SHRINE OF BLESSED BASIL MOREAU
News
A new rector and a vice-rector at the Shrine
« After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit. » (Luke, 10:1)
Fr. John De Riso, csc, left the Shrine of Blessed Basil Moreau for a new mission for the Congregation of Holy-Cross in the United-States. The Shrine welcomed as new rector Fr. Paul-Elie Cadet, csc. Fr. Joseph Gonsalvez, csc, has been appointed vice-rector. Thank you, Fr. John, for all those years spent at the Shrine, and welcome, Fr. Paul-Elie and Fr. Joseph!
A bell rings out at the Shrine!
On Sunday, June 30, the Christian community at Our Lady of Holy Cross church (Le Mans) celebrated the blessing and dedication of a bell recently installed in the church loft.
Made in 1866 by the famed Bollée bell factory, the bell, from the Marianite clinic in Précigné, was a gift to the shrine from the Marianites of Holy Cross. In keeping with Christian tradition, the bell was given a name, as well as a godfather and godmother.
It was Fr. John De Riso, csc, pastor and rector, who chose the name “Louise” in honor of Louise (Pioger) Moreau, mother of Blessed Basil Moreau. It was Louise who, with her husband, Louis, gave young Basil and his brothers and sisters the example of a life of prayer and of virtue, and a profound devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Serving as godfather: Monsieur Jean-Paul Joos, devoted parishioner and friend of the religious family of Holy Cross. Serving as godmother: Sister Jacqueline Brechotte, msc, Marianite of Holy Cross and archivist for the Marianite sisters.
Fr. John is grateful to Sr. Ann Lacour, msc and to Sr. Thérèse Poupard, msc for the gift of the bell, as well as to the donors (both French and American) who contributed generously to its installation.
New tabernacle
On Sunday, June 23, Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, 22 children received their first Holy Communion at the Shrine of Blessed Basil Moreau. It was also the occasion for Fr. John De Riso, csc, pastor and rector, to bless the shrine’s new tabernacle. Like the church itself, the tabernacle is neo-gothic in style. It also echoes the architecture of the ciborium (baldacchino) above it.
The new tabernacle, as well as the beautifully carved stone table on which it rests, was made possible thanks to the generosity of parishioners of Sainte-Croix and of friends of the Shrine.
As Fr. John said at the moment of blessing, may the faithful who visit the Blessed Sacrament know the joy of Moses, with whom, in the tent of meeting, the Lord spoke face to face, as a person speaks to a friend. (Exodus 33)
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