In Fairhaven, where I live most of the time, June was a miserable month weather-wise. Almost every day was wet, cold, and dark. Instead of the bright sunlight of spring, there always seemed to be a dark cloud approaching.

O Sun, where are you?

Did God change his mind about giving us spring and summer? That was the worry of many people I talked to. But my friends in the natural world seemed to take the weather in stride. The dogwood tree near my office blossomed with great abundance, the daisies pushed through the enclosed spaces of their yards, the tree trunks turned green, and the mimosa trees put on a floral display worthy of a strutting peacock!

Our Dogwood Tree in Bloom!

Hey daisies, peek-a-boo!

A Green Tree Trunk!

Mimosa Blossoms!

The lesson is that the difficult places in ones life offer no less gifts of life than the agreeable and pleasant places. You just have to know where to look!
That lesson served me well in the dry desert country of New Mexico, where I went to stay for several weeks. What a different landscape that was! Instead of endless rain, there was a thirst for water everywhere I looked. But I learned that, instead of dwelling on the dry and barren landscape,

This land is dry and barren!

I was better off gazing at the places watered by human attention and love. And I found a surprising abundance of life!

Even in the desert, there is abundant Life!


So once more I reveled in the rich communal life of a Community in Mission, an intentional community of a different sort, one part male SSCC and the other part female SSCC, living together in harmony.

Artesia CIM minus Fr. Paul Murtagh SSCC (from left to right-Fr. Brian Guerrini SSCC, Sr. Mary Dominic Reantaso SSCC, Sr. Damien Dang SSCC, Sr. Marie Lemert SSCC

Shortly after I arrived, there was a humble, modest parade for the Fourth of July. Yet, what did I see, but a special float dedicated to Blessed Father Damien, soon to be a Saint! And who was that sitting in the front, but a young Saint Damien!

A Float Dedicated to Saint Damien-Great!


Saint Damien is waving!


Because I did not mention them in my last blog entry concerning ourcommunity in New Mexico, in this one, I would like to focus on Fr. Brian Guerrini SSCC and Sr. Mary Dominic Reantaso SSCC. Sr. Mary Dominic is a great musician and was once a director of liturgy in California. Now, she is happy in the humble surroundings of our rural churches, leading Bible Study groups, supplying and planning music, and playing her keyboard in our rural churches in the Pecos River Valley.

Sr. Mary Dominic Reantaso SSCC at the Keyboard

And, of course, she takes her turn at cooking for the community. Fr. Brian, a newly ordained priest after twenty years as a religious brother, has branched out in his ministry in interesting new wayw. I was pleased to see, while I was there, the new, recently expanded headquarters for the Vincent DePaul Center that Fr. Brian helped establish.

Fr. Brian Guerrini SSCC at Entrance to Vincent De Paul Center

In the tradition of the great Saint Vincent de Paul, who modeled truly heart-focused Christian ministry to the poor,

Saint Vincent De Paul, Model for True Charity to the Poor

this center is feeding double the number of people it did before, an important resource for the poor in these hard times of economic recession.

Food in Storage at St. Vincent De Paul Center

A Lay Volunteer Helping Keep Things In Order

Of course, Artesia is a place where people have shown how they care about the needs of their neighbors long before we Sacred Hearts missionaries arrived on the scene. One proof of that is the loving work of the San Jose Society, an association of lay volunteers who feed the families of the dearly departed who have funerals at Our Lady of Grace Church.

Bereaved Family gets in line for some good food!

Devoted Lay Volunteers Waiting to Serve

Another work of Fr. Brian has been to work with local Legion of Mary members to carry out Enthronements of the Sacred Heart in the Home. While I was there in New Mexico, I accompanied Fr. Brian to the neighboring city of Carlsbad to participate in some of the enthronements. How beautiful it was to fulfill the desire of devoted laypeople who wanted Jesus with his Sacred Heart to be their friend, guide, and ruler.

Family Celebrates with Enthronement Team

and to see how devotion strengthened the family’s bonding with God’s blessing!

Vasquez Family Sheltered under the Cross after Enthronement of Farm

Mary Smith blesses her sons

The people who live here are hardy and strong, like the Ocotillo Cactus that grows tall and strong, despite a shortage of water.

But they are also gracious in their hospitality, as the newest sign on the outskirts of Artesia states: “Artesia, A Great Place to Stay along the Way.”

Greeting Sign for Artesia, New Mexico

Yes, it certainly was and is. So I am praying and I ask you to pray, too, that from this unlikely, out of the way place, young people, like these two dedicated altar servers, will become servants of the Lord, a source of pride for their community and their God!

Two great altar servers posing with me in sacristy of Our Lady of Grace Church

Christopher (left), me (middle), Daniel (right)

We live in a blessed time! And so I’m feeling a little guilty for not writing more to you this last month. I must not forget that, since Jesus has no hands on this earth,

Statue of Jesus without hands

Jesus needs my hands to write to you about all the great things that I have seen, all that reflects the glory of Jesus in the Sacred Heartbeat of this life. In this posting, I would like to begin with the month of May, Mary’s month, in which our Blessed Mother’s beauty shines, bringing us closer to the mystery of Jesus.

Front Window of St. Mary's Church, Fairhaven

On the lawn of Damien residence, we commemorated the beginning of May by crowning her with flowers,

Statue of Mary Crowned

a fitting way to acknowledge not only how great she is, but also to highlight the beauty of the new creation of which she is the Mother. Remembering her mothering of beauty, I have taken special care lately to photograph some of the flowers blooming around me, as well as some swans in a nearby cove. Can you see our Blessed Mother’s beauty shining through them?

Rhododendron Blossoms

Swans at a Cove of the Acushnet River

Azalea Blossoms


Near the beginning of May, I set off for the national meeting of the governing board of the Men of the Sacred Hearts, which took place at the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows in Belleville, Illinois.

Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows

In that holy and beautiful place, we discussed ways of remaining faithful to and also renewing the apostolate of the Enthronement of the Sacred Heart in the Home. This is a ministry that arose from one of the great missionaries of our Congregation, Father Mateo Crawley-Boevey SSCC,

Fr. Mateo contemplating his mission of spreading devotion to the

Sacred Hearts

who, burning with spiritual energy, developed a special path to renew true devotion of the Sacred Heart, relying on visits to families by committed laymen in the Church. One hundred years later, his apostolate continues, continuing to call families back to true devotion that is an extension of our Eucharistic worship and consecration to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary. We, the National Board, after our business meeting, were happy to pray and listen to each other, renewing our brotherhood.

Celebrating our time together!

Teaching Sacred Heart Spirituality

I was doubly blessed to return from Belleville in time to participate in our Chapter of the East Coast Province of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts. A Chapter is a meeting of a province of religious brothers and priests convened to discuss and make basic decisions as well as elect leaders who will govern us in the next three years.

Fr. Stan Kolasa SSCC serving as a facilitator of the Chapter

Members of East Coast Province attending Chapter


The highlight of this particular chapter was our decision to approve an ambitious and far-reaching plan for the development of our retreat center in Wareham, Massachusetts. This is the same beautiful and blessed place I mentioned in an earlier post. We also reelected our provincial, Fr. William “Bill” Petrie SSCC and transformed our Provincial Council.

New Council (from left to right)-Fr. Fintan Sheeran SSCC, Fr. Tom

McElroy SSCC, Br. Paul Alves SSCC, Fr. Bob Charlton SSCC,
Fr. Bill Petrie SSCC-Provincial

And we had a spirited and humorous celebration of the jubilees of several of our more senior members, here portrayed in our religious attire.

Jubilee Celebrants after Anniversary Mass

We were honored to have present throughout our chapter our current Superior General, Fr. Javier Enrique Ossorio SSCC,

Fr. Javier Enrique Ossorio SSCC, Superior General of

the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary

who both charmed us and called us to fidelity in our mission and brotherhood that extends across the globe. Because of that internationality, there was no surprise in seeing one of our younger Indian priests, Fr. Alexis Nayak SSCC, giving a reflection, nor seeing him later helping count votes in the Chapter, while standing alongside his former novitiate comrade in the Philippines, Fr. Chris Santangelo SSCC.

Fr. Alexis Nayak SSCC, left Fr. Chris Santangelo, right

Despite the pains of adjusting to our present reality, the Chapter made clear how we retain our hope by being in a Resurrection mode, open to whatever transformation that will come to us through the Hearts of Jesus and Mary.

The Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary,

Emblem of our Spiritual Life

At last! Christ has risen!

After a long and strenuous Lent, the day arrived upon which our faith and hope is based. On April 12, the Church tasted the joy of Easter once more. For me, the coming of Easter signified a call to taste the Lord in a new way through retreats that shared the dynamic life of the Lord. For, as St. Paul said: “From now on we regard no one according to the flesh, even if we once knew Christ according to the flesh.” (2 Corinthians 5:16) How would I interpret that?

We’ve all heard too many things that we didn’t need to hear. Right?

We’ve all seen too many things that we didn’t need to see? Right?

We’ve all said too many things that we didn’t need to say. Right?

How can we make up for it? The solution is to engage in the intense experience of a retreat and then to see all as new: “ So whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

A New Creation!


The first retreat I attended was an Emmaus retreat, its roots being the appearance of Jesus to His two disciples on the road to Emmaus. (Luke 24:13-32) It was a unique experience of speaking to each other freely in the presence of the Lord, such that, at the end, we could say, “Were not our hearts burning?” I came to see each of these dear people as truly my brother or sister, a fellow pilgrim of Emmaus 161.

My small group at the Emmaus 161 Retreat

This particular retreat movement was founded by two of our Sacred Hearts priests over twenty years ago. And like all things of the Spirit, it has outgrown us. Thank you, Jesus!

The second retreat, sponsored by the local group of the Men of the Sacred Hearts, was one that I had the privilege of preaching for and leading, with the Sacred Heart of Jesus as the central focus, which I connected with Jesus' proclamation of Himself as the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

It turned out to be an amazing week-end, better than any of us expected, because Jesus’ Heart was in charge. Take a look at some of the happy devotees!

Of course, it also helped that our beautiful Sacred Hearts Retreat Center manor house and grounds were the setting, letting the participants see and feel God’s beautiful presence just by taking a walk.

And the food? Wow! Almost to die for! So come on down and get to know this beautiful and holy place!

Sacred Hearts Retreat Center Manor House

Sacred Hearts Retreat Center boathouse beach area