Pope Francis Recognizes Second Miracle, Paving the Way for Carlo Acutis' Canonization

In a significant development for the Catholic Church, Pope Francis has recognized a second miracle attributed to the intercession of Carlo Acutis, an Italian teenager who passed away in 2006. Acutis, a gamer and computer programmer with a deep love for the Eucharist, is on the verge of becoming the Catholic Church’s first millennial saint.

A Modern Saint in the Making

Carlo Acutis was born on May 3, 1991, in London, before moving with his parents to Milan, Italy. His life, though short, was marked by an extraordinary devotion to his faith and a profound love for God. Diagnosed with leukemia as a teenager, Carlo offered his sufferings for Pope Benedict XVI and the Church, stating, “I offer all of my suffering to the Lord for the pope and for the Church in order not to go to purgatory but to go straight to heaven.” His profound spirituality was evident even as a child, when he enjoyed praying the rosary and attending Mass as often as possible after his first Communion.

Read more: Pope Francis Recognizes Second Miracle, Paving the Way for Carlo Acutis' Canonization

Christian Outreach at Saint John Fisher Roman Catholic Church

At Saint John Fisher Roman Catholic Church, our commitment to Christian outreach is manifested through a variety of programs and initiatives that aim to support and uplift our community. Here's an overview of our recent and ongoing outreach efforts:

Drive-Thru Café

In March, Saint John Fisher hosted a monthly Sunday meal for patrons of the Marlborough Food Bank, distributed at the Congregational Church. Managed by Melissa Jordan, this initiative is part of our Drive-Thru Café, where we provide meals for three months each year. Our next and final meal for 2024 is scheduled for June 30th, marking the end of this year's efforts in this program.

Read more: Christian Outreach at Saint John Fisher Roman Catholic Church

Congratulations ~ 2024 First Holy Communion Class

Congratulations to our 2024 First Holy Communion Class that was celebrated on May 4!  God bless them all and continue to guide them on their beautiful faith  journey.

2nd Grade Faith Formation Retreat

2nd grade Faith Formation class at their retreat on April  27 preparing for their First Holy Communion day!

Join An Amazing Adult Choir.

Most of you will agree that we have an amazing adult choir.  If you like to sing and have ever thought about joining us, we are extending an invitation to anyone to come sing with our choir at mass during the month of May.  Rehearsals are not necessary:  just come up and join the choir in song.  They will be singing at the 8:30 Sunday masses on May 5 & 19, and the 10:30 masses on May 12 & 26. We would love to have you join us.

As for high school and college students who may be off during the summer, we know that many of you have beautiful voices or play an instrument.  If you are interested in sharing your musical gifts with us during the summer months, whether it’s simply to spread the word of God through song or to gain some experience musically, please see Janice Reska, our music director.  This can be a wonderful opportunity to enhance our music ministry.

We hope you will consider joining us and look forward to speaking with anyone who may be interested.

The Archbishop’s Annual Appeal

Wine, Wit and Wisdom With Fr. Al

 The first offering of Wine, Wisdom and Wit was a great success - being able to ask Father Al any questions and gain insight was the focus on the night. We learned more about purgatory (and no, it is not some thing to fear), the final judgement, what we believe happens when we die and Jesus' desire to bring everyone into His kingdom with His Father. Insight, discussion and Father's wit all graced our time together.  

Photos by Nancy Gianetti

Easter donations to Journey Home

Donna Sawan is pictured here as she brought our parish Easter donations to Journey Home. They were most appreciative and loved the idea of Easter baskets.

A special Thank You to everyone who helped make this all possible!

How Journey Home is Making a Difference

Our mission is to ensure a home for all.

We’ve spent more than a decade committed to ending homelessness in Connecticut’s Capital region by applying sustainable solutions to the barriers that create cycles of homelessness.

Every day, we work to:

• Prevent as many people as possible from losing their housing
• Increase the speed at which we find housing for anyone who is already experiencing homelessness
• Help folks move into their homes and provide the furnishings and services they need to never become homeless again

Richard Buckminster Fuller says, “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

For Connecticut, that new model is the Coordinated Access Network, a way for people who are experiencing homelessness to access housing and support services in a standardized and organized way. It involves having clear protocols, assessment tools, and agreed-upon priorities within the community that serves homeless individuals.

Visit Journey Home by clicking on this link!

Community Service At It's Best ~ 9th Grade Confirmation Class

This past April 7th, the 9th grade Confirmation class completed a community service event of assembling 120 bags of breakfast food items that were donated by the parishioners and the 9th grade Confirmation families of STJF to benefit ImmaCare Inc. located in Hartford. ImmaCare Inc., strives to eliminate homelessness in the Hartford region, by creating safe and affordable housing options and increasing the skills, income and hope of those who struggle with housing crisis. They had so much fun assembling these bags knowing that this food will help all those people in need in the Hartford area. A HUGE Thank You for all those families who donated these yummy food items!  It was received with much appreciation!

🤝 It’s Coffee and Donuts and Friends and Fellowship

It’s meeting new parishioners or connecting with those you’ve seen in church, but maybe never met.

It’s time to enjoy conversations and even brief moments of passing greetings.

It’s talking over Mass, the homily, or music.

It’s plans for Easter, dinner, or time at home with family.

It’s time to share pictures, experience you’ve have had or are coming up.

Thank you for the opportunity to bring this all together.

Exciting News: Planning to Offer Children's Liturgy of the Word 

Archbishop’s Annual Appeal