Dear Devotees of Saint Philomena,
After the Solemnity of All Saints, the Church turns its charitable gaze to the Souls in Purgatory. The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that no matter how serious the offense we must entrust the judgment of persons to the justice and mercy of God. Let us pray for all the faithful departed, the Holy Souls in Purgatory, especially during this month of November which is traditionally dedicated to them.
St. Paul encourages us eloquently in his letter to the Thessalonians, "We do not want you to be unaware about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest who have no hope." Our hope in the resurrection is real, but only if it is firmly founded on our faith in Jesus Christ and in our desire to do His holy will at all times.
The holy sacrifice of the Mass is the chief source of devotion for the holy souls. So, the most powerful means to relieve or release a soul from purgatory is through the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. You’ll find that in the Catechism. It says it in 1032: “From the beginning, the Church has honored the memory of the dead and offered prayers in suffrage for them, above all the Eucharistic sacrifice, so that, thus purified, they may attain the beatific vision of God.” A beautiful way to remember your departed loved ones is to sponsor a Mass at the Sanctuary in their name. You can get the information for arranging a single mass by clicking here, or a Novena of Masses by clicking here.
After the Mass, the next most powerful way to help the souls is the Rosary, the most powerful Marian prayer on earth — in her approved apparitions, Mary says pray the Rosary for peace in the world, in your hearts, in your family — and the Stations of the Cross, because they’re indulgenced. You have to be in the state of grace to help the souls in purgatory.
When we pray for the souls, we’ve got to remember we’re giving them paradise, the face of God, when we get them out sooner from purgatory. Our prayers are shortening this horrible suffering of being without God. They then show us their gratitude in the same proportion to their joy.
You might use this simple prayer of St. Gertrude in your meditations this month: “Eternal Father, I offer Thee the most precious blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the Masses said throughout the world, for all the Holy Souls in purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal Church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen.”
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.
I am sending you a blessing from the Altar of the Sacred Body of Saint Philomena,
Msgr. Giovanni Braschi
Rector of the Sanctuary of Saint Philomena
Custodian of her Sacred Body
Support the Sanctuary of Saint Philomena
The Sanctuary of Saint Philomena is not a parish Church. We do not have parishioners who support this place of worship on a weekly basis. We are completely dependent on the love and generosity of you, the world-wide devotees, to keep the doors of the earthly home of Saint Philomena open.
We pray at the Sanctuary for the devotees of Saint Philomena to recognize and provide the means to pay our monthly utilities of gas and electricity. We also pray for the means to install a lift at the Sanctuary to enable physically challenged pilgrims to experience the entire home of their beloved Saint.
In order to ensure the Sanctuary is able to keep our doors open to you and to continue to offer God continual praise and to be the focal point through which our prayers are received by Saint Philomena and interceded for before God at the Sanctuary, you may donate in the following ways:
- Direct to the Sanctuary:
- By personal check payable to the "Sanctuary of Saint Philomena." For security reasons, please send your donation through registered or express mail to the Sanctuary's address at the bottom of this newsletter.
- Online - Go to our Support Page, Click Here
- By bank transfer to the Sanctuary's Bank account: BANCA UNICREDIT MUGNANO DEL CARDINALE(30525) BANK ACCOUNT:N° 000400102946 SWIFT CODE:UNCRITM1E94 IBAN:IT18D0200875790000400102946
- U.S.A. Tax-Deductible Donations may be sent to the new non-profit set up in the United States:
- Online - Go to our Support Page, Click Here
- Postal mail donations can be made to: Saint Philomena Sanctuary Support Fund, Inc. P.O. Box 4114 Bergheim, Texas 78004, U.S.A.
