(Excerpt from the July 3rd St. Adalbert Roman Catholic Church – Parish Bulletin) THE RELIC OF ST. MAXIMILIAN KOLBE TO BE VENERATED AT ST. ADALBERT PARISH, ELMHURST, NEW YORK JULY 15 – 17, 2016
Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the Martyrdom of St. Maximilian Kolbe, O.F.M., the Our Lady of the Angels Province U.S.A. is offering the faithful the opportunity to venerate the first class relic of the saint. On 28 May 1941 St. Maximilian Kolbe was transferred to Auschwitz and branded as prisoner 16670. He was assigned to a special work group staffed by priests and supervised by especially vicious and abusive guards. His calm dedication to the faith brought him the worst jobs available, and more beatings than anyone else. At one point he was beaten, lashed, and left for dead. The prisoners managed to smuggle him into the camp hospital where he spent his recovery time hearing confessions. When he returned to the camp, Maximilian ministered to other prisoners, including conducting Mass and delivering communion using smuggled bread and wine. In July 1941 there was an escape from the camp. Camp protocol, designed to make the prisoners guard each other, required that ten men be slaughtered in retribution for each escaped prisoner. Franciszek Gajowniczek, a married man with young children was chosen to die for the escape. Maximilian volunteered to take his place, and died as he had always wished – in service. Do not forget to ask this great saint, who was willing to give up his own life, to intercede for you or your loved one’s addiction! He will surely hear your prayers and present the to Our Lord!
(Excerpt from the July 10th St. Adalbert Roman Catholic Church – Parish Bulletin)
As St. Adalbert Church continues to celebrate their 125th Anniversary as a Parish, they invite all to venerate the Relic of St. Maximilian after all Masses July 15-17, 2016. They will have the relic on display during those days, in their lower church.
St. Adalbert Roman Catholic Church Mass Schedule:
Friday, July 15th: 6:45 a.m. & 9:00 a.m.
Saturday, July 16th: 9:00 a.m. & 5:00 p.m. Vigil Mass Note: Reconciliation on Saturday from 4-5:00 p.m.
Sunday, July 17th: 8:30 a.m., 10:00 a.m. (in Polish) & 11:30 a.m
Friday, July 8th ~ 6:00 p.m.
Welcoming the holy relics with a brief prayer service in church.
After the prayer service, the video Life for Life, will be shown in the church hall. Saturday, July 9th ~ 4:00 p.m.
Lord’s Day Vigil Mass followed by Veneration of the Relics. Sunday, July 10th ~ 10:00 a.m.
Bi-Lingual (English-Polish) Mass followed by Veneration of the Relics
All are welcome to join Our Lady of the Angels Province friar and pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Fr. Conrad Salach, OFM Conv., the parish staff and the parishioners who are celebrating 111 years as the Mother Church of Polonia in the Greater New Bedford area this year, as they take the weekend to learn more about and to honor St. Maximilian Kolbe, a confrere of our Order.
Pilgrims Venerate with Fr. Conrad Salach, OFM Conv.
The Assembly
The Reliquary of the 1st Degree Relics of St. Maximilian Kolbe (Beard Fragments)
Most often, although our friars live in one friary, their ministries vary. One great example is the “family” of friars who live in the St. Paul Friary, in Kensington, CT. While most of the friars living there primarily serve the people of St. Paul Catholic Church, one of the resident friars serves as the pastor of a parish that is less than 10 miles away.
Fr. Mark Curesky, OFM Conv. is pastor of St. John Catholic Church, in Cromwell, CT, where our friars have been serving in leadership roles since 1995. This pastoral ministry will be the July 4th stop in the Pilgrimage of the Relic of St. Maximilian M. Kolbe, OFM Conv. that remains in the New England area through mid-July. He and the St. John Parish community welcome all to join them for a special Independence Day Mass at 9:00 a.m., at which veneration of the relics will be available. This is a wonderful way to celebrate freedom and the sacrifices that help protect that gift. The closing of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Fortnight for Freedom is July 4th; the day we in the USA celebrate our cherished liberty, as a nation.
Witness to Freedom: This year, the USCCB showcased women and men of faith who bore or continue to bear witness to freedom in Christ, as part of the Fortnight for Freedom 2016, that runs from June 21 – July 4, 2016. Included in that list is St. Maximilian M. Kolbe, OFM Conv. (Follow link to PDF) The photo used by the USCCB Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty, for this publication, is one of our small shrine of St. Maximilian located on the grounds of the Shrine of St. Anthony, in Ellicott City, MD. At the October 10, 1982 canonization of St. Maximilian M. Kolbe, OFM Conv. many items were blessed by the Holy Father (Pope Saint John Paul II). Among them was the centerpiece statue of St. Maximilian Kolbe, now housed within the small shrine. The end of our 2016 relic tour, takes place where it all began. All are welcome to join our friars in this celebration at the Shrine of St. Anthony, on the Feast of August 14, 2016 Closing Ceremonies, in celebration of the Feast of St. Maximilian Kolbe, August 14th. While you are with us, take a few moments to visit our small outdoor, open air shrine and pray with our beloved Martyr of Charity.
Our Pilgrimage of the Relic of St. Maximilian M. Kolbe, OFM Conv. is going to remain in the New England area through mid-July. It will then head to our ministries in New York City and New Jersey before returning to the Shrine of St. Anthony, in Ellicott City, MD for the August 14, 2016 Closing Ceremonies, in celebration of the Feast of St. Maximilian Kolbe.
After spending the end of June with the Felician Franciscan Sisters (Sisters of St. Felix of Cantalice, in Enfield, CT) where friar, Fr. Noel Danielewicz, OFM Conv. serves as chaplain, the relics move onto our pastoral ministry of St. Paul Catholic Church, in Kensington, CT, for the first weekend of July. Please join the parish community and our friars living and working from the St. Paul Friary, including the pastor of St. Paul Parish, Fr. Robert Schlageter, OFM Conv., for veneration at any of the parish Masses offered on those three days.
Veneration Opportunities at St. Paul Catholic Church (Kensington, CT)
Friday, July 1, 2016:
Daily Masses at 7:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Saturday, July 2, 2016:
Vigil Mass at 4:00 p.m. (Reconciliation is also offered from 3-3:34 p.m.) Sunday, July 3, 2016:
All Masses – 7:30 a.m., 9:00 a.m., 10:30 a.m. and 12:00 noon
On Monday, the 4th of July, the relics of St. Maximilian M. Kolbe, OFM Conv. will be available for veneration at our pastoral ministry of St. John Catholic Church, in Cromwell, CT. Our Lady of the Angels Province friar and pastor, Fr. Mark Curesky, OFM Conv., along with his congregation, welcome you to join them for 9:00 a.m. Mass. Friar Mark also lives in community with the friars of St. Paul Friary who include not only Friar Robert, but the Parochial Vicars of St. Paul Catholic Church: Fr. Raymond Borkowski, OFM Conv., Fr. Charles Jagodzinski, OFM Conv and Fr. Timothy Lyons, OFM Conv. When a friar is unable to live in a friary due to health needs or work constrictions, he is considered “de familia” to a friary because friars of our Order are always part of a friary “family.” St. Paul Friary has two such friars: Fr. Augustine Pilatowski, OFM Conv. (living in an assisted living facility) and Fr. Jerzy Auguscik, OFM Conv. (a member of the Province of St. Maximilian Kolbe in Gdansk-Poland, who works with our province and serves as Administrator of St. Francis of Assisi Church, in New Britain, CT).
The Bishop of Mansa (Zambia), Bishop Patrick Chilekwa Chisanga, O.F.M. Conv., visited the friars of Our Lady of the Angels Province who serve in Ellicott City, MD (June 21-22, 2016). Already that week, our friars were hosting the “Americas Project” delegation of six Friars and laity from Colombia (June 16-23, 2016). Also from June 20-22, 2016, the Minister Provincial from Korea and another Korean friar were visiting Friar Max who is a Korean Friar serving at the Shrine. Oh there is more. Fr. Marcin Buntow, OFM Conv. (pictured at right chatting with Province Secretary, Friar Richard-Jacob), who is in the USA preaching on behalf of our Franciscan Mission Association was also on campus. We even had a surprise visit from one of our pastoral ministry Youth Groups on June 22, 2016. To top it all off, Ellicott City was hit hard with severe weather, causing power and water outages. Needless to say. It was a very interesting weekend as Friars from five continents were on the Ellicott City Campus working and visiting the friars of Our Lady of the Angels Province. This week was a strong witness to the Order’s inter-nationality and inter-culturality.
Friars from Columbia, Zambia, Korea, Ghana & the US gather for a group shot in the Shrine’s dining room.
The Custos of the Order in Colombia, Fr. Jhon Jairo, OFM Conv., two other Friars and three laymen spent the week of June 16-23, 2016 in Our Lady of the Angels Province, with Friar Michael Lasky, OFM Conv. and Fr. Julio Martinez, OFM Conv., exploring common ways of collaborating in the area of Justice, Peace, and the Integrity of Creation (aka JPIC). Friar Michael and Friar Julio are members of the Our Lady of the Angels JPIC Commission. The shot was taken outside of the Portiuncula Chapel at the Provincial House on 6-21-2016
The Minister Provincial of Korea, the Very Reverend Fr. Titus Yoon, OFM Conv. accompanied by Korean friar Fr. Aloysius Hong, OFM Conv. visited their Korean confrere Fr. Max Soo Choi, OFM Conv. (pictured top right) who serves at the Shrine of St. Anthony. They were hosted by our Minister Provincial, the Very Reverend Fr. James McCurry, OFM Conv. and the other friars of the Portiuncula Friary, June 20-22.
On Wednesday, June 22, 2016, “Total Youth Ministry” from our pastoral ministry at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Community (Burlington, NC) visited the Friars who serve at the Shrine of St. Anthony and the Provincial House (Province Leadership Offices) in Ellicott City, MD. {Picture taken in the Provincial House Conference Room with Shrine Director, Fr. Michael Heine, OFM Conv. (right in habit) and Province Secretary, Fr. Richard-Jacob Forcier, OFM Conv. (back in stripes)}
One of our most unique and long lasting ministries of Our Lady of the Angels Province is the Fr. Justin Rosary Hour. Through the use of radio broadcasts, purchasable recordings and program access on the internet, the “Rosary Hour” brings the Gospel message to all those hungering for the word of God, in Polish. It is the oldest Polish language Catholic radio program in the world; established by Fr. Justin Figas, OFM Conv. in 1932. Friar Justin Figas’ vision to “bring the message of Christ to the people of Polonia in the Eastern United States and to the large cities of the USA and Canada, and to aid them in carrying out this message in their own lives and develop a consciousness to aid their fellow travelers in order to attain their own good and the good of society” (Mission Statement) is continued today through the work of our friars, staff & volunteers at this Hamburg, NY based ministry. A great way to fully understand the desires of Fr. Justin is to listen to an English translated version of a 1937 program, read by our Minister Provincial, the Very Reverend Fr. James McCurry, OFM Conv.
Recently, the lay director of the Fr. Justin Rosary Hour, Jerry Kornowicz, commissioned a new plaque depicting some of the history of the Rosary Hour so that visitors would never forget the work of Friar Justin.
This year, Our Lady of the Angels Province will gather to honor all of our Profession and Ordination Jubilarians at a special September 28th celebration, to be held at one of our ministries in New Jersey. Since this celebration is attended only by confreres and some family of the Jubiliarians, many have individual celebrations throughout the year, close the the actual Anniversary date, attended by friars, family, friends and of course the faithful to whom the friar serves.
On June 19, 2016, one such celebration was held for Fr. Noel Danielewicz, OFM Conv., who currently serves as chaplain for the Sisters of St. Felix of Cantalice (the Felician Sisters) who live and work in Enfield Connecticut. They are an active-contemplative Order of Religious women, who blend a life of prayer with a life of service. There are many aspects of service provided by the Felician Sisters throughout the world but those in Enfield offer adults with cognitive impairments a day program providing safe, warm, individualized care.
Friar Noel has spent these past 40 years since his Ordination to the Priesthood serving in many capacities throughout our province. Prior to his work with the sisters and for the parishioners of the Basilica of St. Stanislaus, Bishop and Martyr (Chicopee, MA), he had been a teacher, a pastor, a vocations director, a shrine director and an English tour guide at the Basilica Papale di si San Francesco d’Assisi. He has also given of his time and talent to the province at large; serving as a member of several Commissions, Teams, Caucuses and Boards.
Some of the Friars, Sisters, and guests with Fr. Noel (front row). On hand were several of his confreres, including two of his classmates, Friar Jude Surowiec, OFM Conv. (currently serving as a professor at the College of Our Lady of the Elms, Chicopee, MA) and Friar Martin Kobos, OFM Conv. (currently serving as pastor of Mother Cabrini Catholic Church, in Shamokin, PA) and Our Lady of the Angels Province, Minister Provincial, the Very Reverend Fr. James McCurry, OFM Conv.
“Dear Father Provincial and the Friars of the OLA Province,
At this time of my departure from your fraternal embrace I offer my sincere appreciation. I would like to express my gratitude for welcoming me into your province, in which, I ministered for the last 15 years. That is more than 2/3 of my priestly ministry. All of you made me really feel like a part of the Franciscan family.”
Fr. Mieczyslaw Wit, OFM Conv.
Looking at the Sacred Landscape of the National St. Kateri Tekakwitha Shrine: Renowned landscape designer Julia Watson from Stu-dio REDE toured the Shrine on Tuesday, June 14, 2016 with Our Lady of the Angels Province Friar, Fr. Mark Steed, OFM Conv. and Bill Jacobs the new Shrine Director. Julia is an Australian-born landscape architect, living and practicing in New York while teaching at Columbia University. She specializes in conserving Indigenous and sacred lands around the globe, including UNESCO World Heritage Sites. They were also joined by landscape architect Steven Yava-nian. The team is exploring new ways of conserving and enhancing the cultural, spiritual, historical, and natural resources of the Shrine in an integrated manner, to better attract visitors, pilgrimages, and youth. The aim is continue to preserve this sacred Mohawk (Kanien’kehaka) land in perpetuity. Julia describes this effort succinctly as, “A saint, a shrine, a sacred spring and a site with an incredible history. The beginning of something amazing.” For more information, please contact Bill Jacobs at bill.katerishrine@gmail.com.
On the same weekend that the 2016 Pilgrimage of St. Maximilian M. Kolbe Relic will be stopping at our pastoral ministry of the Basilica of St. Stanislaus, Bishop & Martyr (Chicopee, MA), Our Lady of the Angels Province friar, Pastor and Rector of the Basilica, Fr. Joseph Benicewicz, OFM Conv., the friars, staff and parishioners will also welcome the members of the Korean War Veterans Association. They will attend the 10:00 a.m. Mass on Sunday, June 26th, as a group before going onto the Korean War Memorial on Front Street. The parish is pleased to welcome the Korean Veterans in conjunction with the Relic Tour, in commemoration of the beginning of the Korean War on June 25, 1950. The parish will also take time at the 10:00 a.m. Mass to celebrate the 60th Wedding Anniversary of parishioners Frank & Angela Kozikowski, as Frank is also Korean veteran.
Prayer for Veterans Help us, dear God, to see Your face in every Veteran we encounter.
Guide us as we imagine new ways to support Veterans and their families.
Bring healing and peace to all who have been wounded
physically, mentally and spiritually during wartime.
Help us bring Your saving grace to heal the invisible wounds of war.
We ask this in Jesus’ Holy Name.
Amen.
Prayer for All Who Serve or Have Served God of peace, we pray for those who have served our nation and have laid down their lives to protect and defend our freedom.
We pray for those who have fought, whose spirits and bodies are scarred by war, whose nights are haunted by memories too painful for the light of day.
We pray for those who serve us now, especially for those in harm’s way. Shield them from danger and bring them home.
Turn the hearts and minds of our leaders and our enemies to the work of justice and a harvest of peace.
Spare the poor, Lord, spare the poor!
May the peace You left us, the peace You gave us, be the peace that sustains, the peace that saves us.
Christ Jesus, hear us! Lord Jesus, hear our prayer!
Amen.
Our Lady of the Angels Province Minister Provincial, the Very Reverend Fr. James McCurry, OFM Conv. spoke about St. Maximilian Kolbe.
On 28 May 1941 St. Maximilian Kolbe was transferred to Auschwitz and branded as prisoner 16670. He was assigned to a special work group staffed by priests and supervised by especially vicious and abusive guards. His calm dedication to the faith brought him the worst jobs available, and more beatings than anyone else. At one point he was beaten, lashed, and left for dead. The prisoners managed to smuggle him into the camp hospital where he spent his recovery time hearing confessions. When he returned to the camp, Maximilian ministered to other prisoners, including conducting Mass and delivering communion using smuggled bread and wine. In July 1941 there was an escape from the camp. Camp protocol, designed to make the prisoners guard each other, required that ten men be slaughtered in retribution for each escaped prisoner. Franciszek Gajowniczek, a married man with young children was chosen to die for the escape. Maximilian volunteered to take his place, and died as he had always wished – in service.
