Today we celebrate the Solemnity of our Holy Founder, Saint Francis de Sales. He is sometimes referred to as "The Gentleman Saint" because he was known for his kindness and humility. Serendipitously, on the eve of this grand celebration we were paid a visit by another gentle bishop. Pictured below with Mother Philomena and next to his aunt, our Sister Stanislaus, is Bishop Paul Coakley of Salina Kansas. On his way back home from the March for life, Bishop Coakley stopped by for a visit. We featured him a couple of years ago, shortly after he received our cross of affiliation. Click here for the link to our archives.
Bishop Coakley is pictured in the confessional. (Don't worry, there are no hidden cameras in the confessional ... just an annoying camera-nun who exited promptly after snapping a picture!)
-----------------------------
For locals who would like to join in our celebration, Mass for today's Solemnity will be celebrated at 4.30pm in the Chapel of the Sacred Heart, followed by Vespers in the choir.
We share a very down-to-earth piece of advice given by Saint Francis de Sales in a conference to our early sisters; it is just as valuable and applicable today as it was nearly 400 years ago:
"If there should be a sister so generous and courageous as to wish to arrive at perfection in a quarter of an hour by doing more than the rest of the Community, I would advise her to humble herself and to submit to a restraint upon her zeal, so far as to extend the space of time to three days, taking the same course as all her sisters."
No comments:
Post a Comment