All Saints Parish Homilies and News

Check out my blog on the Bangor Daily News Bangor Daily News here:  https://francoamerican.bdnblogs.com/2024/05/31/franco-american-news-and-culture/maine-franco-american-catholics-and-church-history/ Pope Francis named the Most Rev. James T. Ruggieri, a Rhode Island native as the 13th Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland. Saint John the Baptist Church Brunswick Maine May 29, 2024 Franco-Americans will appreciate remembering the history of Maine’s Roman Catholic leadership when French Bishop Jean Lefevre de Cheverus (1768-1836) was appointed in 1798, as the first bishop of Boston when this responsibility included Maine. In a comprehensive biography by Annabelle M. Melville, “Jean Lefebve de Cheverus” published in 1958, the colonial era bishop is described as a man who was blessed with an irresistible personality an infections humor and an extraordinary amount of tact. He was able to transcend the bias against Catholics in Massachusetts in the early 1800s, and he won the...

Interested in the history about how Christianity became Roman Catholic- in the political sense? I published a blog on " Let's Write ".  I echo blogged the section of a book review written about the writings by Saint Patrick. Saint Patrick statue located on the campus of the Saint Patrick Church in Newcastle, ME https://mainewriter.blogspot.com/2024/05/lets-write-about-saint-patricks-writings.html": I recommend reading an excelent book review about the entire book, by Peter Brown, published in the May 2024,  The New York Review titled " The Workings of the Spirit ".  In his critique article, Peter Brown reviews a history of Christianity written by Peter Heather (do not become confused by the two "Peters"😀)- titled " Christendom: The Triumph of a Religion 300-1300 A.D. ".   https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2024/06/06/the-workings-of-the-spirit-christendom-peter-heather/ Peter Brown highlights the writings by Saint Patrick as contributing...

Echo report published in Aleteia by Philip Koslowski: Vatican confirms miracle for new Canadian saint. Blessed Marie-Léonie Paradis (1840-1912) to be cannonized Blessed Marie-Léonie worked both in Canada and the United States and will soon be canonized. Her feast day is celebrated on May 4th, in Canada. On Wednesday, January 24, 2024, the Vatican Dicastery of the Causes of Saints officially approved a second miracle that was attributed to the intercession of Blessed Marie-Léonie Paradis. The miracle involved the medically unexplained recovery of a baby girl on November 9, 1986. The baby was born without any signs of life, but after her family prayed for the intercession of Blessed Marie-Léonie, the child began to move and is now a healthy woman. The confirmation of this miracle paves the way for her canonization, after which she will be called a “saint.” Previously she was beatified by St. John Paul II on September 11, 1984, at Jarry Park, in Montreal. Who is Blessed Marie-Léonie Para...

Vatican moves to adapt to hoaxes, Internet and overhauls its process for evaluating visions of Mary. Valid! Associated Press coverage from Vatican City:   In an age where artificial intelligence (AI) is confounding academics and quickly spreading misinformation all over the Internet, this statement about reviewing mystical apparitions is valid and necessary. I support this wisely written Vatican statement (reported by AP).  Nevertheless, my experience with visiting shrines has been meaningful.  Skeptism about mystic al visions is healthy because so many of them are actually private revelations and should not be revealed.  Others are downright fake. But, the highly scrutinized stories about the most famous shrines have withstood decades, and centuries of scrutiny. Most shrines continue to inspire spritual growth among the faithful. Miraculous Medal  My husband and I have visited many Roman Catholic shrines and visited two sites where Marian apparitions are widely...

My husband Richard and I knew Father Welch when he was serving as a Navy Chaplain at the Brunswick Naval Air Station base chapel, before it was closed. He was very welcoming to everyone. My husband joked with him about his having so many years serving in the military, but yet he was only a full Lieutenant. Father Welch was so funny, he responded with, "Yes, but I am a 'senior' Lieutenant!".  A humerous concept, something only people in the Navy would get.  My husband is a retired Master Chief Petty Officer. He could get away with this kind of "rank joke", because Master Chief Petty Officers are often expected to give junior officers a hard time!  Haha.  Rest in Peace:  Rev. Bernard “Bud” Welch passed away late in the day on Tuesday, May 14th, 2024, at  Coastal Landing in Brunswick ME. Fr. Welch was ordained to the priesthood on May 2, 1981. He would have celebrated his 90th birthday on May 18th. A retired U.S. Air Force member, Fr. Welch served a critical r...

‘A step back in time': America’s Catholic Church sees an immense shift toward the old ways. "The modernizing reforms of Vatican II ushered in changes like Masses in local languages instead of Latin. It still divides the faithful, with progressives seeing it as a break from the past and conservatives seeing it as fully in line with church tradition." Pope Francis By Tim Sullivan published by Associated Press MADISON, Wis. (AP) — It was the music that changed first.  Or maybe that’s just when many people at the pale brick Catholic church in the quiet Wisconsin neighborhood finally began to realize what was happening. The choir director, a fixture at St. Maria Goretti for nearly 40 years, was suddenly gone. Contemporary hymns were replaced by music rooted in medieval Europe. So much was changing. Sermons were focusing more on sin and confession. Priests were rarely seen without cassocks. Altar girls, for a time, were banned.  At the parish elementary school, students began ...