Winter weather is here! If there is stormy weather in Lincoln on Wednesday, Thursday or Friday, and school is cancelled or there is a two-hour delay, there will be NO daily Mass or Adoration (Wednesday) at St. Joseph Church. Please check WMUR for school cancellations and delays. This will allow for the plow and snow removal crews to properly and adequately remove the snow and treat the parking lot, steps and walkways of the church.
Author: Fr. Mahoney (Page 2 of 60)
On Sunday, November 24, our Faith Formation teachers, students, and their families joined together to learn more about the Season of Advent. They assembled special Advent calendars and enjoyed each other’s company over a Subway lunch. The parish is blessed to have such an active and effective Faith Formation Program!
Dear Parishioners and Visitors:
I hope that your time with family and friends over the Thanksgiving holiday was blessed and enjoyable. Now, as the seasons of Advent and the Nativity of the Lord approach, we prepare our hearts to emulate God’s sharing with us the gift of His son.
Sharing resources was the theme of the Parish Outreach Committee’s recent meetings. This year – and in light of the many concerns raised last Advent about the security of the gifts left unguarded in the narthex under The Giving Tree – the Outreach Committee has opted to send a $3000 cash donation from St. Joseph’s parish community to the Linwood Rotary’s Community Chest program. As you may know, the Community Chest has the personnel available to screen, to shop, and to deliver to deserving families Thanksgiving meals and food baskets, as well as Christmas dinners and gifts for children in our local neighborhoods.
If you would like to contribute to this effort, please utilize the church’s Poor Box, the proceeds of which are always directed to the many area charitable organizations, such as Haven Pregnancy Center, The Bridge Project, Vets Rest Stop, Linwood Recreation Center, Linwood Ambulance, and the Knights of Columbus, as well as providing Price Chopper gift cards for the hungry and bereavement refreshments for the grieving.
With prayerful best wishes,
Fr. John Mahoney
Dear Parishioners and Visitors:
Giving thanks to God for all His blessings and provisions at Thanksgiving time is a wonderful tradition, but continuing this posture throughout the year is spiritually beneficial. It evolves from being an annual tradition to a constant way of life, made possible by the love of God shown to us in Christ. This is how we can live in a state of praise and adoration for our Lord with true Christian thankfulness all year long.
Liturgically, we’ve arrived at the violet season of Advent. But everywhere else around us “it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas.” Let’s not rush past these spiritually rich weeks of recollection and anticipation, pondering in review the fruits of the year and looking ahead to the hope of making Jesus incarnate in our words, decisions, and relationships. Advent includes rituals incorporated into home use, like the Advent wreath or the gradually assembled crèche.
Please take home with you a copy of “Advent & Christmas: Waiting in Joyful Hope,” available at the church’s doors this weekend. It is filled with “brief, down-to-earth reflections that bring prayer and Scripture into everyday life.” May it guide you to a deeper appreciation for God’s gift of Himself in the Christ Child.
Wishing you Happy Thanksgiving and a blessed Advent Season,
Fr. John Mahoney
Project Rachel Ministry
If you or someone you know is suffering after abortion, confidential, non-judgmental help is available from Project Rachel Ministry.
Visit: www.catholicnh.org/project-rachel for more information.