Locals respond to pope’s death with prayer, action

By Tanya Connor | The Catholic Free Press

Local people are responding to Pope Francis’ death with prayer and action. Masses for the repose of his soul were celebrated in parishes, and some places found additional ways of honoring him.

The day he died, (April 21), St. Rose of Lima Parish in Northborough held an evening Mass – with “wonderful attendance,” given the short notice – said Father Juan D. Escudero, pastor.
Last week’s Wednesday holy hour there was for the pope, he said. The Divine Mercy Sunday afternoon celebration included words of Pope Francis, and Father Escudero preached about God’s mercy being “made flesh in him and through him.”

At weekend Masses, Father Escudero said, he invited parishioners to put their faith into action by doing works of mercy in honor of Pope Francis. They could write what they did on cards available in the church’s gathering space, in front of a picture of the pope flanked by lists of corporal and spiritual works of mercy.

“In the legacy of Pope Francis, with love and prayer, I offer up the following work of mercy,” the cards say.

“We’re going to display them in the church,” Father Escudero said of the cards. “We want our parish to be a sign of hope,” and works of mercy are signs of hope during this Jubilee Year of Hope.

“We’re burying my father on Monday,” Earl Matthews said Sunday, speaking of his plans for doing one of the spiritual works of mercy. He also spoke of doing a corporal work of mercy: visiting a sick friend from his parish, St. Denis in Douglas. (He serves at St. Rose of Lima too).

He suggested getting involved in one’s parish, maintaining that that would be doing works of mercy. He said he wants to do as much as he can, to list on the cards.

Our Lady of Vilna Parish in Worcester employed a Vietnamese custom of honoring the dead. At a special Mass for Pope Francis Friday, and again on Sunday, people were given sticks of incense, which they placed in front of a photo of the pope, after bowing in respect, said Father Peter Tam M. Bui, pastor, who also preached about him in Vietnamese.

St. Mary of the Assumption Parish in Milford scheduled Masses for the pope this week in the languages of its ethnic communities – Spanish, English and Portuguese – said the pastor, Father Peter J. Joyce. He was one of three priests in the Worcester diocese and about 1,100 people from around the world whom the pope designated “missionaries of mercy,” starting in the 2015-2016 Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy. During a visit to the Vatican, they received a special mandate from the pope to preach and teach about God’s mercy, and they were available to hear confessions and lead retreats and pilgrimages.

“At St. Joseph School in Webster, the spirit and teachings of Pope Francis continue to inspire and guide our community,” Felician Sister Jeanne Marie Akalski,  fourth-grade teacher, informed The Catholic Free Press in an email. “In honor of Pope Francis and his deep love for children, grade 4 will be dedicating a special prayer corner within their classroom,” where “they may still hear Pope Francis whisper softly in their hearts … ‘Come to me. Share your thoughts.’”

The fourth-graders had shared their thoughts in letters hand-delivered to Pope Francis in January. After learning he was hospitalized, they made him “get well” cards and prayed many Hail Mary’s for his healing, according to Sister Jeanne.

“When Pope Francis was discharged, they believed with all their hearts that their prayers had been heard and answered,” she commented.

She said the drawings students sent for the anniversary of his papacy probably did not reach him before he died. But now she is inviting them to “write letters to Pope Francis in heaven, and this prayer corner, and the loving tradition of letter-writing, will be woven into the very fabric of grade 4 life – not just for this year, but for years to come,” she maintained.
Elders and those who serve them also focused on Pope Francis.

The day he died “I talked about him and used a prayer” he wrote for the daily staff leaders meeting, said Gina Kuruvilla, director of spiritual care at Notre Dame Long Term Care Center in Worcester. That day, the residents’ weekly holy hour was for him, and she read some of his writings, she said. Now she’s planning to present a program about the papacy and how popes are chosen.

The College of the Holy Cross, a Jesuit school, honored and prayed for the first Jesuit pope in a variety of ways.

Jesuit Father James M. Hayes, an associate chaplain there, said that a few administrators and students took advantage of the opportunity offered them on April 24 to watch a livestream of a Mass of Thanksgiving for Pope Francis’ life. The Mass was celebrated in Italian by the Jesuits’ Superior General, Father Arturo Sosa, at their Mother Church, the Church of Gesù in Rome. The pope was also prayed for with a rosary and Mass on campus, Father Hayes said.

The college’s Department of Religious Studies and Rev. Michael C. McFarland, S.J. Center for Religion, Ethics and Culture co-sponsored an April 28 roundtable at which religious studies faculty discussed the accomplishments and challenges of Pope Francis’ papacy and “where we are left now.”

Also looking back and forward was Father Chester J. Misiewicz, a retired priest of the diocese who has a special interest in the papacy. He said he went to Rome to see the white smoke announcing the elections of Pope Francis and Popes John Paul I and Benedict XVI. Unable to go this time, he plans to watch on television.