Monday 6th April 2020

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Catholic Heroes . . . St. Magdalena Of Canossa

April 2, 2020 saints Comments Off on Catholic Heroes . . . St. Magdalena Of Canossa

By CAROLE BRESLIN There is a palace overlooking the Adige River that twists through Verona, Italy — about 75 miles east of Venice. In 1527 the Marquises of Canossa commissioned Michele Sanmicheli to build it, and it still stands today, having had such prominent guests as Alexander I of Russia, Napoleon Bonaparte, and Francis I of Austria. Although you cannot go inside, you can view it from the street and see the home where St. Magdalena of Canossa was born on March 1, 1774. Magdalena was the third child born to Marquis Ottavio di Canossa and his Hungarian countess wife, Teresa Szluha. Sadly their first two children died shortly after birth, as did their fourth child, a boy. In 1776,…Continue Reading

Catholic Heroes… St. Anselm

March 25, 2020 saints Comments Off on Catholic Heroes… St. Anselm

By CAROLE BRESLIN St. Anselm was born in France near the Swiss Alps around 1033. At the age of 15, he wished to enter religious life by joining a monastery. Sadly, his influential father was so against it that the monastery refused to accept him. This so discouraged the youth that he drowned his sorrows in worldly pursuits. He deeply regretted this brief wayward journey later in life. As happened with many saints, Anselm’s mother provided a good example of holiness and patience. St. Anselm was greatly devoted to his mother whom he missed dearly when she died. His father treated him so poorly that he was forced to leave home, traveling to the other side of the country. In…Continue Reading

Catholic Heroes… St. Nuno Alvares Pereira

March 19, 2020 saints Comments Off on Catholic Heroes… St. Nuno Alvares Pereira

By CAROLE BRESLIN St. Ignatius of Loyola was injured in the Battle of Pamplona in 1521, which changed the focus of his life. He has influenced millions with his Spiritual Exercises. St. Francis of Assisi went to Perugia in 1202 and was captured and held for one year — this changed his life, leading him to lead a life of poverty and ministry to the people of God. Joan of Arc routed the English besieging France in the fifteenth century, which helped end the Hundred Years War. St. Nuno Alvares Pereira also fought bravely and successfully before he retired to a religious life. Nuno had an inauspicious beginning as the illegitimate son of Brother Alvaro Goncalves Pereira, who was the…Continue Reading

Catholic Heroes . . . Venerable Carlo Acutis

March 12, 2020 saints Comments Off on Catholic Heroes . . . Venerable Carlo Acutis

By CAROLE BRESLIN The Holy Eucharist, the source, the summit, the center of our Catholic faith, drew Carlo Acutis to love our Lord really and truly present in all the tabernacles of the world. This true Presence has manifested Himself through hundreds of Eucharistic miracles which Carlo documented on a website in his short lifetime. God specially chooses some children for uncommon holiness, such as Bernadette Soubirous of Lourdes and the children of Fatima. Carlo, though he did not have any visions as did Bernadette and the Fatima children, was one of God’s chosen ones who developed a great love of God even as a toddler. When Carlo was born on May 3, 1991, his father, Andrea Acutis, and mother,…Continue Reading

Catholic Heroes… St. Clement Mary Hofbauer

March 5, 2020 saints Comments Off on Catholic Heroes… St. Clement Mary Hofbauer

By CAROLE BRESLIN It has been said that the four characteristics of good prayer are that it must be sincere, it must be humble, it must be confident, and it must be persevering. This can also be said of the Christian life and a person’s approach to seeking to do the will of God: humble, sincere, confident, and persevering. St. Monica was certainly all of these: she prayed for the conversion of one of the greatest theologians in the history of the Catholic Church for 33 years. Examining the life of St. Clement Mary Hofbauer reveals another soul who was humble, sincere, confident, and persevering in his pursuit of doing God’s will despite the numerous setbacks he endured during his…Continue Reading

Catholic Heroes… St. Leander Of Seville

February 27, 2020 saints Comments Off on Catholic Heroes… St. Leander Of Seville

By CAROLE BRESLIN Brothers and sisters in Christ have also been blood brothers and sisters in Christ such as Peter and Andrew; James and John; Martha and Mary; and St. Benedict and St. Scholastica. In Seville, the family of Severianus and his wife had at least four children who are saints. Three of his sons became bishops: St. Isidore was bishop of Seville and is a doctor of the Church, St. Fulgentius was bishop of Carthage, and St. Leander also served as bishop in Seville. A sister, St. Florentina, was a nun who led forty convents with about one thousand nuns. Leander was born in 534 to this family of illustrious roots. His father came from a prestigious Hispano-Roman family…Continue Reading

Catholic Heroes… St. Frances Of Rome

February 20, 2020 saints Comments Off on Catholic Heroes… St. Frances Of Rome

By CAROLE BRESLIN Saints come from all states of life and forms of associations within the Church. Quite a few of them were members of Third Orders. A Third Order is an “association of the faithful established by religious orders. Dating from the thirteenth century, they may be either secular or regular. If secular, they are lay persons, commonly called tertiaries. If regular, they are religious, bound by public vows, and live in community. Originally, Third Orders were Franciscan or Dominican, but the Holy See has since approved many others, both secular and regular, e.g., the Augustinians, Carmelites, Servites, Benedictines, and Trinitarians” (Modern Catholic Dictionary, Fr. John A. Hardon, SJ, p. 538). These associations are called Third Orders since the…Continue Reading

Catholic Heroes… St. Margaret Of Cortona

February 13, 2020 saints Comments Off on Catholic Heroes… St. Margaret Of Cortona

By CAROLE BRESLIN Great sinners make great saints. It takes a strong-willed child to become a saint. These are statements which would easily fit saints such as Mary Magdalene and St. Augustine. In the thirteenth century, a young lady free in spirit and strong in will led such a life that she was essentially driven from her home village, but later in life Mary Magdalene and Jesus appeared to her as their beloved. Her change in behavior was so abrupt and was so different from her unwholesome ways that she was once again driven away by her family — not because of her immorality, but because of the extremes to which she went in loving repentance. Margaret was born in…Continue Reading

Catholic Heroes… St. Francesco Spinelli

February 6, 2020 saints Comments Off on Catholic Heroes… St. Francesco Spinelli

By CAROLE BRESLIN Ecclesia de Eucharistia: This is the title of the encyclical letter written by Pope St. John Paul II issued on April 17, 2003. This wonderful work begins, “The Church draws her life from the Eucharist.” In it he cites Lumen Gentium of the Second Vatican Council which tells us that the Eucharist is the source and summit of our life in the Church. Many saints have also made the Eucharist the center of their lives and have written extensively on this greatest mystery of our faith. St. Alphonsus Liguori, St. Peter Julian Eymard, Servant of God Fr. John A. Hardon, SJ, and St. Francesco Spinelli all had a deep and abiding love for our Lord really and…Continue Reading

Catholic Heroes… St. Alfonso Maria Fusco

January 30, 2020 saints Comments Off on Catholic Heroes… St. Alfonso Maria Fusco

  By CAROLE BRESLIN In the Old Testament six barren women prayed that God would give them children. For example, Sarah, Abraham’s first wife, gave birth to Isaac at an old age. Manoah’s wife gave birth late in life, as did Samuel’s wife. In addition, Jacob’s wife also gave birth to sons late in life. In the New Testament, Elizabeth delivered St. John the Baptist when she was advanced in years. Even in modern times, women have asked special saints for their intercession when yearning for children. On January 31, 1834, Aniello Fusco and Giuseppina Schianova were married in the Collegiata of St. John the Baptist. After four years of marriage and no children, they turned to St. Alphonsus Liguori,…Continue Reading