January 5th, 2020| The Epiphany of the Lord | (803)

85 Main Street / Ashburnham, Massachusetts 01430

Saint Denis Parish

LORD’S DAY MASSES Saturday — 4:30 pm

Sunday — 8:00 & 10:30 am

DAILY MASSES

Monday — Wednesday 9:00 am

RECONCILIATION Saturday 3:30 — 4:00 pm

or by appointment

OFFICE HOURS

Monday — Thursday

10:00 - 3:00pm.

Office 24/7 available

on website:

www.saintdenisashburnham.com

Bulletin requests, Prayer requests

Mass Intentions, Event Tickets

Calendar requests, Join Parish

PRIEST ADMINISTRATOR Fr. Guillermo “Memo” Ochoa

Fatherochoa@gmail.com

DEACON Deacon Richard DesJardins

978-343-6367

SECRETARY/OFFICE Andrew W. Gage

StDenis@comcast.net

978-827-5806

RELIGIOUS ED. OFFICE Administrator of Rel ED

Kimberly Brown

978-827–4892

StDenisRE@comcast.net

SAINT VINCENT de PAUL

978-790-1923

BAPTISMS Deacon Richard DesJardins

978-343-6367

NOTIFY THE RECTORY 978-827-5806

Visitation of the sick & elderly

Weddings, Funerals,

Pastoral Care, etc.

St Denis Cemetery Kelton Rd

Ashburnham, MA 01430

978-827-5806

https://saintdenisashburnham.org/cemetery

www.SaintDenisAshburnham.com

Join Flock Notes: Text “StDenis85” to 84576

Join Formed https://formed.org Use Code 6DF8JG

“The light of Christ is so clear and strong that

it makes the language of the cosmos and of the

Scriptures intelligible, so that all those who,

like the Magi, are open to the truth can

recognize it and join in contemplating the

Savior of the world.”

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI

Next Week: Jan 12th, 2019|The Baptism of the Lord | Is 42: 1-4, 6-7, Acts 10: 34-38, Matt 3:13-17

Sat 1/4 4:30 pm

Sun 1/5 8:00 am Deceased Benefactors Of

St Denis Parish

10:30 am

Mon 1/6 9:00 am Alyre Cormier

By the Lashua Family

Tues 1/7 6:00 pm

Wed 1/8 11:30 am

Sat 1/11 4:30 pm

Sun 1/12 8:00 am Monica Vorse

By John & Sandy Fontaine

10:30 am

Chaplet of Divine Mercy

Every Saturday, at 4:15 pm we will begin

praying the Chaplet of Divine Mercy (Before

Mass).

Knights of Columbus Member Drive January 11th and 12th after the

Masses. The church is about community and the Knights are a fraternal

community that helps the church and each other. We are stronger as a group

than as individuals. Join us and help us do good in our community! Parish

secretary has more information or go to: http://ash-westkofc.org

Sponsored by

Council #15972

Knights

Of Columbus

In service to One, in service to all

Knights of Columbus - Habitat for Humanity January 18th 2020

The Knights of Columbus will be assisting in the building of a house

in Ashburnham. We are looking for volunteers. If you like working

with your hands and helping people in need, here is an

opportunity to do both at once.

Please contact Joel @ 508-331-5982

Congratulations to Bonnie Leary who won the

Patriots tickets for the game the 29th! Let us

pray for a Patriots win! We raised $668.00 for

the church though the raffle. Special thanks to

all those involved, especially our generous donors of the tickets!

Epiphany is the

manifestation of Jesus to

the outside world.

Epiphany also means a wonderful

discovery or a great revelation. It is a remembrance of the

coming of the Magi or the Three Wise Men to the infant Jesus

at Bethlehem. Generally, Epiphany is the manifestation of the

infant Jesus to the gentile world or non-Jews.

The Three Wise Men came from Persia, the present-day Iran.

The story of the Wise Men and their visit to the infant Jesus is

very instructive. First, these Wise Men were experts in

astrology and in the interpretation of dreams. They were also

known as Magi, which is the plural form of the Latin word

Magus, which means a Magician. It is interesting to see how

their knowledge of astrology assisted them in tracing where

Jesus was born. However, this natural skill was insufficient as

they lost their way. This was why they went to the palace of

Herod to ask directions. The scribes and priests had to refer to

the Holy Book to recall that a savior was to be born in

Bethlehem. Therefore, it was not only the stars but also the

light of the Word of God that led them to the stable where the

child was born. The action of the Scribes and Priests in

consulting the Word of God goes to show that Jesus the Word

of God made flesh is the way through which all those who are

lost can find the right way. The Wise Men were

knowledgeable people as their title suggests, but they were not

omniscient and so their natural endowment was not enough to

bring them to God.

Secondly, we notice that these Wise Men were not Jews and

yet they came to worship him. This is another sign that Jesus,

the Prince of Peace came to break the barriers of race, tribe, or

religion. These Three Wise men were pagans who came to the

land of the Jews to worship the Messiah. Does this story not

speak loudly to our world of today where there are serious

conflicts between Islam, Judaism, and Christianity?

Epiphany is also known as the feast of light to reflect the

coming of the infant Jesus, the light of the world. The prophet

Isaiah asked his people to take advantage of this light by rising

and shining. He says, “Arise, shine, for your light has come,

and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you”. Similarly,

Jesus instructs his disciples, “Let your light so shine before

men that they may see your good works and give glory to your

Father in heaven”.

We are called to arise from our weakness, to arise from our

negative thoughts, to arise from our sin, to arise from darkness

into the wonderful light that has come, to arise from our fears,

to arise from our mediocrity and soar higher like eagles. To

arise and take the place where God has prepared for us and to

be in the position where God has placed us. There is a need to

take the dust out of the gold to enable it to shine more

brightly.

Sat 1/4 3:30 pm Sacrament of Reconciliation 4:15 pm Divine Mercy Chaplet 4:30 pm Saturday Mass Sun 1/5 8:00 am Sunday Mass 10:30 am Sunday Mass Mon 1/6 9:00 am Daily Mass Tue 1/7 9:00 am Daily Mass Wed 1/8 9:00 am Daily Mass 9:30 am Ladies Spiritual Enrichment Group Thur 1/9 7:00 pm Kerygma Prayer/Bible Study Sat 1/11 3:30 pm Sacrament of Reconciliation 4:15 pm Divine Mercy Chaplet 4:30 pm Saturday Mass Sun 1/12 8:00 am Sunday Mass 10:30 am Sunday Mass

Special Highlights | Upcoming Events | RE Schedule| Offertory Update

Sun 1/5 10:30 am — 6:00 pm Grade 9 Retreat

Mon 1/6 3:00 pm CCD Grades 3-5

6:30 pm CCD Grades 6-8

Tues 1/7 3:00 pm CGS Classes

3:00 pm CCD Grades K - 2

St Denis Parish Web Site:

Why use our website?

Available all the time

More accurate for Mass Intentions, Prayer requests

You save writers cramp when buying raffle tickets

Often you can buy early, event tickets and suppers

Request proof of Membership, Sacramental Letters

Give Online for Mass collections, Legacy of Hope

and Partners in Charity

Pay for cemetery lots via credit card or relatives can

purchase lots from where-ever they live.

Use our Online Calendar to see what is going on.

Use our Facebook feed to view Mass videos

Logon to Formed directly from our site!

View our bulletins online early

Say the Divine Mercy Chaplet online with Heather

under Ministries.

Let us honor God with our first fruits rather than the leftovers

12/22/19 Sunday Offertory $ 1,922.00 Parish Needs $ 0.00 Cemetery $ 10.00 Fuel & Maint $ 421.00 Christmas Flowers $ 48.00 12/22/19 Online Giving $ 130.00 Total $ 2,531.00

Thank you for your generous support of the parish. Your weekly financial support enables Saint Denis to

provide for the needs of our parish.

Anyone making payments to Legacy

of Hope should write checks out to

“Legacy of Hope” and mail them

directly to the Legacy of Hope office.

Only new donations should be sent

through the parish. Please Send to: Legacy of Hope, 49 Elm

Street, Worcester, MA 01609. Thank you for your donation.

“When I meet another parent of a child with Down

syndrome, there is usually a moment of instant

recognition and understanding. Our eyes meet, and

we smile conspiratorially, as if we’re in on the same

secret: the fundamental truth that every life is a

good and perfect gift. …Our love for our children has nothing to do

with their abilities. We love them simply because of who they are,

and understanding this teaches us how to truly love everyone.”

USCCB Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities

“A Perfect Gift” (www.respectlife.org/a-perfect-gift)

The Epiphany of the Lord

For public servants: May God grant them the humility,

wisdom, and courage to defend all human life;

We pray to the Lord:

Your St. Denis St. Vincent de Paul Confer-ence extends its thanks to parishioners who overwhelmingly supported the effort to assist families in need to have a blessed Christmas. Your generosity in providing gift cards and cash made a difference to so many, and we are more grateful than you

will ever know. This year there were more families in need than we have ever experienced. Our assistance is always pro-vided confidentially, and often is a bridge to enable an indi-vidual or family to be able to get back on their feet. Every sin-gle gift, large or small, has been gratefully received. Our pray-ers of thanksgiving for our parish and our community are ongoing. We pray for a blessed, peaceful 2020 for all.