Father Frank Pavone, director of Priests For Life, will help celebrate the first anniversary of St. Gianna Beretta Molla Parish in Northfield on Saturday, April 30, by celebrating Mass and speaking at a buffet dinner afterward.
Priests for Life is a national pro-life organization whose goal is to proclaim the Gospel of Life to clergy, religious and the laity all over the country, encouraging them to become pro-life activists in their own communities.
St. Gianna Beretta Molla Parish, Northfield, brought together the parish communities of St. Bernadette Church in Northfield and St. Peter Church in Pleasantville in May 2010.
The parish’s namesake is a saint who was an Italian pediatrician, wife and mother, who refused an abortion and hysterectomy during her fourth pregnancy, even while knowing carrying the child endangered her life. Gianna Beretta Molla died in 1962 at the age of 39, shortly after giving birth to Gianna Emanuela. In 2004, she was canonized as a saint.
Noting the connection between his work and the life of St. Gianna, Father Pavone called her “a saint for the pro-life movement, who bears witness to the kind of sacrifice life deserves.”
Father Pavone will be the principal celebrant at the 4:30 p.m. Vigil Mass on Saturday, April 30, at the parish, and will be the guest speaker at the 6 p.m. BYOB buffet supper later that night.
The buffet will take place in the Family Memorial Center-Parish Hall behind the church. The cost is $20 per person which includes a buffet dinner, assorted desserts, and beverages. Reservations are required and limited. Tickets will not be sold at the door.
For further information, contact Mary Ann Marchetti at 609-641-8983, or 609-646-5611, or e-mail malkm319@gmail.com
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