St. Mary of Mount Carmel / Blessed Sacrament Parish
648 JAY ST., UTICA, NY 13501 – 315-735-1482
(1217–1274) St. Bonaventure was born in Umbria, the “green heart” of the Italian peninsula, in the town of Bagnoregio. His father, Giovanni di Fidanza was doctor and probably well off for those times. That did not preclude any health issues for Bonaventure (then known by his given name, Giovanni). His mother, Maria di Ritello, was […]
(1550–1614) If ever there were proof that a sinner could one day become a saint, today’s saint is your man. In 1550, Camilla Compelli de Laureto found herself pregnant at an advanced age and with a terrible dream. In the dream, the son she was carrying was wearing a cross on his chest and he […]
St. Henry received a strong Christian education as a child. Born in Bamberg in 973, he was the son of the Duke of Bavaria. Among his teachers was St. Wolfgang, bishop of Ratisbon (now called Regensburg). Henry became duke when his father died and later became king of Germany in 1002, when his cousin Otto […]
(993–1073) John was born in Florence, Italy, around the year 993. As a member of a noble family, he enjoyed every advantage as a youth. When his older brother Hugh was murdered, however, he became grief stricken and vowed to avenge him. On Good Friday John saw his brother’s murderer and drew his sword to […]
Last Updated on August 28, 2020 by Editor Call to worship God is like a generous, wasteful farmer or gardener — throwing seed all over good and bad ground. God plants so generously in order to insure that there is growth and that life comes to fruition. Today’s scriptures call us to receive the seeds […]
Last Updated on August 28, 2020 by Editor “Van Gogh: The Sower” Van Gogh’s “The Sower of Seed” In 1888, Vincent Van Gogh painted a series of pictures of a lonely figure moving across a plowed field, a favorite subject of the artist: a broad gesture of the right hand indicates that sowing is taking […]
(c.480-c.547) Anyone travelling the highway from Rome to Naples undoubtably will notice at about the 80-mile point a huge complex on a hill on the east side of the road. If so, that traveler has caught a glimpse of one of the most important sites of the Medieval world, The Abby of Monte Cassino. What […]
Last Updated on October 16, 2020 by Editor By FATHER JIM You might enjoy the little “Wise & Otherwise” in this week’s bulletin about the “perfect priest.” There really is no priest or pastor that is totally perfect — no person would be found to be perfect. What I know is that our late parish […]
Sts. Rufina and Secunda were sisters, the daughters of a Roman senator. Their parents had betrothed them to Armentarius and Verinus, but they refused to marry because they had consecrated their virginity to Jesus Christ. They were arrested by the emperor Valerian. When Junius, the prefect, saw he could not change their minds by promises […]
(1660–1727) At birth in Mercatello, Italy, our saint of the day in was given the name Ursula. By her third or fourth year she already experienced a vision of the child Jesus while picking flowers in the garden. He simply said, “I am the true flower,” and then vanished. Growing up, Ursula would listen with […]