"According to Cyril of Alexandria, Christ has dominion over all creatures, ...by essence and by nature. His kingship is founded upon the hypostatic union. The Word of God, as consubstantial with the Father, has all things in common with him, and therefore has necessarily supreme and absolute dominion over all things created.
From this it follows that to Christ angels and men are subject. Christ is also King by acquired, as well as by natural right, for he is o ur Redeemer. ...' We are no longer our own property, for Christ has purchased us "with a great price"; our very bodies are the "members of Christ. A third ground of sovereignty is that God bestowed upon Christ the nations of the world as His special possession and dominion. All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
The Feast of Christ the King has an eschatological dimension pointing to the end of time when the kingdom of Jesus will be established in all its fullness to the ends of the earth. It leads into Advent, when the Church anticipates Christ’s second coming."
"Frances Xavier Cabrini MSC (Italian: Francesca Saverio Cabrini; (15 July 1850 – 22 December 1917), also called Mother Cabrini, was an Italian-American Roman Catholic nun. She founded the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a Catholic religious institute that was a major support to her fellow Italian immigrants to the United States. She was the first U.S. citizen to be canonized as a Saint by the Roman Catholic Church, on 7 July 1946. Elizabeth Ann Seton later became the first native-born U.S. citizen to be canonized."
"Padre Pio, also known as Saint Pio of Pietrelcina (Italian: Pio da Pietrelcina), (25 May 1887 – 23 September 1968), was an Italian friar, priest, stigmatist and mystic, now venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church. Born Francesco Forgione, he was given the name of Pius (Italian: Pio) when he joined the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin.
Padre Pio became famous for exhibiting stigmata for most of his life, thereby generating much interest and controversy. He was both beatified (1999) and canonized (2002) by Pope John Paul II.
The Sanctuary of Saint Pio of Pietrelcina is located in San Giovanni Rotondo, Province of Foggia, Italy."
Please see our annual feast day Mass in the video section to the left.
"The Shrine of Our Lady of Bonaria also known as Our Lady of Fair Winds is a Marian title associated with the Blessed Virgin Mary as Star of the Sea and patron of sailboats. In addition, it is first associated with a Roman Catholic shrine to the Blessed Virgin Mary located in Cagliari, Sardinia (Italy).
The Shrine is part of a complex of buildings which include the Basilica of Our Lady of Bonaria, the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Bonaria and the monastery which houses the friars of the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy. The Basilica and the other structures are under the administration of the Mercedarians, a religious order which has overseen the care of the shrine continuously since 17 October 1335.
Mary under this Marian title, is often portrayed carrying the Child Jesus, along with a golden sailboat and a candle in her right arm is invoked as the Patroness of Sardinia as well as Buenos Aires, Argentina, to which Pope Francis is also a known devotee."
"Saint Sebastian (c. AD 256 – 288) was an early Christian saint and martyr. According to traditional belief, he was killed during the Roman emperor Diocletian's persecution of Christians. He was initially tied to a post or tree and shot with arrows, though this did not kill him. He was, according to tradition, rescued and healed by Saint Irene of Rome, which became a popular subject in 17th-century painting. In all versions of the story, shortly after his recovery he went to Diocletian to warn him about his sins, and as a result was clubbed to death. He is venerated in the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church.
The details of Saint Sebastian's martyrdom were first spoken of by 4th-century bishop Ambrose of Milan (Saint Ambrose), in his sermon on Psalm 118. Ambrose stated that Sebastian came from Milan and that he was already venerated there at that time. Saint Sebastian is a popular male saint, especially today among athletes. In historical times, he was regarded as a saint with a special ability to intercede to protect from plague, and devotion to him greatly increased when plague was active. He was a soldier to diocletian in prior."
"Our Lady of La Vang refers to a reported Marian apparition at a time when Catholics were persecuted and killed in Vietnam. The Shrine of our Lady of La Vang (Basilica of Our Lady of La Vang) is situated in what is today Hai Phu commune in Hải Lăng District of Quảng Trị Province in Central Vietnam."
"Our Lady of Charity, also known as Our Lady of El Cobre, Nuestra Senora de la Caridad del Cobre or la Virgen de la Caridad, is a popular Marian title of the Blessed Virgin Mary known in many Catholic countries.
Several known Marian images with the same title exist around the world while a particular Hispanic image is pontifically designated by Pope Benedict XV as the Patroness of Cuba. The present image, of the Madonna and Child, is enshrined in the National Shrine Basilica of Our Lady of Charity of El Cobre, built in 1926 and situated in the village El Cobre, near Santiago de Cuba. Pope Pius XI granted a Canonical Coronation for the image on 20 December 1936. The feast day of Our Lady of Charity is September 8; the solemn Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
Various similar Marian images predating the Cuban image have a similar title as well as having been granted a canonical coronation by the Popes and can be found in the Spanish cities of Cartagena, Villarrobledo, Illescas, Loja, La Garrovilla, and Toledo, Spain along with its replicated copies in Basilica Minore of Our Lady of Charity in Agoo, and the image of Bantay Church in Ilocos Sur, Philippines."
Please see our Dedication Mass in the video section to the left.
Presepio
"The Shrine’s Neapolitan Presepio, a beautiful nativity carved into a hillside cave, will transport the
viewer to the town of Bethlehem where Jesus was born.
Any person who goes to see a presepio anywhere in the world goes to see the source of our joy, Jesus Christ, our Lord,” said Bishop Frank J. Caggiano, when he blessed the newly opened presepio during a 2015 visit.
A presepio is a Nativity scene with figures depicting everyday life in Naples during the 18th century, from milkmaids to bakers, cobblers to blacksmiths. Each figure, down to the freshly baked loaves of bread and the butcher’s trimmed meats hanging on a rail, is a finely crafted miniature work of art.
The original presepio was the Nativity crèche created by St. Francis of Assisi. It spread worldwide, but none became as elaborate as those from Naples. As many Italian families settles in the Bridgeport area and supported the Shrine, they brought that tradition with them.
The Nativity scene at St. Margaret’s Shrine as designed by artist Armando Palumbo. Growing up in Italy during World War II wasn’t easy, recalls Palumbo. Since we didn’t have toys or many social activities to occupy our time, my brothers and I would go out into the fields during the summer and fashion figures from fresh farm clay for the Christmas Presepio. We baked the figures in the hot summer sun and when they dried, we’d paint them.
The Palumbo family migrated to America after the war. During my first visit to St. Margaret’s Shrine, I
knew I wanted to be part of this holy place, says Palumbo, who has worked on many shrine projects over the years. He designed and built the twenty-foot wrought iron sculpture of Jesus on the cross that stands above the building housing the presepio.
He received authorization in early 2012 to begin the project, which included major structural work to contend with water problems, replacing the roof, and preparing the entire building before work on the presepio itself could begin. When you see how impressive this is, you realize how much work went into it, said Deacon Faust, the Shrine’s administrator."
Please see our wonderful Presepio in the video section to the left.
Our Lady of Fatima
"Our Lady of Fátima, formally known as Our Lady of the Holy Rosary of Fátima, is a Catholic title of the Blessed Virgin Mary based on the famed Marian apparitions reported in 1917 by three shepherd children at the Cova da Iria, in Fátima, Portugal. The three children were Lúcia dos Santos and her cousins Francisco and Jacinta Marto."
Please see our Procession honoring Our Lady of Fatima in the video section to the left.
Our lady of Lourdes
"Our Lady of Lourdes is a Roman Catholic title of the Blessed Virgin Mary venerated in honor of the Marian apparitions that occurred in 1858 in the vicinity of Lourdes in France. The first of these is the apparition of 11 February 1858, when 14-year old Bernadette Soubirous told her mother that a lady spoke to her in the cave of Massabielle while she was gathering firewood with her sister and a friend. Similar apparitions of the "Lady" were reported on eighteen occasions that year, until the climax revelation of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception took place."
Comforting Angel
St. Margherita
"Margaret, known as Margaret of Antioch in the West, and as Saint Marina the Great Martyr in the East, is celebrated as a saint on 20 July in the Western Rite Orthodox, Roman Catholic and Anglican Churches, on 17 July (Julian calendar) by the Eastern-Rite Orthodox Church and on Epip 23 and Hathor 23 in the Coptic Churches.
Said to have been martyred in 304, she was declared apocryphal by Pope Gelasius I in 494, but devotion to her revived in the West with the Crusades.
She was reputed to have promised very powerful indulgences to those who wrote or read her life, or invoked her intercessions; these no doubt helped the spread of her cultus.
Margaret is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, and is one of the saints who spoke to Joan of Arc."
Calvary
"Golgotha, or Calvary was, according to the Gospels, a site immediately outside Jerusalem's walls where Jesus was crucified. In Latin rendered Calvariæ Locus, from which the earliest English word Calvary derives."
Stations of The Cross
"The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Way of Sorrows or the Via Crucis, refers to a series of images depicting Jesus Christ on the day of his crucifixion and accompanying prayers. The stations grew out of imitations of Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem which is believed to be the actual path Jesus walked to Mount Calvary. The object of the stations is to help the Christian faithful to make a spiritual pilgrimage through contemplation of the Passion of Christ. It has become one of the most popular devotions and the stations can be found in many Western Christian churches, including Anglican, Lutheran, Methodist, and Roman Catholic."
Our Lady of The Assumption
"The Assumption of Mary into Heaven (often shortened to the Assumption) is, according to the beliefs of the Catholic Church, Eastern and Oriental Orthodoxy, the bodily taking up of the Virgin Mary into Heaven at the end of her earthly life.
In the churches that observe it, the Assumption is a major feast day, commonly celebrated on 15 August. In many countries, the feast is also marked as a Holy Day of Obligation in the Roman Catholic Church.
The Catholic Church teaches as dogma that the Virgin Mary having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory. This doctrine was dogmatically defined by Pope Pius XII on 1 November 1950, in the apostolic constitution Munificentissimus Deus by exercising papal infallibility. While the Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church believe in the Dormition of the Mother of God (Dormition of the Theotokos or the Falling Asleep of the Mother of God), whether Mary had a physical death has not been dogmatically defined. In Munificentissimus Deus (item 39) Pope Pius XII pointed to the Book of Genesis (3:15) as scriptural support for the dogma in terms of Mary's victory over sin and death through her intimate association with "the new Adam" (Christ) as also reflected in 1 Corinthians 15:54: then shall come to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory."
Christ in Gethsemane
"Gethsemane was a garden at the foot of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem where, according to the four Gospels of the New Testament, Jesus underwent the agony in the garden and was arrested the night before his crucifixion. It is a place of great resonance in Christianity. There are several small olive groves in church property, all adjacent to each other and identified with biblical Gethsemane."
Our Lady of Guadalupe
"Our Lady of Guadalupe, also known as the Virgin of Guadalupe and La Morenita (The Brown Lady), is a Catholic title of the Blessed Virgin Mary associated with a Marian apparition and a venerated image enshrined within the Minor Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City. The basilica is the most visited Catholic pilgrimage site in the world, and the world's third most-visited sacred site. Pope Leo XIII granted the venerated image a canonical coronation on 12 October 1895."
All Saints Chapel
St. Anthony Vigil Chapel
"Saint Anthony of Padua; born Fernando Martins de Bulhões; 15 August 1195 – 13 June 1231, also known as Saint Anthony of Lisbon, was a Portuguese Catholic priest and friar of the Franciscan Order. He was born and raised by a wealthy family in Lisbon, Portugal, and died in Padua, Italy. Noted by his contemporaries for his powerful preaching, expert knowledge of scripture, and undying love and devotion to the poor and the sick, he was one of the most quickly canonized saints in church history. He was proclaimed a Doctor of the Church on 16 January 1946. He is also the patron saint of lost things."
Pieta Altar
"The Pietà (Italian: [pjeˈta]; English: The Pity; 1498–1499) is a work of Renaissance sculpture by Michelangelo Buonarroti, housed in St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City. It is the first of a number of works of the same theme by the artist. The statue was commissioned for the French Cardinal Jean de Bilhères, who was a representative in Rome. The sculpture, in Carrara marble, was made for the cardinal's funeral monument, but was moved to its current location, the first chapel on the right as one enters the basilica, in the 18th century. It is the only piece Michelangelo ever signed.
This famous work of art depicts the body of Jesus on the lap of his mother Mary after the Crucifixion. The theme is of Northern origin. Michelangelo's interpretation of the Pietà is unprecedented in Italian sculpture.[citation needed] It is an important work as it balances the Renaissance ideals of classical beauty with naturalism."
Main Chapel
St. Francis with Christ Crucified
"Francis of Assisi (Italian: San Francesco d'Assisi, Latin: Sanctus Franciscus Assisiensis), born Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone, informally named as Francesco (1181/1182 - 3 October 1226), was an Italian Catholic friar, deacon and preacher. He founded the men's Order of Friars Minor, the women's Order of Saint Clare, the Third Order of Saint Francis and the Custody of the Holy Land. Francis is one of the most venerated religious figures in Christianity.
Pope Gregory IX canonized Francis on 16 July 1228. Along with Saint Catherine of Siena, he was designated Patron saint of Italy. He later became associated with patronage of animals and the natural environment, and it became customary for churches to hold ceremonies blessing animals on or near his feast day of 4 October. In 1219, he went to Egypt in an attempt to convert the Sultan to put an end to the conflict of the Crusades. By this point, the Franciscan Order had grown to such an extent that its primitive organizational structure was no longer sufficient. He returned to Italy to organize the Order. Once his community was authorized by the Pope, he withdrew increasingly from external affairs. Francis is also known for his love of the Eucharist. In 1223, Francis arranged for the first Christmas live nativity scene. According to Christian tradition, in 1224 he received the stigmata during the apparition of Seraphic angels in a religious ecstasy, which would make him the second person in Christian tradition after St. Paul (Galatians 6:17) to bear the wounds of Christ's Passion. He died during the evening hours of 3 October 1226, while listening to a reading he had requested of Psalm 142 (141)."
Deacon Don holds blessing of the animals at St. Margaret's.
Check out Deacon Don on News 12 in our video section to the left!
Veterans Memorial
Please see our Veterans Mass and Memorial in the video section to the left.