October 2023 | Issue 2

Our Lady asking St. Dominic and his Order to propagate the Holy Rosary

Altar front in Jacobin church in Toulouse. Photo by Fr. Lawrence Lew, OP

CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Welcome!

Preparing for the Month of the Holy Rosary

October is traditionally dedicated to the Holy Rosary which makes this coming month especially important to members of the Father John Harvey Guild. We're reminded of our pledge to pray one Hail Mary daily for the opening of Father's cause for beatification and canonization, and we can use this time of special devotion as an opportunity to increase supplications for our particular intentions. For example, we might consider praying an extra Hail Mary for the intentions of the Guild first thing in the morning, before we go to sleep at night, or whenever we think of it during the course of the day. We might even devote a full decade of the Rosary for the success of the Guild's mission!

October 7th, the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, will also be the two-year anniversary of the launching of the Father Harvey website which is visited by readers in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America, and South America. Earlier this year, the site began providing a platform for the newly created Father John Harvey Guild and has been instrumental in helping others to learn more about our mission. As this feast was once known as the Feast of Our Lady of Victory, a title we continue to use for our Blessed Mother, let us especially ask Our Lady of Victory to intercede on our behalf so that many more around the world will come to know about Father Harvey's life and ministry through our website, social media, prayer cards, and personal witness.

Finally, we encourage Guild members to especially remember the Church's shepherds in their Rosary intentions this October. Those of us who knew Father Harvey know that he exemplified true spiritual fatherhood by teaching sound doctrine and providing compassionate and sensitive pastoral outreach. He didn't compromise on presenting the full Truth, nor did he present the Truth without also providing practical help and sacramental support for living out the Church's moral teachings. May Father Harvey's gentle, courageous, and charitable example be an inspiration to all our Bishops.

Our Lady of the Rosary, Our Lady of Victory,

Please pray for us!

Sincerely in Christ,

The Father John Harvey Guild Team

Featured Article: The Memory of Fr. John Harvey, OSFS and the Future of the Courage & EnCourage Apostolate by Cardinal Raymond Burke
Featured Memory: Good and Faithful Servant by Marianne Lilly Sierocinski
A Profile in Courage - Watch the Documentary about Father Harvey!
Guild Pages Now in Español!
Free Guild Display for Parishes & Event Tables
Quick Access Links: Submit a Testimony/Prayer Cards/Donations
Words of Encouragement: Father Philip G. Bochanksi

Featured Article: The Memory of Fr. John Harvey, OSFS and the Future of the Courage & EnCourage Apostolate

by Cardinal Raymond Burke

The faithful and enduring love of Father Harvey for God and his neighbour, in as much as it was a participation in the love of our Lord - God the Son Incarnate - is not passing but remains a living reality in the Church, in the Communion of Saints.

Featured Memory: Good and Faithful Servant

by Marianne Lilly Sierocinski

Father John's Mother, Margaret Harkins Harvey, and my Grandfather, John Harkins, were brother and sister and both born in Ireland, along with their sister, Mary. All three of them came to the U.S. in their youth. FatherJohn was a newly ordained priest when he married my parents in November 1949.

A Profile in Courage -

Watch the Documentary about Father Harvey!

This documentary about Fr. Harvey, produced by Metanoia Pictures at the request of the Courage apostolate, was originally screened at Fr. Harvey’s 90th birthday in 2008, and was released to the public in 2009. It has since aired several times over the years on EWTN, even as recently as earlier this month!

The Guild is currently looking into the possibility of producing an updated version of this documentary by adding some of the original unused footage and/or including new interviews with those who have been touched by Father's life and ministry. Please keep this project in your prayers!

In the meantime, you may watch the original version of A Profile in Courage free and in its entirety on the Father John Harvey website or on Vimeo.

Watch the Film

Guild Pages Now in Español!

We've recently begun translating sections of the Father Harvey website into Spanish. At present, the following pages are now available in Español:

La Cofradía del padre John Harvey

(The Father John Harvey Guild)

Únete a la cofradía

(Join the Guild)

Solicita estampitas gratis

(Order Free Prayer Cards)

Apoya esta causa

(Support the Cause)

Please share these pages with your Spanish-speaking friends and encourage them to join the Guild. Most importantly, please invite them to join us in praying for the opening of Father Harvey's cause! Our free prayer cards are available in Spanish.

Free Guild Display for Parishes and Event Tables

Guild display at the 2023 Courage Conference

Photo by Lorena Tabares

Thanks to our dear friends at Courage, we had the opportunity to present our first Guild display table, which included a running video of the Father Harvey documentary A Profile in Courage, at this year's Courage Conference at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas. For a time, the relics of St. Charles Lwanga and Matthias Malumba, St. Paul, and St. Mary Magdalene were also placed on the display table.

The good folks at Courage also made two announcements at their conference, encouraging people to sign-up for the Father John Harvey Guild. This led to over 70 new Guild members!

If you would like to promote the Father John Harvey Guild at your parish, conference, or retreat, we can provide you with two large foam poster boards (24" X 36", pictured above) with easels, for use during your promotion. We can also provide you with key points to mention when making an announcement about the Guild, as well as free prayer cards for distribution to parish members or conference/retreat attendees.

Please contact us and let us know what type of promotion you have in mind. Together we can work out the details and make it happen!

Quick Links

Submit a Testimony

Request Free Prayer Cards

Make a Donation

Words of Encouragement

"I only had a chance to meet Father Harvey in person once, when I was a seminarian. If I knew then what I know now, I would certainly have spent a lot more time with him! But I have met so many people whose lives he touched that it feels like I know him well, and his priestly life and ministry is an inspiration for me. I am delighted to think that through the Guild, many more people will have the chance to encounter him like I have, through the stories of those who knew him best."

Rev. Philip G. Bochanski

Moderator of the Curia and Vicar General

Archdiocese of Philadelphia

Former Executive Director, Courage International (2017-2023)