In commemoration of the 75th Anniversary of the Martyrdom of Conventual Franciscan Friar, St. Maximilian Kolbe, Our Lady of the Angels Province has scheduled a pilgrimage of a relic throughout our province U.S. and Canadian territory. The relic is a portion of his beard that was shaved (1938). After he received permission from his Minister Provincial, St Maximilian decided to shave his beard, first grown to enhance his missionary work in Japan where the beard helped to earn the respect of the people he served. Upon his return to Poland, under the National Socialism, the beard would provoke persecution of his fellow friars. When asked why he shaved his beard, St. Maximilian responded, “Beards provoke the enemy who rapidly is approaching our friary. Our Franciscan habits also will provoke him. I can part with my beard. I can’t sacrifice my habit.” After having shaved Maximilian’s beard, one of the friars placed it in a pouch. Strands of the beard still are preserved in the Niepokalanow archives. (Claude R. Foster, Mary’s Knight, Marytown Press 2013, p. 586) From some of those strands, four identical reliquaries were created, one of which will be venerated during this pilgrimage. Please keep checking back on our website for more details, as our preparations continue. As for now, allow us to share the schedule so that those who wish to attend events at local ministries can “Save the Date.”
PILGRIMAGE OF THE RELIC OF ST. MAXIMILIAN KOLBE
2016 Itinerary (Updates Will Occur Upon Change)
MARYLAND
The Shrine of St. Anthony, Ellicott City ~ January 15-17 (Opening)
Provincial House (Portiuncula Friary), Ellicott City ~ January 18-21
St. Casimir Church, Baltimore ~ January 22-24
St. Wenceslaus Church, Baltimore ~ January 29-31
Archbishop Curley High School, Baltimore ~ February 2-4
St. Elizabeth of Hungary Roman Catholic Church, Baltimore ~ February 5-7
St. Clement Mary Hofbauer Church, Baltimore ~ February 13-15
WASHINGTON DC AREA
The Catholic University of America, Washington, DC ~ February 17-21
Post Novitiate (St. Bonaventure Friary), Silver Spring, MD ~ February 22-24
NORTH CAROLINA
Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church, Burlington ~ February 27-29
Holy Cross Catholic Church, Durham ~ March 4-6
Newman Catholic Student Center Parish, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill ~ March 7-9
Iglesia Catolica de St. Julia (Catholic Church), Siler City ~ March 11-13
Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church, Winston-Salem ~ March 15-18
FLORIDA
St. Lucie Catholic Church, Port St. Lucie ~ April 1-3
St. Mark Catholic Church, Boynton Beach ~ April 8-10
GEORGIA
Holy Cross Catholic Church, Atlanta ~ April 15-17
St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Jonesboro ~ April 21-24
PENNSYLVANIA
Mother Cabrini Catholic Church, Shamokin ~ April 29-May 1
St. Patrick Parish, Trevorton ~ May 6-8
St. Francis of Assisi Parish, Johnstown ~ May 13-15
UPSTATE NEW YORK and CANADA
St. Francis of Assisi Roman Catholic Church, Athol Springs, NY ~ May 20-22
St. Francis High School, Athol Springs, NY ~ May 24-26
The Franciscan Church of St. Bonaventure, Toronto, ON ~ May 27-29
The Church of St. John Apostle and Holy Family, Kingston, ON ~ May 30 – June 2
The Franciscan Church of the Assumption, Syracuse, NY ~ June 3-5
National Saint Kateri Tekakwitha Shrine, Fonda, NY ~ June 10-12
Sisters of the Resurrection, Castleton, NY ~ June 13-15
MASSACHUSETTS
Our Lady of the Cross Parish, Holyoke ~ June 17-19
St. Anthony of Padua Parish, Chicopee ~ June 21-23
Basilica of St. Stanislaus, Bishop & Martyr, Chicopee ~ June 24-26
CONNECTICUT
Felician Franciscan Sisters (Sisters of St. Felix of Cantalice), Enfield ~ June 28-30
St. Paul Catholic Church, Kensington and St. John Catholic Church, Cromwell ~ July 1-7
Return to MASSACHUSETTS
Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church, New Bedford ~ July 8-10
NEW YORK CITY, NY
St. Adalbert Roman Catholic Church, Elmhurst ~ July 15-17
San Damiano Mission, Brooklyn ~ July 18-20
The Roman Catholic Community of Most Holy Trinity-St. Mary ~ July 22-24
NEW JERSEY
St. Peter’s Roman Catholic Church, Point Pleasant Beach ~ July 29-31
The Church of St. Catharine of Siena, Seaside Park and Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Seaside Heights ~ August 5-7
Return to MARYLAND
The Shrine of St. Anthony, Ellicott City ~ August 14 (Closing)
O God, who gave the Church and the world the priest and martyr Saint Maximilian Kolbe,
burning with love for the Immaculate Virgin Mary
and with apostolic zeal for souls and heroic love of neighbor,
graciously grant, through his intercession,
that striving for Your glory by eagerly serving others,
we may be conformed, even until death, to Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
One God, forever and ever. Amen
