Saint Alphonsus Church in Hopewell Borough will celebrate the Holy Year of Mercy, when the worldwide Catholic church opens the doors to the saving mercy of Christ.
The Year of Mercy began on Dec. 8 with the Feast of the Immaculate Conception and the 50th anniversary of the closing of Vatican II and continues to the Solemnity of Christ the King on Nov. 20.
Pope Francis is calling all Catholics to be profound witnesses to mercy and to “find the joy rediscovering and rendering fruitful God’s mercy, with which we are all called to give comfort to every man and every woman of our time.
Lent began on Ash Wednesday, a day of fast and abstinence, on Feb. 10.
The church will hold Stations of the Cross, which recall the path of suffering and death of Jesus, beginning at 7 p.m. on Fridays during Lent. The church’s 8th-grade religious education students will present the Living Stations of the Cross on Friday, March 18.
St. Alphonsus will host an ecumenical service on Wednesday, Feb. 17, at 7:30 p.m. A family soup supper is at 6:30 p.m.
On Friday, March 18, church doors will be open for 12 hours (9 a.m. to 9 p.m.) to hear personal confessions and God’s mercy extended through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
Palm Sunday is March 20. There is a Saturday evening liturgy at 4 p.m. and Sunday liturgies at 8 and 10:30 a.m. Palms will be blessed and distributed outside the church before each Mass. The congregation will gather for a procession into the 10:30 a.m. Mass to celebrate Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem. Palm Sunday begins the holiest week in the church year.
The Holy Thursday liturgy of the Lord’s Supper is 7:30 p.m. As Jesus celebrated His Last Supper with His disciples, During a Mass of the Lord’s Supper, the church focuses attention on the Sacrament of the Eucharist and the Sacrament of Holy Orders. There will also be the ritual washing of feet. The Mass concludes with the procession of the Eucharist to the place of reposition.
Following the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament will be held until 11 p.m. All are welcome to spend quiet, prayerful time in the church to commemorate Jesus’ time of prayer and agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.
On Good Friday, commemoration of the Lord’s Passion is at 3 p.m. with the reading of the Passion, veneration of the cross and communion service. Stations of the Cross will be walked at 7 p.m. to remember the suffering and death of Jesus.
Holy Saturday is March 26. Blessing of the Food is at 11 a.m. The Easter vigil liturgy begins at 8 p.m. Easter Vigil Mass is on Holy Saturday Night, and stand witness to the New Fire and the First Alleluia, and the initiation of new members into our faith.
Easter Sunday is March 27. Masses will be celebrated at 8, 9:30 and 11 a.m.
For more information, visit http://stalphonsushopewell.org.
