Celebrating the Solemnity of All Saints’ Day

Today as we celebrate the feast of All the Saints, we give honor to all the saints of the Church, known and unknown, whose virtues and efforts in this life are considered to have earned them an eternal reward with God.

On this day, we Catholics are asked to reflect on holiness and sainthood and to celebrate the holiness of men and women who gave their lives in faithfulness and service to God, and whose witness continues to inspire us even today.

Let us join all our saints in giving praise and glory to God for the many wonders He has done in our lives. 

We are called to be Pauline missionaries of faith and joy

As we have begun the Year of Faith, we have an opportunity to rediscover our faith in the cross and the joy in the resurrection. We will celebrate on October 21, 2012 the 86^th World Mission Sunday, our annual celebration for Catholics in the world to celebrate our universal faith in Christ and our call to support the missionary activity of the church that sends ambassadors of faith and joy to the ends of the earth.

The good news is that God is for us and God is with us in all circumstances. It is our joy to experience the way that Christ brings life out of death. The life, death and resurrection of Jesus reveals God’s plan for transforming the world.

We are sent forth into the world witnessing to God’s presence among us. As the Body of Christ, we are each given a share in the good news of Jesus that makes us new and makes us one. Realizing this blessed assurance we have in Jesus can also bring us faith and joy.

World Mission Sunday connects us to what God is doing in the hearts and minds of people all over the world. We support those who go forth to bring this message of God’s goodness and faithfulness. They carry with them the joy that comes from knowing God’s will to bring life out of death. It remains the greatest work of the church.

As Scripture says, “How lovely are the feet of those who bring good news” (Romans 10:15). May we, Pauline missionaries, each find joy in our faith and share it to all those around us!

Pope Benedict XVI promotes rediscovering the Rosary and the Virgin Mary during Year of Faith

Pope Benedict XVI is suggesting that families and parishes rediscover the prayer of the Rosary in the Year of Faith, which begins on October 11 this year and will last until November 24, 2013.

“With the Rosary, we allow ourselves to be guided by Mary, model of faith, in meditating on the mysteries of Christ, and day after day we are helped to assimilate the Gospel, so that it shapes all our lives,” the Pope said in one of his Sunday Angelus comments.

Pope Benedict recalled how his predecessor Blessed John Paul II promoted the Rosary in his 2002 apostolic letter “Rosarium Virginis Mariae.”

“I invite you to pray the Rosary personally, in the family and in the community, learning at the school of Mary, which leads us to Christ, the living center of our faith,” Pope Benedict reiterated his message.

 “May these events confirm us in the beauty and joy of our faith in Jesus Christ which comes to us through the Church!” the Pontiff said, before imparting his apostolic blessing. He concluded with these words of blessings, “Entrusting these intentions to our Lady of the Rosary, I invoke upon all of you God’s abundant blessings!”