Letter from Fr. Manning
Dear Parishioners and Friends of Saint Mary's,
My nephew Matt texted me yesterday that this difficult time has allowed him and his family to grow even closer. Matt and Kristen, his wife, have two children under the age of five. They have decided to take this time of worry and uncertainty and use it to make life special. One of the activities they have taken up is baking with the children. To get the cakes and breads to come out properly, all of them are working on patience and team work and also the most difficult of all: following the directions exactly and correctly. All of these virtues are difficult enough for adults, but for 2- and 5-year old children they become quite the feat. Their calm way and the beautiful pictures he texted me reassured my heart that even now there are good things happening. So, today's note is to invite you to look about with eyes of faith and hearts of love and see the many good things close to you. We can hear on the public and social media of the great and noble sacrificial work of health care workers, emergency personnel, and dedicated servers of the needy. Look closer in your life and you can see traces of God's grace in these rocky and uncharted times.
Our Staff is now working from home on projects and activities that can be done remotely. Our phone service is set up to respond for Emergency Anointing of the Sick and Dying. Regular business for the Staff must to be done via email. Office Meetings are not allowed, except for emergencies.
I am grateful to those of you who have so generously mailed or dropped off through the Rectory mail slot offerings or have used our Online Giving Program, found via our website to help us to continue in this time, or to support the Saint Vincent's work. This past weekend 13 additional families signed up for Online Giving. Thank you to those thoughtful families. Anyone is welcome to sign up.
Our St. Vincent's asks if you are able to assist by making these donations: white rice, juice, mac and cheese, crackers and snacks, Chef Boyardee meals, and laundry detergent. They ask that you leave the packages inside the wooden side door at the very top of the driveway on the Rectory side of the Church. Financial donations for St. Vincent de Paul may be mailed in to One Church Square, Franklin, MA 02038.
I hope that you are using the wonderfully spiritually rich resource of Catholic TV to support your spiritual life at this time. This magnificent resource offers Daily Mass, Sunday Mass, and Adult and Child Faith Programming. Masses transmitted by iPad or one-camera Masses do not have the spiritual depth that Catholic TV offers. I also am suggesting to you two additional resources. For young adults and adults of all ages: "Formed" and for young children: "Catholic Icing" (Resources for Kids).
Our faith keeps us hopeful, calm, and strong. May our faith help steady our hearts and help us in times of worry. Be assured of the prayers of the priests for your and your loved ones' well-being. Our prayers will be heard through the intercession of Mary, Mother of God and Patroness of our Parish.
God bless.
Father Brian
For reference:
All Ages: Catholic TV
Young Children: Catholic Icing
Young Adults and All Adults: Formed (fee-free during isolation time)
Online Giving
You may make pledges and manage your contributions to the pledge amount. You may also make one-time donations to special causes.
Religious Education
In our program, the goal of each lesson for each grade is “to teach as Jesus taught.” Jesus is at the heart of all catechesis.
Parish Plan & Collaboration
We pray that this plan that we offer for our sister and brother disciples at Saint Mary’s will be an instrument of divine grace in all of our lives.
"With One Voice" Capital Campaign
For a number of years, we have considered the possibility of installing a full capacity elevator for those with mobility issues. We plan to install a fully accessible elevator that will allow parishioners to go from the lower level to the upper level of the church. Additionally, we will create accessible restrooms both on the Church and ground level. This will allow greater access for all of our community.
Weekly Reflection
God Will Carry Us Through
03-29-2020Rev. Brian F. ManningThis week we again are witnessing to signs found in John’s Gospel about who Jesus really is. We know that signs often point to something more, or bigger, just like symbols do. In fact some people interchange the words sign and symbol. As we read about Jesus this year in our cycle of Lenten Gospel passages, we learn that he is clearly seen as the source of living water and the light of the world. Indeed this weekend he is also declared the resurrection and the life. All the meaningful signs given in John’s Gospel ultimately point to this last great sign. We know that there are very many other stories of people he raised from the dead, such as the soldier’s daughter and the only son of the widow of Naim. Note that John does not narrate these miracle stories; instead he gives a very long version of the raising of Lazarus. In listening to the story we may end up fascinated by Lazarus, but John strives to keep our attention on Jesus.
READ MOREEvents
Request your Contribution Statement
Parishioners who use either envelopes or online giving can request a statement of their donations for the calendar year 2019 by emailing secretary@stmarysfranklin.org or by calling the rectory, 508-528-0020, during business hours.
Knights of Columbus Scholarship
Two $1000 Scholarships are available to a registered member of St. Mary’s Parish in Franklin who is graduating from High School in the spring, 2020 and progressing on to their 1st year of study at a 2 or 4-year college/university.
Lenten Food Offering
In observance of the season of Lent, our St. Vincent de Paul Society is asking parishioners to consider bringing one item for the food pantry on each weekend of Lent. We are in need of canned vegetables to accompany the Easter dinner meals we will be distributing along with some personal hygiene items.
St. Vincent de Paul Easter Outreach
This year we will provide 60 dinner food boxes for members of our community. The meal consists of two small boneless hams, a five pound bag of potatoes, vegetables, a pie along with other items to complete a great meal.
Welcome to St. Mary's
If you are new to the parish, please introduce yourself to the priests after Mass. We want to know and serve you.
To register online, please click the "Online Registration" button and complete the contact information. We will forward you our Welcome to St. Mary Parish Packet, which includes our registration form.
Please see the Parish Life tab at the top of our webpage to view all of our ministries and groups. If you are interested in joining one, or more, you can do so when registering.