Dear faithful,
On Sunday, September 11, the Solemnity of the Most Holy Name of Mary, our two first Oblate Sisters started their novitiate and received their Holy Face Medals. By becoming Oblates, they also received their new names, which Bishop McGuire and I chose. Sister Cecilia is now Sister Eulalia of the Holy Child Jesus Doctor of the Sick, and Sister Grace is now Sister Ulrica of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart. You can read more about their names in this newsletter. Also, as a sign being Oblates, the Sisters now wear a medal with the image of the Holy Face and words in Italian “tutti gli uomini vedranno la tua salvezza.” (“All men will see Thy salvation”, cfr. Luke 3:6).
Sister Eulalia has started her work as the new head sacristan, assisted by Sister Ulrica and her blood sister Regina. Most of the sacristies of the traditional Catholic churches and chapels in America are small and many of the visitors are amazed how big our sacristy is. Therefore it demands lots of work and upkeeping. Furthermore, the sacristan is in charge of the flowers and votive candles in the church. Sister Ulrica has joined to the crew of teachers of our parish school, and in Sunday Catechism classes. She also helps Sister Eulalia in the sacristy duties, just like Sister Eulalia assists in our daily school High Mass music and Sunday Catechism. This division of labor show how the duties of an Oblate Sister of the Holy Face is always divided according to the needs of the parish, a perfect example of Catholic Action.
We have a full parish calendar for the weekends of October, the month of the Holy Rosary. Our annual Rosary Confraternity Breakfast will take place on Rosary Sunday, October 2. It starts after the 9 AM High Mass and at the event I will give the talk about the Catholic Action in our parish, including the work of our Oblate Sisters and also that of the girls’ Sodality of Charity. Our other October events include the Sodality Fall Festival on Sunday, October 9, and SGG School bake sale on Sunday, October 16. Support generously both of these events. You can find more information from the Sodality bulletin board.
On Monday, September 26, the feast of the North American Martyrs, Bishop McGuire and I started the classes in our recently opened Our Lady Seat of Wisdom Seminary. The Seminary will train Traditional Catholic Priest for our Salesian Sacerdotal Society, and it is the joint effort of St. Gertrude’s and Fr. Carlos Ercoli in Seattle, WA, and Fr. Bede Nkamuke in Nigeria. We have one student residing at SGG and the other Seminarians live “off campus” so to speak. It is a sign of mercy and compassion from Our Lord, that He has blessed us so much, that we now have opportunity of a religious vocation for both young men and women.
The expansion of the work of our Oblate group, and that we can more easily admit new members, takes some funds, and also support from our faithful. For this purpose, we have a fundraise page on our SGG Resources page, where you can make a direct donation. The other way to support the Sisters is buying books from St. Jerome Library and Bookstore. Some of the books sold there benefit directly the Oblate Sisters. You can check the list of the books here: https://www.stjeromelibrary.org/shop/oblatesoftheholyface/69
September 29, the feast of St. Michael the Archangel, is the first anniversary of Episcopal consecration of Bishop Rodrigo da Silva. He is also training priests and serves the faithful throughout South America. We remember him with gratitude for all he has done for us, so please show your gratitude by saying some prayers for him on that day.
Yours in the Charity of Christ and Our Lady of the Sacred Heart,
Fr. Vili Lehtoranta
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