Seven Corporal Works of Mercy

7 Corporal Works of Mercy

 Each year during Lent, we will try to fulfill one of the Seven Corporal Works of Mercy set forth by our Church.  Listed below are each of these corporal works and an indication of how we hope to fulfill them.   

  March 3rd·  Feed the Hungry
 A collection of  food will take place at all Masses in order to help the local food pantry and shelters.

 March 9th ·  Care for the Sick * Please note change of date.
A Special Mass of the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick will be held during  the Vigil Mass on Saturday, March 9th   Please call the rectory for more information (860)583-1833.

 March 17th ·  Care for the Needy
A collection of toilet paper, paper towels, napkins, single bed sheets and pillow cases will take place at all Masses in order to help the St. Vincent de Paul shelter.

  March 24th . Welcome the Stranger
A Parish reception after all weekend Masses will be held to welcome new parishioners to our St. Matthew family and to visit with old friends.

 March 31st · Provide Drink for the Thirsty
 A collection of baby formula will take place at all Masses in order to help local women’s shelters and Carolyn’s Place.

 April 7th  ·Bury the Dead
A Memorial Mass  for all parishioners who died in 2018 will be held at 3:00 p.m.  All family members are invited to attend.  A reception will follow this Mass in the Father Blaney Room.

 April 14th ·  Visit the Prisoners
Money collection will take place at all Masses in order to buynew bibles for persons in local half-way houses and prisons.

 

Anointing of the Sick Within Mass
 Saturday, March 9th
     4:00 p.m. vigil
1st Sunday of Lent

 “When the Church cares for the sick, it serves Christ Himself in the suffering members of His Mystical Body.  The Church shows this solicitude not only by visiting those who are in poor health but also by raising them up through the Sacrament of Anointing and by nourishing them with the Eucharist.”  (Rite of Anointing of the Sick)
Within the season of Lent, St. Matthew’s will offer a communal celebration of the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sickwithin Mass on Saturday, March 9th, 4:00 p.m.  This will not be a ritual Mass for the Anointing of the Sick, but will be the anointing of the sick within the regular Saturday vigil for the 1st Sunday of Lent.

Eligible to receive the Sacrament are Catholics who are . . .
seriously ill (“It is sufficient to have a prudent or probable judgment about its seriousness”);
preparing for major surgery;
elderly who are in a weakened condition and/or cannot regularly come to church;
sick children with sufficient reason to be strengthened by the Sacrament.

 Please consider this special grace for yourself or someone you know.  Parishioners who wish to receive the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick during Mass on March 9th are asked (or family members/friends who ask on their behalf) to contact the rectory (860-583-1833) anytime up until March 8th to indicate their wish to attend and to receive additional information.