St. Padre Pio Window Installed

A couple of weeks ago, the first stained glass window designed by Utopian Studios of Mesa, AZ was installed in the chapel. The incscription on the window reads "St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina. Although his name is technically "St. Pio", he is known affectionately to most as "Padre Pio" so the decision was made to place "Padre" in the inscription. St. Padre Pio was born in Petrelcina, Italy on May 25, 1887. He had an extraordinary call to holiness and consecrated his life to God at the age of five. He joined the Capuchin Friars at age 15 and was ordained to priesthood at age 23. Padre Pio prayed almost continuously and was known for contemplation and simple prayer. Although Padre Pio suffered from physical and spiritual afflictions, he worked 19 hour days and denied himself vacation time. He was blessed with many spiritual gifts such as healing, bilocution, stigmata, and reading people's hearts. He saw Christ in those who suffer - such as the sick and the poor. He encouraged his followers to "Bring God to all those who are sick. This will help them more than any other remedy." He knew what it meant to bear the burden of a loved one - as he bore the stigmata - the physical wounds of Christ. He died on September 23, 1968.

ST. PIO PRAYER

Dear Padre Pio,
My heart is heavy.
I need God's help to continue.
I am burdened and am in need of His strength to carry the load.
I am sorry for my sins.
I am far from being perfect and know that there is much that I can do to be closer to God.
You showed love and kindness to the poor and sick in your lifetime.
Please show this compassion to me as I carry this cross.
Please pray that I may be gracious and loving to others and keep my eyes focused on Our Lord.
Please pray to God on my behalf.
(your intention)
Amen.

COPYRIGHT 2009 ST. PEREGRINE CHAPEL

St. Anne's Cancer Ministry Coordinator Dies

Last Thursday, Healing Through the Body of Christ Cancer Ministry Volunteer Coordinator for St. Anne's Catholic Church in Gilbert, lost her battle with cancer. Debbie Bond was an incredible volunteer and an inspiration to people faced with a cancer diagnosis. Despite enduring treatments for Stage IV Breast Cancer for almost four years, Debbie worked tirelessly to improve the lives of people affected by cancer. An engraved brick will be placed at the chapel as a permanent reminder of the love and compassion that she showed for others. We have no doubt that she will have the best seat in the house for the dedication of the chapel in November. A funeral Mass will be held at St. Anne's Catholic Church in Gilbert on Thursday, July 23, 2009 at 11am.

Channel 3 News Story

On June 1, 2009, Tess Rafols of Phoenix local news channel 3 did a great story on the chapel. She interviewed Emily Bayda, a student at Christ the King school and a brain tumor survivor. We are very proud of Emily and think she did an incredible job! And thank you Channel 3 for helping us spread the word!

2009 GOLF TOURNAMENT

The 2nd Annual St. Peregrine Charity Golf Tournament, hosted by the Knights of Columbus and Christ the King, was held on Saturday, May 2, 2009 at the Arizona Golf Resort in Mesa, AZ. Our sponsors: Fiat HVAC, DBR Electric, Arizona Watertite Systems Roofing, and Tim's Auto Group helped make our event a great success and we raised almost $6,000 for the chapel! We are grateful to everyone involved in the tournament - from the members of the committee to the sponsors, players and dinner guests. We are looking forward to another great event next year!

Pilgrimages

We often get questions from people wanting to know more about making a pilgrimage. We believe that a pilgrimage can be very healing. The trip, however, is not always so much about the final destination as it is about the journey itself. It can be a metaphor for our relationship with God. Often times people travel to specific destinations believing that if only he or she could get to the site - a healing will occur - such as a cure from cancer. The problem, though, is that often times the miracle that the person was hoping for does not occur and faith is lost instead of gained. In many cases, the journey was what was important but the person missed it because he or she was fixated on the final destination. There is nothing wrong with believing that God will heal us but it is important to remember that it is God that determines what healing will occur - not us. When we ignore the journey, we ignore the call from God to really come to Him. If we get to a Holy site and expect a miracle without opening ourselves up completely to Him, we are often disappointed or fail to see the real miracles. God loves us completely and without reservation. We must be diligent in our quest for closeness to Him - even in the midst of our stress and sorrow. God uses our pilgrimages as an opportunity for us to grow closer to Him just as we are getting closer to a certain site. When we get to the site, we should honor God and allow Him to guide us rather than trying to tell God what He should do for us. It is vital that we seek spiritual healing for those are the miracles that stay with us through eternity. Physical healing lasts only as long as our earthly bodies. When visitors come to the St. Peregrine Chapel, we want them to be active participants - praying, seeking, and opening up their hearts. There really are miracles - and they happen every day.

Exciting News:
We had our first "pilgrims" to the shrine this week. On Thursday, we welcomed a group from Houston, Texas. Even though the chapel is not open yet, our cancer ministry was ready to help them on their cancer journey. It is our hope that they felt comforted and loved. It was an honor and a privilege to have met them and we look forward to seeing them again.

AZ Republic Story

The Arizona Republic did a story in last Sunday's paper and you may read it here: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2009/04/19/20090419cancerchapel0419.html

LANDSCAPE DESIGN IDEAS