Ascension of The Lord

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24). The Lord, in the Gospel of John 14:15-21, says that whoever keeps His commandments is the one who loves Him. It is an invitation for us to reflect upon the virtue of obedience. So what is the definition of obedience? Obedience is defined as the submission of one’s will to the will of one’s superior. In other words, it is the submission of our personal will to God, the Divine Authority. God is happy when we obey His commandments. It is a way of acknowledging the authority of God who gave us life and endowed us with gifts and talents. In the Old Testament, the people of Israel broke the commandments of God the Father, Yahweh, time and again which made God angry. The prophet Samuel told King Saul that “Obedience is better than sacrifice.” (1 Samuel 15:22 ). In the New Testament, Jesus Christ ranks first and showed the ultimate obedience as the one who, by His death on the Cross, obeyed His Father. That is why Jesus is called the Beloved Son of God. The Blessed Virgin Mary ranks second in obeying God the Father when she accepted God’s plan of salvation through the Archangel Gabriel’s annunciation in the following words: “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word” ( Luke 1:38 ). The members of the Clergy and the Religious take a vow of obedience to their Superiors in their service to God’s people and as a way of perfection. May we imitate the Blessed Virgin Mary in our obedience to God. Let us teach our children the virtue of obedience to their parents, teachers and those in authority. This weekend we celebrate Mother’s Day. We wish all mothers a Happy Mother’s Day as we pray for their happiness and well being. The first Communicants will be crowning the Blessed Virgin Mary at all Masses. WHAT HAPPENS AT MASS: A WALK THROUGH THE MASS We continue with the Catechesis of the Holy Mass this weekend by highlighting the presence of the following objects in the sanctuary: 1. The tabernacle: It is a structure or box in which Holy Communion, the Body of Christ, the holy of holies is placed. A light is always burning next to the tabernacle, indicating the real presence of Christ in the tabernacle. The word ‘tabernacle’ means “dwelling place”. It refers to the ‘tent of meeting’ built by Moses in Exodus 26, for the worship of God by the Israelites. 2. The altar: The altar is the table on which the Eucharistic sacrifice is offered. It is the centerpiece, the focal point of the Eucharistic liturgy. The altar is usually made up of either wood or stone. Lighted candles are placed on the altar during the Eucharistic celebration. 3. The ambo: The ambo is an elevated stand for proclaiming the Word of God during the liturgical celebration. The priest proclaims the Gospel from this stand and also typical gives his homily from the ambo. God bless you! Fr. Bob Romaine

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it”. (Psalm 118:24 ) The risen Lord is telling us this weekend, through the gospel of John 14, not to let our hearts be troubled but to trust in Him at all times. The trials and tribulations of our life make us worry so much that we forget these comforting words of our Lord. Let us prayerfully remind ourselves to bring all our joys and sorrows to the Lord in prayer. This weekend we are delighted to announce that ten children of our parish will be receiving their First Holy Communion: The Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. Congratulations and God’s Blessings to them!!! The month of May is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God and our heavenly Mother. Please pray the Rosary daily for your families, our country and the world to come back to the Lord. On May 1st, the feast of St. Joseph the worker, I blessed the building right next to our Church as the new Parish Office. As St. Joseph was a faithful and dedicated worker of the Lord watching over the Holy Family, may we faithfully serve the Lord in our Parish. On the same day I ceremonially enthroned the most Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary in the new Rectory at the back of the Church property where I and the Priests in the future will be residing. What happens at Mass? A Walk through the Mass As I mentioned in last week’s bulletin, I will dedicate a paragraph each week to go through each part of the Mass. Even before Mass begins, as we enter the Church, we look for holy water to bless ourselves in the name of the Trinity. The holy water reminds us of the sacrament of Baptism through which we entered the Church. The holy water also reminds us that we are in a sacred place. After we bless ourselves with holy water, we genuflect or make a deep and profound bow because the Lord is present in the tabernacle. This acknowledges the greatness of our God and our unworthiness. Then we look for a pew to sit. Please go right to the first pew to be seated because you want to be in the first row to take part in the greatest of the celebrations ever held. Please also maintain silence out of respect to the Lord and to be sensitive to others as they prepare themselves for the Celebration of the Eucharist. God bless you! Fr. Bob Romaine

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24). The fourth Sunday of Easter is known as Good Shepherd Sunday. In the Gospel of John 10:1-10, Jesus proclaims Himself as the Good Shepherd who loves His sheep so much that He died for them. We are His sheep and He died for us on the Cross. He willingly gave Himself up to death on the cross, even though He had the power and the heavenly army to fight His opponents. We are saved by His death. The relationship of a shepherd and his sheep is based upon the shepherd’s caring and protecting the sheep. The shepherd does not think twice about fighting wild animals to keep his sheep safe. He also searches for any sheep who are lost, making his voice heard so that, listening to his voice, the lost sheep can find their way back to the fold. Those of us in positions of leadership such as parents, teachers, priests, deacons, nuns, catechists, doctors, nurses, caregivers, coaches, heads of institutions and leaders of nations are called to imitate Jesus Christ our Good Shepherd and to love and care for the people entrusted to our care. The fourth Sunday of Easter is also declared as the World Day of Prayer for Vocations to Priesthood and Religious Life. I encourage and pray that young men choose priesthood and young women choose Religious Life. Married men also have the opportunity to serve the Lord as permanent deacons. I will be happy to discuss these matters with anyone interested. I like your attention to the following: 1.Starting May 1, 2026, the Parish office will be located in the building next to the Church. 2. Starting the first Sunday in May, we will publish a short paragraph in our church bulletin to highlight the Catechesis of the Holy Mass or Walk through the Mass. We want everyone to understand and appreciate the sacrifice of the Mass which Jesus gave to us and understand the meaning of each part of this celebration. 3. I would like to thank the Repair Committee for overseeing the shampooing of the carpet in the Church.  4. Congratulations to our first Communicants on receiving their First Holy Communion: The Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ for the first time on Saturday, May 2, 2026 during the 4 pm Mass. I thank their parents for raising these children in the faith and their teacher, the honorable Judge Susan Barthle, for preparing them for this important sacrament. I also thank Terry Pawlicki, the director of our Religious Education Program, for her dedication to the faith formation in our Parish. God bless you! Fr. Bob Romaine

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it.” ( Psalm 118:24 ) On this third Sunday of Easter, we have the joy of listening to the account of the famous Emmaus Walk from the Gospel of Luke 24: 13-35. According to the Gospel, two of the Lord’s disciples were walking to a village named Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem. The risen Lord Jesus was walking with them even though they did not recognize him. The conversation of the two disciples was filled with skepticism, doubt and disappointment over the events of the crucifixion of their master and the latest news of his resurrection as reported by some women. The Lord patiently listened to them and then explained to them the scriptures and that His crucifixion and resurrection was in accordance with the fulfillment of the prophecies of the Old Testament. At their invitation, He joined them for dinner. It was at the dinner table that He took bread, said the blessing, broke it and gave it to them. With that they recognized Him, but He vanished from their sight. Their hearts were on fire and they said to each other: “Were not our hearts burning within us while he spoke to us on the way and opened the scriptures to us?” When we come across doubts, skepticism and disappointments in life, think of the Emmaus walk. It is the Lord who enlightens the darkness of our minds and hearts. All we need to do is go to Him in prayer. With the risen Lord on our side, we have nothing to fear, no reason to lose hope. During my Seminary formation, every year we used to have Emmaus walks during the annual Retreats. Two seminarians would be walking, sharing their experiences and praying for each other. It is helpful to have such Emmaus walks with friends. The Lord joins us during our walks to enlighten and guide our conversations.  During this week we are going have the carpet in the church shampooed. I thank the Repair committee for overseeing the work. We raised the awning above the front door of the hall so that the door could be opened without any problem. I thank Bill Milam for coordinating the project ‘Polish the Parish’ before Holy Week and all those who came to clean the grounds and spread the mulch and polish the pews in the Church. God bless you! Fr. Bob Romaine

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it”. ( Psalm 118:24 ) The second Sunday of Easter was declared Divine Mercy Sunday for the Universal Church by Pope John Paul II on April 30, 2000 at the canonization of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska, a Polish nun who received the revelations of our Lord in the 1930s regarding his divine mercy. As found in her diary, Sr. Faustina recorded 14 occasions where Jesus requested this feast, stating: “My daughter, tell the whole world about my inconceivable mercy. I desire that the feast of Mercy be a refuge and shelter for all souls, and especially for poor sinners. On that day the very depths of my tender mercy are open ————- it is my desire that it be solemnly celebrated on the first Sunday after Easter. Mankind will not have peace until it turns to the Fount of my mercy”. (diary, no.699 ). Jesus appeared to Sr. Faustina in a vision, with his right hand raised in a blessing and his left hand touching his garment above his heart. Red and white rays emanate from his heart, symbolizing the blood and water which was poured out for our salvation and sanctification. The Lord requested that the words, “JESUS I TRUST IN YOU“ be inscribed under his image. Sr. Faustina also recorded our Lord’s words to her: “By means of this image I will grant many graces to souls”. (Diary, no. 742). The Chaplet of Divine Mercy was also given to Sr. Faustina with this promise: “Whoever will recite it will receive great mercy at the hour of death….. I desire that the whole world would know My infinite mercy”. ( diary, no. 687 ). The second Sunday of Easter is the Octave day of Easter. The Gospel focuses on doubting Thomas who refused to believe in the Lord’s resurrection until he tested the risen Lord by putting his finger into the nail marks and touching His side. (John 20:19-31). The Lord was so merciful to his doubting disciple that He invited him to examine his wounds. The Gospel narrative of Jesus’ forgiveness to Thomas fits right into the theme of Divine Mercy. Thomas proclaimed his faith in the Risen Lord with the words: “My Lord and my God!” ( John 20:28 ) Tradition has it that St. Thomas went to India to preach the Good News of the Lord in 70 AD. He reached the southern-most tip of India known as Kerala which is the only Catholic state in the country of India where 85% of the people are Hindus. As St. Thomas was making his way through the country, preaching and teaching the Word of God to the people, he was martyred for the faith in a city called Madras which is now renamed ‘Chennai’. I come from India, not from the state of Kerala, but from the state of Andhra Pradesh. Today there are many vocations to the priesthood and Religious life in India thanks to the seed of faith planted by St. Thomas the Apostle. Jesus, I trust in you! God bless you! Fr. Bob Romaine

My dear brothers and sister in Christ, Christ has risen alleluia! As we rejoice in the resurrection of the Lord, I wish God’s blessings upon each and everyone. The Easter season is the most important of all liturgical times. This season begins with celebrating the resurrection of Our Lord from the dead and culminates in His Ascension to the Father and sending of the Holy Spirit upon the Church. The initial joy of the disciples in seeing the risen Lord extends for a period of eight days which is known as the ‘Easter Octave’. The length of the Easter season is fifty days and concludes on Pentecost Sunday. There is no evidence in any of the religions of the world that anyone other than Jesus Christ has died and come back to life on one’s own. Such an honor, glory, power and privilege belongs only to Jesus Christ who rose from the dead on the third day. Only Christianity has that greatest News to proclaim to the world! The witnesses to this supernatural event are the Apostles who saw the risen Lord after His resurrection. They ate and drank with him for forty days after He rose from the dead. All of the four Gospels mention the event of the resurrection. The first of the disciples to see the risen Lord was Mary Magdalene. According to the Gospels, she got up early in the morning to go to the tomb of Jesus to anoint His dead body. Little did she know that Jesus was not in the tomb. The tomb was empty. An Angel appeared and told her and the other women that Jesus was no longer in the tomb and that He was risen. Mary Magdalene ran to tell the good news to Peter and the other disciples who came to the empty tomb to see for themselves. Later on, the risen Lord appeared to the disciples. Peter the leader of the Apostles said that they are the witnesses of all these events. (Acts 10: The resurrection of the Lord brings us hope against hope. What is impossible for human beings, is possible for God. Everything seemed lost on Good Friday, but Christ’s resurrection on Easter morning was the saving grace for everyone. Let us not give up on anyone, on anything.  God will bring everything to fulfillment. May the risen Lord bless you! Fr. Bob Romaine

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, This weekend we begin the Holy Week which is the most sacred of all the 53 weeks in this year 2026 because we celebrate the Passion, death and Resurrection of Christ known as the Paschal Mystery. The main events of the Holy Week are: 1. Palm Sunday We celebrate the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem seated on a mule mentioned in al the four gospels: Mathew, Mark, Luke and John. The crowds welcome Jesus spreading their cloaks on the ground ( equivalent of red carpet in our modern day language), waving palm branches shouting “Hosanna” and “Blessed is he who comes int the name of the Lord”. Palm Sunday is the beginning of the Hoy Week. During the Palm Sunday liturgy palms are blessed and distributed to the people. The mission of the Savior is to bring redemption to the people by his passion, death and resurrection. The entry of Jesus into Jerusalem is in fulfillment of the prophecy of Zechariah 9:9: “See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey”. 2. Chrism Mass During the Holy Week the Bishop of a diocese concelebrates the Hoy Mass together with Priests from around the diocese and during which he consecrates the sacred Chrism and blesses the oils of the Sick and the Catechumens. The priests renew their commitment to serve the Lord as the cooperators of the Bishop in his Pastoral work. 3. Holy Thursday It is also known as Maundy Thursday or Thursday of the Lord’s Supper. It marks the beginning of the sacred Triduum. It is the commemoration of the Last Supper of the Lord during which he washed the feet of his disciples and gave the commandment to love one another by serving each other. It is during the last supper that Jesus gave the greatest gift of himself to us in the Eucharist under the species of bread and wine. He took bread, blessed it and gave to the disciples saying: “Take and eat, this is my Body”. Similarly he took the cup filled with wine, blessed it and gave to the disciples saying, “Take and drink, this is my Blood of the new and eternal Covenant.” He then told his disciples to do it in his memory. By this commissioning, he also instituted the Priesthood. After the Mass, the adoration of the Lord takes place in the garden of Gethsemane till late at night. In our Church here at Sacred Heart, the adoration concludes at 11 pm. 4. Good Friday We observe the death of the Lord on the Cross. It is a day of fasting and abstinence. There is no celebration of the Mass on Good Friday. However there is praying of the Stations of the Cross in our Church at noon and taking part in the Passion Liturgy at 3 pm. 5. Easter Vigil It is the greatest and most noble of all solemnities. It begins at sunset. On this holy night, the Church keeps watch, celebrating the resurrection of Christ in the sacraments and awaiting his return in glory. The whole liturgy begins with blessing of new fire outside the Church. The Paschal candle is lit from the new fire and the people process into the church with lighted candles lit from the Easter candle. During this awesome liturgy, the catechumens are baptized and confirmed. They would also receive the holy Communion. The new Catholics are known as the neophytes. May you be filled with the graces of the Holy Week. God bless you! Fr. Bob Romaine

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, “ Lazarus, come out!” (John 11:43). On the fifth Sunday of Lent, the Church gives us the powerful account of the raising of Lazarus by Jesus in the Gospel of John 11:1-45. The Samaritan woman who was forgiven of her sins (John 4:5-42), the man born blind who was healed (John 9:1-41) and Lazarus, who died and was brought back to life, are three solid witnesses who could not stop telling the people that JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD, THE MESSIAH! Jesus’ friendship with the three siblings, Martha, Mary and Lazarus, brought a lifetime of blessing to their family when Jesus brought his dead friend Lazarus back to life. The humanity of Jesus is expressed by the fact that Jesus cried when He heard about the death of Lazarus. This is recorded in the shortest verse in the entire Bible: “Jesus wept.” (John 11:35) Before raising Lazarus from death to life, Jesus gave the Promise of Eternal Life to all those who believe in Him when He told Martha the following life-giving words: “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.” Friendship with God brings abundant blessings, not only in this life, but in the life to come. Become Jesus’ friend and your reward will be in heaven! Starting this Sunday until Good Friday the crucifixes and the images in our church will be covered as a way of helping us to enter into the memorial of the Passion and Death of Jesus Christ, so that we can rise with Him on Easter Sunday. I look forward to joining you in “polishing the parish” by cleaning and mulching the parish grounds on Saturday, March 28, 2026 at 9 am. Let us all join in this effort for God’s glory! God bless you! Fr. Bob Romaine

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, “ I do believe, Lord, and he worshipped him.” (John 9:38) The fourth Sunday of Lent is traditionally known as ‘Laetare Sunday’ . It means rejoicing in anticipation of the resurrection of the Lord. The Gospel this Sunday is about the healing of the man born blind taken from the Gospel of John 9:1-41. The blind man who was healed of his physical blindness became a believer in the Lord. What a joy it must have been for him to see the beauty of the creation of God! Today the same Son of God who healed the blind man two thousand years ago, is the source of our joy as he is present in every Mass. Therefore, as soon as we enter the Church, we make the sign of the Cross with holy water which reminds us of our Baptism. Immediately, our gaze should be on the tabernacle where the Eucharistic Lord awaits us day and night. Acknowledging the presence of the Lord, we walk in silence to find a seat in the pews, preferably starting with the first pew. I want to walk you through the Mass as follows: 1. Introductory Rites: This includes the entrance procession, with the priest and altar servers approaching the altar as a hymn is sung, veneration of the altar by the priest by kissing the altar and incensing the altar during solemn Masses, beginning the Mass with the sign of the cross by the priest, greeting the congregation by the priest, penitential rite during which we ask God’s forgiveness, and concludes by glorifying God by singing the Gloria on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation. The Introductory Rites conclude with the Collect which is the opening prayer said aloud by the priest. 2. Liturgy of the Word: The Word of God is proclaimed. The first lector reads the word from the Old Testament which is followed by saying or singing the responsorial psalm. The second lector proclaims the word from the New Testament from the Acts of the Apostles or the letters of St. Paul, St. Peter, St. James or the book of Revelation. After the Gospel acclamation, the Gospel is read either by a deacon, if present, or by the priest. Then comes the homily by the priest summarizing the readings with a message for the people. After the homily, the whole congregation professes the Faith by reciting the Nicene Creed led by the priest. The Liturgy of the Word ends with the Prayer of the Faithful. 3. Liturgy of the Eucharist: This is the major part of the Mass during which the miracle of transforming of the bread and wine into the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ takes place. The gifts of bread and wine are brought to the sanctuary by the people, along with other gifts, and given to the priest. The priest then prepares the altar, inviting the Faithful to engage in prayer dialogue known as the preface. After that, the priest invokes the Holy Spirit to come upon the bread and wine to sanctify them so the bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Christ. The priest then pronounces the Words of Consecration as said by Jesus at the Last Supper over the bread and wine. The Words of Consecration are: Take and eat, this is my Body which will be given up for you. Take and drink, this is my Blood of the new and eternal Covenant poured out for you and for many…. Do this in memory of me. During the Consecration, the priest acts in the “person” of Christ. The passion, death and Resurrection of Christ are made present for us as the priest prays for the whole creation, the Church, the Pope, the Bishops, the Clergy and the Faithful. The Eucharistic prayer concludes with the doxology which is a glory and praise to the Trinity. The people respond with a collective “Amen.” Then the priest invites the Faithful to recite the Lord’s Prayer and exchange a sign of peace with each other. After that, the Lamb of God is proclaimed to the people as the priest invites them to receive the Lord under the appearance of bread and wine. After the distribution of Holy Communion, there is sacred silence. 4. Concluding Rites: The Concluding Rites contains the prayer after Communion, the announcements, the final blessing and the dismissal of the congregation to go out into the world to proclaim the good news. During the recessional song, the priest and the altar servers go back to the sacristy. God bless you! Fr. Bob Romaine