Archbishop Richard G. Henning announced March 13 that he has appointed Father Christopher K. O'Connor as rector of the Cathedral of the Holy Cross. Father O'Connor succeeds Msgr. Kevin O'Leary, who has served 18 years as rector and will be granted senior priest status. Father O'Connor will assume pastoral leadership of the cathedral in late June 2026.
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This is the second article in a series profiling the five men who will be ordained to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Boston at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross on May 16, 2026. WESTON -- Deacon Steve Baruffi's first brush with religious life was in 1978, when he moved to Massachusetts to study with the Maryknoll Missionaries in Hingham.
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BRAINTREE -- Archbishop Richard G. Henning attended the Easter Vigil at the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral of New England in Boston on April 11, spending the holiest night in the Orthodox calendar with Metropolitan Methodios of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis in Boston.
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ROXBURY -- Two years ago, St. Patrick Parish in Roxbury held a 24-hour Eucharistic vigil for the son of parishioner John Barros. Barros's son was dying of cancer, and parishioners were praying for a miracle. Barros later realized that the miracle was not saving his son's life, but giving Barros the grace to accept God's will.
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MATTAPAN -- Marise Pierre-Louis Simon did not meet her father until she was 26 years old. Her father, a politician and presidential candidate in their native Haiti, was forced into exile during the dictatorship of Francois "Papa Doc" Duvalier. Simon visited him in 1984, when he was living in Florida. Simon would suffer the same fate as her father when President Jean-Bertrand Aristide rose to power a few years later, putting her life in danger.
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WALPOLE -- Some of the students address him as "Holy Father," others "Your Holiness," others "Pope Leo XIV," and some simply "Pope Leo." Some of their messages are colorful and scrawled, others written in immaculate print conforming closely to the lined paper. A few wrote poems. Some offered congratulations on being the first pope from the U.S. Most offered their prayers. Many drew doodles of themselves with Pope Leo XIV. Fifth grader Angela drew him with anime eyes.
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This is the first article in a series profiling the five men who will be ordained to the priesthood for the Archdiocese of Boston at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross on May 16, 2026. CAMBRIDGE -- For Deacon Jonathan Saniuk, the most exciting thing about being a priest will be getting to hold Jesus in his hands.
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WEST ROXBURY -- Archbishop Richard G. Henning celebrated the Easter Vigil at Holy Name Parish in West Roxbury on April 4. When the vigil began, the large church was shrouded in total darkness, except for the Easter fire and a light that allowed the archbishop to read the missal. The fire was blessed and used to light that year's Paschal Candle, which Archbishop Henning inscribed with a cross, the Greek letters Alpha and Omega, and the year 2026. The candle was then carried in procession through the church and used to light the candles of the worshipers who filled the church. Its single flickering flame, surrounded by clouds of incense that had also been blessed by the archbishop, was the only light in the enormous sanctuary. Father Paul Wargovich, Archbishop Henning's secretary, sang the Easter Proclamation. There was an extended Liturgy of the Word, which recounted the history of salvation, starting with the creation of the world. This liturgy featured the first chanting of the Alleluia since the start of Lent.
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EAST BOSTON -- "We already have the cross over here," says Gloria Landaverde, a parishioner at Most Holy Redeemer Parish in East Boston. Indeed, the 70-pound cross was resting on the St. Vincent de Paul drop box. It would soon be carried by two Jesuses. "Parking lot Jesus," as Pastor Father Thomas Domurat calls him, is Jesus Martinez (the name is merely a coincidence), a 19-year-old Boston College student who would reenact Calvary in the church parking lot for hundreds of onlookers on Good Friday, April 3. "Street Jesus" is parishioner Misael Palacios, who would carry the cross in a lavish procession through the streets of East Boston. Most Holy Redeemer's live Spanish-language dramatization of the Way of the Cross, a tradition in the parish for 17 years, is an epic on a biblical scale. The three-hour spectacle features multiple sets, dozens of actors in full costume, props, music, and special effects (a cackling black-robed Satan appears multiple times in puffs of smoke). Almost 100 cast and crew members rehearsed for over two months. This year's snowstorms limited the amount of time they had to prepare.
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LOWELL -- Since 2009, students at Lowell Catholic High School have been required to do at least 100 hours of community service before graduating. Forty percent of Lowell Catholic students graduate with commended service, meaning they completed 180 hours or more. Some complete over 200 hours. A few make it to 500. Senior Deborah Kibuuka has completed 1,200 hours of community service since freshman year.
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WESTWOOD -- Thirty-five parish musicians from the Archdiocese of Boston and beyond attended an all-day Catholic musicians' workshop at St. Margaret Mary Church in Westwood on March 25. Patrick Krisak, the Archdiocese of Boston's director of faith formation and missionary discipleship, said that the workshop was meant to provide more support to parish musicians than they usually receive.
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BOSTON -- The holy oils that will be used in parishes and shrines throughout the Archdiocese of Boston for sacraments throughout the coming year were consecrated during the annual Chrism Mass, celebrated by Archbishop Richard G. Henning at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross on March 31.
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CAMBRIDGE -- In 1978, scientists from some of the most renowned laboratories in the U.S. and Europe petitioned the House of Savoy to offer them its most priceless artifact. For centuries, the royal house owned the legendary Shroud of Turin, purported to be the burial shroud of Jesus Christ and venerated by Catholics worldwide. Scientists from the Shroud of Turin Research Project (STURP) received permission to spend five days studying every aspect of the shroud to determine its origins. One of the scientists on the team was Barrie Schwortz. Schwortz was Jewish, but he believed that the Shroud of Turin was an authentic depiction of Jesus. The smoking gun for him was when test results found that the blood stains on the shroud were real, belonging to a human male with AB blood type. An excess of bilirubin was found in the blood, suggesting that the "Man of the Shroud" had experienced extreme physical trauma before his death. It was the bilirubin that kept the blood red over the next two millennia.
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ROXBURY -- A lack of government funding has forced an archdiocesan housing project in Roxbury to scale back its plans, prompting concern and frustration from the community. Drexel Village, a planned 217-unit affordable housing development, which would surround the St. Katharine Drexel Parish Center on Ruggles Street, was first conceived in 2018. It is a project of the Planning Office for Urban Affairs (POUA), the Archdiocese of Boston's affordable housing ministry. The original plan was for Drexel Village to have 11 affordable homeownership units. During a project update at the parish center on March 25, POUA President Bill Grogan explained that the homeownership units would have to become rental units for the project to continue.
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METHUEN -- The first time Larry Giordano witnessed death was when he was about 18 years old. The former foster kid from Everett had joined the U.S. Air Force at 17. His job was to rescue plane crash victims. This time, he and his crew were too late, and the deceased victim was smoldering in the cockpit. At the age of 19, Giordano was a rescue crew chief responsible for a team of responders and a fire truck worth $30 million. He thought of God constantly.
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TOPSFIELD -- As Brian Curley watched his newborn son languish in a boxy NICU incubator, surrounded by doctors and nurses performing tests and operations on the baby's small body, he was grateful to God.
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BRAINTREE -- After 97 years, St. Joseph School in Medford has announced that it will close at the end of the 2025-26 school year. In a statement to families, Father Tim Hynes, pastor of Mary Queen of Peace Parish in Medford, which includes the school, said that the decision was made "following a careful review of enrollment trends and a very challenging financial burden for the school and parish."
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WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA (AMS), announced March 19 that Father William (Chris) Palladino will be the military archdiocese's new judicial vicar effective July 1.
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Archbishop Richard G. Henning announced March 24 that he has appointed Bishop Robert P. Reed as the 23rd rector of St. John's Seminary. Bishop Reed succeeds Msgr. Stephen E. Salocks, who has served as rector since 2018.
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BRAINTREE -- Msgr. William Fay is no stranger to popes. Back when he was a deacon, Msgr. Fay, a professor of philosophy and theology at Pope St. John XXIII National Seminary in Weston, served at Masses celebrated by Pope St. Paul VI. Msgr. Fay described him as a cultured Renaissance man, "clearly an Italian from Brescia." Later, as part of his work for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the monsignor met Pope St. John Paul II.
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CAMBRIDGE -- The foam-padded walls of Harvard University's wrestling room have heard as many of Nolan Liess's prayers as the marble pillars of St. Paul Parish down the street. Inside the Malkin Athletic Center, the walls are painted with inspirational quotes rather than frescoes. The thumping bass of electronic workout music replaces Gregorian chant and the angelic voices of St. Paul Choir School's choristers. For Liess, a 21-year-old economics major, both buildings are holy places.
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MALDEN -- Every morning, Scott Carbonneau does a walk across the grounds and through the halls of Cheverus School in Malden, making sure that everything is in its place and safe. It's what Carbonneau, the school custodian, has done every morning for the last 20 years -- and what he hopes to continue doing every day until he retires.
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Archbishop Richard G. Henning announced March 24 that he has appointed Bishop Robert P. Reed as the 23rd rector of St. John's Seminary. Bishop Reed succeeds Msgr. Stephen E. Salocks, who has served as rector since 2018.
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