“You know what Our Lady said about the Rosary? That the whole world would change if everybody said it…. If my Mother says, ‘Say it,’ I’m gonna say it.” – Mother Angelica

The Church celebrates the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary on October 7. On this day, we celebrate the Holy League’s defeat of the Ottoman Empire in the Battle of Lepanto on October 7, 1571. Even though the Turkish forces were very powerful, the Christians won due to the intercession of Mary and the prayer of the Most Holy Rosary. Read more about this battle and this great feast we celebrate at www.ewtn.com/catholicism/seasons-and-feast-days/our-lady-of-the-rosary-14633 While there, pick up the free eBook, Mother Angelica’s Rosary Meditations.

“Go to the Madonna. Love her! Always say the Rosary. Say it well. Say it as often as you can! Be souls of prayer. Never tire of praying, it is what is essential. Prayer shakes the Heart of God, it obtains necessary graces!” – St. Padre Pio

Join us on Saturdays at 4:30 and Sundays at 10:30 to pray the Rosary together as a Parish.

Note that Fr. George has distributed prayer cards throughout the church with wonderful Catholic prayers for our use. He has also started leading the St. Michael the Archangel Prayer following Mass. Composed by Pope Leo XIII, “This prayer is a prayer against evil, so when we pray the St. Michael Prayer, we are praying for protection from evil in our lives and in our world.” You can find more information and the history of this prayer at Knights of the Holy Eucharist.

The Congregation of Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary is a fraternal community of consecrated life in the Roman Catholic Church. The members of the Congregation are perhaps best known for their work promoting the message of Divine Mercy. They are also known for their devotion to Mary Immaculate, dedication to praying for the poor souls in Purgatory, and active service to the Church. Their website is found at www.marian.org. Download or view PDF format of Marian Helper magazine issues. You can request that the magazine be mailed to you at home.

Do you ever feel overwhelmed by the stresses of the current world order? Covid, masks?, Afghanistan, Haiti, drought, flooding, civil unrest, inflation, etc. All present cause for concern in our lives. What should our response be as Catholics? “O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything!” Find this beautiful prayer in the Novena of Surrender to Jesus. This prayer was given to Fr. Don Dolindo Ruotolo who was a Neapolitan priest (1882-1970), stigmatized miracle worker and “mouthpiece of the Holy Spirit”. You can see from this novena that much of what our Lord wants flies in the face of normal human inclination and reason. We can only rise to this level of thinking through the grace of God and the help of the Holy Spirit. All nine days of the Novena can be found on FORMED at watch.formed.org/the-novena-of-surrender-to-jesus

As a parent, do you ever wonder what dangers for your children lurk just out of sight on their phones and tablets connected to the Internet? Consider a parental control app to keep your kids safe online, canopy.us/bean/. Canopy’s APP automatically detects and blocks pornographic images and videos on every single website on the internet, giving parents confidence that their families are safe in the digital world. Canopy is the only APP anywhere that detects sexting and alerts parents immediately, so families can know when it’s time for important conversations. Works on iOS, Android, Mac, and Windows smartphones, tablets, and computers. Try it free for 30 days.

Pope Francis has established the World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly to be celebrated every year on the fourth Sunday of July.He said he was moved to establish it not just because of the importance of grandparents and the elderly but particularly because of the neglect and isolation so many grandparents and seniors experienced as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The choice of the fourth Sunday of July is to connect it, as closely as possible, to the July 26 feast of Sts. Joachim and Anne, the parents of Mary and grandparents of Jesus. He hopes that, on this day, grandchildren will visit their grandparents thanking God for the gift of grandparents, praying for them, and entrusting to Him those who have died, particularly during the pandemic. He has permitted the granting of a Plenary Indulgence, under the usual conditions, for all those who participate in liturgical celebrations observing it, those who unite themselves spiritually to those celebrations if they are unable to leave their homes, and those who visit, in person or virtually, their grandparents or elderly brothers and sisters in need. A plenary indulgence requires that the individual be in the state of grace by the completion of the acts, and have complete detachment from sin. The person must also sacramentally confess their sins and receive Communion as well as saying a prayer for the intentions of the Holy Father. For more information about receiving a plenary indulgence goto EWTN.

With the travel season upon us, finding a Church and Mass times can sometimes be a daunting task. The free App Mass Times For Travel makes this so much easier. Download the app and you are all set to type in your vacation spot and you will be given a list of Catholic Churches in that area, along with the addresses and Mass times. This information can also be accessed by going to masstimes.org The website also includes a map. Going to Mass on vacation is a great opportunity for us to engage with the community and learn about the locals while growing in our Catholic Faith.

Have you ever heard of a Purgatory Box? This old tradition is a way of encouraging daily prayers for the souls in Purgatory. It was used by many great saints of our church including St. Padre Pio and St. Philip Neri. A way of implementing a Purgatory Box can be found at the following website: http://bit.ly/29K1ABJ .

If you are using MyParispApp, note that thebackground photo has changed to represent the year of St. Joseph. Click the “hamburger” icon [ ]in the upper left corner to access your settings. Click “Find a Parish” to locate our parish or other local parishes. The quickest way to locate parishes is to enter your zipcode. Select multiple locations to add them to your list of parishes. Note that you can add parishes where you like to vacation or where other family lives. Click the arrow to the right of the parish name to switch parishes. Click the “Unfavorite” button to remove the current parish.

Under the list of parishes, two new options have been added. You can change the text size to small, medium, or large and you can change the language default to Spanish if you prefer.

If you don’t have our Parish App, you can download it at myparishapp.com .

Have you had a chance to enjoy any of the plethora of Catholic podcasts available to us? Lifeteen.com/blog/, a Catholic website created for Youth Ministers, has a blog post with their choice for the top 5 podcasts every Youth Minister should be listening to right now available at lifeteen.com/blog/top-5-podcast-rn/ These are good recommendations for all of us too. They include The Bible in a Year podcast (media.ascensionpress.com/all-bible-in-a-year-episodes/) with Fr. Mike Schmitz and The Crunch,(thecrunchcast.com/ a comedy podcast. Check out one of them and let us know what you think.

The task and responsibility of educating our children in our faith ultimately belongs to us parents. We rely on the church to assist thru Faith Formation for Children and our Parish School but we must reinforce the training through our own practice of the faith. Ascension Press has introduced the new Ascension Kids brand which is dedicated to creating faithfully-Catholic, high-quality resources for children ages Toddler – 12. You can find books, gifts, and curriculum that will help you inspire their curiosity, and strengthen their faith. Check out “My First Interactive Mass Book,” “Catholic Bible Chronicles,” “Catholic Flash Cards,” “Bible Activities,” puzzles & games at ascensionpress.com/pages/kids.

The Rosary of the Seven Sorrows dates back to the Middle Ages, but it gained new popularity following the Marian apparitions in Kibeho, which have been approved by the Catholic Church. During Mary’s apparitions to Marie-Claire Mukangango, she assigned the young visionary a mission to reintroduce this special rosary to the world. She (the Holy Virgin) promised that when prayed with an open and repentant heart, the rosary would win us the Lord’s forgiveness for our sins and free our souls from guilt and remorse. She also promised that over time, the rosary would develop within us a deep understanding of why we sin, and that knowledge would give us the wisdom and strength to change or remove any internal flaws, weaknesses of character, or personality faults causing unhappiness and keeping us from enjoying the joyous life God intended for us… Learn how to pray this Chaplet/Rosary of the Seven Sorrows at https://www.immaculee.com/pages/7-sorrows-rosary-prayer or at https://www.marian.org/mary/prayers/sorrows.php.

Download a PDF detailing these prayers HERE on our Parish website.

If you’ve ever wanted to read the Bible but didn’t know where to start you may want to try a podcast by Fr. Mike Schmitz: The Bible In a Year hosted by Ascension Press. It started January 1 but you can still sign up and listen. Each day’s podcast is less then 25 minutes long. All Bible In A Year Episodes

Have you been able to join the Stations of the Cross on Fridays of Lent following the Noon Mass? The Stations of the Cross is a wonderful spiritual exercise during Lent. If you can’t make it, then you can join a virtual Stations of the Cross from the Museum of the Bible in Washington, DC, with “Catholic meditations, led by Catholic priest and exorcist Msgr. Stephen Rossetti. Featuring sculptures by famous artist Gib Singleton, readings and prayers by Washington Nationals Chaplain, Msgr. Rossetti, and singing by local DC opera singer Crossley Hawn, this moving presentation can be enjoyed in the comfort of your own home.” Search Stations of the Cross on YouTube.com or go to ChurchPop

We have Lent Reflection booklets at the doors of the church for adults. If you are using MyParispApp, note that they have added a “Lent” button on the home page. Here they will be posting Daily Lent Reflections. If you don’t have our Parish App, you can download it at myparishapp.com

Looking for a way to deepen your prayer life this Lent? Join Bernadette Kime for “Journey with The Saint John’s Bible,” a FREE online series by the McGrath Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame. This opportunity is available for anyone in the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston. You’ll explore the Church’s tradition of reading Scripture and depicting it in art, explore several spectacular illuminations from The Saint John’s Bible—a hand-written, hand-illuminated Bible crafted in the 21st-century, and take a deep dive into the Scripture passages those illuminations depict. You’ll also learn how to pray with Scripture and art through guided experiences of lectio and visio divina and have the opportunity to grow in faith with others. For more information or to sign up, contact Bernadette Kime at bkime@dwc.org. For more information on the Saint John’s Bible Check out “Illuminating the Word: The Saint John’s Bible” on YouTube HERE.

Pope Francis has declared the new liturgical year as the Year of St. Joseph. “All the faithful will thus have the opportunity to commit themselves, with prayers and good works, to obtain with the help of Saint Joseph, head of the celestial Family of Nazareth, comfort and relief from the serious human and social tribulations that today grip the contemporary world,” the decree states. Pope Francis also added indulgence opportunities to the decree. The decree explains four ways to obtain a plenary indulgence throughout this liturgical year. Read what an Indulgence is and how to obtain it in the recent FaithINWV bulletin from our Diocese found at FaithInWV_EBulletin. Another resource can be found at churchpop.com Remember that these links can be found on our website at ourfatimafamily.com

Inspiration for the whole family can be found in this YouTube video of Fr. Mike Schmitz: “The Hour That Will Change Your Life” | SEEK2015. Fr. Mike addresses the youth attending the 2015 SEEK retreat and talks so lovingly of the Eucharist and Confession. Let Christ touch your heart and your family through the words of Fr. Mike. Find it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwwiIkrLxTM If you enjoy this video, you can search for additional videos by Fr. Mike like “Fr. Mike Schmitz: Anti-Fragile Faith | SEEK2019” and “Fr. Mike Schmitz: More Than Words | SEEK2017.” Fr. Mike Schmitz is part of the “Ascension Presents” You Tube channel found here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVdGX3N-WIJ5nUvklBTNhAw You will find many of his videos and Sunday Mass as well as videos from other Catholic sources.

Do you find yourself feeling anxious, stressed, and worried with the pandemic, the election, and the unrest in our country? In this episode of the Catholic Talk Show podcast, they discuss how you can manage anxiety through prayer and the saints, and offer practical tips for participating in online streaming Mass. Catholic Talk Show podcast

Saint Dymphna is one of the Saints recommended as a comfort. She is the patron saint of of those suffering nervous and mental afflictions. You can read more here catholic.org/saints Her Chaplet is found here rosaryandchaplets.com Her Litany is here on YouTube Her Novena is found here natshrinestdymphna.org and here: praymorenovenas.com

Every November, the Church offers the faithful an opportunity to offer a plenary indulgence for the a soul in purgatory. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the Vatican has issued a special decree extending the plenary indulgence for the souls in purgatory throughout the month of November. The decree asks the faithful to visit a cemetery and pray for the deceased, go to Confession, receive Holy Communion and pray for the Holy Father. Additional information and suggested prayers can be found at CHURCHPOP.COM

A wonderful discussion of Purgatory and the role of indulgences as “salutary remedies for temporal punishment due to sin” can be read at Purgatory

You can find the official definition of indulgences in the Catechism of the Catholic Church found here: Indulgences