A Message from Father Nathan
My dearest people who are all close to my heart!
Lots of love, blessings, and prayers to you all.
the Feast of St. Anthony of Padua on June 13th
We will be celebrating the Feast of St. Anthony of Padua on June 13th. He is one of the great saints next to our Blessed Mother who leads innumerable back to Christ.
Unfortunately, that great popular devotion I found in the eastern culture I don’t witness in our culture.
the intercession of our St. Anthony
As a child, I witnessed hundreds and thousands of people coming to my village every week seeking the intercession of our St. Anthony. I was always inspired by it. People of every religion would be there in the church. Every Tuesday, we have a novena to St. Anthony. The simple faith of all the people would result in great miracles.
Who is St Anthony?
St. Anthony was born in 1195 (13 years after St. Francis of Assisi) in Lisbon, which is now known as Portugal. Given the baptismal name of Fernando, his parents, Martin and Mary Bulhorn, belonged to one of the most prominent families in the city.
At the age of 15, Fernando entered the religious order of St. Augustine and became a priest. Then later, the young Augustinian monk took vows of the Franciscan order and assumed the name of Anthony in honor of the patriarch of hermits.
Anthony was first recognized for his great gift of preaching at a gathering for the ordination of Dominicans and Franciscans in 1222. After they finished their meal, the provincial suggested that one of the friars give a short sermon. There were no immediate volunteers among the group, so Anthony was asked to give “just something simple” since he presumably had no education and at the time was only 27 years old.
Anthony, while resisting the offer at first, finally began to speak in a simple, artless way. The “fire” within him became evident. His knowledge was unmistakable, but it was the passionate manner in which he spoke that truly impressed everyone in attendance. We know that not everyone was impressed by his preaching.
Legend has it that one day, faced with deaf ears, Anthony went to the river and preached to the fish. That reads the traditional tale and got everyone’s attention. The story and tradition of devotion to St. Anthony of Padua began almost immediately upon his death on June 13, 1231.
St. Anthony is known for his love for the Eucharist, scripture, and for the Blessed Mother. Pope Pius XII, in 1945, awarded St. Anthony of Padua with the honor of Doctor of the Universal Church.
I have such a special love for this great saint.
God bless you all.
With lots of love and blessing.
Ever at your service.
—Fr. Sahayanathan Nathan
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Past Messages from Father Nathan
From The Desk Of Father Nathan | July 10, 2022
Thank You for Your Continued Support of our church. I really want to thank each and everyone for your financial support. God bless you all! Thank you also to all those who are praying toward the completion of this project. Please continue to do so. I do understand that it’s a most trying of times now…
From The Desk Of Father Nathan | July , 2022 | Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Overturning an unjust law “For nearly fifty years,” says the US Bishops’ statement, “America has enforced an unjust law that has permitted some to decide whether others can live or die; this policy has resulted in the deaths of tens of millions of preborn children, generations that were denied the right to even be born.”
From The Desk Of Father Nathan | June 29, 2022 | The Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul
The Feasts of Saints Peter and Paul, or the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, is a liturgical feast in honor of the martyrdom in Rome of these apostles – Saint Peter and Saint Paul, which will be observed on the 29th of June. The celebration is of ancient origin…
From The Desk Of Father Nathan | June 19, 2022 | Father’s Day
Happy Father’s Day! “These commandments that I give today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and get up.” – Deuteronomy 6:6-7
From The Desk Of Father Nathan | June 12, 2022 | The Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ
Thursday, June 16th we celebrate The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, also known as the Solemnity of Corpus Christi. Christ. I believe it is great that we learn and refresh our theological treaties on this experience. The Institution of the Eucharist is found in the synoptic Gospels…
From The Desk Of Father Nathan | May 29, 2022 | Memorial Day
It’s our church. It’s our home. We need to maintain our building and enhance our security. We cannot ignore it because it will
only get worse and cost so much more. Please help me with some financial ideas.