He?s been called the ?miracle man of Canada?
ON NOV. 18, 1998, I WENT, FOR THE first time, up Mount Royale in Montreal, Canada, where the Oratory of St. Joseph was built by Blessed Andre Bessette in 1904. I was with Fr. Dennis Legaspi, who was then serving in a church in Ottawa.
We visited the tomb of Blessed Andre, which I remember was in the crypt church. Behind it was a room with a tall image of St. Joseph surrounded with lights.
Now that the Congregation of the Causes of Saints has approved the canonization of Blessed Andre on Oct. 17 in Rome (along with five other ?Blessed?), that first-time visit has become more poignant for me. I remember praying before his tomb and asking him to help me with some problems at that time, and he did. His intense devotion to St. Joseph has inspired me to do the same.
Building the oratory
Bessette (1845-1937) was the son of a woodcutter. When he joined the Congregation of the Holy Cross in Montreal as a religious brother, he took the name ?Andre.? He worked as a humble porter and barber in a school. In his small room behind the front office, he would place a small statue of St. Joseph on the window sill facing Mount Royale.
He promised his dear St. Joseph that he would build him a church there. By the grace of God and with the help of people whom Bro. Andre healed, building started in 1904. The small church has grown into a big church, visited by at least five million pilgrims a year.
Astonishing man
The Bishop of Canada calls Blessed Andre the ?miracle man of Canada.? Pope John Paul II praised him as ?a man of prayer and a friend of the poor, a truly astonishing man.?
Devotees of St. Joseph all over the world should emulate his life of prayer and kindness to the poor. In Manila, the Friends of St. Joseph, headed by Danny Reyes and Atoy de Jesus, will once again put up the exhibit of images of St. Joseph at the Hospicio de San Jose from March 10-19. Fr. Vic Robles will open the Novena Masses on March 10 at 6 p.m.
Today at 3 p.m., the Oblates of St. Joseph will present the musical ?Song of St. Joseph? at the Cultural Center Main Theater. Tickets are available at the box office. Those who wish to attend Blessed Andre?s canonization can call Ana Ayo at 5211651 or 5211638.
Centering prayer
Outreach Philippines is marking 20 years of spreading the practice of ?Centering Prayer? among the Filipino laity.
On March 13, 4 p.m., the COP family, together with its spiritual advisers and friends, will come together for a simple fete to celebrate the occasion at the North Forbes Park Pavilion. The event will begin with an Anticipated Sunday and Thanksgiving Mass led by Cardinal Gaudencio Rosales, to be followed by a simple dinner and a program of shows and games to highlight COP?s key role in bringing the community of Centering Prayer devotees in the Philippines together.
For further information, please contact COP Secretariat c/o Rachelle at 5015231 or e-mail cop.secretariat@gmail.com. Visit www.cophil.org.
Little stories of faith
As one of the highlights of the tri-centennial celebration of the devotion to the Our Lady of Peñafrancia in the Philippines, the book ?Little Stories of Faith? was launched recently at Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Minor Seminary in Naga City.
Daet Bishop Gilbert Garcera officiated the concelebrated Mass. Minerva Fajardo is editor, while Eva Peñamora is book designer and project coordinator. Carmen Villafuerte Bernas is overall chairman of the committee in charge. This book is a ?must-read? for ?Ina? devotees. To order, text 0917-8051315 or e-mail marilyn7307@yahoo.com.ph. The book costs P1,400, including mailing charges.
?The Day Jesus Died?
Fr. Tony Rosales, OFM, writing under the pen name Serafin de la Cruz, takes us on an inner-active reflection on the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ in his new book, ?The Day Jesus Died.?
Published by Goodwill Bookstore and launched at the Parish Center of Santuario de San Antonio last Jan. 26, the book was given a foreword by Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales.
The book was written during his sabbatical, while serving in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. If you don?t read Cardinal Rosales? foreword first, you would think the author was truly brought back to the time of Jesus. Find out how by buying a copy at Goodwill Bookstore, which will also help support the studies of seminarians in Calbayog City.
