On Sunday, October 30 at the Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa in Doylestown was held All Saints Commemoration. Despite unfavorable weather conditions the faithful came to commemorate through prayers those who have preceded us in the pilgrimage to the House of the Heavenly Father. Even though there was a lot of snow, which surprised everyone living in the east coast of the United States, many pilgrims came to the Shrine to pray for beloved deceased. Whiteness of snow, combined with sunlight evoked the words of the Book of Revelation that those are going to heaven who washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb and became dazzling white... Atmospheric difficulty wasn't an obstacle to come to this sacred and important place, where Mary is always waiting for their children. On that day the eyes of our hearts were focused on prayer with the Mother of God, but the eyes of our body directed toward the Shrine Cemetery, where lie our beloved deceased.

The solemn concelebrated Holy Mass was at 12:30 PM was presided by Most Reverend Father Izydor Matuszewski, General of the Order of St. Paul the First Hermit, who came to the United States because of the many anniversaries that have taken place in our parishes where we serve as a community: Chicago - 50 anniversary of the parish of St. Rosalie, New York - 25 years of pastoral ministry and Doylestown - Provincial Chapter, chaired by Reverend Father General.

• Circle of SPK 39 from Brooklyn, NY with Mrs. President Jadwiga Kawa
• The group from the parish of Saints Cyril and Methodius with Mrs. Maria Puchalska
• The group from the Holy Trinity parish from Brooklyn
• The group from the Saint Stanislaus Bishop and Martyr parish in New York with Mrs. Gienia Golda
• The group from the Saint John Cantius parish in Clifton, NJ, along with Father Miroslaw Podymniak
• Sursum Corda community from New York with Mr. Andrzej Lewandowski

Not only organized groups, but also individual pilgrims came to the House of Mary, in order to express their prayerful memory of those who experience the joys of the Kingdom of Heaven or of those who in purgatory waiting for seeing God face to face.

In his homily, Father Izydor Matuszewski underline very strongly the necessity of our entrustment to the Blessed Mother because of the events that took place in the universal Church. The preacher noted the beatification of John Paul II, 70^th Anniversary of the death of St. Maximilian Kolbe, 30^th anniversary of the death of the Servant of God Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński and 300^th anniversary of the Warsaw Pilgrimage to Jasna Gora. Father General said: these events encouraged us to go through life with Mary, because our life is a pilgrimage to the Father's house. In his homily he brought to our memory Pope John Paul II, Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski, to show that today's most important need is to show God to the world and pointing the way to Him. Remaining in the month of October Father Izydor Matuszewski noted the importance of prayer and said that the Rosary allows us to focus our eyes and our hearts on Jesus, just as His mother did, the supreme model of contemplation of the Son. At this point, the Supreme Superior of the Pauline Fathers and Brothers gave an example of Cardinal Joseph Meisner, who in his ministry in 1975 showed to he faithful the beauty of the Rosary; within they could meditate and contemplate the whole mystery of salvation. Recalling the person of Blessed John Paul II, the preacher reminded the encyclical Redemptor Hominis, where the Holy Father strongly emphasized that the man is the way the Church and that the family is the foundation of the humanity. In his homily, Father Matuszewski also strongly resounded words important for us as witnesses and listeners of our great Pope John Paul II. Father General said: John Paul II admonished continually about the presence of Christ in public life ... warned that God does not become a "great absence" because the absence of God always leads to emptiness, lack of meaning, the fear of the future and to despair covered by noisy fun.

After the Eucharist, we went in procession to the Shrine Cemetery praying the Holy Rosary - meditating on the mysteries of Jesus' life. By this prayer we have interceded for the deceased from families, relatives and friends.

All whose loved ones rest in our Shrine Cemetery are more than welcome to visit the graves in the month of November, due to the indulgences that are attached to the prayer for the deceased with visiting graves of our loved ones. Let our prayer be helpful and let express our remembrance of our loved ones, because every Sunday as we confess our faith in the Creed, we believe that they too are our support in Our Father's House.

Fr. Tomasz Wilk OSPPE

American Czestochowa, Doylestown, PA