Saturday, 7/29: Day 2 – Santarém and Fatima

Saturday, 7/29: Day 2 – Santarém and Fatima

We arrived in Lisbon at around 5:30am this morning, and by about 8:00am we had met up with our travel coordinators for the Archdiocese of Boston and boarded our bus, heading to Santarém and Fatima.

Our first stop was in Santarém, site of an ongoing Eucharistic miracle which occurred in the 13th century… The Eucharistic Miracle is at times exposed for pilgrims who request it, and we were unbelievably blessed today to each have the powerful experience of a private viewing of the “Sacred Particle” – a tangible reminder of Christ’s true presence in the Eucharist.

Following that amazing experience we were truly filled with the Holy Spirit, as evidenced by our walk through the narrow streets…

WYD Lisbon 2023: The Journey Begins on Friday, July 28!

WYD Lisbon 2023: The Journey Begins on Friday, July 28!

After more than a year of planning, preparation, and hard work, our pilgrims depart this Friday, July 28! We are so grateful for your generous financial and spiritual support!

Please continue to pray for us as we embark on this journey, and know that we will be praying for you!

Sponsors, check your mail in the coming weeks for a postcard from your pilgrim(s)!

We hope you will follow our journey online – we will be posting daily updates and photos on our WYD 2023 blog…

Exciting News – Welcome Fr. Gabriel!

Exciting News – Welcome Fr. Gabriel!

I am thrilled to let you know that we will be welcoming a new priest to our St. John-St. Paul Collaborative community this week!  Fr. Gabriel Afumbom Tokoh, a priest from the Archdiocese of Bamenda, Cameroon, Africa, is currently in a Master’s Program in Leadership and Administration at Boston College. He has been living at a parish in Salem for the past year and commuting to B.C. for his studies, so his joining us in Wellesley will be a true blessing for our parishes and for Fr. Gabriel! He will be living at the St. Paul rectory and will be celebrating Masses, funerals, and sacraments with us for the next two years as he completes his studies.

Below is a brief introduction from Fr. Gabriel – I know you will join me in welcoming him and making him feel at home here at the Collaborative and in Wellesley!

FutureChurch Celebration of Mary Magdalene: Thursday, July 20 on Zoom

FutureChurch Celebration of Mary Magdalene: Thursday, July 20 on Zoom

FutureChurch Celebration of Mary Magdalene: “Rethinking Women’s Participation – Stories of Synodality Then and Now”
Thursday, July 20 from 7:00 – 8:30pm on Zoom
Jesus himself practiced synodality and sought to teach it to his disciples – both women and men – through example: teaching through parables; seeking out those on the periphery, whose voices had been ignored or silenced; placing each person he encountered on his path at the center of his ministry.

Perhaps the greatest ‘miss’ in the history of Synodality was when the other Apostles dismissed the witness of Mary Magdalene, who was commissioned by Jesus to “go and tell” the good news.

Presenting Our 2023 Collaborative Lenten Gift for City of Goodness in Ukraine

Presenting Our 2023 Collaborative Lenten Gift for City of Goodness in Ukraine

We are overjoyed and grateful to tell you that our 2023 Collaborative Lenten Gift raised $37,678.60 for City of Goodness in Ukraine! 

Earlier this week, Fr. Jim, Kelly Meraw, and Stephen Ridge from our Collaborative Service Commission presented our gift to Fr. Yaroslav Nalysnyk, pastor of Christ the King Ukrainian Catholic Church in Jamaica Plain, and members of the board of Ukraine Forward, Inc., the U.S.-based non-profit that will disperse the funds to City of Goodness… We will continue to keep you updated with news from City of Goodness – check out their Instagram (instagram.com/misto.dobra) for frequent updates and photos of this incredible place! Thanks again to all who contributed so generously!

Synod News: “Instrumentum laboris” Frequently Asked Questions

Synod News: “Instrumentum laboris” Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Instrumentum laboris (IL)?
As the Latin word suggests, the IL is first and foremost a working tool for the participants in the work of the first session of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops. In this sense, the IL does not suggest answers, but notes, articulates some insights that have emerged in the process, opens up questions and invites further study.

It is therefore also a document for the discernment of the participants in the October 2023 Assembly. In fact, unlike previous synods for which the IL was a document to be amended, improved, in order to arrive at a new document, the current IL is primarily aimed at and in support of the assembly’s methodology…

Hunger Doesn’t Take Vacations – Your Help is Needed This Summer!

Hunger Doesn’t Take Vacations – Your Help is Needed This Summer!

As you know, our parishes collect non-perishable food items for local food pantries – the Wellesley Food Pantry at St. Paul and the St. Katharine Drexel Food Pantry at St. John. What you may not know is that food pantries face their greatest need in the summer. Why?  Families with children who receive free/reduced-cost breakfast and lunch have to find a way to replace those meals during the summer break – so they turn to food pantries for help. At the same time, food pantry donations drop as folks who regularly support the pantries go away.


We have already seen a significant drop in both parish food pantry collections since Memorial Day…

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