Join us for a week of prayer, special events, and celebrations as we remember and honor our patron saint, St. Francis of Assisi!

Love In The Time of Coronavirus

September 30th at 6:30 PM
San Damiano Hall

Join us as author Dr. Angela Alaimo O’Donnell, reads from her book of poems Love in the Time of Coronavirus: A Pandemic Pilgrimage and invites us to unpack our experience of the past year and half through her poetry.

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What Was Lost: Seeking Refuge in the Psalms

October 2nd at 2:30 PM
San Damiano Hall

Meet author Maureen O’Brien as she reads from and signs her latest book, What was Lost: Seeking Refuge in the Psalms.

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The Blessing of Animals

October 3rd at 2:00 PM
Main Church

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The Transitus

October 3rd at 7:oo PM (6:30pm, Marie Puleo to give an introduction)
Main Church

Feast of St. Francis “Festive Masses”

October 4th at 5:00 PM and 6:00 PM
Main Church

Flowers for the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi

As we celebrate St. Francis on October 4th, the church will be decorated with magnificent flowers.  All of his teaching, preaching, healing and seeking what was lost gave glory to God. He used his gifts well. Let us fill the church with the beauty of God’s creation in honor of a saint who loved nature so much.

You are invited to donate flowers in memory of a loved one or for a special intention.

Click here to offer flowers for the feast

Join us as author Dr. Angela Alaimo O’Donnell, reads from her book of poems Love in the Time of Coronavirus: A Pandemic Pilgrimage and invites us to unpack our experience of the past year and half through her poetry.

During the course of the evening Dr. Angela Alaimo O’Donnell will read selected poems from her new book.  Then a portion of the evening will allow attendees to discuss their experience of the pandemic.  The evening will conclude with a short prayer service offering to God what we have been through together.

Dr. Angela will sign books after the prayer service.  Copies of the book will be available to purchase that evening.

Join us:

Thursday, September 30th
6:30 PM
San Damiano Hall

This event is free and open to the public.
COVID safety measures:  We ask all attendees to please wear a mask during this event.

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Click here for more FRANCIS WEEK 2021 events.

About the author:

Angela Alaimo O’Donnell, PhD is a professor, poet, and writer at Fordham University in New York City and serves as Associate Director of Fordham’s Curran Center for American Catholic Studies. Her publications include two chapbooks and seven collections of poems, most recently, Andalusian Hours (2020), a collection of 101 poems that channel the voice of Flannery O’Connor, and Love in the Time of Coronavirus: A Pandemic Pilgrimage (2021).  In addition, O’Donnell has published a prize-winning memoir, Mortal Blessings (2014) and a book of hours based on the practical theology of Flannery O’Connor, The Province of Joy (2012), and her biography Flannery O’Connor: Fiction Fired by Faith  (2015) was awarded first prize for excellence in publishing from The Association of Catholic Publishers.  Her new critical book on Flannery O’Connor, Radical Ambivalence: Race in Flannery O’Connor was published by Fordham University Press in 2020.  

FRANCIS WEEK 2021 EVENT:

Meet author Maureen O’Brien as she reads from and signs her latest book, What was Lost: Seeking Refuge in the Psalms.

When you hit rock bottom, it isn’t rainbows and butterflies that you need—it’s the words to express your deepest emotions without being judged for them. In this spiritual memoir, author Maureen O’Brien finds her words in the psalms. As a cancer survivor and heartbroken divorcee, O’Brien made a seemingly simple commitment to praying one psalm a day, no matter how uninspired she felt. And as she returned to the ancient poems day after day, she discovered something surprising: while the psalms did give her comfort, solace, and hope, they also gave her permission to rage, cry, and grieve. And what she found was that her most honest emotions pulled her nearer to God, not further away. This, O’Brien writes, is the gift of the psalms. At once relatable and inspiring, What Was Lost stands like a lighthouse on a stormy night, offering the reader a clear path to be led home. Maureen will read from her memoir, and eagerly take questions and welcomes  personal stories from the audience.  A book signing follows.

About Maureen: Maureen O’Brien is the author of the novel b-mother. Her award-winning short stories and poems have been published widely in magazines and anthologies. She lives in Connecticut where she taught  creative writing to teenagers for twenty-five years. She holds an M.A in creative writing and a B.A. in philosophy and religion. The contrasts of life—sunrise and dusk, crying and laughter–never cease to amaze her.

Saturday, October 2, 2021
2:30 PM
San Damiano Hall

COVID safety measures:  We ask all attendees to please wear a mask during this event. 

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Click here for our full FRANCIS WEEK 2021 list of events

Each year on the eve of the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, Franciscans around the world commemorate the passing of this beloved saint at a special prayer service called the Transitus. If you have never attended this moving commemoration of St. Francis’ final moments please consider joining us.

October 3, 2021, 6:30 PM

Monday, October 4th is the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the founder of the Franciscan orders and the patron saint of our church here on 31st Street.

We will be celebrating the feast day Mass for St. Francis of Assisi at all of our regularly scheduled Masses on Monday, October 4th and we added a 6 PM Mass for people who cannot attend during the workday:

7:30 am

12:00 noon

5:00 pm – Fr. Kevin Mullen, OFM, provincial minister of Holy Name Province will preside at this liturgy

6:00 pm – Fr. Tom Gallagher, OFM, pastor of the Church of St. Francis of Assisi will preside at this liturgy.

The Adult Education Center received a much needed renovation this summer using money raised through our RENEW & REBUILD Campaign.  The building is now open and ready to host ministry meetings, adult education courses, self-help groups and more.

Fr. Tom and the staff would like to invite everyone to an open house and after Mass hospitality on Saturday September 25th and Sunday September 26th after all of the Masses.

Refreshments will be offered room 1B and staff will be present to show people around the building.

Come and see how we are building for a better and brighter future at St. Francis of Assisi.

Join us!