Portland, Oregon welcomes the Lord Jesus Christ, truly present in the Holy Eucharist. On the Feast of Corpus Christi, over 5,000 Catholics joined Archbishop Alexander Sample, Bishop Peter Smith, and more than 50 priests and deacons in honoring and adoring the Lord Jesus Christ through the streets of Portland, publicly proclaiming the Church’s perennial faith in His Real Presence.

Please join us in wishing Archbishop Alexander Sample a happy birthday! Today we give thanks to God for the gift of his life, his faithful leadership, and pastoral care of our local Catholic Church. Please offer a prayer today for our dear Archbishop’s intentions!

I encourage you to carry forward the mission of evangelization with enthusiasm. Be bridges, so that many may encounter Jesus. Be a fraternal community that comes together and shares life, projects, dreams and hopes, especially with those most in need. Be a community of prayer that maintains an ongoing dialogue with the Lord as a friend speaks to a friend (Jn 15:15). Christ is counting on all of you! Christ is counting on you! #ApostolicJourney #Uruguay vatican.va/content/leo-xiv/e…

Fr. Nicholas Martell, parochial vicar of St. Mary’s Cathedral in Portland, encourages all Roman Catholics to learn the ordinary prayers of the Mass in Latin, including the Gloria, Sanctus and Agnus Dei, and to become familiar with Gregorian chant, which the Second Vatican Council said should be given “pride of place” in the liturgy. He reiterates that Latin is a treasured part of the Church’s patrimony, uniting Catholics across cultures and backgrounds.

Our Office of Divine Worship explains why the faithful should refrain from extending their hands during the Our Father at Mass: "Further, the Second Vatican Council’s Constitution on Sacred Liturgy, Sacrosanctum Concilium, states that “no other person, even if he be a priest, may add, remove, or change anything in the liturgy on his own authority.” (SC 22.3) Since the GIRM is very specific that the priest is instructed by the GIRM (152) to extend his hands when he prays the Lord’s Prayer, for the deacons or the laity to extend their hands would be adding to the liturgy. Therefore, the practice of the lay faithful extending their hands (or holding hands) during the Our Father should not be done." Read more: archdpdx.org/news/divine-wor…

RT @ArchbishpSample:

Who should use the orans posture at Mass? What is the history of papal blessings? And what does the Church teach about Christ’s Real Presence in the Eucharist? The November edition of our Divine Worship Newsletter explores these questions and more, with articles on the Angelus, the centennial and sacred art of St. Mary’s Cathedral, and Eamon Duffy’s 'The Stripping of the Altars'. Published by our Office of Divine Worship, this newsletter is an important resource for clergy, parish staff, and all Catholics seeking a deeper understanding of the Church’s sacred liturgy and traditions. 📖 Read the full November issue: files.ecatholic.com/12494/do…

“The Council attributes great value to Gregorian chant, without excluding other genres of sacred music from the celebration.” - Pope Leo XIV, August 19, 2026 Pope Leo’s words recall the Second Vatican Council’s teaching in Sacrosanctum Concilium: Gregorian chant should be given “pride of place” in liturgical services (116), and the faithful should be able to sing or say in Latin the parts of the Mass Ordinary that belong to them (54). We see the beauty of that shared inheritance here in the Archdiocese of Portland. Our Catholic community is incredibly diverse: nearly half our archdiocese is Hispanic, and our largest parish is a Vietnamese community. Yet at ordinations, the Chrism Mass and Corpus Christi at our Cathedral, Catholics from across the archdiocese join in the same Latin prayers and chants. Centuries of worship in Latin have given the Catholic Church one of the world’s great musical treasures. We should bring that treasure more fully into our parish life. Learn the Gloria, Sanctus and Agnus Dei in Latin; learn the chants the Church has handed down. When we sing them together, we take part in the Church’s prayer across generations and cultures.

On the Solemnity of All Saints, Archbishop Sample asks what holds us back from becoming saints. His answer: our fear of giving everything to God. We were not made for lukewarmness, but for greatness, with our eyes fixed on eternal life.

Ascend, formerly the Catholic Schools Endowment Foundation, helps hundreds of students attend and remain in Catholic schools across the Archdiocese of Portland by providing tuition assistance to families who need it. For this work, Ascend took first place in its category in this year’s Portland Business Journal Corporate Philanthropy Awards. Congratulations to Ascend and thank you for your work! Read more: archdpdx.org/news/ascend-tak…

The Archdiocese invites the faithful and the wider community to experience the Church’s rich musical heritage as Portland’s Cantores in Ecclesia performs Gabriel Fauré’s Requiem. The adult and youth choirs will be accompanied by chamber orchestra under the direction of Blake Applegate. Founded in Portland in 1983, Cantores in Ecclesia is dedicated to preserving Gregorian chant and sacred polyphony in Catholic worship. The ensemble presents sacred concerts in Portland and abroad, earning three gold medals at the International Palestrina Competition in Rome. Gabriel Fauré began composing his Requiem while serving as choirmaster at Paris’s Church of the Madeleine. First performed at a funeral in 1888, it has become one of the most beloved works of sacred choral music, admired for its gentle, consoling character and passages such as Pie Jesu and In Paradisum. The concert is dedicated to Cantores’ friends and supporters who have died during the choir’s more than four decades of history. 📅 Sunday, November 8 | 🕓 4:00 PM | 📍 St. Mary’s Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception Learn more or purchase tickets: events.ticketleap.com/ticket…

Portland Archbishop Lays Out Road Map for Spiritual Renewal A new pastoral letter from Archbishop Alexander Sample provides concrete suggestions every Catholic can follow to take on the work of evangelization.⤵️ ncregister.com/news/archbish…

Have parts of the Church lost sight of our mission to proclaim Christ and make disciples? Archbishop Alexander Sample challenges parishes to examine their priorities, identifying three essential marks of a parish committed to mission: reverent liturgy, sound faith formation and care for the poor. He reflects on signs of Catholic revival in Western Oregon, why renewal begins with personal conversion and prayer, and how priestly holiness shapes parish life. He also emphasizes the unique responsibility of lay Catholics to reach people their pastors may never encounter. His “dream” is to see the day “when every Catholic in this Archdiocese wakes up every morning wondering how they can witness to Jesus Christ today and help bring others to him.” Watch on YouTube: youtube.com/watch?v=ZzygI3Nn…