Easter Vigil - 2010

The holy night began in darkness, as if we were in Christ's tomb. A Bonfire is lit, blessed....

and then the Easter Candle is lit from the bonfire, signifying Christ as our light. 

Then the candle is carried into the darkened church.

From the blessed Easter Candle, everyone's candle is lit with that same flame.



Check out the video

To see more pictures visit the OLM Facebook

I do "Believe" in the Easter Bunny!

Especially when he brings me an Easter Basket full of Beer.... 

He must be of Irish heritage, because it was full of Guinness. 

But the 4 Coronas threw me off until I realized that he must be a missionary bunny from Mexico.

Only A Few More Hours Until The Easter Vigil

We have 20 Catechumens and Candidates coming into full communion with the Church tonight at the Easter Vigil. It will truly be a celebration of Life... With such Joy that one can't help but dance with elation.

Listen to the words of this Irish Song.... Bet you never realized it was about Christ.

Good Friday Service (Christ's Passion and Death)

The service began in humility.

Prayer

The Passion was beautifully sung for us.

This was so very moving.

Father Jonathan - Intercessions
.

Sean and Caleb present the cross.

Veneration of the Cross

Each person took a moment to honor and kiss His Cross

For so many, this brought on such strong emotion.

Then the cross is laid upon the sanctuary for a sign of what Christ has done for us. We are now to meditate on our lives, our relationship with Christ, prayer, and awaiting his resurrection and what that will mean for us.

Stations Of the Cross Walk - Good Friday

A large group of Parishioners, young and old, met at City hall this morning to set off on a multiple mile walk carrying a large wooded cross. Today is Good Friday, and the group that included (Father Jonathan Molina, Father Uriel Ojeda, Deacon Pat Kearns) wanted to participate in a devotion that would help the individuals connect with Christ's suffering and passion.

As we walked through town, there were a few honks of cheer and support, as well as a few fervent remarks of objection and even hostility. I couldn't help but relate to Christ, his cheers as he entered Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, and the anger, hostility, and hatred that murdered him. The weather was stormy and cold, but that only helped stage the event of sacrifice and being able to offer up our discomfort for our love of Christ.

 Watch the video to see the Walk through town on this very holy and solemn day.

The end of the Walk, arriving on church grounds.

 Thanks Father Jonathan for a great and spiritual day!

For more pictures of the spiritual event, check out The Our Lady Of Mercy Facebook Page

The Cleaning Of The Church - Homeschool Kids

In preparation for the most sacred and holy event of the year (Easter) 

numerous kids volunteered to clean the church from top to bottom.

Out came the vacumes.

Not a corner was missed.

And yes, kids will be kids...... there was a lot of fun and laughter!

There were some creative cleaning methods utilized as well.

Who needs a ladder.....

This is called buddy-cleaning.

Looking good

Hey I want the duster thingy.....

Every Church pew was dusted, the altar and ambo polished - Thanks Mackenzie.

Everyonehad a great time.

Exhausted - but the church now sparkels and is ready for Easter. 

The humble act of getting on your hands a knees to clean our church was an act of service and charity in line with our Lenten beliefs. To serve others out of Love and Kindness is what it is all about.

I am very proud of you kids!

Holy Thursday

We began the evening with a quick planning session
(Deacon Ray, Father Jonathan, Deacon Pat)

 Deacon Ray Led the Entrance Procession.

Deacon Pat with Fathers Uriel and Jonathan.

Reverence the Altar with a kiss.

Opening Prayer

Preparing the incense.

Receiving the Blessing prior to the Gospel Proclamation.

Presentation of the Gospel.

Incensing the Holy Gospel.

Proclaiming the Gospel in English and Spanish.

Father Uriel giving the bilingual homily.... can you guess...a devil theme.

The washing of the feet.

Father Jonathan

Then the Parishioners were invited to wash each other's feet in an act of love and humility.

They quickly visited one of the stations and began taking turns washing each others feet.

For some, it was an emotional experience.

These simple acts of kindness and humility brought upon tears of Joy.... 

Husbands and wives serving each other.....

Then we had the prayers of the faithful (In English).

In Spanish

In German

In Tagalog

In Gaelic (Sister Maura)

Then the presentation of the Oils.

The Oil of the Sick.

The Oil of Catechumins

Holy Chrism

Some quick instructions.

We are blessed with great Altar Servers.

The Altar was dressed.

The reception of the gifts.

Preparation of the Bread and Wine.

Blessing the incense.

Blessing of the people.

The Liturgy of the Eucharist

Jesus Christ - The source and summit of our lives.