First Christmas at Blessed John Paul II Parish
PRAYER TO IMPLORE FAVORS THROUGH THE INTERCESSION OF BLESSED
JOHN PAUL II, POPE
O Blessed Trinity,
we thank You for having graced the Church
with Blessed John Paul II
and for allowing the tenderness of Your Fatherly care,
the glory of the Cross of Christ,
and the splendor of the Spirit of love,
to shine through him.
Trusting fully in Your infinite mercy
and in the maternal intercession of Mary,
he has given us a living image of Jesus the Good Shepherd,
and has shown us that holiness
is the necessary measure of ordinary Christian life
and is the way of achieving eternal communion with You.
Grant us, by his intercession,
and according to Your will, the graces we implore,
hoping that he will soon be numbered among Your saints.
Amen.
With ecclesiastical approval
AGOSTINO CARD. VALLINI
Vicar General of His Holiness for the Diocese of Rome
For graces received, contact:
Postulazione della Causa di Canonizzazione del Beato Giovanni Paolo II
Piazza S. Giovanni in Laterano, 6/a - 00184 Roma
BLESSED JOHN PAUL II BEATIFICATION WEBSITE
POPE JOHN PAUL II
COAT OF ARMS
The coat of arms of Pope John Paul II is intended as an act of homage to the central mystery of Christianity, the Redemption.
And so the main representation is a cross, whose form, however, does not correspond to the customary heraldic model. The reason for the unusual placement of the vertical section of the cross is readily apparent if one considers the second object inserted in the coat of arms the large and majestic capital M. This recalls the presence of Mary beneath the cross and her exceptional participation in the Redemption.
The great devotion of the Holy Father to the Virgin Mary is manifested in this manner, as it was also expressed in his motto as Cardinal Wojtyla: TOTUS TUUS (All yours). Nor can one forget that within the confines of the ecclesiastical province of Krakow, there is situated the celebrated Marian shrine of Czestochowa, where the Polish people for centuries fostered their filial devotion to the Mother of God.
Past News ...
September 1, 2011 St. Vincent de Paul & Our Lady of Perpetual Help became
Blessed John Paul II Parish Community
BLESSED JOHN PAUL II PARISH
(Press Release from the Diocese of Buffalo - 9/14)
Blessed John Paul II Parish to celebrate inaugural events
Blessed John Paul II Parish, which was officially formed by Bishop Edward U. Kmiec, on Sept. 1, will celebrate a series of events to mark the establishment of the Lake View faith community. The parish was formed by the merger of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish, Lake View, and St. Vincent de Paul Parish, North Evans. The new parish will utilize the Lake View site for all parish activity.
Wednesday, Sept. 14: The parish will offer a unique evening prayer service, with the altar stone from St. Vincent’s Church processed into Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church and placed in the altar. The Eucharist, Easter Candle and significant symbolic and meaningful items will be put into place for use during parish celebrations. Throughout the service, scripture readings will be proclaimed along with excerpts of the writings of Blessed John Paul II. Father Peter J. Karalus, pastor of Blessed John Paul II Parish, will preach with a combined music ministry of all parish musicians providing music.
Wednesday, Sept. 21: Bishop Kmiec will celebrate the inaugural Mass of the new parish. Father Karalus, along with the previous pastors and parochial vicars of Our Lady of Perpetual Help and St. Vincent de Paul parishes, will concelebrate.
During the introductory rites of the Mass, the congregation will be sprinkled with holy water that was blessed by Pope John Paul II during his pastoral visit to New York City in 1995. The offertory procession will include a second class relic of Blessed John Paul II which will remain at the parish for veneration.
Bishop Kmiec will present a special Apostolic Blessing from His Holiness, Pope Benedict XVI, to all members of the new parish. Along with the parishioners, the students of Southtowns Catholic Elementary School, which is based at the parish, will be in attendance. The combined music ministry composed of the various parish music ministries will provide music during the liturgy.
Since September 2010, Our Lady of Perpetual Help and St. Vincent de Paul parishes have been linked with one pastor, sharing a worship schedule with blended ministries, organizations, and other parish groups. For over two decades the two parishes have supported the Southtowns Catholic School.
The leadership committees of both parishes have met and worked together. Through this collaboration, they conducted a self-study of each parish, hosted joint-parish meetings and prayer services as they investigated the best structure for parish life. After study and consultations, the two parishes proposed to merge to form one parish community utilizing one site. The proposal was presented to Bishop Kmiec for approval, which he announced in May 1, 2011, to coincide with the beatification ceremony of Pope John Paul II held at the Vatican that same day.
http://www.buffalodiocese.org/
http://downtown.wgrz.com/news/news/59152-blessed-john-paul-ii-parish-celebrate-inaugural-events
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New Lake View parish to be named in honor of Blessed John Paul II Diocese of Buffalo - Office of Communications
Bishop Edward U. Kmiec has approved the merger proposal for Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in Lake View and St. Vincent de Paul Parish in North Evans. The bishop has also approved a new name for the new parish, Blessed John Paul II. The former Holy Father will be beatified at the Vatican on May 1.
“Rarely has anyone been declared Blessed as quickly as Pope John Paul II,” Bishop Kmiec wrote in a letter to the parishioners. “This fact alone testifies to his holiness and to the impact he has had on both the Church and the world. His life and his teachings gave witness to the most essential elements of the Gospel: the sanctity of life, the message of peace and unity, the primacy of prayer, and the mission to evangelize.” The merger of the two parishes will take place in September, using the Lake View site. During the Journey in Faith and Grace, the diocesan wide parish reconfiguration process, it was announced in February 2008 that Our Lady of Perpetual Help and St. Vincent de Paul parishes would begin a collaborative working relationship to prepare for linking or merging in the future. The parishes were linked with a single pastor in September 2010. The leadership committees of both parishes spent the past several months examining the status of the linked parish community and then recommended the merger to the bishop. The new parish is among the first parishes in the world to be named in honor of Blessed John Paul II. |
Blessed John Paul II Parish Prayer
Almighty God
we give you thanks because
you have made us a parish family
with a call to open wide the doors to Christ.
For generations you have blessed
our communities under the watchful care
of St. Vincent de Paul and Mary,
Our Lady of Perpetual Help.
Throughout that time,
you have been the source of
happiness in our joy and hope in distress.
As we cross the threshold of hope
help us to be not afraid,
to be open to your Spirit working in our midst
shaping us into the parish family of
Blessed John Paul II.
We ask your guidance as we
rejoice in the splendor of the truth and the joy of life.
Bless the creation of our new parish
with the gifts and spirit of the communities
formed by our past generations.
May we be strong in your love and faithful to your Word,
Jesus, who is the Christ
yesterday, today, and forever.
We ask this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.