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LETTER DESCRIBING OUR PARISH
This letter was
prepared in response to an invitation to all pastors by Bishop Richard
Lennon as part of the Reconfiguration process of parishes in the
Archdiocese of
Boston.
(You may also take
a look at our newsletter (PDF*)
for a snapshot of life in our parish.) NOTE: You
must have the Adobe® Acrobat® ReaderTM installed on
your computer to get PDF files. It is available as a free
download.)
April 16, 2004
His Excellency Seán P. O’Malley
Archbishop of Boston
2101 Commonwealth Avenue
Boston, MA 02135
Dear Archbishop Seán,
Thank you for this opportunity to write to you about St.
Mary of the Hills Parish in Milton.
If I could convey only one thing to you, it would be this:
Our parish and school are currently growing and experiencing a renewal
of faith and community involvement. We are an anchor to the culturally,
economically, and ethnically diverse west end of Milton and would embrace
the opportunity to serve as a welcoming parish, should that be your
decision. Please allow us to continue the work of building the Church
here.
Having served as pastor of St. Mary’s for 21 months, I believe
our special assets and energy enable us to look forward to additional
growth and vitality in the fullness of Church life in Milton. There
are two critical reasons for this:
• the generosity of our parishioners in sharing of their time, talent,
and treasure, and
• our vibrant school,
an integral and long-standing part of our parish
community.
St. Mary’s parishioners provide strong financial support
As a tithing parish for over 15 years, St. Mary’s sets aside 10%
of our weekly offertory for the support of 32 charities and institutions
within our own community, Archdiocese, nation and beyond, including a “sister” parish
in Haiti. Parishioners have provided over $400,000 to this outreach in
the past 10 years. (See list below.) Also directly due to parishioners’ support,
our parish and school are financially sound. We have no outstanding
debts and our buildings are in excellent physical condition.
Our ministries are bringing renewed vitality to our community
Our parishioners share generously of their time and talent with our parish,
with over 200 members serving in 28 ministries.
These include a Youth Ministry,
Parish Nursing, RCIA, and Stewardship, all of which have been formed
within the past year and a half. These new
ministries are serving to revitalize our parish life in significant
ways, including increasing numbers of registrations, and chart a course
for
us, should we serve as a welcoming parish in the future.
Thriving together – our school needs us and we need our
school
The relationship that our parish has built with our school
over 48
years is critical to the vitality of both. The parish contributes $100,000
a year to help the school provide high quality Catholic education while
still keeping tuition affordable. Since many parishioners see the school
as central to the life of our community and Church, they volunteer
in
many ways, enriching our school and strengthening its Catholic identity.
With our church only a 3-minute walk from our school, students regularly
attend liturgies, as well as using it for concerts and plays. In the
other direction, the school provides additional space for the parish’s
large and growing Religious Education program, for after-school or
parish activities, and even for parking. I myself have found that this
proximity
helps my own frequent involvement and ministry to the school. It’s
clear to us that the school infuses our parish with a special vibrancy.
The deep and long-standing bond between the parish of St. Mary of the
Hills and our school serves as a lifeline between the two. . . .
Growing diversity in school, neighborhood, and parish
Another aspect of the vitality our school shares with our parish is the
ethnic diversity of almost half the student body, and, while 40% of
students come from Milton, the rest come from 17 different communities.
(See list below.) The ethnic, cultural and economic diversity among our students
reflects our neighborhood – the west end of Milton, on the threshold
of Mattapan, Hyde Park and other Boston communities. It is a diversity
not found in the other Milton parishes. In fact, I know families active
in our parish who consciously chose to locate in our parish and school
precisely because of this ethnic diversity. Returning to the interrelatedness
of our school and parish, we are increasingly seeing the ethnic diversity
in our school represented in our parish community. This is especially
evident at our 10:15 Family Mass, at our 12 Noon Youth Mass on Sundays,
and in our Religious Education Program.
Again, I am truly grateful for the opportunity to write this letter to
you, Archbishop. I do realize the need to rebuild our Archdiocese. Yet
I also feel strongly that the vitality of our school and the growing
life of our parish in this diverse neighborhood should be supported to
continue . . . and grow . . . as an essential cornerstone in Milton for
the rebuilding of our Archdiocese.
Please pray for me, as I do for you.
Sincerely,
Rev. Arthur F. Wright
Pastor
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Organizations that are recipients of our monthly tithing
program:
• Ayuda a La Vida
(Guatemala)
• Blessed John XXIII Seminary
• Cardinal's Fund for the Unborn
• CHRISM
• Dove / Quincy
• English Transcultural Center
• Fr. Bill's Place / Quincy
• Friends of the Unborn
• Good Shepherd's Maria Droste Services
• Holy Family / Dorchester
• Little Brothers of St. Francis
• Little Sisters of the Poor
• Medical Missionaries of Mary
• Milton Food Pantry
• Missionaries of Charity
• Missionary Franciscan Sisters
• Most Holy Redeemer / East Boston
• Quincy Crisis Center
• Sacré Coeur
(Haiti)
• Shattuck Shelter for the Homeless
• Simon of Cyrene Society
• St. Augustine/ S. Boston
• St. Angela / Mattapan
• St. Boniface (Haiti)
• St. Francis Christian Center (Brazil)
• St. Francis House
• St. James Society (Latin America)
• St.
John & St. Hugh / Roxbury
• St.
John’s Seminary
• St.
Mary’s Women and Infants Center
• St. Patrick / Roxbury
• St. Peter / Dorchester
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Communities
from which St. Mary of the Hills students come:
• Avon
• Boston (Brighton, Dorchester, Hyde Park, Mattapan, Readville, Roslindale,
Roxbury, West Roxbury)
• Bridgewater
• Brockton
• Canton
• Dedham
• Easton
• Hanson
• Holbrook
• Mansfield
• Middleboro
• Milton
(40% of our students)
• Quincy
• Randolph
• Sharon
• Stoughton
• Westwood
• Weymouth
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