Saint Paschal Baylon
Today was the commemoration of Saint Paschal Baylon, Franciscan laybrother, who died on Pentecost Sunday, 17 May 1592 as he had foretold. Illiterate, Paschal Baylon...
A Priest’s Prayer to Blessed John Paul II
I have prayed this little prayer daily for the past five years. Recently, my good friend Monsignor Arthur B. Calkins proposed that I include in...
Advice from the Angelic Doctor
This oil painting of a youthful and svelte Saint Thomas by Paolo de Majo (1703-1784) is in a private collection in Caserta. You can see...
Saint Giovan Giuseppe della Croce
I almost forgot that today is the feast of Saint Giovan Giuseppe della Croce. A Family Connection My mother’s grandmother was born and raised in...
A Life Offered for Priests
Commemoration of Blessed Marie de Jésus Deluil Martiny, Virgin Although today is Sexagesima Sunday, I cannot let it pass without remembering Blessed Marie de Jésus,...
Confidence in God’s love
Today (in the traditional Benedictine calendar) is the feast of Saint Peter Damian, Bishop and Doctor of the Church (1007-1072). Monk, cardinal, and reformer, Saint...
Bernadette
Although the Roman Martyrology commemorates the anniversary of Saint Bernadette’s death on April 16th, her liturgical memorial is kept on February 18th at Lourdes itself,...
Like the Dove in the Cleft of the Rock
The Open Side of Jesus Crucified Look at this remarkable painting of Jesus Crucified. The focus of the composition is the wound in His Sacred...
With Eyes Fixed on Thee
Thursday Thursday is the weekly rememoration of the mysteries of the Cenacle: Our Lord’s washing the feet of His Apostles; the High Priestly Prayer given...
Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas Between East and West The Church in East and West commemorates Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker on December 6th. The very first journey of...
Peering Through the Windows
Collect Almighty and everlasting God, who for the defence of the veneration of sacred images, didst endue blessed John with heavenly doctrine and wonderful strength...
In this night of catching nothing
A Feastday Gift A number of years ago, I composed music for a French Office hymn for the feast of Saint Andrew. It was a...
God can complete what He has begun
I have long been a friend of Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori, or perhaps I should say that Saint Alphonsus, by some mysterious disposition of...
The Gentle-Hearted King
From the Lesson at Matins: He Began With the Things of Religion Edward greatly loved God, and was gentle-hearted, and free from any lust for...
Of all the calculations I could make . . .
Father Ernest Lelièvre, Friend and Father to the Aged Poor One saint leads to another. After posting my entries on Blessed John Henry Newman and...
My confidence cannot exceed Thy bounty
The text of Blessed John Henry Newman that I posted on his feastday seems to have touched a number of souls. The saints are close...
Blessed John Henry Newman
The feast of Blessed John Henry Newman is an occasion of joy and thanksgiving for a multitude of souls. Here are the liturgical texts for...
O Rosario benedetto di Maria
Prayer at Noon For Catholics in Italy and throughout the world, today, Sunday, 3 October 2010, marks the return of an appointment with the Supplica,...
Thérèse de l’Enfant Jésus et de la Sainte Face
Thérèse is so often referred to as “little,” that we risk not seeing the breadth and depth that are really characteristic of her, and the...
O Holy Father John Chrysostom, you are a brilliant torch flooding the universe with light!
Saint John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church 1 Corinthians 7:35-31 Psalm 44:10-11, 13b-14, 15-16 (r. 10a) Luke 6:20-26 A Preacher Unlike Any Other...