Champion of Our Lady Help of Christians

Posted on January 31, 2012 by catherine

Today, 31 Jan 2012, is the very happy feast day of St John Bosco, priest and founder of the Salesian Order. Living from 1818 until 1888, mostly around Turin, Italy, with trust in Divine Providence and in Our Lady’s intercession he accomplished more good than most people do in several lifetimes. Through him, God transformed many young men at risk of losing their souls due to poverty, lack of education and vocational training, gangs and crime into men of holiness and virtue.

St John Bosco holds a very special place in my heart, because he was my first ‘Patron Saint for the Year’ back in 1999. In him, and in the book written about him ‘Forty Dreams of St John Bosco’ I found someone who constantly believed in the power of the Sacraments and in the power of prayer. It was largely through his patronage that year that I began to be one of the group leaders for the parish-based sacramental preparation programmes.

My all-time favourite quotation from St John Bosco comes from Chapter 29 of ‘Forty Dreams…’ and also from Vol VIII, page 32 of the Biographical Memoirs:

“Listen: there are two things the devil is deadly afraid of: fervent Communions and frequent visits to the Blessed Sacrament. Do you want Our Lord to grant you many graces? Visit Him often. Do you want Him to grant you only a few? Visit Him but seldom. Do you want the devil to attack you? Rarely visit the Blessed Sacrament. Do you want the devil to flee from you? Visit Jesus often. Do you want to overcome the devil? Take refuge at Jesus’ feet. Do you want to be overcome by the devil? Give up visiting Jesus. Visiting the Blessed Sacrament is essential, my dear boys, if you want to overcome the devil. Therefore, make frequent visits to Jesus. If you do that, the devil will never prevail against you.”

The book ‘Saint John Bosco’ by A. Auffray, S.D.B. is chock full of inspiring stories about this holy servant of God. I’ll share two of them. The first is a quotation, and the second is my paraphrase of a longer story.

From Chapter XIII: St John Bosco: ‘When I encounter a difficulty, I act like a man who comes across a great beam blocking the road. I try hard to get it out of the way, but if I cannot manage that, I step over it or go round it. In the same way, if I have begun an undertaking, and some obstacle is encountered, I leave it off to give a hand to some other enterprise; but I always keep an eye on the first. Meanwhile, the fruit is ripening, men change, and difficulties get smoothed out.’

From Chapter IX: Building churches is hard work, particularly the fund-raising side of it. Many was the time that the work of the basilica of Our Lady Help of Chrstians almost ran out of funds. One day, 16 Nov 1866, 4000 francs were needed to pay the contractors, and they had nothing to pay them with. Blessed Michael Rua set out with some confreres that morning to seek alms. By late morning their efforts had yielded 1000 francs from te generosity of others. After lunch, with full confidence in Divine Providence and in Our Lady, St John Bosco set out to find the needed 3000 francs. Not long into his travels, a servant of a very wealthy man begs St John Bosco to visit his master. The master has been bed-ridden for three years and seeks prayers. If he finds his sufferings alleviated, he will donate funds towards St John Bosco’s works. The priest tells the sick man that he needs 3000 francs, about 10 times more than the sufferer had thought of. Gathering the whole household together, St John Bosco leads them in prayer to the Blessed Sacrament and to Our Lady and then gets the servants to bustle about to find clothes for the master to wear. ‘Nothing is impossible to God and to Mary, Help of Christians’. When the clothes are obtained, the master begins to put them on and finds himself completely cured. After a hearty lunch the man happily goes off to the bank and returns with the much needed 3000 francs. St John Bosco’s response was, ‘You take your money out of the bank, and Our Lady, Help of Christians, takes you out of the bed.’

At another time St John Bosco declared : ‘All my work began with a simple Hail Mary for Our Lady’s help. If you have devotion to Mary, Help of Christians, you will see what miracles are.’ Indeed, he was a most effective champion in her service.

To learn more about him, go to www.catholicism.org/don-bosco.html or go to www.salesians.org.uk and then click on ‘Saints’ and then on ‘St John Bosco’

St John Bosco, pray for us.

Heroic love

Posted on January 30, 2012 by catherine

Today, 30 January 2012, is the anniversary of the martyrdom of Blessed Sigmund (or Zygmunt) Pisarski, a Polish priest who died during World War II. Blessed Pope John Paul the Great beatified him together with 107 other Polish Martyrs of WW2 on 13 June 1999. Such is the divine love that filled his heart that he laid down his life in defence of his enemies.

Sigmund was born in Krasnystaw, Poland on April 24, 1902. At some point the great love of Jesus manfested Itself to him and invited Sigmund to follow Him in the diocesan priesthood. Within the diocese of Lubin he ministered to the people of God. We can only guess how heart-breaking it must have been for Sigmund to see his country invaded and his parishioners suffer.

What is known of his martyrdom (that can be found online) comes from a booklet by Fr Jan Bukowicz MIC on the Marian Martyrs of Rosica – another collective name for these 108 martyrs. Sigmund is found within a sub-group of the 108 who could have saved their own lives and yet laid them down in a spirit of heroic love so that they could remain faithful to their vocation and faithful to following Jesus. On 30 January 1943 at Gdeszyn (Hmbieszow), Sigmund ‘was shot and killed because he refused to turn in some communists who, a little earlier, had tormented him and severely robbed him.’ Who were the communists? One reference said they were local Communist Party members, but this term could also apply to Russians. Who wanted the communistsand were prepared to kill to get them? the Gestapo. (Ref www.martyretsaint.com/zygmunt-pisarski/ )

What amazing love! To shield at the cost of his own life those who had treated him so badly, who had treated Sigmund like gangs of bullies do. It is one thing to lay down your life for someone worthy, and quite another to lay down your life for people who have tormented and robbed you! In his death Sigmund, just 40 years old, imitated the life of Jesus who ‘died for us while we were still sinners.’ (Rom 5:8)

Blessed John Paul II proclaimed in his homily for the beatification of the 108: ‘”Ever-living God, the signs of Your love are manifest in the honour You give Your Saints. May their prayers and their example encourage us to follow Your Son more faithfully” (Common of Holy Men and Women, Opening Prayer). We raise this invocation also today, as we admire the testimony given by the Blessed who have just been raised to the glory of the altars. The living faith, unshakeable hope and generous love are reckoned to them as justice, because they were profoundly rooted in the Paschal mystery of Christ. Rightly, then, we ask to follow Christ faithfully, according to their example….We are celebrating the victory of those who, in our time, gave their lives for Christ, in order to possess life forever in His glory….If we rejoice today for the beatification of one hundred and eight martyrs, clergy and lay people, we do so above all because they bear witness to the victory of Christ, the gift which restores hope. As we carry out this solemn act, there is in a way rekindled in us the certainty that, independently of the circumstances, we can achieve complete victory in all things through the One who has loved us (cf. Rom 8:37). The blessed martyrs cry to our hearts: Believe in God Who is love! Believe in Him in good times and bad! Awaken hope! May it produce in you the fruit of fidelity to God in every trial!’

Blessed Sigmund Pisarski, heroic imitator of Jesus, pray for us.

Temperance and Work

Posted on January 29, 2012 by catherine

Today, 29 Jan 2012, is the 100th anniversary of death of Blessed Bronislaw Markiewicz, priest and founder of the Congregation of Saint Michael the Archangel a.k.a. the Michaelites. Because Bronislaw was so attentive to the Holy Spirit’s direction, his life was immensely fruitful in good works – particularly the care and education of abandoned children.

Blessed Bronislaw first came to my attention because parishes within my home deanery have been staffed by Michaelites and these spiritual sons of his are quite inspiring. When news of his beatification came through a few years ago, I decided to learn a bit more about him. Discovering the quotation from him, ‘When there are not enough Saints in a nation, night falls in the minds of men, and people do not see the way they must go’, placed Bronislaw squarely in ranks of those Saints who should be honoured at every opportunity.

Bronislaw was born in Pruchnik, Poland in 1842, the middle child of a family of 11 children. During his latter years of high school he went through a crisis of faith, because many of his teachers held secular views of life. The crisis was only overcome when he studied great Polish literature and noted that these authors believed in God. Thus inspired he begged God to reveal Himself if He did indeed exist. Our gracious God always answers prayers of this nature, mostly the answer comes immediately, sometimes it takes a few days. Renewed in his faith, Bronislaw began feeling the call to the priesthood and in late 1863 he entered the seminary. Assailed by doubts about his call, Bronislaw sincerely sought the intercession of Our Lady and soon the doubts ebbed away. In 1867 the happy day of his ordination came to pass.

For a number of years he was engaged in pastoral work in parishes, in further study at university and in teaching at seminary. These years were distinguished by ready availability for the Sacrament of Penance, many hours of Eucharistic adoration, ministry to those in prison and helping souls under his care to turn away from drunkenness. By 1885 the desire to serve God under religious vows intensified and he went to Turin, Italy to see if he had a vocation with the Salesians. St John Bosco welcomed him warmly. Everything went well until he fell seriously ill and was sent back to Poland to recuperate in 1892.

Remaining in Poland wth permission, Bronislaw was entrusted with the care of the parish of Miejsce Piastowe. Acutely aware of the needs of teenage boys living in poverty, one by one Bronislaw gave them lodging in the presbytery and set about forming them in the Sacraments and working side by side with them in tasks of manual labour. By temperance, work and sacramental grace Bronislaw knew that everyone could find the strength to turn away from sin and vice and make progress towards holiness. To help people persevere he began publishing a regular magazine called ‘Temperance and Work’.

News spread and a steady trickle of children in need found their way to Bronislaw’s presbytery, and later the buildings that were erected to shelter them. Men and women were inspired to join him in this work. Genuinely he tried to instill the Salesian ideals in all those who joined him. Back in Italy in the intervening years the Rule that Bronislaw made his vows under had changed quite a bit. So when an important Salesian visitor from Italy visited in 1897, Bronislaw and his companions were instructed to change to the new Rule. After much prayer Bronislaw knew that he could not accept the mitigated Rule and had to formally leave the Salesians. The aim now was to seek Papal approval for their way of life and unique charisms. That takes time. In the interim, a civil association called ‘Termperance and Work’ was set up so that the good works could continue. Only after Bronislaw’s death did the desired Papal approval come.

To look after and educate abandoned children and young people in poor circumstances requires significant amounts of funding. Alms were sought from many and at times Divine Providence stepped in when the situation got particularly acute. With the graces also came troubles. Misunderstandings delayed the ordination of men in this fledgling order and at one point a bishop ordered them out of clerical dress. Heroically they obeyed. The way forward came when Bronislaw put everything under the patronage of St Michael the Archangel. After a few more dfficulties were cleared away, the path to ordination for those with vocations to the Order was secured and the work could progress and grow.

In late 1911 Bronislaw suffered a stroke and then prostate troubles which required surgery. His health was not strong enough to rebound from these setbacks and on 29 January 1912 he entered into eternity filled with trust that God would set everything right for the long term development of the Michaelites.

To learn more about Blessed Bronislaw, go to www.clairval.com/lettres/en/2006/04/09/2050406.htm

To seek Bl Bronoslaw’s intercession and to pray for his canonization…

“Lord our God, You choose people to be instruments of Your unfailing goodness, raise into the glory of sainthood Your servant Blessed Bronisław Markiewicz, for his concern for the salvation of people, especially abandoned children. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Lord our God, You called Blessed Bronisław Markiewicz to be an apostle of Your compassion to the poor and the abandoned of the world, especially Your little ones. Grant that we, who strive to imitate his example, may respond to the challenges of our times in order to restore human dignity to all the people entrusted to our pastoral care. We make this prayer through Christ our Lord. Amen.”

Blessed Bronislaw Markiewicz, pray for us.

An answer for just about everything

Posted on January 28, 2012 by catherine

Today, 28 Jan 2012, is the feast day of St Thomas Aquinas, Dominican priest and Doctor of the Church. From the almost 50 years of life which were given him in the 13th century he distilled an astonishing array of written works on theological subjects. It is one thing to have written so much, and yet another thing that he had it all sorted out in his mind and logically water-tight before he put pen to paper.

God gave St Thomas an outstanding intellect and incredible memory, gifts that he used to the utmost in God’s service and which produced fruit that has lasted and which has been – and still are – greatly beneficial to countless believers. Of greatest renown is his Summa Theologica. A browse through the titles of the subchapters in the Summa (see www.ccel.org/ccel/aquinas/summa.toc.html ) shows that St Thomas carefully thought through just about every question a person could devise about spiritual things. eg Whether God can create anything? Whether the human soul is incorruptible? Whether sorrow is the same as pain? Whether honesty is the same as virtue? For each question St Thomas raises several objections, provides an answer and then replies to each objection.

In perusing these questions I came across Question 169, Article 1: Whether there can be virtue and vice in connection with outward apparel? Since this is a topic that generates quite a lot of discussion on www.xt3.com , it would be good to know what St Thomas thinks about it. For brevity I will paraphrase, hoping to do justice to his arguments.

Objection 1 says that fashion changes often, so how can there be vice or virtue in it? Objection 2 says that if there is vice or virtue in it then the wearing of extravagant garments would be a cause of sin, and yet we aim to dress priests with the very best materials for the celebration of Holy Mass. Which does not compute. Objection 3 says that every virtue is either theological, moral or iintellectual and the matter of clothing doesn’t fit into these categories.

St Thomas’ answer goes something like this… There is no vice in clothing itself, but only in the person who uses them immoderately. Lack of moderation happens in two ways. Choosing to dress in violation of social custom to an extent that is offensive to the community is the first way. Taking excessive pleasure in the use of clothing is the second way. Excessive pleasure comes about through either through vanity and attention seeking, through the sensous pleasure of seeking high levels of comfort in dress, or through far too much time and energy taken in getting an outfit to a desired level of perfection. These three are the opposite of the virtues of humility, contentment and simplicity.

To the three objections he replies… 1. Even with fashion a normal person seeks to moderate it. 2. Those in positions of dignity or high office wear costly clothing that is appropriate to the dignity of that office and not for their own glory. To go beyond moderation in seeking coarser clothing than others is either temperate if the motivation is penitential or prideful if the reason is to outdo others in penitential practices. 3. Clothing generally tells something about a person’s status or occupation in society and so belongs to the virtue of truthfulness.

If you have a question for which you have yet to find a good answer, why not scroll down St Thomas’ list of questions in the Summa Theologica link given above and see whether he has an answer that satisfies. Other than questions related to modern technology and bioethics I’d be surprised if you didn’t find an answer.

Thank you Lord God for giving St Thomas Aquinas such great talents and for granting us to profit from the fruit of his labours for You.

St Thomas Aquinas, pray for us.

His beginning did not predict the outcome

Posted on January 27, 2012 by catherine

Today, 27 Jan 2012, is the 150th anniversary of the death of Blessed Paul Josef Nardini, priest and founder of a religious order. This German Saint was beatified in 2006. Who could have predicted that a baby boy born into dire poverty to an unwed mother would achieve such great holiness?

Paul Josef was born in Germersheim, Germany in 1821. If he had been conceived within the last 40 years, the chances of his being a victim of abortion would have been extremely high – and what a profound loss that would have been. With no work and no husband, Paul’s mother turned to her paternal aunt for help. This aunt and her husband adopted young Paul and gave him a loving home. From childhood his intellectual and spiritual gifts were visible and he excelled in his studies. To become a priest was his aim, inspired by the constant loving call of God in his life.

Paul’s initial formation took place at Speyer seminary. Later he was sent to the University of Munich. So impressed were his professors that they pleaded with the bishop to allow Paul an extra year’s study to obtain a doctorate. The happy day of his ordination took place on 22 August 1846. Following a few short postings within the diocese, Fr Nardini was sent in 1851 to a parish of great poverty, Pirmasens, where a significant part of the population was Protestant.

Paul’s heart was filled with God’s love and this overflowed into generous service of people in need, with no regard to their race or religion. At some point prior to arriving in Pirmasens Paul had joined the Third Order Franciscans. With loving diligence Paul ministered the Sacraments to his flock and preached the Word of God to them. Care for his mother led him to invite her to live with him at Pirmasens, and she accepted his invitation. Concerned for the needs of the poor, the sick, the neglected and the elderly he did what he could to improve conditions for them, and quickly realised that he needed helpers in this urgent work.

Despite heavy objections from the local Protestants, nuns from the Sisters of the Most Holy Redeemer of Neiderborn arrived in 1853. There were far many more souls in need than the nuns could cope with. Then a harsh winter and an outbreak of typhoid fever hit. These difficulties, the increasingly fragile health of the nuns and a government decree forbidding convents whose motherhouse was outside Germany, led to the withdrawal of the nuns in 1853. Yet the great needs of the people were still there. Paul prayed for guidance and strength.

It was God’s good pleasure to fill Fr Paul’s heart with answers and confident trust at Christmas Eve 1854. To assist those in need some young women who were Third Order Francsicans helped out when the recall of the nuns started. These two women would be the start of a new religious order. Clothed in a religious habit of sorts on 2 March 1855, the new order which had several name changes, was begun as the Poor Franciscan Sisters of the Holy Family. Their motto is ‘Caritas Christi Urget Nos’ – The love of Christ urges us – and their purpose was ‘To bring the good news to the poor in self-giving love and true Franciscan spirit.’ with a particular emphasis on the education of impoverished children and the care of the sick, poor and elderly.

Those who had been assisted by Fr Paul’s team were quietly happy that the new order was beginning. The rest of the population was enraged and hostile. Even the bishop misunderstood him. However God kept Paul’s trust unshakeable and encouraged him with vocations to the new order. By the time of his death in 1862, two members had grown to 220. In time, the good fruit that resulted from the hard work of the Sisters won general acceptance. On several occasions Paul deprived himself so that the Sisters would have food and a stable roof over their heads.

On a bitter winter night, Fr Paul was called out to take Viaticum to one of his dying parishioners in late 1861. Having caught pulmonary typhus as a result, his own end came on 27 January 1862 and he was welcomed into eternity by the Lord Jesus who had so inflamed his heart with love. From such an unpromising beginning Paul used each of his 40 years well in the service of the Lord and was considered a saint by a great number of people. The Church confirmed their judgment in 2006. May the good Lord grant that the process towards his canonisation will proceed swiftly and successfully.

To learn more go to www.nardinisisters.org and click on ‘A History of Service’ and then ‘Read more:’.

Blessed Paul Josef Nardini, pray for us

Woman of true nobility

Posted on January 26, 2012 by catherine

Today, 26 Jan 2012, is the feast day of St Paula, matron of Rome and co-worker of St Jerome. Wealthy and talented, as her faith increased so did her service to the spread of the Gospel. Her life was certainly never dull, and it has much to teach us.

In the year 347, St Paula was born into a wealthy and influential Roman family. To achieve what she was able to do later in life, Paula must have had a substantial education together with a fine mind. As a teenager she was given in marriage to Toxotius, who also came from a noble family. With him she had five children, one boy Toxotius jnr, and three girls, Blaesilla, Paulina, Eustochium and Rufina. By the age of 32 Paula was a widow and raising these youngsters on her own. The sorrows and difficulties that came with Toxotius snr’s death gradually weaned Paula away from a life of pomp and luxury and caused her to take the things of God more seriously. The example and friendship of St Marcella, herself a widow, and of the holy women with whom she was living a radically Christian lifestyle, greatly inspired St Paula.

It was through St Marcella that Paula met St Jerome. Around him people with an interest in biblical scholarship gathered, and because Paula was fluent in Greek she became one of their number. Her children also largely came under St Jerome’s influence as well. Blaesilla, a highly gifted young woman of delicate health took on too many penitential practices and died in 389. Paulina married St Pammachius, a senator, and died following a miscarriage. Rufina died in 386. Eustochium was also under St Jerome’s direction and learned the values of chastity and scholarship. Toxotius jnr took a while to accept the gift of baptism and married a Christian woman. When St Jerome left for the Holy Land, he took Paula, Eustochium and others on a pilgrimage through all the Holy Places and through the communities of monks and anchorites. Toxotius jnr did not want his mother to leave, and Paula had a difficult time leaving him, but she knew that the Gospel precept of preferring God’s will to family members was what she had to follow.

After the pilgrimage ended, Paula and Eustochium settled in Bethelehem where Paula had a monastery built at great cost. Two communities in Bethlehem grew up, one for women led by Paula and one for men led by St Jerome. Dedicating themselves to study Hebrew, Paula and Eustochium greatly assisted St Jerome in the work of translating the Scriptures from Hebrew and Greek into Latin and in the work of hand-copying the results. A happy by-product of this study was the ability to sing and appreciate the psalms better. Having these fine minds to bounce ideas and alternative translations with, resulted in St Jerome producing excellent translations. Paula and her daughter also worked hard to keep St Jerome’s temper under reasonable control and to help him grow in patience and humility.

On 26 January 404 St Paula was called by the Lord Jesus into eternity. Great numbers of monks, nuns and poor people she had assisted mourned her loss. This amazing woman, who started out life as a noble in name and status only, ended that life full of noble virtue and full of noble service to God’s people. Under the altar in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem her bones were laid to rest, there to await the resurrection of the body.

St Paula, wife, mother, widow, scholar, abbess, pray for us.

The process of conversion

Posted on January 25, 2012 by catherine

Today, 25 Jan 2012, is the great feast day of the conversion of St Paul, Apostle to the gentiles. Without his conversion to belief in the Lord Jesus as the Son of God, multitudes would not have received the free gift of faith that leads to eternal life. Generally we focus on the utter transformation of grace that God gave to Paul and overlook what Paul did in response which enabled that grace to produce ‘a hundred-fold crop’ Matt 13:8.

What God did within St Paul was utterly amazing. He met the risen Lord Jesus face to face, and was told that God had a mission for him. To give Paul time to begin to comprehend this momentus event God granted him a period of blindness and dependance upon others. What did Paul do? ‘For three days …. he took neither food nor drink.’ Fasting of this sort presupposes intense prayer. Some of the motivation for this prayerful fast would have been in penance and reparation for all of the violence he had mistakenly done in his zeal for God. The greater part of the motivation would have been humbly asking God to reveal the mission and to give him the grace to fulfill that mission. What Jesus had said was as cryptic as a parable, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?.. I am Jesus, and you are persecuting Me.’ Acts 9: 4-5. With hindsight the meaning is obvious to us, but it might have taken a while for Paul to understand how closely Jesus identified Himself with His followers.

We know that the good God heard Paul’s prayer for guidance, because he received the vision of Ananias while he prayed. Acts 9: 12. When Ananias arrived, Paul regained his sight and was baptised immediately. The Lord tells Ananias that ‘this man is my chosen instrument to bring my name before pagans and pagan kings and before the people of Israel’. Acts 9:15. What kindness of God to send someone in flesh and blood, Ananias, to confirm in audible words the mission that Paul had been sensing in prayer! What a terrifying mission! Paul must have felt like Moses did when Moses was told to go and confront Pharoah and seek the release of the Israelites from slavery.

Paul didn’t start preaching immediately. First he spent some days with those in Damascus who believed in Jesus. After fasting he needed to recover his bodilly strength, but he also needed to learn as much about Jesus and what it meant to follow Him from these believers. He must have soaked up stories about Jesus as eagerly as a convert of our times reads the Gospels. How many questions he must have had! Again, just like a new convert, after just a few days Paul was telling everyone in the local synagogue that ‘Jesus is the Son of God.’ or in modern terms ‘I met Jesus. He’s real. He is truly the Son of God. He totally changed my life. Do you want to meet Jesus, too?’

It would have taken time for Paul to integrate all of the knowledge of the Hebrew Scriptures he had and all of Gamaliel’s teaching with the news that Jesus was the expected Messiah and the fulfilment of all the prophecies in those Scriptures. This is implied in the few words, ‘Saul’s power increased steadily’. Acts 9: 22. Initial conversion doesn’t make us perfect Christians over night. It takes prayer, study, service and ongoing surrender to the action of the Holy Spirit. ‘Some time passed’ Acts 9:23 before Paul’s gifts of preaching and teaching attracted death threats. From Damascus he escaped, and where did he go? He went to Jerusalem to meet the Apostles and to learn more about Jesus and how to live as a Christian. There he preached side by side with the Apostles until more death threats were made and he was sent to Tarsus.

So it took time for Paul’s mission and ministry to develop, even though he had been told what it was. He had to trust that God would lead him step by step. For the next step Barnabas was given the idea to take Paul with him to help the community at Antioch who had recently started to evangelise non-Jews. From Antioch St Paul’s great missionary journeys began. Even today, missions and ministries develop over time, they don’t fall from heaven fully formed.

We give immense thanks to God for the conversion of St Paul and for the conversion of all those who came to believe in Jesus as a direct or indirect result of his preaching, teaching and writing. It is one thing to receive a profound grace from God, and quite another to correspond with your whole being to the long term action of that grace and so to produce copious amounts of good spiritual fruit. Many are those who have received similar profound graces that have never produced fruit, or that have produced only a fraction of the fruit that was possible. May St Paul and all of the holy Apostles intercede that we may respond totally and with perseverance to all of the graces that God gives us.

S Paul, Apostle to the gentiles, pray for us.

He made use of every moment

Posted on January 24, 2012 by catherine

Today, 24 Jan 2012, is the very happy feast day of St Francis de Sales, bishop and Doctor of the Church. Francis, or Francois as he was actually called, was a leading light of the counter-reformation and at the forefront of an extraordinary outpouring of holiness in France in the years around 1600. Understanding that the call to holiness is made by God to all souls, no matter their age, occupation, vocation, status or family situation, Francis encouraged each soul he came across to become the holiest soldier, farmer, religious, widow, noble, artisan etc he or she could be.

Francois has a very special place in my heart because he was my patron saint for 2001 and again in 2010. Both times the prayer intention was to pray for bishops. During 2001 I read his ‘Introduction to the Devout Life’ and wished I had read it many years earlier. The intention was to read his ‘Treatise on the Love of God’ in 2010, but I didn’t finish reading the life od St Gemma Galgani in time. Each time the amount of correspondence I need to write seems to mulitply before my eyes, I recall the enormous number of letters that Francois wrote. To write so many letters, as well as these two great (and lengthy) books together with other works and all of his duties as bishop and co-founder of the Visitation Order he truly did live out the promise to God that he made around 1587: ‘May I make use of every moment of my short life to love You.’

In Margaret Trouncer’s ‘The Gentleman Saint’ she tells the story about how Francois’ mother, when still a young bride, spent time in prayer before the Shroud of Turin begging the Lord for a child who would serve him wholeheartedly in the priesthood. Her first child was St Francois de Sales.

Now for a little taste of Francois’s writings….

From ‘Introduction to the Devout Life’ Part 4, Chapter 1. ‘Directly that your worldly friends perceive that you aim at leading a devout life, they will let loose endless shafts of mockery and misrepresentation upon you; the more malicious will attribute your change to hypocrisy, designing, or bigotry; they will affirm that the world having looked coldly upon you, failing its favour you turn to God; while your friends will make a series of what, from their point of view, are prudent and charitable remonstrances. They will tell you that you are growing morbid; that you will lose your worldly credit, and will make yourself unacceptable to the world; they will prognosticate your premature old age, the ruin of your material prosperity; they will tell you that in the world you must live as the world does; that you can be saved without all this fuss; and much more of the like nature. My daughter, all this is vain and foolish talk: these people have no real regard either for your bodily health or your material prosperity. “If ye were of the world,” the Saviour has said, “the world would love its own; but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.” We have all seen men, and women too, pass the whole night, even several in succession, playing at chess or cards; and what can be a more dismal, unwholesome thing than that? But the world has not a word to say against it, and their friends are nowise troubled. But give up an hour to meditation, or get up rather earlier than usual to prepare for Holy Communion, and they will send for the doctor to cure you of hypochondria or jaundice!’

These are indeed consoling and encouraging words for all of those starting out in the spiritual life, and are still of great help to those who have made some progress on that path.

From ‘Treatise on the Love of God’, Book 3, Chapter 2: ‘Do you see, Theotimus (denotes any soul that has made progress in the spiritual life and who wants to progress further), that glass of water or that piece of bread which a holy soul gives to a poor body for God’s sake; it is a small matter, God knows, and in human judgment hardly worthy of consideration; God, not withstanding, recompenses it, and forthwith gives for it some increase in charity. The goat’s hair which was anciently presented to the Tabernacle was received in good part, and had place amongst the holy offerings; and the little actions which proceed from charity are agreeable to God, and have their place among merits….In a charitable soul, not only the works which are excellent of their own nature, but also the little actions, smell of the virtue of holy love, and have a good odour before the majesty of God, who in consideration of them increases charity.’

These words encourage us to do as many little works of charity as we can, and not to ever neglect them. We would be wrong to do good to others only in matters which from a human persepective appear to be ‘big’.

There is so much more to learn about St Francis de Sales. His writings are the best starting point, and they can be acessed at www.ccel.org and found by putting ‘francis de sales’ into the search engine OR the name of one of his written works.

St Francis de Sales, pray for us

She led lay people to Jesus

Posted on January 23, 2012 by catherine

Today, 23 Jan 2012, is the day to recall the memory of the holy life of Margaret of Ravenna. As a lay woman, who lived most of her life with blindness, she led many other lay people to choose to live a radically Christian lifestyle. She is one of God’s children called Blessed without being officially beatified.

Again, there is very little online available about the life of this holy woman, but the good Lord wanted to highlight her life today, and here we are. Footnotes in Butler’s Lives of the Saints say that the Acta Sanctorum (64 volumes) has several pages devoted to her life, but I don’t have access to that treasure trove.

What do we know? Margaret was born in Russi, a place near the great city of Ravenna in Italy in 1442. From infancy she was blind, so she never saw the great religious works of art that Ravenna is famous for. One can guess that this blindness made her dependant upon the goodness of others. To survive she had to learn how to trust, and thus her trust in God must have grown far greater than an average believer’s. With trust in Him, God can do great things. Without trust, very little of God’s power can be made manifest.

Apparently she was always able to find her way to a church. Two possibilities suggest themselves: Either because her love for Jesus in the Eucharist was so great Margaret took special note of the smells, sounds and textures on her way to and from Church OR that line in Psalm 42: 7 ‘Deep is calling to deep’ was lived out in her life in a special way. Perhaps because of her love and longing for Jesus she could always sense the direction in which His Eucharistic presence was closest to her, and she was only truly happy kneeling before the tabernacle. Maybe both possibilities took place.

A book by A. Poulain S.J. on ‘The Graces of Interior Prayer’, Chapter 5 Revelations and Visions’ 1910, mentions Margaret. It says that Margaret and her companion, Blessed Gentilis, received numerous private revelations and only took seriously those parts of them that were clearly in line with the Church’s teachings. Several revelations were shown to be true by predictions fulfilled and by some miracles that occurred.

Despite the hardships of blindness, Margaret took on some severe penitential practices. What they were is not stated in Butler’s Lives of the Saints, but generally severe penances are taken on by two classes of people, those who have greatly sinned in their lives and those who have been given a thirst by God to intercede for the salvation of souls. The latter is more likely in Margaret’s case. Apart from the blindness and penances, Margaret also had to deal with those who thought her a hypocrite, those who lacked empathy with her condition and those who treated her badly just because they could. Her virtues of patience and humility, over time, changed many who were detractors into friends.

Around Margaret there grew up a community of lay people, numbering some 200-300 persons who looked to her for spiritual guidance. Men as well as women, married couples, as well as the unmarried and the widowed were included in their number. An attempt was made at drafting a constitution for this community, but the commitment to the constitution waned after Margaret’s death. Anyone who has been a part of a covenant community, a more modern manifestation of this ideal, knows that is difficult to retain membership longer than 20 years because families (and their needs) change so much in that perod of time. A priest who guided Margaret, after her death, adapted the constitution to suit the needs of a band of priests who became known as the Priests of the Good Jesus. Thus her holy life did bear long term fruit in them.

On 23 January 1505 this inspiring woman breathed her last and entered into eternity. Margaret is a great example of the Evangelii Nuntiandi principle of the effectiveness of ‘like preaching to like’, of lay people being the best evangelists of other lay people, of young people being the best evangelists of other young people etc. May she pray for us that we may be effective in bringing souls, particularly those of a similar age and state of life, into a deeper union with Jesus.

Blessed Margaret of Ravenna, pray for us.

With God he did bravely

Posted on January 22, 2012 by catherine

Today, 22 Jan 2012, is the anniversary of death of Blessed Anthony della Chiesa, Dominican priest, preacher and miracle worker. His happy entry into eternity took place on this day in 1459. Because he was beatified back in 1819 there is not a lot of online information about him.

However, from what little there is we can glean enough to look forward to meeting him in heaven. In 1394, in San Germano, Italy, Anthony was born into the family of the Marquis della Chiesa. After a thorough education as befitted his rank, Anthony desired to enter the religious life. It took until Anthony was 22 for him to win his father’s blessing on his vocation. This patience tells us a lot about Anthony’s loving respect for his father and about the perseverance in prayer and self denial that was needed to win the grace of God that changed his father’s heart.

Entering the Dominican monastery at Vercelli, Anthony quickly grew in holiness and in did well in his studies. Each role he was called upon to fill, he did well. His preaching was good enough for him to accompany St Bernadine of Siena on several of his missionary journeys. In time he was called upon to be the superior of a local Dominican community or to use his administrative gifts. Without fuss he accepted these tasks, and without fuss he reliquished them when the tasks were done. So far, so good. So rather normal.

The good God, however, wanted to use Anthony in a special way to bring souls back to Himself and gave him several charisms. The first of these was mystical prayer. At times his great devotion to Our Lady was increased and deepened through conversations with her while he was in ecstasy. The second charism was the ability to read the consciences of men and women, making Anthony a sought after confessor. This gift can bring a great number of souls back to God, but it is a heavy responsibility. Anyone with this gift is responsible before God for all those souls whose sins were revealed and who hadn’t been warned to repent. Revealing such knowledge to the recipient takes gentleness, firmness, the right timing and great wisdom in how to reveal that knowledge in a way that will help the person turn back to God and not run away. The third charism was healing and miracles. With God’s power working through his priestly blessing many were healed. With faith in God’s desire to aid His children, passengers on a ship overrun by pirates made it safely home.

One of the evils that Anthony preached against was the practice of usury – lending money at high interest rates and the corresponding bullying to get the amounts repaid. All too often once a person was in a money lender’s hands the whole family was soon in poverty. The good Lord permitted him to have the following experience so that he could preach all the more effectively afterwards: While praying late into the night in the church Anthony heard a strange sound outside. Investigating, he found demons on horseback going off to meet a dying sinner to escort that unhappy soul to hell. Anthony warned the demons that he would pray for this unfortunate, but the demons said it was too late. Knowing that with God’s mercy a miiracle of grace could still happen, Anthony said that he would pray anyway and asked the demons to return on their way back to let him know he outcome. That poor soul was indeed lost, he had been a wealthy money-lender. Hearing the screams and misery of that man motivated Anthony to save as many of this kind of soul as possible. That poor soul had been so sunk in greed and other vice that even the holy prayers of Anthony were insufficient to obtain his final repentance.

During the life of Anthony an anti-pope arose (Felix V) and led many astray. Anthony recalled many of those strays back to the safe harbour of fidelity to the true Pope.

After a lifetime of bravely and courageously calling souls back to the ways of God, Anthony was given foreknowledge of the day of his death, prepared his soul and breathed his last at Como,Italy, a town that had been transformed by the grace of God flowing through him.Continuing miracles at Anthony’s tomb led to his beatification.

Blessed Anthony della Chiesa, pray for us.

Society of Saints

Saints in the making, Saints in waiting and Saints in action

Monthly Archives: January 2012