September Hours
Gardens and Gift Shop: 9 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Upper Garden admission sold 5:30 p.m.
Chapel closes at 6 p.m.
Visitor Center: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Additional Masses Added
The Grotto is pleased to announce the addition of an 8 a.m. Sunday Mass beginning in September.
Additionally, Mass will be celebrated every Saturday at 12 noon.
Blessing with the Relic of St. Peregrine
At the conclusion of the 10 a.m. Mass, a blessing with the relic of St. Peregrine will be offered each Sunday.
For more information about St. Peregrine and the blessing, please click here.
For complete Mass schedule, please click here.
Click here to learn more about our new Servite leadership.
Daily Spiritual Reflections
Sunday, Sept. 13
24th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Forgiveness
I remember as a boy, I used to fight with one of my two sisters. Both of us were training as martial artists. So, most of our fights were physical, not just verbal. The best thing from the sibling fight, however, is that no matter how many times we fought, we would always apologize and would continue to love each other. One time, after a fight, we were apologizing to each other when our little brother and our cousin came in the house; they heard everything and later on talked about it to our parents.
The theme of our readings this Sunday is on forgiveness. Jesus’ response to his disciples (and all of us), “not seven times but seventy-seven times” seems straightforward. Jesus wants us to forgive as many times as we should. At the end of Our Father, we pray, “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.” We humbly ask God to let the experience of being forgiven transform our hearts that we may likewise forgive others.
During this trying time, let us implore God for his mercy and forgiveness for all our sins, “in my thoughts, in my words, in what I have done and in what I have failed to do” and let us ask God to give us a transformative heart, so with the help of the Holy Spirit, we too forgive those who have hurt us.
“May Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins and bring us to everlasting life!”
Amen.
Fr. Leo Hambur, OSM
Saturday, Sept. 12
The Most Holy Name of the Blessed Virgin Mary
This day was chosen to honor the Holy Name of Mary. God the Father is glorified by the exalted role of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Thus, her name is a name of honor, a holy name, a maternal name, and a mama’d responsive to the needs of the Church (Ordo).
The feast was granted in 1513, but only in the diocese of Cuenca, Spain; it was then suppressed by Pius V and revived by Sixtus V. It was extended to the Kingdom of Naples and Milan in 1671, and became a universal feast on September 12, 1683, at the will of Pope Innocent XI, as thanks to the victory over the Turks who besieged Vienna and threatened Christianity.
The feast recalls the significance of Mary, she who is the bearer of light, light that illuminated her soul and who has become the light for many souls.
Prayer
All powerful God,
We rejoice in the protection of the Holy Name of the Blessed Virgin Mary.We ask that, by the help of her prayers, we too may come to share the fullness of your grace and come to the joy of your peace.
Through Christ, our Lord.
Amen.
Fr. Leo Hambur, OSM
Friday, Sept. 11
9/11 Prayer – We Remember
Lord, our ever-living God, how lovely is your dwelling place.(Resp. Psalm 84: 3, 4, 5-66, 12)
Today, we remember all our brothers and sisters who have gone to you, those who died in the event of 9/11.
We trust their souls, O Lord, into your loving embrace, that they may enjoy your dwelling place in heaven.
May they sing with the Angels in your eternal home.
We remember also their families and friends, who lost their loved ones in that horrible event.
May you, O Lord, be their comfort and bring your healing power into their lives.
We remember the bravery of the first responders.
We remember, O Lord, that you are their strength and their shield.
May you, O Lord, be always with them.
As we remember what happened that day, and honor our brothers and sisters lost, give us, O God, our strength, a peaceful and brave heart, to help, to heal and to carry each other in times of need, as we did on 9/11.
Amen
Thursday, Sept. 10
Wonderful are your works
Today’s responsorial is taken from Psalm 139:
“O LORD, you have probed me and you know me … Truly you have formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother’s womb. I give you thanks that I am fearfully, wonderfully made; wonderful are your works.”
While in middle school at St. Paul Catholic School in Eugene, we had an opportunity to choose an elective 4-week class. Our teacher and one of the moms taught this class. As I recall, we met once a week for a 20-minute lesson. Some of us brought our projects to work on during the rainy lunch recesses. The adults were great teachers, and all of us made progress.
The adults made it look so easy. It was like they hardly even had to pay attention while they were knitting. Their rows multiplied quickly. Mine, not so much. I had visions of making winter scarves for my whole family. I ended it up with a scarf that was about 9” long and 6” wide. A couple of weeks after the class ended, my project ended up in the bottom of a drawer somewhere.
While on retreat as a sophomore in high school, Psalm 139 was the main theme throughout the weekend. When I returned home, I dug through my drawers and rediscovered my project.
This little scarf became part of my prayer time. I examined it carefully. I reviewed the rows, and recalled the effort, the focus, and care that I had taken to create it. There were some dropped stitches. It was not perfect. But it was unique, and it was mine.
Each of us is a partial scarf , knit together in our Mother’s womb. And as the Psalmist says: “ I give you thanks that I, (and YOU) am fearfully, wonderfully made; wonderful are your works.”
Vinci Paterson, M. Div.
Wednesday, Sept. 9
Feast of St. Peter Claver
St. Peter Claver was born in Spain. He became a Jesuit priest and served in Columbia.
Cartagena, Columbia, was one of two ports where slaves from Africa arrived to be sold in South America. Between the years 1616 and 1650, Peter Claver worked tirelessly every day to minister to the needs of the 10,000 slaves who arrived each year. He is known for this quote about ministry and preaching: “We must speak to them with our hands by giving, before we try to speak to them with our lips.”
Peter Claver is the patron saint of slaves, and the Republic of Columbia.
Today, let us too try to ‘speak’ of God’s love, mercy, compassion, and hope with our hands (actions) first.
Vinci Paterson, M. Div
Tuesday, Sept. 8
Celebrating Blessed Mary’s Birthday
On this special feast day we celebrate Mary’s birth. And yes, you can do the math: September 8 is exactly 9 months after the Feast of her Immaculate Conception. Both of these feast days help us to remember and to celebrate that God’s ideas, plans, and his workings in time and history are much broader, wider, deeper, and longer than our human understanding.
Salvation History is God’s Story – with us from the beginning of time – not just from your beginning, or my beginning.
Celebrating Mary’s birth today reminds us that each birthday – everyone’s birthday – is a celebration that one exists: Because she was conceived and born, Jesus was born to save us.
Each person’s birthday is merely not the marking of years, it is acknowledgement of the gift that God gave us within that person. The talent, personality, hopes, dreams and potential are a unique combination in each and every wonderful person.
Prayer
Blessed Mary, As I remember and celebrate your birth today, help me to show your fidelity, your humility, your strength and compassion, as well as your unwavering faith in God.
Amen.
Vinci Paterson, M. Div.
