BOSTON -- A Mass of Appreciation was held at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross on Oct. 16 to honor the faithful who supported the annual Catholic Appeal through generous donations or volunteer service.

The Catholic Appeal supports the archdiocese's central ministries, schools, and parishes, as well as programs and resources available to anyone. Each parish has an Appeal coordinator to help launch the campaign in their community. This may be done by arranging witness talks, putting announcements in the bulletin, offering intentions during prayers for the faithful at Mass, and providing updates on progress toward fundraising goals.

Catholic Appeal manager Arlene Dubrowski said they estimated about 300 people attended the Mass.

In an email to The Pilot, she described the Mass as "an expression of appreciation to the loyal and generous donors to the Catholic Appeal, the volunteers who serve within their parish, providing leadership and support for pastors in carrying the message of the Appeal to parishioners and the people employed in some aspect of the Church's vital work."

She added that many of the people present were "all of these things."

The Mass was celebrated by Cardinal Seán P. O'Malley along with Bishop Peter Uglietto, the vicar general, and cathedral rector Msgr. Kevin O'Leary.

The cardinal expressed his thanks to the donors and volunteers at the beginning and end of the Mass.

"Your support as donors, as volunteers within your parishes, and in carrying the message of the Appeal to your fellow parishioners is of great assistance to the mission of the Church," he said before the final blessing.

In his homily, Cardinal O'Malley pointed out the common theme of perseverance in prayer in the liturgy readings that Sunday.

The Old Testament passage was about Moses praying over the Israelites' battle against Amalek. As long as he had his hands raised in prayer, the Israelites had the better of the fight. When he grew tired, Aaron and Hur brought a rock for him to sit on and held up his hands so the Israelites would continue to prevail.

"Praying together helps us to persevere. Moses couldn't do it alone, but when his brother Aaron and Hur were there to help him, then he could persevere in prayer," Cardinal O'Malley said.

The Gospel reading, from St. Luke, was the parable of the widow who pursues justice from an unjust judge until he finally relents and delivers a just decision for her.

"Jesus says that's the kind of perseverance we need to have in prayer," Cardinal O'Malley said.

John Corcoran, chair of the board of trustees of iCatholic Media, attended the Mass with his wife and daughter. He said it was "good to thank (the) volunteers for their hard work."

"The appeal is the essential funding ingredient for the ministries of the archdiocese. It's a shared responsibility that we all have to sustain and maintain and grow the good work of the archdiocese. The appeal is right at the heart of it," he said.

Information about the Catholic Appeal is available at bostoncatholicappeal.org.