Weekly Digest

Here's the lineup for the week at the Parish:

• Tuesday - Family Playgroup (10:30 am), Fatima Apostolate (7 pm)
• Thursday - First Friday Confessions (4 pm)
• Friday - First Friday Adoration (all day, Benediction at 5:00, Mass at 5:30 pm), Saint Agnes School Ice Cream Social (6 pm)
• Saturday - BSE Care Packages due at weekend Masses, Prayer at Planned Parenthood (7 am, meet in parking lot at 6:30 am to carpool), Confessions (3 pm)
• Sunday - BSE Care Packages due at weekend Masses, Coffee and Donuts (after 9 am Mass), Infant Baptisms (2 pm)

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Saint Agnes Family Playgroup

The Saint Agnes Family group holds weekly Tuesday playgroups outdoors at nearby parks. We start at 10:30 am (but sometimes moms run late). You are welcome to join us! You can find the spring playgroup schedule here, or by clicking the link at the upper left of the blog home page.

This Tuesday, May 31st, our group is scheduled to meet at Dugger Park  (2 Mystic River Rd., Medford) at 10:30 am.  This fenced park has a fun blacktop area (the sprinkler may be working...) as well as shade and a beautiful view of the Mystic River.  Bring a picnic lunch and come to join us!

Please note that Marianne Hudelson will not be at playgroup this week, due to family travels.  A new leader is needed for playgroup in the future.  If you are able to help with this ministry to parish families, please email Marianne (SaintAgnesFamilies@gmail.com).  Just come out, enjoy the sunshine, and any friends who come to play!

**NOTE THAT our outdoor play schedule is highly dependent on good weather. If the weather seems questionable, please check your email or the blog page before you leave for playgroup. In case of rain or weather below 32 degrees, playgroup will be cancelled for the day. Thanks!**

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First Friday Adoration

This Friday, June 3rd, is the first Friday of the month. On Thursday, June 2nd from 4:00-5:00 pm, there will be the opportunity for confession in the lower church. On Friday, Saint Agnes will be offering all-day Adoration, concluding with Benediction and Mass at 5:00/5:30pm, in the lower church. Also at noon there will be a Holy Hour to pray for priests and victims of clergy sexual abuse. Adoration is a wonderful opportunity to spend some quiet time with the Lord and gain some focus in our lives - especially with all the busy distractions of daily life. For more background on the long tradition of keeping a First Friday devotion, look here or here.

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Saturday Morning Prayer at Planned Parenthood

Saint Agnes Parish is continuing its hour of prayer in front of Planned Parenthood on Saturday mornings from 7:00-8:00 am.  If you would like to carpool, meet at 6:30 am in the Saint Agnes School parking lot.  We return to Arlington by 8:30 a.m.  If you have questions, please e-mail Eileen Cahill (SAParishforLife@gmail.com).  We have been told by the devoted sidewalk counselors how much they appreciate having us there praying when they arrive.  They need help and support.  Please join this effort.  Once you go and pray with others, you gain more confidence and it gets easier.  Join us; prayer is the faithful's most powerful tool!

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FALL 2016 REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN FOR OUR WONDERFUL PARISH SCHOOLS!

FIDELITY HOUSE - Preschool and Pre-K

SAINT AGNES GRAMMAR SCHOOL - Pre-K through Grade 8

ARLINGTON CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL

Links to these websites are located at the top right-hand of the blog page.

When you invest and involve your family here, you can participate

in the evangelical mission and service of these community resources,

which are offered by - and in the long tradition of - our very own Catholic Church.

Financial Aid is available.  WOW!

Saturday for Teens: Music!

Speaking personally, modern Christian music changed my life of faith forever. While the Holy Spirit did all the hard work on my heart, for me, music was the vehicle of conversion that helped me to fall in love with Christ, and launched me into an adult life in which I wanted to live boldly as a Catholic Christian! My husband chuckles, but music continues to be a way into my heart today.

So, I humbly share with you a piece of my heart!  For the teens at Saint Agnes, maybe you will find a new artist who inspires you, a song that is relevant, or a hymn that reminds you to pray during a difficult moment.  Only the Holy Spirit can know what difference it might make to you!

Phew!  Does anyone else think that springtime is stressful?  I remember that as a teenager, the mountain of projects, applications, deadlines, activities, and commissioning ceremonies was like a deadweight on my shoulders!  I absorbed a lot of the stress and often felt so much pressure to execute each and every expectation of the season.

Then my junior year, things began to fall apart and I had to take a step back and think about the eternal perspective on all of these things that demand our attention in life: "What is the meaning of this project?  Yes, I have to complete it, but is it as importantly terrible as I am making it out to be?  Maybe it's time to take a half hour and sit with Jesus.  If I never meet this person's expectations to the highest degree, how will that effect the future of my eternal life with God?"

It's time to stop, breathe, think, and pray!  God is bigger than these problems, and He loves you deeper than all that stress you may have internalized. His love is forever, He made you perfectly, and  meeting everyone else's demands will never, ever compare with having a secure friendship with Christ.  So don't forget to take a step back this spring, and remember to keep everything in perspective :)

Here is a great article about Pope Francis' tips for daily steps to holiness.

Wednesday: Explore Laudato Si!

Hello everyone!  As we celebrate Pentecost, let us reflect on the action of the Holy Spirit, and His compelling desire to make all things new (Revelations, chapter 21), including our hearts and our faith. Pope Francis is reminding us that as Christians, there's no time like the present to cast off our old selves and begin anew.  Continuing with our weekly excerpts of the pope's most recent encyclical, "Laudato Si" is posted here - so that we can all learn, digest, pray and discern one snippet at a time.  Come Holy Spirit, teach us and guide us, and may Your Will be done!

II. THE GLOBALIZATION OF THE TECHNOCRATIC PARADIGM
106. The basic problem goes even deeper: it is the way that humanity has taken up technology and its development according to an undifferentiated and one-dimensional paradigm. This paradigm exalts the concept of a subject who, using logical and rational procedures, progressively approaches and gains control over an external object. This subject makes every effort to establish the scientific and experimental method, which in itself is already a technique of possession, mastery and transformation. It is as if the subject were to find itself in the presence of something formless, completely open to manipulation. Men and women have constantly intervened in nature, but for a long time this meant being in tune with and respecting the possibilities offered by the things themselves. It was a matter of receiving what nature itself allowed, as if from its own hand. Now, by contrast, we are the ones to lay our hands on things, attempting to extract everything possible from them while frequently ignoring or forgetting the reality in front of us. Human beings and material objects no longer extend a friendly hand to one another; the relationship has become confrontational. This has made it easy to accept the idea of infinite or unlimited growth, which proves so attractive to economists, financiers and experts in technology. It is based on the lie that there is an infinite supply of the earth’s goods, and this leads to the planet being squeezed dry beyond every limit. It is the false notion that “an infinite quantity of energy and resources are available, that it is possible to renew them quickly, and that the negative effects of the exploitation of the natural order can be easily absorbed”.[86]

107. It can be said that many problems of today’s world stem from the tendency, at times unconscious, to make the method and aims of science and technology an epistemological paradigm which shapes the lives of individuals and the workings of society. The effects of imposing this model on reality as a whole, human and social, are seen in the deterioration of the environment, but this is just one sign of a reductionism which affects every aspect of human and social life. We have to accept that technological products are not neutral, for they create a framework which ends up conditioning lifestyles and shaping social possibilities along the lines dictated by the interests of certain powerful groups. Decisions which may seem purely instrumental are in reality decisions about the kind of society we want to build.

108. The idea of promoting a different cultural paradigm and employing technology as a mere instrument is nowadays inconceivable. The technological paradigm has become so dominant that it would be difficult to do without its resources and even more difficult to utilize them without being dominated by their internal logic. It has become countercultural to choose a lifestyle whose goals are even partly independent of technology, of its costs and its power to globalize and make us all the same. Technology tends to absorb everything into its ironclad logic, and those who are surrounded with technology “know full well that it moves forward in the final analysis neither for profit nor for the well-being of the human race”, that “in the most radical sense of the term power is its motive – a lordship over all”.[87] As a result, “man seizes hold of the naked elements of both nature and human nature”.[88] Our capacity to make decisions, a more genuine freedom and the space for each one’s alternative creativity are diminished.

109. The technocratic paradigm also tends to dominate economic and political life. The economy accepts every advance in technology with a view to profit, without concern for its potentially negative impact on human beings. Finance overwhelms the real economy. The lessons of the global financial crisis have not been assimilated, and we are learning all too slowly the lessons of environmental deterioration. Some circles maintain that current economics and technology will solve all environmental problems, and argue, in popular and non-technical terms, that the problems of global hunger and poverty will be resolved simply by market growth. They are less concerned with certain economic theories which today scarcely anybody dares defend, than with their actual operation in the functioning of the economy. They may not affirm such theories with words, but nonetheless support them with their deeds by showing no interest in more balanced levels of production, a better distribution of wealth, concern for the environment and the rights of future generations. Their behaviour shows that for them maximizing profits is enough. Yet by itself the market cannot guarantee integral human development and social inclusion.[89] At the same time, we have “a sort of ‘superdevelopment’ of a wasteful and consumerist kind which forms an unacceptable contrast with the ongoing situations of dehumanizing deprivation”,[90] while we are all too slow in developing economic institutions and social initiatives which can give the poor regular access to basic resources. We fail to see the deepest roots of our present failures, which have to do with the direction, goals, meaning and social implications of technological and economic growth.

Weekly Digest

Here's the lineup for the week at the Parish:

• Tuesday - Family Playgroup (10:30 am), Choir Practice (7 pm), Fatima Apostolate (7 pm)
• Thursday - Saint Dymphna Society (6:30 pm), Pops Concert with the Sodality of our Lady (6:30 pm)
• Saturday - Prayer at Planned Parenthood (7 am, meet in parking lot at 6:30 am to carpool), Confessions (3 pm)
• Sunday - Coffee and Donuts (after 9 am Mass), FATHER FLATLEY'S  50th JUBILEE!! (2 pm Mass, followed by a luncheon on the school lawn)
• Monday - Happy Memorial Day!

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Father Flatley's 50th Anniversary
Father Brian Flatley is celebrating the 50th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood on Sunday, May 29, 2016. Mass will be celebrated at Saint Agnes Church at 2:00 pm, with a reception to follow on the Parish grounds. Father Flatley would love to have parishioners of Saint Agnes Parish join him for this happy occasion. If you are able to be with us, please RSVP by Friday, May 20, with a number, at frflatley50@saintagnes.net. If you cannot be with him, Father Flatley asks that you remember him in prayer.

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Saint Agnes Family Playgroup

The Saint Agnes Family group holds weekly Tuesday playgroups outdoors at nearby parks. We start at 10:30 am (but sometimes moms run late). You are welcome to join us! You can find the spring playgroup schedule here, or by clicking the link at the upper left of the blog home page.

This Tuesday, May 24th, our group is scheduled to meet at Winn Brook Playground (173 Cross St., Belmont) at 10:30 am.  This fenced park has a great "maze" playground, swings, tennis courts, and also a tot lot.  Bring a picnic lunch and come to join us!

**NOTE THAT our outdoor play schedule is highly dependent on good weather. If the weather seems questionable, please check your email or the blog page before you leave for playgroup. In case of rain or weather below 32 degrees, playgroup will be cancelled for the day. Thanks!**

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Registration for Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is OPEN!
Our parish is very blessed to offer this montessori-based preschool Religious Education Program. This program serves children ages 3 to 5 years, and children age 6 years, if they will not be entering the 1st Grade. The children must be potty-trained and able to go to the restroom on their own. There are a limited number of seats, to be filled on a first-come, first-served basis, determined by the date the registration form is received. Registration is open from May 9-27th. Registration forms available at the Parish Center and should be returned to the Religious Education Office. You may contact the Religious Education Office at 781-646-5579 if you wish to have the form mailed to you. For information about the program, call Jean Keiselbach (781-646-0475).

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Saturday Morning Prayer at Planned Parenthood

Saint Agnes Parish is continuing its hour of prayer in front of Planned Parenthood on Saturday mornings from 7:00-8:00 am.  If you would like to carpool, meet at 6:30 am in the Saint Agnes School parking lot.  We return to Arlington by 8:30 a.m.  If you have questions, please e-mail Eileen Cahill at SAParishforLife@gmail.com.  We have been told by the devoted sidewalk counselors how much they appreciate having us there praying when they arrive.  They need help and support.  Please join this effort.  Once you go and pray with others, you gain more confidence and it gets easier.  Join us; prayer is the faithful's most powerful tool!

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FALL 2016 REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN FOR OUR WONDERFUL PARISH SCHOOLS!

FIDELITY HOUSE - Preschool and Pre-K

SAINT AGNES GRAMMAR SCHOOL - Pre-K through Grade 8

ARLINGTON CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL

Links to these websites are located at the top right-hand of the blog page.

When you invest and involve your family here, you can participate

in the evangelical mission and service of these community resources,

which are offered by - and in the long tradition of - our very own Catholic Church.

Financial Aid is available.  WOW!

Reserve Now: Saint Agnes Parish Campout!

Are your relatives calling you? They want to know what the summer plans are. 

Well before you give away all your dates to in-laws, make sure you mark your calendars!

FOURTH ANNUAL SAINT AGNES CAMPOUT

July 8-10, 2016

Greenfield State Park, NH

"Day Campers" invited to join us on Saturday, July 9th*

*Please note that Maureen Ronayne is in charge of the campout this year. Her information is below.*

Details:

1. If you know you are coming (or when you decide you are coming), please use this form, so we can keep track of how many people and WHO we are expecting to meet at the park! Ultimately, I will need everyone to fill out this form, so I have names and numbers in case of any emergency. So go ahead and fill it out ASAP.

2. The dates for this camping trip are July 8-10. We will plan to camp at Greenfield State Park in Greenfield, NH - about an hour-and-a-half drive from Arlington. This park has come highly recommended as a fun and easy park for family camping. The park features camping (with toilets/showers), hiking, swimming, fishing, kayaking, canoeing, and a camp store.

3. Make your reservations now! To get more information on the park, see: http://www.nhstateparks.org/explore/state-parks/greenfield-state-park.aspx

4. Reservations are through Reserve America, and can be found here. We will try to cluster our group around campsite #44 on the small loop near Beaver Pond. A map is here.

There are no cabins. You can bring a tent, rent a tent from REI, borrow a tent from a friend, or make a tent (boyscouts anyone?). Cost for a campsite per night is $25 + a small processing fee. This is for two adults and their dependent children. If you plan on bringing a pet, please read the park's pet policy VERY CAREFULLY and be sure to reserve a site which allows pets... since most sites prohibit pets.

Greenfield State Park Ranger "Harry" was extremely generous to answer my many questions over the phone. He is friendly and helpful, and I can't wait to stay at his park! Ranger Harry recommends the "Small Loop," sites 26-64 for families with small children, because it is a loop with little traffic and close walking distances. For the most fun together, try to cluster our reservations around campsite #44.

5.This is our fourth Saint Agnes Family Group camping trip. It is meant to build community and friendships that will serve as an organic support network for people in our parish, as well as encourage you to give back to the community in the way you feel called.

Together, we will take on the great adventure of family camping! While we are really excited about this, we are using the good old KISS rule - Keep it Simple, Stupid. Therefore, we will distribute information about the campground, and a rough schedule of breakfast / activities / dinner / Sunday Masses, etc. However, each family will be primarily responsible for their own specific plans and accommodations. If you don't want to stay both nights - that's fine - come when you can. YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE for your own camping trip, camping gear, CAMPING FOOD, and camping survival! We will not be caravanning or providing transportation. We will meet you there!

I will be happy to answer questions, post camping tips, attempt to anticipate concerns, etc. Feel free to contact Maureen Ronayne with questions (MaureenMoroney@gmail.com). See you there!

Prayer at PP & Respect Life at Saint Agnes

Saturday Morning Prayer at Planned Parenthood

Saint Agnes Parish is continuing its hour of prayer in front of Planned Parenthood on Saturday mornings from 7:00-8:00 am.  If you would like to carpool, meet at 6:30 am in the Saint Agnes School parking lot.  We return to Arlington by 8:30 a.m.  If you have questions, please e-mail Eileen Cahill at SAParishforLife@gmail.com.  We have been told by the devoted sidewalk counselors how much they appreciate having us there praying when they arrive.  They need help and support.  Please join this effort.  Once you go and pray with others, you gain more confidence and it gets easier.  Join us; prayer is the faithful's most powerful tool!

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Saint Agnes Parishioners for Life Meeting

The next Parishioners for Life Meeting will be Monday, June 13th at 7:00 pm in the Saint Agnes Parish Center. All in the community are welcome to join. If you are interested in helping with our work, but can’t make the meeting, please e-mail SAParishforLife@gmail.com so we can keep you informed of local prolife activity.

How can we be PRO-life every day?

By maintaining a positive attitude towards others,

appreciating the unique person that God has created in each individual,

reaching out in kindness and compassion,

praying for the unborn, disabled and elderly,

and giving alms to the poor, marginalized, and vulnerable in our society.

“Whatever you did for the least of these, you did for Me."
Matthew 25:40

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LOCAL Natural Family Planning
Attention Married Couples! Would you like…

• a natural, hormone-free way to postpone pregnancy?
• to start a family or have another child?
• to improve communication with your spouse?
• to learn more about church teaching on "the Theology of the Body?"
• to understand why the Bishops were so unsettled by the HHS mandate?

Natural Family Planning (NFP) is an organic, chemical-free method that is just as effective as the Pill at postponing pregnancy and nearly twice as effective as IVF for achieving pregnancy. The divorce rate among couples that practice NFP is less than 2%.

Want to learn more? Josh and Meredith Phelps are certified teachers of a 3-class NFP series, offered in our locale! For sign-ups, details, or questions about dates, please email Meredith.Phelps [at] gmail.com.

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Project Rachel
Project Rachel is a confidential Catholic outreach ministry offering healing, compassion and hope to women and men hurting from an abortion experience. People are available to listen, to answer questions, to pray for you, and to help in any way. Project Rachel can help begin the experience of forgiveness, freedom and peace waiting for you in the tender embrace of God’s love and mercy. The phone number for Project Rachel is 508-651-3100, email is help [at] ProjectRachelBoston.com, and the website is www.ProjectRachelBoston.com. All inquiries are confidential.

“All life has inestimable value even the weakest and most vulnerable, the sick, the old, the unborn and the poor, are masterpieces of God’s creation, made in his own image, destined to live forever, and deserving of the utmost reverence and respect.”

-Pope Francis-

Wednesday: Explore Laudato Si!

Hello everyone!  As we celebrate Pentecost, let us reflect on the action of the Holy Spirit, and His compelling desire to make all things new (Revelations, chapter 21), including our hearts and our faith. Pope Francis is reminding us that as Christians, there's no time like the present to cast off our old selves and begin anew.  Continuing with our weekly excerpts of the pope's most recent encyclical, "Laudato Si" is posted here - so that we can all learn, digest, pray and discern one snippet at a time.  Come Holy Spirit, teach us and guide us, and may Your Will be done!

CHAPTER THREE

THE HUMAN ROOTS OF THE ECOLOGICAL CRISIS

101. It would hardly be helpful to describe symptoms without acknowledging the human origins of the ecological crisis. A certain way of understanding human life and activity has gone awry, to the serious detriment of the world around us. Should we not pause and consider this? At this stage, I propose that we focus on the dominant technocratic paradigm and the place of human beings and of human action in the world.

I. TECHNOLOGY: CREATIVITY AND POWER
102. Humanity has entered a new era in which our technical prowess has brought us to a crossroads. We are the beneficiaries of two centuries of enormous waves of change: steam engines, railways, the telegraph, electricity, automobiles, aeroplanes, chemical industries, modern medicine, information technology and, more recently, the digital revolution, robotics, biotechnologies and nanotechnologies. It is right to rejoice in these advances and to be excited by the immense possibilities which they continue to open up before us, for “science and technology are wonderful products of a God-given human creativity”.[81] The modification of nature for useful purposes has distinguished the human family from the beginning; technology itself “expresses the inner tension that impels man gradually to overcome material limitations”.[82] Technology has remedied countless evils which used to harm and limit human beings. How can we not feel gratitude and appreciation for this progress, especially in the fields of medicine, engineering and communications? How could we not acknowledge the work of many scientists and engineers who have provided alternatives to make development sustainable?

103. Technoscience, when well directed, can produce important means of improving the quality of human life, from useful domestic appliances to great transportation systems, bridges, buildings and public spaces. It can also produce art and enable men and women immersed in the material world to “leap” into the world of beauty. Who can deny the beauty of an aircraft or a skyscraper? Valuable works of art and music now make use of new technologies. So, in the beauty intended by the one who uses new technical instruments and in the contemplation of such beauty, a quantum leap occurs, resulting in a fulfilment which is uniquely human.

104. Yet it must also be recognized that nuclear energy, biotechnology, information technology, knowledge of our DNA, and many other abilities which we have acquired, have given us tremendous power. More precisely, they have given those with the knowledge, and especially the economic resources to use them, an impressive dominance over the whole of humanity and the entire world. Never has humanity had such power over itself, yet nothing ensures that it will be used wisely, particularly when we consider how it is currently being used. We need but think of the nuclear bombs dropped in the middle of the twentieth century, or the array of technology which Nazism, Communism and other totalitarian regimes have employed to kill millions of people, to say nothing of the increasingly deadly arsenal of weapons available for modern warfare. In whose hands does all this power lie, or will it eventually end up? It is extremely risky for a small part of humanity to have it.

105. There is a tendency to believe that every increase in power means “an increase of ‘progress’ itself”, an advance in “security, usefulness, welfare and vigour; …an assimilation of new values into the stream of culture”,[83] as if reality, goodness and truth automatically flow from technological and economic power as such. The fact is that “contemporary man has not been trained to use power well”,[84] because our immense technological development has not been accompanied by a development in human responsibility, values and conscience. Each age tends to have only a meagre awareness of its own limitations. It is possible that we do not grasp the gravity of the challenges now before us. “The risk is growing day by day that man will not use his power as he should”; in effect, “power is never considered in terms of the responsibility of choice which is inherent in freedom” since its “only norms are taken from alleged necessity, from either utility or security”.[85] But human beings are not completely autonomous. Our freedom fades when it is handed over to the blind forces of the unconscious, of immediate needs, of self-interest, and of violence. In this sense, we stand naked and exposed in the face of our ever-increasing power, lacking the wherewithal to control it. We have certain superficial mechanisms, but we cannot claim to have a sound ethics, a culture and spirituality genuinely capable of setting limits and teaching clear-minded self-restraint.

Weekly Digest

Welcome, EVERYONE!

Here's the lineup for the week at the Parish:

• Tuesday - Family Playgroup (10:30 am), Choir Practice (7 pm), Fatima Apostolate (7 pm)
• Wednesday - Arlington Catholic Women's Club Luncheon (11:30), Rediscover Jesus Session (7:30 pm)
• Thursday - Pops Concert with Saint Camillus (6 pm)
• Saturday - Prayer at Planned Parenthood (7 am, meet in parking lot at 6:30 am to carpool), Confessions (3 pm)
• Sunday - Coffee and Donuts (after 9 am Mass), Adult Choir (10:30 am Mass)

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Father Flatley's 50th Anniversary
Father Brian Flatley is celebrating the 50th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood on Sunday, May 29, 2016. Mass will be celebrated at Saint Agnes Church at 2:00 pm, with a reception to follow on the Parish grounds. Father Flatley would love to have parishioners of Saint Agnes Parish join him for this happy occasion. If you are able to be with us, please RSVP by Friday, May 20, with a number, at frflatley50@saintagnes.net. If you cannot be with him, Father Flatley asks that you remember him in prayer.

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Saint Agnes Family Playgroup

The Saint Agnes Family group holds weekly Tuesday playgroups outdoors at nearby parks. We start at 10:30 am (but sometimes moms run late). You are welcome to join us! You can find the spring playgroup schedule here, or by clicking the link at the upper left of the blog home page.

This Tuesday, May 17th, our group is scheduled to meet at Robbins Farm Park (56 Eastern Ave., Arlington) at 10:30 am.  This park has a great playground and is also a prime kite-flying place!  Please note that due to family travels, Marianne Hudelson will not be there.  We welcome you to come to the park and enjoy meeting whomever the Holy Spirit might bring in fellowship to you that day.

**NOTE THAT our outdoor play schedule is highly dependent on good weather. If the weather seems questionable, please check your email or the blog page before you leave for playgroup. In case of rain or weather below 32 degrees, playgroup will be cancelled for the day. Thanks!**

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Registration for Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is OPEN!
Our parish is very blessed to offer this montessori-based preschool Religious Education Program. This program serves children ages 3 to 5 years, and children age 6 years, if they will not be entering the 1st Grade. The children must be potty-trained and able to go to the restroom on their own. There are a limited number of seats, to be filled on a first-come, first-served basis, determined by the date the registration form is received. Registration is open from May 9-27th. Registration forms available at the Parish Center and should be returned to the Religious Education Office. You may contact the Religious Education Office at 781-646-5579 if you wish to have the form mailed to you. For information about the program, call Jean Keiselbach (781-646-0475).

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Rediscover Jesus Discussion Sessions
Please join us for a six-part discussion series on our Easter Book, Rediscover Jesus. Learn more about the ideas and insights shared in the book and from the reflections of neighbors who come from many different stages of faith and walks of life. These sessions will take place on Wednesday evenings, 7:30-8:45, in the Parish Center on May 4, May 11 and May 18. For more information and for the list of chapters to be discussed each week, please visit www.saintagnes.net and click on “Rediscover Jesus.”

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Saturday Morning Prayer at Planned Parenthood

Saint Agnes Parish is continuing its hour of prayer in front of Planned Parenthood on Saturday mornings from 7:00-8:00 am.  If you would like to carpool, meet at 6:30 am in the Saint Agnes School parking lot.  We return to Arlington by 8:30 a.m.  If you have questions, please e-mail Eileen Cahill at SAParishforLife@gmail.com.  We have been told by the devoted sidewalk counselors how much they appreciate having us there praying when they arrive.  They need help and support.  Please join this effort.  Once you go and pray with others, you gain more confidence and it gets easier.  Join us; prayer is the faithful's most powerful tool!

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FALL 2016 REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN FOR OUR WONDERFUL PARISH SCHOOLS!

FIDELITY HOUSE - Preschool and Pre-K

SAINT AGNES GRAMMAR SCHOOL - Pre-K through Grade 8

ARLINGTON CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL

Links to these websites are located at the top right-hand of the blog page.

When you invest and involve your family here, you can participate

in the evangelical mission and service of these community resources,

which are offered by - and in the long tradition of - our very own Catholic Church.

Financial Aid is available.  WOW!

Weekly Digest

Welcome, EVERYONE!

Here's the lineup for the week at the Parish:

• Tuesday - Family Playgroup (10:30 am), Choir Practice (7 pm), Fatima Apostolate (7 pm)
• Wednesday - Rediscover Jesus Session (7:30 pm)
• Friday - Prep for the Boston Sock Exchange (7 pm)
• Saturday - Prayer at Planned Parenthood (7 am, meet in parking lot at 6:30 am to carpool), Boston Sock Exchange (11 am at Park Street T-stop), Confessions (3 pm), Fidelity House "61 Years" Annual Fundraiser
• Sunday - Coffee and Donuts (after 9 am Mass), Adult Choir (10:30 am Mass), Infant Baptisms (2 pm)

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Father Flatley's 50th Anniversary
Father Brian Flatley is celebrating the 50th anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood on Sunday, May 29, 2016. Mass will be celebrated at Saint Agnes Church at 2:00 pm, with a reception to follow on the Parish grounds. Father Flatley would love to have parishioners of Saint Agnes Parish join him for this happy occasion. If you are able to be with us, please RSVP by Friday, May 20, with a number, at frflatley50@saintagnes.net. If you cannot be with him, Father Flatley asks that you remember him in prayer.

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Saint Agnes Family Playgroup

The Saint Agnes Family group holds weekly Tuesday playgroups outdoors at nearby parks. We start at 10:30 am (but sometimes moms run late). You are welcome to join us! You can find the spring playgroup schedule here, or by clicking the link at the upper left of the blog home page.

This Tuesday, May 10th, we will meet at Menotomy Rocks Park (127 Jason St., Arlington) at 10:30 am.  This park has lots of trails, a pond, and a shaded playground with a fort!  It is supposed to be a beautiful day, so pack a picnic lunch and join us!

**NOTE THAT our outdoor play schedule is highly dependent on good weather. If the weather seems questionable, please check your email or the blog page before you leave for playgroup. In case of rain or weather below 32 degrees, playgroup will be cancelled for the day. Thanks!**

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Registration for Catechesis of the Good Shepherd is OPEN!
Our parish is very blessed to offer this montessori-based preschool Religious Education Program. This program serves children ages 3 to 5 years, and children age 6 years, if they will not be entering the 1st Grade. The children must be potty-trained and able to go to the restroom on their own. There are a limited number of seats, to be filled on a first-come, first-served basis, determined by the date the registration form is received. Registration is open from May 9-27th. Registration forms available at the Parish Center and should be returned to the Religious Education Office. You may contact the Religious Education Office at 781-646-5579 if you wish to have the form mailed to you. For information about the program, call Jean Keiselbach (781-646-0475).

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Rediscover Jesus Discussion Sessions
Please join us for a six-part discussion series on our Easter Book, Rediscover Jesus. Learn more about the ideas and insights shared in the book and from the reflections of neighbors who come from many different stages of faith and walks of life. These sessions will take place on Wednesday evenings, 7:30-8:45, in the Parish Center on May 4, May 11 and May 18. For more information and for the list of chapters to be discussed each week, please visit www.saintagnes.net and click on “Rediscover Jesus.”

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Saturday Morning Prayer at Planned Parenthood

Saint Agnes Parish is continuing its hour of prayer in front of Planned Parenthood on Saturday mornings from 7:00-8:00 am.  If you would like to carpool, meet at 6:30 am in the Saint Agnes School parking lot.  We return to Arlington by 8:30 a.m.  If you have questions, please e-mail Eileen Cahill at SAParishforLife@gmail.com.  We have been told by the devoted sidewalk counselors how much they appreciate having us there praying when they arrive.  They need help and support.  Please join this effort.  Once you go and pray with others, you gain more confidence and it gets easier.  Join us; prayer is the faithful's most powerful tool!

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Boston Sock Exchange
Thank you to everyone who generously brought in a care package of toiletries for the BSE this weekend! This Saturday, May 14th is the Boston Sock Exchange at 11:00 am at the Park Street T-Stop.  This ministry helps the homeless men and women of Boston, by distributing gifts of sandwiches and clothes near the Park Street T-Stop on the second Saturday of the month. Prep and packaging for the day is held in the parish center on Friday night, May 13th at 7:00 pm. Help and/or donations is a wonderful way to put your faith in action!  For more information, see the calendar to the right, or email Sheila O'Brien (ObriensMo [at] hotmail.com).

The Boston Sock Exchange is currently in need of small 8 oz. bottled water, SOCKS, and men's and women's spring clothes.  We also need rain gear: ponchos and umbrellas.  Thank you!

"One of the greatest diseases is to be nobody to anyone." -Mother Teresa-

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FALL 2016 REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN FOR OUR WONDERFUL PARISH SCHOOLS!

FIDELITY HOUSE - Preschool and Pre-K

SAINT AGNES GRAMMAR SCHOOL - Pre-K through Grade 8

ARLINGTON CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL

Links to these websites are located at the top right-hand of the blog page.

When you invest and involve your family here, you can participate

in the evangelical mission and service of these community resources,

which are offered by - and in the long tradition of - our very own Catholic Church.

Financial Aid is available.  WOW!