All Saints Parish Homilies and News

The Grace of Gratitude:  True thanksgiving is not a sentiment but a duty and discipline that deepens faith and fosters joy. By Supreme Knight Patrick E. Kelly published in Columbia Magazine Thanksgiving Day in the United States is often marked by hectic travel, a large meal with family and friends, and the beginning of the frantic Christmas shopping season. But should there be more to it? How should we approach this holiday dedicated to giving thanks? One way is to take a closer look at the life-changing power of gratitude. Gratitude is an often-overlooked virtue. It is not a passing emotion, but an intentional choice — an act of the will that has the power to transform our lives. As a spiritual practice, gratitude is a habit of mind that helps us fully grasp the presence of God in our lives and the extraordinary gifts he has given to us. Rooted in humility, gratitude is the recognition that God’s blessings are based on his goodness to us and not upon our own merit. Through gratit...

  ht tps://www.jesuits.org/stories/society-of-jesus-in-the-united-states-applauds-u-s-bishops-special-message-on-immigration/ Mike Jordan Laskey media contact. jccucommunications@jesuits.org | 202.629.5933

  Area Interfaith Outreach  (AIO) Letter to the editor of Penn Bay Pilot in Rockland: Support food banks as Trump Administration stops SNAP supplemental  distributions for November From Becca Shaw Glaser Matthew 25-35: For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me. The evil Donald Trump Republican maga government announced they will not be issuing November’s food stamps (SNAP)--for everyone in the entire country in November. This is a crisis, an emergency, a deliberate starvation disaster. It impacts 12.5% of Mainers—170,000 Mainers!. In Knox County, the AIO Food Pantry says it affects about 5,000 people. This especially harms kids, elders, and people with disabilities. I kindly encourage everyone who can to donate to AIO — money is ideal because food pantries can get much better deals on food than regular people can, but food can be great too. AIO has been doing excellent work to make themselves more a...

A t one time in the history of Catholicism, the Vatican and the King of Englsnd were connected until 1634 when King Henry VIII separated from Rome.  King Henry was determined to divorce his wife Catherine of Aragon, so he and and the Pope parted ways.  King Charles and Pope Leo make religious history by praying side by side. published by BBC ( British Broadcasting) by Sean Coughlan. King Charles and Pope Leo made history in the Sistine Chapel by praying side by side - a first for the leaders of the Church of England and the Catholic Church . Sistine Chapel paintings by Michelangelo (b. 1475- d. 1564) Under the scrutinising eyes of Michelangelo's Last Judgment , when Pope Leo said "let us pray", it meant everyone, including the King, closing a gap that stretched back to the Reformation in the 16th Century . With music and prayers about nature that would bridge any theological divide, the service offered the King and Queen some calm amid scrutiny over Prince Andrew ...

  October 13, 1917 Miracle of the Sun in Fatima, Portugal Echo essay published by Marians of the Immaculate Conception Our Lady’s House:  To be fair, I’ve only been to Fatima in Portugal twice, but the impact and impression were so powerful that I still think about my time there every day. Just like the humidity on a hot August day in Georgia, the presence of Our Lady permeates the whole place and is so thick in the atmosphere, you could cut it with a proverbial knife. I’m sure that many of you are familiar with the story of the   Miracle of the Sun , how on   Oct. 13, 1917 , in Fatima, Portugal, the sun appeared to dance around the sky, moving closer and closer to the throng of spectators who had gathered to catch a glimpse of the Blessed Virgin during her apparitions to the three shepherd children St. Jacinta Marto, St. Francisco Marto, and Venerable Lucia dos Santos.  The greater miracle:  While the dancing of the sun in the sky is certainly a great mira...

Patrick Jordan, who died on October 2, was a man of deep faith who internalized the Beatitudes and practiced the works of mercy daily. Dear friends: Patrick Jordan, former managing editor of The Catholic Worker and of Commonweal Magazine , friend of Servant of God Dorothy Day , ✝️✝️✝️ and a kind, humble and wonderful Christian, has died. Here is a lovely appreciation from the Dorothy Day Guild. May Pat rest in peace. From Father James Martin, s.j. Dear members of the Dorothy Day Guild, We are writing to share the sad news that our friend Patrick Jordan, former editor of The Catholic Worker , founding member of the Guild, and close friend of Dorothy’s, died last week on Thursday, October 2nd. Pat joined the Catholic Worker movement in 1968, and met his wife, Kathleen DeSutter Jordan, working together on the soupline soon afterwards. Pat was a draft resister during the Vietnam War, and was eventually sentenced to serve community service hours at the Catholic Worker houses of hospitalit...

Pray for and celebrate Life of Father Alphonsus L’Heureux, O.C.S.O., the Knights of Columbus Catholic Man of the Month for September 2025. Born in 1894, in Quebec and died in 1947, in China a martyr.) The Church is blessed with witnesses whose lives quietly embody the Gospel and whose deaths resound like a proclamation of faith. Among these is Father Alphonsus (Albert) L’Heureux, O.C.S.O. (1894–1947), a Trappist monk and missionary whose life and martyrdom stand as a powerful testimony to Christ. Although he never wrote celebrated works of theology nor held positions of public prominence, his example continues to inspire Catholics today, especially those seeking to live with courage, humility, and fidelity in the face of trial. He was ordained as a Jesuit in 1929, and received permission to join the Trappist Missionaries in China. Born in French Canada, near the turn of the twentieth century, L’Heureux embraced the austere vocation of the Trappists, the Order of Cistercians of the Stri...