Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre celebrates feast day in St. George with Bishop Oscar A. Solis

Friday, Nov. 26, 2021

Members of the Salt Lake Council of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem traveled to St. George to join local members during the last weekend of October to celebrate the feast of Our Lady Queen of Palestine, one of the four feast days of the order. The members accompanied Bishop Solis, also a member of the order, who was in St. George as the celebrant at several Masses that weekend, along with Fr. Dave Bittmenn, Fr. Kelechi Alozie, Fr. Glenn Dare and Deacon Dale Dillon. This year, the members of the Western Lieutenancy, which includes nine dioceses in the Western United States, focused on one of the many ministries in the Holy Land close to their hearts. The Saint Vincent Ain Karem home for children with special needs is run by the Daughters of Charity. The home is responsible for the care of some 60 children with physical and mental handicaps at a time, most of whom require 24/7 care. Most of the children cared for by the staff are unable to walk, speak or care for themselves in the most basic ways and most have a life expectancy of less than 24 years. The home welcomes all, regardless of race or religion. 

The Saint Vincent Ain Karem Special Needs Home is just one of the important projects that the Order of the Holy Sepulchre supports. Since the founding of the order over 900 years ago, members have dedicated themselves to personal sanctification, fidelity to the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church and to a deep love and support of the Christian community in the Holy Land. The Order of the Holy Sepulchre is the only Lay Institution of the Vatican State charged with supplying the needs of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. After several of the Masses at the St. George Church and the St. Paul Catholic Center in Hurricane, the members were on hand to speak with parishioners about the mission of the order and to answer questions. 

For information about the EOHSJ – Western Lieutenancy, visit https://www.eohsjwesternusa.org/about_eohsj/.

Raymond Dardano, KC*HS and Rolinda Dardano, DC*HS are the Co-Area Councilors for the Salt Lake Council of the EOHSJ Western Lieutenancy. Reach them at raymond.dardano@gmail.com and goneskiing05@gmail.com.