Today, on the Solemnity of All Saints, we begin National Vocation Awareness Week—a special time to focus on vocations and to help young people listen for God’s call. This year our Church also celebrates the Year of St. Francis, whose life reminds us that holiness begins by listening to Christ and responding generously. Francis wrote, “Incline the ear of your heart and obey the voice of the Son of God.” That invitation is meant for every Christian.

The Litany of Patience (also known as The Choleric’s Prayer, inspired by the Litany of Humility by Rafael Cardinal Merry del Val y Zulueta) was written by Catholic writer and speaker Christina Jaloway. May this prayer offer you food for reflection and a source of many graces.

Last Saturday, Pope Leo declared capital punishment “inadmissible” as he marked the World Day Against the Death Penalty. He was using the same term Pope Francis used in 2018, when he revised the Church’s teaching on the death penalty in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, # 2267, which states:

Next weekend, we will celebrate the 100th Anniversary of World Mission Sunday, a special day that unites Catholics worldwide in prayer, solidarity, and support for the Church’s mission efforts, which is crucial for sustaining the Church’s outreach in over 1,150 mission territories throughout the world. World Mission Sunday reminds us that we belong to a worldwide Church, which is not often in the forefront of our minds.

Today is Respect Life Sunday, the beginning of a month dedicated to promoting the reverence and respect due all human life from conception to natural death. And so, I share with you a thought-provoking article prepared a few years ago by the Pro-Life Office of the Archdiocese of Boston.

Last Thursday, September 24, Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen was beatified at The Dome at America’s Center in St. Louis, Missouri. Beatification declares Archbishop Sheen “Blessed,” and is the final step before becoming canonized a saint. Part of the process of becoming “Blessed” entails a thorough investigation to credit the person’s intercession with a medically unexplained miracle, which in his case was the recovery of an infant who had no vital signs for 61 minutes.

Deacon Art Keefe and his surviving classmates recently celebrated their 30th Anniversary of Ordination to the Permanent Diaconate for the Archdiocese of Boston. Now a “Senior Deacon,” (past the age of 74), Deacon Art continues to serve generously in ministry in quiet ways as well as in some public ways, such as an occasional Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion or lector at the Sunday 10:30 Mass.

Since the first century, the Catholic Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion, and that it is contrary to the moral law. Sadly, Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey recently signed legislation, which will become effective November 8 , that will remove previous restrictions on abortions after 24 weeks of pregnancy allowing a licensed physician, based on their medical judgement, to perform an abortion without any restriction - making it possible for a fully viable child to be aborted up to the time of birth.

This past Monday, September 1, we welcomed aboard a new Finance and Operations Manager here at Holy Family Parish, Christine Gillis. She, her husband, and two children live in Scituate. Christine has most recently served as Business Manager at the St. Francis Xavier / St. Albert Parish Collaborative in Weymouth, which includes a Catholic school and a cemetery. Her experience working in parishes within the Archdiocese of Boston provides a helpful familiarity with the day-to-day operations, systems, and processes utilized by the Archdiocese.

Shortly after I was ordained, I went on a scripture study tour in the Holy Land. While our group was walking along a street in Jerusalem, the leader asked us what we were talking about. We had to be honest… we were talking about what we were going to see later in the day. He chewed us out for not being present in the moment to appreciate the sights, sounds and experiences that surrounded us. Does that sound familiar to you? Have you ever found yourself in a special place and started wondering about other things or scrolling on your device?