The Maronite Young Adults organization is a group aimed at helping young adults develop their faith deeper, live their faith with acceptance, and spread their faith in their daily lives. The goal of the Maronite Young Adults group at Our Lady of Mercy is to gather the Maronite young adults of our parish to practice their faith socially, spiritually, and culturally. To achieve this goal, the Maronite Young Adults group has engaged in various spiritual, social, and volunteer events.

Spiritual events:

Attended masses dedicated to the Maronite Young Adults group members
Engaged in bible studies
Hosted Maronite Young Adult retreats
Participated in liturgies
Visited the Saint Anthony Maronite Church in Lawrence, MA when the relic of Saint Anthony of Padua was brought there

Social events:
Visited an apple orchard to gather apples for a fundraiser
Organized fundraisers including the caramel apples sale
Held a picnic lunch at lake quinsigamond
Held potluck dinners with other Maronite young adult groups from the area
Watched “Son of God” at the movie theater

Volunteer events:
Assisted the needs of the local parishes
Assisted the needs of the vulnerable people in the community including volunteering to serve food to those who are in need on thanksgiving day at the Catherdral of Saint Paul










September Festivities

September was an eventful month for the MYA of Our Lady of Mercy. It began with a visit to St. Anthony Maronite Church in Springfield, Mass., when that parish hosted the first class Relic of St. Anthony of Padua. The MYA attended the Divine Liturgy together, venerated the relics, wrote their prayers to St. Anthony, and blessed their rosaries, crosses, etc. with the Relic. The visit provided the MYA with the opportunity to join together in prayer and grow spiritually, which they strive for greatly. Following the visit to the Relic of St. Anthony, the MYA headed to the "Big E" festival in West Springfield, Mass., for a fun-filled day at the largest fair in New England. They were able to enjoy the entertainment throughout the fair and the delicious foods from around the world, and they spent some quality time with one another in bonds and learned more about these activities for the growth of their MYA group.

Later on in the month, the MYA went to Honey Pot Hill Orchards in Stow, Mass., on a beautiful, warm day to pick delicious apples. The next week, the MYA gathered together and spent their Saturday night making caramel apples for a fundraiser at the Church. Despite the fact that it took a long time and a lot of hard work to make all of the apples, the MYA worked together to complete this task and had fun doing so. The caramel apple fundraiser was a great success thanks to the generosity of the parishioners at Our Lady of Mercy Church. Their support was both encouraging and inspiring for the MYA. In a matter of a month, the MYA planned events which helped them grow spiritually and worked together as a team, which is what they hope to do in the subsequent months as well.








Movie Night

The MYA and Fr. Gaby Hoyek, went to a local movie theater to watch the new hit release, Son of God. The group returned to the parish rectory to discuss the film. The event gave the young adults and Fr. Gaby a chance to spend time. Discussing the film, the group came to the conclusion that the film was entertaining but not precisely accurate as it disregarded and altered some of the events that took place in the Holy Bible. However, the event was successful in the sense that it was fun to watch and discuss the film together as a group, helping each of us to grow deeper in our understanding of our faith.

Our Lady of Mercy Maronite

CHURCH

CATHOLIC