Spare us O Lord, from strong winds and storms

O God, Master of the passing world, hear the humble voices of your children. The Sea of Galilee obeyed your order and returned to its former quietude; you are still the Master of land and sea. We live in the shadow of danger over which we have no control. The Caribbean, like a provoked and angry giant, can awaken from its apparent lethargy, overstep its conventional boundaries, invade our land (Jamaica, land that we love) and spread chaos and disaster. During this hurricane season, we turn to You, O loving Father. Spare us from past tragedies whose memories are still so vivid and whose wounds seem to refuse to heal with passing time

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O Virgin, Star of the Sea, Our Beloved Mother, we ask you to plead with your Son in our behalf, so that spared from the calamities common to this island nation and animated with a true spirit of gratitude, we will walk in the footsteps of your Divine Son to reach the heavenly Jerusalem where a storm-less eternity awaits us. Amen.

- A Prayer for this Hurricane Season -

16 Aug 2005 - 16 Aug 2010

TODAY MARKS THE 5th ANNIVERSARY OF THE MISSION - ST MARY'S, ABOVE ROCKS, JAMAICA, WEST INDIES.

In thanksgiving for the past, and in anticipation of God's Blessings today and for the future. Thanks for the part YOU play in making St Mary's, Above Rocks, and Missions.

PEACE!

The Conventual Franciscan Friars

St Anthony of Padua Province, USA

Take the mountain to Mohammad. . .

When Mohammad cannot come to the mountain, you take the mountain to him. On Saturday, 7 August the Mission went to the Monastery. St Mary's and Missions made their way into the enclosure of the Monetary of the Poor Clares, Chesterfield, NJ . . . via PowerPoint. If the sisters cannot come to the mission, we'll bring the Mission to them. The Chesterfield Poor Clares have been long term benefactors and prayer partners with the Mission since year one. It was with great enthusiasm that we took our presentation to the community, and with even greater enthusiasm was it received. After the presentation Fr Mike Lasky celebrated Liturgy, then off the the refectory for a greatt lunch and midday prayers. The picture above is of the sisters after lunch, and the picture below is of the whole community.

Brother, Bishop & Clare

Today, the Feast of Saint Clare, we welcome our new friar to the Mission Team - Brother Joseph Schenk from Saint Bonaventure Province, Chicago. Brother Joseph arrived on Sunday afternoon and has been settling in and getting accustomed to the heavy August rains. This afternoon the friars, sisters and workers gathered in front of the TV to watch the Instillation of Bishop William Callahan, a friar from Saint Bonaventure Province, as the Bishop of LaCrosse Wisconsin. Of course, the rains began falling precisely at 2:00pm Caribbean Time - the time of the Instillation Mass - we lost our TV connection - even Saint Clare, patron of television, couldn't help - Life in the Missions...

Brother Joseph shares Scripture with the Campers

Bible Camp Week One

Bible Camp is well undfer way this week at Saint Mary's. A mixture of dance, song, Scripture and food is the perfect recepuie for our children to experience a bit of the Kingdom in Above Rocks!

Campers show off their works of art

Sister Marcia shares Scripture with the little ones