2017 01-29 The Feast Day of our Patroness St. Brigid of Kildare
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy On Wednesday, February 1st, we celebrate the Feast day of Saint Brigid, the patron saint of our Parish. She was an Irish Christian nun and joins Saint Patrick as one of the patron saints of Ireland. She is traditionally associated with the Cross of Saint Brigid. This cross…
2017 01-22 Bear Witness to the Value and Sacredness of All Human Life
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy The most basic gift from God that we all share is the gift of life. It is the foundation that upon which rests all the other wonderful gifts the Lord has given us. This Monday morning Archbishop Gregory will focus on the gift of life as he celebrates…
2017 01-15 Honor the Legacy of Dr. King and Strive for Christian Unity
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy This weekend as a nation we honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. for his work in promoting the dignity of the human person regardless of skin color. On Saturday, Archbishop Gregory celebrated a special Mass in honor of Dr. King at the Shrine of the…
2017 01-08 On this Feast of the Epiphany, Heed the Words of Pope Francis
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy As the New Year continues, we celebrate this Sunday the great feast of the Epiphany. Catholic Columnist, Dr. Thomas Williams reported on comments made by Pope Francis which highlighted the importance of this feast. He stated that as Our Holy Father reflected on this day, he “underscored the…
2017 01-01 Mary, the Holy Mother God and our New Year Spiritual Renewal
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy As we know our Christmas Season continues, and this past Friday we celebrated the feast of the Holy Family, the family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, the family that makes this Season possible. Our Holy Father Pope Francis has a great love for the family unit. He has…
2016 12-25 My Hope for All This Christmas
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy As we know, at Christmas, we welcome the Christ Child as Jesus “Emmanuel” comes to us. He has come not only to save us. He has also come to teach us. He has come to teach us how to live, to teach us how to serve, and to…
2016 12-18 Our Advent Journey Continues, Penance Service Mon., December 19th
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy This Sunday in a very special way we remember in our prayers our beloved former Pastor, Monsignor Paul Reynolds who died on this day six years ago. We were reminded in his obituary that he devoted his attention to the spiritual lives of parishioners, seeking to renew and…
2016 12-11 Follow the Example of Our Lady of Guadalupe This Advent Season
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy This Monday we celebrate the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. This feast is celebrated with great joy and enthusiasm throughout the Americas. Our Lady of Guadalupe is the patroness of the United States, Mexico and all of the Americas, as well as the protector of the unborn….
2016 12-04 The Catholic Tradition of the Advent Wreath and The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy As we know, a new Church Year has commenced as we have entered the season of Advent. It was heartwarming to see many of our parishioners and friends participating in our Advent Mission this past week. Many indicated that Fr. Higgins’ message of discipleship has helped them to more…
2016 11-27 The Season of Advent and Parish Mission with Fr. Brian Higgins
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy As we know, Advent is a special time in the Church year as we prepare for the coming of the Lord. Advent holds out the hope and desire to see the light of Christ shine through the darkness of our world. Our Holy Father Pope Francis focused on the…
2016 11-20 We Thank God for Blessings Recieved
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy November 20th, 2016 This Sunday we celebrate the feast of Christ the King as we approach the end of the liturgical year of our Church. We remember in a special way what Christ means to us, and what Christ did for us. We also give thanks for…
2016 11-13 We Honor our Veterans
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy This past Friday we celebrated Veterans Day. At this time we remember our men and women who served in the military and who sacrificed so much thorough their dedicated commitment to our country. Many of our Veterans served in Vietnam or in other foreign lands, or here in the…
2016 11-06 Forming Consciences in Faithful Citizenship
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy Pope Francis has addressed the issue of voting. He stated, “We need to participate for the common good. Sometimes we hear: a good Catholic is not interested in politics. This is not true: good Catholics immerse themselves in politics by offering the best of themselves so that the leader…
2016 10-30 All Saints – All Souls Day and the Mass of Remembrance
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy This Tuesday we celebrate All Saints Day. We remember those great saints who set such good examples for us. As Catholics, we can strive to model our behavior after them and follow their holy way of life. We are challenged to learn from them and to learn more about…
2016 10-23 Priesthood Sunday
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy This Sunday as a Church, as a faith community, we celebrate Priesthood Sunday. It is a special day set aside to honor the priesthood in the United States. It is a day to reflect upon and affirm the role of the priesthood in the life of the Church. We…
2016 08-28 The Canonization of Mother Teresa of Calcutta
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy One of the truly great Christians of our time was Mother Teresa. As a young woman, she heard the call to serve the Lord. She affirmed that call and became a nun and a teacher. Later, she affirmed this call, this commitment, in a more direct way by devoting…
2016 09-11 The World Day of Prayer for Peace
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy This Sunday marks the 15th anniversary of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. We as a nation recall the tragic deaths and injuries that occurred at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and on the fields of Somerset, Pennsylvania. We also remember the men and women in uniform…
2016 09-18 Mustard Seed Communities – We Are Called to Love All Children of God
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy Pope Francis has a great love and concern for all children of God. He has a special love and concern for children struggling with serious illness or disability. He recently stated, “Yet what an illusion it is when people today shut their eyes in the face of sickness and…
2016 10-16 World Mission Sunday
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy World Mission Sunday is traditionally celebrated in the latter part of October. It is a day set aside for Catholics throughout the world to publicly recommit themselves to the Church’s missionary activity through prayer and sacrifice. As we know, evangelization is very important to Our Holy Father Pope Francis. …
2016 09-25 Stewardship Time and Talent Sunday
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy My brothers and sisters in Christ, the fall season is the time for stewardship renewal in our parish. The International Catholic Stewardship Council stated, “The parish is where the Church lives, and stewards are the lifeblood of a successful parish. In the parish, we find community and support, liturgy…
2016 07-17 The Importance of Mass.. Recommit to Making it the Heart of Your Day
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy Our Holy Father Pope Francis reminds us of the importance of prayer and Mass. EWTN News reported that he said prayer should come from the heart, “gazing on the Lord, hearing the Lord, asking the Lord.” When Our Holy Father recounted the story of Mary and Martha in our…
2016 07-10 Reach Out to Your Loved Ones and Invite Them to Mass.
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy Many of us have friends, relatives, siblings, co-workers, or neighbors who are Catholic but who do not come to Mass on a regular basis. They may fall away from the active practice of the faith for a time but some eventually come back and begin participating in the life…
2016 07-03 Fortnight for Freedom
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy This Monday we celebrate the Fourth of July, Independence Day. On this day, we remember and appreciate the birth of our nation. This day also marks the end of the “Fortnight for Freedom” Campaign sponsored by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. The Campaign included the celebration…
2016 06-19 We Celebrate Father’s Day and We Remember All Fathers in a Special Way
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy Today we celebrate Father’s Day and we remember all fathers in a special way. As we know, Pope Francis has placed great emphasis and focus on fatherhood. Being a father is a great privilege and also a great responsibility. He encouraged fathers to look to Saint Joseph as…
2016 06-26 We Are Challenged to Set a Good Example for Others, and to Truly and Publicly Live our Faith
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy Catholic author Scott Richert has reminded us that “…we are called to be Christian together; while we can and should engage in private worship of God throughout the week, our primary form of worship is public and communal, which is why Sunday Mass is so important.” As Catholics…
2016 03-27 Celebrate Easter – Be a Witness for Christ
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy Today we celebrate Easter Sunday. We celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus. Once again we welcome all to our vibrant Parish community. We especially welcome all those who have completed a thorough period of inquiry, education and catechesis and will have received the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, or the…
2016 03-20 Celebrate and Experience the Joy of Palm Sunday
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy Today, on Palm Sunday, we focus on the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem. In our faith tradition, Palm Sunday marks the beginning of Holy Week during which we commemorate the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus. As we know, this week is the holiest week in the…
2016 03-13 We Are Challenged to Follow the Example of Saint Patrick
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy We celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day. Patrick is a saint known primarily for his great missionary work with the Irish people. He was a priest and later became a bishop in the fifth century. While living in England, he was kidnapped and taken to Ireland where he lived as…
2016 03-06 Prayer Should be an Integral Part of our Lenten Journey of Faith
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy As Catholics, prayer should be an integral part of our Lenten journey of faith. Catholic author Scott Richert says that prayer is a form of communication, a way of conversing with God. Prayer may be formal or informal. The word “pray” means to “ask earnestly.” Mr. Richert states, “In…
2016 02-28 We Invite You to Participate in the Lenten Initiative; “24 Hours of Mercy”
From our pastor, Father Neil Herlihy This Friday as a faith community we are invited to participate in the “24 Hours for the Lord” initiative, also known as the “24 Hours of Mercy.” The publication, “Catholic Communications” reported that The Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization has said the theme this year…