", you and our ancestors in the faith. The church building is of course the temple of God’s presence among us in the Most Blessed Sacrament. The religious objects, the windows, even the furniture all stand in testimony to the presence of our faith in Sharon dating back to the late 19th century. The walls give silent but no less true witness to all those who first came to the faith here in baptism, who made a life commitment to each other reminiscent of God’s covenant with his people in marriage and who went to their final resting place directly from the middle aisle. In no small measure, our faith stands on the shoulders of their faith and commitment.

But the deepest, most persistent reminder and one tinged with sadness in its absence is the joy of our gatherings here to celebrate the Eucharist: the event that makes us most the “people of God,” the event that gives meaning to our lives and our coming together, the very presence of Christ in our bodies and souls, and frankly, the event that makes me more than any other pastor and priest among you.

We long for the day when we can gather again. In the meantime, may we share the love of God with each other, may we find courage in the mercy and promise of his son and as we say in latin; “oremus pro invicem” “let us pray for one another” and may God bless us all.
~ Fr. Frank

Mergers

Some of you may have seen communications from the Archdiocese talking about merging parishes. Given recent experience here at OLOS, I know that any kind of combination is a sensitive subject. The Archdiocese has assured us that such requests will come from the pastors and not be imposed. At the same time it would be naïve to think that they don’t have some idea what parishes are candidates. I want to assure you that I have no reason to believe that OLOS is on the list, in fact quite the opposite. While we do run small deficits, that’s not a sign of financial instability. I’m confident that with your help, going forward we can continue to be the vibrant parish and presence here in Sharon that we have been for well over 100 years.
 

Fr. Daly's "Sharon Helps" Interview
Click Here to view Fr. Frank's interview with Sharon TV.




Ascension Thursday - May 21, 2020

This Thursday is Ascension Thursday, a Holy Day. As with other masses during the shutdown the Cardinal has dispensed Catholics of the Boston Archdiocese of the obligation to participate in the Eucharist. Watch this space for some shared thoughts on the feast day.

Emily Traut ~Parishioner

Emily Traut, a long-time parishioner passed away of Covid-19 at the age of 91 last month at Ellis Nursing Home in Norwood. If we were able to have a funeral Mass, in my homily I would have said of Emily what I said elsewhere in these “Parish Notes.” “The walls of this church give silent but no less true witness to the faith and commitment of Emily and those like her, our family in the faith whose devotion to OLOS enriches our own faith and makes its expression possible today.” Many of you may remember Emily as the proprietor of the “Fitting Room” on Billings Street where many a wedding and prom dress was fitted. 
We pray for eternal life for Emily and consolation for her family in this especially difficult time. May she rest in peace.

Bullock Memorial Garden

We are so grateful to Steve Breed for his original design of this beautiful garden in memory of our late pastor, Bob Bullock. Steve has spent countless hours recently upgrading the garden. His diligence and commitment are remarkable and a gift to all of us at OLOS. If you are getting tired of your regular outside walk route, come by the garden. You will find it a relaxing place in these times with room for social distancing for a reasonable number if others are there. It is a beautiful venue in which to contemplate the presence of God in the beauty of nature.Thanks again Steve and God bless you.

• OLOS staff has been meeting every 7 to 10 days to talk about how we can support the parish and ideas for virtual events.
• Parish Pastoral Council, Parish Finance Commission, Christian Service Commission and the Book Group are meeting monthly.
• Bible Study Group, Middle School Youth and Youth Commission are meeting weekly.

Be assured that the Staff and Parish Leadership are working hard to provide support for our OLOS family. We will communicate with you about necessary information when we get the green light to open. If you have any questions or concerns or need help please contact the parish office either by phone (781-784-2265) or email (parish@olossharon.org).

~ Fr. Frank, Staff and Parish Leadership

Good afternoon, everyone. I hope you are all well, and taking advantage as you can of the increasingly good weather. Below is the link to my latest homily – Waiting for the Spirit - for this Sunday between the two great feasts. Keep well, and hope to see you not too far in the future!
~ Frank

Waiting For The Spirit ~ Learning To Breathe

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