ASTORIA — There’s a new sacred space inside Immaculate Conception Church where parishioners can find inspiration — a chapel dedicated to saints of the 20th and 21st centuries.
Immaculate Conception’s pastor, Msgr. Fernando Ferrarese, said the chapel is meant to be a call to sanctity in our modern world and to show, especially to young adults, that they too can become a saint.
“That’s why there is this sign here, ‘You’re turn now,’ ” Msgr. Ferrarese said as he pointed to the words at the chapel’s exit. “This is more than lighting a candle to the memory of saints; it’s learning their lives and putting what you’ve learned into effect.
“We are hoping that everybody strives to be a saint.”
Another sign placed near a statue of Mother Teresa of Calcutta reads, “The only real tragedy in life is not to become a Saint.”
“This quote has always been really important to me because we all want to be in heaven with the Lord, so sanctity is very important,” Msgr. Ferrarese said.
On Sept. 1, Immaculate Conception unveiled its “Chapel of Today’s Saints,” a sanctuary dedicated to influential holy men and women of the 20th and 21st centuries.
For those who may never get to walk the streets of Assisi or visit the Vatican, this chapel serves as a local pilgrimage site.
Among some of the featured saints are St. Teresa of Calcutta, patron saint of World Youth Day; St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, patron saint of immigrants; Pope St. John Paul II, patron of youth, families, and his native country Poland; St. Faustina Kowalska, patron saint of Divine Mercy; Blessed Michael J. McGivney, founder of the Knights of Columbus; St. Gianna Beretta Molla, patron saint of mothers, physicians and unborn children, newly canonized St. Pier Giorgio Frassati, patron of young adults; and of course, St. Carlo Acutis, the Church’s first digital-age saint who used the internet to promote devotion to the Eucharist.
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Although Blessed Father McGivney has not yet been canonized, the statue was placed in the chapel at the request of the Knights of Columbus, who remain hopeful in his eventual sainthood.
As Msgr. Ferrarese gazed upon the statue of St. Carlo Acutis, he reflected on how excited the students of Immaculate Conception Catholic Academy are to have a saint they can relate to.
“We have these wonderful saints, but they are dressed in their habits and cassocks, and the kids can’t relate to that. But Carlos there, with a backpack, rosary, and a cellphone — you can relate to that,” he said. “The idea of this chapel is to show kids and everybody that you don’t have to be a certain mold to be a saint. You use their example.”
Msgr. Ferrarese said he will formally bless the chapel on All Saints’ Day on Nov. 1, but the chapel’s blessings have already multiplied with the number of visitors it has received thus far.
“We can’t have a big crowd in here, so I plan to do it in between Masses and invite people who are here to come to the blessing,” he said. “I also plan to bring classes here one at a time and talk to them about the saints and give them examples, especially Carlo.”
Parishioner Keila Bisono called the new chapel “stunning,” adding that she was excited to have the new addition in her parish.
“We review and follow the saints,” she said. “My daughter is named after St. Gianna, which is one of the saints that’s there. So, it’s meaningful for us to see she has her saint there, where we can pray for her intercession.”
