On the Road

Written by: Denise Serafini on Saturday, May 27, 2017

On Friday, May 19, the Church of St. Andrew the Apostle hosted “Call from the Crucified Heart.” This church shares space with its school gymnasium. It seems they take down the altar and reposition the chairs for each transition between Holy Mass and school-related events. The Knights of Columbus members have and will continue to take on this responsibility until a formal church can be built. What an overwhelming commitment they make to assure that the space can be shared. As a matter of fact, we waited patiently in the hallways for the completion of the graduation ceremony in the same space just before our presentation. True to their reputation across all of Utah, the knights helped us get our equipment in place in short order so we could still begin on time. We had the participation of Deacon Duane Padilla and two translators for the Spanish version of the meditations. They each executed on their roles perfectly. We had a full choir with keyboard and violin to round out the overall presentation. Both Jean and I were amazed at the number of families with children in attendance. This was a very engaged congregation and as it turns out we even had representation from the Mormon Tabernacle (Utah is, after all, Mormon country). The bishop was asking lots of questions as he passed through the veneration line. We welcomed him with open arms and joined with their Catholic friend to help explain the circumstances relative to each of the artifacts in our collection. There must have been a communication that went out or perhaps it was simply word of mouth that prompted so many people to bring bundles of sacramental items to touch to the relics. People had bags full of pictures, crucifixes, medals, statues, etc. to touch to the relics and they seemed to have a true excitement in presenting them.

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Written by: Denise Serafini on Friday, May 19, 2017

Have you ever been to a cloistered convent? We were invited to share the Relics of the Passion and our little presentation with a group of cloistered Carmelite nuns in Salt Lake City on Thursday, May 18. What an experience! It so happened that we had a cancellation in our original schedule, leaving us with an open day. Sister Therese found out about us from Angela, a woman from one of the parishes on our schedule. Sister Therese called Tom, President of our Apostolate, shortly after our arrival in Utah. She was so excited about the possibility for us to make a stop at her convent that she quickly scoped out our website and wanted to tie down the details as quickly as possible. Being part of a cloistered community, these holy women would not be able to attend a public event and this type of opportunity doesn’t come their way very often. Tom relayed the message to me and I called Sister Therese to make arrangements for the added stop. We couldn’t have been more honored and pleased to fill the gap in the agenda with a visit to the Carmelite Monastery. Although Angela may have thought she was the genesis for the idea, we have often seen St. Joseph take over to guide us to places and individuals we would never have known about. We can’t thank Angela enough for being an instrument of St. Joseph in setting a wonderful series of events in motion.

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Written by: Denise Serafini on Wednesday, May 17, 2017

Sunday, May 15 was Mother’s Day. With all the family events being held that day there were only a few attendees at this event. Sometimes God’s plans are not aligned with what we are expecting at the moment and that was certainly the case here. As always, God had a very special plan for this event. What came to pass was a very intimate presentation of “Call from the Crucified Heart” that was intensely special for each of the individuals that did attend. Each person had their unique story and it was interesting to see the hand of God touch each of these individuals. While it’s always wonderful to have overwhelming attendance at these events, having one that demonstrates the intimate relationship God wants to have with each of us was just as significant and truly remarkable.

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Written by: Denise Serafini on Tuesday, May 16, 2017

We engaged in a presentation of “Call from the Crucified Heart” on the 100th Anniversary of the apparitions at Fatima and the canonization of Saints Jacinta and Francisco on May 13 at St. Marguerite Church in Tooele, Utah. The statue of Our Lady of Fatima was prominently displayed in the front of the church with fresh flowers, including Casablanca lilies that emitted a wonderful fragrance. In her hands, Our Lady had a scapular and a small blue rosary. That rosary ended up being a gift that was presented to me at the end of the event. It seems it was hand made by Servant of God Maria Esperanza, a Venezuelan mystic. She made that rosary while visiting friends in Tooele. What a blessing. Father Kenneth Vialpando, pastor of the parish of St. Marguerite of Alacoque, presided over the event. He did a tremendous job of reading the messages from Jesus on the Cross that are part of the theme for this year’s program. That theme is totally aligned to the story of St. Marguerite, who was chosen by Christ to arouse the Church to a realization of the love of God symbolized by the heart of Jesus.

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Written by: Denise Serafini on Monday, May 15, 2017

St. Joseph always makes his participation with us known. It so happened that our first event here in Utah was at St. Joseph’s Church in Ogden. Not only that, the name of the priest that presided over the event was, you guessed it, Father Joseph, the Parochial Vicar for the parish. This church, unlike many of the churches we visit out west, is a very traditional church with a beautiful sanctuary and stained glass windows. Since that architecture is consistent with most of the churches we have our east, it was like coming into one of our home town churches. The size of the church gave us plenty of room to display all 8 of our backdrops, something we can do in only a few churches we visit. We did the program in Spanish and English and Father Joseph did the standard prayers as well as the “Call from the Crucified Heart” which provides thoughts from Jesus from various scenes in the Passion. The faithful in attendance seemed to have been very touched. There was a sizable crowd and veneration went on for quite some time. That always tells me that the people really take the time to engage in prayer with Jesus using each relic in logical succession along the way to Calvary and beyond. We are very thankful to St. Joseph for leading us to yet another parish of faith filled individuals seeking to deepen their relationship with Jesus and His Mother in His Passion. We know this event will set the tone for all the ensuing presentations we do here in Utah.

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Written by: Denise Serafini on Friday, May 05, 2017

We had a full day of activities on tap for the scheduled event at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Waterbury, CT on April 11. This church has had us make an encore visit every Tuesday of Holy Week for 5 years running thanks to Sister Georgia Wright, SSC who is consistently helping to engage the members of her parish in faith formation. Sister Georgia recently had a health issue that would prevent her from attending the event so we decided to take the event to her at the rehabilitation facility where she is currently being cared for and treated. The nurses assembled Sister Georgia along with other residents and staff at the facility to participate in our program. We brought our music ministry and finished the program just in time to travel to the church for an on-time arrival. Sister Georgia couldn’t have been more grateful. She was rather down when she realized that she wouldn’t be able to coordinate and participate in the activities of Holy Week at the church. Having a personal presentation of “Call from the Crucified Heart” seemed to fill that gap for her and gave her the consolation of having participated in at least one formal spiritual event during Holy Week. We offered the prayers for the evening’s event at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in petition for Sister Georgia’s speedy recovery and return to her role in organizing their parish events and activities. The event at the church was simply wonderful. Father Frederick Aniello and Deacon Ernie Pagliaro joined us as part of the event and I have to say that Deacon Ernie’s reading of Jesus’s words to us from the various scenes in His Passion were heart rending.

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Written by: Denise Serafini on Thursday, May 04, 2017

We began our 2017 season with a private presentation of “Call from the Crucified Heart” at the Church of St. Thomas, for a special apostolate, the Legion of Mary. Because this year marks the 100th anniversary of the apparitions at Fatima, we thought it fitting to kick off the year’s activities with a group that is centered on Marian prayer. To make it special we customized the prayers within the presentation to align them with the philosophies, prayers and quotes of Venerable Edel Quinn. Her lifetime focus on the Holy Eucharist and the rosary provided a perfect parallel for the context of our theme for 2017. As we were setting up the parish pastor, Father Hellwig, happened to come by and asked about what we were doing, concerned by the amount of equipment we were bring in. Like many priests that we work with, he thought that the Legion of Mary was simply having a few relics brought in for veneration. We chatted for a few minutes, sharing the elements that make up our presentation and he insisted that we plan for a return event that would include his entire parish. We couldn’t have been more pleased to accommodate his request and scheduled an event for Palm Sunday, April 9, a most significant day for meditating on the Passion of Christ.

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Written by: Denise Serafini on Wednesday, May 03, 2017

We made our way back from our tour in Michigan to assure we would be back in time for a presentation at St. Brigid’s Church in our home state on April 7. Fathers Crowley and Dawson joined us and we had a full contingent of Knights of Columbus Color Guard. St. Brigid’s Church is an old city neighborhood parish in West Hartford that was built well before there was a real need for parking lots. They have a small circular drive to drop folks off before setting out in search of parking somewhere on a side street or on the busy main thoroughfare where it’s located. My first thought was that very few people would attend this event and I even mentioned that to one of the folks helping me set up. Much to my surprise, however, people braved the rainy evening and found parking as necessary to join us and we had a pretty well filled church. Just before the event started, the person I made that comment to gave me a little zing with one of Jesus' strongest admonitions to his disciples, “o ye of little faith.” Somehow I think that St. Brigid’s dedication to the Cross may have been one of the interceding factors for making that happen in this fine church dedicated in her honor. I don’t think she ever doubted the power God has to draw in his people to Him.

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Written by: Denise Serafini on Wednesday, May 03, 2017

On April 4th we had the honor of presenting our 2017 program at the parish of St. Michael the Archangel Church in Monroe, Michigan. What a magnificent church they have erected in his honor. The gold leaf used on the altars and statuary in the sanctuary is exceptional. How fitting it is to accentuate the entire church in gold as a tribute to St. Michael the Archangel when you consider that he isn't a saint, but an angel, and the leader of all angels in the heavenly army of God. Among the many roles St. Michael has as the warrior champion of Christians, he is also the special patron of the Chosen People of the Old Testament and guardian of the Church. The early Christians also revered him and depended on him as a significant intercessor for the sick. In Luke 22:41-43 we learn: "He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, 'Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.'" An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him.” There is no reference that tells us exactly which angel was sent to help Jesus but I suspect that St. Michael might have been the one sent to help Jesus in his anguish, but even if not, I’m sure St. Michael would have had a stake in selecting just the right angel to Jesus in his role as Warrior for Our Salvation. In presenting the Relics of the Passion at St. Michael’s Church we made the acquaintance of many people, but two stand out.

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Written by: Denise Serafini on Wednesday, May 03, 2017

We spent Sunday afternoon on April 2nd with friends at Holy Rosary Church in Cedar, Michigan. I say friends because the parishioners at Holy Rosary are so warm and gracious they make you feel like you’ve come home for a visit. We couldn’t have felt more welcomed and supported. Members of this parish were available as soon as we arrived to help us unload our equipment and get everything in place. They were extremely attentive in helping us get everything we needed. Father Libby came out to greet us and we quickly got the little details for the event ironed out. The sense of family is evidenced in every aspect of this church community. We watched neighbors greeting neighbors as they left Mass before we even unloaded our equipment. With that same demeanor, they were neighbors helping neighbors, teamed with us in the set up, delivery and take down processes for our event. And what good friend would let you leave without sharing some small token of friendship? They baked cookies for us to take on the next leg of our journey.

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