Vigil of All Saints 2009
November 6th, 2009 by Br. Peter Martyr Joseph Yungwirth, O.P.
Pictures from the All Saints Vigils in Washington, DC and Oakland, CA (Time 3:00):
This year, the Vigil of All Saints was a beautiful celebration of the Church’s witness throughout the ages. Dominicans friars throughout the country hosted their own vigils from the Dominican Studentate of the Western Province in Oakland, CA (where the All Saints Vigil Originated) to the Aquinas Center at Dartmouth College to the Church of St. Mary in New Haven, CT right here to the Dominican House of Studies in Washington. Moreover, the All Saints Vigil has started to spread elsewhere. All least two convents of the Little Sisters of the Poor are offering it for their residents. And even students in Gaming, Austria have started it this year.
Throughout the evening it becomes clear why so many people attend. To quote Archbishop Augustine DiNoia, O.P., “It’s drippingly Catholic.” In other words, not only do we celebrate the saints and their virtues, but we hear the word of God proclaimed, we celebrate the Church’s liturgy, we venerate the relics of the great saints who have gone before us, and we do it all to proclaim God’s glory and in thanksgiving for His wonderful gifts.
Br. Jordan Joseph Schmidt, O.P. preached at the Dominican House of Studies this year. Fr. Hugh Vincent Dyer, O.P. preached the sermon in New Haven, CT.
Click on the image below for the sermon preached by Br. Jordan Joseph Schmidt, O.P. for the Vigil of All Saints, 2009. Here’s a link for the text. (Audio time = 9:32):
