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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA ADVISORY
Catholic PRWire

WASHINGTON, DC, OCTOBER 21, 2007 - Over 400 young adult Catholics -- including many brothers and sisters from area religious orders -- are expected to join the friars of the Dominican House of Studies for their annual Vigil of All Saints:

Wednesday, October 31st
7:30 p.m.
The Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception
at the Dominican House of Studies
487 Michigan Ave., NE
Washington, DC 20017
Reception to Follow

Held in the Gothic chapel of the Dominican House of Studies, this evocative service commemorates the eve before the Christian feast of All Saints (attested to by Church Fathers as early as the Fourth century). It is a celebration of all Christian saints, known and unknown, and is the original source for what has become Hallow'een.

The evening will begin with readings from the lives of the saints and a homily by Br. Ignatius Schweitzer, O.P. Following this, the Dominican friars will lead the singing of the ancient liturgy of Compline, the night prayer of the Church. The service will conclude at approximately 8:30 p.m. with a candle-lit procession to the friars' reliquary while a litany is sung in honor of the saints. Following the vigil, the friars will host a reception in their monastic "refectory" or dining room.

The current Vigil was brought to Washington by a group of young Dominicans in 1998. It immediately began to draw large numbers of college-aged and young adult Catholics, and has become the most popular event of the year at the Dominican House.

Among those expected to attend are over 40 religious brothers and sisters from the Missionaries of Charity (Blessed Mother Teresa's order), the Sisters of the Incarnate Word, Capuchins, Paulists, and Franciscans.

Very Rev. Steven C. Boguslawski, President of the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception, said, "The popularity of this event among the young is a testament to the fact that these holy men and women from ages past continue to have the power to captivate. These saints, long removed from the world, continue to draw us to God."

The Dominican House of Studies is among the largest, healthiest, and youngest houses of male religious in the United States; it is home to 65 Dominican friars – more than half of whom are in their 20s and 30s. In addition, the Dominican Province of St. Joseph, the U.S. Dominican Province of which the Dominican House is a part, recently received 15 new friars (or “novices”), its largest novitiate class in 32 years.

Heir to a tradition of preaching that dates back to the founding of the Dominican Order in 1216, the Dominican House of Studies was originally established in 1834. In 1941, the Vatican bestowed upon it the status of a "Pontifical Faculty", making it one of the few academic institutions in the United States having received such an honor. Today, it provides a theological education for students pursuing graduate theological degrees, including Dominican friars preparing for the priesthood, other Catholic seminarians, and lay men and women.

Last year, the PBS television program Religion and Ethics NewsWeekly devoted a segment to the Vigil of All Saints. In addition, the event has been featured in articles from the Washington Times and the National Catholic Register.

Further information on the Dominican House of Studies is available at www.DominicanStudents.org and www.dhs.. The Eastern U.S. Province of Dominicans also hosts websites at www.op-stjoseph.org and a vocations blog at www.dominicanfriars.org.

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