All Roads Lead to Rome

Walker Percy's Commencement Address to St. Joseph Seminary, A "Cranky" Novelist Reflects on the Church

2026-10-05T11:28:48.237-05:00

Have you ever read the most famous of commencement speeches given at a Catholic seminary?

In 1983, a great novelist in his twilight years gave the commencement address at St. Joseph College Seminary in Louisiana. That novelist, Walker Percy, was one of the precious few to fit in a noble sub-phylum of writers: the Southern, Catholic novelist.

His commencement address is as relevant now as it was prescient then. Percy talks about the state of the Catholic Church; it's never-gonna-happen, yet imminent demise; and the "strange and unprecedented" chaos confronting the priests of the new millennium.

You can find this in a whole book-full of Walker Percy essays: Signposts in a Strange Land.

I like to share great reads with you, dearest reader. I am thankful to the priest who share it with me.

I have added subheadings to the following for the ease of reading, as well as bolding certain key lines and phrases ... mostly to help me find them again, some time down the road, for inspiration. To paraphrase T. S. Eliot, good writers borrow, but great writers steal. And I'm not much of a thief.

A "Cranky Novelist" Reflects on the Church

Let me express my pleasure at being at St. Joseph College Seminary and congratulate you for successfully completing your college seminary years. I envy you your four years in a Benedictine community. There is my own satisfaction in having a Benedictine abbey near the small Southern town where I live. I've heard more than one diocesan priest say affectionately that their four years at St. Ben's were among the happiest in their lives.

My understanding is that you are bound for a major seminary, perhaps at Notre Dame, and, one hopes, for Holy Orders. As a Catholic layman, I can only wish you well, for your own sake and for our sake, and express the hope, for good and selfish reasons, that it works out. We need you. I notice there are not many of you. We are all familiar with the famous shortage of vocations. The statistics are dire. The last numbers I saw were that the average age of a Catholic priest in the United States is presently fifty-six and that at the present rate of vocations it will be seventy-three in the year 2000.

This is all the more critical in view of the concomitant steady increase in the Catholic laity. There has been much talk, especially in the secular press, about the bare ruined choirs and the imminent dissolution of the Church, an end which has been regularly predicted for 1,900 years. A recent article in Newsweek spoke of worried bishops and even offered some suggestions for relaxing the standards of the priesthood, standards of education, the rule of celibacy, ordaining women, and so on. Since everyone is free with his expert opinion, let me put in my own two-cents worth. My own feeling is that the diagnosis is not all that difficult. One doesn't have to look beyond the values of a society which is ever more consumer-oriented, ever more inclined to view man as an immanent organism in an environment; therefore, a view of man which is in subtle ways not so much hostile but rather indifferent to Christ's radical injunction to his first priests: To follow me, go your way carrying neither purse nor scrip nor shoes. Hostility is no stranger to the Church; she often thrives under it: witness Poland. But there is a species of bland indifference which is all but invincible. The diagnosis, I say, is not hard to come by, but the solution is more difficult. I make bold to suggest one dimension of it. My own impression, from talking to some of you and your generation, is that the one place where the answer is not to be found is in the relaxation of the standards of the priesthood. It seems to me that with the best of you it is exactly the other way around, that far from it being the case that you might have been attracted by this or that fringe benefit-like the college graduates you used to hear about who, when they were interviewed by General Motors or Dupont, would first off inquire about the retirement plan. The best of your generation-perhaps of any generation-want something else. Aside from the supernatural dimension of your vocation-that it is God and not the fringe benefits who calls one and whose summons must be dealt with by each man in his own way-my impression is that your generation is less and less impressed by the easy pitch and more and more exhilarated by the singular challenge.

The Priesthood: An Elite Corps

The very smallness of your number puts me in mind of a rather commonplace military metaphor. It is the recruiting policy of the Marine Corps. I notice that at the very time that the Army, Navy, and Air Force are advertising this or that benefit, good base pay, educational opportunities, the glamour of world travel, early retirement, the Marine Corps says in effect: "We're only the best, you are free to apply, you probably won't make it, there are not many of us and it's a tough life, but if you think you're good enough, we'll take a look at you."

If this sounds like I'm comparing you to an elite corps, a chosen few, it's because I am.

Surely it is the high calling, the challenge, the very difficulties to be surmounted which attract one. There are also the peculiar difficulties and the challenge of a vocation in a world which never needed it more, yet which in a strange and unprecedented way is incapacitated, has ears and cannot hear, is both blind and unheeding.

The Parish Priest

But let me just say a word about some unnecessary difficulties, some areas where we laymen and lay women may have been at fault and have added inadvertently to the rigors of a vocation which, Lord knows, is difficult enough. I am speaking in particular of the vocation of the parish priest. In my book he is one of the heroes of this age. There is one positive good which may come to pass from the present crisis in vocations and the coming scarcity of priests, and it is this: the time may come when we, the Catholic laity, may come to value the very person we have taken for granted all these years. What we took and take for granted is the parish priest. Father was always there, is there, and is expected to be there, something like Coleco and Ma Bell. So natural did it seem that Father was always there that we took it as a matter of course when he was an extraordinarily good and faithful pastor and we were accordingly quick to criticize him when we detected a human failing.

We Catholics have a way of taking things for granted, the very sort of things which other people find extraordinary. I'll give you one example. The other day I happened to read a short review of a book in a magazine. The book was a new edition of the Rule of St. Benedict, published to celebrate the sesqui-millennium of the saint's birth. Do you know what a sesqui-millennium is? I had to look it up. It is 1,500 years. Now, that is remarkable. What struck me as even more remarkable is that no one seemed to find this remarkable. Yet every day we hear about this or that anniversary celebration: five hundred years since Luther's birth, two hundred years since Goethe's birth, seventy-five years since the Wright brothers' flight, a stamp commemorating James Audubon or Joe Louis. This is all very well. But here is a man who was born 1,500 years ago, who lived in a critical, disorderly time with certain resemblances to our own, who devised a rule for living in a community, a practical, moderate, yet holy rule which apparently is quite as useful now as it was 1,500 years ago. 1,500 years. I call that remarkable. Yet very few people seem to find it remarkable, very few Catholics. Maybe the Benedictines do, but they don't say much about it, and the Jesuits practically nothing.

And so a favorite recreation among some is either to take the parish priest for granted or to complain about him. Father did so-and-so. Father is always asking for money. The roof of the church is leaking; why doesn't he get it fixed? Why is Father always asking for money? Father's sermon was too long. Father didn't give a sermon. Father read a letter from the Archbishop instead of giving a sermon. Father read a letter from the Archbishop and then gave a sermon. Father so-and-so in the next parish has a better sense of humor, so we go over there. Or: Do you know what that priest said to me when I told him I wanted to get my girlfriend fitted with an IUD? And so on.

I have written a couple of science-fiction novels about the future. But one doesn't have to be a prophet to guess what may happen if the present trend continues. Instead of Father always being there at the rectory to answer this or that complaint, the time may come when Father shows up once a month to say Mass, perform baptisms, and hear confessions-or maybe arrives in a jeep once a year, as he does in some parishes in South America. Then we may be as happy to see Father as is a Brazilian Indian.

A Saving Remnant

The point is that the time may come when the Catholic Church and the Catholic people, both priests and laymen, will have become a remnant, a saving remnant, and that will be both bad news and good news. The bad news is that the familiar comfort of the parish in which the Church was taken to be more or less co-extensive with the society in which we lived is probably going or gone. The good news is that in becoming a minority in all countries, a remnant, the Church also becomes a world church in the true sense, bound to no culture, not even to the West of the old Christendom, by no means triumphant but rather a pilgrim church witnessing to a world in travail and yet a world to which it will appear ever stranger and more outlandish. It, the Church, will be seen increasingly as what it was in the beginning, a saving remnant, a sign of contradiction, a stumbling block, a transcultural phenomenon, a pilgrim church.

There is no more Christendom and it may be just as well. Thus, it may very well come to pass that you, graduates of St. Joseph's, if you should become parish priests, will be practicing your ministry in a world very different from the one we grew up in. You are less apt to be seen as a familiar artifact of the culture, a recognizable familiar figure, like the priest in movies who dresses like a priest -- "Here's the padre" -- "Hi, Father" -- says things priests say, and is treated with a kind of unseeing deference.

This is not to say that Father Mike, in order to break out of the old cultural tableaux in which he felt perceived as a static figure, must necessarily shed his Roman collar for a T-shirt and designer jeans in order to appear as a man among men-or that Sister Scholastica has to shed both her name and her habit (in which I always thought she looked great, to tell you the truth) for a J. C. Penney pants suit in which she does not look so great, and takes back her old name of Debbie or Carol Jean, which I always thought she did well to get rid of.

This is not to say that ... Sister Scholastica has to shed both her name and her habit (in which I always thought she looked great, to tell you the truth) for a J. C. Penney pants suit in which she does not look so great, and takes back her old name of Debbie or Carol Jean, which I always thought she did well to get rid of.

There was a great deal to be said for the traditional role of the Church in which it was more or less co-extensive with the culture in which it found itself. One might have lived, for example, in the thirteenth century in a Catholic culture in which the culture itself was informed by the sacramental order of the Church. Or perhaps in Puritan New England or Irish-Catholic Boston, where one's church was as familiar and all-pervasive as the furniture of one's house. And even as a minority church, as a tiny beleaguered community, which the Catholic Church was and still is in much of the South, it was as a miniature culture that it survived, a small besieged enclave in which Father said such-and-such, Sister said so-and-so, and, besieged or not, it was the Catholic-ethnic culture which made one feel comfortable and at home, redolent as it was with incense and candlewax and all the vivid parochial particulars. It was beloved for the same reason it was detested. When a Catholic writer rebels against his faith and his past, as he seems so often compelled to do nowadays, it is really the whole cultural complex he is kicking out.

Aside: Ridicule & The Coming of Age of the American Catholic Novelist

It is to be hoped, by the way, that American Catholic novelists and playwrights will someday achieve sufficient maturity that they can put their heritage to some better use than ridiculing their own tradition: noting some unfortunate nun who gave him a whack, probably deserved, in the third grade, some weary priest who bruised his feelings in the confessional. No more of that, says a certain sort of writer, and walks out of the Church forever, a free spirit he thinks now, except that it turns out he is not free after all and that he can only get steamed up by doing the same old number on the priest and sisters back at St. Aloysius. I look forward to the time when the Catholic writer comes of age, as American Jewish writers have come of age in the last generation, and produces a comparable literature of affection and celebration. I suspect that these writers are rebelling not against God and the Church, the priest, and the nun, the man and woman who have given up his and her life to serve God and the people of God-but rather against the cultural furniture of their own past, the wax-and-varnish smell of St. Aloysius's, Father Mike's peculiarities, Sister Scholastica's bad temper, under the romantic delusion that only if one can escape the particularities and constraints of the past can one breathe the pure air of art and freedom, when in truth what the truly Catholic writer knows, a writer like Flannery O'Connor, that it is only through the particularities of place, time, and history-even when it is, as the poet Gerard Hopkins said, "seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil; / And wears man's smudge and shares man's smell"-it is only then that the writer achieves his art and all of us achieve humanity.

No Longer Quaint

What is happening, I think, is that the Church is emerging from the stable, perhaps somewhat closeted community of the past into the dangerous and exciting atmosphere of a world community, a global village in which the Church and her people are no longer an exotic enclave but very much a voice among world voices, exciting because the Catholic presence is felt and the Catholic good news is heard and evaluated in its own right and not merely as a pleasant, quaint cultural item like that kindly old movie priest, Father Pat O'Brien, or the swallows at Capistrano.

Radical changes are occurring in the world into which you are graduating and which you may find yourself serving as a priest. It is like no other world in Western historical experience, both in its opportunities and in its perils. Of course, it is now a commonplace that the Church itself is shaken by unprecedented internal stresses. Given any social or political issues, whether it be the arms race or liberation theology in Latin America, the Church finds itself badly divided. But is this such a bad thing, a falling apart of the happy consensus of older, safer times, or is it a sign of the maturity of the Church emerging into the clamor of the marketplace, however seriously disordered it is? And here, surely, is the most difficult challenge of all: to proclaim the Good News in a world whose values seem increasingly indifferent to the very meaning of the Good News. It is a strange world indeed, a world which is, on the one hand, more eroticized than ancient Rome, and yet a world in which the Good News is proclaimed more loudly and frequently than ever before by TV evangelists and the new fundamentalists. There occurs a kind of devaluation of language, a cheapening of the very vocabulary of salvation, as a consequence of which the ever-fresh, ever-joyful meaning of the Gospel comes across as the dreariest TV commercial. How to proclaim the Good News in a society which never needed it more but in which language itself has been subverted? Salvation comes from hearing, according to Scripture, but what is the bearer of the Good News to do when the hearing becomes as overloaded as the circuits of an $80 TV set?

Your task is very simple. As the Lord said: "All you have to do when you go out among the wolves is to be wise as serpents and gentle as doves." But the wolves these days are of a very different order from the ravening wolves of former times or the totalitarian persecutors of the present day. They are of a far subtler sort and perhaps more dangerous than the ravening species.

The Three Enemies

There are, as I see it, three enemies of the Good News in American society, wolves in sheep's clothing, for they are not overtly hostile, and yet the upshot is an indifference more subversive than hostility. They are the new idols of society.

The first is a [#1] consumership mentality, a bland but nonetheless tenacious addiction to the diversions of the media and the manifold goods and services of a technological society. It is difficult to see how the man, woman, or child who watches TV eight hours a day, in which the good triumphs every half hour on sitcoms, cops, and hospital shows, can be open to the Good News.

Another idol, even more subtle in guise, is [#2] the growing fascination with what can only be called the occult, the magical. Though it often masquerades under the honorable title of science, it is in fact anti-scientific. It hungers after any new curiosity or puzzle or mysterious phenomenon but is altogether indifferent to the vast mystery of life itself and the human condition. Sustained by an insatiable appetite for the superficially mysterious, it mistakes religion for its own credulity toward such things as astrology, the Bermuda triangle, UFOs, reincarnation, this or that self-appointed guru with mystical powers. I can remember when the traditional foes used to be science versus religion-which never made sense to me, because both lay claim to a certain order of truth, and truth can never be contradictory. But one does not have to be a seer to see what is happening before our eyes: a loss of interest in science in favor of pseudo-science. One happy outcome of this turn of events may well be a new alliance of science and religion such as existed in medieval times against the old and the new Gnosticism which periodically threatens the openness and catholicity of both science and Christianity with its appeal to the occult and mystical powers of the elite few.

And here in the South particularly, you will encounter a third force, not quite enemy perhaps, who ought in fact to be reckoned friend and ally but in these peculiar times may not be. So confused indeed are the battle lines these days that one can almost envy the Catholics in Communist countries where the enemy is plain to see and to rally against. I am speaking of some of our co-religionists and co-believers in Jesus Christ our Lord, not our brothers the mainline Protestants, but [#3] the new fundamentalists. They need to be mentioned because, here in the South at least, it is they who utter the name of the Lord loudest and most often, who are most evident both in media and in marketplace, whose schools are proliferating at a rate exceeding both public and parochial schools. In my opinion, they do a disservice by cheapening the vocabulary of Christianity and pandering to a crude emotionalism divorced from reason. I know that St. Paul said that the Gospel was a stumbling block to the wise, but it does not follow that in order to save the faith it is necessary to believe that the universe was created six thousand years ago. And it is not necessary, to save the integrity of man's soul and its likeness to God, to believe that God could not have created man's body through an evolution from lower species.

The crisis of the Church and the crisis of our youth often manifests itself in young Catholics rebelling against what they perceive as the dryness and ritual prayers of the Church and turning to the emotional appeal of the new evangelicals. Catholics have a lesson to learn here, I am sure, but I give myself permission to indulge my own prejudice--as a cranky novelist I can do this--and to say that the young person who turns his back on the apostolic Catholic faith with its two-thousand-year-old synthesis of faith and knowledge, art and science, with the sacramental presence of God Himself on the altar, to take up with some guru or Bible-thumper who has no use for sacrament or reason, this young person has in fact sold his birthright for a mess of pottage-or, as some wag put it, a pot of message. But, very well, let us leave off the criticism and recognize our own failings.

The young person who turns his back on the apostolic Catholic faith with its two-thousand-year-old synthesis of faith and knowledge, art and science, with the sacramental presence of God Himself on the altar, to take up with some guru or Bible-thumper who has no use for sacrament or reason ... has in fact sold his birthright for a mess of pottage-or, as some wag put it, a pot of message.

Some of us older Catholics, I know, take pleasure from the very things many young people find missing: the very understatement of emotion in the quiet corporate worship, and, above all, the ancient, enduring liturgical form of the Mass.

Enemy #4?

And, of course, at the opposite extreme from the young Pentecostal, with whom I have no quarrel, there is the older parishioner-and I know several-who are convinced that most of the troubles not merely of the Church but of the entire modern world can be traced to the abandonment of the Latin Mass after Vatican II. These are the types, God bless them, who look straight ahead during Mass, glowering, and put their hands in their pockets during the handshaking. Actually, we're not quite as bad as Auberon Waugh, Evelyn Waugh's son, who was so outraged at what he saw as the barbarous liturgy and the atrocious English renderings of the Mass that he departed for the Anglican communion, only to find the Book of Common Prayer so butchered by revisions that he came back, still disgruntled, to the Catholic Church as the lesser of evils.

Not All That Bad

To tell you the truth, despite all the cries of havoc, I don't find things all that bad. I have mentioned a few well-known difficulties and contretemps only to illustrate the general thesis that the cultural manifestation of the Church often gets confused with its historical and apostolic mission. Being human, which is to say creatures of a particular culture, we don't like changes. So, having taken note of what is commonly called the crisis of the Church, let me make a final personal observation: that if one judged only from the media, the national press, or network news, one would conclude that the Church is washed up, hopelessly divided politically, the Holy Father hopelessly behind the times. Yet one goes to Mass on any ordinary Sunday and there they are, the Catholic people, more than ever, at five, six, seven Masses a day. And there is the priest still, thank God, holding aloft the body of Christ. And let the Holy Father, this marvelous man, appear anywhere and there occurs all over the world a tumult not of despair and division but of rejoicing and hope, and not merely among Catholics.

Never In History

That is why it is such a pleasure to see you here. I don't know how many of you will become parish priests. But I know how welcome you will be. I have mentioned the challenge only to emphasize the opportunities. The opportunity is simply this: that never in history has modern man been in greater need of you, has been more confused about his identity and the meaning of his life. Never has there been such loneliness in the midst of crowds, never such hunger in the face of satiation. Never has there been a more fertile ground for the seed and the harvest the Lord spoke of. All that is needed is a bearer of the Good News who speaks it with such authenticity that it can penetrate the most exhausted hearing, revive the most jaded language. With you lies the future and the hope. You and the Church you serve may be only a remnant, but it will be a saving remnant.

I salute you and congratulate you. God bless you.

1983, St. Joseph College Seminary, St. Benedict, Louisiana

Updated! Top 5 Best Catholic Apps

2026-09-29T17:20:38.213-05:00

Check out these TOP Catholic apps for the iPhone and Adroid. Basically everything you could want out of a Catholic app is available for FREE. It's good to be Catholic!

The following is a section of The Catholic ManBook. The ManBook is a practical guide to authentic, Christ-like masculinity. Among the many helpful parts of the ManBook is this list of Catholic apps for your iPhone, Android, etc.

Please comment below if there is a particularly good Catholic app that you think deserves inclusion on the list!

1. Laudate [FREE]

If you have room for just one Catholic app, this is the one. It has most everything: Daily Readings, Saint of the Day, Liturgy of the Hours, Order of the Mass, Rosary and Chaplets, Examination of Conscience for Confession, and all your other Catholic Prayers. It’s almost as good as this book! Basically all the other apps in this list are contained within this one, except for a translation of the Holy Bible, which VerseWise (below) give you.

Here are some extra visuals of the Laudate app, which is generally agreed to be one of the best Catholic apps available:

Laudate basically has all the functions you need and it's free. So there's that. Looking for a complementary set of Catholic apps? With iBreviary, below, along with Laudate and a Bible app, you've got the tool set to become a Saint. Let's call this the Holy Trinity of Catholic apps.

2. Hallow [PAID]

Hallow is the highest quality Catholic prayer app available. The following celebrities have made a prayer series with Hallow:

Mark Wahlberg – A frequent partner and prominent face for the app's Lenten and prayer challenges.
Chris Pratt – Actively participates in and promotes high-profile seasonal prayer initiatives, such as Lent and Daniel Fast challenges.
Gwen Stefani – Partnered with Hallow to lead guided reflections and share seasonal messaging for Lent and Advent.
Jonathan Roumie – Best known for playing Jesus in The Chosen, he is one of the app's most active regular guides and audio retreat leaders.

This is Paid app, but there are some free resources, PLUS there's a 30-day free trial available.

I also appreciate Hallow for licensing my translation of St. Louis de Montfort's Consecration to Jesus through Mary book.

3. iBreviary [FREE]

Another good Catholic app, this one is from FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students): “[O]n top of eliminating the need to carry your breviary around with you all the time, it also cues up the prayers for the day, eliminating the need to coordinate ribbons and flip back and forth in a book.” This is a good Catholic app for quality prayer time!

4. VerseWise [PAID]

Best Bible App! The Revised Standard Version – Catholic Edition (RSV-CE) is highly recommended. This particular Bible translation is the closest to the original text, and it shines in this app. It’s highly searchable, copy-and-pastable, and well-organized.

“Truth & Life” is another good Scripture app and/or Catholic scripture app.

5. Ever Accountable [PAID: subscription fees]

I used to recommend Covenant Eyes at this spot, but it tends to slow down your computer. I now recommend Ever Accountable, which works much better (at least in my experience) on phones, computers, and all your devices.

This is an app to help shield yourself from the scourge of pornography. Here’s a description from its maker: “Ever Accountable is the best tool to quit pornography through accountability. No hoops, no shame, just accountability. Start your free trial today."

If you use Accountability, sites that you visit using this browser are monitored and reported on your Accountability Report. The filter also blocks based on your Filter Sensitivity Level and your custom block/allow list.

Catholic Apps List: Honorable Mentions

(1) iPieta [PAID] which has an amazing library of Catholic resources and spiritual writings;

(2) Catholic Mega App [FREE];

(3) Catholic Church App [FREE]

I hope you enjoyed this list of Catholic apps! Please comment below with your own favorite Catholic app ...

Catholic Apps That Used to Be Great, But Are No Longer Available or Working

The Confession App[PAID]

From CatholicApptitude.org: “Interactive features of this Catholic app help engage you in the process of making a good confession from examination of conscience to absolution. If you are new to the sacrament or have forgotten how to make a good confession, this app provides gentle and encouraging help every step of the way. It is designed to make the process easy for you by providing a comprehensive examination of conscience with large check boxes for items you wish to confess. Your choices (and any text you type in) get distilled into a separate Confession Guide for you to take into the confessional to walk you through everything you need to say including your Act of Contrition. Large font makes it easy to read in the low light setting. Feel secure knowing no data is stored to the phone hard drive or to the internet. The really cool part? After confession, you get the satisfaction of being able to hit the “Erase My Sins” button and watch your check marked sins removed from the temporary cache in the phone or tablet–a technological symbol of what just happened to your soul!”

This is a good Catholic app for sacramental purposes.

Interviews from the Beatification of Fulton Sheen: Abby Johnson, Nashville Dominicans, and More! The Greats Episode #11 Blessed Fulton Sheen, Pt. 2 - Everybody’s Favorite Fulton Sheen Quote or Story

2026-09-26T09:19:28.609-05:00

Enjoy these interviews with luminaries and guests from the Beatification, plus some video of the AMAZING procession of over a 1,000 priests, plus several hundred bishops, deacons, and seminarians.

AND stay tuned for the story of a miracle baby saved from abortion by Bl. Fulton Sheen …

Check out the video below ...

In case you’re wondering about my favorite Blessed Fulton Sheen quotes, here are a few:

There are not over a hundred people in the United States who hate the Catholic Church, but there are millions who hate what they wrongly believe to be the Catholic Church.

And some quotes from Bl. Fulton Sheen’s explanation of the Widow’s Mite Gospel passage:

The poor widow who gave two mites “emptied herself to fill the emptiness of others.”

Fulton Sheen adds:

Never measure your generosity by what you give, but rather by what you have left.

Why Did Islamic Terrorists Choose the Date 9/11? And How Mary AND Tolkien Were Involved

2026-09-09T03:49:16.708-05:00

Why does nobody ever talk about this? One of my favorite Marian miracles is directly connected, tragically, to the bombings of September 11th. This is a critical part of the story ... so why does nobody know about this?

Here's the short of it: September 11, 1683 marked the farthest extent of the Muslim push into Europe from the east. On September 12, the largest cavalry charge in human history took place, utterly routing and demolishing the massive Muslim army besieging Vienna.

The cavalry charge was so heroic, it inspired a Marian Feast Day.

The cavalry charge was so heroic, it also inspired one of western civilization’s greatest works of fiction.

In one of the most pivotal moments in history, Christendom stands on the brink. Vienna is the last major stronghold preventing a full-scale Muslim invasion of Western Europe.

The Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I has fled. His calls for aid have been unanswered.

Europe Stands on the Brink: The Siege of Vienna, 1683

Count Ernst Rüdiger von Starhemberg leads a small garrison of 15,000 men in Vienna, the capital of the Habsburgs and the Holy Roman Empire. He is outnumbered 10 to 1. Vienna is surrounded by the army of Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa Pasha -- an army of roughly 120,000 to 150,000 men.

The Muslim grand vizier can take the city whenever he pleases, but he is waiting for Count von Starhemberg to surrender. Why? If the Muslims invade the city, every solider can take his own plunder. If the city surrenders, the Muslim leader gets all the loot for himself.

Polish King Jan III Sobieski had allied himself with Emperor Leopold, promising to give each other aid when called upon.

King Sobieski gathers his army about him, including possibly the greatest cavalry unit in human history: the long-undefeated Winged Hussars. They would remain undefeated until they rode out against Hitler's Wehrmacht, the army of tanks.

The Hussars rode into battle wearing metal wings, like avenging angels. The wings would scream as the air rushing past. This time, the Hussars would scream something more when riding into battle. Something much more powerful.

Consecration to the Virgin Mary: Our Lady of Czestochowa

King Sobieski led his army first to the Shrine of Jasna Gora, the home of the icon of Our Lady of Czestochowa. There, he consecrated his army to the Virgin Mary.

Because of this, when the Polish Hussars would later lead the greatest cavalry charge in human history, one of the greatest routs of all time, they did so screaming the Holy Name of Mary.

They did this on September 12, now the Feast of the Holy Name of Mary.

The day which followed September 11, the end of Muslim expansion into Western civilization and marked the final (possibly) decline of the Muslim Empire.

That's why Muslim terrorists chose September 11th to attack perhaps the greatest symbol of Western economic power, the World Trade Center of New York City.

That's not all ...

The Winged Hussars returned miraculously to stop another anti-Christian army from spreading to the West: the Communist army of Russia. More on this below ...

The Communists' bullets actually began bouncing back at them when a massive apparition appeared in the sky ... as reported by the fleeing Russians themselves in newspaper reports.

The Siege of Vienna Painting in the Vatican

There is an amazing, massive painting depicting this victory in the Vatican Museums (which we saw recently on our family pilgrimage, YouTube video link coming soon).

There is also a replica tapestry of this painting in Czestochowa at the greatest Pope Saint John Paul II Museum in the world (again, YouTube video link coming soon). It took thousands of man-hours to create.

East vs. West: The Siege of Vienna by the Numbers

Western Europe and Christendom fought long and hard against the forces of Mordor ... I mean ... the Muslim Ottoman Empire (more on Mordor and Tolkien below). The Crusades were actually an amphibious assault behind enemy lines, similar to the Battle of Inchon in the Korean War.

Vienna was always the key to victory or collapse for the West ...

The First Siege of Vienna (1529)

The Attacker: Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent led over 100,000 Ottoman troops.

The Defense: Count Niklas Graf Salm defended the city with roughly 21,000 men.

The Outcome: Heavy autumn rains delayed Ottoman siege guns and caused supply shortages. The defenders held firm, forcing Suleiman to retreat into the winter snow.

The Second Siege and Battle of Vienna (1683)

The Attacker: Grand Vizier Kara Mustafa Pasha led an army of roughly 120,000 to 150,000 men to besiege the Habsburg capital. [1][2]

The Defense: Count Ernst Rüdiger von Starhemberg led a small garrison of 15,000 men after Emperor Leopold I fled. [1]

The Relief and Victory: A massive coalition relief army of 80,000 men, organized by Pope Innocent XI and led by Polish King John III Sobieski, arrived in September. [1][2]

The Turning Point: On September 12, 1683, Sobieski led a massive cavalry charge down the Kahlenberg Mountain, shattering the Ottoman forces and ending the siege. [1][2]

The Impact: The defeat halted Ottoman expansion into Europe and began the empire's long territorial decline. [1]

The Winged Hussars Actually Returned for Another Marian Miracle Almost 250 Years Later

Does this sounds familiar?

The West stands alone, undefended.

Calls for aid go unheeded.

Poland stands as the last barrier to an invading anti-Christian army bent on destroying Western civilization. The Communists, this time.

Suddenly, the charging from high above, the Winged Hussars appear ...

The Miracle of the Vistula or The Battle of Warsaw

Here's the video version of much of the above, plus the Miracle of the Vistula:

Vladimir Lenin and the Bolsheviks wanted to export communism into Central and Western Europe, primarily targeting Germany. By August 1920, the Red Army under Mikhail Tukhachevsky had reached the outskirts of Warsaw and seemed poised to capture the capital.

Polish cryptologists successfully decrypted secret radio communications of the Red Army, giving military command advance knowledge of enemy movements.

Nevertheless, just old men and boys were available to defend the city.

Polish Marshal Józef Piłsudski devised a bold counterattack plan, launching a fresh strike from the Wieprz River south of Warsaw while forces held the city's bridgehead.[1][2]

Hundreds of thousands of Polish volunteers—including students, peasants, and workers—rallied to defend the country.

A Miracle Appears in the Sky

Suddenly, Our Lady comes to Poland's aid. As she always has, always will.

Reports of a luminous, majestic female figure appearing in the night sky during the August 1920 Battle of Warsaw—widely known as the Miracle on the Vistula—come primarily from the oral accounts and interrogations of captured Bolshevik prisoners.[1][2][3]

Captured Red Army soldiers recounted seeing a glowing, larger-than-life female figure resembling the Black Madonna of Częstochowa in the clouds above the battlefield. Polish witnesses also recounted the Blessed Mother being flanked by the Winged Hussars.

Witnesses also claimed that Our Lady carried a shield that deflected artillery shells and bullets back toward Soviet positions.

The apparition allegedly struck profound terror into the attacking Bolshevik troops, causing entire units to break formation and flee in panic.[1][2]

The unexpected and crushing defeat forced the Red Army into a chaotic retreat, ending Soviet hopes for an immediate European revolution. [1]

The Battle of Warsaw is often listed by historians as one of the most pivotal battles of the 20th century, it preserved Polish sovereignty until 1939 the coming of Hitler.

Another Tolkien reference? This may also remind you of the Ghost Army that helped relieve the Siege of Minas Tirith in The Lord of the Rings, as well ... but the Winged Hussars were heroes, not accursed oath-breakers.

Speaking of Tolkien ...

How do Tolkien & The Lord of the Rings Connect to September 11th?

That cavalry charge of the Winged Hussars was the largest cavalry charge in world history. It relieved the Siege of Vienna

Does that remind you of anything from The Lord of the Rings?

The Ride of the Rohirrim, the massive cavalry charge of Rohan, relieved the Siege of Minas Tirith in the Battle of the Pelennor Fields.

The hordes of the East had surrounded the last bastion of the West. Should Minas Tirith or Vienna fall, all of the lands of the West would be wide open to attack.

I have never found an explicit reference connecting the Rohirrim charge with the 1683 Siege of Vienna and the charge of the Polish Winged Hussars. However, I am not alone in making this connection.[1][2][3]

Want more connections between Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings, and Christianity? Here's my bestselling book, The Lord of the Rings & The Eucharist, also now an audiobook:

Recap of all the Parallels: The Polish Winged Hussars and the Rohirrim relieving the Siege of Vienna and Minas Tirith, respectively

Last Hope: Just as Vienna called for aid and, initially, nobody answered, Gondor's call for aid also went unheeded, as King-Steward Denethor lamented so dramatically ... until the Hobbits lit the beacons of Minas Tirith. King Sobieski had allied himself Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I. Both sides promised to come to one's another aid if their capitals were threatened.

The Relief Force: Just as the Rohirrim arrive unexpectedly to lift the siege of Minas Tirith, the allied relief army led by King Jan III Sobieski arrived to break the Ottoman siege of Vienna.

The Good Leaders: Just as King Jan III Sobieski led the charge himself, King Theoden leads the charge of the Rohirrim.

The Cowardly Leaders: Just as Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I had fled before the battle, so also King Denethor despairs and commits suicide before the battle.

Turn of the Tide: Both events feature a massive, morale-shattering cavalry intervention arriving to turn the tide against an overwhelming besieging force.

Tolkien's Other Possible Sources

Tolkien's primary literary and academic inspirations are the Bible, as well as Germanic, Norse, and Anglo-Saxon myth and history.

Scholars generally agree that his battle scenes and culture for the Rohirrim drew heavily from sources like Beowulf and The Battle of Maldon.

There is also the the 5th-century Battle of the Catalaunian Plains. This battle includes a king named Theodoric (resembling Théoden) who fought alongside his allies.

With all the Marian figures in The Lord of the Rings, and as Catholic as Tolkien was, it is hard to imagine that the largest cavalry charge in human history, the origin of an entire Marian feast, was not the origin of the cavalry charge of the Rohirrim.

Conclusion: I hope this adds to our understanding of 9/11

I hope this adds to our understanding of 9/11 as part of a much larger, much longer-waged war between the Christianity and the besiegers of the Church.

I also really hope that more people will see 9/11 as more than just a number, but a date pointing to September 12th and the Feast of the Holy Name of Mary.

Marian Apparition to Schismatic Germany: The Prophecy of St. Michael Splitting the Globe, Vatican Announces Investigation

2026-08-21T05:31:00.418-05:00

The Vatican is now officially investigating the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Michael, and the Infant of Prague to a woman in a little town in Germany called Sievernich. Catholic mystic Manuela Strack has received two separate waves of apparitions since 2000. Among the most recent visions, which continue to the present day, is a disturbing prophecy of the breaking of the earth.

Pope Benedict XVI Promoted the Sievernich Apparitions

Pope Benedict XVI, while he was still a German cardinal, was among the first believers in these apparitions. The future pope personally delivered a message from the Sievernich seer to then-Pope John Paul II.

The Blessed Mother and the Infant of Prague have been appearing, allegedly, to Catholic mystic Manuela Strack, born in 1967 from a town near Sievernich, Germany. Sievernich is a town of barely 500 inhabitants located between Cologne and Aachen and within the Diocese of Aachen.

The first wave of apparitions began in 2000 in the parish church of St. John the Baptist, though Manuela's visions possibly go all the way back to her childhood. This wave of apparitions lasted from 2000 to 2005, and included messages from Jesus Christ, as the Infant of Prague, as well as the Blessed Mother, St. Teresa of Avila and other saints.

The second cycle of apparitions began in 2018 and continue to the present day.

A Woman Dressed all in White

According to Manuela's accounts, the Virgin is said to have appeared to her dressed entirely in white and with a long veil reaching the floor. Among the messages attributed to these alleged apparitions, two main ideas were repeated: the call to intensify prayer and Mary’s closeness to those who suffer.

The message of the apparitions square with the messages of past Marian apparitions. However, Our Lady also provides apocalyptic warnings, which will be described below, similar to those of Fatima.

Mary's Message to the German Schismatics

Sievernich is a small town in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, which is about 50 kilometers west of Cologne.

Coincidentally, the German schismatic movements are active across major German dioceses, including Frankfurt, Munich, and Cologne. These movements, based on the "Synodal Path" (Synodaler Weg), advocate changes like decentralizing church authority, ordination of women, and same-sex blessings.

Such schismatic ideas correspond to the warnings of the Blessed Mother.

The Second Cycle of Our Lady's Messages to Manuela

The messages received in the first cycle of apparitions emphasize the importance of the sacraments, the loss of faith in Europe, the dangers of modernism, and a re-affirmation of the events predicted at Fatima. These are in line with other serious prophetic sources. Our Lady specifically warns against the errors of modernism, which undermine or attack the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist.

The Second Cycle of apparitions began on November 5, 2018 with a visit of the Infant of Prague.

Recently, messages from Jesus and St. Michael the Archangel have repeatedly warned against all the following, which are relevant to Germany as well as the rest of the world:

Legislation contrary to God's law, in particular laws favoring abortion
The threat of revisionist German theology
The abdication of responsibility by the priests and clergy

More specifically, the visions predicted a series of world-wide events, including the following:

The burning of Notre Dame in Paris in 2019
Message of April 25, 2021: Armed conflict involving the United States, Russia and Ukraine that could endanger the whole world
Message of December 2019: Announcement of "three difficult years" to come.

A Prophecy of Cataclysm

On February 25, 2023, an apparition of the King of Mercy contained a prophecy so dramatic and sensational that all mankind is moved to conversion.

Here are Manuela's notes from that day:

A large golden sphere of light floats in the sky above us. This is accompanied by two more smaller spheres of light. We are all immersed in a golden light. Then we—and our country Germany—are bathed in a reddish light. The large golden sphere of light opens and the King of Mercy comes to us in Prague form. The merciful infant Jesus wears a large golden crown. His eye color is blue. He wears dark-brown hair with short curls and a violet robe as well as a violet mantle. The robe and the mantle are embroidered with golden lily tendrils, but their flowers are closed. In His right hand he holds a large golden scepter and in His left hand the Vulgate, the Holy Scripture. Now the other two spheres of light open. One angel from each–i.e. two angels–emerges from each of them. They are clothed in a plain white robe and spread the mantle of the Lord over us like a tent. The Lord blesses us: “In the name of the Father and of the Son—that is Me—and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Lord grants me a few personal words about the Casa Misericordia. Then He tells me that the color of His mantle and robe is ‘purple.’ (translator’s note: alluding to emperors and cardinals). It looks violet to me.
The King of Mercy speaks to us: ‘Dear friends, be blessed in this Holy Lent. Truly it is a time of penance for you. Prayer, sacrifice, penance! So that Satan may not lead you into a war. I have told you how you can prevent a war in your country. Stay true to me and my word! Have mercy on the people who became victims of the war. Today I have come to give you consolation. I do not abandon you. My Most Holy Mother does not abandon you.
The Holy Scripture in the hand of the King of Mercy is opened by an invisible hand and I see the Bible passage: Heb. 10:19 ff. The Word of God shines down to us from the Vulgate, the Holy Scripture. It is a wonderful light.
The heavenly King speaks to us: ‘Do not let yourself be unsettled. Pray: “Jesus, I trust in you!” The Eternal Father has His plan. Even if people establish a lukewarm church, it will be without mercy.’
Here the Lord spoke to me personally about the term 'lukewarm'. It can be found in the Holy Scriptures in Revelation.
The gracious infant Jesus continues: ‘Hold fast to the Word of the Eternal Father, to My Word, to the Holy Scripture. Anything else will go astray. Anything else means Eternal Death. The time of persecution has come. Therefore, it is important that you pray, sacrifice, do penance, and live in sanctifying grace. This is the only way you can stand the test of time that is ahead of you. If you listen to My Word, you will be able to stand the test well, because I will guide you through this time. I told you, St. Michael will touch the earth with his sword.
Look! ...

Continued in the next section.

The Prophecy of the Sword of St. Michael Splitting the Earth

The Sword of St. Michael is an amazing series of apparitions of St. Michael and converted pagan temples stretching from Skellig Michael, across Europe, and ending at Jerusalem. The legend is that this is the path Satan took when St. Michael struck him down into hell.

Manuela continues, writing that "in the mantle of the King of Mercy" she sees the following:

Saint Michael the Archangel floats down to earth from heaven with his sword and makes a cut on the earth with his sword. This cut is in the north of Russia and also affects the Arctic Circle. (Later I see on the map of Russia that exactly where the cut of the sword runs through, there is a city in the north of Russia, dedicated to the Archangel Michael, called Arkhangelsk. However, the cut of the Archangel goes beyond this city.) Russia is covered with green paint.
Then suddenly the earth as a whole shakes. Continents disappear. New continents emerge. I see large rifts on the globe. A big rift in Russia. A great rift in the eastern countries and Africa. It looks to me as if something is breaking away from Italy. There are also large earth rifts in America and South America. America in land and South America on and even in the water. Fire and water work everywhere at the same time. Flood and fire. Mountain ranges also change. This all happens at the time of war. Nevertheless, the King of Mercy holds His golden scepter over some people and I see that this is His protection. The Lord comes near to me and says in a gentle voice: "This has to happen. Have no fear!"
Then He takes His Scepter to His Heart and it becomes the aspergill of His Sacred Heart, filled with His Precious Blood. He especially blesses the children and the sick, even those who have come from far away and those who think of Him in the distance: "In the name of the Father and of the Son—that is Me—and of the Holy Spirit. Amen."
Manuela then tells Jesus: "Lord, when all this comes, please think of us! I can only bear this because You said that You guide us and that You protect the people who call on You."
The Heavenly King looks at all of us and asks to pray the following: "O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fire of hell, lead all souls to heaven, especially those who are most in need of your mercy."
The gracious child Jesus says: "Adieu!"
Manuela responds: "Adieu, Lord, adieu!"
Then the heavenly King says: "Saint Michael the Archangel will come to you. He is not coming to punish you."
Manuela says: "I know, my Lord. I will tell people in March."
Then the Lord goes back into the light, as do the angels. The spheres of light close and disappear in the sky.

So, what does this all mean? Does it relate to the conflict between Russia and the Ukraine? Or perhaps a symbolic image of the supernatural reality of schism, splitting the worldwide Church?

The greater message is to pray and fast, seeking deeper conversion and holiness for the whole world, uniting our hard work to the King of Mercy.

The Vatican Investigation

German diocese of Aachen has established an investigative commission to officially examine the alleged Marian apparitions that began in the early 2000s in Sievernich.

The decision falls within the new norms approved by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith to evaluate supposed supernatural phenomena.

According to the Catholic news agency KNA, Bishop Helmut Dieser has now appointed a commission to study the events of Sievernich. The group is made up of four experts and will be chaired by Stefan Mückl. Mückl is a jurist specializing in canon law and Church-State relations and an academic based in Rome.

New & Old Vatican Norms for Investigating the Supernatural

A diocesan spokesperson explained that the procedure is based on the norms published two years ago by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith for the discernment of alleged supernatural phenomena.

These provisions are intended to offer greater legal and pastoral certainty for examining cases of apparitions, private revelations, or other phenomena of a supposedly supernatural nature.

With the creation of this commission, the Diocese of Aachen is opening a formal phase of study on the testimonies linked to Sievernich, a place that for years attracted numerous pilgrims from various regions of Germany.

The mere opening of the investigation does not equate to a stamp of authenticity by the Church. Such a statement would likely not be possible until the apparitions, which are ongoing, come to a close.

As in such cases, the ecclesiastical authority must examine the events, the attributed messages, the spiritual fruits, the conduct of those involved, and any element that may help determine whether the phenomenon can be considered in accordance with the Catholic faith.

The Church recalls that private revelations, even when officially recognized, do not belong to the deposit of faith and do not bind the faithful. Their eventual value must always be understood as subordinate to public Revelation, which was concluded with Christ and transmitted through Sacred Scripture and Tradition alone.

Did the Blessed Virgin Mary May Just Appear at Fr. Mark Beard's Retreat Center? PHOTOS of Mary at Our Lady of Hope in Chatawa, Mississippi

2026-08-16T21:19:05.426-05:00

This just in! This just happened yesterday ...

I received these pictures from a retreat hosted by Kittie Cleveland at Our Lady of Hope in Chatawa, Mississippi. This occurred the evening of the Feast of the Assumption.

These images below were taken hours apart, from approximately 9pm to 11pm, following a Eucharistic healing service hosted by Fr. Michael Voithofer of Ablaze Ministries.

This is the first known image taken at approximately 9pm:

A WORD OF CAUTION: Several reviewers of the photographic evidence are citing internal lens reflection as the cause for the images formed behind the statue.

Here are two more photographs taken a couples hours later at approximately 11pm taken by a second and third photographer:

Notice how the apparition appears to be moving. The photographs are all from different angles.

This is such a Fr. Beard move!!

The ladies who took these photographs only noticed the Blessed Mother afterwards, after reviewing their photographs

Here is the statue in the daylight. You can see that (1) the coloring of Mary's garments is different from the apparition, and (2) it's not a photographic negative:

St. Joseph Was NOT Silent in Scripture, So What Did He Say? The Hidden Meaning of St. Joseph's Statement in the Bible

2026-08-03T16:41:06.690-05:00

There is something very strange about the hiddenness of St. Joseph. He has, for so long, remained a hidden figure in the Bible. Misjudged, misunderstood, mis-aged, even mis-quoted!

Don’t forget to check out my books on St. Joseph, the Blessed Mother, and the Holy Family … There’s 33 Days to the Holy Family, A Consecration to Jesus, Mary, and Joseph and Consecration to St. Joseph for Children and Families, also co-authored with Fr. Donald Calloway:

Why is St. Joseph Always Mis-Quoted?

Look at this. It’s a wonderfully tender moment. The old man Joseph cradling the infant Jesus. It’s beautiful! BUT … it’s all wrong!

This perfectly illustrates our misunderstanding of St. Joseph.

Old vs. Young St. Joseph?

For the first millennium plus of Christianity, St. Joseph was hidden beneath a mask of old age. Even now, a good chunk of the faithful still see St. Joseph as a very old man. All of the Eastern Orthodox churches believe this. They hold with the early tradition that St. Joseph was pushing nearly a hundred when Jesus was conceived.

The “Old Joseph” tradition originated in the Protoevangelium of St. James, which was not written by St. James. This early text portrayed St. Joseph as an extremely old man, a figure like Abraham the Patriarch, to reinforce the perpetual virginity of the Blessed Mother. It was purposefully not included in the Bible. Yet, curiously, it did become part of the Koran, the holy text of Islam.

All this aside, Scripture actually provides an age range for St. Joseph. I’m writing my doctoral dissertation on this, so I will endeavor to be brief. The first chapter of the Gospel of St. Luke makes a distinction between the old age of Zechariah and the relative youth of St. Joseph. St. Luke describes Zechariah as an “old man” (Gk. presbytes), but uses a completely different word to describe Joseph (Gk. andres).

If you want the full Scriptural proof of this argument, I’ve written this article (though still shorter than my dissertation):

Conclusion?

St. Joseph was a relatively young man – in his 30s or 40s, maybe even 33(!) – when Jesus was born.

St. Joseph never said anything in Scripture, right?

So why hide St. Joseph beneath a mask of old age? This is mysterious. I don’t think this is occurring by accident. Heaven, as always, is being deliberate.

Why? Old age is just one way that St. Joseph is being hidden. Unconsciously or not, we have also been muting St. Joseph. It’s like mankind has had a giant blind spot for St. Joseph, one left unchecked and unnoticed for 2,000 years.

St. Joseph is the quiet saint, right? Strong and silent, like all men should be, right? As the popular meme goes, our favorite Bible quote from St. Joseph is “…” (See image at the top of this article).

St. Joseph never said anything in Scripture, right?

Wrong.

St. Joseph’s Does Say a Word in Scripture, Exactly One Word

St. Joseph says precisely one word in the Bible. Just one. Sure, he is not exactly loquacious. But he is not silent.

It’s right there in black and white, clear as crystal.

In the first chapter of Matthew, the angel says St. Joseph will “call” the name of Jesus. This precise phrasing is meaningful, as we will discuss in a moment:

But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” (Matthew 1:20-21)

Then, a few verses later, St. Joseph “calls the name” of his child:

When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took his wife, but knew her not until she had borne a son; and he called his name Jesus. (Matthew 1:24-25)

Wait! They “called” Him Jesus. That just means they called him Jesus because Jesus is His name. Right? No, there’s something more going on here.

Zechariah, the Truly Mute One

Think about Zechariah, the father of St. John the Baptist:

If we’re talking about someone being silent, Zechariah was the mute one. God smote him mute … until the moment when he called his son’s name.

As above, he is first told to “call his name John”:

But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechari′ah, for your prayer is heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.

Then, a few verses later, Zechariah “calls” the name:

And on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child; and they would have named him Zechari′ah after his father, but his mother said, “Not so; he shall be called John.” And they said to her, “None of your kindred is called by this name.” And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he would have him called. And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, “His name is John.” And they all marveled. (Luke 1:59-63)

Did you notice what’s going on here? What ceremony is occurring?

Speaking the Name to Make a New Covenant

According to Jewish law, it is the right and responsibility of the father to name the child, to call the name of the child at the circumcision. This occurs during the brit milah, “the covenant of circumcision.” This is described in the Mishnah, Tractate Shabbat, Chapter 19.[1]

The Hebrew word brit (בְּרִית) means covenant. Now, the naming and circumcision ceremony is typically called the bris, a Yiddish word.

Wait … a Covenant? Yes. A New Covenant. Through His parents, Jesus is making covenant with God and the children of Abraham. But long before the Last Supper. Jesus first makes the new covenant at His circumcision.

What’s more — Jesus shed blood at His circumcision. That one, small drop of blood was enough to redeem ALL mankind. But Jesus didn’t stop until He had bled ALL of His blood at Calvary.

St. Thomas Aquinas tells us, "Lord Jesus, Good Pelican, wash me, unclean, with your blood, one drop of which can free the entire world of all its sins."

Now, behold the father of the man …

Now, enter the man, who at this new and first covenant made in the blood of Jesus, during which God could have saved all mankind — the man, who is given the responsibility of calling the Name “Jesus,” which means, “God saves!”

With One Word, St. Joseph is the Herald of the Kingdom of Heaven

The brit milah occurred at the end of eight days, as described in Luke 2:21:

And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.

Following the brit milah ceremony, there is a celebratory meal called the birkat hamazon. According to the Eastern Asheknazic rite, this meal includes prayers of petition, the Nodeh Leshimcha, which ask God to send the Messiah speedily for the merit of the mitzvah of circumcision and to send Elijah the prophet, known as “The Righteous Priest”, so that God’s covenant can be fulfilled with the re-establishment of the throne of King David.

At the Circumcision of Jesus, both of these are fulfilled at the hearing of these prayers. King David’s heir, St. Joseph, may have prayed this for his son, the New David.

Baptism is the New Circumcision

Much of the brit milah is retained in the Rite of Baptism, which St. Paul describes as the new circumcision: “In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of flesh in the circumcision of Christ” (Colossians 2:11).

St. Joseph, First to Publicly Proclaim the Gospel

So what is St. Joseph’s one word in Scripture? The Name of his son. But this is no ordinary name …

This is not a small thing. St. Joseph provides the Name at which “every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10-11).

St. Joseph provides the Name by which all men are saved, “for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

St. Joseph provides the Name which will be born on the Cross.

Also, “Jesus” isn’t just a name or even THE Name. It is a sentence. “God saves.” It’s an announcement. It’s a proclamation.

St. Joseph did not just proclaim a name, as great as that Name is. He proclaimed the Gospel. “God saves.” That makes St. Joseph the first one to publicly announce the Gospel. St. Joseph announced that the Savior is here before St. John the Baptist even began to announce His coming.

The moment that all the prophets had foretold, the moment all the world had been awaiting – in one word, St. Joseph declared that moment had come.

As in all things St. Joseph, this momentous announcement was hidden. The announcement was veiled within the Name. It was part of the Messianic secret. St. Joseph concealed this, even as he concealed the Virgin Birth from the world and even from Satan. Wait, what did you just say? Read more about this part of St. Joseph’s mission HERE:

We are just now beginning to unveil St. Joseph. We will quickly find, as we do with St. Joseph’s Most Blessed wife, there are many more mysteries here than we reckoned. There is the timing of the death of St. Joseph. There is the hidden kingship of St. Joseph, the rightful ruler of Israel. There is the mysterious Baptism (read: Coronation) of Jesus.

Another Layer of Meaning: St. Joseph Speaks the Word in Image of God, the Father

Here’s one last layer of meaning, though there is much more. I actually wrote all the above just to get to this part.

When St. Joseph speaks his one word in Scripture, he is being presented as an image. An image of whom?

St. Joseph was specially created and chosen by God the Father to be His earthly image for His Son. St. John Eudes praises Saint Joseph as the “image of God the Father.”[2]

Just as St. Joseph speaks one word, the word by which all men are saved, God the Father speaks the Word, the same Word through whom all men are saved and through whom all things are created.

This is sublime. St. Joseph speaks one word that both names his son and his son’s saving mission. God the Father speaks the Word, which is the Son of the God. And it’s the same Son, the same person. The Word of God became flesh and was named by the word of St. Joseph.

“God numbers all the stars; He calls us each by name” (Psalm 147:4, Isaiah 40:26).

God the Father names each of us, and He calls us by name. St. Joseph is the only man to ever provide God with a name.

At the burning bush, God gave Moses His own Name. This was a tremendous honor for Moses. That God would reveal His Name to mankind was an honor above all honors.

The gift of God’s Name was so special that it was given it’s own dwelling place, which was to be the greatest edifice in Jewish history, the Temple. Take, for example, Deuteronomy 16:5-7: “You may not offer the passover sacrifice within any of your towns which the Lord your God gives you; but at the place which the Lord your God will choose, to make his name dwell in it, there you shall offer the passover sacrifice, in the evening at the going down of the sun, at the time you came out of Egypt.”

Further, the proper Name of God (YHWH or JHVH) was only permitted to be spoken once a year by the high priest in the Holy of Holies.

Now, St. Joseph is speaking the Name, the great honor reserved to the High Priest, before the New Holy of Holies, the Blessed Mother, to consecrate the New Temple, Jesus’ own Body.

That God’s own Name would become man within the Virgin Mary and submit Itself to being named by a man is shocking. It is a sublime dignity that God would so humble Himself to allow a man to name Him. And yet, for St. Joseph to do so is to image God the Father.

So, Why Have We Called St. Joseph Silent?

So why, considering all this, considering the sublime importance of Joseph’s single word – why would we call, nay accuse, St. Joseph of being mute in Scripture? It is Zechariah that is punished by God with muteness, not Joseph!

Why? I think it is God’s plan. Just as it was orchestrated by God that Jesus’ identity would be concealed by Joseph and not fully revealed until Jesus died, when Satan would finally realize his great mistake – so, too, God is orchestrating the gradual revealing of Joseph’s identity. And again, Satan will not see it coming.

Our Lady of Fatima provides us this answer, too. There will be a final battle between Satan and the Church over the family. St. Joseph will be revealed to have a great purpose in this battle and a great purpose with the family. God is immutable. What He did, He does, He will do, and He has ever done. What God did with the Holy Family in the first century, He will do in the last century, as well. St. Joseph will have great importance, as an image of masculinity and fatherhood, for the last battle.

If you could only have one word … If you would be known forever for just one word … If you were given just one word on the subject, on all subjects … what would it be?

As for me, I would quote St. Joseph.

Footnotes on the Not-Silent St. Joseph

[1] Mishnah translations from Sefaria:

Mishnah, Tractate Shabbat, Chapter 19:

Sections (Mishnayot) 1-4 also discuss circumcision.

Mishnayot 5. Although a child is generally circumcised at eight days, as the verse states: “And on the eighth day, the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised” (Leviticus 12:3), nevertheless, at times he is circumcised at nine days, at times at ten days, at eleven days, and at twelve days, no earlier and no later. How so? In his usual manner, a child is circumcised at eight days. If he was born at twilight and it is therefore uncertain on which day he was born, he is circumcised at nine days, as his circumcision is postponed due to that uncertainty, as perhaps the eighth day from his birth has not yet arrived. If he was born at twilight on Shabbat eve, he is not circumcised on the following Shabbat, due to the uncertainty whether it is the eighth or ninth day since his birth, and only a circumcision definitely performed at the appointed time overrides Shabbat. Rather, he is circumcised on Sunday, and the result is that he is circumcised at ten days. If there was a Festival after that Shabbat, he is not circumcised on the Festival either, and he is circumcised at eleven days. And if that Shabbat was followed by two days of Rosh HaShana, the result is that he is circumcised at twelve days. The mishna states another halakha: With regard to a sick child, one does not circumcise him until he becomes healthy.

[2] “Joseph, the Image of God the Father,” by Joshua Francis Filipetto, November 22, 2021, Catholic Insight, LINK

The Shocking Way the Passover Lambs were Slaughtered ... Exactly Like Jesus: Every Sorrowful Mystery Connects to the Passover Lambs

2026-07-29T12:59:37.480-05:00

I’ve been teaching classes on the Eucharist for years. Researching the Jewish Passover liturgy for years. And slowly, ever so slowly, I have been piecing together some incredible connections between the slaughter of Jesus and the Passover Lamb. It just keeps going deeper and deeper …

It is still not widely known — even with the Church Fathers discussing it and great books like Dr. Brant Pitre’s The Jewish Roots of the Eucharist — that the Passover lambs were crucified just like Jesus. And all the implications!

But there’s more … and this is what has taken so long to piece together … every Sorrowful Mystery — the Agony in the Garden, the Scourging at the Pillar, the Crowning with Thorns, the Carrying of the Cross, AND the Crucifixion — they ALL match the sacrifice of the Passover lambs. ALL of them.

I’ve finally made a video presentation putting all this together:

“Behold, the Lamb of God!” (John 1:29) St. John the Baptist tell us, and that’s exactly what I intend to do.

Here’s a preview of everything discussed in the video linked above:

A River of Blood and Water, Just Like From the Side of Jesus

Enough Blood to Fill the Entire Temple!

Josephus, a First Century Jewish priest and historian, reports that 256,500 lambs would have been slaughtered every Passover during the time of Jesus.

» Here’s the link to this part of the video presentation.

AND all 256,500 lambs were slaughtered IN THE TEMPLE. First, the Temple priests would drain all that blood. A literal river of blood and water flowing from the side of the Temple — which Jesus described as His own body, from which, when pierced, will flow a river of blood and water!

How much blood are we talking about? A LOT. Enough to fill the entire Temple.

The 1st Sorrowful Mystery: The Agony in the Garden

Jesus praying in the garden. He’s about to fix what happened in the original garden. And he’s praying again in the Garden of Gethsemane.

If you’re familiar with the geography of Jerusalem, Jesus in on the edge of the Kidron Valley. Looking across the Kidron Valley, Jesus would have been able to see directly into the outer courts of the Temple, and even to where the flocks of sheep were being kept in preparation for their slaughter the next day.

The 2nd Sorrowful Mystery: The Scourging at the Pillar

The Passover Lambs, after their blood was drained, needed to be skinned and dressed for roasting. They weren’t just skinned — they were scourged at the pillar!

» Here’s the link to this part of the video presentation.

The lambs were scourged at the pillar, just like Jesus!

And note the two men in the bottom-right hand corner of the image above. There were only so many places at the pillars to skin the lambs. If you could not find a spot, two of your friends would hold a post across their shoulders, and the lamb would hang between them for you to skin.

The lamb would hang between two men … just like the Lamb of God hung between two thieves!

The 3rd Sorrowful Mystery: The Crowning with Thorns

God says to Abraham at Genesis 22: 9-14: “‘Do not lay your hand on the lad or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.’ And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold …” the lamb of God.

The same words that St. John the Baptist used could be used here.

The scene continues, “Behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns; and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called the name of that place The Lord will provide; as it is said to this day, ‘On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.’”

The ram — a male lamb — is caught by his horns in a thorn bush! The lamb is wearing a CROWN of THORNS, just like Jesus!

Not only that …

Abraham called the name of that place “The Lord will provide,” also translated God Himself will provide the lamb. Because at that very same location, 2,000 years later, God will provide Himself as the lamb of sacrifice.

» Here’s the link to this part of the video presentation.

It’s the same location!

We still have the stone where Abraham was to sacrifice Isaac. It’s called the Foundation Stone, and is now covered by the Muslim Dome of the Rock. Mt. Calvary or Golgotha are right next door! AND right next door to the temple!

See all this in the image below:

The 4th & 5th Sorrowful Mysteries: The Carrying of the Cross & the Crucifixion

The Jews actually crucified the Passover lambs!!

» Here’s the link to this part of the video presentation.

The lambs were crucified in a two-step process:

Mishna Pesahim 5:9: The Jews would drive “thin smooth staves” of wood through the lamb’s shoulders to hang and skin it

Mishna Pesahim 7:1: The Jews would also “thrust” a “skewer of pomegranate wood” through the Passover lamb “from its mouth to its buttocks”

It's not just me saying this, by the way. This ultimately comes from the Church Fathers. Here is St. Justin Martyr on the Crucifixion of the Lambs [Dialogue with Trypho, Ch. 40, (110-165)]:

The mystery, then, of the lamb which God enjoined to be sacrificed as the Passover, was a type of Christ; with whose blood, in proportion to their faith in Him, they anoint their houses, i.e., themselves, who believe on Him. For that the creation which God created—to wit, Adam—was a house for the spirit which proceeded from God, you all can understand. And that this injunction was temporary, I prove thus. God does not permit the lamb of the Passover to be sacrificed in any other place than where His name was named; knowing that the days will come, after the suffering of Christ, when even the place in Jerusalem shall be given over to your enemies, and all the offerings, in short, shall cease; and that lamb which was commanded to be wholly roasted was a symbol of the suffering of the cross which Christ would undergo. For the lamb, which is roasted, is roasted and dressed up in the form of the cross. For one spit is transfixed right through from the lower parts up to the head, and one across the back, to which are attached the legs of the lamb. And the two goats which were ordered to be offered during the fast, of which one was sent away as the scape [goat], and the other sacrificed, were similarly declarative of the two appearances of Christ [Ecce Homo & Crucifixion]: the first, in which the elders of your people, and the priests, having laid hands on Him and put Him to death, sent Him away as the scape [goat]; and His second appearance, because in the same place in Jerusalem you shall recognize Him whom you have dishonored, and who was an offering for all sinners willing to repent, and keeping the fast which Isaiah speaks of, loosening the terms of the violent contracts, and keeping the other precepts, likewise enumerated by him, and which I have quoted, which those believing in Jesus do. And further, you are aware that the offering of the two goats, which were enjoined to be sacrificed at the fast, was not permitted to take place similarly anywhere else, but only in Jerusalem.

"Do This in Remembrance of Me"

Finally, this celebration of the Passover, the slaughter and crucifixion and eating of the lambs, was to last FOREVER. An everlasting covenant!

The terms “memorial” or “remembrance” are used in Exodus (12:14), just as Jesus says "Do this in remembrance of me" (Lk 22:19). "Remembrance" is Anamnesis (ἀνάμνησις) in Greek. It means making a past event present and real again rather than just a simple mental thought or recollection.

It's not just a memory recalled. It's time travel!

We are not re-sacrificing Jesus. We are bringing the Passover of 33AD to today.

As St. Paul says, “Christ our Passover lamb has been sacrificed. Therefore, let us keep the feast!” (1 Cor 5:7-8).

So, how do we eat the Passover lambs today? How do we keep the feast?

There's only ONE way. We have to really eat Jesus, God's Passover Lamb, body, blood, soul, and divinity. Not just a symbol of Jesus' flesh. Jesus' real body, real flesh, and real blood.

The Eucharist! The Real Presence of the body, blood, soul, and divinity of the Lamb of God, Jesus. Read more HERE.

The Greats #8 - St. Louis Marie de Montfort, Pt. 1, Priest of Mary

2026-05-08T20:17:00.000-05:00

St. Louis is a great among The Greats!

I read his biography Wisdom’s Fool by Eddie Doherty about four times for this podcast. I’ve also read his masterpiece True Devotion a few times, too … and consecrated myself every year for a decade plus.

So “total” immersion into St. Louis.

Also, if you want a ebook copy of Wisdom’s Fool, scroll to the bottom …

Here's the new episode of The Greats on St. Louis de Montfort:

Here is the key to St. Louis’ whole spirituality:

I’m Leading a St. Louis de Montfort Pilgrimage to France!

Join me in following the footsteps of St. Louis de Montfort in this episode of The Greats AND in real life! ⁠Register here⁠ for the 2027 pilgrimage I'm leading to France "In the Footsteps of St. Louis de Montfort"!

St. Louis de Montfort & the Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary

In this podcast, we go through all the figures that inspired St. Louis to create the Total Consecration.

Don’t know what the “Total Consecration” or “Marian Consecration” is? Here’s an article about that.

St. Louis prophesied in life that Consecration and the book it comes from, True Devotion, would be buried:

I clearly foresee that raging beasts will come in fury to tear to pieces with their diabolical teeth this little book... or they will cause it at least to lie hidden in the darkness and silence of a chest... They will even attack and persecute those who read it...

Almost ten years ago, I created an easier-to-read translation of St. Louis’ consecration. You can read/pray/use/find my new translation of St. Louis’ Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary - ⁠available here.

The Hallow app used my book to make a consecration featuring Sr. Miriam James Heidland, SOLT. And, if you can believe it …

Almost 300,000 have consecrated themselves to Jesus through Mary through the book. THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND. Plus, millions of prayers prayed.

Isn’t it incredible how the Blessed Virgin Mary can multiply and magnify our works?

All the Articles on St. Louis de Montfort!

» What is a Marian Consecration? St. Louis de Montfort’s Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary

LINK

» The Guide to the Our Father Prayer from St. Louis de Montfort

LINK

» The Immutability of God, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and You

LINK

The Greats Biography Reading Count

Biography #8 of 1000

This isn’t counting re-reads, like I read Tyranowski’s biography three times to prepare the podcast … and I must’ve read Wisdom’s Fool (St. Louis de Montfort’s bio) at least 4 times, maybe more. Wow.

Chapters

Table of Contents:
00:00:00 - St. Louis de Montfort: A Martyr’s Desire
00:01:04 - Introduction to St. Louis de Montfort
00:01:37 - Personal Connection and Pilgrimage Plans
00:02:51 - Countering Jansenism in 17th Century France
00:04:06 - The Impact of St. Louis de Montfort on the Vendée
00:05:32 - The Prophetic Nature of His Writings
00:06:35 - The Concept of Slavery to Mary
00:08:13 - Childhood Influences and Devotion
00:09:16 - The Significance of the Duck Legend
00:11:01 - Family Background and Early Life
00:12:36 - Education and Early Spiritual Development
00:14:24 - Experiences with Poverty and Service
00:17:02 - Journey to Major Seminary
00:19:07 - Life at Saint-Sulpice Seminary
00:21:04 - The Role of the Dead in His Ministry
00:23:43 - Health Struggles and Spiritual Growth
00:25:09 - Ordination and Early Priesthood
00:27:05 - Meeting Madame de Montespan
00:29:32 - The Influence of Madame de Montespan
00:31:18 - Consecration to Mary
00:32:54 - The Role of Mary in His Spirituality
00:34:31 - The Encounter with the Abbess
00:36:59 - Testing Charity and Humility
00:39:22 - Missionary Work in Nantes
00:41:46 - Challenges in the Community of St. Clement
00:43:14 - Struggles with Acceptance in Nantes
00:45:30 - The Role of the Poor in His Ministry
00:47:05 - Building a Community of Faith
00:49:12 - Confronting Challenges in His Mission
00:51:00 - The Importance of the Rosary
00:53:15 - St. Louis de Montfort’s Writings
00:55:40 - The Legacy of His Teachings
00:57:30 - The Impact of His Devotion to Mary
00:59:45 - Reflections on His Life and Mission
01:02:00 - The Spiritual Warfare He Faced
01:04:20 - The Role of Suffering in His Journey
01:06:10 - The Influence of His Early Experiences
01:08:30 - The Call to Evangelization
01:10:45 - The Significance of His Pilgrimages
01:12:00 - The Connection to the Vendée

Thank you for your help, dear subscriber!

Click here to download your free ebook copy of Wisdom’s Fool by Eddie Doherty, St. Louis Marie de Montfort biography.

The Guide to the Our Father Prayer from St. Louis de Montfort

2026-04-07T10:54:00.002-05:00

I've been immersing myself recently in the books and biographies of St. Louis de Montfort. I had this opportunity after Conor Gallagher of TAN books invited me on his show to talk about St. Louis de Montfort, which was a great opportunity.

One of the books I've been re-reading is the same book I've been offering for over ten years now to those who subscribe to this blog: The Secret of the Rosary.

The Secret of the Rosary has a bunch of great sections, but the section on the "Our Father" really stands out. I thought I would share this with you ...

The Secret of the Rosary is divided into "Roses", instead of chapters. St. Louis de Montfort calls the full 15-mystery Rosary a crown of roses for the Blessed Mother. Each bead is a rose. The 12th Rose of The Secret of the Rosary is on the "Our Father".

Twelfth Rose: The "Our Father" Part One

36. The Our Father or the Lord's Prayer derives its great value above all from its author, who is neither a man nor an angel, but the King of angels and of men, our Lord Jesus Christ. St. Cyprian says it was necessary that he who came to give us the life of grace as our Savior should teach us the way to pray as our heavenly Master.

The beautiful order, the tender forcefulness and the clarity of this divine prayer pay tribute to our divine Master's wisdom. It is a short prayer but can teach us so very much, and it is well within the grasp of uneducated people, while scholars find it a continual source of investigation into the mysteries of God.

A Summary of the New Testament

The Our Father contains all the duties we owe to God, the acts of all the virtues and the petitions for all our spiritual and corporal needs. Tertullian says that the Our Father is a summary of the New Testament. Thomas a Kempis says that it surpasses all the desires of all the saints; that it is a condensation of all the beautiful sayings of all the psalms and canticles; that in it we ask God for everything that we need, that by it we praise him in the very best way; that by it we lift up our souls from earth to heaven and unite them closely to God.

37. St. John Chrysostom says that we cannot be our Master's disciples unless we pray as he did and in the way that he showed us. Moreover, God the Father listens more willingly to the prayer that we have learned from his Son rather than those of our own making, which have all our human limitations.

We should say the Our Father with the certitude that the eternal Father will hear us because it is the prayer of his Son, whom he always hears, and because we are his members. God will surely grant our petitions made through the Lord's Prayer because it is impossible to imagine that such a good Father could refuse a request couched in the language of so worthy a Son, reinforced by his merits, and made at his behest.

Praying “Our Father” to Forgive Venial Sins

St. Augustine assures us that whenever we say the Our Father devoutly our venial sins are forgiven. The just man falls seven times, and in the Lord's Prayer he will find seven petitions which will both help him to avoid lapses and protect him from his spiritual enemies. Our Lord, knowing how weak and helpless we are, and how many difficulties we endure, made his prayer short and easy to say, so that if we say it devoutly and often, we can be sure that God will quickly come to our aid.

38. I have a word for you, devout souls who pay little attention to the prayer that the Son of God gave us himself and asked us all to say: It is high time for you to change your way of thinking. You only esteem prayers that men have written, as though anybody, even the most inspired man in the whole world, could possibly know more about how we ought to pray than Jesus Christ himself! You look for prayers in books written by other men almost as though you were ashamed of saying the prayer that our Lord told us to say.

Don’t Look Down on the Lord’s Prayer

You have managed to convince yourself that the prayers in those books are for scholars and for the rich, and that the Rosary is only for women and children and the poor people. As if the prayers and praises you have been reading were more beautiful and more pleasing to God than those which are to be found in the Lord's Prayer! It is a very dangerous temptation to lose interest in the prayer that our Lord gave us and to take up prayers that men have written instead.

Not that I disapprove of prayers that saints have written to encourage the faithful to praise God, but it is not to be endured that they should prefer these to the prayer which was uttered by Wisdom incarnate. If they ignore this prayer, it is as though they passed by the spring to go to the brook, and refusing the clear water, they drink instead that which is dirty. For the Rosary, made up of the Lord's Prayer and the Hail Mary, is this clear and ever-flowing water which comes from the fountain of grace, whereas other prayers which they look for in books are nothing but tiny streams which spring from this fountain.

Weigh Every Word and Phrase of the Lord’s Prayer

39. People who say the Lord's Prayer carefully, weighing every word and meditating on them, may indeed call themselves blessed, for they find therein everything that they need or can wish for.

When we say this wonderful prayer, we touch God's heart at the very outset by calling him by that sweet name of Father.

"Our Father," he is the dearest of fathers: all-powerful in his creation, wonderful in the way he maintains the world, completely lovable in his divine Providence, all good and infinitely so in the Redemption. We have God for our Father, so we are all brothers, and heaven is our homeland and our heritage. This should be more than enough to teach us to love God and our neighbor, and to be detached from the things of this world.

"Our Father who art in heaven"

So we ought to love our heavenly Father and say to him over and over again: "Our Father who art in heaven"

Thou who dost fill heaven and earth with the immensity of thy being,
Thou who art present everywhere:
Thou who art in the saints by thy glory,
in the damned by thy justice,
in the good by thy grace,
in sinners by the patience
with which thou dost tolerate them,
grant that we may always remember
that we come from thee;
grant that we may live as thy true children;
that we may direct our course towards thee alone
with all the ardor of our soul.

"Hallowed by thy name"

The name of the Lord is holy and to be feared, said the prophet-king David, and heaven, according to Isaiah, echoes with the praises of the seraphim who unceasingly praise the holiness of the Lord, God of hosts.

We ask here that all the world may learn to know and adore the attributes of our God, who is so great and so holy. We ask that he may be known, loved and adored by pagans, Turks, Jews, barbarians and all infidels; that all men may serve and glorify him by a living faith, a staunch hope, a burning charity, and by the renouncing of all erroneous beliefs. In short, we pray that all men may be holy because our God himself is holy.

"Thy kingdom come"

That is to say: May you reign in our souls by your grace, during life, so that after death we may be found worthy to reign with thee in thy kingdom, in perfect and unending bliss; that we firmly believe in this happiness to come; we hope for it and we expect it, because God the Father has promised it in his great goodness, and because it was purchased for us by the merits of God the Son; and it has been made known to us by the light of the Holy Spirit.

"Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven"

As Tertullian says, this sentence does not mean in the least that we are afraid of people thwarting God's designs, because nothing whatsoever can happen without divine Providence having foreseen it and having made it fit into his plans beforehand. No obstruction in the whole world can possibly prevent the will of God from being carried out.

Rather, when we say these words, we ask God to make us humbly resigned to all that he has seen fit to send us in this life. We also ask him to help us to do, in all things and at all times, his holy will, made known to us by the commandments, promptly, lovingly and faithfully, as the angels and the blessed do in heaven.

"Give us this day our daily bread"

40. Our Lord teaches us to ask God for everything that we need, whether in the spiritual or the temporal order. By asking for our daily bread, we humbly admit our own poverty and insufficiency, and pay tribute to our God, knowing that all temporal goods come from his Providence. When we say bread we ask for that which is necessary to live; and, of course that does not include luxuries.

We ask for this bread today, which means that we are concerned only for the present, leaving the morrow in the hands of Providence.

And when we ask for our daily bread, we recognize that we need God's help every day and that we are entirely dependent upon him for his help and protection.

>> For an explanation why "daily bread" actually means "supernatural bread" in Greek, read this:

"Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us"

Every sin, says St. Augustine and Tertullian, is a debt which we contract with God, and he in his justice requires payment down to the last farthing. Unfortunately we all have these sad debts.

No matter how many they may be, we should go to God with all confidence and with true sorrow for our sins, saying, "Our Father who art in heaven, forgive us our sins of thought and those of speech, forgive us our sins of commission and of omission which make us infinitely guilty in the eyes of thy justice.

"We dare to ask this because thou art our loving and merciful Father, and because we have forgiven those who have offended us, out of obedience to you and out of charity.

"And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil"

"Do not permit us, in spite of our infidelity to thy graces, to give in to the temptations of the world, the devil, and the flesh. But deliver us from evil."

The evil of sin, from the evil of temporal punishment and of everlasting punishment, which we have rightly deserved.

"Amen"

This word at the end of the Our Father is very consoling, and St. Jerome says that it is a sort of seal of approbation that God puts at the end of our petitions to assure us that he will grant our requests, as though he himself were answering:

"Amen! May it be as you have asked, for truly you have obtained what you asked for." That is what is meant by this word: Amen.

Thirteenth Rose: The "Our Father", Part Two

41. Each word of the Lord's Prayer is a tribute we pay to the perfections of God. We honor his fecundity by the name of Father.

Father,
thou who throughout eternity
dost beget a Son
who is God like thee,
eternal, consubstantial with thee,
who is of the very same essence as thee;
and is of like power
and goodness
and wisdom as thou art ...
Father and Son,
who, from your mutual love,
produce the Holy Spirit,
who is God like unto you;
three persons but one God.

"Our Father"

This means that he is the Father of mankind, because he has created us and continues to sustain us, and because he has redeemed us. He is also the merciful Father of sinners, the Father who is the friend of the just, and the glorious Father of the blessed in heaven.

"Who art"

When we say "Who art", we honor by these words the infinity and immensity and fullness of God's essence. God is rightly called "He who is;" that is to say, he exists of necessity, essentially, and eternally, because he is the Being of beings and the cause of all beings. He possesses within himself, in a supereminent degree, the perfections of all beings, and he is in all of them by his essence, by his presence and by his power, but without being bounded by their limitations. We honor his sublimity and his glory and his majesty by the words Who art in heaven, that is to say, seated as on thy throne, holding sway over all men by thy justice.

"Hallowed be thy Name"

When we say Hallowed be thy Name, we worship God's holiness; and we make obeisance to his kingship and bow to the justice of his laws by the words Thy kingdom come, praying that men will obey him on earth as the angels do in heaven.

"Give us this day our daily bread"

We show our trust in his Providence by asking for our daily bread, and we appeal to his mercy when we ask for the forgiveness of our sins.

"Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil"

We look to his great power when we beg him not to lead us into temptation, and we show our faith in his goodness by our hope that he will deliver us from evil.

The Son of God has always glorified his Father by his works, and he came into the world to teach men to give glory to him. He showed men how to praise him by this prayer, which he taught us with his own lips. It is our duty, therefore, to say it often, with attention, and in the same spirit as he composed it.

Fourteenth Rose: The "Our Father", Part Three

42. We make as many acts of the noblest Christian virtues as we pronounce words when we recite this divine prayer attentively.

In saying "Our Father, who art in heaven," we make acts of faith, adoration and humility. When we ask that his name be hallowed, we show a burning zeal for his glory. When we ask for the spread of his kingdom, we make an act of hope; by the wish that his will be done on earth as it is in heaven, we show a spirit of perfect obedience. In asking for our daily bread, we practice poverty of spirit and detachment from worldly goods. When we beg him to forgive us our sins, we make an act of sorrow for them. By forgiving those who have trespassed against us, we give proof of the virtue of mercy in its highest degree. Through asking God's help in all our temptations, we make acts of humility, prudence and fortitude. As we wait for him to deliver us from evil, we exercise the virtue of patience.

Finally, while asking for all these things, not only for ourselves but also for our neighbor and for all members of the Church, we are carrying out our duty as true children of God, we are imitating him in his love which embraces all men and we are keeping the commandment of love of our neighbor.

43. If we mean in our hearts what we say with our lips, and if our intentions are not at variance with those expressed in the Lord's Prayer, then, by reciting this prayer, we hate all sin and we observe all of God's laws. For whenever we think that God is in heaven, that is to say, infinitely removed from us by the greatness of his majesty, we place ourselves in his presence filled with overwhelming reverence. Then the fear of the Lord will chase away all pride and we will bow down before God in utter nothingness.

"Our Father"

When we pronounce the name "Father" and remember that we owe our existence to God, by means of our parents, and even the instruction we have received by means of our teachers, who take the place of God and are his living images, we cannot help paying them honor and respect, or, to be more exact, to honor God in them. And nothing would be farther from our thoughts than to be disrespectful to them or hurt them.

"Hallowed by thy Name"

When we pray that God's holy name be glorified, we cannot be farther from profaning it. If we really look upon the kingdom of God as our heritage, we cannot possibly be attached to the things of this world.

"Give us this day our daily bread"

If we sincerely ask God that our neighbor may have the same blessings that we ourselves stand in need of, it goes without saying that we will give up all hatred, quarrelling and jealousy. And if we ask God for our daily bread, we shall learn to hate gluttony and sensual pleasures which thrive in rich surroundings.

"And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us"

While sincerely asking God to forgive us as we forgive those who trespass against us, we no longer give way to anger and revenge, we return good for evil and we love our enemies.

"And lead us not into temptation"

To ask God to save us from falling into sin when we are tempted is to give proof that we are fighting laziness and that we are genuinely seeking means to root out vicious habits and to work out our salvation.

"But deliver us from evil"

To pray God to deliver us from evil is to fear his justice, and this will give us true happiness, for the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. It is through the virtue of the fear of God that men avoid sin.

The Immutability of God, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and You

2026-02-20T09:21:00.001-06:00

I have been working on a new, hopefully easier to understand, translation of St. Louis de Montfort's True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. This has been asked of me from multiple different, independent directions. It's weird. Very Holy Spirit-like, too.

I thought I would share with you a few paragraphs of True Devotion that I was just working on. Still some of the earlier paragraphs, unfortunately. I have a long way to go.

This might be a new way for you to understand your relationship with God ... through Mary.

Now, I have already translated St. Louis de Montfort's Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary. This has brought great riches to my life. Becoming a servant of Mary has changed everything. It's hard to overstate Mary's impact.

My translation of Total Consecration is available on Amazon. The Hallow App also just re-licensed it for their Marian Consecration, led by Sister Miriam James Heidland, SOLT.

Joe at Hallow told me that, despite all their higher profile programs featuring Jonathan Roumie, Fr. Mike Schmitz, etc, the Marian Consecration remains one of their most popular programs.

Here are some humbling numbers Marian Consecration engagement on the Hallow app:

The consecration has been joined by over 200,000 people
4,000,000+ prayers completed

Glory be to God!!

True Devotion on the Unchanging Nature of God

But here they are. As you think of these, think of the unchanging-ness of God. God's immutability, this is one of the attributes of God.

21. Now look closely at the rest of the life of Jesus Christ. We see that He chose to begin His miracles through Mary. Jesus sanctified St. John the Baptist in the womb of his mother, Saint Elizabeth. Jesus did this by the word of Mary. As soon as Mary spoke, John was sanctified. This is Jesus’ first and greatest miracle of grace. Again, at Mary’s humble prayer, Jesus changed water into wine at the wedding in Cana. This is Jesus’ first miracle of nature. As Jesus began and continued His miracles through Mary, He will continue them until the end of time through Mary.
22. God the Holy Spirit is barren in God. That is to say, the Holy Spirit produced no other divine person. However, the Holy Spirit became fruitful through Mary, His spouse. It is with her, in her, and from her, that He produced His masterpiece: God-made-Man. And the Holy Spirit continues to produce Him every day. The Holy Spirit will continue to produce Him, the Mystical Body of Christ, until the end of the world. Jesus is the adorable Head of the Mystical Body of Christ, and we are its members. The more the Holy Spirit finds Mary, His dear and indissoluble Spouse, in a soul, the more active and powerful the Holy Spirit can be in that soul. The Holy Spirit is more able to produce Jesus Christ in that soul, and that soul in Jesus Christ ...
24. The same way we see the three Persons of the Most Holy Trinity act in the Incarnation and the first coming of Jesus Christ, They maintain every day. The Trinity continues in this way, in an invisible way, in the holy Church. They will continue to move in this way until the end of time, to the final coming of Jesus Christ.

Maybe take a second to read these three paragraphs again, too. That last one speaks to the unchanging nature of God.

I'll summarize these paragraphs:

The Holy Spirit brought Jesus into the world through Mary.
The first miracles of Jesus came through Mary.
The Holy Spirit distributes all His graces to the world through Mary.
The Holy Spirit continues to bring the Body of Christ, all of us, into the world through Mary.
The Holy Spirit produces in us in proportion to the amount of Mary He finds in us.
At the end of time, as in the beginning, Jesus will come to us again through Mary.

God does not change. God is unchanging. Change implies a lack of perfection. There is no imperfection in God. There is, therefore, no change in God.

God came into the world through Mary at the Incarnation. This playbook isn't going to change. Mary will always play a prominent role in God's plans.

Now, think about God's unchanging nature as He relates to YOU.

God's Unchanging Nature and YOU

I was going around the table this morning at our men's group -- an Exodus 90 men's group. I know these men really well. We've been through many years together.

I noticed how one of the men in particular seems to always encounter a particular kind of persecution. Multiple times in his life, he has been persecuted for putting God first. Then, out of this persecution, comes remarkable conversions.

This turn my thoughts to the immutability, the unchanging nature of God.

God will ALWAYS use this man in this way. So expect it. Anticipate it. Prepare for it.

This is the way God has chosen to enter into this man's life. God's not going to change. But we better. And if we do, God will be able to work great wonders in our lives, just as He did with Mary.

So how has God's unchanging nature revealed Itself in YOUR life?

Do you always find yourself in similar circumstances?
Do the same kind of people continue finding their way into your life?
Has a similar situation occurred through the generations of your family?
Does your name have meaning that resounds in your life?

These situations might be sinful or graceful in nature. Either way, they are telling you something about your relationship with God.

Reflect and pray on these things, then ask Mary to guide you to her Son.

The Heartbreaking, Hidden Meaning of Mary Saying "Do Whatever He Tells You" at the Wedding at Cana

2026-01-17T17:11:00.002-06:00

I was asked to write something that was guaranteed to make a person laugh or cry. The following always makes me tear up.

I've had a lot of time to just sit and wonder on the floor on the Holy House of Nazareth. Writing these books with Fr. Donald Calloway -- Consecration to St. Joseph for Children & Families and 33 Days to the Holy Family -- has given me this opportunity.

I've received a few, very special insights or glimpses into the family life of the Holy Family. Here's one of my favorites.

What does Jesus do when St. Joseph dies?

So, we know that St. Joseph died when Jesus was about 30 years old. Here is Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich's account of St. Joseph's death.

This, alone, is hard for me to read without getting teary-eyed. If you've lost a parent, you'll know what I mean.

Life of Jesus Christ [link to purchase on Amazon] by Anne Catherine Emmerich (1774-1824), Vol 1, “31. Death of St. Joseph,” p. 330-331:

As the time drew near for Jesus to begin His mission of teaching, I saw Him ever more solitary and meditative; and toward the same time, the thirtieth year of Jesus, Joseph began to decline. I saw Jesus and Mary often with him. Mary sometimes sat on the ground by his couch, or upon a low, round three-legged stool, which served also for a table. I seldom saw them eating; but when they did, or brought some refreshment to Joseph's bedside, it consisted of three, white, rather long, four-cornered pieces, about two fingers in breadth, that lay side by side on a little plate, and I saw also some little fruits in a dish. They gave him something to drink out of a mug.
When Joseph was dying, Mary sat at the head of his bed, holding him in her arms. Jesus stood just below her near Joseph's breast. The whole room was brilliant with light and full of angels. After his death, his hands were crossed on his breast, he was wrapped from head to foot in a white winding sheet, laid in a narrow casket, and placed in a very beautiful tomb, the gift of a good man. Only a few men followed the coffin with Jesus and Mary; but I saw it accompanied by angels and environed with light. Joseph’s remains were afterward removed by the Christians to Bethlehem, and interred. I think I can still see him lying there incorrupt.
Joseph had of necessity to die before the Lord, for he could not have endured His Crucifixion; he was too gentle, too loving …

He was "too gentle, too loving". Those words always ring in my ears.

Now, that's why we call him the "Patron of a Happy Death". St. Joseph was surround by his family, by Jesus and Mary, no less, at his death. And he had angels as pall bearers.

How Did Jesus and Mary React to St. Joseph's Death?

Is there a moment in Scripture when we see Jesus and Mary grieving St. Joseph's death? There ought to be, right?

As the highest-ranking descendant of King David, St. Joseph passed an earthly crown to his Son. You can read more on that here ...

But what effect did His father's death personally have on Jesus?

It's no coincidence that Jesus' public ministry begins upon the death of His father. Anyone who has experienced the death of his father understands this passing of the torch. It's our turn, now. It's our responsibility. Honor your fathers by increasing their legacy.

Where Does "Do Whatever He Tells You" Come From?

If your dad was named Arnold Schwarzenegger, what would he say when leaving for work in the morning?

"I'll be back."

Or maybe ... "Hasta la vista, baby!"

... So what if your Hebrew and your dad's name was Joseph?

St. Joseph bore the name of Joseph of Egypt, the favorite son of Jacob, who was sold into slavery by his brothers, who rose through the ranks of the Egyptian hierarchy to be Pharoah's right-hand man. One of the greatest patriarchs of the Old Testament.

Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, adopted Joseph into his own family, so that he was regarded as a son of Pharaoh. Joseph was given great authority. Pharaoh “made him lord of his house and prince of all his possessions” (Psalm 105:21).

Joseph was placed in charge of all the granaries of Egypt. Egypt, at that time, was considered the bread basket of the world, providing bread to all the world. Joseph correctly interprets Pharaoh's dreams, revealing that seven years of abundance of grain in Egypt would be followed by seven years of famine (Genesis 41:28-32). Joseph, being a wise servant, prepared for the famine. Joseph “store up huge quantities of grain, like the sand of the sea; it was so much that he stopped keeping records because it was beyond measure” (Gen 41:49).

When the famine struck, Pharaoh instructed all of Egypt: “Go to Joseph (“Ite ad Ioseph!”) and do whatever he tells you!” (Gen 41:55).

Just as Joseph protected the bread of the world, St. Joseph protected the bread from heaven, the life of the world.

Now ... Why Does Mary Say "Do Whatever He Tells You"?

When the boy Jesus would have a problem that Mary could not solve, what would Mary say?

"Go to Joseph, and do whatever he tells you."

At the Wedding at Cana, they come to Mary and say there is no more wine.

But St. Joseph is gone. He has passed away, borne away by the angels.

So what does Mary say now?

Go to Jesus, and "do whatever he tells you."

Mary changes that intimate household phrase of Nazareth. The torch passes from father to Son.

In this hidden moment between mother and son, they acknowledge their grief -- grief for was has been and for what is coming.

These are also Mary's last words in Scripture: "Do whatever He tells you."

More on St. Joseph and the Holy Family ...

St. Joseph was silent in Scripture, right? Didn't say a word. Was completely silent, right? Actually, no. St. Joseph said exactly one word in the Bible. Did you catch it?

Was St. Joseph an old man or a young man? Here's actual, Biblical proof of his exact age range:

Why does Jesus have two different genealogies in Matthew and Luke? And what does this have to tell us about the great dignity of adoption?

This one might be a little heartbreaking, too ...

And ...

Where did the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker come from? St. Joseph, Hammer of Communists: The Anti-Communist Origins of the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker:

The Greats #7 Venerable Jan Tyranowski: The Youth Minister of St. John Paul II

2026-01-07T21:14:00.000-06:00

Have you ever heard of the youth minister who, during the Nazi occupation of Poland, led a small group of youths, which included a dozen future priests, two future bishops, and … one future pope?

"This pearl of the Gospel cannot be covered by the dust of oblivion."

Listen to his biography below on my new podcast, The Greats!

Here's the podcast on my YouTube channel:

Here's also the Spotify link, if preferred.

Jan Tyranowski Biography - 1st Biography in English

Read the Book! You can buy Jan's biography ⁠here :) ⁠

⁠Pearl of Evangelization, The Biography of Venerable Jan Tyranowski, by Fr. Michal Szafarski, SDB⁠. Available now for the first time in English. A big thanks to my Polish friends for getting this to me! Thanks, Iza! The Polish people are awesome!

Holy Water Books is currently preparing this book for publishing, but I wanted to share it with you, as-is. It's a little buggy from the translation, but still readable. I've read it 3 times now. Also, it includes some great photos by Jan, himself.

I have been given permission by the rights holder to translate and publish this book in English. Thanks, Fr. Kaznowski!

READ MORE about Cardinal Sapieha on this blog.

Biography #7 of 1000

Chapters
00:00 Introduction to Jan Tarnowski's Legacy
10:18 The Search for Jan's Biography
14:15 Jan's Early Life and Spiritual Formation
17:21 The Role of Cardinal Sapieha
20:55 Jan's Influence During Turbulent Times
25:23 Jan's Spiritual Practices and Daily Life
30:10 Jan's Holiness and Impact on Youth
34:08 Conclusion and Reflection on Jan's Life
38:05 Nazi Occupation and Spiritual Resistance
40:56 Jan Tarnowski: A Transformative Figure
45:39 The Impact of Personal Connection
49:52 Continuing the Mission Amidst Persecution
53:05 Influence on Future Leaders
56:12 Spiritual Direction and Personal Growth
01:02:23 The Transformation of John Paul II
01:06:01 Jan's Influence on Young Men
01:10:24 Spiritual Direction and Personal Growth
01:14:01 Jan's Illness and Continued Ministry
01:18:06 Final Days and Death
01:22:20 The Funeral and Lasting Impact

Some AI-generated stuff ...

Summary
This conversation explores the life and legacy of Jan Tyranowski, a significant yet often overlooked figure in Catholic youth ministry. His influence on John Paul II and his unique approach to spiritual direction during a tumultuous time in Poland are highlighted. The discussion delves into Jan's structured spiritual regimen, his role in forming youth groups, and the profound impact he had on the young people he mentored, especially during the Nazi occupation. Jan's acceptance of suffering and his legacy as a model for modern youth ministry are also emphasized.

Takeaways
- Jan Tyranowski was a significant influence on John Paul II.
- His biography is hard to find, highlighting his obscurity.
- Jan's spiritual direction techniques were effective for youth.
- He formed youth groups based on the Living Rosary.
- Jan's life was marked by suffering and acceptance of God's will.
- He had a structured daily spiritual regimen.
- Jan's impact on youth was profound during Nazi occupation.
- He encouraged youth to take leadership roles in their faith.
- Jan's humility and kindness attracted many to him.
- His legacy continues to inspire youth ministry today.

Talking to Pentecostals About Trinitarian Baptism: Why Don't Pentecostals Believe in the Trinity and Baptizing in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit?

2025-10-15T21:26:00.009-05:00

Let’s talk today about Pentecostals. How we can reach out to them when their Baptism is very different from Trinitarian Baptism. Why do Pentecostals believe that it’s okay to baptize in the Name of Jesus only?

Watch the video here:

Jesus tells us clearly at Matthew 28:18-20 that we are to baptize in all three Names:

[18] And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. [19] Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit [20] and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

These are the very last verses of Matthew’s Gospel. We have the words from Jesus Himself on how to baptize. Baptize in all three names. It’s straightforward. It’s simple. Where’s the confusion?

Baptize in the Name of Jesus Only?

Jesus, in His own words, instituted all the sacraments. This is why Catholics and most other Christians stay very close to the words of institution that come from Christ himself.

We have the clear statement at Matthew 28:19. Later on in the Book of Acts, we see something different. Pentecostals typically reference Acts 2:38, which says the following:

Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

First, note that these are St. Peter’s words, not Jesus’. It is strange that non-Catholics would attribute greater authority to the words of the first pope over Jesus.

But still, what does it mean to baptize “in the name of Jesus Christ”?

Most Christians believe that baptizing “in the name of Jesus Christ” is just an abbreviation of baptizing “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” This makes since, as we are first given the longer, then comes the shorter, abbreviated form. The Apostles did not yet have the word “Trinity,” so abbreviating this as “Trinitarian Baptism” would not be possible.

So What’s the Pentecostal Logic?

Pentecostals typically argue that Jesus is giving us a “riddle” at the end of Matthew’s Gospel. Matthew is ending his Gospel with sort of a cliffhanger that will be sorted out when the Holy Spirit comes. The Holy Spirit does come at Acts 2:38, and St. Peter answers the riddle.

So what’s riddle? Jesus says “name” instead of “names” at Matthew 28:19. Jesus says baptize “them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Why doesn’t Jesus say “names,” if we’re supposed to baptize in three names, not just one?

One quick answer to this is that “name” applies to all three “names”, because of the multiple use of “and.” Jesus doesn’t say baptize “them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.” Jesus draws it out. Jesus says baptize “them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

For example, what if I said the following? Go kiss the forehead of your son and of your daughter and of your spouse. Would you assume I’m describing a three-headed person? No. You would assume three distinct person … a trinity of persons.

How Can We Definitively Resolve This Difference of Interpretation? What Did the Apostles Do?

The Church has and always will provide the definitive interpretation of Scripture. That’s was Jesus’ point in establishing the Church and then sending the Holy Spirit to guide Her.

But what if we had an ancient document that showed how the original Apostles actually baptized people?

We do!

It’s called The Didache, or The Teachings of The Twelve Apostles.

The Didache or The Teachings of The Twelve Apostles

I was recently talking to some Pentecostal friends. I asked them a question. If we could provide you with a document that showed how the earliest Apostles treated Christ’s command, would you adopt Trinitarian Baptism … and possibly the Doctrine of the Trinity, as well? Pentecostals, by the way, don’t believe in the Trinity. Anti-Trinitarianism is ultimately what’s guiding their interpretation of Jesus’ clear statement (not riddle) on Trinitarian Baptism.

If I could get you a document from the 100s, from the first centuries, demonstrating that the Apostles used the Trinitarian formula, would that change your position?

This is exactly what The Didache does. That’s dee-dah-kay. It has a Greek origin similar to the word “didactic.”

This document is really helpful because it explains what the Apostles actually did in practice. It’s like an early Roman Missal or Mass rubrics for liturgies. It gives us a great insight into those early apostolic communities.

The Didache is not part of the Biblical Canon. If it were, we might not be having this discussion. It wasn’t included in the Biblical canon, because it’s like an instructional manual. It doesn’t match the other genres of the New Testament. It’s more like the Mishna or Midrash.

The Didache is well supported historically. Many of the Church Fathers actually cite to it. Early Christian figures like Clement of Alexandria (150-215), Origen (185-253), and Eusebius (260-339) cited the work, indicating it was known and valued in the earliest centuries of Christianity.

A 4th-century papyrus fragment was discovered among the Oxyrhynchus Papyri, and a 3rd-century Latin translation also exists, confirming its early circulation.

So The Didache has very strong historical credibility and provenance. You even have a lot of skeptics like Bart Ehrman recognizing the credibility and authority of The Didache.

What Does The Didache Say About Trinitarian Baptism?

Here you go. This is Chapter 7 of The Didache, entitled “Concerning Baptism”:

And concerning baptism, baptize this way: Having first said all these things, baptize into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, in living water. But if you have not living water, baptize into other water; and if you can not in cold, in warm. But if you have not either, pour out water thrice upon the head into the name of Father and Son and Holy Spirit. But before the baptism let the baptizer fast, and the baptized, and whatever others can; but you shall order the baptized to fast one or two days before.

Here we have the Apostles clearing up any confusion by giving us the full Trinitarian formula.

AND giving it to us again. The Trinitarian formula is repeated twice.

Also note, there is no mention whatsoever of baptizing in the name of Jesus only. That’s not at all described. It’s like it never even occurred to the Apostles.

And again, from Matthew 28:19 to The Didache and for the next two thousand years, there is an unbroken Catholic tradition of baptizing in All Three Names, the Trinitarian Formula.

“Living Water”? There is a discussion of “living water” and what kind of water to baptize in. This is relevant to the arguments within Baptist circles about “full immersion” baptism, but not relevant to our discussion. Sufficeth to say, the top priority for baptism is having living water, like running water, like the River Jordan.

Fasting? “But before the baptism, let the baptizer fast and the baptized and whatever others can. But you shall order the baptized to fast one or two days before.” That’s interesting. Here we some evidence for an ancient tradition of fasting before major sacraments like Baptism. Catholics, for example, also fast before the Sacrament of the Eucharist.

Comments?

I hope that was helpful to you. If you have any questions, please add them to the comments. Especially if there’s any Pentecostals listening, please help us to better understand your position. Let us know so we can have a full discussion.

Valid Baptism

It is important to note that if you want to come into the Catholic Church and you’ve only been baptized in the Name of Jesus, you will need to receive a valid Trinitarian Baptism. This is not “re-baptizing” — you can only be baptized once and forever.

It’s extremely important to help people understand the correct form for baptism, which is not just the Catholic Church, but all the Christian churches honor this. Baptism is the most important step in the Christian journey. It is our supreme protection against evil. It forgives Original Sin.

Please, let’s talk to our brethren, our Pentecostal brethren, our brothers and sisters in Christ, about this because we want them to have that beauty of the sacrament and that protection from evil. So please share this with a Pentecostal friend. Let’s keep the conversation going and I appreciate your time reading this.

May God bless us in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit!

Today: First Time the Reigning English Monarch Attended a Catholic Mass Since English Reformation; The Most Recent in a Long Line of Historic Catholic Firsts in Anglican England

2025-09-16T16:00:00.007-05:00

Are we witnessing the end of Anglicanism and the English Reformation-Revolution?

Picture yourself growing up in Anti-Catholic Protestant England. Here’s a selection of some of the cute nursery rhymes you might have hummed as a child:

Here comes the Pope, all dressed in white;
Kill him quick, or he’ll say Mass tonight.

– Cruel playground rhyme chanted by Protestant children in the 18th-19th century England

Or how about this little ditty?

Remember, remember, the Fifth of November,
Gunpowder, treason and plot.
I see no reason why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.
… A rope, a rope, to hang the Pope,
A penn'orth of cheese to choke him,
A pint of beer to wash it down,
And a jolly good fire to burn him.

- From Guy Fawkes Day or the Gunpowder Plot of 1605, known as “The Bonfire Prayer”

From these ashes, major Catholic trends are emerging in the United Kingdom. Is this a new Oxford Movement? A New English Renaissance?

Remember, remember, the 9th of April …
Remember, remember, the 7th of July …
Remember, remember, the 16th of September …

Sept. 16, 2025: First Royal Catholic Funeral, First Reigning Monarch to Attend Catholic Mass on UK Soil

According to The Catholic Herald, the funeral of the Duchess of Kent marked the first royal Catholic funeral and the first time a reigning monarch has attended Catholic Mass on UK soil in a formal capacity since the Reformation.

The Prince and Princess of Wales joined the Duke of Kent and his three children for the Requiem Mass, the first Catholic funeral of a royal in modern times.

The music played at the funeral included Mozart’s Ave Verum Corpus, which was chosen by the duchess as her favorite hymn during her appearance on Desert Island Discs in 1990. Ironically, this meant the Anglican royal family was listening to "Hail, True Body", Mozart’s hymn about the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. Most Anglicans, given the Lutheran influence during the English Reformation-Revolution, only subscribe to a symbolic understanding of the Christ in the Eucharist.

July 7, 2025: First Mass Presided by Papal Nuncio at Canterbury Cathedral; Feast of Thomas a Becket

On July 7, 2025, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass was celebrated at Canterbury Cathedral by the Papal Nuncio to Great Britain, Archbishop Miguel Maury Buendía. This was the first occasion in modern history that a papal nuncio presided over a Mass in the historic Anglican cathedral.

Catholic Masses have taken place in Canterbury Cathedral since the Reformation. Every year on July 7, for example, the Dean of Canterbury Cathedral allows the Catholic parish of St. Thomas of Canterbury to celebrate Mass in honor of St. Thomas Becket. Nevertheless, the involvement of the papal delegate is highly significant, given the historically “anti-papist” sentiment in England since the days of King Henry VIII.

The Mass celebrated the Feast of the Translation of St. Thomas Becket. The “translation” is the ceremonial transfer of Becket’s remains in 1220 from his original tomb in the crypt of Canterbury Cathedral to a grand shrine behind the high altar. This event occurred fifty years after his martyrdom and was attended by the teenage King Henry III, a host of European church leaders, and thousands of pilgrims.

April 9, 2025: Catholic Population Exceeds Anglicans, First Time

As of April 9, 2025, Catholics are on course to outnumber Anglicans in Great Britain. Younger churchgoers now outnumber their Anglican brethren by more than two to one, a report by the Bible Society reveals.

Executive summary from The Catholic Herald:

A “quiet revival” in UK Catholicism appears to be occurring, especially among those age groups referred to as Generation Z and younger Millennials, reports The Times of London, while noting that Catholics are rapidly catching up with Anglican numbers across all age groups.

It means that Catholicism could soon overtake Anglicanism to become the country’s largest denomination of worshippers for the first time since the English Reformation initiated by King Henry VIII in 1527. Anglicans could even slip into third place behind Pentecostals among churchgoers aged under 35 years of age.

Here are the numbers:1

According to the surveys, in 2018 Anglicans made up 30% of regular churchgoers aged between 18 and 34 – including all adult members of Generation Z and the youngest cohort of Millennials – while Catholics made up 22% and Pentecostals 10%. By 2024, Anglicans made up just 20% of this group while Catholics made up 41%. Pentecostals are now not far behind Anglicans at 18%.
In 2018 the survey found that across all ages, 41% of those who attend church at least once a month were Anglican, 23% were Catholic and 4% were Pentecostal. By 2024, the Anglican share had fallen to 34%, the Catholic share is “now close behind” at 31%, while the Pentecostal share has risen to 10%, the Bible Society report shows.

Figures collated by the Catholic Church in England and Wales also show a rise in attendance at Sunday mass since the pandemic, notes The Times, rising from 390,000 in 2021 to 555,000 in 2023, though they also indicate these are down from pre-pandemic figures of 702,000 in 2019. Catholics have already overtaken Protestants in Northern Ireland, data from the 2021 census shows.

Millennial or Gen Z? According to the Pew Research Center, anyone born between 1981 and 1996 is considered a Millennial, and anyone born from 1997 onward is part of the new generation termed Gen Z.

It’s not all good news. This is a period of rampant secularization across the UK: “Christians now make up the lowest ever proportion of the population, slipping below half for the first time in 2021 to 46.2 per cent, mainly driven by the growth in people with no religion, according to census figures.”

Any yet, the new report by the Bible Society suggests that the proportion of people in Britain attending church actually grew by more than half between 2018 and 2024. “The Quiet Revival” report also showed that men (13%) are more likely to attend church than women (10%), reversing the standard view of gender participation. Bible reading has also grown.

The Gradual Softening of Anti-Catholicism in England

The relationship between the British Royal Family and the Roman Catholic Church has been shaped by centuries of history.

Glorious Revolution of 1688: King James II, the last Catholic monarch of Britain, is deposed and replaced by the Protestant William III and Mary II.

Act of Settlement 1701: Catholics barred from the line of succession, establishing a constitutional link between the monarchy and the Church of England that lasted for centuries. The Act of Settlement also barred members of the Royal Family from marrying Catholics under pain of exclusion from the line of succession. This and other measures effectively prevented the Royal Family from openly participating in Catholic rites or ceremonies for more than three centuries.

Succession to the Crown Act 2013: Eased some of the restrictions of the Act of Settlement, ending the disqualification of heirs who marry Catholics, though the monarch must remain Protestant. Allowed members of the Royal Family to engage with the Catholic Church more openly, without threatening the constitutional framework. Several royals have maintained private Catholic connections despite this historic barrier. For the Duke of Kent and other minor royals, practicing Catholicism has long been part of family life, even if rarely visible to the public.

According to YouGov surveys commissioned by the Bible Society, which looked at more than 13,000 people in 2024 and 19,000 people in 2018, the growth in attendance has mainly been seen in Catholic and Pentecostal churches. The increase among younger people has been found especially with young men.

The Jewish "Our Lady of Sorrows": The Jews have been asking for the Intercession of this Mother for 3,000 Years

2025-09-15T06:08:00.001-05:00

Happy Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows! “Happy” may seem a strange word to use, but that’s sort of the point …

Did you know the Jews also have an “Our Lady of Sorrows”? And knowing about her helps us better understand the Blessed Mother as “Our Lady of Sorrows”?

The prophecy that the Messiah will be born in Bethlehem connects the Blessed Mother to another mother, whose pregnancies were a contrast of health and sickness.

When the wise men came to King Herod, he assembled “all the chief priests and scribes of the people” and “he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born” (Matthew 2:4). They answered Herod, “In Bethlehem of Judea,” citing the prophecy of Micah:

But you, O Bethlehem Eph′rathah, who are little to be among the
clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be
ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days …
until the time when she who is in travail has brought forth; then
the rest of his brethren shall return to the people of Israel
Matthew 2:5-6; Micah 5:2-3

Note that the prophecy states “Bethlehem Eph′rathah,” not just Bethlehem.

This is because the new matriarch of Israel is to give birth where the old matriarch of Israel gave birth and died. “She who is in travail” both points back to Rachel and forward to Mary.

According to Genesis, it was at Bethlehem-Eph′rathah, the place between the two cities, where Rachel and Jacob had to take shelter when Rachal suddenly went into “hard labor”:

Then they journeyed from Bethel; and when they were still some
distance from Ephrath, Rachel travailed, and she had hard labor.
And when she was in her hard labor, the midwife said to her, “Fear
not; for now you will have another son.” And as her soul was
departing (for she died), she called his name Ben-oni [meaning
“child of affliction” or “child of poverty”]; but his father called his
name Benjamin. So Rachel died, and she was buried on the way
to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem), and Jacob set up a pillar upon
her grave; it is the pillar of Rachel’s tomb, which is there to this day.
Genesis 35:16-20

These two holy families, that of Mary and Rachel, are connected in so many ways.

Look at the name that Rachel originally chose for her son, Ben-oni, “child of affliction” or “child of poverty.” Though the health of Mary’s pregnancy contrasts with the sickness of Rachel’s, Rachel’s hard labor and death points to the poverty of the Holy Family, especially Jesus as the Suffering Servant, and Mary as “Our Lady of Sorrows.”1

Going back to the Gospel of Matthew, Rachel is mentioned again in reference to Herod’s response to the visit by the wise men, the Slaughter of the Innocents: “A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children” (Matthew 2:18).

Here is an ancient icon of Rachel weeping for her children:

Ever since Jacob “set up a pillar upon her grave,” described above, the Jews have been visiting the tomb of Rachel, called “Kever Rachel” today. Just as we ask for the intercession of “Our Lady of Sorrows,” the Jews have been praying for their holy mother, Rachel, to intercede for them before the heavenly throne for 3,000 years!

The Jews even tell the story that, when the Babylonian army had conquered Israel and destroyed the Temple, as the Jewish survivors were being marched to Babylon in chains, they stopped to pray at Rachel’s grave.2 All the patriarchs appeared before God at this time to pray for God to forgive their children. Rachel found herself last in line behind Abraham, Isaac, Moses, and even her own husband, Jacob. God rejected all their prayers, but he could not refuse the tears of the mother.

Rachel prayed to God of her affliction. Because it was God’s Will, she allowed her sister to marry her beloved, Jacob. Now, she pleaded with God, saying “If I could give up my love for the sake of my sister, can’t you set aside your anger for the sake of your children?”

Because of Rachel’s plea, God allowed the Jews to return home to Israel.

Now, again, God has given us a still greater pair of intercessors, the Holy Spouses, the mother and father of Jesus, “Our Lady of Sorrows” and Our Prince of Sorrows, the “Patron of the Afflicted.”3 Go to them in good times and in bad, in riches and in poverty, and in health and in sickness.

Isaiah 53:4,7: “Yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted … He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter …”

The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022), Pesichta d’Eicha Rabbah (Lamentations 31:14-16), 24.

Cf. The Seven Sorrows and Seven Joys of St. Joseph

Catholic Coffee Break Friday: Exciting Pope Leo news! Holy Family, Competitive Catechesis, St. Norbert, Pestering the Pope

2025-06-05T16:30:00.014-05:00

It's Catholic Coffee Break Friday!

I recently published a new book on Near Death Experiences from a Catholic perspective, and I've been busy. I've never really one of my books explode like this before. It's been good, but a bit nuts.

I've got a big announcement. Check it out at the end. It's pretty exciting.

Also, Happy Feast of St. Norbert! More on him below ... Plus, the Solemnity of Pentecost is Sunday!

Here are the 5 or so coolest Catholic things I learned/enjoyed/discovered since our last coffee break ...

1. Quotes I'm mulling over about obedience ...

I recently had an opportunity for obedience, which has never been an "easy" virtue for me. Here are some amazing quotes on holy obedience:

Obedience is a virtue of so excellent a nature, that Our Lord was pleased to mark its observance upon the whole course of His life; thus He often says, He did not come to do His Own will, but that of His Heavenly Father.

- St. Francis de Sales

A single instant passed under simple obedience is immeasurably more valuable in the sight of God than an entire day spent in the most sublime contemplation.

- St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi

And again from St. Francis de Sales: “The Devil doesn’t fear austerity but holy obedience.”

I've also been assembling a Catholic Quote Index. It's called a quote rolodex, because it's organized by category.

2. Thing I've been pestering Pope Leo about ...

On June 14, 1892, Pope Leo XIII wrote an Apostolic letter on the Holy Family, Breve Neminem fugit, declaring the Feast of the Holy Family and elevating St. Joseph's feast day to a solemnity:

When God in his mercy determined to accomplish the work of man’s renewal, which same had so many long ages awaited, he appointed and ordained this work on such wise that its very beginning might shew to the world the august spectacle of a Family which was known to be divinely constituted; that therein all men might behold a perfect model, as well of domestic life as of every virtue and pattern of holiness: for such indeed was the Holy Family of Nazareth.

Now, it's time for Pope Leo XIV to pull a Pope Leo XIII and declare a Year of the Holy Family. Fr. Calloway and I are also about to publish 33 Days to the Holy Family, a consecration to the Holy Family. So, I'm writing the Holy Father weekly letters to ask him for this. I'm adding a little something extra to the letters, too. I'll tell you about that later and let you know how it goes :)

Feel free to share and post the image below:

3. Pope Leo homily I'm reading ...

It seems like Pope Leo is very close to declaring a year of the Holy Family. This past Sunday, the pope gave the following homily for the Jubilee of Families 😄, Children, Grandparents, and the Elderly on St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican (read the full transcript here):

Dear friends, if we love one another in this way, grounded in Christ, who is “the Alpha and the Omega,” “the beginning and the end” (cf. Rev 22:13), we will be a sign of peace for everyone, in society and the world. Let us not forget: families are the cradle of the future of humanity.

In recent decades, we have received a sign that fills us with joy but also makes us think. It is the fact that several spouses have been beatified and canonized, not separately, but as married couples. I think of Louis and Zélie Martin, the parents of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus; and of Blessed Luigi and Maria Beltrame Quattrocchi, who raised a family in Rome in the last century. And let us not forget the Ulma family from Poland: parents and children, united in love and martyrdom. I said that this is a sign that makes us think. By pointing to them as exemplary witnesses of married life, the Church tells us that today’s world needs the marriage covenant in order to know and accept God’s love and to defeat, thanks to its unifying and reconciling power, the forces that break down relationships and societies.

For this reason, with a heart filled with gratitude and hope, I would remind all married couples that marriage is not an ideal but the measure of true love between a man and a woman: a love that is total, faithful and fruitful (cf. SAINT PAUL VI, Humanae Vitae, 9). This love makes you one flesh and enables you, in the image of God, to bestow the gift of life.

What other "exemplary witnesses of married life" could we point to? The Holy Family is coming ...

4. Catholic resource that I'm always using ...

New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia - I'm sure you all have used this before. It has a huge number of in-depth entries. It also has the entire Summa Theologiae, completely searchable. I've been using this resource a lot recently, because I have a big, new writing project (yes, another project).

I got an idea 10 years ago, and I've been plugging away at it steadily ever since. Well, it's more like I've been hitting my head against a wall for 10 years. Until last week!

This project is called Catholic Quiz Bowl or "The Bishop's Cup". It's about competitive, intellectual formation for high school and middle school. I played A LOT of quiz bowl growing up and even into college. I've written for all the different question companies, even Jeopardy! I was even on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? But, I began to notice over the years how woke the questions had become. In the quiz bowl world, there's even a canon of acceptable or ask-able questions -- it is not a Catholic canon. I'm going to change this.

My own diocese is finally hosting the first Bishop's Cup this year! In the next years, we are inviting other dioceses to join us. Each diocese will then bring its champions to the National Catholic Quiz Bowl Tournament. We will probably host this at EWTN headquarters, so the tournament can be televised. Exciting stuff! Stay tuned ...

5. Saint I'm celebrating today ... St. Norbert

St. Norbert inspires me to be better about praying the Divine Office! Pre-conversion, St. Norbert wasn't exactly what you would call "pious." He was a kind of ordained man called a canon, like a sub-deacon. As a canon, he received a salary for just praying the Divine Office each day. He found a way to outsource this and increase his income! He paid someone to take his place praying the Divine Office each day and moved to the court of the Prince-Archbishop of Cologne. He quickly advanced and became a member of the court of Holy Roman Emperor Henry V, where he was put in charge of distributing the royal alms. Does this remind you of Judas? That was the path he was heading down, until ...

He was literally struck by lightning! And, he had a near-death experience!

Want to read more? Here's a really good write-up about St. Norbert.

Hope you enjoyed all that! Please drop me a line and let me know if anything moved you. Thanks for all your emails so far!

In Christ through Mary & Joseph,

Scott

⏬⏬🤯😁👍⏬⏬

P.S. I've been working as a producer on another secret project that's about ready for launch. It's about Venerable Aloysius Schwartz, the founder of the World Villages for Children. Here's the link to the preview. Very excited to share this one with you!

Pope Leo XIV's Louisiana Roots: A Spanish Colonial Governor and Military Commandant, Carlos Louis Boucher De Grand Pré

2025-05-12T13:43:00.006-05:00

NEW POPE HAS POINTE COUPÉE ROOTS

By Brian J. Costello

Pointe Coupéeans joyous over in the election of the first pope from the United States and only the second from the Western Hemisphere can be especially jubilant in that Robert Francis Prevost, now His Holiness Leo XIV, has roots in this parish. In his maternal lineage, he is descended from a number of early Louisiana Créole families, including Glapion from New Orleans, Lemelle from the Opelousas country, and GrandPré from Pointe Coupée.[1]

The Holy Father’s great-great-great-grandfather Louis Charles Boucher de GrandPré (1745 – 1809) - here pictured - was commandant of the military post of Pointe Coupée during the Spanish colonial period, from 1776 until 1781. Early in his administration, authorities built a camino real (royal road) linking the Mississippi River to the north with False River on the south, which the French populace dubbed the Chemin Neuf (New Road) for which the city is named.

Shortly thereafter, GrandPré led the Pointe Coupée Militia in successful repulses of British forces at nearby Thompson Creek, the Amite River, and Baton Rouge in Spain’s collaboration with the American colonists in their fight for freedom from Great Britain. Countless residents have since qualified for membership in the Sons and Daughters of the American Revolution owing to their ancestors’ military service.

GrandPré's memory is preserved in the name of a street in Baton Rouge’s early Beauregard Town neighborhood. While few landmarks survive from the era of GrandPré, the continuity of the Catholic faith since the time of the Spanish and French explorers of the 18th century is the lasting legacy of colonization and evangelization in Pointe Coupée and Louisiana.

People of color and marginalized white families persisted in and promoted the faith through centuries of socio-economic oppression and natural disasters including the atrocities of enslavement and postbellum lynching, and the diaspora of family and friends during the deadly flood of 1912.

The pope’s family was among those who left the South for more educational and economic opportunities, and His Holiness is a native of Chicago. His paternal line, Prevost, might have another genealogical link with Pointe Coupée, alas back in Europe, as the matriarch of the early Jewish merchant Jewell family was the legendary Sophie Prevost, a Catholic émigré of the Ste. Domingue (Haitian) revolution. Additionally, Prevost is a prevalent surname in many South Louisiana communities.

Addressing the suffering that continues to oppress countless people, of various ethnicities, Cardinal Prevost in the late 20th and early 21st centuries was a vanguard in the struggle for social justice and workers’ rights, particularly in Peru where he ministered for approximately two decades.

LEONINE LEGACY

Cardinal Prevost’s profession in a religious order and selection of Leo as his regnal name also has especial local effect, as the most beloved pontiffs here in earlier generations were Leo XIII and Gregory XVI. Born Gioacchino Vincenzo Raffaele Luigi Pecci, the frail but dynamic Leo XIII prefigured Prevost’s campaign for social justice and the dignity of laborers, delivered a dozen encyclicals on the Rosary devotion, and composed the Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel. Many were the Pointe Coupée faithful of the time who named their children Léo, Léonida, Léonide or Léonie in honor of the little pope who was big on liberation and empowerment of the working masses.

The new pontiff is one of but few in recent centuries to have been a member of a religious order, Leo XIV being an Augustinian. Recently-deceased Pope Francis, birth name Jorge Mario Bergolio, was a Jesuit, and Gregory XVI, was a professed Camaldolese. Gregory, born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari, in 1839 issued the bull In supremo apostalatus condemning the slave trade and was, doubtless, a model for Pointe Coupée emancipationists including the venerated Madeleine Olivo, widow of Simon Porche.

FALSE RIVER’S OWN “POPE”

Pointe Coupée Parish oral historians and raconteurs have long quipped that the community was home to a native born pope: “Pope” Gebhart, of German and local French ancestry. False River Road farmer Francois Olivier Gebhart (1886 – 1945) was affectionately known to generations by the ti’ nom or nickname “Pope.” His wife, née Marie Anita Bergeron, was similarly beloved by the sobriquet “Madame Pope,” and a stalwart member of St. Mary of False River. In standard French, however, the term for the supreme pontiff is pape.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Archdiocese of New Orleans and Diocese of Lafayette sacramental records; conveyance records of Pointe Coupee Parish; and United States Federal Census Schedules.

Catholic Guide to the Holy Oils: What does OC, OS, OI, and SC all mean? What are Sacred Chrism, Oil of Catechumens, and the Oil of the Infirm used for?

2025-05-08T19:17:00.002-05:00

The Catholic Church uses three holy oils: Sacred Chrism, Oil of Catechumens, and Oil of the Sick. These oils are blessed or consecrated by the Bishop during the Chrism Mass.

If you're an altar server or sacristan -- or even a deacon of priest -- the various oils may still be confusing. I know it's been a tough one for me.

Here's the breakdown:

Sacred Chrism

SC for Sanctum Chrisma
Sacraments: used for the Sacrament of Confirmation and Baptism
Ingredients: made from olive oil and balsam

Oil of Catechumens

OC for Oleum Catechumenorum, also OS for Oleum Sanctum, also "Oil of Exorcism" - at our Church, I'm pretty sure the canister says OC and the cruet says OS, so heads up!
Sacraments: only used for the pre-Baptized, the pre-Baptized are called "catechumens" (pl. catechumenate)
Ingredients: made from olive oil only

Oil of the Sick

OI for Oleum Infirmorum, also called Oil of Healing
Sacrament: used in the Anointing of Sick
Ingredients: made from olive oil only

Does this help? Does this resolve all the confusion? Please let me know if you have any more questions!

Big Catholic Family Pilgrimage Travel Tips: Our Lady of Guadalupe and Chalco (Sisters of Mary, World Villages, Girlstown)

2025-01-29T13:44:00.002-06:00

We have a big Catholic family. We have 6 kids (so far), so there are 8 of us, and 2 in diapers. We are well-traveled domestically. We've made at least one US national parks trip plus pilgrimage every year for the last decade. I'm decently well-traveled, having made pilgrimages in Europe and a mission trip to Kenya. My wife is a little fresher to international travel.

So we're making a bit of a leap of faith! If this pilgrimage goes well, we hope to make a long European pilgrimage next year with a bit of Catholic world-schooling/homeschooling: Catholic world-homeschooling. Can somebody coin a better term, please?

The following will be a bit of a travelogue (to be updated as we go) and a bit of a travel tips guide. Please let me know (comment below) your own travel trips and/or thoughts/improvements on my choices! ... Stay tuned for updates :)

Big Catholic Family Pilgrimage - Table of Contents

Big Catholic Family Pilgrimage Travel Tips: How to Cut Down on Travel Costs

Two big tips! With travel miles and the tips below, our 8 plane tickets to Mexico only cost us less than $1500.

#1 Drive to a Major Airport, then Fly Out

With a big Catholic family -- I find -- it's much less expensive to drive the distance to a major airport, then fly out. For Europe, I would drive my family to Atlanta, NYC, etc. For Mexico, we're driving to Houston. This cuts off half the price, right off the bat. Parking and even a night or two at a hotel don't come close to wiping out the savings. This just becomes another fun part of the trip.

#2 Accumulate Travel Miles when paying bills, major purchases, etc.

I have a business with a lot of monthly, money in, money out, expenses. I use a travel miles credit card for these and rack up a huge amount of miles. Don't feel bad about profiting from a credit card company, IF you can do so while still paying off the card every month. OR, if you have a major expense and cash ready to pay it off, like a home remodel, put it on the credit card, then pay it right off.

Big Catholic Family Pilgrimage Travel Tips: Getting 8 Passports

8 new passports (mine and my wife's had expired) ran us over $1200. Yikes! Be prepared for this expense.

Pro-tip: Have all paperwork filled out and ready before you get to the post office. We just happened to have a friend in our local post office, who enjoyed the one-hour steady stream of kids. You may not be so lucky! My wife worked on the paperwork in the van, while I transported kids in and out. Teamwork makes the dream work!

Big Catholic Family Pilgrimage Travel Tips: How to Store 8 Passports on My Body?

Jacket with lots of pockets or fanny pack? I decided to go with ...

Catholic Pilgrimage Outerwear: Making Your Clothes Your Carry-On AND Carry-All

Meet the SCOTTeVEST Tropiformer 3D Jacket for Men. It has 22 Hidden Pockets! My goal is for this to be my carry-on AND carry-all for all 8 passports and everything else my big family will need on our excursions. Basically, I'm trying to be the dad Swiss-army knife.

This will be my most expensive travel purchase, apart from all the tickets, passports, etc. I'll let you know if it was worth it!

Post-Pilgrimage Assessment: STAY TUNED ...

Big Catholic Family Pilgrimage Travel Tips: Using Carry-On Bags Only

Here's our plan to use ONLY carry-on bags for our big family pilgrimage. We have one infant, so we can carry-on as many as 7 total bags. We're not counting on the youngest kids to carry much; we're just counting on their carry-on allotments.

Here's our plan for carry-ons bags:

2 rolling duffle bags
2 duffle bags strapped onto the roller duffle bags (above)
1 backpack duffle
Plus, 1 stroller checked in and out at the gate >> This doesn't count towards our tally. The airlines provide this as a service.

Here's our plan for who carries which bags:

My wife and I: 4 bags, we'll each have a roller with a duffle strapped on
Oldest girl: carries infant in arms
Oldest boy: pushes stroller with toddler
Older boy: backpack duffle (or hang on stroller)

With this arrangement, we still have two carry-on slots not being used! We're packing some of the extra Gonex duffle bags, just in case we need more room. We found some really inexpensive (gulp) duffle luggage on Amazon. We also decided on distinct colors to make sure we don't get out luggage confused with that of other folks.

We bought 6 bags for under $200. We bought 3 of each of the following (an extra of each):

$29 Gonex Duffle Bag, 40L,
dimensions: 20.8 x 13 x 9.8 inches (well within limits),
basically folds down to the size of a ketchup packet LOL

$29 Rockland Rolling Duffel Bag, 40L,
dimensions: 22 x 12.5 x 11 inches (well within limits)

Regarding the carry-on dimensions, I found this tip on Reddit from a guy who took the time to measure the sizing bins:

The limit is officially 22" x 14" x 9". The sizer is actually (roughly) 23" x 15" x 10" to avoid arguments. Any suitcase less than 23" x 15" x 10" will fit the sizer. Even an in inch or so beyond that is fine although technically oversized. The GA are really just looking for comically oversized bags or people with multiple suitcases.

Post-Pilgrimage Assessment: STAY TUNED ...

Big Catholic Family Pilgrimage Travel Tips: What to Wear?

My boys and I like to altar serve together, especially at pilgrimage sites. Here's my big hairy audacious goal (BHAG). My goal is to have one set of clothes that I can wear everyday (except for undies) that's comfortable and appropriate for all the following:

Traveling
Hiking up Tepeyac
Urban walking trips
Chasing after kids
Playing sports with the ladies and sisters of Girlstown (this may be the most impossible of all the goals, LOL)
AND altar-serving or attending Holy Mass

Catholic Pilgrimage Footwear

I'm going with Vans High Top Sneakers. This is not because I'm trying to be a cool dad. I'm going with these for a mixture of ankle support, being all black, relatively cheap, and good for all the above.

Post-Pilgrimage Assessment: STAY TUNED ...

I've also been loving these Merino wool socks I found on Amazon. These have been great for altar-serving, too.

Post-Pilgrimage Assessment: STAY TUNED ...

Catholic Pilgrimage Pants

I wanted to get these pants, the Proof 72-Hour Merino pants from Huckberry, but decided to save money and use what I already have. Gear Junkies rated these really high, and I like a Merino option. That thousand-pocket jacket should cover my needs here.

Big Catholic Family Pilgrimage Travel Tips: Computers and Tech?

I've got an Android phone, because I use a lot of Google apps for writing, email, etc. We'll be using WhatsApp to keep in touch with the homefront.

Do I Need a Power Adapter for Mexico?

I'm told I will not need a power adapter for Mexico ... gulp.

Post-Pilgrimage Assessment: STAY TUNED ...

Catholic Pilgrimage Computer

This should not be a major writing trip for me. Otherwise, I would probably bring my normal laptop. Instead, I'm going to try using an iClever bluetooth foldable keyboard:

Post-Pilgrimage Assessment: STAY TUNED ...

Big Catholic Family Pilgrimage to Our Lady of Guadalupe: Pre-Trip Reading Guide

In addition to Our Lady of Guadalupe, we are visiting Chalco, home of one of the many GirlsTowns worldwide founded by (Venerable) Fr. Aloysius Schwartz, because of this book, Priest and Beggar by Kevin Wells:

What a great book! This one of the only books that I've read in the last two or so years that I could not put down. Do yourself a favor and read it. Kevin Wells is the latest in that long line of great, former Baseball journalists-turned-writers.

Also, this is my favorite Our Lady of Guadalupe-specific books: The Story of Guadalupe: Luis Laso de la Vega's Huei tlamahuiçoltica of 1649:

This is a translation of our oldest extant document about the apparitions of Our Lady to St. Juan Diego and Juan Bernadino. This is where we get the words we have from Our Lady of Guadalupe, herself, such as the following:

I composed a Novena to Our Lady of Guadalupe using the quotes, prayers, and accounts of miracles from this book.

C. S. Lewis' The Great Divorce: Discussion Questions for Catholic Book Clubs

2025-01-22T14:36:00.000-06:00

I once assigned this to my Catholic religion classes, even though C. S. Lewis was decidedly not Catholic. If he had only lived a little longer, his friends J.R.R. Tolkien or G. K. Chesterton would have almost certainly won him over to the home team.

I'm not sure the high schoolers really understood The Great Divorce. In hindsight, I probably would not do that again. Nevertheless, it gave me multiple opportunities to re-read this great book, and it's still one of my favorites.

I think this book is uniquely well-suited for book groups, Catholic or not. Why? Because so often when reading this book, you want to shout at the characters. You're being ridiculous! Heaven is right there. And with just a line or two, C. S. Lewis presents to you a full-fledged, fully relatable character. As a writer myself, he makes me sick. He's so good. He's like Rembrandt, who could somehow create a detailed portrait with just a few strokes.

Happy reading! I hope these questions will help you dig in.

C. S. Lewis' The Great Divorce Discussion Questions - Table of Contents

#1 The Great Divorce, Discussion Questions - Purgatory

How is the Grey City both alike and different from the Catholic doctrine of Purgatory?

To jog your memory: C. S. Lewis conceives of a place, the Grey City or Grey Town, that can be either Hell or Purgatory, depending on whether you decide to leave it or not. If you stayed there up to the moment of nightfall, the Grey City will have been Hell all along. If you proceed to Heaven from the Grey City, which apparently few do, your time in the Grey City will have been your Purgatory. This is all according to C. S. Lewis. Here's the quote:

"But I don't understand. Is judgment not final? Is there really a way out of Hell into Heaven?"
"It depends on the way you're using the words. If they leave that grey town behind it will not have been Hell. To any that leaves it, it is Purgatory. And perhaps ye had better not call this country Heaven. Not Deep Heaven, ye understand." (Here he smiled at me). "Ye can call it the Valley of the Shadow of Life. And yet to those who stay here it will have been Heaven from the first. And ye can call those sad streets in the town yonder the Valley of the Shadow of Death: but to those who remain there they will have been Hell even from the beginning." [Chapter 9]

The main difference between the Grey City and true Purgatory is that everybody who gets to Purgatory will eventually get to Heaven.

What is Purgatory? Also, if you want to read more on the Catholic doctrine of Purgatory, you can check out this article. It also includes all the different places Purgatory is described in the Bible, too, in case you're being asked about this.

Bonus Question: How do you like this image of the Grey City that I generated? Does it fit your mental image of the Grey City?

**#2 The Great Divorce, Discussion Questions - The Episcopal Ghost**

A. Of all the paradoxes that seem to co-exist within this one character, which one is the greatest or the most heinous or ridiculous?

B. Have you ever encountered or heard of a pastor, priest, or other other cleric that espoused thoughts like this?

To jog your memory: (1) This is an Episcopal bishop who doesn't believe in Heaven, Hell, or the Second Coming ... or even God, as we learn in the end. This, despite being damned to Hell, taking a trip to Heaven, and being offered a chance to go see God right there and then. (2) The Episcopal Ghost is surprised that Dick actually believes in objective reality, being objectively right or wrong, when it is obvious that Dick was objectively right and the bishop's ghost was objectively wrong. (3) The Episcopal bishop refuses to believe in a literal Heaven and Hell, insisting they're just metaphors, when he's actually standing in Heaven and Hell.

**#3 The Great Divorce, Discussion Questions - The Hard-Bitten Ghost**

A. How would you attempt to convince this ghost that reality is not a scam, conspiracy, or propaganda?

B. Were you itching to tell this ghost anything when you were reading about him? (This same question could be used on many of the characters of The Great Divorce)

To jog your memory: This ghost is a conspiracy theorist who believes that Heaven and Hell are actually on the same side, faking the so-called war of good and evil to exploit the Ghosts. This is similar to the "constant war" contrived between the superpowers of George Orwell's 1984. This ghost thinks that Heaven is a scam, and ghosts becoming more solid is propaganda.

**#4 The Great Divorce, Discussion Questions - The Lady with the Unicorns**

A. Have you ever considered/imagined being too ashamed to enter Heaven, because all of your past sins would be laid bare (and already are) to everyone in Heaven

B. How does C. S. Lewis depict this feeling of nakedness as an appearance of intangibility?

To jog your memory: This is a female Ghost who is too ashamed to be seen in Heaven by the Bright Ones. She is ashamed of appearing ghost-like, i.e. phantasmal or intangible. She fears how the Bright Ones will react to her appearance. A herd of unicorn tries to persuade her to stop focusing on her looks, which is a ridiculous distraction in Heaven. The observers call on the herd to stampede to help knock the lady out of her endless mental loop of self-absorption about appearance.

**#5 The Great Divorce, Discussion Questions - Robert's Wife**

A. Did this line sting, regarding the quality of our forgiveness? "I forgive him as a Christian," said the Ghost. "But there are some things one can never forget."

B. How has Robert's Wife convinced herself that her husband is at fault? How does she justify the following statement: "The ingratitude! It was I who made a man of him! Sacrificed my whole life to him!" Why does he need to forgive her, rather than she forgive him?

To jog your memory: Robert's Wife is an extremely controlling woman who exercised her own ambition by manipulation of her husband's career. The Ghost took complete control over her husband's career to satisfy her own ambition and material desires.

**#6 The Great Divorce, Discussion Questions - The Ghost with the Lizard**

You don't have to answer out loud, but have you ever been so torn by a vice or addiction? So torn that part of you is trying to give it away, while the other part is holding tight -- an internal, unending tug-of-war that pits your own will against itself?

To jog your memory: This is the ghost hounded by uncontrollable lust. The lizard on his shoulder is the manifestation of the lust. He understands that the lizard can't accompany him to heaven, but he can't give it up ... or can he?

Bonus Question: St. Teresa of Avila in The Interior Castle also describes sins, like those afflicting the ghost, as reptiles. The "reptiles" prowl about the outside of the castle and sometimes intrude into the outer courts. What do you think this means?

**#7 The Great Divorce, Discussion Questions - Frank Smith & Sarah Smith**

A. Why does Frank struggle to drop the chain? "What are you doing with that great, ugly doll? Let go of the chain. Send it away. It is you I want. Don't you see what nonsense it's talking?" What is the "great, ugly doll"? How do you think it came to be?

B. At what point did the Dwarf stop talking? What decision was he faced with and unable to make?

To jog your memory: This one may be a reverse pun on the "old ball and chain" trope. Frank is the husband of Saint Sarah Smith. His ghost is the tiny man or "Dwarf" that is leading a tall man by a chain. The Narrator calls the tall man on the leash "The Tragedian", because it seems to represent Frank's overdramatic and emotionally manipulative side. "The Tragedian" speaks for the Dwarf whenever the Dwarf "jerks" the chain. The greater precedence given to the Tragedian, the smaller the Dwarf (Frank's real self) becomes.

**#8 The Great Divorce, Discussion Questions - George MacDonald, the Protagonist**

Maybe the biggest question after reading this book: Does George end up in Heaven or Hell? Or is something else happening? What is the "siren howling overhead"?

Novena to Our Lady of Guadalupe, Prayers for Healing, Safety, Protection, & the New 8 Million Conversions

2025-01-20T13:45:00.003-06:00

We have often heard the story of Our Lady of Guadalupe's apparitions to St. Juan Diego and his ordeal with the bishop. We do not often hear about the litany of miracles that occurred (and continue to occur) following the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

This Novena will focus our attention on the miracles that occurred in the wake of the great miracle of the image of Our Lady appearing on St. Juan Diego's tilma. Join us in praying for more miracles like these, especially for the new 8 million, a new and massive surge of conversions like those that occurred between 1531-1538. Please pray for these as we approach 2031, the 500th Anniversary of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Novena - Table of Contents

Our Lady of Guadalupe's Own Words - Translation of the Earliest Accounts of Our Lady

Do you want to read Our Lady of Guadalupe's original words to St. Juan Diego? Here's a great book! This includes the oldest account of Our Lady of Guadalupe in the native language Nahuatl language, translated into English:

It also describes all the miracles that occurred after the apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe, which I've included in the Novena below.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Daily Novena Prayer

When St. Juan Diego was praying for his specific intention, the healing of his mortally sick uncle, the compassionate Virgin answered him as follows, and so let us pray her words. The following is to be recited daily:

Understand, rest very much assured, my youngest child, that nothing whatever should frighten you or worry you. Do not be concerned, do not fear the illness, or any other illness or calamity. Am I, your mother, not here? Are you not under my protective shade, my shadow? Am I not your happiness? Are you not in the security of my lapfold, in my carrying gear? Do you need something more? Do not let anything worry you or upset you further. Do not let [state your intention] worry you ... Rest assured, for [your intention has already been heard].[1]

Also pray the following "Prayer to be Directed to the Heavenly Queen, Our Precious Mother of Guadalupe":

REJOICE, heavenly Queen , eternally blessed Virgin, O merciful one, rejoice, you who are the precious daughter of God the Father. Rejoice, you who are the precious mother of God's precious child. Rejoice, you who are the precious spouse of God the Holy Spirit. It is you we praise, you who have descended from heaven and by a very great miracle have come to reveal yourself to the poor humble commoners. To you we cry, you who are our precious revered mother of Guadalupe, you who in your very great compassion gave us your image, before which we wretches who live in pain on your precious child's earth cry out. Turn your eyes toward us here; may we not disgust you with all our sins. Rather, keep your word to help us and favor us in our difficulties. May we attain your light in order to see the life in heaven. And for your sake may we be pardoned all our sins and offenses against our Lord. May you appease the heart of your precious child; may all his wrath and anger subside. May you take pity on us who are his creatures, who are under your protective shade, who cry out to you today. And then at the time of our death please remove and put to flight our foe, who leads us astray, so that happily and peacefully our souls may go to lie entirely in your hands, so that they may go appear in the presence of God, their creator. Amen. JESUS.[2]

Our Lady of Guadalupe Novena Prayer - Day 1

The first miracle wrought by Our Lady of Guadalupe, the roses given to St. Juan Diego, point to one of her greatest and most long-lasting miracles. Listen to how the roses were described in the original account:

Then Juan Diego climbed the hill. When he reached the top, he was greatly astonished at all the different kinds of precious Spanish flowers that were growing there, blossoming and blooming, although their blooming time had not yet come, for it was right then that the frost was strong. They were very fragrant, and the night dew on them was like precious pearls. He thereupon began to pick them; he gathered every one and put them in his lapfold. But the top of the hill was absolutely no place for any flowers to grow, for it was a place of crags, thorns, brambles, cactus, and mesquite, and if some little grassy weeds should grow there at that time, in the month of December, the frost would devour and destroy them all. Then he came back down, bringing to the heavenly Lady the various kinds of flowers that he had gone to pick.[3]

The roses were growing in an inhospitable location: "absolutely no place for any flowers to grow". The place, like in Jesus' Parable of the Sower was choked with "crags, thorns, brambles, cactus, and mesquite." The place was also cold and covered in frost, which would "devour" "little grassy weeds", let alone roses. In this inhospitable place was growing an entire garden of "all the different kinds of precious Spanish flowers." They were not even flowers from Mexico. The origin of the flowers pointed back to Europe.

Why? Because all these flowers, growing here in this rocky place, instead of Spain, point to the Mexican people, themselves. The flowers point to the 8 million conversions that would occur in the 8 years following the appearance of Our Lady of Guadalupe. While all this was happening in Mexico, the Church, the Blessed Mother's own family, was being torn apart in Europe by the Protestant Revolution. Our Blessed Mother insured the future of the Church by sparking a number of Catholic conversions equal to the number of Protestant conversions in Europe.

Mary had told St. Juan Diego "Are you not in the security of my lapfold?" Now, she has St. Juan Diego carefully place these flowers -- these souls to be converted -- into his own lapfold: "As he came he exercised great care with what he had in his lapfold, lest he drop anything, and he enjoyed the fragrance of the various kinds of precious flowers."[4]

Let us pray now to prepare another great bouquet of souls for our Blessed Mother. Let us pray now for more conversions of souls to the Catholic Church, to the lapfold of the Blessed Virgin Mary and to her womb, where souls will find Jesus. We pray for a new, massive round of conversions, the new 8 million, a new massive harvest of flowers. We also pray for all those specific individuals we know [state them by name] that are "ripe flowers" to be picked and placed into the lapfold of Our Lady. We pray for the courage to speak the words of conversion, if such is our role, or for that the words would be given to another, through the Holy Spirit.

Now, recite the daily prayers for this novena.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Novena Prayer - Day 2

For the remaining days of this Novena, we will reflect on the first recorded miracles attributed to Our Lady of Guadalupe.

THE VERY FIRST of the miracles that she worked was when they took her to Tepeyacac for the first time after her temple was finished. For at this time the procession in which they took her was performed in the grand fashion. All the priests that there were, and the various Spaniards in whose hands the city was, and also all the Mexica rulers and nobles, came out together, as well as the people from other altepetls all around. Great preparations were made so that things would be well adorned all along the causeway which leaves Mexico as far as Tepeyacac, where the temple of the heavenly Lady had been erected. There were many things for amusement and celebration along the way. The causeway was full of moving people, and since the water of the lake was still very deep on both sides, numerous commoners went by boat; some went along skirmishing, encountering one another in battle. One of the archers who were dressed like Chichimeca drew his bow quite taut, and without warning the arrow flew off and hit one of those who were engaged in skirmishing there; it passed through his neck, and he fell. When they saw that he had died, they took him to the consummate Virgin our Queen; they went and laid him before her. His relatives cried out to her to deign to revive him. And after they pulled the arrow out of him, she not only revived him and gave him life, but he was also immediately healed where the arrow had passed through; all that remained were marks where the arrow entered and came out. Right away he stood up and left; the heavenly Lady sent him on his way, making him joyful. Absolutely everyone marveled greatly and praised the consummate Virgin, the heavenly Lady, Saint Mary of Guadalupe, for the way she was now carrying out the pledge she made to Juan Diego that she would always help and defend the local people and all those who invoked her. It is said that from that moment on this humble person remained at the precious home of the heavenly precious Lady; there he used to sweep her temple and home for her.[5]

We pray today for Our Lady of Guadalupe to be known through miraculous healings and for her to heal miraculously, and even resurrect, those whose names we submit to her intercession.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Novena Prayer - Day 3

Today, we read about how the intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe ended an epidemic in 1544:

WHEN THERE WAS a great epidemic in the year 1544, with very severe loss in the great altepetls, each day a hundred people were being buried; in truth, it exceeded that. When our Lord's precious ones, the friars of Saint Francis, had seen that it was not subsiding, that nothing at all was helping, that no progress could be made, that our Lord the giver of life was reducing and depopulating the land, they arranged a procession to go to Tepeyacac. The precious friars gathered a great many children, female and male, who had just reached the age of six or seven; they went along flogging themselves. As to how the procession went, it came out of the church at Tlatelolco; all along the way, they went crying to our Lord to have pity on his altepetl, that there be an end to his ire and wrath, in the very name and for the sake of his precious, revered mother, the consummate Virgin, our Queen, Saint Mary of Guadalupe of Tepeyacac. As soon as they arrived at her churchly home, the friars offered very many prayers. And God the giver of life willed that through the intercession and prayers of the compassionate personage, his precious, revered mother, the epidemic would begin to subside. The next days not many people were being buried any longer, and finally perhaps two or three people as the epidemic came to an end.[6]

We pray today for the end of epidemics and for healings worldwide. We also pray for the miraculous healing of those whose names we submit to Our Lady's intercession. We pray that these healings will lead to the conversions of hearts and souls to Jesus and His Catholic Church.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Novena Prayer - Day 4

Today, we read about the widespread end of idolatry that occurred after the apparition of Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Remedios, an associated image of Our Lady that was given to Don Juan at Totoltepec.

IN THE BEGINNING, when the Christian faith had just arrived here in the land that today is called New Spain, in many ways the heavenly Lady, the consummate Virgin Saint Mary, cherished, aided, and defended the local people so that they might entirely give themselves and adhere to the faith. As a result they despised and abhorred the idolatry in which they had been wandering about in confusion on the earth, in the night and darkness in which the demon had made them live. In order that they might invoke her fervently and trust in her fully, she saw fit to reveal herself for the first time to two people here. They attained the precious images of the consummate Virgin, our Queen, which are here near the altepetl of Mexico; she appeared to Juan Diego at Tepeyacac Guadalupe, and she revealed the image that is called Remedios to don Juan at Totoltepec.

She revealed herself to him [don Juan] on top of a hill, among maguey plants, where her temple stands today. He took her to his home and kept her there for several years, and afterwards he outfitted a small temple for her in front of his house and moved her there. And when she had been there for some time, don Juan contracted a serious illness. When it was seen that he was fatally ill, that he would no longer be able to escape or to get up, he asked his children, the humble Totoltepec commoners, to take him to Tepeyacac where the consummate Virgin, our precious mother of Guadalupe, is, which is perhaps more than two leagues distant from Totoltepec, because he knew how the heavenly Lady had healed Juan Bernardino, resident of Quauhtitlan and uncle of Juan Diego, upon whom a very great illness had likewise come, and had worked all the [other] miracles. Thereupon they laid him on a litter, took him to Tepeyacac, and went to lay him down before the heavenly Lady, our precious mother of Guadalupe. Then he prayed to her tearfully, he bowed down and humbled himself before her, and asked her to do him the favor of healing his earthly body. Perhaps she would cause him to live for another brief day on her earth, so that he could serve her and her precious child. The compassionate one received his prayers benevolently. She was very happy, she smiled when she saw him, and she showed him affection, as she told him, "Get up! you have already been cured. Return to your home. And I command you that on top of the hill, where the maguey plants stand, where you saw my image, you build a small temple, where it will be." And she commanded him to do various other things. At that very moment he recovered. And when he had addressed her with many thanks for her benevolence, he returned home on foot. They no longer carried him in their arms. When he arrived, he immediately carried it out; he built the small temple for the precious image of the heavenly Lady, called Remedios, where she is now. After her temple was finished, she herself entered, all by herself she went to stand on the altar as she is today and as she is depicted in all her miracles.[7]

We pray today for the all images of Our Lady and Our Lady of Guadalupe, particularly, to bring healings and conversions and greater devotion to Jesus through Mary. We also pray for the miraculous healing of those whose names we submit to Our Lady's intercession. We pray that these healings will lead to the conversions of hearts and souls to Jesus and His Catholic Church.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Novena Prayer - Day 5

Today, we read about a miraculous rescue from a rampaging horse that occurred through Our Lady of Guadalupe's intercession.

HERE IN THE altepetl of Mexico one of the Spanish noblemen, named don Antonio Carvajal, took a young fellow, a relative of his, with him when he went to Tulancingo. When they passed through Tepeyacac, they first went into the churchly home of the consummate Virgin, our precious mother of Guadalupe; they stopped a while to pray there, they stopped by to greet the heavenly Queen so that she might aid and defend them and cause them to arrive safely where they were going. When they had come back out and were traveling along, on the way they went along talking with one another about the consummate Virgin, how she revealed her precious image by a very great miracle, and how she had worked all the different kinds of miracles, by which she did good to those who invoked her.

As the horse on which the young fellow was riding was going along the road, somehow it fell down; as a result it went wild, or perhaps something frightened it. It took off with great impetus and ran through ravines, past precipices and crags, while he tried with all his strength to pull on the reins. He was unable to control it; it ran him for perhaps half a league. His companions tried to intercept it, but they could by no means do so; it went as if carried by the wind. Then they lost sight of it, and thought that it might have pulverized him somewhere. Indeed it was a very dangerous place that it was heading straight toward, a place of many ravines and crags. But our Lord and the perfectly compassionate one, his precious, honored mother, saw fit to free him.

When they found him, what they came upon was that the horse had stopped, it had bowed its head, and its legs were as though bent. It was entirely unable to move, and the young fellow was stuck in a stirrup, hanging by one foot. When they saw him, they greatly marveled in their hearts; there was nothing at all wrong with him, nor was he hurt anywhere. Thereupon they took him in their arms and released his foot. When he got up, they asked him how he had escaped without anything happening to him, and he said to them, You saw how when we left Mexico, we passed by the home of the heavenly Lady, our precious mother of Guadalupe. Before leaving we marveled at her precious image and prayed to her, and afterwards on the road we went along talking to one another about all the miracles that she has worked and how her precious image appeared by a very great miracle. Absolutely everything found its way into my memory, I took it very much to heart. So when I saw that I was put in great danger, that there was no way I could escape, that I would soon die and perish, that there was no longer any help for me whatever, just at that very moment with all my heart I called on the consummate Virgin, the heavenly Lady, our precious mother of Guadalupe, to have pity on me and help me. Just at that very moment I saw her, just as she herself appears in the precious image of our Queen of Guadalupe. She helped and rescued me; she grabbed the horse's reins, so that it stopped immediately and obeyed her. Like one bowing before her, it knelt down as it was when you found it. They praised the heavenly Lady very greatly, and thereupon they traveled on.[8]

We pray specifically today for the safety of all those that are traveling. More broadly speaking, we pray for Our Lady of Guadalupe to protect us, our loved ones, our specific intentions, and the Church founded by her Son. We pray that this miraculous protection will lead to the conversions of hearts and souls to Jesus and His Catholic Church.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Novena Prayer - Day 6

Today, we read about a man saved from a mortal blow by a falling lamp:

ONCE A SPANIARD was kneeling before the heavenly Lady, our precious mother of Guadalupe, praying to her. It happened that the rope broke from which a large lamp was hanging; it was very heavy, and it was hanging in front of her. Right away it went straight toward his head, it fell right on his skull. All those who were there believed that he had died immediately or that it had smashed his head, or that perhaps it had seriously injured him, for it fell from a great height. But not only was he not harmed and suffered no injury of any sort, but the lamp was not crushed anywhere at all, nor was it damaged in the slightest. The glass did not break, the oil that was in it did not spill, and the flame that was burning did not go out. Everyone was very greatly astonished at all the miracles that the heavenly Lady worked at a single time.[9]

We pray specifically today for the safety of all those in the face of unknown dangers and disorders of the brain, whether mental or physical. More broadly speaking, we pray for Our Lady of Guadalupe to protect from harm all of us, our loved ones, our specific intentions, and the Church founded by her Son. We pray that this miraculous protection will lead to the conversions of hearts and souls to Jesus and His Catholic Church.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Novena Prayer - Day 7

Today, we read about Father Juan Vasquez de Acuna who was celebrating Holy Mass when suddenly all the candles were blown out:

LICENCIATE JUAN Vasquez de Acuna, former vicar, was in charge there for very many years. Once it happened that he was about to say mass at the main altar and all the candles went out. The sacristan meanwhile went away to light [others], because it was very windy there, and the priest was waiting for the candles to be burning. He saw two things like tassels of flame or lightning come out of the rays of the heavenly Lady and come to light the candles on both sides. This miracle very much astonished all those who were there in her churchly home.[10]

We pray today that the flame of faith would keep burning across the world and, instead of being snuffed out, would spread across the world. We pray for faith to catch fire, especially in the places where it is most unlikely or seemingly impossible. We pray that this spreading flame will lead to the conversions of hearts and souls to Jesus and His Catholic Church.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Novena Prayer - Day 8

Today, we read about the miraculous spring that flowed out from behind the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe and the miracles that sprang from it:

WHEN FOR THE very first time the heavenly Lady showed herself to Juan Diego and her precious image very miraculously appeared, she worked very many miracles. It is said that also at that time the spring opened up which is behind the temple of the heavenly Lady to the east, in the very place where she went to meet Juan Diego when he had gone around the hill so that the heavenly Lady might not see him, since he first wanted to call a friar to hear the confession of and prepare his uncle, Juan Bernardino, who lay very gravely ill. It was right there that she intercepted him and sent him to go cut flowers on the top of the hill. It was also where she showed him the level ground where the temple was to be built, and where she sent him for the last time to see the lord bishop, to whom she sent flowers as a proof and sign of her wish that her temple was to be built. All of this was said earlier in passing. Where this water gushes out, although it flies up as it gushes and bubbles, it still does not overflow, nor does it [fly out greatly, only a very little. It is very clean and fragrant, but not good tasting, somewhat as if acidic. It is effective with all different kinds of illnesses for those who in good faith drink it or bathe in it. For that reason the miracles that the consummate Virgin, the heavenly Lady, our precious mother Saint Mary of Guadalupe, has worked are innumerable.

THE STOMACH of a Spanish woman, who was a resident here in the altepetl of Mexico, began for no reason4 to swell as if it were hydropic, as if it would burst. The Spanish physicians tried different kinds of medicine by which to cure her; absolutely nothing helped or worked, but it kept on growing all the more. It was now ten months that she had the illness, and she was quite certain that she could never get well again, that she would die of it, unless the heavenly Lady, the consummate Virgin, Saint Mary of Guadalupe, would heal her. She directed them to carry her on a litter and take her to Tepeyacac to the home of the heavenly Lady. Very early in the morning they started her on her way, and when they got her to her churchly home, they laid her down before her. Thereupon she prayed to her with all her heart that she would have pity on her and cure her. She wept before her, prostrated herself, and asked to be given a little bit of her spring water to drink. After she drank it, her body temperature moderated, and she fell asleep. When it was past midday and the bell was about to strike one, those who had brought her came back outside the building for a while to go look around. They came out leaving her all alone while she slept and her temperature moderated, and one of the humble commoners who had taken a vow there to sweep at the church saw a very frightening snake come out from under her, a fathom and one span in length, and very thick. He was very frightened and immediately cried out to the Spanish woman who was sick. At that she awoke and got up. She was very much startled and frightened and repeatedly cried out to summon someone. Then they killed the snake there; at that very moment she got well and her stomach went down. She spent four more days there, in order to pray daily to the heavenly Lady who had done her this favor and healed her. When she came back, they no longer carried her in their arms; she came back just on foot. Now she came greatly rejoicing; nothing was ailing her any more.[11]

We pray again for the miraculous healing of those whose names we submit to Our Lady's intercession. We pray that these healings will lead to the conversions of hearts and souls to Jesus and His Catholic Church.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Novena Prayer - Day 9

Today, we read about the miraculous healing of the head and ears of a Spanish nobleman:

THE HEAD AND ears of a Spanish nobleman, a resident here in the altepetl of Mexico, pained him very badly, as if they would burst; absolutely nothing helped him. He could endure it no longer, and he directed that he be taken to the precious home of the consummate Virgin, our precious mother of Guadalupe. When he arrived in her presence, he prayed to her with all his heart to help him and cure him. He vowed that when she had cured him, he would make an offering to her of a head of silver. Just at the very moment he got there, he was cured. After he had spent nine days at the home of the heavenly Lady, he returned home rejoicing. Absolutely nothing more was ailing him.

We pray specifically today the healing of minds and ears that they may better understand and listen to the Word of God. We pray again for the miraculous healing of those whose names we submit to Our Lady's intercession. We pray that these healings will lead to the conversions of hearts and souls to Jesus and His Catholic Church.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Novena Footnotes

[1] The Story of Guadalupe, Luis Laso de la Vega’s Huei tlamahuicoltica of 1649 (Stanford University Press, 1998), 77-79.

[2] Ibid., 127.

[3] Ibid., 79.

[4] Ibid., 81.

[5] Ibid., 93-95

[6] Ibid., 95-97

[7] Ibid., 97-99

[8] Ibid., 99-103

[9] Ibid., 103-105

[10] Ibid., 103-105

[11] Ibid., 105-107

Catholic Saint Quote Index: Rolodex of Saints Quotes and Bible Verses

2025-01-13T05:30:00.004-06:00

I just read an interesting book recently about giving speeches, Speak Like Churchill, Stand Like Lincoln. Chapter 6 talks about using quotes when you speak and "assembling your arsenal of quotations".

Adapting this to a Catholic approach, we should assemble an arsenal of Saint Quotes and Bible Verses.

Catholic Saint Quote Index - Table of Contents

On Creating a Saint Quote Rolodex: Speak Like Churchill, Stand Like Lincoln

James C. Humes, the author of Speak Like Churchill, Stand Like Lincoln, advises creating a "Rolodex" of quotes, organized by category and alphabetically.

Humes says, "File away only quotations from those who are famous, whose observations are crisp and memorable, or whose words strike a ringing echo of agreement in your mind."

Humes provides the following topics to get started on organizing your quotes:

Action
Business
Change
Decision
Excellence
Facts
Government
History
Idea
Jobs
Knowledge
Leadership
Money
Necessity
Opportunity
Planning
Question
Research
Solution
Team
Urgency
Vision
Winner
Youth
Zero Defects

These topics are obviously business-driven. They follow the target audience of the book: CEOs. Nevertheless, they are a good place to start. Start what?

Assemble an arsenal of Catholic Quotations! A Rolodex of Saint Quotes

Humes also provides "the twenty most popular 'wallet stuffers' for business situations" that he has personally supplied to CEOs for their talks.

Winston Churchill (Problem-Solution): In critical and baffling situations, it is always best to return to the first principle.
Confucius (Problem-Analysis): The first rule in being a wise leader is that you must first define the problem.
Ralph Waldo Emerson (Facts-Planning): A little fact is worth a limbo of dreams.
Benjamin Franklin (Negotiation-Problem): Necessity never made a good bargain.
Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes (New Idea-Change): Every now and then a man's mind is stretched by a new idea and never shrinks back to its former dimensions.
Thomas Jefferson (Problem-Solution): Always take hold of things by the smooth handle.
John Kennedy (Planning-Solution): Our task is not to fix the blame for the past, but to fix the course for the future.
Abraham Lincoln (Purpose-Planning): If we could first know where we are and whither we are going, we could better judge what to do and how to do it.
William Shakespeare (Opportunity-Initiative): There is a tide in the affairs of men which taken at the flood leads to fortune.
Alfred Lord Tennyson (Change-Challenge): The old order changes yielding place to new.
Louis Pasteur (Simplicity): Do not promote what you can't explain, simplify, and prove early.
Aldous Huxley (Planning): Dream in a pragmatic way.
Abraham Lincoln (Dedication): It's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years.
Charles DeGaulle (Individual): History does not teach fatalism. There are moments when the will of a few free men open up new roads.
George Patton (Planning): Take calculated risks-that's a lot different from being rash.
Winston Churchill (Expediency): There are two kinds of success: initial and ultimate.
Robert Frost (Change): Ah, when to the heart of men was it ever less than treason to go with the drift of things?
Mark Twain (Change): Loyalty to a petrified opinion never broke a chain or freed a human soul.
Winston Churchill (Leadership): There is a precipice on either side of you: a precipice of caution, a precipice of over-daring.
Winston Churchill (Challenge): No one can make you inferior without your consent.

Humes concludes this lists, saying: "If one of these wallet stuffers fits your format, then adopt it; make it your own. Emphasize it, enhance it, empower it. Pick and present a famous Power Quote that will magnify your message."

Saint Quotes: Gratitude (and Purgatory)

If only you knew with what great longing these holy souls yearn for relief from their suffering. Ingratitude has never entered Heaven.

- St. Margaret Mary in her letter to Mother de Saumaise, at Dijon, May 2, 1683 (23), Letters of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, p. 32. Source for "Ingratitude has never entered Heaven"

Saint Quotes: Starting a Project

"Undertake nothing without first dedicating it to God"

- Padre Pio

Saint Quotes: Planning

"God does nothing without a finesse of all details."

- Venerable Fulton Sheen

Saint Quotes: Difficulties, Annoyances, Difficult People

Do not say that person annoys me. Say that person sanctifies me.

- St. Josemaria Escriva

We always find that those who walked closest to Christ were those who had to bear the greatest trials.

- St. Teresa of Avila

The more we are afflicted in this world, the greater is our assurance in the next; the more sorrow in the present, the greater will be our joy in the future.

- St. Isadore of Seville

Whenever anything disagreeable or displeasing happens to you, remember Christ crucified and be silent.

- St. John of the Cross

Many would be willing to have afflictions provided that they not be inconvenienced by them.

- St. Francis de Sales

There is not a moment in which God does not present Himself under the cover of some pain to be endured, of some consolation to be enjoyed, or of some duty to be performed.

- Fr. Jean-Pierre de Caussade (Abandonment to Divine Providence, Chapter 2, Section 1, p. 15)

Saint Quotes: Scripture, Importance of

Ignorance of scripture is ignorance of Christ

- St. Jerome

Saint Quotes: Fear, Anxiety

Go forth in peace, for you have followed the good road. Go forth without fear, for he who created you has made you holy, has always protected you, and loves you as a mother. Blessed be you, my God, for having created me.

- St. Clare of Assisi

Leave sadness to those in the world. We who work for God should be lighthearted.

- St. Leonard of Port Maurice

Saint Quotes: Protestantism, Apologetics

Either Christ has a Church in the world continually and until the end of the world, or else He has a Church sometimes, and sometimes not at all. Could we think that He had a Church while He was here Himself, and perhaps awhile after, but mysteriously none since? . . . No . . . that can in no way be, since He must necessarily still preserve His Church somewhere; otherwise, how could He be with His followers continually until the end of the world?

- St. Thomas More

Saint Quotes: Perseverance, Persistence

We must pray incessantly for the gift of perseverance.

- St. Philip Neri

To begin is for everyone. To persevere is for saints.

- St. Josemaria Escriva

You think it very hard to lead a life of such restraint unless you keep your eye of faith always open. Perseverance is a great grace. To go on gaining and advancing every day, we must be resolute, and bear and suffer as our blessed forerunners did. Which of them gained heaven without a struggle?

- St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

Nothing great is ever achieved without much enduring.

- St. Catherine of Siena

What toil we must endure, what fatigue, while we are attempting to climb hills and the summits of mountains! What, that we may ascend to heaven! If you consider the promised reward, what you endure is less. Immortality is given to the one who perseveres; everlasting life is offered; the Lord promises His Kingdom.

- St. Cyprian of Carthage

The principal act of courage is to endure and withstand dangers doggedly rather than to attack them.

- St. Thomas Aquinas

Vigils, prayer and patient acceptance of what comes constitute a breaking that does not harm but benefits the heart, provided we do not destroy the balance between them through excess. He who perseveres in them will be helped in other ways as well; but he who is slack and negligent will suffer intolerably on leaving this life

- St. Mark the Ascetic

Grant me, O Lord my God, a mind to know you, a heart to seek you, wisdom to find you, conduct pleasing to you, faithful perseverance in waiting for you, and a hope of finally embracing you. Amen.

- St. Thomas Aquinas

Though the path is plain and smooth for men of good will, he who walks it will not travel far, and will do so only with difficulty, if he does not have good feet: that is, courage and a persevering spirit.

- St. John of the Cross

So blessed are you if you persevere in doing good, neither seeking nor desiring any consolation, for as St. Bernard says: To serve God is nothing else than to do good and suffer evil, and the rule of the true servant of Christ is never to receive consolation except in time of great necessity. This is the secure way; for whoever wants to go to God through sweetness and consolation is deceived.

- St. Catherine of Bologna

Saint Quotes: Saints, Intercession, Apologetics

Those in the Catholic Church, whom some rebuke for praying to Saints and going on pilgrimages, do not seek any Saint as their savior. Instead, they seek saints as those whom their Savior loves, and whose intercession and prayer for the seeker He will be content to hear. For His Own sake, He would have those He loves honored. And when they are thus honored for His sake, then the honor that is given them for His sake overflows especially to Himself.

- St. Thomas More

Considering that when the Saints lived in this world they were at liberty to roam the earth, do you really think that in Heaven God would have them tied to a post?

- St. Thomas More

You say you see no reason why we should pray to the Saints since God can hear us and help us just as well, and will do so gladly, as any Saint in Heaven. Well, then, what need, I ask, do you have to ask any physician to help your fever, or to ask and pay any surgeon to heal your sore leg? For God can both hear you and help you as well as the best of doctors. He loves you more than they do, and He can help you sooner. Besides—–His poultices are cheaper and He will give you more for your words alone than they will for your money!

- St. Thomas More

If Saint Paul exhorts us to pray for one another, and we gladly think it right to ask every poor man to pray for us, should we think it evil to ask the holy Saints in Heaven to do the same?

- St. Thomas More

Saint Quotes: Conversion, Evangelization

First let a little love find entrance into their hearts, and the rest will follow.

- St. Philip Neri

Saint Quotes: Pro-Life, Abortion

A woman who deliberately destroys a fetus is answerable for murder. And any fine distinction between its being completely formed or unformed is not admissible among us.

- St. Basil the Great

>> Mother Teresa (St. Teresa) Pro-Life Quotes, Quotes on Abortion

“How can there be too many children? That is like saying there are too many flowers.”

- St. Teresa of Calcutta

“I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct killing of the innocent child, murder by the mother herself.”

- St. Teresa of Calcutta

“And if we can accept that a mother can kill her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another?”

- St. Teresa of Calcutta

“It is a poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish.”

- St. Teresa of Calcutta

“We must not be surprised when we hear of murders, of killings, of wars, of hatred. If a mother can kill her own child, what is left but for us to kill each other.”

- St. Teresa of Calcutta

“By abortion the mother does not learn to love, but kills her own child to solve her problems. And, by abortion, that father is told that he does not have to take any responsibility at all for the child he has brought into the world. The father is likely to put other women to the same trouble. So abortion leads to more abortion. So, the mother who is thinking of abortion, should be helped to love, that is, to give until it hurts her plans, or her free time, to respect the life of her child. The father of that child, whoever he is, must also give until it hurts.”

- St. Teresa of Calcutta

“Any country that accepts abortion is the poorest of the poor.”

- St. Teresa of Calcutta

“Many people are concerned with children of India, with the children of Africa where quite a few die of hunger, and so on. Many people are also concerned about the violence in this great country of the United States. These concerns are very good. But often these same people are not concerned with the millions being killed by the deliberate decision of their own mothers. And this is the greatest destroyer of peace today—abortion which brings people to such blindness.”

- St. Teresa of Calcutta

“We must remember that life begins at home and we must also remember that the future of humanity passes through the family.”

- St. Teresa of Calcutta

“How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion? As always, we must persuade her with love and we remind ourselves that love means to be willing to give until it hurts.”

- St. Teresa of Calcutta

Saint Quotes: Spiritual Combat, Purity

“Jesus Christ gave up his life that we might live, therefore, whoever wishes to carry the cross for his sake must take up the proper weapons for the contest, especially those mentioned here. First, diligence; second, distrust of self; third, confidence in God; fourth, remembrance of the Passion; fifth, mindfulness of one’s own death; sixth, remembrance of God’s glory; seventh, the injunctions of Sacred Scripture following the example of Jesus Christ in the desert”

- St. Catharine of Bologna, On the Seven Spiritual Weapons

The Devil never runs upon a man to seize him with his claws until he sees him on the ground, already having fallen by his own will.

- St. Thomas More

“The most powerful weapon

to conquer the devil is humility.

For, as he does not know at all,

how to employ it,

neither does he know

how to defend himself from it.”

St. Vincent de Paul (1581-1660)

“Not only the devil is involved in spiritual warfare

but the Holy Spirit is equally involved, or more involved in it,

bringing men and women of goodwill,

the ability to overcome evil in their lives,

so that they too can say:

'Where evil abounded, grace super-abounded!'” (Rom 5:20).

St. Pope John Paul II

"You must never be afraid, if you are troubled by a flood of thoughts, that the enemy is too strong against you, that his attacks are never ending, that the war will last for your lifetime, and that you cannot avoid incessant downfalls of all kinds. Know that our enemies, with all their wiles, are in the hands of our divine Commander, our Lord Jesus Christ, for Whose honour and glory you are waging war. Since He himself leads you into battle, He will certainly not suffer your enemies to use violence against you and overcome you, if you do not yourself cross over to their side with your will. He will Himself fight for you and will deliver your enemies into your hands, when He wills and as He wills, as it is written: ‘The Lord thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp, to deliver thee, and to give up thine enemies before thee’ (Deut. xxii, 14)."

St. Theophan the Recluse (from "Unseen Warfare")

"Do not allow the spark of discord and enmity to smolder. The longer you wait, the more the enemy tries to cause confusion among you. Be watchful, so that he does not mock you. Humility destroys all of his schemes.”

Saint Makarios of Optina

“Rouse yourselves ! The world which you worship only flatters you. The heaviness of your flesh should not keep you back from our Saviour—the God of spirits and of all flesh. If you continue to drowse, you will imperceptibly fall under the influence of the evil spirits, who are anxious for the company even of swine. Be careful that you become not possessed by a devil.”

Saint Sebastian Dabovitch

“Are you fighting against your passions? Fight, fight, and be good soldiers of Christ! Do not give in to evil and do not be carried away by the weakness of the flesh. During the time of temptation, flee to the Physician, crying out with the Holy Church, our mother: “O God, number me with the thief, the harlot, and the publican (i.e., with the repentant), and save me!”

Saint Anatoly of Optina

“We must consider all evil things, even the passions which war against us, to be not our own, but of our enemy the devil. This is very important. You can only conquer a passion when you do not consider it as part of you.”

Saint Nikon of Optina

- "This kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.” [Matthew 17:14-23]

- If this kind goes out by the prayer and fasting of another person, then it is even less able to enter one who fasts and prays.

- What protection!

- Although there are a slew of demons and all the air is packed with them, they cannot do anything to one who is protected by prayer and fasting.

- Fasting is universal temperance, prayer is universal communication with God; the former defends from the outside, whereas the latter from within directs a fiery weapon against the enemies. The demons can sense a faster and man of prayer from a distance, and they run far away from him so as avoid a painful blow.

- Is it feasible to think that where there is no fasting and prayer, there already is a demon? Yes, it is.

- The demons lodging in a person, do not always reveal their presence, but lurk there, stealthily teaching their host every evil and turning him away from every good thing; so this person is certain that he is doing everything on his own, but meanwhile he is only fulfilling the will of his enemy.

- Just commence prayer and fasting and the enemy will immediately depart, then wait on the side for an opportunity to somehow return again. And he truly will return, as soon as prayer and fasting are abandoned.

Saint Theophan the Recluse

“My brethren, do all that is in your power not to fall, for the strong athlete should not fall, but, if you do fall, get up again at once, and continue the contest. Even if you fall a thousand times, because of the withdrawal of God’s grace, rise up again at each time, and keep on doing so until the day of your death. For it is written: ‘If a righteous man falls seven times,’ that is, repeatedly throughout his life, ‘seven times shall he rise again’ [Proverbs 24:16].”

Saint John of Karpathos

“Prayer in church is important. The best thoughts and feelings come in church, yes, and the enemy attacks more violently in church, but with the sign of the Cross and the Jesus Prayer, you drive him away. It is good to stand in some dark corner in church and to pray to God. “Let us lift up our hearts!” the priest exclaims, but our mind often creeps along the ground, thinking about indecent things. Fight against this.”

Saint Barsanuphios of Optina

“All of us sin constantly. We slip and fall. In reality, we fall into a trap set by the demons. The Holy Fathers and the Saints always tell us, ‘It is important to get up immediately after a fall and to keep on walking toward God’. Even if we fall a hundred times a day, it does not matter; we must get up and go on walking toward God without looking back. What has happened has happened – it is in the past. Just keep on going, all the while asking for help from God.”

Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica (Note: not a saint)

“All possible sins and passions are ready to break into the soul, and strive to do so at every moment. But fight against them valiantly and vigilantly unto your last breath, looking upon them as dreams of your imagination, as illusions of the spirits of evil.”

Saint John of Kronstadt

"A monk complained to St. Arsenius that while reading Holy Scripture he does not feel, neither the power of the words read nor gentleness in his heart. To that the great saint will reply to him: “My child, just read! I heard that the sorcerers of serpents, when they cast a spell upon the serpents, the sorcerers are uttering the words, which they themselves do not understand, but the serpents hearing the spoken words sense their power and become tamed. And so, with us, when we continually hold in our mouths the words of Holy Scripture, but even though we do not feel the power of the words, evil spirits tremble and flee for they are unable to endure the words of the Holy Spirit.”

- My child, just read!

- The Holy Spirit Who, through inspired men, wrote these divine words, will hear, will understand and will hasten to your assistance; and the demons will understand will sense and will flee from you.

- That is: He Whom you invoke for assistance will understand, and those whom you wish to drive away from yourself will understand. And both goals will be achieved."

Saint Nikolai Velimirovich

"Virtue is nothing without the trial of temptation, for there is no conflict without an enemy, no victory without strife."

Saint Leo the Great

"If you are suffering for your faith in Christ, the Lives of the Saints will console you and encourage you and make you bold and give you wings, and your torments will be changed into joy. If you are in any sort of temptation, the Lives of the Saints will help you overcome it both now and forever. If you are in danger from the invisible enemies of salvation, the Lives of the Saints will arm you with the ‘whole armor of God,’ and you will crush them all now and forever and throughout your whole life. If you are in the midst of visible enemies and persecutors of the Church of Christ, the Lives of the Saints will give you the courage and strength of a confessor, and you will fearlessly confess the one true God and Lord in all world─Jesus Christ─and you will boldly stand up for the holy truth of His Gospel unto Death, unto every death, and you will feel stronger than all deaths, and much more so than all visible enemies of Christ; and being tortured for Christ you will shout for joy, feeling with all your being that your life is in heaven, hidden with Christ in God, wholly above all deaths."

Saint Justin Popovich

“He who is ignorant of the enemy’s ambush is easily slain; and he who does not know the causes of the passions is soon brought low.”

Saint Mark the Ascetic

"Before the war begins, seek after your ally; before you fall ill, seek out your physician; and before grievous things come upon you, pray, and in the time of your tribulations you will find Him, and He will listen to you.”

Saint Isaac the Syrian

>> St. John Bosco Quotes on Spiritual Combat, Purity

Another weapon the devil employs is immodesty, or more frankly, impurity. My dear children, be on your guard. The devil will tempt you with bad books, bad thoughts, or the foul conversation of a companion. When any such fellow approaches you, say to yourself, 'This is a minister of Satan.' And let these wretches who indulge in foul conversation say to himself, I am a minister of Satan because I help him ruin souls!

- St. John Bosco

Do you want to outwit the devil? Never let him catch you idle. Work, study, pray, and you will be surely overcome your spiritual enemy.

- St. John Bosco

When I see the devil has stopped ensnaring souls, I too will cease looking for new ways to save them from his wily deceits.

- St. John Bosco

What I recommend most earnestly is not to lose heart when you are tempted. Do you wish to succeed? The best way is to reveal the temptations to your spiritual director immediately. The devil loves darkness. He always operates in the dark because he knows that if he is discovered he is beaten.

- St. John Bosco

The usual snare with which the devil catches the young is to fill them with shame when they are about to confess their sins. When he pushes them to commit sins, he removes all shame, as if there were nothing wrong with it, but when they are going to confession, he returns that shame magnified and tries to convince them that the priest will be shocked by their sins and will no longer think well of them. Thus the devil tries to drive souls to the brink of eternal damnation. Oh, how many lads does Satan steal from God – sometimes forever – by this trick.

- St. John Bosco

St. John Vianney, the Curé of Ars, Quotes on Angels

Here are some of St. John Vianney’s thoughts about the holy angels, to whom he had a great devotion:

The first thing about the angels that we ought to imitate, is their consciousness of the Presence of God.
Ah! if we had the eyes of angels with which to see our Lord Jesus Christ present on the Altar and looking at us, how we should love Him!
With what humility should we assist at Mass, if we realized that our Guardian Angel was kneeling beside us, prostrate before the majesty of God! With what eagerness should we not ask him to offer our prayers to Jesus Christ!
Our Guardian Angels are our most faithful friends, because they are with us day and night, always and everywhere. We ought often to invoke them.
The Angels take great pleasure in helping us with our enterprises, when they are in accordance with God's will.
If you find it impossible to pray, hide behind your good Angel and charge him to pray in your stead.
We ought to ask the Blessed Virgin, the angels, and the saints to pray for us that we may receive the good God as worthily as it is possible for us to receive Him. (Sermon on Holy Communion)
The devil writes down our sins—our Guardian Angel all our merits. Labor that the Guardian Angel's book may be full, and the devil's empty.
Do not try to please everybody. Try to please God, the angels, and the saints—they are your public.
Like the saints, let us be very zealous in fulfilling all our duties; let the devil never find us doing nothing, lest we should yield to temptation.
God , the Blessed Virgin, the angels and saints are about our path; they are at our side and see all we do.
After thanking our Guardian Angel who has remained by our side during our sleep, we should ask him for his protection during the day.
How happy is that Guardian Angel who accompanies a soul to Holy Mass!
We must take great care never to do anything before having said our Morning Prayers.... The devil once declared...that if he could have the first moment of the day, he was sure of all the rest.
What a comfort to you it is to know that when we go out of the house, we are never alone en route.
When we are walking in the streets, let us fix our eyes on Our Lord bearing his Cross before us; on the Blessed Virgin who is looking at us; on our Guardian Angel who is by our side.
It is our angels who ask God to grant us a deep sorrow for our sins.
Offer your temptations for the conversion of sinners. When the devil sees you doing this, he is beside himself with rage and makes off, because then the temptation is turned against himself.
Blessed are they who are tempted! It is when the devil sees that a soul is tending towards union with God that he redoubles his efforts.
If we did like St. Remigius, we should never be angry. Being questioned by a Father of the desert as to how he managed to be always in an even temper, replied: "I often consider that my Guardian Angel is always by my side"
If we could only see the JOY of our Guardian Angel when he sees us fighting our temptations!
In the Sacraments, it is God himself who comes to annihilate our enemy. The devil, seeing Him in our heart, throws himself despairingly into the bottomless pit; which explains why he does all he can to draw us away from them, or to make us receive them badly.
All the angels and saints are engaged in trying to prevent us from committing sins.
What happiness it is to a Guardian Angel to have the care of a pure soul. When the soul is pure, all the Court of Heaven looks upon it with joy.

Saint Quotes: Unsorted

He alone loves the Creator perfectly who manifests a pure love for his neighbor.

- St. Bede the Venerable

I wealthiest am when richest in remorse.

- St. Robert Southwell

Where sin was hatched, let tears now wash the nest.

- St. Robert Southwell

In the active life all the vices are first of all to be removed by the practice of good works, so that in the contemplative life a man may, with now purified mental gaze, pass on to the contemplation of the Divine Light.

- St. Isidore of Seville

The Child, the Lord Jesus Christ . . . Word in our flesh, Wisdom in infancy, Power in weakness, and in true Man, the Lord of Majesty.

- Pope St. Leo the Great

Celebrate the feast of Christmas every day, even every moment in the interior temple of your spirit, remaining like a baby in the bosom of the heavenly Father, where you will be reborn each moment in the Divine Word, Jesus Christ.

- St. Paul of the Cross

Since the Church began aiming more at temporal things than at spiritual, things have gone from bad to worse.

- St. Catherine of Siena

Refusing further service as a Roman soldier: I am a soldier of Christ: combat is not permitted to me.

- St. Martin of Tours

Truly, matters in the world are in a bad state; but if you and I begin in earnest to reform ourselves, a really good beginning will have been made.

- St. Peter of Alcantara

Our greatest gain is to lose the wealth that is of such brief duration and, by comparison with eternal things, of such little worth; yet we get upset about it and our gain turns to loss.

- St. Teresa of Avila

This world and the world to come are two enemies. We cannot therefore be friends to both; but we must decide which we will forsake and which we will enjoy.

- Pope St. Clement I

Proud is many a man who looks down on his neighbor because the wool of his gown is finer! Yet as fine as it is, a poor sheep wore it upon her back before it came upon his back, and all the while she wore it, she was after all still only a sheep. And why should he now think himself better than she was simply by having that wool—–wool that, even though it is now his, is still not so truly his as it was truly hers?

- St. Thomas More

Either we must speak as we dress, or dress as we speak. Why do we profess one thing and display another? The tongue talks of chastity, but the whole body reveals impurity.

- St. Jerome

Saint Quotes on Motherhood

“The loveliest masterpiece of the heart of God is the heart of a mother.”

- St. Thérèse of Lisieux

“To be a mother is to nourish and protect true humanity and bring it to development.”

- St. Teresa Benedicta (Edith Stein)

“A society without mothers would be a dehumanized society, for mothers are always, even in the worst moments, witnesses of tenderness, dedication, and moral strength. … Dearest mothers, thank you, thank you for what you are in your family and for what you give to the Church and the world.”

- Pope Francis

“Thank you, women who are mothers! You have sheltered human beings within yourselves in a unique experience of joy and travail. This experience makes you become God’s own smile upon the newborn child, the one who guides your child’s first steps, who helps it to grow, and who is the anchor as the child makes its way along the journey of life.”

- St. John Paul II

“Motherhood then becomes a kind of priesthood. She brings God to man by preparing the flesh in which the soul will be implanted; she brings man to God in offering the child back again to the Creator … she is nature’s constant challenge to death, the bearer of cosmic plentitude, the herald of eternal realities, God’s great cooperator.”

- Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen

“That special power of loving that belongs to a woman is seen most clearly when she becomes a mother. Motherhood is the gift of God to women. How grateful we must be to God for this wonderful gift that brings such joy to the whole world, women and men alike!”

- St. Teresa of Calcutta

“Above all, during the months immediately preceding the birth of her child, the mother should keep close to God, of whom the infant she bears within her is the image, the handiwork, the gift and the child. She should be for her offspring, as it were, a temple, a sanctuary, an altar, a tabernacle. In short, her life should be, so to speak, the life of a living sacrament, a sacrament in act, burying herself in the bosom of that God who has so truly instituted it and hallowed it, so that there she may draw that energy, that enlightening, that natural and supernatural beauty which he wills, and wills precisely by her means, to impart to the child she bears and to be born of her.”

- St. Zélie Guérin Martin, mother of St. Thérèse of Lisieux

“Look at the mothers who truly love their children: how many sacrifices they make for them. They are ready for everything, even to give their own blood so that their babies grow up good, healthy, and strong.”

- St. Gianna Beretta Molla

“And now thou didst ‘stretch forth thy hand from above’ and didst draw up my soul out of that profound darkness [of Manicheism] because my mother, thy faithful one, wept to thee on my behalf more than mothers are accustomed to weep for the bodily deaths of their children … And thou didst hear her, O Lord.”

- St. Augustine, son of St. Monica

“The most important person on earth is a mother. She cannot claim the honor of having built Notre Dame Cathedral. She need not. She has built something more magnificent than any cathedral — a dwelling for an immortal soul, the tiny perfection of her baby’s body. … The angels have not been blessed with such a grace. They cannot share in God’s creative miracle to bring new saints to heaven. Only a human mother can. Mothers are closer to God the Creator than any other creature; God joins forces with mothers in performing this act of creation … What on God’s good earth is more glorious than this; to be a mother?”

- Cardinal József Mindszenty

A “woman by her very nature is maternal — for every woman, whether married or unmarried, is called upon to be a biological, psychological, or spiritual mother — she knows intuitively that to give, to nurture, to care for others, to suffer with and for them — for maternity implies suffering — is infinitely more valuable in God’s sight than to conquer nations and fly to the moon.”

- Alice von Hildebrand

“Do not be troubled or weighed down with grief. Do not fear any illness or vexation, anxiety, or pain. Am I not here who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not your fountain of life? Are you not in the folds of my mantle? In the crossing of my arms? Is there anything else you need?”

- Our Lady of Guadalupe, to St. Juan Diego

Saint Quotes on St. Joseph

“St. Joseph was an ordinary sort of man on whom God relied to do great things. He did exactly what the Lord wanted him to do, in each and every event that went to make up his life. That is why Scripture praises Joseph as ‘a just man’. And in Hebrew a just man means a good and faithful servant of God, someone who fulfills the divine will, or who is honorable and charitable toward his neighbor.”

St. Josemaria Escriva

“What could Jesus Christ refuse St. Joseph, who never refused him anything during his mortal life on earth?”

St. Augustine

“He [St. Joseph] is head of the Holy Family, father of the trinity on earth which resembles so closely the Holy Trinity on high.”

St. Peter Julian Eymard

“Joseph carried Jesus Christ first to Egypt, then to Judea, and so traced for us the path of the apostles who preached his name to the Jews and to the Gentiles.”

St. Hilary of Poitiers

“The dignity and glory of St. Joseph is such that the Eternal Father conferred upon him with greatest liberality, a likeness to his own supremacy over his incarnate Son.”

St. Bernadine of Siena

"What many kings and prophets desired to see, and saw not; desired to hear, and heard not; he [St. Joseph] was allowed not merely to hear and see, but also to carry, lead, embrace, kiss, nourish, and protect."

St. Bernard of Clairvaux

“Jesus wished to become indebted to St. Joseph for the necessaries of life, and of this holy patriarch alone it may be said that he saved the life of his Savior.”

St. Madaleine Sophie Barat

“Saint Joseph is most powerful against the demons which fight against us at the end of our lives.”

St. Alphonsus de Liguori

“According to [St.] Jerome and Origen, Joseph had no suspicion of adultery because he knew the modesty and chastity of Mary. Moreover, he had read in Scripture that the virgin would conceive and that ‘a shoot shall sprout from the stock of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom’. He knew also that Mary was descended from the line of David. Thus it was easer for him to believe that Isaiah’s prophecy had been accomplished in her than to think that she could have let herself descend into debauchery. This is why, considering himself unworthy to live with a person of such great sanctity, he wanted to send her away secretly—like when Peter says to Jesus, ‘Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!'”

St. Thomas Aquinas

“I know not how anyone can ponder on the sufferings, trials, and tribulations the Queen of Angels endured whilst caring for Jesus in his childhood, without at the same time thanking St. Joseph for the services he rendered the Divine Child and his Blessed Mother.”

St. Teresa of Avila

“Saint Joseph did not do extraordinary things, but rather by the constant practice of the ordinary and common virtues, he attained that sanctity which elevates him above all other saints.”

St. Joseph Marello

What could Jesus Christ refuse St. Joseph, who never refused him anything during his mortal life on earth?

St. Augustine

Quotes on St. Joseph from St. Jose Manyanet y Vives, Apostle of the Holy Family:

When we work for the glory of God it is St. Joseph who pays.

- Complete Works of St. Jose Manyanet, trans. by Scott Smith, Vol. 6, "Loose thoughts on St. Joseph", p. 136, citing RAMÓN OROMÍ, o.c. 128.

His devotion to St. Joseph was very extraordinary; he himself told us that every night, before going to bed, he gave the keys of the house to St. Joseph, and he instilled in us the same devotion, and he reprimanded us if we did not obtain the graces we requested because we did not go with sufficient constancy.

- Complete Works of St. Jose Manyanet, trans. by Scott Smith, Vol. 6, "Loose thoughts on St. Joseph", p. 136, citing Statement of Brother José Vilanova. Cf. also several other witnesses, such as Fathers Luis Tallada y Baynach, Francisco Mascaró y Labat, Antonio Carrió y Grau.

No lesser privilege and excellence of chastity is to honor the soul that possesses it and to raise it to do great things and to undertake marvelous undertakings; contrary to the vice of the flesh that blinds, demeans and debases it to the point of unbelievability, as daily experience attests, for it is seen that the lustful and given to sensual pleasures no longer likes the things of virtue and is grieved by generous deeds; He becomes apathetic, hardened, he forgets what he knew to be good, he loses his understanding, and as if intoxicated, he only thinks and seeks to please himself in that which is more proper to beasts than to rational men and children of God.

- Complete Works of St. Jose Manyanet, trans. by Scott Smith, The School of Nazareth, "Twenty-Sixth Visit: Religious chastity and its excellence," p. 556.

Saint Quotes: Patience

Do not say that person annoys me. Say that person sanctifies me.

- St. Josemaria Escriva

Saint Quotes: Trust

- “He who trusts in himself is lost. He who trusts in God can do all things.”

- “What does it cost us to say, ‘My God help me! Have mercy on me!’ Is there anything easier than this? And this little will suffice to save us if we be diligent in doing it.”

St. Alphonsus Liguori

“Jesus Christ, Lord of all things! You see my heart, you know my desires. Possess all that I am—you alone. I am your sheep; make me worthy to overcome the devil.”

St. Agatha

Saint Quotes: Humility

“It is with the smallest brushes that the artist paints the most exquisitely beautiful pictures.”

St. André Bessette

“The most powerful weapon

to conquer the devil is humility.

For, as he does not know at all,

how to employ it,

neither does he know

how to defend himself from it.”

St. Vincent de Paul (1581-1660)

Saint Quotes: Trinity

“For to have the fruition of God the Trinity, after whose image we are made, is indeed the fullness of our joy, than which there is no greater.”

St. Augustine

“The three Persons are distinct from one another; a sublime knowledge is infused into the soul, imbuing it with a certainty of the truth that the Three are of one substance, power, and knowledge and are one God.”

St. Teresa of Ávila

“In spite of our sinfulness, in spite of the darkness surrounding our souls, the grace of the Holy Spirit, conferred by baptism in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, still shines in our hearts with the inextinguishable light of Christ ... and when the sinner turns to the way of repentance the light smooths away every trace of the sins committed, clothing the former sinner in the garments of incorruption, spun of the grace of the Holy Spirit. It is this acquisition of the Holy Spirit about which I have been speaking.”

St. Seraphim of Sarov

“Today I put on a terrible strength invoking the Trinity, confessing the Three with faith in the One as I face my Maker.”

St. Patrick (from “St. Patrick’s Breastplate” prayer)

“O Trinity, eternal Trinity! Fire, abyss of love ... Was it necessary that you should give even the Holy Trinity as food for souls? You gave us not only your Word through the Redemption and in the Eucharist, but you also gave yourself in the fullness of love for your creature.

St. Catherine of Siena

“The Father loves not only the Son but also himself and us, by the Holy Ghost.”

St. Thomas Aquinas

“Rise, you who were lying fast asleep … Rise and hurry to the Church: Here is the Father, here is the Son, here is the Holy Spirit.”

St. Ambrose

“A great mystery, a mystery of love, an ineffable mystery, before which words must give way to the silence of wonder and worship. A divine mystery that challenges and involves us, because a share in the Trinitarian life was given to us through grace, through the redemptive Incarnation of the Word and the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

St. John Paul II

“When One of the Three Persons communicates with a soul, by the power of that one will, it finds itself united with the Three Persons and is inundated in the happiness flowing from the Most Holy Trinity, the same happiness that nourishes the saints. This same happiness that streams from the Most Holy Trinity makes all creation happy; from it springs that life which vivifies and bestows all life which takes its beginning from him.”

St. Faustina

“I vow and consecrate to God all that is in me: My memory and my actions to God the Father; My understanding and my words to God the Son; My will and my thoughts to God the Holy Spirit.”

St. Francis de Sales (from a consecration prayer to the Trinity)

“Eternal God, eternal Trinity, you are a mystery as deep as the sea; the more I search, the more I find, and the more I find the more I search for you.”

St. Catherine of Siena, virgin and doctor (1347-1380 A.D.)

“Eternal Trinity, Godhead, mystery deep as the sea, you could give me no greater gift than the gift of yourself.”

St. Catherine of Siena, virgin and doctor (1347-1380 A.D.)

“As the depths of the sea are invisible to human sight, so the Godhead of the Trinity is found to be beyond the grasp of human understanding.”

St. Columban, abbot (545-615 A.D.)

“When we share in the Spirit, we possess the love of the Father, the grace of the Son and the fellowship of the Spirit himself.”

St. Athanasius, bishop (296-373 A.D.)

“You are the garment which covers our nakedness, and in our hunger you are a satisfying food, for you are sweetness and in you there is no taste of bitterness, O triune God!”

St. Catherine of Siena, virgin and doctor (1347-1380 A.D.)

“The holy Trinity, the one true God, is of its nature unity, equality and love, and by one divine activity sanctifies its adopted sons.”

St. Fulgentius of Ruspe, bishop (467-533 A.D.)

“When the Spirit dwells in us, the Word who bestows the Spirit is in us too, and the Father is present in the Word.”

St. Athanasius, bishop (296-373 A.D.)

“There is in all and through all one God the Father, one Word and Son, and one Spirit, and one salvation for all who believe in him”

St. Irenaeus, bishop (140-203 A.D.)

Saint Quotes on the Holy Spirit

“In the darkness and ignorance of this life the Holy Spirit enlightens the poor in spirit. He is the love that draws them on, the sweetness that attracts them, the way in which a man approaches God.” + William of Saint Thierry, abbot (1075-1148 A.D.)

“The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of goodness: do not grieve him by your evil actions and thoughts, and so deprive yourself of the defense his light affords you.” + Diadochus of Photice, bishop (c. 400-486 A.D.)

“The Spirit is the source of holiness, a spiritual light, and he offers his own light to every mind to help it in its search for truth.” + St. Basil the Great, bishop (329-379 A.D.)

“By nature the Spirit is beyond the reach of our mind, but we can know him by his goodness.” + St. Basil the Great, bishop (329-379 A.D.)

“The Spirit comes with the tenderness of a true friend and protector to save, to heal, to teach, to counsel, to strengthen, to console.” + St. Cyril of Jerusalem, bishop (315-387 A.D.)

“Since we have our accuser, we need an Advocate as well.” + St. Irenaeus, bishop (140-203 A.D.)

“Christ’s Holy Spirit has unlocked the doors of heaven, which stand wide open to receive those who rise up from the earth.” + St. Maximus of Turin, bishop (380-465 A.D.)

“The Holy Spirit does not proceed by slow, laborious efforts.” + St. Ambrose, bishop (340-397 A.D.)

“It can easily be shown from examples both in the Old Testament and the New that the Spirit changes those in whom he comes to dwell; he so transforms them that they begin to live a completely new kind of life.” + St. Cyril of Alexandria, bishop (375-444 A.D.)

“The spirit of God is indeed a multitude of waters, for the Father is rich and great.” + St. Irenaeus, bishop (140-203 A.D.)

“Spirit of truth, you are the reward of the saints, the comforter of souls, light in the darkness, riches to the poor, treasure to lovers, food for the hungry, comfort to those who are wandering; to sum up, you are the one in whom all treasures are contained.” + St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi, virgin (1566-1607 A.D.)

“The spirit through whom men are reborn is the same Spirit through whom Christ was born.”

St. Augustine, bishop (354-430 A.D.)

“By the anointing of the Holy Spirit, Christ was made both king and priest forever.”

Faustus Luciferanus, priest (Died c. 304 A.D.)

“The river of God is brimming with water; that is to say, we are inundated by the gifts of the Holy Spirit and from that fountain of life the river of God pours into us in full blood.”

St. Hilary, bishop (315-367 A.D.)

“Just as two rushing rivers intermingle in such a way that the smaller loses its name and is absorbed into the larger, so the divine Spirit acts upon the soul and absorbs it.”

St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi, virgin (1566-1607 A.D.)

“The Spirit moves itself by its own weight and lightness into all places that are fitting and disposed to receive it.”

St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi, virgin (1566-1607 A.D.)

“The strength the disciples received from the Spirit enabled them to hold firmly to the love of Christ, facing the violence of their persecutors unafraid.”

St. Cyril of Alexandria, bishop (375-444 A.D.)

“Very true was our Savior’s saying that it was to their advantage for him to return to heaven: his return was the time appointed for the descent of the Holy Spirit.”

St. Cyril of Alexandria, bishop (375-444 A.D.)

“The gift of God is the Holy Spirit.”

St. Augustine, bishop (354-430 A.D.)

“The power of the Spirit fills the whole universe, but he gives himself only to those who are worthy, acting in each according to the measure of his faith.”

St. Basil the Great, bishop (329-379 A.D.)

“Happy the man whose words issue from the Holy Spirit and not from himself!”

St. Anthony of Padua, priest (1195-1231 A.D.)

“Through the Spirit we acquire a likeness to God; indeed, we attain what is beyond our most sublime aspirations – we become God.”

St. Basil the Great, bishop (329-379 A.D.)

Saint Quotes and Prayers on Holy Family, Blessed Virgin Mary, and St. Joseph

"As soon as she [Mary] had the use of reason, that is, from the first moment of her immaculate conception in the womb of Saint Ann, from that time she began with all her powers to love her God; and thus she continued to do, ever advancing more in perfection and love through her whole life. All her thoughts, her desires, her affections, were wholly given to God; not a word, not a motion, not a glance of the eye, not a breath of hers that was not for God and for his glory, never departing one step, nor separating herself for one moment from the divine love."

- St. Alphonsus Liguori

"Prayer is powerful beyond limits when we turn to the Immaculata who is Queen even of God's heart."

- St. Maximilian Kolbe

"The day of the Nativity of the Mother of God is a day of universal joy, because through the Mother of God, the entire human race was renewed, and the sorrow of the first mother, Eve, was transformed into joy."

- St. John Damascene

>> Pope St. John Paul II Quotes on the Holy Family, Blessed Virgin Mary, and St. Joseph

The Church wishes to bear a particular witness to that too during the Octave of Christmas, by means of the feast of the Holy Family. She wishes to recall that the fundamental values, which cannot be violated without incalculable harm of a moral nature, are bound up with the family.

– Pope St. John Paul II, Homily, December 31, 1978

The Holy Family is the beginning of countless other holy families. The Council recalled that holiness is the vocation of all the baptized. In our age, as in the past, there is no lack of witnesses to the “gospel of the family”, even if they are not well known or have not been proclaimed saints by the Church. The Year of the Family is the appropriate occasion to bring about an increased awareness of their existence and their great number.

– Pope St. John Paul II, Gratissimam Sane (Letter to Families), #23, 1994

To gather round the Bethlehem grotto contemplating there the Holy Family, enables us to appreciate the gift of family intimacy in a special way, and spurs us to offer human warmth and concrete solidarity in those unfortunately numerous situations which, for various reasons, lack peace, harmony, in a word, lack “family”.

– Pope St. John Paul II, Angelus, December 29, 1996

Today, in the joyful atmosphere of Christmas, the Church, reliving with fresh wonder the mystery of Emmanuel, God-with-us, leads us to contemplate the Holy Family of Nazareth. From contemplation of this admirable model, the Church draws the values to hold up to the women and men of all times and all cultures.

– Pope St. John Paul II, Angelus, December 27, 1998

This Sunday we are celebrating the Feast of the Holy Family of Nazareth, and it is very significant that this year it takes place the day after Christmas and the opening of the Great Jubilee. I would therefore like to extend my special good wishes to families: a merry Christmas and a happy Jubilee Year to you all, families of Rome and of the entire world! The Jubilee that marks the 2,000th anniversary of Christ’s birth is yours in a particular way, because it recalls how God chose to enter human history through a family.

– Pope St. John Paul II, Angelus, December 26, 1999

Looking today at that Holy House, our thoughts turn to the many families of our time who are in difficult situations. Some of them suffer from extreme poverty; others are forced to seek in foreign countries what they unfortunately lack in their homeland; still others find within their own families serious problems caused by the rapid cultural and social changes which at times overwhelm them. And what can be said of the many attacks on the family institution itself? All this shows how urgent it is to rediscover the value of the family and to help it in every way to be, as God wanted it, the vital environment where every child who comes into the world is welcomed with tenderness and gratitude from the moment of his conception; a place marked by a serene atmosphere that encourages the harmonious human and spiritual development of all its members.

– Pope St. John Paul II, Angelus, December 31, 2000

For every believer, and especially for Christian families, the humble dwelling place in Nazareth is an authentic school of the Gospel. Here we admire, put into practice, the divine plan to make the family an intimate community of life and love; here we learn that every Christian family is called to be a small “domestic church” that must shine with the Gospel virtues. Recollection and prayer, mutual understanding and respect, personal discipline and community asceticism and a spirit of sacrifice, work and solidarity are typical features that make the family of Nazareth a model for every home.

– Pope St. John Paul II, Angelus, December 30, 2001

The liturgy of this Sunday, a few days after Christmas, invites us to contemplate the Holy Family of Nazareth, a wonderful model of human and supernatural virtues for all Christian families. Let us meditate on the mystery of this unique family: we can find in it values and teachings which today are more indispensable than ever to give human society sound and stable foundations.

– Pope St. John Paul II, Angelus, December 29, 2002

Today, a few days after Christmas, the Church contemplates the Holy Family. At the school of Nazareth every family learns to be a workshop of love, unity and openness to life. In our day a misunderstood sense of rights sometimes troubles the very nature of the family institution and of the conjugal bond. People who believe in the importance of the family based on marriage should join forces at all levels. The family is a human and divine reality that should be defended and promoted as a fundamental social good.

– Pope St. John Paul II, Angelus, December 28, 2003

Today, the Feast of St Stephen gives way to the Feast of the Holy Family. The Son of God prepared himself to carry out his redeeming mission, living a hard-working and hidden life in the holy house of Nazareth. Thus, united by his Incarnation with every man and woman (cf. Gaudium et Spes, n. 22), he was able to sanctify human families.

– Pope St. John Paul II, Angelus, December 26, 2004

“This important Marian feast occurs during Advent, a season of watchful and prayerful preparation for Christmas. She who knew better than anyone how to wait attentively for the Lord guides us and shows us how to make more vital and active our journey to the Holy Night of Bethlehem. With her, we spend these weeks in prayer and, guided by her bright star, hasten to make the spiritual journey that will lead us to celebrate the mystery of the Incarnation with greater intensity.”

- Pope St. John Paul II

“The Immaculate Conception shines like a beacon of light for humanity in all the ages.

- Pope St. John Paul II

>> St. Louis de Montfort on Holy Family, Joseph, Mary

"The Son of God became man for our salvation but only in Mary and through Mary."

- St. Louis Marie de Montfort

>> Pope Leo XIII on Holy Family, Joseph, Mary

Pope Leo XIII (1810-1903)

Ad Te, Beate Joseph

To Thee, O Blessed Joseph

O most watchful Guardian of the Holy Family,
defend the chosen children of Jesus Christ.
O most loving father,
ward off from us,
every contagion of error
and corrupting influence.
O our most mighty protector,
be propitious to us
and from heaven assist us
in our struggle with the power of darkness
and, as once you rescued the Child Jesus
from deadly peril,
so now protect God’s Holy Church
from the snares of the enemy
and from all adversity.
Shield, too, each one of us
by your constant protection,
so that, supported by your example
and your aid, we may be able
to live piously,
to die holy
and to obtain eternal happiness in Heaven.
Amen

O Gente Felix
O House of Nazareth The Blest
By Pope Leo XIII (1810-1903)

O house of Nazareth the blest,
Fair hostess of the Lord,
The Church was nurtured at thy breast
And shared thy scanty hoard.

In all the spreading lands of earth.
The wandering sun may see
No dearer spot, no ampler worth
Than erst was found in thee!

We know thy humble tenement
Was heaven’s hermitage:
Celestial heralds came and went
In endless embassage.

There, whatsoever Joseph asks
Christ hastens to fulfil;
While Mary loves the household tasks
That wait her joyous will.

There, Joseph toileth at her side
Her joys and griefs to share,
With thousand ties knit to his bride,
Of love and work and prayer.

Yet how their bosoms constant burn
And deeper ardours prove
In love of Christ, whose eyes return
Tokens of mutual love.

O then, in all the homes of earth,
Be Love the bond of life:
May it enthrone at every hearth
The peace that husheth strife.

All praise to thee, O Jesus,
Who parents dost obey;
Praise to the sovereign Father
And Paraclete for aye.
Amen.

Adveniat Regnum Tuum! (Thy Kingdom Come!)

by Katharine Tynan (1861-1931)

Thy Kingdom come ! Yea, bid it come!
But when Thy Kingdom first began
On earth, Thy Kingdom was a home,
A Child, a woman and a man.

The Child was in the midst thereof,
O, Blessed Jesus, holiest One!
The Centre and the Fount of Love
Mary and Joseph’s little Son.

Wherever on the earth shall be
A child, a woman and a man,
Imaging that sweet trinity
Wherewith Thy Kingdom first began,

Establish there Thy kingdom! Yea,
And o’er that trinity of love
Send down, as in Thy appointed day,
The brooding Spirit of Thy Dove!

Katharine Tynan (1861-1931) was an Irish born Poet and Writer and a friend of the Jesuit Poet, Fr Gerard Manley Hopkins. She contributed to many periodicals and magazines such as the Jesuit published Studies, the Dominican published Irish Rosary, Irish Monthly, Hibernia and Dublin University Review, besides her own private publications. After her marriage, the addition of her husband’s name, “Hinkson” is often appended to her publications

Why Incense? A New Insight on Incense, The Blood of the Tree, Fr. Boniface Hicks, OSB

2024-11-11T08:18:00.004-06:00

It's a sad phenomenon in America. Incense fell out of favor post-Vatican II. Many young Catholics are just now learning about the beauty of thuribles and incense. Meanwhile, older Catholics are turning up their noses, literally. Maybe that would change if we better understood the meaning of incense in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

The Importance of Blood in the Old and New Covenants

Why must we drink the blood of Christ to inherit eternal life? Jesus says at John 6:54, "he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day." Why?

Because the Hebrews believed that the life of the animal is in the blood. If you want the life of Jesus in you, you must consume Jesus' blood. That's how we are "raised up at the last day." These are the actual mechanics of the Resurrection.

So what if I told you that incense is the blood of the tree? We will break this down in the article below. But does that give you a whole new insight on incense? And what about all the trees of the Bible -- the Cross, the Tree of Life?

Let's break this down ...

Fr. Boniface Hicks Told Me You Could Read More About All This in His Book on the Mass ...

These insights on incense are further expanded and elaborated on in Fr. Boniface Hicks' The Hidden Power of Silence in the Mass: A Guide for Encountering Christ in the Liturgy. He told me to share it with you :)

Fr. Boniface Hicks, OSB on Pints With Aquinas: Incense is the Blood of the Tree

Here is Fr. Boniface Hicks, OSB describing this connection with incense being the "blood of the tree" with Matt Fradd in Pints With Aquinas:

Transcript of Fr. Boniface Hicks, OSB on Pints With Aquinas: Incense is the Blood of the Tree

I have edited this a bit for flow and ease of reading:

I was tipped off by an Australian priest to a Hebrew word from the Song of Songs that I could come back to.
It led me into the world of incense, and it turns out the incense is the blood of the tree. Frankincense and myrrh at least -- I'm sure there's lots of different kinds of incense but frankincense and Murray would certainly have a central place in Catholicism -- are the blood of the tree. It's the sap. Wikipedia says through repeatedly wounding, the tree sap is brought forth. It can then congeal into pellets that are hardened, so it's a beautiful symbol in our liturgical celebrations. It's the wounds, so wounds that have been brought forth and hardened and are useless and dead and odorless then placed by the priest.
It's a Priestly action to impose incense. Placed by the priest on the coal of divine charity, it then is melted and releases a sweet fragrance that's offered in worship. So the priest is the one who takes the wounds of his people under the symbol of incense and places them as on the coal of divine charity and then is able to transform wounds into worship like Christ is the one who transforms wounds into worship.

It's what the cross is and then he extended the transformation mechanism you might say to us through the Mass, which is the perpetuation of his sacrifice continually transforming suffering into love and into prayer.
So back to the Hebrew word. Song of Songs 4:9 is "you have ravished my heart my sister my bride you have ravished my heart with one glance of your eye."
"Ravish my heart" is labab (לָבַב). That word is used in extra biblical literature to describe the stripping of bark from a tree. The bark is the hard outer layer of the tree that protects the tree. Stripping the bark makes it vulnerable, and it exposes the tender phloem layer, which is beneath the bark where the sap runs.
So the bridegroom's heart is made vulnerable by the bride. He lets down his walls, he allows the tender under layer to be exposed, he allows himself to be wounded by her beauty, by by her plight, by her own woundedness, by his desire to to rescue her and serve her, and then he also, so the the priest not only offers the the wounds of the people but his own wounds that have hopefully been brought forth by that kind of vulnerability so trees and incense, and but unlike those unlike the bridegroom our Lord who in you say kind of allows himself to be moved what about the bride who needs that bark scraped off through pain and grace.
There's a phrase in John of the Cross where he talks about the Lord loves us into letting go, and I think that's the right tone. When we are well loved, then we let down the defenses, then we allow our hearts to be stripped.

Why Christians Can't Be Freemasons (Masons) - Flyer, Infographic, Handout

2024-11-04T05:45:00.000-06:00

I am strongly opposed to the historical, theological, and other evils of Freemasonry. I feel so strongly about this that I've actually been hesitant to create articles and content on this subject. Maybe it was a spiritual fog. I don't know. But I'm finally doing it!

Please help me disseminate this flyer! Here is a flyer that you can print off and place under windshield wipers in shopping areas -- if such is legal and/or permitted where you live.

You can also give this to Freemasons/Masons that you know. Please comment or email me with any and all creative ideas you come up with for distribution! Also, please let me know if the flyer needs to be corrected/modified or if you have another flyer idea to better inform people about Freemasonry or convert Freemasons back to Christianity.

Please help me spread word about the evils of Freemasonry. Please help me disseminate the flyer below.

I hereby issue a license to use the flyer below to any person or organization that will use said flyer to spread word about the evils of Freemasonry.

Want to read more about this? Here are the two great books that I cited in the flyer above:

The Secret Teachings of the Masonic Lodge: A Christian Perspective by John Ankerberg & John Weldon
Why Catholics Cannot Be Masons by John Salza