A Jesuit monk and a Cellite, 1821, color engraving.

Heavenly Father, 

We thank you for the restful weekend you have given us. We have been able to recharge ourselves physically and spiritually so that we can face the challenges of the week ahead with strength and peace. We ask you to bless each day of the coming week. Give us strength for our service and work, patience in the face of difficulties, and wisdom to make the right decisions. Help us to treat our fellow human beings with love and mercy, and to seek your will in all our actions. Protect us from evil and guide us in Your light. Be with us in every moment and help us to give thanks for Your blessings at the end of the week with grateful hearts.

Amen.

This watercolor depicting a Cellite was part of a collection of similar religious drawings, probably of Dutch origin, created in a monastery by monks or nuns around 1920.

These prints are from R.P. Helyot's book, Histoire des Ordres Religieux et Militaires (History of Religious and Military Orders), first published in Paris in 1714. The author made extensive travels throughout Europe, which provided him with ample opportunity to gather material for his work on religious and military orders, as well as to discuss the history of male and female congregations up to his own time. He presents their origins, growth, decline, liquidation, or dissolution, supplementing the text with biographies of the founders and illustrations of various monastic habits. Thus, our order can also be found in the book, together with our predecessors, the Cellites.

Dear God,

As we begin this new week, we thank you for the gift of a fresh start, for new opportunities, and for the blessings that surround us. We are grateful for the rest and renewal of the weekend, and we ask for your guidance and strength as we face the days ahead. Help us to be mindful of your presence throughout the week, and to see you in the people and situations we encounter. Grant us wisdom to make good choices, to work with diligence, and to treat others with kindness and compassion. Give us the courage to overcome challenges and the resilience to learn from our mistakes. Fill us with your peace and help us to trust in your plan for our lives. We pray for those who are struggling, for those who are in need, and for those who are working to make a difference in the world. May we be instruments of your love and grace. We offer this prayer in your name.

Amen.

Pictures from the past - Visit to the Holy Spirit Church in Győr with Brother Barry - 2024 July

On May 25, 1985 (before the fall of communism), thanks to the voluntary work of hundreds of people, the construction of the church dedicated to the Holy Spirit began in the new part of Győr. The church was consecrated on 6 June 1987 with the personal blessing of Pope John Paul II, together with the Apor Vilmos (Hungarian martyr bishop, beatified, archpastor of the diocese of Győr) Catholic School Centre and the St. Anna's Elderly Home in Győrújbarát. 

 

On August 21, 1879, in the small village of Knock in Northern Ireland, an apparition occurred when the Virgin Mary, St. Joseph and St. John the Evangelist appeared at the village church. In the more than 100 years since then, Knock has become the most visited pilgrimage site in Europe, along with Fatima and Lourdes, with one and a half million pilgrims visiting every year.

For more information about the apparition in Knock:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knock_Shrine

A livestream of the Masses is also available at:
https://www.knockshrine.ie/watch-live/

If you are looking for accommodation in Knock at the Alexian Brothers click here.

 

 

Knock Museum

Images from the museum exhibition on the life of Knock village and its transformation into an international sanctuary.

https://www.knockshrine.ie/key-places-to-visit/knock-museum/ 

This beautiful painting is located in the Parish Church of St. John the Baptist in Knock, which has been operating since 1828. Interestingly, the parish church (on the left) and the Basilica of Our Lady (on the right), completed in 1976 and visited by Pope John Paul II in 1979, can be seen in the background of the scene "John baptizes Jesus."

 

Saint Alexius, man of God, you are our support, our model and our patron as we carry out our ministry to the sick, the poor and the elderly. Ask our Lord to send sufficient vocations to our Congregation so that we may continue our legacy of service among those in need. Amen.

At the Remembrance Garden, located near the Knock Basilica, pilgrims can commemorate their loved ones in the tranquillity of the beautiful flower garden.

Prayer for the Alexian Order

Merciful and faithful God,

we give thanks to You for the Alexian Brothers, who for eight hundred years have been carrying the signs of Your love to the elderly, the sick, and those marginalized by society. Bless each member of their order, give them physical and spiritual strength, perseverance, and peace in their service. Strengthen all those who help them with their work, prayers, and sacrifices, so that together they may be instruments of hope and mercy. Grant, Lord, that the ministry begun eight centuries ago may remain a living source today and continue to reach out in the future to those who are most in need of love and the protection of human dignity. Send new vocations to their communities: young people with open hearts and mature souls who hear your call and joyfully offer their lives to the service of the suffering and abandoned.

Mary, Healer of the Sick, and all the saints who have walked the path of mercy, intercede for them, that their lives may be a witness to the world.

Amen.

Statue of Saint Alexius with a snow cap

Hungary is experiencing its snowiest winter in 15 years. We have selected photos of snowy scenes from the Alexian monastery and St. Elizabeth Elderly Home in Győrújbarát.

 

Heavenly Father,

At the beginning of this new year, we humbly ask You to bless the Alexian Brothers. For eight centuries, they have served those in need, spreading love and hope throughout the world. We ask You to give them the strength and wisdom to continue their mission faithfully and effectively. Bless them with good health and spiritual strength so that they may tirelessly serve the elderly, the sick, the poor, and all those in need. Give them perseverance in difficulties and guide them on the right path. Help the order to grow and develop so that the message of love and healing can reach even more people. Give them new vocations and strengthen existing communities. We ask you to bless their service and guide them in your light, so that they may continue to carry on the legacy of St. Alexius in a worthy manner in the future.

Amen.