There will be a party for all ages following the 10:30am Sunday Mass on All Saint’s Day, November 1st. If you have any questions or are interested in helping out, please contact Kate Cousino at 891-6708 or email ceitagh@gmail.com.
About the Saints
In preparation for the feast, here is a look at some of the Saints significant to our own parish:
Outside, across from the ramp, you may have noticed a new statue. This is a statue of St. Henry, patron saint of the childless, the handicapped, and those rejected by religious orders. Henry lived around the turn of the first millennium. Henry was a Duke of Bavaria and received the crown of Holy Roman Emperor from the hands of Pope Benedict VIII. His life was marked by great piety and he once attempted to abdicate his throne and retire into a monastery, but was persuaded not to by the Abbot. Instead, he and his wife Cunegundes took personal vows and remained childless. He funded many good works and died naturally at the age of 52.
Images of St. Stephen can be found within the Church, including the Deacon’s shrine on the Camp St. side. St. Stephen was a deacon chosen by the apostles to see to the corporal needs of the early Christians. He is honored as the Proto-martyr, the first martyr; he was stoned to death for his preaching and died praying for the souls of his persecutors. He is mentioned in the book of Acts, chapters 6 and 7. He is the patron saint of deacons and stonemasons.
Good Shepherd parish has a special devotion to Mary under the title Our Lady of Good Counsel. This image is said to have arrived floating from heaven on clouds to settle before the unfinished wall of a church dedicated to Our Lady of Good Counsel in the Italian town of Genazzano in 1467. The image itself is a fresco, painted on a paper-thin piece of plaster which is remarkably suspended in the air before the wall, supported only by a small attachment at the base. The image is associated with many miracles and graces and some have reported seeing the features of the face of our Lady or the infant Jesus move. Devotion to Our Lady of Good Counsel was especially promoted by the Augustinian order, and several popes were enrolled as members of the Pious Union of Our Lady of Good Counsel.
For more Saint stories, visit http://saints.sqpn.com for a searchable index of saints organized by patronage, occupation, life status, etc.
Seasonal Resources for Your Family
About the Feast of All Saints: www.churchyear.net/allsaints.html
Find your patron saint: www.saints.sqpn.com
Choosing a Saint Costume: www.faithandfamilylive.com/magazine/calling_all_saints
More resources for celebrating church feasts at home: www.domestic-church.com/CONTENT.DCC/pages.dir/fridge.htm
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