Mission Statement:

The Legion of Mary is a worldwide organization founded in Ireland in 1921. It has as its purpose, working with ordinary Catholic parishioners, and increasing their faith, through prayers and service with The Blessed Virgin Mary, our Patroness and Protector.

The Legion has an ordered program and handbook, which requires the following of its members:

1. Regular Attendance at a weekly meeting, about one and a half hours in length.
2. Two hours of service to the parish, or to the greater community, each week (see list below).
3. The daily recitation of the Legion prayers, which consists of the Rosary and a prayer leaflet (the Catena).
4. Absolute silence about sensitive matters learned in connection with Legion work.

The Legion has the presentation of the Catholic Faith to the community as its primary work . Activities include the following:

1. The Visitation of the Sick, at hospitals (which includes service as Eucharistic Ministers). St. Paul's Legion workers visit the sick at St. Luke's Hospital.
   
   
2. Visitation of Homebound or Ill Parishioners, as above.
   
   
3. Operation of a Catholic Book Stand at two locations near the parish. St. Paul's has a place outside the Walgreen's store at 30th and Mission. Here we pass out free Rosaries and Pamphlets; on most days, we give out around 10 to 20 Rosaries. It is our invariable rule, that we never accept money for articles given out. There is a persistent slur on our work, even by our own parishioners, that we are selling Rosaries. We accept no money or gratuities for these services.
4. Apostleship to the Crowd: On a scheduled monthly date, we go out and mingle with shoppers and passersby, talking with people, presenting our Catholic Faith, and handing out Catholic articles. This is done at the Bart Station, and at Eddy & Jones, in the Tenderloin. Ordinary Catholics often have little idea of what is happening in their communities, with respect to their faith. For example, there is a Protestant Church a few blocks from the Bart Station, which has many street workers, with loudspeakers, and which has made serious inroads into our parishes. They commonly make remarks like: "Catholics are the tools of the devil". "Catholics worship idols and are guilty of Satan worship". "Catholics are not Christian". The Legion of Mary is also out there on the street, combating this mis-information and deceit, and promoting our Catholic Faith. For example on 9-11-04, the Legion had 15 workers at the Bart Station, doing this work. We gave out 90 Rosaries, and talked with scores of people. This work is done without loudspeakers, quietly and politely, and it is done by very simple and plain Catholic lay people.
5. Door to Door Visitation: One of the best ways of increasing Church attendance, is visiting homes in pairs, throughout the Parish. It is also an ideal way of carrying out a Parish census, and keeping it up to date. The Legion has done this work in the past, and we hope to resume in the future.
6. Other Works (not currently done at St. Paul's, but certainly could be done by new members) Visitation of those in prison; Enthronement of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Parish Homes; Operation of Parish Discussion Groups; Supervising groups of young and junior Legionaries; Works for missions; Works for travelers and migrants; Dissemination of Catholic Literature; Teaching CCD or assisting in RCIA; and many other works not discussed here.

How Can You Get Involved?

Call Bill Wehrmeister at 415-648-7538