A Voice from the Eastern Door
A Voice from the Eastern Door
The Shrine is about to open for the new season. It will be the beginning of something great and wonderful. Our new season will be full of surprises and full of wonder. Our Mohawk maiden, Kateri, Lily of the Mohawks, will be added to the Church’s litany of Saints. Blessed Kateri will now be known as Saint Kateri and with that we are all blessed.
Kateri was declared Venerable in 1943, Beatified in 1980, and now will be raised to the highest honor in our Church and be canonized a saint on October 21, 2012. At each step along the way miracles attest to her holiness and prayers seem never to cease for her intercession. Day after day people from around the world looked to this young lover of Jesus as a source of inspiration and affirmation of the Gospels compelling good. The honor the Church bestows is not so much for Kateri who is already with her lover, but for us so our lives will be more in tune with the good she lived.
As this gift is bestowed upon the Church it is particularly given to the National Shrine that bears her Name. We are expecting that people from all over will be visiting us this year with pilgrims seeking what we have to offer. This Shrine is a place of peace and healing and we hope to offer these gifts to our visitors.
When we received the news of the canonization and started to filter all the rumors to get at the real facts we began to realize that this will be a different year. Last year as you may remember we were hampered in our ministry with heavy and constant rain. We were flooded a bit, our road was closed for a while and people generally seemed to be fearful of what might happen next. We had few visitors. This year will be different.
Over the recent past we have had many calls asking about what we will be doing for the canonization. Some wanted to know the specifics and one person asked if we were going to have fireworks. We need to have fireworks and we need to have a marching band but within our realm of simplicity we will celebrate well.
We do plan to have a special Mass on the day-of the canonization. Many of the Native people will be travelling to Rome to attend the event with many, many others. Here in Fonda we will process with the sacred relics of our saint and offer a special blessing on the day for each one who attends the Mass. After the Mass we will invite all to gather in the hall for some refreshments and we are hoping to have a large screen link-up to see the events that will be happening in Rome. We will cheer, toast our new saint and most importantly say a prayer of gratitude for this important gift to the indigenous peoples of Canada and the United Sates of America.
Our remote preparation has already begun with some upgrades to our pavilion where we celebrate the weekend Mass in the out-of-doors. New signs are on the way and we are about to contract to have the hall repaired and upgraded. A fresh coat of paint will make the Chapel and Museum stand proud and be a beacon for travelers seeking the intercession of Saint Kateri. We are hoping to have some more flowers planted and in general spruce up the grounds. I think the renewal of much of the property will reflect our concern and desire to invite pilgrims into a world that is sacred and holy.
As we move forward into this new age and celebrate the gifts of our creator in this holy person of Kateri Tekakwitha we want to invite you all to join us. If you can travel to the Shrine it would be great to see you and if not then please remember us in prayer as we will remember you and know that even if you are not able to be with us on the special day you will still receive the blessings and joy of our new saint, Kateri Tekakwitha.
Friar Mark
National Kateri Tekakwitha Shrine
Home of Saint Kateri (GAH teh lee) Tekakwitha
PO Box 627 3636 State Highway 5 Fonda, NY 12068-0627
Tele: 518.853.3646
Email: [email protected]
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