Religious Education - Children
Catechist BlogTo Be Compassionate like Mary
Today is Our Lady of Sorrows feast day. According to Tradition, Mary suffered seven sorrows in her life: 1) the prophecy of Simeon, 2) the flight into Egypt, 3) the loss of the child Jesus in the Temple, 4) the encounter with Jesus carrying the Cross, 5) the standing...
Adult Faith Programs – Sept 2021
Adult Faith Program - September 2021 St. Francis of Assisi Parish has a host of programs specifically for Adult faith - to help you become a life-long learner. Consider the list of all the program offerings. Take your next step on the journey of Faith. Deepen your...
Exaltation and Love
Today is the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. We are used to making the sign of the cross or seeing the cross displayed in our churches and homes. The prominence of the cross may lead us to forget that the cross was a sign of shame and a crucified messiah...
The Feast of St. John Chrysostom
Today is the Memorial of St. John Chrysostom (“golden tongue”), known for his oratory skills. John gained popularity because of the eloquence of his public speaking at the Golden Church, Antioch's cathedral, especially his insightful expositions of Bible passages and...
Critical Receiving Units – An Update
Advocacy works! As a result of the efforts of VOICE, and others, the Prince William County Board of Supervisors is moving along in their plans to evaluate, design and build Critical Receiving Units (formerly called Crisis Stabilization Units) in the county! The unit...
Lord Make me an Instrument of Your Peace
There is a chapter of the TV show the “Simpsons” in which Bart befriends a Muslim boy and Homero, Bart’s father, conditioned by the prejudices of society is suspect of the Middle East Muslim family because of their migrant status. In short, the episode highlights the...
Love your Enemies
In today’s Gospel we hear Jesus’ most difficult and challenging teaching: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” Jesus has already taught that God’s demand and will is summed up and focused in...
What Mary Has to Teach Us
Recently the administration of our Franciscan Province has initiated a “virtual wake service” for our deceased friars, where we friars can offer a reflection on the deceased friar’s life. This is what I wrote for Br. Vianney Justin… I always found Vianney to be one of...
What if….?
This, the 20th anniversary of 9/11, brings back memories of “Where was I on 9/11. ”Indeed it was one of the worst days in our history as a nation. So many lives lost. We lost one of our very own parishioners that day at the Pentagon, David Laychak. On 9/11 2011, I was...
Principles of Conduct
Our first reading is a letter from St. Paul to the community of believers in Colassae. It was a community begun by a compatriot of Paul’s; a man named Epaphras who visited Paul in prison to give him a report on the community. He reports to Paul that the community is...