“Brothers and sisters: Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith to this grace in which we stand, and we boast in hope of the glory of God.” (Romans 8) The Lord Jesus Christ gives us His grace in the Sacraments of the Roman Catholic Church and it is this grace “in which we stand” Baptized, Confirmed, nourished by the Eucharist; in Matrimony, in Reconciliation, in the Anointing of the Sick, and in Ordination we are further configured to Christ in everyday life…so that we may live out daily life by His power. These Sacraments are GIFTS given freely to us by Christ. Let us receive them and use them to our eternal redemp-tion. After all, in the Gospel today we hear the Holy Spirit will lead us and our Church only to the Truth…let us walk, united in faith, to the truth.

Archbishop Mansell and pilgrims from across Connecticut will be participating in a Year of Faith Pilgrimage to Italy. Defending religious liberty will be remembered in their prayers. To follow their spiritual journey, visit www.archdioceseofhartford.org and follow the Archbishop’s blog, Facebook and Twitter. The time is now to contact the White House and let them know that the federal health care mandate violates the First Amendment, which guarantees every American freedom of religion. Call the White House at: 202-456-1111 or 202-456-1414 or visit www.whitehouse.gov/contact

With this great celebration and feast in our Church we bring to a close the official celebration of the Easter Season—but we do not “close out” the Spirit of the Easter Resurrection of Christ. In fact, there is a reason that our Pentecost celebration falls between Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. A wonderful old Jewish proverb speaks of Mothers (and Fathers too) in terms of “God could not be everywhere, so He created Mothers.” I think we need to look at this wise expression from a different perspective: So that God could be everywhere He created mothers and fathers. Let’s look at the celebration of Pentecost and see this more clearly. Pentecost is much more than simply the “birthday of the Church” with the giving of the great gift of the Holy Spirit. It is a time for us to celebrate who we as a people of faith really are, and how we are called to live out this great gift of faith from God. CLICK TO READ MORE...

Keep in mind that May is already upon us and so is the Men’s Club’s annual golf outing, this year scheduled for May 31st. This year’s event has a bit of a twist on the traditional good times and fun-filled day—along with fellowship and the great out-doors at Simsbury Farms—our Men’s Club is looking for your help to raise money through this charitable event for health care and for food, supporting the Knights Of Malta Mobile House of Care and our very own Pantry Partners Ministry. Along with catching up on your Vitamin D, you can spend the day with family and friends and in support of two great Catholic charities that benefits people right here in Simsbury. CLICK FOR DETAILS...

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION REGISTRATION will begin in mid-May. If you are re-registering your child(ren), we will offer three ways to register: 1. An electronic email with the form attached will be sent to all parent emails in our database in mid-May. 2. The Re-registration Form will be available to download on our website. 3. A Constant Contact email with a link to the form will be sent to all parent emails in our data-base. Please be aware of the due date to avoid the late fee. CLICK TO READ MORE...

Catholic social teaching tells us to advocate for just wages. In their 1986 economics pastoral, the bishops of the United States wrote: "The first line of attack against poverty must be to build and sustain a healthy economy that provides employment opportunities at just wages for all adults who are able to work." How do you define a "just" wage in today’s society? What can Catholics do to increase employment oppor-tunities? "The richer class have many ways of shielding them-selves, and stand less in need of help from the State; whereas the mass of the poor have no resources of their own to fall back upon, and must chiefly depend upon the assistance of the State. CLICK TO READ MORE...

Catholic social teaching tells us to advocate for just wages. In their 1986 economics pastoral, the bishops of the United States wrote: "The first line of attack against poverty must be to build and sustain a healthy economy that provides employment opportunities at just wages for all adults who are able to work." How do you define a "just" wage in today’s society? What can Catholics do to increase employment oppor-tunities? "The richer class have many ways of shielding them-selves, and stand less in need of help from the State; whereas the mass of the poor have no resources of their own to fall back upon, and must chiefly depend upon the assistance of the State. CLICK TO READ MORE...