Baptism

Baptisms at Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish
Baptism, which is the first sacrament we receive, opens the door to all the other sacraments. Through the waters of Baptism, a person becomes a Christian and a member of the church. Baptism is the beginning of our discipleship in Jesus Christ.

The church baptizes infants, children, teenagers, and adults. Infants and children are baptized when their family or someone in their family is ready to accept the responsibility of raising them in the Catholic faith.

Families who are having their children baptized, first participate in a brief program of catechesis to enable them to fully understand the implications and responsibilities of Christian parenthood. This meeting is arranged at a mutually convenient time.

Teenagers and adults seeking Baptism participate in a process of instruction and faith-sharing appropriate to their age and life circumstances.

Godparents are encouraged, but not required for Baptism. In the Catholic tradition, a godparent is an adult Catholic who promises to participate in the religious upbringing of the person being baptized. There are usually two godparents. If no suitable godparent(s) can be found, the Baptism proceeds without them.

A baptized Christian non-Catholic is welcome to serve alongside a Catholic godparent. The individual is asked to assist in the religious formation of the person being baptized insofar as he or she is able.

Baptisms are generally celebrated on Saturdays or Sundays during Mass. For serious reasons, baptisms may be scheduled at another time.

Infants and children of families from other parishes are most welcome to be baptized here at Our Lady of Good Counsel. However, we must receive a letter from their respective parish granting us permission to celebrate the Baptism here.

Arrangements for Baptism may be made by contacting Rachel Crouse in the parish office at 508. 835.3606.
  
Questions and Answers about Planning and Preparing for your Child’s Baptism
 
Question: What are the first steps I need to take to plan a baptism?
Answer:  First of all, congratulations on the birth of your child! We are happy to work with you to prepare for Baptism. Simply call or email Rachel Crouse at the parish office. She will want to take down some biographical information and assure that you are registered in the parish. If you are new to Our Lady of Good Counsel: Welcome!
 
Question: I’m Catholic, but my spouse is not. May we still proceed with Baptism?
Answer:  You and your spouse are both welcome at Our Lady of Good Counsel. We are happy that you are here. If your spouse is willing to participate in the preparation, he or she would be most welcome. We encourage your spouse to fully understand the important step you are taking.
 
Question: We don’t live in town but live in the area. We’d like to join the parish and celebrate Baptism at Our Lady of Good Counsel. Can we do that?
Answer: Yes. If you feel that you want to become a parishioner and actively participate in the life of our parish community, you are most welcome.
 
Question: We have a family friend who is a priest. We’d very much like him to celebrate the baptism. Could he preside at the liturgy?
Answer: Yes.
 
Question: What are the specific requirements for godparents?
Answer: A godparent must fully understand his or her role in nurturing the faith of the person being baptized. Moreover, the person must have received the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Eucharist. He or she must be at least sixteen (16) years of age. The person is expected to be a good role-model in living their Catholic faith. He or she will be asked to make a public profession of faith during the baptism liturgy and promise to assist the person being baptized in their spiritual maturation. For all these reasons, godparents should be thoughtfully chosen. No one should be asked to make a commitment which they cannot make or to make a promise they feel they cannot keep.
 
Question: I cannot find godparents who fulfill these requirements. What do I do?
Answer:  We simply proceed without godparents. This is not an obstacle to our welcoming your child into the Christian Community.
 
Question: Is there any fee or offering connected with baptism?
Answer: No.
 
Question: We are parishioners of Our Lady of Good Counsel but wish to have our child’s baptism celebrated in another parish (e.g. to be closer to family). How can we arrange this?
Answer:  Provided that the requirements of the other parish are met, we are happy to send a letter to the pastor so that baptism may be celebrated there. All the preparations may be done in advance here at Our Lady of Good Counsel.

Choosing Godparents
Godparents are representatives of the Roman Catholic community who are willing and able to help you in the Christian upbringing of your child.

Contrary to popular opinion, godparents do not possess legal rights to care for your child should you become unable to do so. Nor do they assume legal custody of children. The role of a godparent is not legal but spiritual. Godparents are people chosen by you who will play an important part in the faith-life of your child.

Below is printable letter for individuals seeking to undertake the privilege and responsibility of being a godparent. The potential godparent should bring a printed copy of the letter to his or her parish priest to be signed. The letter should then be mailed or brought to Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish, 111 West Boylston St. West Boylston, MA 01583, well in advance of the Baptism.

The Sacrament of Baptism is the beginning of your child’s life in the church. It is our sincere hope that person(s) chosen by you to stand with you at the font of Baptism will inspire and lead your child to deep faith in God and to living the Catholic faith.

Click here for printable God Parent Letter.

Reconciliation (Penance, Confession)

“On the evening of that day, the first day of the week,” Jesus showed
himself to his apostles. He breathed on them and said to them: ‘Receive
the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you
retain the sins of any, they are retained.”  (Jn 20:19, 22-23)
 
Through the Sacrament of Reconciliation (also called “Confession” or  “Sacrament of Penance”), we acknowledge our failure to love (sin) and through the ministry of the priest, receive Christ’s forgiving grace.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church proclaims  our faith that: “ The Lord Jesus Christ, the physician of souls and bodies, who forgave the paralytic and restored him to health, has willed that Church continue, in the power of the Holy Spirit, his work of healing and salvation, even among her own members.”

Sometimes people worry about what to say or how to “confess.” The priest is there to help each person to unburden his conscience and experience the infinite mercy and love of Christ. The priest is most willing to assist in guiding you through the prayers and in celebrating the Sacrament of God’s love. What matters most is our willingness to make a new beginning in our lives, with the help of God’s grace.
At Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, the Chapel of Reconciliation is located to the right, once you have entered into the main body of the church through the front doors. Provision is made so that the person celebrating the sacrament may do so face to face with the priest or maintain complete anonymity.

The Sacrament of Reconciliation is offered at 3:30 pm every Saturday as well as at other announced times prior to Christmas and Easter. The sacrament may also be celebrated at other times upon request.

Holy Eucharist

“I am the living bread that came down from heaven…he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life and…abides in me, and I in him.”  (John 6:51, 54, 56)
 
The Holy Eucharist—which is also called “the Mass,” “the Lord’s Supper” and “the Divine Liturgy”—is the source and summit of our life as a parish community. In this sacrament, the Risen Christ makes himself present to us in an extraordinary way. In the Eucharist, bread and wine are transformed into the body and blood of the Risen Lord. Through our sharing in this sacrificial banquet, we receive Christ himself and grow more perfectly into his image and likeness. Through our sharing in the Holy Christ, we “become” what we eat and drink, the Body of Christ for the world.
 
The Holy Eucharist is celebrated every Sunday-the “Lord’s Day”-because it is the day on which we commemorate Christ’s resurrection. The Sunday celebration of Mass is our most important weekly liturgy. Mass is also celebrated during the week and on Holy Days. Mass times may vary on special feast days (e.g. Christmas & Easter) as well as during the season of Lent.
 
Children who were baptized as infants usually receive the Eucharist for the first time (First Communion) around the age of seven or eight after a period of learning and preparation which includes the participation of parents. Essential to preparation for First Communion is regular participation in Sunday Mass.
 
Baptized adults who have not yet received First Communion do so in a way suited to their needs with the support of the parish community, usually through the parish RCIA program.
 
For more information regarding preparation for First Holy Communion, please contact the parish office at r[email protected].

Holy Communion is brought to parishioners who are sick, homebound or otherwise unable to participate in Sunday Mass, by the priest, deacon and extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion. The visit may be arranged by contacting a member of the parish staff or by notifying the parish office.
 
Holy Communion is brought to parishioners who are sick, homebound or otherwise unable to participate in Sunday mass, by the priest, deacon and extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion.  the Visit may be arranged by contacting a member of the parish staff or by notifying the parish office.   

Parishioners who are hospitalized should first notify the Pastoral Care Office of the hospital as Holy Communion is usually brought to Catholic patients through the hospital’s Catholic chaplaincy.

Confirmation

“Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them that they might
receive the Holy Spirit; for it had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit.  (Acts 8:14-17)
 
The Sacrament of Confirmation, a sealing and strengthening, “confirms” the indwelling of the Holy Spirit begun in Baptism. When a baptized person is confirmed, he/she receives in a special way the Gifts of the Holy Spirit to guide and assist in living the gospel and in giving witness to Christ in the world.

Young adults who are baptized as infants are invited to the Sacrament of Confirmation during their High School years. If the young person discerns that he or she is ready to affirm the faith into which they were baptized and continue to participate in the life of the church, the young person engages in a series of faith-centered gatherings that explore the implications of living as a Catholic in today’s world.
The Sacrament of Confirmation is usually celebrated for our young people and their families at a special liturgy presided over by the Bishop at Saint Paul’s Cathedral in Worcester.

Adults who have been baptized but not confirmed are invited to participate in a series of small group gatherings specifically geared to adults. Those preparing for the Sacrament as older adults are usually confirmed at the Easter Vigil (the night preceding Easter Sunday) or at a special celebration held at the Cathedral Church of Saint Paul in Worcester.

For more information concerning the Sacrament of Confirmation for High School students, please contact Religious Education Coordinator Kevin O'Connell at 508.835.3606 or at R[email protected]. For information regarding the Sacrament of Confirmation for adults, please contact Parish Office Administrator Rachel Crouse at 508.835.3606 or at r[email protected].

Marriage (Weddings)

“… the Creator ‘made them male and female’, and said, ‘for this reason, a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’. So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, no human being must separate.” Matthew 19:4-5

Matrimony, or Marriage, is the sacrament in which a woman and a man promise to love and be faithful to each other for the rest of their lives. This sacrament usually takes place during Mass but may be conducted outside of Mass.

A couple should contact the parish priest at least one year before the desired wedding date. Wedding dates are set at this interview in person by the bride and groom. 

Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults

 “… I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”  John 6:35

The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) is a process for adults who are seeking to be in full communion with the Roman Catholic Church. It provides the opportunity for inquiry, formation, prayers and companionship along the journey of faith to adult Baptism. The responsibility of welcoming such individuals through this gradual process is shared by all who have been fully initiated into the Catholic Church. Special guidance is provided through this spiritual journey from those who are on the RCIA team and from those who are sponsoring such an individual. For more information, call the parish office at 508-835-3606. 

Holy Orders

“He appointed twelve [whom he also named apostles] that they might be with him and he might send them forth to preach and to have authority to drive out demons…” Mark 3:14-15

Holy Orders is the sacrament in which bishops, priests, and deacons are ordained to serve the Church in a special way. In Holy Orders, a man commits himself to serve God with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Discernment of a call to an ordained ministry in priesthood or diaconate is an important part of parish life. We are both interested in supporting through sharing and listening to those who may sense this call. Please phone the parish office at 508-835-3606 for more information.

Anointing of the Sick and Pastoral Care

“Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the presbyters of the Church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord…”  (Jas 5:14-15)
 
Holy Anointing is the Sacrament through which Christ draws near to those who are sick to comfort them, grant them forgiveness and strengthen them in the face of illness and pain.

The Sacrament of the Sick is offered to those who are seriously ill, those facing surgery and major medical procedures as well as those who face a daily decline in health and strength.
Contrary to popular belief, the Sacrament of Anointing is not meant to be a kind of “last rites” delayed until an individual is near death. Rather, the Sacrament is intended to be an occasion for spiritual healing, strengthening and forgiveness whenever one is seriously ill or debilitated.
The Sacrament of the Sick is celebrated yearly for the sick of our parish community. The priest is ready to bring the Sacrament of the Sick to the homebound who wish to receive it. Simply notify the parish office at 508.835.3606.

Catholic chaplains at area hospitals are ready to bring the Sacrament of the Sick to those in area hospitals. Please contact the Catholic chaplain at your specific hospital. This may assure a speedier response.

The Pastoral Care Department at Saint Vincent Hospital may be reached by calling 508.363.6246. The Pastoral Care Department at UMass- Memorial Campus may be reached at 508.334.6487. At UMass-University Campus at 774.443.2466.