God alone ordereth all things and is all-powerful. Why then does He send trials to His servants?
Bernadette Soubirous was born in 1844, the first child of an extremely poor miller in the town of Lourdes in southern France. The family was living in the basement of a dilapidated building wh…
Angeline was born in 1377 to the Duke of Marsciano near Orvieto, Italy. She was 12 when her mother died. Three years later, she made a vow of perpetual chastity. That same year, however, she yielded to her father’s decision that she marry the Duke of Civitella. Her husband agreed to respect …
James Shepherd, practitioner of Christian Science healing and an international speaker, will present his talk, “Why everyone is needed,” at 1 p.m. on June 10 at the Christian Science Center, 10 W. Old Linden Road, on the corner with Central Avenue.
Born at Roccaporena in central Italy, Rita wanted to become a nun but was pressured at a young age into marrying a harsh and cruel man. During her 18-year marriage, she bore and raised two sons. After her husband was killed in a brawl and her sons had died, Rita tried to join the Augustinian…
Margaret of Cortona was born in 1247 of farming parents in Laviano, Tuscany. Her mother died when Margaret was 7; life with her stepmother was so difficult that Margaret moved out. For nine years she lived with a man named Arsenio, though they were not married, and she bore him a son. In tho…
In the Gospel according to St. John, Christ said: “Except a man be born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.” The priests have interpreted this into meaning that baptism is necessary for salvation. In another Gospel it is said: “He shall baptize you with the H…
A native of Croatia, Leopold joined the Capuchin Franciscans and was ordained several years later in spite of several health problems. He could not speak loudly enough to preach publicly. For many years he also suffered from severe arthritis, poor eyesight and a stomach ailment.
Indigenous is that which occurs naturally within a particular place. For example, Ponderosa pines are indigenous to the White Mountains. The Apostle James worked with indigenous people of Israel, Thomas was believed to go work with the indigenous of India, while Mark went to Egypt.
Born in France in the early fifth century, Hilary came from an aristocratic family. In the course of his education, he encountered a relative, Honoratus, who encouraged the young man to join him in the monastic life. Hilary did so. He continued to follow in the footsteps of Honoratus as bish…
The day is fine, the air is pure, the sun shines, no mist or cloud obscures its radiance. These brilliant rays penetrate into all parts of the city; so may the Sun of Truth illumine the minds of men.
Catherine of Siena: an international political figure, a feminist hero and a doctor of the church. To get a more accurate view of Catherine, imagine a scruffy, not-so-respectable version of Saint Mother Teresa. Catherine was not a nun, however, but a member of the Dominican Third Order.
James of Oldo was born into a wealthy family near Milan in 1364. He married Caterina Bocconi, a woman who, like him, appreciated the comforts that came with wealth. But an outbreak of the plague drove James, his wife and their three children out of their home and into the countryside. Despit…
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Bernadette Soubirous was born in 1844, the first child of an extremely poor miller in the town of Lourdes in southern France. The family was living in the basement of a dilapidated building when on Feb. 11, 1858, the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to Bernadette and told her, “I am the Immacula…
In the opening paragraph of Romans, the Apostle states, “I Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus … set apart for the gospel of God … concerning His Son, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, who was designated as the Son of God in power, according to the spirit of holiness, by th…
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Born in Cuvilly, France, into a family of well-to-do farmers, young Marie Rose Julie Billiart showed an early interest in religion and in helping the sick and poor. Witnessing an attempt to wound or even kill her father, Julie was paralyzed and became a complete invalid. For the next two dec…
Human beings are used to literal language. People do not say, “If you do this, you will never die” or “I will raise you up” or “If you drink this you will never thirst.” They tend to translate the prophetic symbols into their common everyday language. People tend to think on their own level,…
The Bible contains abundant warnings to those who would follow false teaching. All of the warnings are sober, and all reveal the awful consequences for those who fail to test man’s word by comparing it with the inerrant words of God. One such warning appears in 2 Timothy:
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The Bible pays Joseph the highest compliment: He was a “just” man. By saying Joseph was “just,” the Bible means that he was one who was completely open to all that God wanted to do for him. He became holy by opening himself totally to God. The rest we can easily surmise. Think of the kind of…
Changing the words of scripture is nothing new. For centuries some Bible scholars have attempted to “interpret” the words of God for their own ends. Origen, called by some the “father” of allegorical interpretation, lived and taught during the early 200s at a school in Alexandria, Egypt. Ess…
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Legends about Saint Patrick abound, but truth is best served by our seeing two solid qualities in him: He was humble and courageous. The determination to accept suffering and success with equal indifference guided the life of God’s instrument for winning most of Ireland for Christ.
Those who are uninformed of the world of reality, who do not comprehend existing things, who are without perception of the inner truth of creation, who do not penetrate the real mysteries of material and spiritual phenomena and who possess only a superficial idea of universal life and being …
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John Ogilvie’s Scottish family was partly Catholic and partly Presbyterian. His father raised him as a Calvinist, sending him away to be educated. John became interested in the popular debates going on between Catholic and Calvinist scholars.
Not only does God conceal certain truths from us in the mold of metaphors, but He also conceals His Redeemers in the robe of their physical form. Just as we must pass through the wrappings of metaphors to discover the truth, so must we pass through the wrappings of physical form, “the human …
In 1220, Saint Anthony was preaching conversion to the inhabitants of Padua when a young nobleman, Luke (Luca) Belludi, came up to him and humbly asked to receive the habit of the followers of Saint Francis. Anthony liked the talented, well-educated Luke and personally recommended him to Fra…
Everyone has heard about Saint Valentine. He’s the patron saint of lovers, and on his day, people send cards, chocolates or other presents to the one they love. But who was Saint Valentine?
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Even 300,000 years (or 5,000, depending on who’s asking) after its emergence, humanity has yet to deliver a satisfactory answer to its oldest question, according to some querents: How, where and when did we begin?
The persecution of Christians began in Alexandria during the reign of the Emperor Philip. The first victim of the pagan mob was an old man named Metrius, who was tortured and then stoned to death. The second person who refused to worship their false idols was a Christian woman named Quinta. …
The following is the most beautiful and touching of all Jesus’ parables. Like an ocean, it contains countless pearls of meanings, mysteries and wonders. It describes in a vivid language the spiritual state of Christians, called young women or “virgins,” who live in the last days, and their r…
According to tradition, Blaise had been a doctor before he was ordained a priest. He became the bishop of Sebaste (now in central Turkey). Blaise was a good bishop, working hard to encourage the spiritual and physical health of his people. He was martyred in his episcopal city of Sebastea, A…
Fallen man is still an image bearer of God. Genesis 9:6 reads: “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.” The second half of v.6 gives the reason for this command: “for God made man in his own image.”
In James 3:9 we read: “With it [the tongue] we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people, who are made in the likeness of God.”
The most distinctive feature of the biblical understanding of man is the teaching that man has been created in the image of God.
Born in 1825 in central Poland and baptized Sophia, she contracted tuberculosis as a young girl. The forced period of convalescence gave her ample time for reflection. Sophia felt called to serve God by working with the poor, including street children and the elderly homeless in Warsaw’s slu…
Charles was inspired to become a Franciscan; he did that in 1635. He tells us in his autobiography, “Our Lord put in my heart a determination to become a lay brother with a great desire to be poor and to beg alms for his love.”
William Carter entered the printing business at an early age. For many years he served as apprentice to well-known Catholic printers. He offended England’s public officials by publishing works that aimed to keep Catholics firm in their faith and even served a prison sentence for doing so. Wh…
The Bahá’í Faith is a new religion God has sent to unify all nations and peoples of the world and to establish a global civilization based on justice, peace and harmony.
Brother André expressed a saint’s faith by a lifelong devotion to Saint Joseph. At 25, André applied for entrance into the Congregation of Holy Cross. After a year’s novitiate, he was not admitted because of his weak health. But with an extension and the urging of Bishop Bourget, he was fina…
One of the first deacons and martyrs of the church was a man named Stephen. Acts of the Apostles says that Stephen was a man filled with grace and power, who worked great wonders among the people.
Jacomo or James was born a noble member of the Benedetti family in the northern Italian city of Todi. He became a successful lawyer and married a pious, generous lady named Vanna. His wife suddenly died, after which Jacomo vowed to radically change his life.
There are many parallels between the Jews who lived at the time of Jesus and the literal-minded Christians who live today. The Jews expected their Redeemer to come from an “unknown place” with great glory and power to crush their enemies and crown them to a kingdom as lofty and splendid as t…
There are many ways to miss Christmas: distractions, ignorance, pride, indifference, apathy, religious ritual, idolatry, familiarity, to name only a few. But behind all of these reasons is unbelief. Many people simply refuse to believe in Jesus Christ.
Abbess, artist, author, composer, mystic, pharmacist, poet, preacher, theologian — where to begin in describing this remarkable woman?
The tragic story of Jesus should encircle the lives of all faithful believers with haloes of absolute and unconditional humility. Those haloes should enlighten all their thoughts. They should guide every step of their spiritual journey. Jesus exalted and blessed the meek who acknowledge thei…
Sabas (439-532) is one of the most highly regarded patriarchs among the monks of Palestine, and is considered one of the founders of Eastern monasticism. After an unhappy childhood in which he was abused and ran away several times, Sabas finally sought refuge in a monastery. At age 18 he tra…
Francis Xavier had planned to devote himself to the intellectual life, but at a strategic moment he surrendered to God, who had long and patiently pursued him. That surrender changed the course of his life — and the course of history as well. Even Ignatius of Loyola, the leader of the new Je…
Most scholars doubt that December 25th is the true date of Christ’s birth. There is no biblical support for it, and some against it. The Church in Rome decided on that date in the 4th century. They had a reason for doing so.
Hearing tales of missionary work in Louisiana as a little girl, Rose’s ambition was to go to America and work among the Native Americans. At 49, she thought this would be her work.
“And she gave birth to her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.” (Lk.2.7)
How can I help? Many have asked this question, but they have not had a way or an opportunity to take action. Now, you can help the week of Nov. 13.
What is the heart and soul of religion? It is the practice of the spiritual laws that bring humans into harmony with God. It is an “everlasting dialogue between humanity and God.” It is the “voice of the deepest human experience.” What are the most precious words in human life? Love, joy, ha…
