Masses Return to University of Maine on August 27; Renovation Work Continues at Newman Center

ORONO---Weekly Masses will resume at the University of Maine on Sunday, August 27, at 5 p.m. The Masses will be held in the Bangor Room of the university’s Memorial Union at 5 p.m., with confessions offered at 4 p.m. in the union’s Davis Room. In addition, each Tuesday of the school year, eucharistic adoration and confessions will be held at Holy Family Church on 429 Main Street in Old Town at 5 p.m. followed by a 6 p.m. Mass. All are welcome to join the students and staff at any of the gatherings.

Renovations continue at the Newman Center on College Avenue, the home of Black Bear Catholic, with the re-opening of the center expected at the start of the 2024 school year when it will once again serve as a place of relaxation, studying, prayer, and formation for young adults in the area.

The renovations are made possible by the successful “Rebuild His Church” capital campaign held by the Parish of the Resurrection of the Lord, of which the Newman Center is a part. The campaign raised nearly $4 million to complete necessary improvements and maintenance at the parish’s churches. Among the renovations at the center are a new multi-purpose space for meetings; a beautiful narthex where one can transition into the presence of God; separate entrances to the chapel and the main hall; a chapel featuring a new sacristy, tabernacle, altar, ambo, and main crucifix; a student lounge to encourage relaxation and community, including an outdoor deck extension; a Marian garden with a statue of Our Lady of Wisdom; and a steeple bell to ring out the joyful sound throughout the neighborhood that it is time for Mass, reminding all that the Lord is calling us to Him.

For more information about the Newman Center or Black Bear Catholic, visit www.umaine.edu/newman, www.facebook.com/blackbearcatholic, or www.instagram.com/blackbearcatholic.