Photos of Parish Life

April 11, 2021

On April 11, Divine Mercy Sunday, Fr. Shane Johnson presided at the 10 a.m. Mass at the North Church, with Deacon Michael Malucha assisting. Since the beginning of Lent 2021, the 10 a.m. Sunday Mass has been celebrated ad orientem. This means that for parts of the Mass, the priest and the people face the same direction, symbolizing that the words during that time are spoken directly to God. When the priest turns toward the people, he is in dialogue with the people. Fr. Shane is a priest-son of St. Francis Borgia; he attended Mass at the historic stone church and graduated from the parish grade school. He was ordained in 2009 and since 2012 has served parishes in New York City. Fr. Shane’s parents are parishioners Alan and Cheri Johnson.

October 5, 2019
As part of our 175th anniversary celebration, Deacon Scott Wiese (from St. Joseph Parish in Grafton) offered a blessing of pets and animals. This was held on Saturday morning, Oct. 5 on the plaza at the North Church. The sky was overcast but the rain stayed away– with the sun peaking out just after the blessing. The date was chosen because it was the weekend closest to the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals. We thank Deacon Scott for offering this blessing for the special “members” of our families.

October 2-3, 2019
As part of our 175th anniversary celebration, St. Francis Borgia hosted a well-attended parish mission called “Life to the Full: The Transformation of Suffering into Glory.” It was held the evenings of Wednesday, Oct. 2 and Thursday, Oct.3 at the North Church. The focus of this two-night mission was to explore what it means to be human, God’s incredible plan for our humanity, and how Jesus comes into our lives to heal us and free us from all that keeps us hiding in sin, shame, and sorrow. The speakers were Father John Burns and Sister Miriam James Heidland, SOLT.

April 2017
This year, 80 boys and girls from St. Francis Borgia received their First Holy Communion (First Eucharist). As in past years, the First Communions were celebrated at multiple Masses, with some children at Masses on April 22-23, and some on the weekend of April 29-30. Because First Eucharist is a sacrament of initiation, it is celebrated during the Easter season.