Pastor Weekly Message For 03/14/21

Jesus Is Lord!

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

It is with great joy that we welcome back the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal who will lead our Lenten Parish Mission, Moving forward in Jesus our Hope. After a year of facing so many challenges because of the pandemic, fear and anxiety to name a few, this mission will focus on a pathway of moving beyond these challenges anchored in Jesus our Hope. The mission will be held in Mary, Mother of God Church from Sunday to Wednesday at 7:00pm to 8:30pm. This is a special week for our parish during this season of Lent. The mission is for the entire family, so please make the time to join our parish family for this mission. Again, let us welcome the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal.

Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration at Saint Mary Chapel is going very well. However, as of this writing there are still five hours where we have only one adorer, most of them in the early morning hours (or in the middle of the night, depending on how you look at it.) As mentioned in the announcements at Mass, I make a special appeal to the men of the parish to cover these hours of adoration. I really believe the Lord has put on my heart during my prayer time to call forth the men for these hours.

Each night since the pandemic started back in March 2020, a group of men from That Man Is You! (TMIY!) men’s ministry have gathered every night for a webex meeting to pray the Rosary for the end of the pandemic. Recently, this group of holy men have been watching a video series produced by the Knights of Columbus entitled “Standing in the Breach.” These videos are amazing and call men to authentic holiness by challenging them to be spiritual leaders who “stand in the breach” for their families, church and country.
The men of TMIY! and the Knights of Columbus are certainly great witnesses to this call of holiness. Many are adorers at the Chapel, and many have taken hours in the middle of the night. It is in the spirit of “standing in the breach” for our parish, that I feel the Lord is putting on my heart to ask more men to commit to one hour a week in Eucharistic Adoration, especially during the middle of the night.

So as of this writing, here are the hours where adorers are needed for Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration at Saint Mary Chapel. 1am Thursday, 3am Monday, 4am Wednesday, 6am Wednesday, 2pm Sunday.

In this bulletin, there are 12 Biblical reasons listed for wanting to spend one hour with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. The first reason, He is really there! "I myself am the living bread come down from heaven." (Jn 6:35) Amazing! Jesus is waiting for you! To sign up for an hour, please go to our parish webpage, www.stmarychurchnj.org/adoration.

Have a blessed week and see you at the Mission!

In Jesus and Mary,
Father Jeff Kegley