Dear Parishioners and Visitors,
For centuries, the Memorial of Saint Blaise has been celebrated with crossed candles held under the throat of the Christian faithful and the invocation pronounced, “Through the intercession of Saint Blaise, bishop and martyr, may God deliver you from every disease of the throat and from every other illness. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” Saint Blaise’s life is known primarily through legend written some 400 years after his death, yet the tradition of seeking his intercession and blessing throats lives on in countless parishes today. It is a good time to remember that when you come to God or seek the prayers of a saint or a blessing of some kind, you are not practicing magic or being superstitious: You are acting out your faith in God’s love and care. See in the story of Saint Blaise an occasion to commit yourself again into God’s hands.
With prayerful best wishes,
Fr. John Mahoney