Our Lady of the Valley
99 Maple Avenue, PO Box 515
Sheffield, MA 01257 413-229-3028
Our Lady of the Hills Immaculate Conception
Monterey Mill River
MASSES AND DEVOTIONS FOR THE
Mon. 8/16 7:30 a.m. Hattie Foley from the Joch Family
Tues. 8/17 7:30 a.m. Deceased family members of the Parish
Wed. 8/18 7:30 a.m. For our Military
Sat. 8/21 Vigil: 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time
Sunday in Ordinary Time
Sun. 8/22 7:30 a.m. For Parishioners
9:00 a.m. Anthony Forfa Sr. from Irene Magnus
Announcements:
Please remember in your prayers:
- all of the men and women in the armed forces who proudly serve our country, as well as the veterans.
- all Parishioners and their families who have lost a loved one
- all who are fighting cancer and their families
The revised schedule for serving coffee & donuts on First Sundays follows:
September - the Tuesday Small Faith-Sharing Group
October - the Mill River Bible Study Group
November - the Saturday Men's Breakfast Crew
December - the Parish Council
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Silence will be maintained at all times in the Sacristy. Our Sacristy, which is near the Blessed Sacrament
in the tabernacle, is also our Reconciliation Room. I apologize for the noise coming from the Sacristy.
We failed to remember that our voices can be heard and interrupt silent prayer.
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Our Lady of the Valley will host another Taize service on August 18th.
**************************************************************************************Breaking Bread Kitchen
This Thursday August 19th Our Lady of The Valley will serve
a free community dinner at The American Legion Hall right here in
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Heaven and Hell Question… A Holy man was having a conversation with God one day and said, God, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like.' God led the holy man to two doors. He opened one of the doors and the holy man looked in.. In the middle of the room was a large round table... In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew, Which smelled delicious and made the holy man's mouth water. The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared to be famished. They were holding spoons with very long handles that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful. But because the handle was longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their mouths. The holy man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering said, 'You have seen Hell. They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one. There was the large round table with the large pot of stew which made the holy man's mouth water. The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well nourished and plump, laughing and talking. The holy man said, 'I don't understand. 'It is simple,' said God 'It requires but one skill. You see, they have learned to feed each other. The greedy think only of themselves.' |
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The Gardner
by Ken Weisner
You get down on your knees in the dark earth -- alone
for hours in the hot sun, yanking weed roots, staking trellises,
burning your shoulders, swatting gnats; you strain your muscled
Midwestern neck and back, callous your pianist's hands.
You cut roses back so they won't fruit, rip out and replace
spent annuals. You fill your garden dense with roots and vines.
And when a humble sprout climbs like a worm up out of death,
hose like a scepter, a reliquary vessel; you hum
through the dreamy wilderness -- no one to judge, absolve,
or be absolved -- purified by labor, confessed by its whisperings,connected
to its innocence. So when you heft a woody, brushy tangle, or stumble
inside grimy, spent by earth, I see all the sacraments in place --
and the redeemed world never smelled so sweet.
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