Greetings from the Friar!

Hello, Everyone!

My name is Hugh Macsherry. I am a Franciscan Friar living at Arch Street in Boston this year. I am hearing and I am working for a year with Fr. Jeremy St Martin and the Office for Deaf Catholic Ministries in Archdiocese of Boston.

I am originally from Baltimore, MD. I have studied theology in Washington, DC for three years. Now I am on a pastoral internship year.

I started learning sign language at the University of Maryland. I worked with Will Chin, a Deaf student from Taiwan. He began to teach me some signs. Then he shared a house with some other friends and me. Since I joined the Franciscans, I have taken classes in ASL in Wilmington, DE and at the Gallaudet Extended Learning Program. For the past two years, I have worked with a Franciscan spirituality group for the Deaf in Washington, DC. Dorothy Steffanic is the minister of that group. I have also worked with Fr. Jerry Trancone at the Center for Deaf Ministry in Washington, where I also got to meet Arvilla Rank and Connie Wild. Last year in a Scripture discussion group, I worked with some wonderful students at Gallaudet. What fantastic experiences these have been!!!

In one year I will make my solemn profession to the Franciscan Order, God willing! Then I will return to Washington for a final year of study before I am ordained in 2009.

I am looking forward to getting to know you all and to working with and learning from you.

Peace and all Good!

Hugh, OFM

Ben Bahan to Present on the Idea of Audism as Fundraiser for the New England Home for the Deaf

Ben Bahan
Well known American Sign Language
researcher, professor and presenter

Presents a Documentary Film

“Audism Unveiled”
followed by
Lecture and Performance

Audism is basically a new word coined in 1975 that is used to describe forms of
discrimination and oppression deaf people go through on the idea that people
have related
to the notion that “to hear (and talk) is better and more desirable.”

Proceeds will benefit the
New England Homes for the Deaf

Saturday, November 17th, 2007 at 7.00 PM

Doors open 5.00 PM - Snacks will be sold

Holten-Richmond Middle School
Auditorium
55 Conant Street
Danvers, MA

Advance tickets $20.00 - Deadline: November 10th

$25.00 at the door - No Refunds

Voice Interpreter for the Hearing Audience


Mail form and Check payable to: Friends of the Home

c/o David Burnes
5 Park Dr., Ext
Woburn, MA 01801
Name___________
How many___________

Address:


Note: Tickets will not be mailed to you. Please pick up tickets at door in Holten-Richmond Middle School

An Interpretation of the Mass in ASL

Good Evening,

There is a translation of the Mass into ASL on-line: http://www.theinterpretersfriend.com/songs/ordo-missae.html


What do you think?

Leave comments at the bottom.

Sincerely in Christ,

Fr. St. Martin

Senior Deaf Wellness Program

Good People,

The Senior Deaf Wellness Program continues to progress well. Thanks to the support of some of you who have participated in the events in the past who have offered to help, the good work of Mrs. Carey, and the new man on the scene, Br. Hugh Macsherry, you are invited to the first meeting of the Fall, 2007. On September 11th in the MacKenzie Center Coffee, Bagels, and Fruit will be offered at 10:00 a.m. I will be there at this time and we will have some time for questions and answers as a group. Blood Pressure Screenings and Diabetes Screenings are being coordinated at this time. We are looking for the assistance of the same good people, Joan Seariak and Larane Kilty, to help with the health screenings. Larane is going to help us in the future after she recovers from her minor knee issue. There is going to be a surprise after this that will include lunch.

This good work is open to all senior citizens who are deaf. Please spread the word far and wide. We hope that our openness and generosity as a Church will inspire people to discover Christ and His Church. We are able, at this time, to provide this first meeting free of charge. As it is, our expenses are very low because we have not been able to fill the paid position as of yet.

We must thank Jet for her continued help. I owe her so much as she has been a great help to me in setting up this first session. She sends you all her love.

Sincerely in Christ,

Fr. St. Martin

Contact From Argentina

Good People,

Just as a point of interest we have been contacted by a fellow group of Deaf Catholics from Argentina. They wanted us to look at their website: http://www.sordoscatolicos.org/.

If you ever visit Mexico it might be a group that you would say hello to in your travels.

It is good to know that Christ is with us the world over.

Sincerely,

Fr. St. Martin

Special Collection for Earthquake Relief Efforts in Peru

Good People,

I have some news from the Very Reverend Richard M. Erikson, Ph.D., V.G. He is our Vicar General and Moderator of the Curia. He has sent me the following message which I have edited a little:

"As you may be aware, there was a magnitude 7.9 earthquake 100 miles south of Peru's capital city, Lima on August 15th. At least 337 people have died and more than 1,000 people were injured. As the casualties mount the reports of injuries and fatalities include circumstances of churches collapsing on people gathered for Mass or prayer.

In response to Pope Benedict XVI's call for "institutions and people of good will to offer the needed aid to victims out of charity and a spirit of Christian solidarity," Cardinal Seán has given permission for a special collection for relief efforts to be taken up on August 26, 2007 in our Archdiocese. Please ask your parishioners to be generous.

Your compassionate concern for the universal Church brings Christ's light to people and places covered by a pall of darkness. Please help spread the radiant light of love through your generous support of this Collection.

With my prayers and best wishes, I am

Yours sincerely in Christ,

Very Reverend Richard M. Erikson, Ph.D., V.G."


I hope that we can be a part of the effort to help in this time of testing and pain for the people of Peru.

In Christ,

Fr. St. Martin

Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Good News,

The great Solemnity of Mary's Assumption into heaven, body and soul, is almost upon us. We will offer Mass in ASL on this feast at the New England Home for the Deaf in Danvers MA, on the day of the Solemnity this Wednesday, August 15th. As usual all the Catholic parishes of Boston will be holding Masses to make the obligation to take part in the celebration Mass of this feast more convenient.

What is the day about: Mary is our Hope? Why? In her the fullness of the Kingdom is already seen. She is in heaven with her soul. She and her Divine Son are the fullness of the Kingdom of God in the fact that they have already been brought home even in their bodies. For us we look forward to the day when Christ comes again in glory to judge the living and the dead. On that day we shall, if, by God's mercy, we are found ready, rejoice forever with the new bodies united to our spirits in a new and fantastic way and enjoy that joy that we all long for in a complete and final way that surpasses our wildest imaginings. Mary enjoys something of this fullness now in the fact that her body does not lie in wait for Christ return. There is no grave for Mary now. She is already body and soul in love with God in heaven.

Sincerely,

Fr. St. Martin

Book of the Gospels

Good Extraordinary Lectors and Good People,

Here is a little detail about how we can all pray together at Mass better.

We do not process out with the "Book of the Gospels." Why not?

We carry the book in, slightly elevated, before the priest on Sunday and other Solemn Celebrations of the Eucharist. We show this book certain signs of reverence. We place it on the Altar at the beginning of Mass. That is shows that it is special. The priest carries it from the altar slightly elevated from the Altar to the Ambo as everyone signs the Alleluia together. The priest then opens it up.

Why do we treat the Book of the Gospel's like this? The four Gospels are the most excellent part of the Bible. They contain the stories about Jesus Himself.

We must be careful not to worship the book itself however. We are not a people of the Book. We are a people of the Living Word of God, Jesus himself, who comes to us through the written words in the book.

This is why after the book is opened up, and the words written in it are proclaimed and then the at the time of the Homily God opens the word up to us so that is lives in our hearts, this is why we do not show the physical book any more reverence after the homily. We are done with the book itself. It is the Living Word that we experience through the book, not the book Itself which in the end eclipses the physical book.

This is why at the end of Mass we do not close the book back up and carry it out. It is as if we process out with the Living Word of God having jumped out of the book we carried in closed now having been opened up, living in our hearts and we are ready to bring it now through opening ourselves in love to the world so that it may come to live in the hearts of those whom we meet.

We are like a book is you will, filled with the Living Word of God. We open ourselves in love and service. Some in the world will read the love we proclaim by our actions and come not to worship us but rather that same Lord, Jesus Christ, who we have come to know as Our Saviour and Friend.

We can imagine the book saying "please don't carry me out at the end of Mass. After I have done my job of bringing you the Living Word of God, he must increase and I must decrease. And please don't confuse me with the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar. Jesus trully come to be with us in the bread and wine which become His body and blood. He is present there in a way that we can only begin to imagine. He is with us in physical realities after the Mass has finnished. He is there in the tabernacle. We worship Him there. Don't forget Him there. Don't over foccus on me. I remaine a simple physical object at the level of my substance. I am by nature made of ordinary paper that will pass away. The Eucharist as a thing changes on the level of substance and becomes what it points to. It is a sacrament. It is the sacrament of sacraments. I have my proper honors but please don't over do it."



Sincerely,

Fr. St. Martin

Attention Mass Helpers

Some of you may have received an email which contains much of this same information. There is however more in this blog entry then exists in the similar email.

Did you know that you can access the Schedule on-line now? Just click on "Calendar". Then click on the event in the calendar on any Sunday called: "10:30am Mass at Sacred Heart full ASL" You will see the schedule that way. If you have a Google calendar you can add this event with the schedule to your personal calendar and it will be updated automatically. If you do not have a Google calendar you can get one with your free Google account. Just go to Google and sign up for one. Let me know if this does not work. Please look at the other articles in this section of the website as well. After each article there you can add comments. This is a great way to have a kind of ongoing town meeting of sorts or at least a support and preparation for one.

Thank you for all your good work at Mass. It is a great sign of your faith in the power of the Sunday Eucharist. Your good preparation and dedicated service are a light to the world. If you have any questions about how to go about the various things you do at Mass and other people might benefit from seeing the answers to those question please leave a comment at the bottom of this article. You can also learn alot from going to the general in structions for the Mass in a work call, "General Instruction of the Roman Missal." The whole thing is on the web. The Church puts it there. Click here to read it.

Thankfully,

Fr. St. Martin

Glory to God in the Highest

Good People,

It is my great joy to thank God for the happy faces that I saw you wearing at the time of Fr. Paul Zirimenya's Mass of Thanksgiving at Sacred Heart in Newton. It brought me great joy to see your joy at so joyous a time.

God is so good. Can it even begging to be understood the intense goodness to have a vocation? And in this most amazing way! I don't think we could ever fully understand the immensity of the thing God has worked in our midst without dying of love.

In Christ,

Fr. St. Martin

Attention Deaf Catholic Youth

I reciently recieved a message about a youth event from Seminarian Shawn Carey and would like to put the exciting news out so that you can all take part if you can. The message included this message "I recently found out that Fr. MD will be presenting 2 workshops for Deaf teens at the National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC) this November in Columbus, Ohio. (see http://www.nfcym.org/ncyc/2007/index.htm). It would be great to be able to send some Deaf Catholic teens from our various areas to this event. I know some of you have contacts with Deaf Catholic youth either through the schools for the Deaf or can pass this information along to others you might know in your diocese or other dioceses. I know the NCYC events are a blast for kids, and thought I would pass along in case you might know others interested. Thanks! God bless!"

Please let me or Kathy Carey know your thoughts and plans concerning this wonderful development.

Sincerely,

Fr. St. Martin

Blessed Mother Teresa Parish ASL Youth Classes Update

Good People,

It has been fun. The youth are learing a little ASL. We have three more Fridays to enjoy this fun summer event. The response from people has been great! Thank you Shawn and Annie.

Sincerely,

Fr. St. Martin