Wednesday (10/11) we had our board meeting of the Pontifical Mission Societies in the archdiocese. We heard some very encouraging reports about all their activities.

Earlier that day we had just hosted our annual Mission Education Day for Catholic school students, which is presented by one of the Pontifical Mission Societies -- The Missionary Childhood Association. I was very happy to celebrate morning Mass for them in our Bethany Chapel. We were joined at the Mass by Father Dermot Roache from the SMA Fathers and Father Jim DiPerri who was there with his student choir, which did a fabulous job singing for us at the Mass.

...We are very proud of our Pontifical Mission Societies Office, under the direction of Msgr. Bill Fay and Maureen Heil. Boston has long been one of the leading dioceses throughout the world in supporting the missions, which is a tradition that goes back to the time of Cardinal Cushing, who himself had been the director of the Office of the Propagation of the Faith.

APC meeting

Wednesday evening was one of our regular meetings of the Archdiocesan Pastoral Council, a group of very dedicated individuals who help advise me very much like a pastor receives advice from his parish council.

Typically, during our meetings we hear presentations on different archdiocesan initiatives and activities. At this gathering, we heard two presentations: one by Marianne Luthin and Sister Pat Boyle on the Catholic Leadership Conference that was held this summer in Orlando, and another by Marjean Perhot of Catholic Charities giving an overview of recent executive orders on immigration and refugees and the impact they have on Dreamers and those with Temporary Protected Status. We also heard an update on the upcoming Archdiocesan Social Justice Convocation, which will be held Nov. 4 at Boston College High School. We are all very much looking forward to this very important annual event focusing on the social gospel of the Church, which will feature keynote addresses by Sean Callahan, the president of Catholic Relief Services and our own Father Bryan Hehir.

MCC board meeting

Thursday (10/12), we had our board meeting of the Massachusetts Catholic Conference. At this gathering we spoke about the new mental health initiative announced last week with Franciscan Children's hospital and, of course, there is ongoing discussion about the possibility of physician assisted suicide being legalized in the Commonwealth. We are grateful to Jim Driscoll and his staff at the MCC for their fine work representing the interests of the Church in the public square.

Mass at cathedral

Finally, yesterday evening, I celebrated Mass with the parish community at the cathedral, which we offered particularly for the hurricane victims in Puerto Rico.

The Mass was also an opportunity to welcome Sister Petra, who will be working at the cathedral and to thank Sister Velinda who will be returning home to Mexico, where she will live in the contemplative community of her order. We are very grateful for the wonderful work that Sister Velinda has done the cathedral over the last several years and are very grateful to her community, the Missionary Servants of the Word, for the help they have given to the archdiocese.