NEWS

June marks the start of summer, days devoted to the outdoors, and the national celebration of fathers. On Father’s Day, we honor the men who play a paternal role in our lives. We look up to them as examples of wisdom and guidance.

St. Anthony of Padua is cherished by the Society of Atonement and people worldwide for the wondrous miracles God worked through him. To honor the life of a fellow Franscian, please join us at one of Graymoor’s most revered landmarks, St. Anthony’s Shrine, on June 9 to celebrate Mass and the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Summer is here, and so is the San Damiano Farmers Market! Starting this Friday, June 7, come and check out everything that’s “growing on!”

I was shocked and saddened some time ago when I read that over 50 percent of Roman Catholics do not believe in the true presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament; that at Mass, after the words of consecration, the bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ.

Each month, the Holy Father offers a special prayer intention. In June, Pope Francis asks all Catholics to pray for migrants fleeing their homes.

On Ascension Thursday, Pope Francis officially announced the Jubilee Year 2025 through his papal bull Spes Non Confundit (“Hope Does Not Disappoint”). In it the pope states: “Everyone knows what it is to hope. In the heart of each person, hope dwells as the desire and expectation of good things to come, despite our not knowing what the future may bring..."

Since its opening, the lobby of our headquarters in Graymoor has welcomed people of all ages and beliefs. Visitors hail from the local Garrison, NY community and from around the world.

This May, the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement are observing Mental Health Awareness Month, a day our nation needs now more than ever. According to The National Institutes of Health, 57.8 million adults in the U.S. suffer from some form of mental illness.

Fr. Bill passed into eternal life on April 21, 2024 at New York-Presbyterian-Hudson Valley Hospital in Cortlandt Manor, NY.