10 Church St. 01473

Tel. 978-874-2362 Fax 978-874-1024 EMAIL: Office@stedwardconf.org WEB PAGE: http://stedwardconf.org

PARISH OFFICE HOURS

Monday-Thursday, 9:00 AM-1:00 PM

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION OFFICE 978-874-1559 • Reled@stedwardconf.org

PASTOR Rev. Kevin F. Hartford

DEACON

Dennis J. Cormier

PARISH SECRETARY/BOOKKEEPER Linda Barrows

DIRECTOR OF MUSIC Anna Richard

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION CO-ORDINATOR Kimberly Brillon

SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION: Saturday 3-3:30 PM, or by appointment

SACRAMENT OF MARRIAGE: Arrangements must be made at

least one year in advance.

SACRAMENT OF BAPTISM: Please call the Rectory to

schedule a Baptismal instruction.

SACRAMENT OF THE SICK: Please let us know of anyone who would like

to receive the Sacrament.

PARISH REGISTRATION: If you would like to become a member of the Parish, please call the Rectory.

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION: Programs for education in our Faith are held

weekly. Please call the Religious Education Office: 978-874- 1559.

CHRISTIAN INITIATION OF ADULTS (RCIA): Adults who are interested in becoming members of

the Catholic Faith are invited to join the RCIA. Please call the Rectory for information.

VISITATION OF THE SICK: Our Eucharistic Ministers are always pleased to

bring the Eucharist to parishioners who are unable to join us for weekly worship. If you or a family

member would like to receive Communion, please call the Rectory. If you know of someone from the Parish who is in the hospital and would like a visit from the Pastor, please let us know.

ADULT AND CHILDREN’S CHOIR: Contact Anna Richard at 978-874-0012.

OUR FATHER’S HOUSE PROJECT: Feeding the Hungry: Second Tuesday of the month.

SAINT EDWARD Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

June 17, 2018

LORD’S DAY MASSES

Saturday 4:00 PM

Sunday 9:00 (Family)

11:00 AM

WEEKDAY MASSES

Monday through Wednesday

8:00 AM in the Chapel

T H E C O N F E S S O R W E S T M I N S T E R

ST. EDWARD THE CONFESSOR PARISH WESTMINSTER

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Let us honor God with our first

fruits rather than the leftovers.�

Last Sunday’s Offering $4,547.45 Building Fund $ 271.00 June 3 Offering $3,274.00 Communication collection $ 130.00

Thank you for your generous support of the Parish. Your weekly financial support enables

Saint Edward's to provide for the needs of our Parish.

Mass

Intentions

For The Week

THE MOST CHERISHED OF AMERICAN FREEDOMS

In 1634, a mix of Catholic and Protestant settlers arrived in Southern Maryland from England aboard the Ark and the Dove. They had come at the invitation of the Catholic Lord Baltimore, who had been granted the land by the Protestant King Charles I of England. While Catholics and Protestants were killing each other in Europe, Lord Baltimore imagined Maryland as a society where people of different faiths could live together peacefully. This vi-sion was soon codified in Maryland’s 1649 Act Concerning Re-ligion (also called the “Toleration Act”), which was the first law in our nation’s history to protect an individual’s right to freedom of conscience. Maryland’s early history teaches us that, like any freedom, religious liberty requires constant vigilance and protec-tion, or it will disappear. Maryland’s experiment in religious tol-eration ended within a few decades. The colony was placed under royal control and the Church of England became the established religion. Discriminatory laws, including the loss of political rights, were enacted against those who refused to conform. Catho-lic chapels were closed and Catholics were restricted to practicing their faith in their homes. The Catholic community lived under this coercion until the American Revolution. By the end of the 18th century our nation’s founders embraced freedom of religion as an essential condition of a free and democratic society. So when the Bill of Rights was ratified, religious freedom had the distinction of being the First Amendment. Religious liberty is indeed the first liberty. This is our American heritage, our most cherished freedom. If we are not free in our conscience and our practice of religion, all other freedoms are fragile. If our obliga-tions and duties to God are impeded, or even worse, contradicted by the government, then we can no longer claim to be a land of the free.

Peter’s Pence Collection - June 23/24 Thank you for your generous support of Pope Francis’

charity work through the Peter’s Pence Collection. Through

this gift, you join in solidarity with him as a witness of

charity. To learn more, please visit www.usccb.org/peters-

pence.

Serving Others in God’s Love Religious Freedom Week

Celebrated in dioceses nationwide from June 22 to June

29. Throughout the week we will focus on the importance

of preserving the essential right of religious freedom, both

now and in the future, for Catholics and all people of faith.

This year’s theme is “Serving Others in God’s Love” re-

minding us that religious liberty allows people of faith to

serve God and others freely in ministries like healthcare,

adoption and foster care, education, and migration and refu-

gee services to name a few. The significant feast days dur-

ing the week (Saints Thomas More and John Fisher – June

22, Saint John the Baptist – June 24, and Saints Peter and

Paul – June 29) inspire us to follow the example of these

great saints who loved God above all and remained faithful

in the face of adversity. Please visit www.usccb.org/

ReligiousFreedomWeek to download the “Pray-Reflect-

Act” one-pagers for each day on various religious liberty

topics. These excellent resources are intended to inspire us

to learn more about religious liberty from a Catholic per-

spective, help us to pray about particular issues, and provide

us with tools to act on what we learn. Additional informa-

tion can be found at www.worcesterdiocese.org/

religiousfreedomweek.

Word of Life

“Religion (cannot) be relegated to the inner sanctum of per-

sonal life, without influence on societal and national life.” ~Pope Francis, Evangelii gaudium, 183. C.2013 Libreria Editrice Vaticana, Used with permission

ELEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME JUNE 17, 2018

Weekly Rosary at 2:45 PM, Saturdays All are invited to be in the church at

2:40 P.M. on Saturday afternoons to

pray the rosary together.

Come join us!

Readings for the Week of June 17, 2018 Sunday: Ez 17:22-24/Ps 92:2-3, 13-14, 15-16 [cf. 2a]/2 Cor 5:6-10/Mk 4:26-34 Monday: 1 Kgs 21:1-16/Ps 5:2-3ab, 4b-6a, 6b-7 [2b]/Mt 5:38-42 Tuesday: 1 Kgs 21:17-29/Ps 51:3-4, 5-6ab, 11 and 16 [3a]/Mt 5:43-48 Wednesday: 2 Kgs 2:1, 6-14/Ps 31:20, 21, 24 [25]/Mt 6:1-6, 16-18 Thursday: Sir 48:1-14/Ps 97:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7 [12a]/Mt 6:7-15 Friday: 2 Kgs 11:1-4, 9-18, 20/Ps 132:11, 12, 13-14, 17-18 [13]/Mt 6:19-23 Saturday: 2 Chr 24:17-25/Ps 89:4-5, 29-30, 31-32, 33-34 [29a]/Mt 6:24-34 Next Sunday: Vigil: Jer 1:4-10/Ps 71:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 15, 17 [6b]/1 Pt 1:8-12/Lk 1:5-17 Day: Is 49:1-6/Ps 139:1-3, 13-14, 14-15 [14a]/Acts 13:22-26/Lk 1:57-66, 80

Thinking about a Retreat Visit: http://www.presentationofmary-usa.org

Or www.timeoutretreats.com Or http://www.ourladyhope.org

Or for more information on a Cursillo weekend email contact Sue Leighton at 508-278-3155

or sleighton1958@gmail.com

Would You Like to Put Your Faith into Action?

The Pro Life committee at St. Edward the Confessor would love to have your help and input. We will be working on fostering Re-spect for Human Life at both its beginning and its natural end. Our next meeting is Monday, June 18 at 7pm in the church Re-source Room. If you are interested please call Dustan Labreche at 508-769-4974 or email: dustan.labreche@gmail.com.

“Care Net” Baby Shower

We are sponsoring a “Virtual” Baby Shower to help Care Net Pregnancy Resource Center of Fitchburg

restock their baby boutique shelves. Taking donations until June 25th. Thank you for your gifts!

FALL FESTIVAL – KICK-OFF Meeting, Tuesday,

June 26, 2018 at 6PM – All committee chairs, food/booth

volunteers are invited to the 2018 Fall Festival Kick-off

meeting. Pizza & soft drinks served. Meeting starts

at 6:30PM. Contact Eileen McIntyre, Chairperson,

978-874-0472 with any questions.

Law School Scholarship - Each year the St. Thomas More Society of our Diocese awards a scholarship of not less than $3000 to a law student attending an accredited law school. Applicants or parents must be registered and active members of a parish in the Diocese of Worcester. Applicants, any year of law school studies. Applications may be obtained by visiting, www.worcesterdiocese.org/st-thomas-more-society, mail requests to: St. Thomas More Society, Chancery Office, 49 Elm Street, Worcester, MA 01609 or call Sara Smillie at 508-929-4345. Applications due on or before September 21. Should anyone wish to contribute to the scholarship fund, donations greatly appreciated, use the above address or phone number.

Knights of Columbus Council #15972

The Knights of Columbus meet on the fourth Tuesday of each month. Our next meeting will take place at St. Edward’s on Tues. June 26 at 7:00 PM. Men over age 18 interested in joining the Knights of Columbus, please contact Grand Knight Mike Green 978-855-6486.

Volunteers are invited to the St. Edward’s

Appreciation Dinner on June 30th at 5:30 PM.

“Thank you for all you do for St. Edward’s Parish!”

Please RSVP by June 22nd to the church office,

978-874-2362 between 9 am and 1 pm. FATAL FLAWS: LEGALIZING ASSISTED DEATH

A local showing will be held in Annunciation Parish at Holy Spirit Chapel, 50 Lovewell St. in Gardner on Wednesday, June 27th from 7 - 9 pm with a discussion led by Kris Correira, physi-cian assistant, bioethicist, and co-chair of Witness for Life. This documentary explores the consequences of Physician Assisted Suicide laws a decade after they were first enacted in parts of North America. The event is free and open to the public, spon-sored by Witness for Life and Emmanuel Radio. Please register at witnessforlife.com/ or by calling Maura Sweeney at 978-632-0253.

Pilgrimage to the Holy Land and Jordan St. Andrew Bobola Parish will sponsor a Pilgrimage to Israel and Jordan March17-28, 2019. During this time we will visit Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Bethlehem, Cesarea Maritima, Haifa, Mount Tabor, Cana, Nazareth, Capernaum, Tabgha, Amman, Jordan, Jerash, Ein Karen,Yad Vashem,Qasr el Yahud, Wadi El Qelt, Jericho, Qumran, Dead Sea, Bethany, Judaean Desert, Mount of Temptation, Qarantal, Jordan, Mount of Olives, Mount Sinai, and more. The all-inclusive cost with breakfast, dinners is $3,190.00 (double occupancy). Please contact: Fr. Chris at 508-943-5633 or email: rectory@standrewbobola.net. Registration Forms are available on parish website: www.standrewbobola.com.

The Massachusetts March for Life is on Father's Day, June 17, 2018/�'����������������������%���������� groups! Let the pub-lic and legislature know that 1.4 million babies have died in Mas-sachusetts since Roe v Wade!�And celebrate a pro-life Fathers'

Day! Boston Common, Rally begins at 1:00 PM�������������

�� 2:30 PM.� More info: www.masscitizensforlife.org or 617-242-4199.