Calling all interested men and boys to join the Fraternal Society of St John the Apostle in celebrating the third of four events during the liturgical year for a night of spiritual enrichment, fellowship, networking, Italian food catered by Felice's of Clearwater, and libations as we celebrate the Feast of Saint Januarius better known as San Gennaro!
Vespers, Benediction, and Confession will be offered beginning at 6pm.
The dinner and talk will begin at the conclusion of Benediction and Confession.
Our night concludes with a bonfire rosary, cigars, dessert, and beverages.
Our Presenting Speaker is Fr. Richard Gennaro Cipolla. Fr. Richard Cipolla is a Catholic priest, retired pastor of St. Mary’s Church, in Norwalk, CT. He holds a D. Phil from Oxford University and was for many years Chair of the Classics Department at the Brunswick School. His writings have been featured in Rorate Caeli, 1P5, Crisis Magazine, the Wall Street Journal, the Catholic Herald, and The Catholic Thing among many other sites.
San Gennaro, the Bishop of Naples (or Benevento) was beheaded, with his Companions, at Pozzuoli in A.D. 305 by Diocletian for refusing to worship pagan idols. Ever since at least A.D. 1389, his dried blood, a solid mass inside a silver reliquary in the Cappella del Tesoro (Chapel of the Treasure) of the 13th c. Naples Cathedral (the "Duomo"), liquifies, and sometimes even "boils" or froths.
His blood is kept in two vials inside the reliquary which is topped by a crown and a cross. When the Bishop takes the vial to the Altar that holds the Saint's head, the people, who gather by the thousands, pray that the blood becomes liquid once again. If the miracle takes place, the officiant proclaims, "Il miracolo é fatto!" and a man waves a white handkerchief to visually signal to the crowds. Then a Te Deum is sung and the reliquary is taken to the altar rail so the faithful can kiss the vial. If the miracle doesn't take place, disaster is imminent, it is believed.
The Catholic Encyclopedia informs us that
In 1902 Professor Sperindeo was allowed to pass a ray of light through the upper part of the phial during liquefaction and examine this beam spectroscopically. The experiment yielded the distinctive lines of the spectrum of blood...
...Most remarkable of all, the apparent variation in the volume of the relic led in 1902 and 1904 to a series of experiments in the course of which the whole reliquary was weighed in a very accurate balance. It was found that the weight was not constant any more than the volume, and that the weight of the reliquary when the blood filled the whole cavity of the phial exceeded, by 26 grams, the weight when the phial seemed but half full.
This miracle takes place three times a year: on the first Saturday before the first Sunday of May, on his Feast, and on December 16.
Because San Gennaro is the Patron Saint of Napoli, he is dear to the Southern Italian people, and in New York City, where there's a large Italian American population, there's a huge celebration in his honor in Little Italy.
The Fraternal Society of St. John the Apostle
MISSION
To inspire men of all vocations to live liturgically in their personal and professional lives by providing quarterly events centered around Adoration, Confession, fellowship, tradition, and spiritual enrichment.
VISION
To develop stronger male bonds through virtuous leisure.
To create opportunities for personal growth and professional networking.
To invite men from outside Epiphany Catholic Church to become more familiar with the Traditions of the Church and the men of our Parish.
***All proceeds will benefit the apostolate of The Fraternal Society of St John the Apostle and Epiphany Catholic Church in Tampa, FL.***
