News - March 2023 RSS Feed

In the Monday Gospel at Mass, Mary of Bethany pours costly oil over Our Lord, and weeping with remorse for her sins, wipes His feet with her hair. Jesus speaks of her great love which merits great mercy. Tuesday, at the regular daily Mass, the prophet Isaiah trumpets himself as the strong, fine-edged servant of God, a weapon in the hands of his Lord. In the Gospel, Jesus reclines at table at the Last Supper, “deeply troubled,” offering Judas a chance to turn away from evil, hearing Peter avow his undying loyalty. Our diocese celebrates the annual Chrism Mass today with different readings and Gospel, at 11:00 a.m. at the Cathedral of St. Joseph, in the upstairs church. There is no 12:05 p.m. daily Mass. Our parish priests will renew their ordination vows and receive holy oils for their parishes. Spy Wednesday is the last weekday before the Easter Triduum. We hear in the Gospel Judas Iscariot bargaining for Christ’s arrest.

At the Mass on Holy Thursday (April 6, 7:00 PM), there will be a collection for the North End Food Pantry. You are invited to bring non-perishable food or to make a monetary donation to the Food Pantry. At the normal collection time, all will be invited to bring their donations forward and place them on the altar steps.

Stations of the Cross are prayed on Fridays at 5:30 PM in the Main Church. Deacon Dennis Moore or Msgr. Routhier will lead the Stations and will be assisted by the following groups: Mar 31 - Confirmation Class and Youth of the Parish Those who are assisting will be assigned a Station as they arrive on Friday evenings. For more information, contact the Parish Office at 802-658-4333.

Bishop Coyne will celebrate Mass with priests of the diocese and consecrate sacred oils: the Oil of Chrism, the Oils of Catechumens, and the Oil of the Sick. Priests will recommit themselves to the Priesthood of Jesus Christ. Parish representatives may pick up the holy oils for their parishes after Mass in the lower chapel. A reception will follow in the parish hall.

There's still plenty of time to join the spring 2023 campaign in Barre, Burlington, or Rutland. The activities run from the kickoff this past weekend, Feb. 19 through Sunday, April 2. Here are internet addresses for the local 40 Days groups to sign up for a vigil time: https://www.40daysforlife.com/en/burlington https://www.40daysforlife.com/en/barre https://www.40daysforlife.com/en/rutland. Please use this link to pray with 40 Days for Life if you can't sign up for an abortion site vigil time: https://www.40daysforlife.com/en/resources-devotionals.aspx

This week, we hear Our Lord’s promises of our resurrection from the dead from the prophet Ezekiel: “Thus says the Lord God: O my people, I will open your graves and have you rise from them.” “I trust in the Lord,” affirms Psalm 130, and St. Paul tells us, “The One who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also.” The Gospel of John relates the story of the death and raising of Lazarus. The two-week period Passiontide begins this weekend. Church statues and crosses and crucifixes may be covered with veils, usually purple, simple and unadorned. Various authors describe different reasons for the veiling: shielding these beloved images helps us fast, in a sense, from images of God and his saints, and hunger for their return at the great Easter Solemnity. The shrouds also connote death, as the Church will journey through the Lord’s passion and death soon, and wait in silent vigil for the Resurrection at the end of the upcoming Holy Week. We also may view this allusion to death as a symbol of our own Lenten struggle to die to sin and be born anew at Easter. A Gospel of Passiontide in the Traditional form speaks of Jesus hiding himself, as we hide these images. Veiling statues also calls to mind Jesus’ hiding or veiling his divinity during his Passion. Another author likens the removal of these statues from our sight as one of the steps taken during this time in Lent, to hide and reduce more aspects or our faith, just as we had earlier put away the Gloria and Alleluia, and soon lose bells and the Mass itself at the end of Holy Week. The veils are removed before the Easter Vigil Mass.

Please come to adore our Lord after the 12:05 PM Mass every Friday in Lent. The Holy Hour begins after Mass, with Msgr. Routhier also hearing Confessions. The Hour ends with Benediction.

We are joyful this day because Easter draws near. Our priest may wear rose-colored vestments instead of purple or violet. It’s a good time to add to our joy by going to Confession, preparing for receiving Our Lord at Easter. Church flowers and more music are allowed today before we return to a penitential mode. At Mass, we hear the reading from Samuel recounting the discovery and anointing of David, the shepherd youth, as the future king of Israel. In keeping with the shepherd theme, our Psalm is No. 23, “The Lord is my shepherd.” Next, we pass on to the message of light, as Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians exhorts us to shun the works of darkness, to “Awake, O Sleeper … and Christ will give you light.” The Gospel from St. John continues this motif with the story of the blind man.

THIRD SUNDAY IN LENT This week at Holy Mass, our first reading is from the Old Testament Book of Exodus, when Moses struck the rock in the desert to give his people miraculous water. God hears Moses’s stricken plea for help and directs him to draw water from the stone. Psalm 95 urges us to resist hardened hearts, referring to the Israelites from the first reading. In the second reading, St. Paul in his Letter to the Romans encourages us to stay strong in the face of adversity. The Gospel is a long one with a famed lengthy dialogue between Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the well, a fascinating story that the Church prizes. It is full of gems of meaning from our Catholic faith. You may wish to consult your Lenten guides for more insights into this priceless tale of Our Lord’s thirst for us, our thirst for Him, and how to satisfy both desires.

"This year, the Memorial of Saint Patrick falls on Friday, March 17. It is well known that Saint Patrick’s Day is a day of convivial celebration for many American Catholics. In addition, St. Patrick is the secondary Patron of the Diocese of Burlington. I, therefore, decree that on Friday, March 17, 2023, all Catholics of the Diocese of Burlington, no matter where they may be, and all other Catholics actually present in the Diocese on that day, are, by my authority, dispensed from the obligation (can. 87 §1). For those who make use of this dispensation, I recommend embracing some additional penance or act of charity during this Lenten season." The Most Reverend Christopher J. Coyne Bishop of Burlington

Our pastor is tapering off use of his arm sling and celebrating some Masses. He may be assisted by a deacon or a server. Monsignor said he is grateful for prayers for his healing and that his progress allowed him to offer Mass. He expects to continue to celebrate Mass as his arm heals. He also is hearing some Confessions.