The Enduring Witness of St. Bernadette

Last night, at the invitation of Holy Cross Family Ministries, I celebrated Mass to welcome the relic of St. Bernadette Soubirous to the Father Peyton Center in Easton. The relic’s presence there on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week is part of a national pilgrimage intended to bring the message of Lourdes to communities across the U.S. and to invite the faithful into a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ through the witness and prayerful life of St. Bernadette. The St. Joseph Chapel, adjacent to the Center, was filled to capacity, with many others joining an overflow congregation for the Mass and the veneration that followed.

The story of St. Bernadette reminds us that God’s ways are very different from those of the world. He did not choose the powerful or influential to accomplish His work. Rather, He chose a young and uneducated girl, not important in the eyes of the world, to convey a message of profound importance. Through her faithfulness, humility, and openness to God, St. Bernadette became an instrument of His grace, carrying Our Lady’s call to conversion to the world. Countless people touched by the message of Lourdes have experienced both physical and spiritual healing through her witness and intercession.

In a world that still needs conversion, who will be the St. Bernadette of today? God continues to seek instruments to share His message of peace, love, and compassion. All that is required is humility, faith, and openness to His will. As we honored St. Bernadette last night, I invited those gathered in the chapel to ask for her intercession, that we may be inspired by her example of faith and trust and become instruments of God’s grace in our own time.

Remembering Priests and Deacons Who Passed in the Last Year

In keeping with our Diocese’s tradition, on All Souls’ Day, which fell on Monday of this week, I celebrated the daily Mass at St. Mary’s Cathedral for Deceased Bishops, Priests, and Deacons of the Diocese, especially remembering those who have died during the previous year. I invited those present at the Mass to pray that the Lord would welcome those faithful servants into His eternal home, along with their loved ones. We remember them with gratitude and love for the legacy they have left us.

In my homily, I reflected on time and observed that, for me, and perhaps for others as well, time seems to move more quickly as we grow older. There is nothing we can do about that, but we can change how we look at time. Rather than seeing time as an enemy, we should regard it as a companion that accompanies us on life’s journey. Time is a gift from God and an opportunity to do as much good as we can. We should cherish every moment because, once it is given to us, it is gone.

Yes, inevitably we will all die; we all know that. Equally important to remember is that we are not dead yet. There is still time for us to do what we are called to do as baptized disciples. There is still time for us to give, to learn, to do good, and to grow closer to Jesus so that we are ready when we are called from this world.

Because we are connected with God, death is not an enemy to be feared. As Jesus assures us in St. John’s Gospel, proclaimed on All Souls Day: “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him on the last day” (John 6:40).

Priests and Deacons who passed in the last year.

Promoting a Culture of Life in Massachusetts

Last week, I joined my brother bishops in Massachusetts in expressing our gratitude to everyone who supported the petition to recall the recent law eliminating limits on late-term abortion in Massachusetts.

I am thankful for the thousands of people who added their names and for the coalition partners who worked tirelessly on this effort. As Catholics, we remain committed to defending the dignity of every human life and praying that hearts may be opened to compassion, love, and respect for the unborn.

Spiritual Mothers Lift Our Priests to God in Prayer

On Thursday, I was pleased to be with members of our Spiritual Mothers for Priests Ministry in the Diocese for a Mass, which I celebrated for them in the chapel in our Chancery and then for a light dinner that followed in our conference room.

The Spiritual Mothers for Priests Ministry is a group of about 40 women from different parts of the Diocese who spiritually adopt all of our priests. They offer prayers and good works for the health and holiness of our priests and try to model their own lives after the Blessed Mother, who is the Mother of Clergy.

Spiritual Motherhood is a tradition in our Church with ancient historical and theological roots, and we began this ministry here in the Diocese of Fall River in 2022 under the direction of our Office of Clergy Support. Our goal is to ensure that all diocesan priests, both active and retired, as well as all seminarians, are matched with a spiritual mother, a woman of prayer who will continually lift her priestly son(s) up to God through her prayers and sacrifices. If you are interested in becoming a spiritual mother, please contact Matt Robinson in our Clergy Support Office for more information.

Faith and Family, Across Generations

It was a joy to recently celebrate a crowded Mass with students, grandparents, and special friends at St. John Paul II High School on Cape Cod. These cross-generational connections are a gift that strengthens the bonds of faith and family. The gathering also gave grandparents and special friends a chance to see firsthand the value of a Catholic education in the lives of the young people they love.

With My Sincerest Blessings, 

+Bishop da Cunha

O Reverendíssimo Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V., D.D.
O Reverendíssimo Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V., D.D.
The Bishop of Fall River