Our Lady ​of Mount Virgin Parish

Roman Catholic Church

Garfield, NJ

My Friends:

Let me begin by wishing all the women of our parish a very blessed and happy Mother's Day. This Sunday, as we celebrate Mass, let us all remember in our prayers the intentions of all our mothers, both living and deceased. We also honor the Mother of God and our Mother too - The Virgin Mary! The month of May is dedicated to Our Lady and as such we Crown Her Image, known in our lives growing up as The May Crowning. The crown we place upon Her Head is offered for the special intentions of Marie Yaccarino by her daughter, Judith Guma. Remember this famous quote by St. Therese the Little Flower, "The greatest masterpiece of the heart of God is the heart of a mother."

We complete our religious education program this Sunday as well, with a breakfast to honor the mothers of our CCD children. We also present to all catechists and classroom aides a small gift as a sign of our gratitude. These women and men volunteer their time and talent throughout the year to instruct the children in knowledge of our faith. They are invaluable and if things were different I assure you I would pay them. Hopefully someday when "things" change this will be possible. Parents, I ask you to please continue to bring your children to Sunday Mass. It saddens me each year when CCD is over and the population of children attending Mass dwindles dramatically. Your children are not the future of the church - THEY ARE THE CHURCH!

MEALS with a MISSION - In years past, we "fed the hungry" on a monthly basis via the former "Loaves and Fishes" food pantry. Meals with a Mission is located at 63 Harrison Avenue in Garfield. It is a wonderful ministry. There are also volunteer opportunities and they have a FACEBOOK PAGE with so much more information. Two large circular baskets will remain in the lobby on a continuous basis. If possible, when you do your weekly food shopping to buy even one extra non-perishable food item and drop it in when you attend Mass. It will be truly wonderful. God bless you always for your generous hearts. Remember Jesus' Words.... "what we do for the least, we do for Him." Amen!

Please hold up in your prayers for our Christian sisters and brothers and pastoral leadership of Zion Lutheran Church at 111 Midland Avenue in Garfield. I received a letter announcing the sad news they needed to close their doors. It is for reasons similar to what we suffered at Our Lady of Sorrows. They held their last Service at their church last Sunday, May 5th. It was truly always a pleasure to work with Pastor Janet Blair on our common Thanksgiving Worship Services. Pray for them!

We continue to make progress with our newly formed I-Faith Ministry. Great things are unfolding as we move forward. We will be conducting a COMPLETE PARISH RE-REGISTRATION and updating all of our records and social media to bring us current with the times AND to reach out beyond our walls to evangelize our local people. We need to "think outside the box" which is a trap in which we can become caught when fearful to try new methods, styles, etc..... Just this past weekend we began to use a system known as SQUARE. Simply, it means we CAN now accept CREDIT CARD payments. The research has been done and many churches do use it and successfully. Hey - who in this day and age does not use plastic for anything and everything. More to come!

Thanks to everyone who attended the Belated Birthday Bingo Bash this past Friday! I need you all to come out and support our choir, who has worked, prayed and practiced long hours to present to us a PHENOMENAL SPRING CONCERT, Broadway Comes to Mount Virgin, next Sunday the 19th at 2:00pm in our church. The ticket offering is only ten dollars. I never want anyone to stay away because of cost. If you would like to join us and do not have the means - please see me or call me at the office. Total confidentiality. I would be happy to have you as my "secret concert guest!" I am very serious!!!

HEADS UP! Upon my return from the sabbatical I was informed that the Church AC unit was DONE! Yep! In consultation with our Finance Team and Trustees and Property Management of the Archdiocese, we signed a contract to replace all of the air handlers located above your heads in church. They are up in the space above the ceiling. They have caused us more than enough damage and headaches and money since the ceiling was replaced. It has to be. The project is beginning soon. PRAY it is completed before the real heat hits!

Let us continue to pray as we move forward on our pilgrim journey in this joyful Easter season!

Loving you always,

Fr. Peter