This photo always gets me. This boy’s father has presumably died in combat serving in the Marine Corps. Another Marine, likely one of the fallen’s comrades, presents a flag to the boy in memory of his father’s ultimate sacrifice of giving his life. The message of the presentation is extraordinarily bitter-sweet: “Remember the greatness of your father and his sacrifice while mourning his loss.”

Mercy, while not always comfortable, can be the balm for our suffering; the redemptive actions of our Lord alleviate us of our sins and shortcomings. And we cannot accept mercy and move forward if we don’t first look the past in the eye (in the boy’s case, the death of his father; in our case, the severity of our sins).

On November 3-4 the steering committee for the international Assumptionist education congress met at the provincial house in Paris to fine-tune the details of this first-of-its-kind Assumptionist/Oblate of the Assumption meeting of personnel from its secondary and post-secondary institutions. The congress will be held at Assumption College, an Assumptionist-sponsored university in Worcester, Massachusetts (USA), a short distance from Boston, from July 17-27, 2016.

Some 70 representatives from over 20 institutions on four continents will gather to compare notes, discuss common issues, and attempt to articulate a "charter of principles" to guide any academic institution inspired by the educational vision of their founder, Venerable Emmanuel d'Alzon. 

At the invitation of his friend Fr. Joseph Zhang, A.A., who is presently living in the Pavel House community in Brighton, Bishop Ignatius Wang visited the Assumptionist Center and celebrated a recent Sunday Liturgy.

Bishop Wang is an Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus of San Francisco where he was appointed an auxiliary by Pope Saint John Paul II in 2002. He was the first Catholic Bishop of Chinese Ancestry and of Asian background to be appointed to the U.S.

Bishop Wang came to this country in 1974 and was a parochial vicar in several parishes in the Archdiocese. In 1982 he was appointed pastor of St. Francis of Assisi parish in San Francisco where he was the first Chinese pastor. In 1989 he was made a Monsignor and served in the Archdiocesan Tribunal and as Coordinator of the Chinese Apostolate.

Dinner concert for a cause

February 6, 2016

Dear Friends,

Greetings of Peace and Joy this Christmas season! We, the Augustinians of the Assumption (Assumptionists) are happy to invite you to a Dinner-Concert for a Cause on February 6, 2016.

To make this event possible, may we invite you to be one of our sponsors by buying a ticket for the dinner-concert and/or by contributing to one of our projects for 2016 (see attached flyer).

We are so blessed to have you as our friend. May your generosity to bring abundant blessings to you and to your family/organization.

Have a blessed Christmas and a happy New Year!

Thank you so much.

Fr. Bernard Holzer, A.A.
Superior of the Philippine Delegation