THE PERFECT CHRISTMAS GIFT
“As I am reading your wonderful book, I am thinking about my Tia Lucy, my Mom’s sister and only living sibling of 7 children, who lived in San José for many years and went to the Five Wounds Church. She was married there also. My Tia Lucy is 90 years old now and is still very alert and healthy. I know she would love to read your book.” wrote a book reader, Diane from Stanislaus County, California.
This is a common reaction from hundreds of readers who have purchased the Five Wounds Portuguese National Parish’s centennial book,A Vestibule to Heaven. Authored by Miguel Valle Ávila, edited by Lúcia Soares, and designed by Roberto Ávila, the book was printed locally by Spectrum Lithograph, a Bay Area award-winning Portuguese-American owned business and published by the Portuguese Heritage Publications of California. The deluxe, hardbound edition contains 314 color photographs across 192 pages. The book includes a historical perspective of San José at the turn of the 20th century, the 1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition and its relationship to Five Wounds Church, and the parish history between 1914 and 2014. The book is further embellished by photos of the church and “A Day in the Life of the Parish” with photos of events that bring the parish to life.
“Uma Entrada para o Céu” (An Entrance to Heaven) was columnist and poet José Raposo’s title for his biweekly column. Raposo stated that “I can affirm that this book should be proudly displayed in the homes of any Portuguese or his/her descendants and there should be no home without it.”A Vestibule to Heaven is available for sale from the Five Wounds Portuguese National Parish office (www.FiveWoundsChurch.org) and online at www.PortugueseBooks.org. All proceeds benefit the Five Wounds Portuguese National Parish.
Five Wounds Church Welcomes “Power of the Spirit” Book
The Five Wounds Parish of San Jose and Portuguese Heritage Publications of California, invite the San Jose community to participate in a brief presentation of the book Power of the Spirit – A Portuguese Journey of Building Faith and Churches in California, Saturday April 27, at the 6pm mass and on Sunday April 28, at the 8am, 10:30am and 5:30pm masses. Representatives from Portuguese Heritage Publications will be on hand to answer your questions, they will also have books available for sale for those interested – A great Mother’s Day gift indeed!
It took over 4 years to compile the history of the many churches the Portuguese built throughout California, from Immaculate Conception in Hawkinsville, to Saint Agnes, in San Diego, as well as the many churches in which they played a major role in its construction and parish leadership. The Power of the Spirit project involved 3 authors and over 30 volunteer researchers and contributors.
In addition to the history of these 40 churches, the book includes short biographies of over 110 members of the Portuguese-American clergy who guided the spiritual lives of our communities for the last 150 years.
This is a book that you will forever be proud to own and gladly share with your family and friends, for it encapsulates 150 years of the history of our forefathers’ ”Powerful Spirit”.
For more information about Portuguese Heritage Publications of California and more details about the book Power of the Spirit, please visit: www.PortugueseBooks.Org, and “Like Us” on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PortugueseHeritagePublications
Portuguese Heritage Publications of California, Inc. is a non-profit organization, created to research, preserve and disseminate vanishing memories and current relevant events about the Portuguese presence in California, for educational purposes.