Many Years, Countless Tears… But Joy Comes With The Morning.

Tapestry of Saint Monica of Hippo, by John Nava (b.1947).

For many, many years Saint Monica of Hippo wept during her ceaselessly tireless prayers for her husband Patricius – a pagan whom lived in her hometown of Tagast in North Africa, to whom her parents gave her in marriage, even though she was a Christian – their son Augustine, and her mother-in-law who lived with them, to become Christians. Patricius was known for his violent temper and licentiousness, while Monica’s mother-in-law was similarly ornery and cantankerous. Her dedication and devotion to

From Pain to Gain

“What a life of bitterness I am leading,” said Saint Elizabeth of Portugal (1271-1336). “On whom but God can I depend?” Those anguished words came from a woman who, aged 12 was

Think Before You Act

The church calendar identifies the second-century saint Irenaeus as a “bishop and martyr.” He was certainly a bishop (of Lyons in France), but his martyrdom may be more legendary. He is remembered primarily, however, not for his death but for

Find Your Own Path

Modern gurus abound on talk shows and blogs, full of advice about how you should live your life.

Some of their suggestions may be helpful; the best ones are borrowed from

Whom do you follow?

Like Archbishop Óscar Romero of El Salvador in the 20th century and Thomas à Becket of England in the 12th century, Saint Stanislaus (c. 1030-79), according to tradition, was killed in church, in this case while celebrating Mass. Stanislaus’ murderer was

Get Outside Your Self, Focus On The Bigger Picture

If there were ever a patron saint for people who jump to extremes and then find balance in their lives, it would be John of God (1495-1559). First he was a wild-living soldier nearly hanged after being accused of stealing from the army. After a reprieve, he was so grateful that he

Service Is The Only Security

Not even the deepest, fiercest parental love can secure the future of loved ones or keep them from harm. Take Perpetua, a young mother still nursing, and her pregnant servant Felicity, who were

Work With What You Have

And you thought you were busy? Consider Saint Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton (1744 – 1821), the first citizen born in the United States to be canonized, who was canonized Sunday, September 14, 1975 in St. Peter’s Square by Pope Paul VI.

She was a New York

Walking Through Darkness

Saint John of the Cross (1542–1591), aka ‘San Juan de la Cruz’ in Spanish, was a Spanish mystic most well known for writing the highly-regarded book “The Dark Night of the Soul,” which explores

Be A Legend In Your Own Time

Catherine of Alexandria was said to be a very learned young woman, a philosopher, and eloquent speaker who persuaded many of the Roman persecutors of Christianity of the errors of their ways. For this, Emperor Maximinus II ordered her

Give It Your All

How much are you willing to give? Some make the ultimate sacrifice and give their very lives. Andrew Dung-Lac (1795-1839) was a priest and one of 117 saints martyred by

Make A Difference For The Good

Stained glass depiction of St. Margaret of Scotland, Edinburgh Castle, Edinburgh, Scotland.

If you think you can’t make a difference, remember Queen Margaret of Scotland (1045-1093), sometimes also known as Margaret of Wessex, or Saint Margaret of Scotland. A refugee from the Norman invasion of England, Margaret was

Shaping Up Is An Ongoing Process

St. Charles Borromeo 1538-84 Administering The Sacrament To Plague Victims In Milan In 1576, Oil wood print, by Pierre Mignard (1612-95), a French painter known for his religious and mythological scenes and portraits.

Saint Charles Borromeo (1538-1584) was an instrument of the Holy Spirit in helping to keep the church on course through needed reforms in the 16th century. Had he been a participant in the Second Vatican Council rather than the Council of Trent, he may have

Look Deeply For Dignity

Saint Martin de Porres (1579-1639) was a barbershop surgeon when he joined a Dominican monastery at age 15. Soon his success with medicinal herbs and miraculous healings earned him great fame as a healer. But Martin was famous for tending to small things, too. Once, he solved the monastery’s pest problem by

Pass The torch With Loving Attention

Among the short list of most influential people in your life surely there is a teacher or two, most likely from your early years of education. Blessed Marie Rose Durocher, who founded an order in Quebec with a strong teaching ministry, was herself deeply influenced by those who taught her along the way. Her first teacher, in fact, was

Helping Comes First

 When Saint Pius of Pietrelcina (1887-1968) — Padre Pio as he’s widely known — decided he wanted to build a free hospital for the poor up the road from his friary, he started with a piece of land and a few friends and supporters. Four years later, in 1956, he had one of the most modern hospitals in Europe. Since the padre’s death in 1968, the facility, which

Faith Will See Us Through

Martyrdom of Saint Januarius; Girolamo Pesce; circa 1727; Oil on canvas, 262 x 193 cm; Bishop’s Library, Vác, Hungary

The stories of early Christian saints are often larger-than-life. So it is with Saint Januarius (third century). According to legend, Januarius was thrown into a fiery furnace by the Romans during a time of intolerance toward Christians. To everyone’s amazement he emerged unscathed. Taken figuratively, the story says a lot about how faith can help us in the face of intolerance when it comes to things like race, gender, immigration status, and so on. We may be

Build On A Loving Foundation

The third-century life of Saint Cyprian, bishop of Carthage, might have given rise to the comedy tag line: “It’s always something,” but his troubles and those of the church were anything but funny. If it wasn’t a heresy, it was bitter controversy over whether someone who had renounced the faith might be reconciled with the church; or it was exile, or the plague, or schism. Cyprian’s response was always generosity. During a terrible plague, for example, he

Shed Some Light On The World

Saint John Chrysostom (349-407), the archbishop of Constantinople from 398 to his death in 407, often reminded his subjects to offer prayers universally—that is, to pray for everybody in the whole world. “For [Jesus Christ] did not say ‘thy will be done in me or in us,’ but ‘on earth,’ the whole earth,” he wrote. Because of

Takes Criticism Well

Herodias and Salome with the Head of Saint John the Baptist Artist: Peter Paul Rubens (Flemish, 1577–1640) Medium: oil on canvas Size: 137 x 115 cm. (53.9 x 45.3 in.)

It’s human to feel pain and anger, especially at times when you’ve made a mistake and have been soundly called on the carpet for it. King Herod’s wife Herodias wanted to get even with John the Baptist after he spoke out about something she was involved in that was

Restless Hearts

The earliest known portrait of St. Augustine, from about a century after his death.

While some famous people may have amazing rags-to-riches stories to tell, the drama that launched Saint Augustine of Hippo (354-430) to greatness went from reprobate to repentant. Born in Thagaste, Numidia, which is modern-day Souk Ahras, Algeria, Africa, to an African father, and mother – both whom are thought to have been Berbers, an indigenous North African ethnic group – Augustine was a brilliant young man who

A Common Calling To Care

St. Louis King of France with a Page, El Greco

 Two men quite unlike each other, both saints, and both revered for similar reasons: Their concrete love for the poor. In the mid-13th century, Saint Louis (1214–1270) embraced the way of Saint Francis of Assisi and cared for the poor even as King Louis IX of France. It is said that Louis had over 100 guests from among the poor to eat with him daily. He also established hospitals and houses of healing for lepers and the sick. Saint Joseph Calasanz (1557–1648) in the mid-16th century saw that the need to educate poor children was so important that he gave up a career in

A Nearly Anonymous Apostle

Poor Bartholomew, the mystery apostle. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and the Acts of the Apostles call him Bartholomew, but in John he might be the person named Nathaniel. An interesting lesson for those who think the Bible is clear about everything — even the names of the 12 apostles!

Martyrdom of St. Bartholomew, (1355-1360) Prato, Museo di Palazzo; Tradition holds that the apostle Bartholomew was martyred by being flayed alive. That brutal torture has been depicted in a variety of ways over the centuries. He is sometimes depicted holding a knife, which symbolizes his martyrdom. The artworks seem to evolve over time from showing him just before the blade strikes, to when flaying occurs and then in later works after the act, where he is draped in, or holding his own skin. Viewing those artworks reflecting the act of being skinned alive without squirming can be difficult considering the pain and blood. That is especially so in the early religious paintings of the saint.

But aren’t most of us nearly anonymous disciples ourselves? We don’t get mentioned in the church bulletin all the time, and

Beautiful Inside And Out

Saint Rose of Lima by Claudio Coello (1642–1693), in the Prado Museum, Madrid, Spain

Appearances rule in pop culture. The beautiful people occupy the covers of magazines and get all the buzz for their many sightings and multiple marriages. We are likewise bombarded with the externals of clothing and housing and vehicles, as if looking good will somehow increase our internal value. Saint Rose of Lima, born Isabel Flores de Oliva (1586-1617), a lay member of the Third Order of Saint Dominic in Lima, Peru, was by all accounts an exceedingly beautiful woman, and because she was

Let Others Lift You Up

Some say it’s good to be queen, and in the musical You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, Lucy is dismayed to learn she can’t be queen when she grows up. You have to be born one. “If I can’t be a queen,” she says, then “I’ll work and work until I’m very rich and then I will buy myself a queendom.” Good grief! Wrong on both counts. Queen saints became saints by doing

Champion For The Poor

Pope St. Pius X (1835-1914), 257th pope of the Roman Catholic Church.

Pope Saint Pius X was born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto (1835-1914), was canonized in 1954, and was adored and abhorred during his brief 11-year papal reign from 1903-1914. As a pastoral pope, he promoted frequent Communion and spirituality for children and laypeople. As a reformer, he contributed to significant changes in

Reform From Within

Love for people innervated John Eudes’ (1601-80) work, who from the beginning, gave of himself. As a young priest he worked among plague victims, and lived alone so as not to risk infecting other members of his religious order. He became a famous preacher and confessor, and in 1641 founded the Sisters of Our Lady of Charity of the Refuge in Caen, Normandya, a community to help women who had

Give From Your Heart

Saint Stephen the Great of Hungary (969–1038) was the first king of that nation, helped bring Christianity to his nation a thousand years ago and helped popularize the ancient custom of

A Tribute To Good… In Auschwitz

Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe OFM Conv. (Raymund Kolbe), was a Polish Conventual Franciscan friar, who volunteered to die in place of a stranger in Auschwitz, the Nazi German death camp, as Prisoner #16670.

In Jesus’ day, people had to pay “tribute” — taxes — to their Roman conqueror, which was a way of signifying their submission to his power. When Maximilian Kolbe (1894-1941) was canonized in 1982, a special person was on hand to pay tribute to his greatness. Yes, John Paul II, a fellow Pole, was there to do the canonizing, but equally special, so was Francis Gajowniczek, the Auschwitz inmate Kolbe died for.

Francis Gajowniczek (LEFT), and John Paul II, a fellow Pole, at Maxmilian Kolbe’s canonizing. Before he became Pope, Polish Cardinal Wyszynski said of Kolbe, that, “Whereas people trust in material resources like tanks, planes, and armies, Kolbe shows that only one thing is necessary to gain peace and unity for the world, the practice of love.”

 As they slaved away in the Nazi death camp, a prisoner escaped. Infuriated guards randomly chose 10 men to die in retaliation. When Gajowniczek cried out that he had a wife and children, Father Kolbe stepped forward to take his place. Kolbe paid tribute to Jesus. What truths do we submit to daily?

Francis Gajowniczek, Auschwitz prisoner photo

Are you imagining things? Good!

Saint Francis of Assisi cuts Clare’s king beautiful hair at her request as she begins efforts to become a nun.

Before Saint Clare’s birth, one biographer wrote, it was revealed to her mother that the child “would be a brilliant light in the world.” As abbess of the first convent of Franciscan sisters, Clare rose from her sickbed to pray for the protection of her sisters from marauders and heard a voice say,

A Martyr Of Two Faiths

Edith Stein

Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein, 1891-1942) was was born into a Jewish family in Breslau, Germany, and became a philosopher, phenomenologist, teacher, feminist, and translator. She was a brilliant woman who earned a Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Göttingen in 1916, and obtained an assistantship at the University of Freiburg. She was raised as an observant Jew, became atheist in her teens, but during her student years read Saint Teresa of Ávila’s autobiography, and as a result, decided to become Catholic, was baptized into the Roman Catholic Church in 1922, and joined the Discalced Carmelite order in 1933.

Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein, 1891-1942)

Edith Stein

After the Nazis invaded the Netherlands, she was forced to resign from her teaching post because of Nazi law. And though

Mary & Martha Shake Hands

The contest between action and contemplation in the spiritual life is an old one. Just think “Martha & Mary” and you get the picture. Saint Dominic (1170-1221) had the advantage of an early experience with contemplative life to shape his sense that the two impulses should be combined. When he founded his Order of Preachers, the idea was to

Hang In There

Saint John Vianney (1786-1859), known as the Curé of Ars, started out as a farmhand and catechist who needed extra time in his studies for the priesthood because he wasn’t the most brilliant student. At first, he was not authorized to hear Confessions, but later would spend 10 to 16 hours a day hearing the Confessions of the 100,000 people a year who trooped to visit him. Sometimes it’s necessary to struggle, even fail, before you find your true calling. When you get to

Unity Is Stronger

The Virgin Mary in Glory with Archangel Gabriel, and Saints Eusebius of Vercelli (seated), Saint Sebastian, and Saint Roch, by Sebastiano Ricci (1 August 1659 – 15 May 1734).

Saint Eusebius of Vercelli (c. March 2, 283 – August 1, 371) lived at a time when bishops were elected by acclamation of the people. The people of Vercelli, in modern-day Italy, chose Eusebius because of his humility and his commitment to unity at a time of great division in the early church. Eusebius emphasized the faith that unites us rather than the opinions that divide us. When you find yourself in a disagreement with someone, ask if you are clashing over fundamental truths or merely over personal opinions and preferences. If we

A Whole Lot Of Love

Saint Alphonsus Maria de’ Liguori, C.Ss.R. (27 September 1696 – 1 August 1787), was an Italian Catholic bishop, spiritual writer, composer, musician, artist, poet, lawyer, scholastic philosopher, theologian, and founder of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer.

Saint Alphonsus (1696-1787) practiced law for a time, became a priest, and eventually founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (the Redemptorists). His clear and reasoned thinking — a remnant from his days as a litigator — served him well as a

Do You Really Need All Your Closet Baggage?

Undated photograph of Saint Sharbel Makhlūf

Saint Sharbel Makhlūf, the Hermit of Lebanon (1828-1898), whose birth name was Youssef Antoun Makhlūf, dedicated himself to imitating Christ at an early age. He entered the Maronite monastery of St. Maro, took the name Charbel, after a Christian martyr in Antioch from the 2nd century, and was eventually granted permission to live as a hermit. Many sought his counsel over the years, but it wasn’t until his body was discovered incorrupt in 1965 – long after his death in 1898 – that hundreds of miracles were attributed to him, including a well-documented healing from paralysis in 1993 which was

All We Need Is Love

Today is the anniversary of the birth and death of a towering intellectual, theological and biblical scholar, orator and polyglot fluent in speaking, reading, and writing Latin, Italian, Hebrew, Greek, German, Bohemian, Spanish, and French, renowned preacher, nuncio (diplomat of the pope) to Bavaria and Spain, minister-general of the Capuchin order, missionary, evangelist, who established Capuchin monasteries in Germany and Austria, was said to have known the entire original text of the Bible — Lorenzo da Brindisi, also more commonly known as Saint Lawrence of Brindisi (1559-1619), who died on his birthday exactly 60 years later – and whose parents Guglielmo de Rossi & Elisabetta Masella gave him the birth name Julius Caesar Rossi – pretty much did it all. 

Aged 16, he

Turn Your Struggles To Service

Camillus de Lellis Tends the Wounded in the Hospital of the Santo Spirito in Rome During the Flooding of the Tiber in 1598; by PIERRE SUBLEYRAS, 1745.

Research suggests that more than 5 million Americans are problem or compulsive gamblers. Though he lived some 500 years ago, Saint Camillus (1550-1614) would be able to relate because he suffered from the same problem as a young man. In fact, he lost everything he owned by gambling — which perhaps contributed to his ability a bit later in life to leave everything behind to follow Jesus, eventually founding an order dedicated to caring for the sick. Perhaps you think

Home Is Where You Find Acceptance

This painting by Father Claude Chauchetière, S.J. (circa 1696) is one of the oldest portraits of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha.

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha (1656-80) was orphaned at age four when smallpox attacked her village, and claimed her parents’ and baby brother’s lives. The disease’s ravages left her permanently weakened, scarred, partially blind, and photo sensitive to the extent that the sun blinded her and caused her to feel her way around as she walked.

She probably never imagined the role she would have in her generation and beyond.

When Saint Kateri was 18, a Jesuit missionary, Father Jacques de Lamberville (1641–1710), established a chapel in Caughnawaga, on the north bank of the Mohawk River, which today is near Fonda, New York. Kateri was fascinated by the new stories she heard about Jesus Christ, vaguely remembered her mother’s whispered prayers, wanted to learn more about Him, and to become a Christian.

Having been adopted by extended family, Kateri’s uncle, a Kanienkehaka chief, allowed her to attend religious instructions taught by Father de Lamberville, and the following Easter, she was baptized, and became Catholic at age 21.

Not everyone accepted her choice to embrace Christ. Following her baptism, Kateri became a village outcast, and

What Construction Techniques Do You Use To Build Your Faith?

Henry II, who was crowned as Holy Roman Emperor (Romanorum Imperator) on February 14, 1014 by Pope Benedict VIII in Rome, ruled until his death aged 51 of a chronic urinary tract infection July 13, 1024, and was the last member of the Saxon Dynasty of Emperors which included Otto I. Sometimes also known as Saint Henry, he was canonized by Blessed Pope Eugene III in 1146 for his support of the church and monastic reforms, and is the only canonized German monarch.

Henry II’s ascension to the throne, however, wasn’t without some drama and backroom wheeling-dealing. John Crescentius, a consul and Patrician of Rome on several occasions purposely thwarted Henry’s visitation to

Humility Is The Good Word

Among Saint Benedict’s renowned Rules for monastic living were guidelines for the Cellarer – the person in charge of the monastery’s provisions. The Cellarer safeguarded and dispensed the monastery’s food and drink and adhered to quotas set by the abbot. During lean times when

An Early Champion Of Native American Rights

A baptism conducted by California mission friars is shown in a sketch displayed at the Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcala in San Diego, California July 27, 2016. This drawing is part of a collection of sketches depicting mission life by California artists A.B. Dodge and Alexander Harmer rendered in the early 1900’s. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec)

Today, Catholics recognize the life and work of Junípero Serra, a Franciscan priest who in 1776 was working in California to demonstrate the love of Christ.

In 1988 Pope John Paul II beatified him, and in 2015 Pope Francis canonized him in Washington, D.C. at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception during his first visit to the United States.

Among the most famous of the 9 missions Fr. Serra established is San Juan Capistrano, which today is renown for the beautifully massive annual migration of swallows from from Argentina, which occurs March 19, when they establish nests in the ruins of the Great Stone Church.

Fr. Serra was born on the Spanish island of Majorca 1713, and up until the time he entered priesthood aged 35, he had been a professor. Inspired by the story of the missionary work of Saint Francis Solano in South America, he traveled across the Atlantic to a largely unknown land, and landed in Vera Cruz, Mexico, where he and a companion friar followed

Tinfoil Hats Not Required

Saint Irenaeus, who grew up in Smyrna (not Tennessee), near Ephesus, in the area which is now western Turkey, was the Bishop of Lyons in southern France in the early second century, is considered a Father of the Church, and was mentored by people who knew the first disciples, including the Apostolic Father, Saint Polycarp, who was the Apostle John’s disciple. Recall that Jesus the Christ called James and John “Sons of Thunder,” who were the sons of Zebedee. That might explain the confidence he felt to write five treatises in Greek on detecting and debunking heresies, which is commonly entitled in Latin as “Adversus haereses” (Refutation of Heresies), and according to the translation of its title, devoted to the “Detection and Overthrow of the False Knowledge.”

Irenaeus studied Gnostics’ writings in depth, and refuted them in meticulously painstaking detail. Gnosticism, which arose in Irenaeus’ era, was considered

Can you bear to see the divine?

Saint Cyril of Alexandria, Doctor of the Church, (c. 375-444) was a bigoted tyrant, a divisive and headstrong leader for most of his life. He forcibly closed the churches of the Novatianists, destroyed pagan temples, and the monastaries of monks whose views differed from his own. His terroristic behavior was very much like modern radical Islamist sects including the Taliban, or ISIL. His sermons and denunciations created the climate of hate that led to the murder of Hypatia, a renown, highly respected, elderly, virtuous female philosopher and teacher of neo-Platoism who was also a friend of Orestes. She died at the hands of a mob led by

Journey Inward To The Center Of Your Heart

Saint Romuald (c. 951-1027) was a man on a mission. As a young man, having been compelled to witness Sergius his father duel with a relative in an argument over property in which he killed his adversary, he entered a Benedictine monastery at Classe, Italy to do 40 days penance for him – to atone for the murder his father committed – which resulted in his own vocation to religion as a Benedictine monk. His father, who also later became a monk, contemplated leaving his monastic order, but was dissuaded by Romauld. Throughout his monastic life, Romauld continuously sought simplicity, which motivated him for 30 years to

A Short, Post Saint Patrick’s Day Lesson

If you’ve ever heard any Xian pop songs, you may have heard the line “I don’t believe in luck, I believe in Jesus.” Or, maybe you’ve heard someone say something like, “I’m not lucky, I’m blessed.” The idea is that, for the Christian, luck has no role in their life. Simply put, that’s not only bad theology, it’s contrary to Scripture itself.

“I have seen something else under the sun: The race is not to the

From Here To There: A Brief Journey In Life

Having been raised in the Methodist church, over time, I had “been around” in various Christian traditions

– including participation in by membership in some – 

such as:

• independent
• inter-denominational
• trans-denominational
• non-denominational
• make-your-own church
• Pentecostal (talking in tongues, dancing, but no snake handling)
• Church of God
• Church of Christ
• Church of God in Christ
• Baptist (hard shell, soft shell, primitive, mainline, and corn on the cob varieties)
• Cumberland Presbyterian
• Presbyterian
• Seventh-Day Adventist
• Lutheran
• Evangelical Protestant
• Episcopal
• Anglican (Anglican Diocese of San Joaquin – Southern Cone, while in California)

and then, finally…

Be nice to me… or else!

It certainly seems that there’s no shortage of opinion on FaceBook.

Recently, I had seen this posted on a friend’s page, and remarked upon it. Whether or not Eminem said it, I am uncertain. However, the sentiment expressed was what caught my attention.

Since we’re now in

Goin’ Postal… Alabama Style

Too weird to be true – nut it… er, but it is.

Click here to see the actual story in the newspaper that reported it – The Huntsvile… er, Huntsville Times.

However… a word to “the wise”: It ain’t worth it – neither death will resolve or solve anything. Tomorrow’s another day, and things will change. Just reach out and ask for help. You are loved more than you know.

Nothing is impossible with God, even help when you’re at your wit’s end.

Here is a prayer, especially for you:

Oh glorious apostle St. Jude, faithful servant and friend of Jesus, the name of the traitor who delivered thy beloved Master into the hands of His enemies has caused thee to be forgotten by many, but the Church honors and invokes thee universally as the patron of hopeless cases–of things despaired of. Pray for me who am so miserable; make use, I implore thee, of that particular privilege accorded thee of bringing visible and speedy help where help is almost despaired of. Come to my assistance in this great need, that I may receive the consolations and succor of heaven in all my necessities, tribulations and sufferings, particularly ( -here mention your request- ), and that I may bless God with thee and all the elect throughout eternity. I promise thee, O blessed St. Jude, to be ever mindful of this great favor, and I will never cease to honor thee as my special and powerful patron, and to do all in my power to encourage devotion to thee. Amen

Does God exist?

“If there were no God, there would be no atheists.“

– G.K. Chesterton, Where All Roads Lead, 1922

I find G.K. Chesterton’s comment enlightening. Logically, one cannot prove a negative, which is the point of the whatever-you-call-it-line at the head of my blog, “…there is no such thing as nothing.”

And though Chesterton’s remark is unrelated to the following book, it does express a supporting idea and is therefore equally spot-on.

My deacon suggested I read