Happy 110th Birthday, Frank!
Today is the 110th Birthday of the Servant of God Francis Joseph Parater….whom I lovingly refer to as “Frank.” For those of you who recently started reading my blog, I have a HUUUUGGGGE devotion to Frank.Here is my post from his Feast Day this past February
This is my post from the year before, which happens to be one of my personal favorite posts.
I attribute my coming back to the Church a few years ago to Frank’s intercession. In fact, if God ever blesses me with children some day I plan on naming my first born son “Francis Joseph Parater.” Had I become a nun, I would have wanted my name to be Sister Francis Joseph of the Sacred Heart….nonetheless, Poor Clares can’t choose their own names although I believe the postulants can “drop hints.”
Since Frank’s Feast Day last February, I have read most of Therese’s Story of a Soul. Given that Frank’s own spirituality greatly resembled that of Therese, it is no wonder that Story of a Soul was one of his favorite books. The stories of their lives are eerily similar, too. Both Frank and Therese were very attached to their loving families, but both made the courageous choice to ultimately leave their homes in favor of God’s call. Both saints struggled with that choice- Therese felt almost guilty about leaving her ill father, and Frank was very sad to leave his physically weak mother. However, Frank and Therese both turned to Our Lord for their strength in times of trouble….right until the very end of their lives.
The most striking similarity between Frank and Therese are their courageous early deaths. Both died of very painful illnesses, which took its toll on them physically, mentally, and spiritually. In spite of all this, Frank and Therese vowed to offer up their great suffering for the souls of others. They even promised to give themselves to others in heaven; Therese remarked “I will spend my time in heaven doing good on earth,” and Frank’s last testament states “I shall not leave my dear ones. I will always be near them and be able to help them more than I can here below. I shall be of more service to my diocese in heaven than I could ever be on earth.”
Indeed, both saints have proven to be powerful and loving intercessors, which is a testament that they have both lived up to their earthly promises to help others while they are in heaven.
Happy Birthday, Frank! Thank you, Therese! I love you both!
posted by Chiara | 12:00 AM
2 Comments:
Chiara,
I created a website to increase the use of novenas as a form of group prayer. For a variety of reasons, I dedicated it to Frank Parater.
Please let me know what you think.
www.groupnovena.org
Dear Chiara
I started to include the name of Fr. Frank with other of my favorite saints in my daily prayers to Jesus and Mary. Last night going to St. Michael's church in Annandale I have picked up a more profound copy ( Servant of God, Francis J. Parater )about this saintly priest and learned about his writing from searching the internet. It's very touching I almost cry reading his first paragraph in the Act of Oblation consegrating his life to The Sacred Heart. I have consecrated myself to pray to the Sacred Heart but nothing as comparing to Parater's love to this devotion. Thank you for your sharing thoughts in your website and from now I will recite the Litany of The Sacred Heart as Fr Parater did.
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