Saints
« Previous Entries Next Entries »The Other Lawrence
Monday, July 21st, 2008Today is the feast of St. Lawrence of Brindisi. When reference is made to a “St. Lawrence,” however, we are usually referring to the third-century deacon and martyr who is even mentioned in the Roman Canon (Eucharistic Prayer I). This latter St. Lawrence, given his special patronage of those who barbecue, is indeed a fine summertime [...]
All Saints, All the Time
Thursday, July 10th, 2008In recent years, it seems that Catholic families have been reclaiming All Saints’ Day on November 1st–not only for the great feast it is in itself, but as an opportunity to provide wholesome, spiritually edifying entertainment for our children as an alternative to pagan Halloween celebrations. And so many communities have been sponsoring All Saints’ Days parties and [...]
Son of Encouragement
Wednesday, June 11th, 2008On this date the Church celebrates the feast of St. Barnabas, whose exploits are described in the Acts of the Apostles. This feast is significant to my family, as we named a child whom we miscarried nine years ago Barnabas, and every year on this date we especially remember the gift of this precious child, [...]
Lyre, Lyre, Sanctifier
Monday, June 9th, 2008Today the universal Church celebrates the feast of St. Ephrem the Syrian, a fourth-century doctor of the Church. Of all the doctors of the Church, I believe he is the only one who became what we would today call a “permanent deacon.” This fascinating saint early in life attended the ecumenical Council of Nicaea and ran [...]
St. Athanasius, pray for us!
Friday, May 2nd, 2008Today is the feast of St. Athanasius, a fourth-century bishop and doctor of the Church. His titles aptly include “Father of Orthodoxy” and “Pillar of the Church.” He defended the faith of the Church against the Arian heresy, which held that Christ was created and therefore not divine. Our Lord’s divinity was upheld at the [...]
Jesus Christ, Hope of the Saints
Monday, April 21st, 2008Shortly before the Holy Father’s arrival in the United States last week, I felt obliged to comment on a post by Peter Steinfels appearing in The New York Times’ blog. Steinfels mentioned that he stands by his review of the 1985 book The Ratzinger Report, in which he characterized the comments on the state of the [...]
Upstaging St. Valentine
Thursday, February 14th, 2008Very few of us will walk up to someone today and greet him or her with the words, “Happy St. Cyril’s Day,” or even “Happy Cyril’s Day.” And surely no one will tell their sweetheart to “Be my Methodius.” And yet, today the universal Church commemorates Sts. Cyril and Methodius, not St. Valentine, notwithstanding the [...]
The Exquisite Timing of Lourdes
Monday, February 11th, 2008The timing of the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Lourdes beginning on February 11, 1858, was not only providential in the sense of God’s loving kindness to us sinners, but was absolutely exquisite in terms of what was going on in European intellectual circles at that time. The sex scandals involving priests and [...]
Out of Africa
Friday, February 8th, 2008Today we celebrate the feast of St. Josephine Bakhita, an African saint who was canonized just a few years ago by Pope John Paul II. I really didn’t know that much about her, other than the fact that she was from the Sudan, had been kidnapped in youth, and eventually became a religious in Italy. [...]
A Word to the Verbose
Thursday, January 10th, 2008My “guardian angel” left this quote from St. Francis de Sales on my desk this morning: ”The worst defect in talking is talking too much. Hence, in speech be brief and virtuous, brief and gentle, brief and simple, brief and charitable, brief and amiable.” Okay, I get the message. (Don’t have to hit me over [...]
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