ALL SAINTS CELEBRATED IN APRIL
Saints celebrated on the 28th of April
Prayer to the Angels and the Saints
Heavenly Father, in praising Your Angels and Saints we praise Your glory, for by honouring them we honour You, their Creator. Their splendour shows us Your greatness, which infinitely surpasses that of all creation.
In Your loving providence, You saw fit to send Your Angels to watch over us. Grant that we may always be under their protection and one day enjoy their company in heaven.
Heavenly Father, You are glorified in Your Saints, for their glory is the crowning of Your gifts. You provide an example for us by their lives on earth, You give us their friendship by our communion with them, You grant us strength and protection through their prayer for the Church, and You spur us on to victory over evil and the prize of eternal glory by this great company of witnesses.
Grant that we who aspire to take part in their joy may be filled with the Spirit that blessed their lives, so that, after sharing their faith on earth, we may also experience their peace in heaven. Amen.
ST PETER CHANEL, PATRON SAINT OF OCEANIA
One of the saints remembered by the Church [on] 28th April, is St Peter Chanel. He was born in 1803 near Cuet in France. He studied for the priesthood at the seminary for the Diocese of Belley. After ordination he served in two parishes and then went to Rome to found a new order, the Society of Mary. St Peter professed his vows in this young community in 1836 and then realised his dream of becoming a missionary.
A TEN MONTHS' JOURNEY
He sailed with six others and, after a ten months journey, landed on the remote island of Futuna in the South Pacific, 1,300 miles northwest of New Zealand. Only 1,000 people lived on the island, which was split into two kingdoms, which often were at war with each other. St Peter worked hard in often difficult situations and learned the local language, cared for the sick and baptised the dying.
HE REMAINED ADAMANT THAT HE WANTED TO BE A CATHOLIC
Initially King Niuliki welcomed St Peter but then he became hostile on hearing that some of his people were becoming Catholics. This worsened when the King’s own son, Meitala, became a Catholic and started to go against the old ways and traditions. Meitala’s mother spoke angrily with her husband, the King, telling him about what Meitala had been doing. The next day King Niuliki spoke with his son, trying to persuade him to go back to the old ways, but his son remained adamant that he wanted to be a Catholic.
TO THIS DAY, THE AREA REMAINS ENTIRELY CATHOLIC
After this, aware of the King’s anger, other members of the family travelled to where St Peter was living and gained entrance by pretending that someone needed help. They viciously attacked St Peter and a cry went out to murder him. St Peter died at the young age of 37. When St Peter died, having been on the island for three years, only a few of the islanders had converted to Catholicism. However, within two years of St Peter’s martyrdom the whole island had converted to the Catholic Faith and today the population of Futana remains entirely Catholic. St Peter Chanel was canonized a saint in 1954 by Pope Pius XII and was declared the protomartyr and Patron Saint of Oceania.
(From: Spiritual Thought from Fr Chris)
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