Today, on the 5th Day of Christmas, we find ourselves celebrating yet another martyr, St. Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, murdered by knights in the service of King Henry II of England on December 29th, 1170.
The Beloved Disciple at the Foot of the Cross: 3rd Day of Christmas
John is beloved because he is a disciple who himself loves much - so much that he alone of the Apostles follows Christ all the way to Calvary and stands with the Blessed Mother and Mary Magdalene at the foot of the Cross. He is our model in loving discipleship.
The Christmas Conversion of St. Thérèse
In the lives of the Saints we can find some amazing stories of conversion: the Risen Lord literally knocking his persecutor Saul to ground and blinding him, in order to raise him up as St. Paul; the rich and spoiled son of an Italian cloth merchant who needed a year in a dungeon as a … Continue reading The Christmas Conversion of St. Thérèse
St. Catherine of Alexandria, Patroness of Modern Women
St. Catherine of Alexandria has a lot to say to such a world as ours. She puts her trust completely in Jesus Christ, and so she trusts in the gifts he has given her, including her femininity. Therefore, she can be as strong as any man, without surrendering her womanhood.
St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Spiritual Warrior
St. Ignatius urges us to “Find God in All Things”, which is one of the major themes of his Spiritual Exercises and Ignatian Spirituality in general. St. Thérèse, it seems to me, takes that a step further and asks us to then serve God in all things.
Be Sober and Vigilant: You-Know-Who is Prowling
Jesus is not at all hesitant about reminding his followers that discipleship is not a warm and fuzzy business. On the contrary, he says: “Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.” (Matthew 5:11) It’s going to happen.
A Dynamic Trio: St. Augustine, St. Monica & St. Ambrose
St. Monica softened Augustine’s heart, and prepared the ground to receive the seeds of his conversion, but she herself was not able to plant those seeds: she could not convince her son to change his life.
Spiritual Warfare, the Chain of Command, and St. Equitius
"You may not be interested in war, but war is interested in you." -attributed to Leon Trotsky There's a battle raging, and we're all part of it, like it or not. The growing intensity of the Culture War that's engulfing our society is just a surface manifestation of the real war that's been underway since Satan … Continue reading Spiritual Warfare, the Chain of Command, and St. Equitius
Whose Standard? St. Ignatius Loyola
Whose Standard Do You Follow? "Whose Standard?" That is the question posed by St. Ignatius Loyola, founder of the Jesuits. But first, would I be out of line to say that the Society of Jesus is not what it used to be? I don't want to be a Jebbie basher: I have studied under and … Continue reading Whose Standard? St. Ignatius Loyola
We’re Living in the Age of Esau
In pursuit of an illusory freedom we have cut ourselves off from the experience of our ancestors (racist, rigid, old, dead, etc.) and don't even seem to have noticed that at the same time we have cut ourselves off from reality. It's not all up to us. We can't invent ourselves, we can't, as U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy notoriously opined, "define [our] own concept of existence, of meaning, of the universe, and of the mystery of human life." A proper appreciation of what we have been given by our predecessors helps us understand our reliance on what has been given to us by God as well (which is one of the main ideas behind this blog). If, like Esau, we listen to our appetites of the moment and disregard everything else, we will lose our own birthright . . . forever.