News: Welcome to a New Year at the Fatima Shrine Boston as we share some of the spiritual highlights in the month of February. The hope is to help shed the winter blues by leaving behind the cold and recent snow by sharing our common faith as a community. At glance this month starting on the 2nd we celebrate the Presentation of our Lord in the Temple which we contemplate as the 4th Joyful mystery of the rosary. The First Friday and First Saturday will be held on the 6th & 7th. On the First Friday we commence with all night Eucharistic Adoration. Our Lady of Lourdes is honored on the 11th of which we will be celebrating on the First Saturday. Lent begins on 18th with Ash Wednesday. We will be honoring the two children of Fatima’s feast on the 21st in conjunction with the Pro-Life Mass and rosary. This month’s First Saturday theme we will be honoring Our Lady of Lourdes in union with the International day of the sick. We will be handing out Lourdes water, and providing special treats following the Rosary. “Lugaw or Arroz Caldo” will be on the menu, a Filipino version of a rice porridge or Congee. Please join us and feel free to bring something. Some of you may be aware that the former chaplain at St. Elizabeth’s hospital Rev. Jean Okay Ikes has been sick and confined to bed. There will be a private collection taken up at the shrine on the First Saturday to help with his needs. We ask for prayers for him and he has asked for visitors from us. He is convalescenting at St. Anthony’s rectory in Everett. Also not mentioned on the calendar on the 13th of February is the anniversary of the death of venerable Sr. Lucia the visionary of Fatima who died on this date in 2005. We continue to seek her intercession and to pray for her canonization. With all the virus floating around and the colds we recommend that all get their throats blessed on the 3rd, the feast of St. Blase. February is a transition month as the days begin to get longer and we begin to look forward to spring. My prayer is that when Lent begins on the 18th we make a commitment for a fruitful and penitential program to offer up sacrifices, and fasting, and giving alms. The Presentation of Our Lord in the Temple is also known as Candlemas when we bless all the candles for the upcoming year, and is also Groundhog day. If you haven’t seen the movie “Groundhog Day” I highly recommend it, it is really about perfecting one’s character by obtaining virtue. I look forward to seeing you at the Shrine.
February 6th: First Friday Mass at 7:00 pm. Followed by all night Eucharistic Adoration. The sorrowful mysteries, chaplet of divine mercy, confession and more. Rev. Paulinus Nweke will say the Mass.
February 7th: First Saturday Devotion at the shrine, starting at 9:00 a.m with Holy Mass, Rosary, Confessions. Followed by refreshments, come and enjoy. Rev. Philip Dabney CsSR will preside. We will be remembering all the sick as we approach the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes special attention will be given to all those sick who have asked for our prayers with special emphasis on Priests especially Fr. Jean Okay Ike. The Spanish Rosary Community will meet on the First Saturday at 3:00pm at the Shrine for song and fellowship.
February 21th: The Pro-life Mass at 10:30 am. Following Mass there will be a pro-life rosary. Rev. Mike McNamara will preside. We will also celebrate the feast day of the two children of Fatima, St. Jacinta, and St. Francisco.
