Last Friday, I spoke with Archbishop Borys Gudziak of the Ukrainian Catholic Archepa rchy of Philadelphia. The Ukrainian Catholic Church is the largest Eastern Rite Catholic Church. They have several dioceses in the U.S., including an archdiocese headquartered in Philadelphia.

As a result of the generosity of Catholics here in Boston, we have raised over $1 million through our special collections to aid the people of Ukraine, and I was consulting with Archbishop Gudziak about how those funds might be best directed. Half of the money will be used for urgently needed refugee and humanitarian aid, and the other half will be used to help rebuild Ukraine once that process can begin.

The archbishop was very grateful for the support and prayers of the people of the Archdiocese of Boston. He himself has many associations with Boston, including studying for several years at Harvard and living in the area for almost 10 years. He is also very close to our local Ukrainian Catholic Parish, Christ the King.



St. Ann's renovations

On Saturday, I went to St. Ann's in Marshfield to bless their new renovations.

The parish had installed new doors in the church and completely restored the vestibule. So, we celebrated the Rite of Blessing of Church Doors. Frankly, I had never heard of the blessing of the doors but, as it turns out, it's a very beautiful rite in the Catholic ritual.

Kevin and Ann O'Connor generously donated the new doors for the church in memory of Ann's parents, Jack and Eleanor O'Connell.



St. Paul's anniversary

Sunday morning, I went to St. Paul's Parish in Hamilton, where Father Michael Lawlor is pastor, to join in the celebration of their 100th anniversary.

It was a beautiful celebration and, afterward, they had a luncheon under a tent that they had put up next to the church. We were blessed with fine weather over the weekend, and it was just a beautiful day.



Meeting with auxiliary bishops and episcopal vicars

Monday, we had a luncheon and meeting with the auxiliary bishops and episcopal vicars of the archdiocese at the Pastoral Center. It was the first time we gathered in person for quite a while. Up until now, we have mostly been meeting virtually, so it was good to have everybody come together once again. We were especially happy that Bishop John Dooher was able to join us.



Spring Convocation

Tuesday was our annual Spring Convocation for the presbyterate of the archdiocese. This was our first in-person convocation since the start of the pandemic, and I'm so happy that so many of our priests were able to join us.

They did an excellent job of organizing a program that incorporated the personal witness of priests of the Archdiocese of Boston. Father John MacInnis did a great job moderating the discussion on the topics of continued growth, spiritual development, personal conversion, and ongoing formation.

It was also an opportunity for us to congratulate our jubilarians as well as our transitional deacons who will be ordained to the priesthood on Saturday.

The convocation is a time when we single out and honor four priests for their exemplary service and ministry. The honorees each year are nominated by their fellow priests through the Presbyteral Council, and it's always a great joy to recognize their service and accomplishments.

This year the priests honored were Father Huy Nguyen of St. Jerome and Immaculate Conception in Weymouth, Father Bryan Parrish of St. Joseph Parish in Needham, Father Charlie Higgins of St. John Chrysostom and St. Theresa of Avila Parishes in West Roxbury, and Father Tom Domurat of Most Holy Redeemer Parish in East Boston.