Dear Parishioners,

The Rorate Caeli Mass is a traditional Advent devo0on popular in many places in the Catholic Church. I still remember as a child bringing my own lamp to the Rorate Mass with my brothers and other people in my parish. The Mass is for the Blessed Virgin Mary in Advent and is offered just before dawn. This Mass captures the hearts and minds of many people, the interplay of light and darkness speaking to the meaning of Advent and the coming of the Light of the World. The Mass takes its Title, Rorate Caeli, from the first words of the Introit, which are from Isaiah 45:8 “Rorate, caeli, desuper, et nubes pluant justum, aperiatur terra, et germinet Salvatorem.” “Drop down dew, ye heavens, from above, and let the clouds rain the just: let the earth be opened and bud forth a Saviour.”

The Rorate Mass is lit only by candlelight. Because it is a vo0ve Mass in Mary’s honour, white vestments are worn instead of Advent violet. In the dimly lit setting, the Priest and faithful prepare to honour the Light of the World, who is soon to be born, and offer praise to God for the gift of Our Lady. As the Mass proceeds and the sunrise approaches, the church becomes progressively brighter, illumined by the sun as our faith is illumined by Christ. The readings and prayers of Advent foretell the prophecy of the Virgin who would bear a Son called Emmanuel, and call on all to raise the gates of their hearts and their socie0es to let Christ the King enter; asking for the grace to receive eternal life by the merits of the Incarna0on and saving Resurrec0on of Our Lord.

This Mass will be on every Saturday during Advent morning at 7.00 am.

• Saturday 9 December at 7:00 AM
• Saturday 16 December at 7:00 AM
• Saturday 23 December at 7:00 AM

Fr. Marius

As we enter into November we need to remind ourselves of the beautiful tradition we have. For Christians, it is praying for the dead and visiting the burial place. In the Catholic Church, a strong emphasis is placed at the beginning of the month.  On November 1, we celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints. In the Church, we commemorate not only the officially recognized saints, that is, the beatified and canonized, but also the faithful departed, whose lives were marked by holiness, and all those whom God received into Himself in heaven. On this day, if possible, we gather in the church or the cemetery, pray for the dead and light candles on the graves. 

The Solemnity of All Saints, which always falls on 1 November, reminds us of the purpose of earthly life, which is to enter the kingdom of heaven, where each of us has a place. St. John the Apostle and Evangelist wrote: "Then I saw: and behold, a great multitude, which no man could number, out of every nation, and all tribes, peoples, and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They are dressed in white robes and have palm trees in their hands. And with a loud voice they cry out, Salvation with our God, who is seated on the throne, and with the Lamb.

On this day, therefore, we honour those people who lived their lives in union with Christ, who were able to walk in his ways and follow him. It is not only about those who are widely known and venerated (e.g. St. Faustina, St. Maximilian, St. Padre Pio, St. John Paul II and many others) but also about those who remain anonymous.

November 2 is the liturgical Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (the so-called All Souls' Day), which is related to the Catholic truth of faith about the existence of Purgatory, i.e. the place where the souls of those who died reconciled with Christ but did not repent of their sins during their earthly life, are prepared through purifying suffering for full communion with God in heaven. This day reminds us of our duty to pray for the suffering souls in purgatory.

One way to help them is through so-called indulgences. It is a spiritual gift that a Catholic living on earth can offer to the deceased. In our parish we will have special Liturgical celebrations:

1 of November at 6:00 PM

2 of November at 6:00 PM

Saint John Paul II said "The Rosary is a treasure to be discovered," October is dedicated in a special way to praying the rosary. Rosary prayers are organized in churches, schools and at home. We say a prayer with beads, which is the most well-known and widespread form of Marian devotion in the world. Why October? 

Well, on October 7, 1571, the fate of Christianity in Europe was decided. In the Battle of Lepanto, Christian troops defeated the Turkish army. Pope Pius V attributed this victory to the intervention of Our Lady invoked on the rosary recited during supplication processions through the streets of Rome. As a token of gratitude, he proclaimed this day the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. Two years earlier, he had introduced into the Litany of Loreto the invocation "Queen of the Holy Rosary – pray for us". Also in October (October 13, 1917) in Fatima, Our Lady appeared to the children with a rosary in her hand and said: "If you want to avoid the calamity that threatens the world, pray the rosary." This is how the services gathering crowds of believers for a common rosary prayer were created, and October itself became a permanent inscribed in the Catholic Church as the Marian month of the rosary. 

Prayer of the Rosary 

The Rosary is a prayer that is prayed in the Catholic Church especially in October. It is referred to as the prayer uniting Christians with the person of the Mother of Jesus and is one of the most popular prayers of the Church. Every Catholic knows it – poor and rich, child, adult and senior. It is a simple prayer, "the prayer of the sleeping, the dying, and the utterly tired". Through prayer we can entrust to Mary not only our joys and successes, but also all our sorrows and failures. The rhythmically repeated "Hail Mary" is a cry to Mary, Our Lady, asking for support. The mother will listen attentively to each one and then bring our petitions and supplications to God. Constant, persistent and patient prayer of the rosary works miracles. Therefore, let us not be afraid to reach for this effective prayer weapon for the intentions of the whole Church, all families, lonely people, lost in life and defenceless. 

This month we especially want to undertake several initiatives that are to bring us closer to Mary through the prayer of the Rosary. 

1. Every day we invite you to pray the rosary.

The monkey-rope is found in all whalers; but it was only in the Pequod that the monkey and his holder were ever tied together. This improvement upon the original usage was introduced by no less a man than Stubb, in order to afford the imperilled harpooneer the strongest possible guarantee for the faithfulness and vigilance of his monkey-rope holder.In the tumultuous business.