2026 Lenten Gift: MassBay Community College’s Essential Needs Fund for Textbook Assistance

2026 Lenten Gift: MassBay Community College’s <i>Essential Needs Fund for Textbook Assistance</i>

Each year, in preparing for Lent, we reach out as a community to one particular place of need through our Lenten Gift. This year, we will stay very close to home, reaching into our own backyard to help students at our local community college be able to focus on their studies without undue financial stress. Students at community colleges tend to be stretched thin between a multitude of obligations and financial strains.

Tuesday, March 3 Evening for Women: “Potluck Prayer”

Tuesday, March 3 <i>Evening for Women</i>: “Potluck Prayer”

Tuesday, March 3 at 6:30pm
St. John Chapel and Powers Hall

All women of the collaborative are invited to an hour of “Potluck Prayer” –  a Holy Hour of Eucharistic Adoration in the Chapel with an invitation for all gathered to share music, poems, readings, art, and anything else that may be preparing our hearts for our Lenten journey or inspiring our prayer life. 

After our Holy Hour we will gather in Powers Hall for a potluck dinner and fellowship.

Bring a dish or beverage to share and invite a friend or neighbor to come along!

Lent 2026: A Message from Fr. Jim

Lent 2026: A Message from Fr. Jim

It is impossible to miss the irony of this passage from Matthew’s gospel as it is proclaimed on Ash Wednesday. As Jesus exhorts us to pray and fast in secret, we receive ashes on our forehead that proclaim to all we see that we are fasting! There is no magic in the ashes. Unlike the Eucharist, which confers grace, ashes are a sacramental, a sacred sign which disposes us to receive grace. Jesus is not decrying ritual or communal prayer. Rather he points to centrality of our “internal” transformation. Lent is a time for us to focus on that internal transformation by turning to the presence of the Triune God, who dwells within us.

I have read and re-read a book which has been very helpful in my own prayer. It is called The Impact of God: Soundings from St. John of the Cross by Fr. Iain Matthew, an English Carmelite priest…

Lent 2026: Catholic Social Teaching Series with Fr. Ken Himes

Lent 2026: Catholic Social Teaching Series with Fr. Ken Himes

Three Thursday Evenings: February 26, March 12, March 26
7-8:30pm at St. Paul Parish Hall or on Zoom

Catholic Social Teaching has been called the “best kept secret in the Catholic Church.” Join us as we dive deeper into this hidden gem of our faith with Fr. Ken Himes as a guide on the way! This three-session series will explore the pillars of Catholic Social Teaching and how they can call us to faith-filled action in our world today. Drawing from life experience and Gospel principles, this program promises a foundational understanding of CST and will bolster you spirit in the season of Lent and beyond!

Offered in a hybrid-format – participate online via Zoom or in-person in the St. Paul Parish Hall for fellowship and sharing as we learn from Fr. Himes and reflect together on the social implications of living out our faith! Registration is required – please register below…

Lent 2026: Renew a Steadfast Spirit Within Us

Lent 2026: Renew a Steadfast Spirit Within Us

Each year the season of Lent invites us to dive deeper into our faith. This season is one of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. It reminds us that our faith is meant to be lived and that we are blessed on the journey of life to walk with a God who uniquely knows what it means to be human. In Jesus, God became human and in Lent, we sit with our own humanity and draw closer to the Living God who longs to be in deeper union with us.

That union is beautifully captured in the paschal mystery of our faith—the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus— that we remember especially in the Triduum. Yet, before we can come to these momentous days of Holy Week and Easter, we must first make our annual Lenten journey.

This year as a Collaborative our theme for this Lenten journey comes from Psalm 51: “Renew a Steadfast Spirit within Us.” (Psalm 51:12b)

Fridays in Lent: Stations of the Cross and the Sacrament of Reconciliation following the 9:00am Mass at St. Paul

Fridays in Lent: Stations of the Cross and the Sacrament of Reconciliation following the 9:00am Mass at St. Paul

Deepen your union with Jesus and God’s people in the Lenten practice of Stations of the Cross. The Stations of the Cross fosters communion, teaches humility, strengthens our faith and hope and provides perseverance in suffering.

Restore your friendship with Christ and His Church through the power of the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Our celebrants will be available to hear your confessions immediately following daily Mass on Fridays.

Ash Wednesday Collection for Catholic Charities Boston

Ash Wednesday Collection for Catholic Charities Boston

Every year on Ash Wednesday, the collection at all Masses in the Archdiocese of Boston is taken up for Catholic Charities Boston. 

Catholic Charities Boston serves tens of thousands of our neighbors across the Archdiocese of Boston – families in need of food, shelter, advocacy, and emergency assistance. With your partnership, Catholic Charities can continue to be a beacon of hope, offering immediate assistance and the tools for lasting stability through adult education classes, quality childcare, and job training programs.

As we enter this season of renewal, your gift can be an expression of your faith in action. Every contribution directly helps our neighbors in need…

×