ith
the approval of the Holy See, the Diocese of Richmond VA formally has opened the
cause for possible canonization of a former diocesan seminarian who died in 1920
at age 22, while enrolled at the North American College in Rome for theology
studies.
Richmond
Bishop Walter Sullivan, after consultation with other bishops of the Baltimore
province, has signed a Jan. 24 decree that declares Francis Joseph Parater III
“a servant of God,” and establishes a tribunal “to examine the reputation
for sanctity and heroic virtues of Servan of God Frank Parater, seminarian.”
Born Oct. 10, 1897, in Richmond, Parater was educated in Catholic schools.
While a student at Belmont Abbey college in North Carolina, he decided to
study for the diocesan priesthood. Richmond
Bishop Denis O’Connell sent him to the North American College.
Bishop Sullivan told the Catholic Virginian, Richmond’s diocesan newspaper, that he chose to begin the canonization process for Parater after becoming more familiar with his life through writings turned over by his family members when the diocesan archives were organized.“With the development of our archives, I became much more aware of the Frank Parater story, and I was very impressed with this outstanding person” the bishop said.
He cited the seminarian’s act of oblation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which he wrote and then sealed, to be opened only upon his death. The seminarian died of rheumatic fever on Fe. 7, 1920, 11 days after becoming ill. The act of oblation was discovered by a fellow Richmond seminarian, Frank Byrne, who went through Parater’s effect and found the sealed and marked envelop.That seminarian became Msgr. Frank Byrne who died in 1994, more than 74 years later.
In
the oblation, Parater wrote: “I have nothing to leave or give but my life and
this I have consecrated to the Sacred Heart to be used as he wills.
I have offered my all for the conversion of non-Catholics in Virginia.
This
is what I live for and in case of death what I die for…
Since my childhood, I have wanted to die for God and my neighbor.
Shall I have this grace?I
do not know, but if I go on living, I shall live for this same purpose; every
action of my life here is offered to God for the spread and success of the
Catholic Church in Virginia…I
shall be of more service to my diocese in heaven than I can ever be on earth.”
According to Fr. Scoot Duarte, appointed to gather pertinent information,
Parater’s act of oblation caught the attention of Pope Benedict XV who had it
published in L’Osservatore Romano, the Vatican Newspaper, and Pope Pius XI,
who “had it copied for his own edification.” (CNS)
For the 17th Youth Day, to be held in Toronto, Canada, on July 27-29, this summer, in which he will preside, John Paul II issued a call to young people which says in part:
“In this secularized age, when many of our contemporaries think and act as if God did not exist or are attracted to irrational forces of religion, it is you, dear young people , who must show that faith is a personal decision which involves your whole life.Let the Gospel be the measure and guide of life’s decisions and plans! Then you will be missionaries in all that you do and say, and wherever you work and live, you will be signs of God’s love, credible witnesses to the loving presence of Jesus Christ.
Our personal encounter with Christ bathes life in new light, sets us on the righ path, and send us out to be his witnesses. In the Church’s history, many young saints became models of life which the Church has held up for imitation by all. Let us remember only a few of them. Agness of Rome, Andrew of Phu Yen, Pedro Calungsod, Josephine Bakita, Therese of Lisieux, Per Giorgio Frassati, Marcel Callo, Castello Aleu or again Kateri Tekakwitha, the young Iroquois called ‘The Lily of the Mohawks.” And we may now add Frank Parater of Richmond, VA.
Yes, now is the time for mission! You who are young, don’t you long for a full and more meaningful life?Is Christ calling you?…Have hope and be confident.
Christ doesn’t necessarily call the qualified,
but he does qualify the called.
(From Xaverian Mission Newsletter)