Saints Alive! | The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

November 21st is the feast of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or, as it is known in the East, The Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos [God-Bearer] into the Temple. According to tradition, the Blessed Virgin Mary was consecrated to God as a young child; when she reached three years of age her holy parents, St. Anne and St. Joachim, presented her before God in the Jerusalem temple where she was to be educated and raised. This dedication was a result of a promise St. Anne made to God while she suffered from many years of infertility. The liturgical celebration honoring this event appeared in the East much earlier then it did in the West. In the late Middle Ages it was promoted as a feast day for the universal Church. For more about this saint, please click on the image. Peace be with you!

Articles of Faith | All Saints Day: A Celebration of God’s Family

On November 1st the Church celebrates all her holy ones in heaven, known and unknown, with the feast of All Saints. The solemnity originally began in the 4th century to commemorate all the Christian martyrs killed during those centuries of brutal persecution before Christianity was legalized. There were so many martyrs that a separate feast day could not be given to each one individually, yet, the Church did not want to leave any martyr without proper veneration. A common feast day developed and was usually celebrated in the Easter season. In the 8th century Pope Gregory III consecrated a chapel in St. Peter’s Basilica to all the saints and moved the feast day to November 1st. The feast of All Saints is a Holy Day of Obligation. For more about this great feast - a celebration of God's family - please click on the image. Peace be with you!

Articles of Faith | All Saints Day: A Celebration of God’s Family

On November 1st the Church celebrates all her holy ones in heaven, known and unknown, with the feast of All Saints. The solemnity originally began in the 4th century to commemorate all the Christian martyrs killed during those centuries of brutal persecution before Christianity was legalized. There were so many martyrs that a separate feast day could not be given to each one individually, yet, the Church did not want to leave any martyr without proper veneration. A common feast day developed and was usually celebrated in the Easter season. In the 8th century Pope Gregory III consecrated a chapel in St. Peter’s Basilica to all the saints and moved the feast day to November 1st. The feast of All Saints is a Holy Day of Obligation. For more about this great feast - a celebration of God's family - please click on the image. Peace be with you!