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Saints Alive! | St Martina of Rome

St. Martina of Rome (d. 228 A.D.) was born to a noble Roman family and orphaned at a young age. She was zealous in the practice of her faith, remained a virgin, and, in preparation for the Christian persecutions sweeping the city, gave much of her inheritance to the poor. She was martyred under Roman Emperor Alexander Severus. According to the accounts of her martyrdom, she was discovered praying in a church and was arrested by Roman soldiers. For more about this saint, please click on the image. Peace be with you!

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The Rosary | The Joyful Mysteries

The Rosary is one of the most beautiful prayers in the Catholic tradition. It's also one of the most commonly misunderstood, which is often the case for many of our Protestant brothers and sisters. Yet, it doesn't have to be. Put simply, the Rosary is a prayerful meditation on the life of Jesus Christ through the eyes of his mother.

I invite you, whether you are Catholic, Protestant, or other, to watch this beautiful video by our friends at Word on Fire.  Today we pray the Joyful Mysteries.  We meditate on five key events in the life of Jesus Christ through the eyes of his mother, the Virgin Mary.

For more, please click on the image.

Peace be with you!

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Divine Office | The hearts and minds of all believers were one

In today's Office of Readings we encounter a reading from a treatise on the psalms by Saint Hilary of Poitiers (ca. 315-367 A.D.).

Hilary was born at the beginning of the fourth century. He was elected Bishop of Poitiers in 350. He fought strongly against Arianism and was exiled by the Emperor Constantius. His works are full of wisdom and learning, directed to the strengthening of the Catholic faith and the right interpretation of Scripture. He died in 367. He was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Pius IX in 1851.

For a reflection on "The hearts and minds of all believers were one," please click on the image.

Peace be with you!

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Saints Alive! | St Aquilinus of Milan

St. Aquilinus of Milan, also known as St. Aquilinus of Cologne, was born to a noble family in Bavaria, Germany. He fought against spreading heresies of his day. He was also known as a protector against plague, healing people from disease, especially during a cholera epidemic. St. Aquilinus of Milan is venerated as a martyr in the Catholic Church.

For more about this saint, please click on the image.

Peace be with you!

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The Rosary | The Glorious Mysteries

The Rosary is one of the most beautiful prayers in the Catholic tradition. It's also one of the most commonly misunderstood, which is often the case for many of our Protestant brothers and sisters. Yet, it doesn't have to be. Put simply, the Rosary is a prayerful meditation on the life of Jesus Christ through the eyes of his mother. I invite you, whether you are Catholic, Protestant, or other, to watch this beautiful video by our friends at Word on Fire.  Today we pray the Glorious Mysteries.  We meditate on five key events in the life of Jesus Christ through the eyes of his mother, the Virgin Mary. For more, please click on the image. Peace be with you!

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Divine Office | Christ has called us to his kingdom and glory

In today's Office of Readings we encounter a reading from St Ignatius of Antioch's letter to the Church of Smyrna (d. 107 A.D.).

He was the second bishop of Antioch after St Peter (the first being Evodius). He was arrested (some writers believe that he must have been denounced by a fellow-Christian), condemned to death, and transported to Rome to be thrown to the wild beasts in the arena. In one of his letters he describes the soldiers who were escorting him as being like “ten leopards, who when they are kindly treated only behave worse.” In the course of his journey he wrote seven letters to various churches, in which he dealt wisely and deeply with Christ, the organisation of the Church, and the Christian life. They are important documents for the early history of the Church, and they also reveal a deeply holy man who accepts his fate and begs the Christians in Rome not to try to deprive him of the crown of martyrdom. He was martyred in 107.

For a reflection, "Christ has called us to his kingdom and glory," please click on the image.

Peace be with you!

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Saints Alive! | St Thomas Aquinas

Thomas Aquinas, a Dominican friar, encountered the thought of Aristotle as a student in Naples. His great Summa Theologiae brought together Aristotle’s thought and the classical Christian formulations of the Fathers of the Church. Aquinas’ writings display the profound harmony between faith and reason, and have formed students of theology for centuries. Of him Pope John Paul II wrote, “He could defend the radical newness introduced by Revelation without ever demeaning the venture proper to reason.” In 1567, he was declared the “Angelic Doctor.”

For more about this saint, Angelic Doctor of the Church, please click on the image.

Peace be with you!

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A Catholic New Year Resolution | Be not afraid!

As we embark on a new year, let us resolve to live out our baptismal promises as Catholics. Let this be the year that all Catholics - faithful and fallen away - resolve to be a light in the darkness. Be not afraid!

For my reflection, "A Catholic New Year Resolution," please click on the image.

Peace be with you!

Thomas, Disciple of Christ | Son of the Church

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Articles of Faith | The Scandal of the Eucharist

The Catholic belief in The Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist is a hard saying, no doubt.  Yet, it's no harder a saying as was said by Jesus himself as he begins his colloquy with his disciples in the synagogue at Capernaum (see Jn 6:30). This teaching, the Catholic Church defends as the definitive and apostolic origins of the Eucharist, points to the Eucharist (from the Greek for "thanksgiving") as the "source and summit of the Christian life".

For a beautiful summation of the scandal of such a saying - and the recognition of how hard it is to believe - enjoy this brief writing from Fr. Richard Veras of Saint Joseph's Seminary; and for a Catholic answer addressing common Evangelical Fundamentalist challenges to the Catholic understanding of the Real Presence, please also see more of this post by clicking on the image.

Peace be with you!

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Do you reject Satan?

This Sunday following the Epiphany the Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Baptism of the Lord.  It is here we recall in a special way Jesus' baptism in the river Jordan by John the Baptist.  In it we are also reminded of a great mystery revealed.  God the Father reveals Jesus as his "beloved Son" and the Holy Spirit comes down from heaven in the form of a dove. Here, we reject Satan and all his empty promises.

For my reflection, "Do you reject Satan?" please click on the image.

Peace be with you!

Thomas
Disciple of Christ | Son of the Church

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Articles of Faith | The Eucharist: In the Words of the Church Fathers

Today we explore some of the early Church Fathers sayings about the Eucharist.  Many of our mainline Protestant brothers and sisters, who know their history, will agree who these early Church Fathers were.

Catholic brothers and sisters, though not a Holy Day of Obligation, Holy Thursday has rich and historical significance for each of us:  for before departing the Upper Room to begin his Passion, Jesus instituted the Sacrament of the Eucharist, giving thanks to his Father, and commanding his Apostles to love one another, as He has loved them (cf Jn 13:34); and he commanded them, "Do this in memory of me" (Mk 14:22-24; Lk 22:19-20; 1 Cor 10:16; Jn 6:53-57, 1 Cor 11:23-30).

For more on this great Mystery of Faith, from the Church Fathers in their own words, please click on the image.

Peace be with you!

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Catholics Come Home | Fallen Away Catholics

The story of the Prodigal Son, as we encounter in the Gospel of Luke (15:11-32), is one of the most poignant in all of literature. Sadly, there are many Catholics today who have fallen away from their baptismal faith. Each has a story of his own. Yet, by the sacramental power of one's baptism there remains a call unanswered - the yearning of a Father desiring the return of his child to the home of his baptismal birth. For more about this post, and for a 2 min video expressing the tender mercy that awaits at home in love's embrace, click on the image. Our father in heaven wants us home. He wants you home. If you’ve been away from the Church for one day, or for a lifetime, come home. Your family misses you.

For more, please click on the image.

Peace be with you!